Although Obito deeply feared Uha's strength, he wasn't intimidated to the point of helplessness. After all, his Mangekyō Sharingan granted him special abilities that gave him confidence.
"You finally showed yourself. I've been waiting for you," Uha said, narrowing his eyes.
Swish!
A spear of brilliant blue light materialized in Uha's hand and, with blinding speed, slashed toward Obito's head.
But the spear passed through him like air.
"Impressive, no doubt," Obito sneered, unaffected. "But what good is power if you can't land a hit?"
He placed a hand on Nagato's shoulder. "Nagato, come with me!"
Zzzzt...
His Sharingan flared, and the space around them began to twist into a vortex.
He was moments from teleporting away with Nagato when Uha's expression darkened.
"You're trying to take him right in front of me? Are you asking to die?"
Before the words had fully left his mouth, Uha raised his right hand. His fingertip hovered inches from Obito's forehead. A dense, inky black energy gathered instantly.
In the blink of an eye, it coalesced into a swirling orb of compressed power.
Uha muttered under his breath, eyes glinting with lethal intent.
"Cero... Oscuras."
BOOM!
A colossal wave of spiritual pressure erupted, surging outward like a tidal wave.
The blast tore through the surrounding forest, flattening everything in its path.
"A Tailed Beast Bomb? No... it just looks similar!"
Obito's eyes widened, then narrowed in disdain. "No matter how strong it is, if it's a physical attack, it's useless. Kamui makes me untouchable."
But then-
His smirk froze.
The space around him warped violently, the Kamui vortex destabilizing mid-transfer.
"This can't be! That blast actually disrupted the space itself?! Kamui... was forcibly canceled?!"
Obito's heart raced in disbelief.
Before he could recover, the edge of the energy blast smashed into his arm.
CRACK!
His right arm was obliterated.
Cold sweat broke out down his back.
"If I hadn't phased just in time... my head would've been blown off!"
He was shaken. What kind of attack was that?
It didn't just destroy matter it distorted space itself. For the first time, his space-time ninjutsu had been countered.
Still maintaining his intangible state, Obito began to retreat.
"This guy's completely out of my league. I'll have to try again with Nagato later."
But inwardly, he cursed.
Everything had been going so smoothly. All he had to do was swoop in, 'rescue' Nagato from Hanzo, drop a few hints, and the Eye of the Moon plan would have been underway.
Then this monster showed up didn't say a word and instantly killed Hanzo.
Obito's Sharingan practically popped out from sheer shock.
Now he was forced to back away slowly, keeping his intangibility active as long as possible.
Uha didn't pursue him, which gave Obito a small sense of relief.
"Long-range teleportation is out of the question. I'll have to retreat the slow way. But I can only maintain this form for five minutes, so I need to move fast."
He turned, ready to flee.
Until Uha spoke again.
"Don't you want to know... how Rin really died?"
Obito froze.
"...How do you know about Rin?!" he demanded, coughing, but quickly deflected. "Who's Rin? Just some girl? I, Uchiha Madara, have no idea who you're talking about."
"Still pretending, even now?" Nagato couldn't stay silent anymore.
He had always suspected this masked man's identity.
But now that Uha had exposed and crippled his supposedly invincible technique and even taken his arm he couldn't believe this man was truly the legendary Madara.
Obito's mouth twitched. Still, he kept up the act.
"I told you, I don't know any Rin. Trying to buy time, are you? Dream on."
He slowly widened the distance between them.
Once he was far enough away, he activated Kamui again.
But Uha shook his head with disappointment.
"Parading around under someone else's name, acting like some shadowy legend, and you don't even realize you're just a pawn. Did you know that Madara is the one who orchestrated Rin's death?"
"You're lying!" Obito growled, abruptly halting the teleportation. His voice was low and trembling. "I saw it happen with my own eyes. Rin became the Three-Tails' Jinchūriki, was being hunted by the Mist, and chose to throw herself into Kakashi's Chidori to prevent a catastrophe."
Uha gave him a cold look.
"You're not just stupid. You're impressively stupid."
He let out a sigh.
"The Blood Mist Village you speak of Kirigakure was already under Madara's control at that time. Even the Third Mizukage had been turned into a puppet. Capturing Rin and turning her into a Jinchūriki? Ordering Mist ninja to hunt her down? That was all orchestrated by him."
"...No... this can't be..."
Obito's face contorted behind the mask, his body trembling uncontrollably.
Uha pressed on.
"A few years later, Madara's time ran out. The Third Mizukage lost control and was eliminated. Then the Fourth Mizukage, Yagura, took over as the Three-Tails' host. And who kept controlling him? You did. Under Madara's name."
Obito's expression twisted with rage.
He had no proof, but deep down... he knew it was true.
"Madara crushed your hope, then dangled new hope in front of you. And now you serve him blindly, never questioning it. Walking around with your enemy's name, doing his bidding, thinking you're in control? You're a damn fool."
Uha's words didn't let up.
Each one cut into Obito's heart like a blade.
"Stop..." Obito's voice cracked.
He stared at Uha, shaken to his core.
"What should I do?"
In that moment, Obito looked exactly like Nagato had minutes earlier.
A lost child, betrayed and directionless.
He was actually younger than Nagato. Less perceptive, less experienced not truly stupid, just naive.
Uha's sharp words weren't meant just to wound.
They were meant to sway him.
Obito was a man who could use space-time ninjutsu and move freely throughout the ninja world. That kind of asset wasn't something to waste.
Uha gave him a gentle smile.
"I'm guessing you, like Nagato, don't want to bring Rin back only to let her suffer again in this cruel world, right?"
"...Right," Obito said quietly, nodding.
"In that case..." Uha extended a hand, still smiling. "Why not join us? Nagato and I are forming a new Akatsuki. We'll reshape the ninja world, bring it true peace. And when that time comes, you can bring Rin back. Then live your shameless little love story together."
"Wha-shameless?! Shut up!"
Obito flushed red, but with the mask on, it didn't show.
"Fine. I'll join you for now. Just don't forget what you promised me."
Uha nodded, still smiling.
"Don't worry. I won't."
Just as he said that, a familiar mechanical chime echoed in his mind.
Ding! Congratulations, Host. Side Mission Completed!
[Side Mission]: Defeat the ninja world's demigod, Hanzo
[Rewards Pending]: Hado #4, Hado #31, Hado #33, Bakudo #26, Bakudo #61, Reaper Soul, +1000 Spiritual Pressure EXP