As for Itachi, his Tsukuyomi was undeniably powerful. Naruto wasn't sure he could endure 72 hours of torture. But with Solar Flare at the ready, he didn't truly fear Itachi unless he found a countermeasure.
As long as the Sharingan required direct sight, it would be vulnerable to Solar Flare.
While the Solar Flare's effect lingered, Naruto launched himself forward, appearing instantly before Obito and throwing a straight punch at the masked figure.
"Are you done yet?" Obito activated his Intangibility without missing a beat.
"You really think I can't kill you?"
Obito, pushed to his limit by Naruto's constant needling, finally snapped.
By now, Obito believed he had completely figured out Naruto's fighting style. No secret techniques, no spatial ninjutsu. Just a taijutsu specialist, it seemed.
Obito having no concept of Ki, so he couldn't comprehend that Naruto was predicting his attacks before they even happened. After observing him closely and seeing no signs of ninjutsu or Kekkei Genkai's, Obito chalked up Naruto's earlier hits to simple taijutsu intuition, just coincidence.
'Just needed to be careful this time. Taking him down would be no problem.'
His plan: Wood Clone + Intangibility + Kamui + sneak attack.
Obito once again used genjutsu to deceive Naruto, circling behind him once more. The same tactic, executed just as before. Naruto quickly 'fell' for genjutsu.
The instant Obito attacked, Naruto landed another heavy punch, this time squarely on his chest. Obito coughed blood under his mask, sent flying like a rag doll in a perfect arc across the sky.
'No! Impossible! Absolutely impossible! I inherited everything from Madara Uchiha! I'm invincible!'
Naruto wasn't finished. He seized the opportunity, pushed off, and reappeared instantly before Obito, his right fist blurring as he unleashed a barrage of attacks.
'Normal Series: Consecutive Normal Punches'
Fist after fist, connecting solidly.
Obito, who moments ago had dismissed Uchiha elites as mere weeds, was now taking a merciless beating from Naruto.
Obito felt like every bone in his body was broken. He gritted his teeth through the pain and activated Intangibility, letting Naruto's subsequent punches pass harmlessly through, avoiding further damage.
Despite this, one three-tomoe Sharingan covered by his mask turned white.
"Tch, still not dead after all that." Naruto muttered, watching Obito stagger back to his feet.
Naruto's quick, brutal assault, using at least ninety percent of his strength, was meant to blast Obito into slag. One punch would have obliterated a standard Root Anbu, leaving nothing behind. Naruto had wanted to see if the so-called 'ultimate genjutsu' that could manipulate reality could truly restore someone after they'd been reduced to a pile of meat.
In the end, he'd killed him, but not completely. Obito had merely burned through one of his 'lives'.
'Tsk, his body is really tough.'
Obito's body was indeed tough, at least compared to ninja of a similar level. Now, even though he'd used up a 'life', he wouldn't be permanently dead unless Naruto finished him off again.
Even in the original he had been beaten nearly to death in later encounters but never actually died, holding out until the final battle before taking Kaguya's All-Killing Ash Bones and finally succumbing.
This fool had plenty of the three-tomoe Sharingan to spare.
'I should have given him a Ki Blast.'
Even if Obito had the IQ of Rasa (what kind of idiot would keep trying to kill his Jinchuriki son), he should have realized Naruto could predict his attacks.
These two encounters with Obito also gave Naruto a better grasp of his own strength relative to the ninja world. He was strong, yes, but not invincible.
Ninety percent of his power hadn't been enough to finish Obito, he still needed to get stronger.
As for why he didn't use one hundred percent? Obito wasn't alone, Itachi was still hanging around nearby, waiting for opportunity to kill the intruder who interrupted his goal.
If ninety percent power couldn't kill him outright, one hundred percent wouldn't make a huge difference.
Besides, Naruto's greatest strength was Ki, the very root of his power. His physical body was merely a byproduct of that training. More importantly, he was only nine years old, his body would continue to develop over the next few years. It just went to show how utterly immense the potential of the Ki he drew from the Dragon Ball world truly was.
Techniques like tapping into the Nine-Tails chakra mode, the 'Shadow Clone Barrage,' or the Kamehameha were still in reserve.
Of course, Obito had held back too, not resorting to powerful Wood Release Ninjutsu or even the Susanoo, clearly holding several trump cards in reserve.
Because Obito didn't trust Itachi and believed that the moment Itachi believed he could beat Obito, Itachi would do it without hesitation.
If Naruto hadn't understood Obito's Kamui Dimension, and if Obito hadn't possessed such arrogant confidence in his own ability, recklessly leaving himself open, he wouldn't have been beaten down by Naruto twice now.
Even though he had thoroughly suppressed a formidable opponent like Obito, not just once, but twice, Naruto didn't become complacent. He had a clear understanding of his own strength.
Still incredibly weak, critically weak. Not strong enough. He needed to get stronger. Far stronger.
At least be able to blow up a tailed beast with one punch.
'A tailed beast... Yeah, that felt like the next benchmark for power.'
Out of the corner of his eye, Naruto glanced at Itachi, who had long since recovered his sight and was standing by, clearly holding back. Though Itachi's thought process is too insane to guess, but his fighting talent was undeniably high. He had his own cold logic for assessing the situation. Most importantly, he and Obito weren't truly aligned. Itachi was using this exchange to gauge Obito's strength.
He was coldly calculating and 'Damn is he horrible at math'.
Naruto's voice was muffled through his mask. "I'm done playing with you guys. See you next time."
"You think you can come and go whenever you want?" The single eye visible under Obito's mask burned with resentment.
Naruto ignored him completely, his body shimmering as he slowly floated upwards, shaking off gravity.
Flight!
'He can fly...' A trace of gloom flashed in Obito's visible eye as he watched Naruto ascend.
'Earth Release: Lightened Boulder Jutsu of the Third Tsuchikage?'
'Is he from Iwagakure?'
Countless guesses about Naruto's identity flashed through Obito's mind.
Obito possessed spatial ninjutsu and had inherited all of Madara Uchiha's ninjutsu and secret techniques. Even Orochimaru, the ninja world's foremost scientist, body modification expert, bioengineer and master of forbidden techniques, couldn't claim greater mastery than Madara, in the decades he spent underground most of it was spent on research with assistance of Black and White Zetsu.
However, Obito was lacking one thing compared to Naruto. He couldn't fly.
Even with his Hashirama Senju cells, his Mangekyo Sharingan, and his spatial ninjutsu, Obito couldn't fly. Ninja capable of flight were anything but ordinary. Their mobility was beyond that of standard ninja, second only to spatial jutsu itself.
'He'll be a significant threat in the future.' Obito mentally marked his masked enemy as a future problem.
Looking at Naruto's slow ascent, Obito desperately wanted to kill him, but the fear of being tricked again into a trap held him back. Two consecutive defeats had left him wary, losing another 'life' might be the end. And Itachi was clearly still hanging back, with no intention of fighting their enemy to the death. In the end, all Obito could do was watch, seething.
Seeing that Obito didn't take the bait, Naruto dropped the pretense, accelerated his ascent, and with a *swoosh*, shot into the air.
'That bastard was indeed bluffing!' Obito felt a surge of pure hate. Today had been a constant string of humiliations.
Naruto, now high in the air, looked down at Obito. "Hmph!" he snorted coldly. Before Obito could react, he vanished into the silent night sky with a *swoosh*.
The cold snort he left behind seemed to mock Obito: 'Didn't you say I couldn't leave?'
Although he couldn't see Naruto's face through the mask, the sheer disdain in that snort made Obito clench his teeth in anger.
"Itachi," he said, after couple seconds. "I'll leave things here to you." Obito felt too humiliated to stay any longer, phasing away in a hurry.
His authority severely undermined tonight, Obito didn't care about appearances anymore. He had more important things to do: the corpses of the Uchiha clan scattered across the ground.
There were many eyes...
Watching Obito leave, Itachi, still in his ANBU attire, perched on a streetlight, silently looking at the sky. Fugaku's words echoed in his mind, etched deep into his heart.
"Are the people of Konoha human with lives that matter, but we Uchiha are not? Why do you value their lives above ours?!"
Remembering the moment he raised his katana and plunged it into the bodies of those children, a wave of self-loathing washed over Itachi. His hands were stained with the blood of his clansmen, a sin that could never be washed away.
Was he wrong?
No. He wasn't wrong, after coming this far he cannot be wrong. He had stopped the war. He had prevented countless deaths.
The Uchiha were wrong! They caused this! 'They forced me into this position!'
'Sasuke is coming soon.'
-------------------
Dear Readers and Fans,
For those eager to dive into next chapters earlier before others, I invite you to join us on Patreon. By becoming our Patron, you not only gain access to exclusive advanced chapters but also help us continue this endeavour and expand it further.
https://www.pat reon.com/8Ashes8
(no space)
You can read upto 7 Chapters in advance.