"What the hell are you talking about?"
Obito tried to remain calm, but doubt began to creep into his mind. Could Sasuke really know his true identity?
"How could I know such a brat?" Obito attempted to conceal his inner uneasiness, but his eyes betrayed his alertness and suspicion.
Sasuke smirked, his lips curling into a sly smile, as he continued to tease, "Really? I heard that Uchiha Obito was also a good friend of Kakashi-sensei. I didn't expect that Kakashi-sensei, who loves to read those pervy books, could actually be friends with an Uchiha. Maybe you should think about it more carefully—you might just know him after all."
Obito's heart tightened, and a flicker of barely noticeable nervousness flashed in his eyes. He gritted his teeth, realizing this kid was more difficult to deal with than expected.
"I told you, I don't know this brat!" Obito's voice grew low and harsh, tinged with anger.
Before he finished speaking, Obito suddenly lunged at Sasuke, moving swiftly and decisively, as if trying to silence Sasuke with his actions. Unfortunately for Obito, his speed was no match for Sasuke, who had the ability to manipulate space and time. Just as Obito was about to make contact, Sasuke's figure vanished like a ghost. Obito, startled, stopped abruptly, but it was too late. Sasuke had already reappeared above him, sneering as he delivered a lightning-fast punch.
However, Obito remained unflustered. Confidence gleamed in his eyes as he easily evaded Sasuke's attack using his Kamui intangibility. Obito smiled smugly, a flash of disdain in his gaze. He was fully confident in his Kamui ability, believing that Sasuke couldn't harm him.
Sasuke was not discouraged. He knew the power of Kamui; otherwise, why would Obito be called the "Hollow Dog"?
"What a tricky ability! It's really worthy of being called the Shura of the Ninja World, Uchiha Madara, with such a powerful life-saving technique," Sasuke said sarcastically. Although the Kamui intangibility was indeed an abnormal ability, there were ways to counter it.
The first way was to attack with such speed that Obito couldn't react, like Namikaze Minato's Rasengan, which had landed because the speed of the Flying Thunder God Technique exceeded Obito's reaction time. The second way was to attack continuously for five minutes, outlasting the duration of Kamui. But for Sasuke, the first method was easier—his space-time manipulation abilities far exceeded the Flying Thunder God Technique.
If he really wanted to kill Obito, he could simply teleport to Obito's neck and slice it with a blade. But that would be too boring. Sasuke had his own plans for both Obito and Itachi, so he wasn't in a rush to kill them.
Obito, on the other hand, believed that Sasuke was just envious of his ability. He scoffed and said coldly, "Uchiha Sasuke, even if you can't hit me, what of it? You still can't harm me! Join our organization, and together we'll bring peace to the ninja world!"
Obito spread his arms wide, looking very much like a cult leader trying to deceive followers. But Sasuke couldn't stand hearing that nonsense any longer.
"I'm not sparing your life so you can preach to me," Sasuke said disdainfully.
Before Obito could react, Sasuke disappeared again, only to reappear in front of Obito, moving so fast that Obito couldn't keep up.
**Boom!**
Sasuke's punch didn't kill Obito, but it was painful enough that he might have wished it had. Obito flew backward like a kite with a broken string. It wasn't until the pain hit that Obito realized he had actually been struck.
After tumbling across the ground for several meters, Obito's body finally came to a stop. He lay there in disarray, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. Struggling, he slowly stood up, his trembling hand gently touching the spot where Sasuke had hit him. The searing pain caused beads of sweat to form on his forehead.
"Ugh... Uchiha Sasuke... Even if I can't defeat you, the powerful forces of the Akatsuki are not something you can face alone!" Obito gasped, trying to suppress the pain.
But just as he was about to use Kamui to escape, a voice that had haunted his dreams suddenly rang out.
"Obito, is that you?"
The gentle and familiar voice was like a bolt of lightning in the darkness. Obito turned around abruptly, his eyes locking onto the girl behind him.
She had short brown hair, and her large eyes sparkled with a deep brown light as they fixed on him. Seeing this incredibly familiar face, Obito froze in place.
"Rin! Rin!!!"
His voice was low and hoarse, filled with a mixture of excitement and shock that he could not suppress.
"Is it really you, Rin?!" At that moment, Obito no longer cared if his voice might be heard by others; his heart was overwhelmed with longing and surprise.
But then he noticed something was wrong with Rin. A closer look revealed that she was in the state of Edo Tensei.
In an instant, Obito knew who was responsible.
"Uchiha Sasuke, how dare you toy with Rin's soul!" Obito's voice dripped with murderous intent.
"Ah, you're done pretending now?" Sasuke said disdainfully. "Uchiha Obito, I thought you could keep up the act a little longer."
Indeed, for Obito, a lovesick fool, Nohara Rin was a nuclear weapon. The moment he heard her voice, Obito would lose all sense of reason.
"Shut up! I'll kill you and save Rin!" Obito's eyes were filled with rage. With a loud shout, he quickly formed hand seals.
"Fire Style: Explosive Wind Dance!"
Obito created a distorted space through Kamui and then released a Fire Style technique exclusive to him. But Sasuke was not worried in the least. In fact, he almost wanted to laugh.
"You really don't learn from your mistakes, do you, Obito?" Sasuke taunted. Then, his figure vanished, replaced by Nohara Rin's.
"No, Obito!" Rin shouted loudly.
Seeing that Sasuke was so shameless as to use Rin against him, Obito ignored the pain and quickly used Kamui to reach Rin's side, pulling her away from his own jutsu.
"Rin, don't worry, I…"
But before Obito could finish his sentence...
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