"I am not later, am I?"
A familiar voice echoes in the ears of Tsunade and Naruto.
"T-this voice!"
Tsunade and Naruto raise their head with trembling lips. Two figures are standing in front of them.
They are very familiar with one of them. It's Minato. He is standing beside a familiar yet unfamiliar face.
"You… you are Izuna!" Tsunade's lips tremble.
"So, you still recognize me!" Izuna has a foolish expression on his face.
"It's you! That foolish expression and that goofy face. Who else could it be but Izuna?"
Tsunade leaps at him.
Izuna also opens his arms in a hug.
Bam…
The next second, a punch greets him in the face.
Aww…
Izuna opens his eyes and rubs his face in pain.
"That hurts!"
However, the next second, Tsunade hugs him in his embrace and sheds tears.
"I missed you… I missed you a lot!"
She continues to shed tears and sob.
'I… I thought that the curse of my necklace also had an effect on you. I was so worried about you. All these years… I never lost hope. I knew you would return one day. But… but…'
"It's alright! I am back." Izuna also hugs the soft body of Tsunade. Tsunade continues to hug him like a koala, refusing to let go of his body.
"You know… there is an emergency right now!"
"I don't care." Tsunade shakes her head.
"Naruto and Minato are watching us right now!"
"I don't mind!"
Naruto and Minato turn their head away with red faces.
"Well… Umm…"
An awkward expression appears on Izuna's face. Yet he didn't let go of Tsunade's embrace.
For Tsunade and others, it might be three to four years. But for him, it has been hundreds and thousands of years. The bottled-up emotions in his heart flare up and he tightens his embrace.
"Yes, I also missed you!" He murmurs in her ears.
"But it's not the time for celebration."
Only then did Tsunade let go of him. Izuna wipes her tears and glances at the massive divine tree with four giant-tailed beast bombs.
Obito also notices their expression, especially Minato.
"So, you are here Sensei?" He remarks.
Obito subconsciously ignores Izuna's presence. Or it is more like he is unable to feel Izuna's presence at all.
"Obito, you should stop it!"
Minato notices Obito's current appearance. He also senses the overwhelming power overflowing Obito's body. A large amount of nature energy continuously circulates him. Minato could describe Obito's presence as immense in his mind.
"Dad, this guy Obito… he became the Ten Tail's Jinchuriki!" Naruto reminds him.
"You have gotten quite cocky in my absence, Obito!" Izuna finally breaks the silence, revealing himself to Obito.
"YOU!"
Obito's eyes narrow as Izuna suddenly appears beside the group.
"Who are you?" His eyes narrow as he is unable to sense the chakra of the person in front of him.
"Oh! So, you even forgot about your friend, Obito?" Izuna murmurs.
"I thought we were quite close. You even invited me to eat Grandma Osami's pork cutlets."
"You are Izuna?!" Obito instantly recognizes Izuna.
"Impossible! Izuna should be dead!" He yells in disbelief.
"I saw him die with my own eyes."
"That's mean, Obito! We used to be friends." Izuna pretends to sigh in sorrow.
Izuna's words startle Obito, but he takes a deep breath and regains his composure.
"So, what if you are here? You can't stop me. The current me is above the mortals." Obito opens his arms.
The Truth-seeking orbs on his back create a shield to block the explosion of Four-Tailed beast bombs.
Previously, he was already done setting up the Six Crimson Formation barrier when the group was busy reuniting.
"Oh, you mean the Truth-Seeking Orbs?" Izuna chuckles.
He extends his palm and creates Ten Truth-seeking orbs in his hand.
"This amateur technique?!"
The Ten truth-seeking orbs float around him.
"Here, I will give them to you three."
Izuna waves his arm and hands four Truth-seeking orbs to Naruto and three each to Tsunade and Minato.
"Woah!"
Naruto extends his hands and touches the Truth-seeking orb. It feels soft and squishy to the touch, just like cornstarch.
Tsunade and Minato also wield and control the Truth-seeking orb.
"Now, you don't have to worry about his instant atomization technique."
Naruto controls a Truth-seeking orb and morphs it into a staff.
"Hmm… why do I feel like I can master and create these things on my own?" Naruto scratches his head.
"It's because a person can acquire them at the Third Stage of the Senjutsu. To attain the Third Stage, you require the mastery of all five elements to the extreme. However, Naruto… you…"
Izuna glances at Naruto.
"You received chakra from almost all the tailed beasts and, as a result, you already possess all elemental chakra natures. So, it's a matter of time before you master and awaken the Third Form of Senjutsu, also called the Sage of Six Paths Mode." Izuna explains to Naruto.
"Oh, so that's how it is!"
Naruto nods in understanding. Minato and Tsunade also gain some insight into the Senjutsu.
They also control the Truth-Seeking orbs according to their will.
Obito narrows his eyes at the sight of Izuna distributing the Truth Seeking Orb.
"How do you possess this power?" He growls.
"I bet my life, I bet everything to attain this power, and you… how did you?!"
"Well, it's because I am a genius!" Izuna grins at Obito.
"And I put quite an effort to gain this power," Izuna recalls the memories of his struggle to achieve his current power.
'Even with my boons and advantages, it wasn't an effortless task. After I explored this universe, I met countless beings with more advantages than me. Yet, with effort and luck, I managed to surpass them all.'
"No matter what, I won't fall for your bluff!"
The intensity of chakra in the four-tailed beast bombs increases. They are ready to explode at any moment.
At this moment, Sasuke, Jiraiya, Tobirama, and Mei also approach him. Izuna gives Mei a passionate hug, ignoring the strange gazes of everyone around him.
"He is Izuna!" Hiruzen informs Mito. Mito calmly scrutinizes Izuna.
"Here for you all!"
Izuna extends his hand and creates ten more truth-seeking orbs. Three orbs fly to Sasuke, three to Jiraiya, and two each to Mei and Itachi.
Tobirama, Hiruzen, and Mito stare at him in shock.
"The number of orbs I gave everyone is the maximum limit you can control at your current power," Izuna adds.
"What about us, Izuna boy?" Hiruzen points at himself.
"Unfortunately, Edo Tensei can't control these orbs. It requires a living body to sustain its power." Izuna shakes his head.
Mm…
Tobirama nods.
"If you are so powerful, then why don't you fight him directly and end this war? It will be easier for you to take him down." Mito asks what everyone has in their mind, but were hesitating to ask Izuna.
Izuna smiles and raises his head and glances towards the sky.
"Because there is someone else who needs my attention!"
The rest of the group also raises their head to stare at the sky. Even Obito glances at the sky.
A few Hyuga clan members even activate their Byakugan but don't notice anything. Only Obito feels a pair of prying eyes focused on him. And yet he is unable to sense the source of them. Obito frowns, as he doesn't like the unfamiliar variable in his plan.
'Once I activate the Eye of the Moon Plan, everything will end!' He assures himself.
"Mm…" Naruto nods.
"I can also sense someone in the sky. Though I can't pinpoint the location."
"Is it?" The rest of the group, except Mito, understand the hint.
"Just leave him to me. I will let you all handle him."
"Leave him to us!" The group stares at the Truth-seeking orbs flying around them in confidence.
With this new power, they might not be as strong as Obito; but they don't have to be afraid of his instant death techniques. Thus, they stand a strong chance to defeat Obito by working together.
Whoosh…
Izuna flies towards the sky. His body easily penetrates the Six Crimson Barrier Formation set by Obito, much to the latter's surprise.
Hashirama, who is sprinting towards the barrier, also notices Izuna's flying figure. A grin appears on his face.
"Haha… this brat is here!"
********************************
A/N:- The fated battle between Izuna and Madara is here. Join my pat reon at:
www.pa treon.com/ForgottenLife
to read it in advance.