章 159: Chapter 159: I Know
Chapter 159: I Know
Suddenly, Rin, worried that it might be an enemy disguised as Haneda, asked, "Haneda, why are you here?!"
Haneda didn't respond, lightning crackling in his hand as he raised his sword and struck down the rubble of the collapsed cave. A flash of lightning left a long mark on the ground, and Haneda's sword fell, stabbing weakly into the ground.
"Haneda!" Kakashi seemed to understand, gripping the charm in his hand tightly. "His chakra has disappeared; I can see it."
Haneda's three-tomoe Sharingan stared blankly forward. His proud eyes could no longer see any trace of Obito. Silence settled around them, weighing heavily on all of them.
A blue butterfly flitted by and landed on the hilt of the fallen sword. As someone approached, the butterfly took flight, and the sword returned to Haneda's hand.
Watching Haneda's departing figure, Kakashi shouted, "Haneda!"
"I'm going to kill a few people."
---
By nightfall, moonlight shone over the rubble of Kannabi Bridge and the countless corpses strewn across the battlefield.
Kakashi didn't know how long it had been since the afternoon when a lightning-clad figure appeared on the bridge and killed hundreds of Iwa-nin, like an unstoppable killing machine. Only after the Iwa-nin were driven back by the relentless flashes of lightning and gold did Kannabi Bridge finally fall silent.
Haneda, gripping his sword, walked over.
Kakashi recognized the footsteps, and as he looked up, he saw Haneda.
Kakashi said quietly, "Haneda, Obito, he..."
"I know." Haneda sat down beside Kakashi, his head hanging low.
"He... before he died..."
"I know!"
Kakashi, noticing Haneda's uncharacteristic aggression, placed the charm Obito had given him on Haneda's lap. "He wanted me to tell you..."
"Kakashi! I've told you over and over—I know!!"
Haneda raised his head sharply, his three-tomoe Sharingan staring into Kakashi's eyes.
But Kakashi continued, "He wanted me to tell you that this is the last time—to forgive him for leaving without saying goodbye."
"And he asked me to tell you not to resent his saliva, and not to think of him in your dreams."
Haneda froze, memories flashing through his mind. Those happy moments of skipping classes, napping, studying, and training together with Obito, Rin, and Kakashi.
If only he had been faster...
If only he hadn't hesitated to use Mokuton against Sasori...
If only he'd found Obito and the others sooner...
Maybe things would be different.
Tears slipped down Haneda's cheeks, falling onto the ground below. "Please, don't say any more."
Minato appeared behind Haneda, placing a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry. This time, I was too late..."
Kakashi, hearing his sensei's familiar voice, looked up at Minato, his eyes full of complex emotions. Regret that his proud Chidori hadn't protected Obito, resentment that the Leaf's fastest shinobi hadn't arrived in time...
All these thoughts merged into a single sigh.
"Sensei Minato, actually, I..."
"It's not your fault, Kakashi," Haneda and Minato said in unison.
The two of them exchanged a look, one holding the charm lost in memories, and the other silently accompanying his three young students.
Moonlight bathed the faces of the four, and silence reigned over Kannabi Bridge that night.
---
Meanwhile, in a hidden underground base cloaked in blood-red mist...
A boy, his body half-wrapped in bandages, lay on a bed. This boy was the one "presumed dead" at Kannabi Bridge—Uchiha Obito!
Sitting high on a stone throne, Madara silently watched Obito until Obito opened his eyes and murmured, "Am I dead?"
"Where... is this?"
Madara rose from his throne and approached Obito's bedside, saying, "This is the space between the real world..."
"A member of the Uchiha clan."
Madara's three-tomoe Sharingan gazed intently at Obito.
"Those eyes... Are you also from the Uchiha clan?!"
"Ugh..." Obito groaned in pain as he felt his body ache.
Madara said, "If you feel pain, then you're still alive."
"Was it you who saved me? Thank you, old man." Obito, half-sitting up, said politely.
Madara closed his eyes, chuckling, "It's too soon for thanks."
"I'll definitely repay your kindness... Oh yeah, Haneda once said, even the smallest kindness should be repaid greatly."
"Right, I need to get back to the Leaf."
"Kakashi is still on the battlefield, and Haneda too."
"They still need me and my three-tomoe Sharingan to protect them."
As he spoke, Obito remembered the moment their cups clinked together, and the dreams he, Rin, Haneda, and Kakashi shared.
"Can you still protect them?" Madara's Sharingan locked onto Obito.
"What do you mean?"
With a cane in his hands, Madara continued, "Your body can no longer support you as a shinobi..."
"Face reality."
"This world will never go as you desire."
Madara's tone carried a sense of superiority, as if he'd seen through the world, his voice dripping with lofty disdain.
Annoyed, Obito shouted, "Shut up!"
"I don't want to stay in this place forever!"
"Argh... Ahh!"
Obito tried to move, but the searing pain reminded him that he couldn't.
Madara said calmly, "Stop struggling."
"With your body as it is now, neither of us can leave this place."
Obito, perplexed, asked, "Just who are you?"
Suddenly, an idea sparked in Obito's mind, and he grinned, "Are you that wise old man Haneda talks about, who helps the main character grow?"
Madara's face twitched slightly at Obito's words. It seemed the one he chose really was sunny and a bit dense…
But having experienced Hashirama, who was similarly bright and a bit foolish, Madara quickly regained his composure.
He sat down, speaking slowly, "I am a ghost of the Uchiha..."
"Uchiha Madara."
"Madara? Uchiha Madara?!"
Obito held his head in shock, then, thinking back to legends from the textbooks and his grandma's tales, scoffed, "Madara's been dead for ages! Are you joking?!"
Listening to Obito, Madara's eyes grew tinged with sadness.
"I am an out-of-date relic..."
"I truly am someone clinging to life by drawing chakra from the Gedo Statue."
"And what's a desperate old man like you trying to do by capturing a kid like me?" Obito asked.
"To sever this world's endless cycle."
"A world where only the victors remain, only peace exists, and only love prevails..."
"I will create such a world."
Obito, hearing words even more dramatic than his own, muttered, "What's wrong with you? I just want to get back to Rin, Haneda, and Kakashi!"
"If you want to go back, you'll need to give me your Sharingan."
"Don't you already have Sharingan?"
"My right eye lacks a Sharingan. Only with a complete pair can I unleash their full power."
But Obito paid no mind to Madara's request. Instead, he thought of him and Kakashi each wielding a complete set of Sharingan and fighting side by side…
They could be stronger together!
They'd be able to protect Rin and Haneda!
With that thought, Obito felt he had to survive.
Wait for me!
Rin, Haneda, Kakashi!!
I'll survive and return to you all!!!
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