Chapter 96: Chapter 96 — Obito Retreats, Power Equal to the First Hokage
"That's... Nagato's black rods?!"
Obito, still inside the Kamui space, stared intently at Naruto—now forcibly pinned in place. His expression darkened.
He was all too familiar with the type of rods Naraku had just unleashed.
Nagato had used similar Yin-Yang black rods to create the Six Paths of Pain, compensating for his immobile body. But these… these were far more massive.
"What the hell is this guy…?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen gritted his teeth in frustration, his hopes crumbling.
He had desperately wanted to witness Hyūga Naraku perish just like Namikaze Minato had—sacrificing himself to subdue the Nine Tails.
Instead, Naraku had effortlessly launched multiple enormous black rods and pinned the rampaging Eight-Tails form of Naruto like it was nothing.
"The black rods made through Yin-Yang Release… they can transmit chakra. Used offensively, they block the target's chakra flow,"Obito muttered coldly, almost begrudgingly explaining.
Nagato could create them via the Rinnegan.
And while those rods could indeed interfere with chakra, even he—with Hashirama's cells and Yin-Yang chakra—couldn't conjure anything close to this.
"How the hell did Naraku make something on this scale?"
Obito's brow furrowed.
He himself met the requirements—Yin chakra from the Sharingan, Yang chakra from Hashirama's cells. Yet he'd never created such overwhelming Yin-Yang rods.
"Byakugan grants him Yin chakra, sure… but where did he get that level of Yang chakra?"
Even more baffling, how had Naraku attained such mastery over Yin-Yang Release?
Outside — The Battlefield
As Uchiha Fugaku dashed toward Obito's projection, he passed right through it—unable to touch him.
Obito sneered.
Konoha shinobi were beginning to gather. More were arriving by the second.
His entire operation was a catastrophic failure:
He had hoped Naraku would die. Instead, Naraku returned to the village via space-time ninjutsu.
He planned to control Konoha through Hiruzen. But the Sarutobi, Shimura, and other key clans were now all but annihilated.
He aimed to capture the Nine Tails—key to the Eye of the Moon Plan. Yet even Jiraiya had thwarted that goal.
Finally, his fallback: release the Nine Tails and let it destroy Konoha… only for Naraku to suppress it single-handedly.
"Hyūga Naraku… no—he is the greatest obstacle to the Eye of the Moon Plan…"
Obito glared at the distant figure of Naraku before dissipating the shadow clone.
Naruto Subdued
Naraku confirmed the spatial fluctuations had ended.
The berserk, half-transformed Naruto writhed in vain, roaring under the oppressive weight of the black rods.
His body was now fully in his Eight-Tails cloak, yet each of his nine chakra tails had been nailed to the earth—rendered useless.
Naraku approached calmly.
Raising his palm, a soft Tenseigan-blue glow formed around his hand.
"Absorb."
Like water draining through a broken dam, the Nine Tails chakra began flowing from Naruto's body back toward Naraku in a powerful stream.
The cloak evaporated.
The dark-red aura faded.
Naruto's small, scorched, and unconscious body slumped forward—free from his half-beast form.
Naraku frowned slightly as he inspected the damage.
Naruto's skin was charred, riddled with deep burns caused by the corrosive tailed beast chakra.
"Obito… you really don't care who you destroy, do you?"
Naraku extended his hand again—this time, a pure Yang Release chakra surged from his palm.
High-purity chakra, teeming with life force, coursed into Naruto's body.
This wasn't ordinary healing.
This was regeneration at a level even Tsunade or Hashirama would marvel at.
In mere moments, Naruto's skin healed completely—returning to its smooth, youthful state. Even old hidden injuries, born of neglect, vanished.
The Crowd Reacts
"That's… it?"
"Did he just… subdue the Nine Tails that easily?"
The arriving Konoha shinobi stared in awe and disbelief.
No grand battle. No monumental clash.
Just a series of jet-black rods and a few glows of chakra—and it was over.
"Lord Fourth Hokage died sealing the Nine Tails… but this man—Naraku—he didn't even break a sweat..."
One ninja murmured, stunned.
"This isn't just power on the level of Fourth Hokage… this is First Hokage-level strength!"
Indeed, those who knew the history remembered:
Hashirama Senju had single-handedly captured all nine tailed beasts and distributed them like toys to maintain balance.
He didn't fight them—he dominated them.
"Has Hyūga Naraku reached that same realm?"
Excitement and reverence began to ripple through the Konoha ranks.
Inside Naruto's Consciousness
In the sealed inner world, Namikaze Minato had only just begun to speak to his son.
He had intended to suppress the Nine Tails chakra…
Then he paused.
The malicious red chakra had suddenly halted.
"…He did it."
Minato's expression softened into a smile.
"It seems the village now has someone capable of subduing the Nine Tails…"
"Why?! Why was the Nine Tails sealed inside me?!"Naruto cried, his young voice raw and broken.
Minato knelt beside him, looking him in the eye.
"I'm sorry, Naruto… I didn't expect the Third Hokage to do this to you."
His eyes turned cold.
He had long suspected Hiruzen's hunger for control. But to throw his four-year-old son into such a nightmare?
"I only left a small trace of chakra… I can't stay for long."
He smiled bitterly.
"But listen… you can trust Jiraiya. He was my teacher, and I trust him completely."
"You mean… the white-haired old man?" Naruto sniffled.
"Yes," Minato nodded. "And that boy… Hyūga Naraku. You can trust him too."
Minato had observed everything.
Naraku hadn't nailed Naruto's body—only the tails.
A small but deliberate act of care. Evidence of restraint. Of empathy.
And now, that healing chakra…
"That's high-purity Yang Release…"
Minato's eyes widened as he felt the life-rich chakra flood Naruto's body.
"This is beyond me. This is… Sage of Six Paths-level healing…"
He placed a gentle hand on Naruto's head.
"It looks like I won't need to worry about your future after all."
"Grow strong, Naruto… and live free."
"Goodbye, son."