Traveling through Naruto, I am Uchiha Obito?

The overwhelming amount of information and the cold logic of reality instantly shattered the fragile dam built on his fanatical faith. His brain was completely unable to process it and simply crashed! His face behind the mask was blank, his lips trembled, but he couldn't utter a single word.

"enough!"

Obito suddenly let out a suppressed growl, violently interrupting the Rubik's Cube's continued mental crushing.

He raised his head, his eyes behind the holes in his mask turning incredibly dark, even carrying a hint of desperate rage and fury. He stared intently at the Rubik's Cube, his voice forced out through clenched teeth, carrying a final confirmation and icy disappointment:

"Ultimately... you still don't want to... stand on my side, do you?"

"Are you avoiding the question again?"

The Rubik's Cube did not back down, its gaze sharp as a knife.

"Answer my questions! If you can give even one logical and convincing explanation for those three questions, I'll go with you without you having to catch me!"

He had absolute "confidence" in Obito's intelligence and the flaws in his theories, his tone filled with confidence that he was in control of the whole situation.

Obito fell silent. A deathly silence spread through the damp forest. He took one last, profound, and incredibly complex look at Chino's simple tombstone, as if trying to etch it into the depths of his memory.

Finally, his deep voice rang out, carrying a hint of weariness and an indescribable... plea to stay?

"You...you should spend some time with your mother first..."

"If you change your mind..."

His voice was so soft it was almost drowned out by the wind, yet it carried an immensely heavy promise.

"...Come find me anytime."

"I will always wait for you."

Before the words were finished, the space twisted silently, and the figure in black with red clouds disappeared completely as if it had merged into the shadows.

The Rubik's Cube looked at the spot where Obito had disappeared, then slowly shifted its gaze back to its mother's tombstone. It sighed helplessly, a bitter smile tugging at the corners of its lips.

"Mom...you've really given me a huge problem..."

He knelt down again, his fingers gently tracing the cool stone, his voice becoming incredibly soft, as if he were telling a story to his closest relative:

"Mom, listen to me, I've been doing very well these past few years... I have a new family now..."

A gentle breeze swept through the tranquil forest, softly brushing against Rubik's Cube's face and ruffling the hair on his forehead, like a mother's silent response and comfort.

But at the edge of the forest, that distorted space had not truly gone away.

The man in black robes and red clouds stood silently in the shadow of a giant tree. The eye behind the hole in his mask pierced through the layers of branches and leaves, staring intently at the young, sorrowful, yet incredibly stubborn figure before the tombstone.

A myriad of complex thoughts swirled within him: the wavering and panic of his faith being shattered, the disappointment and anger of being rejected, the guilt towards the deceased, and even more so, a longing for that filial devotion that he himself was unwilling to admit…

Like a surging undercurrent, it violently collided and churned in his heart.

Chapter 68 The battle begins

Chapter 68 The battle begins

These past few days, Deidara and Obito's lives in the village have presented a stark contrast.

Deidara, preoccupied with missions and unable to engage in his beloved "artistic creations" for a long time, was so frustrated that he went to a deserted wasteland to bombard everything in sight.

Ironically, his outburst unexpectedly softened the previously uncultivable land, which was covered in hard rock. The villagers, bewildered, joyfully regarded it as a "gift from the gods."

Rubik's Cube was especially happy that day, and specially cooked two extra dishes to celebrate the "great contributor" who had "lost his creative base".

After the celebration, Deidara threw himself into his real mission. During the day, he mostly mingled in the densely populated towns to gather intelligence, only returning to the village to rest at night, demonstrating his diligence.

In contrast, Obito was a complete "slacker." He spent his days wandering around the village, entertaining the children with his comical performances, and then naturally extracting information about Rubik's Cube and Chino's life there from the children or their parents.

Interestingly, unlike his usual playful self, he never interrupted while listening to these stories, even when the children's descriptions were incoherent and dull. He simply listened silently with his head down, and no one knew what he was thinking behind the mask.

Meanwhile, the Rubik's Cube took Naruto and Gaara to all the familiar places, sharing stories from their childhood. Occasionally, he would catch a glimpse of a suspicious figure following them.

A strange tranquility unexpectedly prevailed during this period. However, this false peace and serenity ultimately did not belong to them.

It’s time to wake up from the dream.

Three days,

Deidara lowered his voice, his tone tense with the approaching mission.

"The daimyo and his entourage will arrive in three days. We must ambush them on their way! The key is to capture the daimyo's guards."

Although it's uncertain which one is a high-ranking member of Kirigakure, as long as we use the daimyo as bait, we can definitely lure him out! With a hostage, dealing with him will be much easier. And then…”

His eyes gleamed with fervor.

"I'll easily defeat him with my art! Then contact Itachi and use his disgusting eyes to extract the information we need! Your mission is to kidnap the Daimyo while I distract him... Hey! Tobi! I'm telling you about the mission! Did you hear me?!"

Seemingly finally noticing Deidara's impending outburst of anger, Obito slowly pulled his wandering thoughts back, seamlessly switching back to his flamboyant tone:

"Hahaha, as expected of Deidara-senpai! You thought of everything! Tobi admires you so much! Hmm!"

Deidara squinted:

"Really? Then repeat the plan I just mentioned."

An awkward silence fell over the room.

"Hmm~ Afei requests a replay."

Obito said coyly.

"You didn't hear me correctly at all! *Slap!*"

"Deidara-senpai, what are you doing? Ouch!"

"You bastard! I'm going to teach you a lesson today!"

……

Next room.

"The daimyo's visit... so that's what they're after."

Rubik's Cube tapped lightly on the table with his fingers, then lowered his head in deep thought.

"Um,"

Gaara nodded in agreement.

"Thanks to Naruto distracting him, I kept him from noticing my observation. Based on their actions over the past few days, we can basically determine their purpose. What do we do?"

"Stop them."

The Rubik's Cube's answer was resolute.

He wasn't worried about the daimyo's safety; if that guy died somewhere else, he wouldn't even bat an eye. He had no pity for these feudal rulers of the ninja world; in his mind, they were destined for the guillotine sooner or later. What truly worried him were the villagers here.

The daimyo's trip is to inspect the lord. If he encounters any misfortune nearby, given the Cube's understanding of the nature of these feudal rulers, it's almost inevitable that he will take his anger out on the villagers.

He absolutely could not tolerate such an undeserved disaster. Therefore, even if he was unwilling, he had to ensure that the "unlucky fellow" would not die on this territory.

Of course, even if that famous man really got into trouble, with him around, the villagers would never be harmed in the slightest.

Moreover, the Akatsuki's core objective is the Tailed Beasts. Their trip is undoubtedly aimed at the Three-Tails and Six-Tails of Kirigakure. Although it's unclear why they're targeting the Daimyo, following their actions could very well lead to the whereabouts of the Six-Tails.

As for the three tails... Rubik's Cube probably knows what's going on, and has probably already gone to challenge Lao Da to a revival match.

"This operation is risky, don't tell Naruto yet."

The Rubik's Cube quickly made a deployment.

“Gaara, you come with me. I'll strengthen the seals on you for the next three days so you can use Shukaku's power to the fullest extent. Those two are no ordinary people. I'll hold off the masked one. I have information on the blond guy; his weakness is lightning release.”

He took out several scrolls and handed them to me, Ero.

"Take these Lightning Release scrolls and use them to deal with him. Just keep him occupied. Proceed according to plan."

He paused.

"As for Naruto... leave him in the village. The village needs someone to guard it. Don't tell him the plan yet; he's the type who can't keep secrets, and he'll expose himself too easily."

Gaara nodded in deep agreement.

"So……"

The Rubik's Cube has a sharp eye.

"Everything is proceeding according to plan."

"Ah."

……

Three days passed quickly.

Obito and Deidara had been lying in wait on the road that the Daimyo's army was bound to take.

The moment they saw the team, Deidara instinctively wanted to act immediately according to plan.

But to his surprise, Obito's figure suddenly disappeared from his side.

"Hey! Fei! What on earth are you doing?!"

Deidara roared in the direction Obito had disappeared, his tone filled with annoyance at being ignored and a hint of barely perceptible confusion.

This is unlike Ah Fei's usual style.

Obito didn't answer Deidara, nor did he even pause in his steps. He leaped down from the treetop where he was hiding, landing lightly, his gaze as sharp as a hawk's, fixed on the figure at the very front of the guard.

Looking at the group of "Daimyo guards" before him, who appeared to be well-prepared but were actually full of flaws in his eyes, Obito's deep, hoarse voice pierced the silence of the forest:

"Stop pretending. In the end... you're still going to get in my way, aren't you?"

Standing at the very front of the group, the burly, seemingly loyal guard leader suddenly relaxed his tense and serious expression, a knowing smile slowly spreading across his lips.

"puff--"

A thick cloud of white smoke exploded out of nowhere! The smoke spread rapidly, obscuring visibility.

As the white smoke dissipated in the wind, the once grand and imposing daimyo guard, along with the magnificent palanquin, vanished without a trace, like a phantom! Only two figures remained, standing clearly in the dissipated smoke.

It was Gaara, the Rubik's Cube, who had been unmasked!

"What's going on? Oh, it's you guys!"

Deidara then jumped down from the tree where he was hiding, as if suddenly realizing something, and landed not far from Gaara and the Rubik's Cube. His face showed a hint of surprise, but more so a playful "I knew it" attitude.

He spread his hands dramatically, his gaze sweeping over the giant gourd behind Gaara and the iconic black spiky head of the Rubik's Cube.

"A short, stout guy with a gourd and a black, spiky-haired landlord! Tsk, didn't that noisy blond brat come along to his death?"

Deidara spoke, but his hands never stopped moving. His nimble fingers moved rapidly through the ninja tool pouch at his waist, the white explosive clay dancing and shaping at his fingertips as if it had a life of its own. A faint smile, a mixture of excitement and cruelty, appeared on his face:

"Well, I already guessed you weren't ordinary people. Good, saves me the trouble of looking for you again! I'm about to make my move, Fei, you better stay away... huh?"

He instinctively tried to call Ah Fei away from the battlefield, but found that Ah Fei had already disappeared, with only faint footsteps coming from the depths of the forest.

What startled Deidara even more was that before leaving, Tobi surprisingly didn't respond to any of his jokes or even make a funny gesture. This was very strange.

The Rubik's Cube naturally understood Obito's intention: he wanted a separate space to settle things.

Without the slightest hesitation, Rubik's Cube immediately gave Gaara a reassuring look.

"Gaara, I'm leaving this to you!"

Before he finished speaking, Rubik's Cube shot out like an arrow, chasing after the forest where Obito had disappeared!

Hey! Don't run away! Landlord!

Upon seeing this, Deidara instinctively shouted, then curled his lip in disdain.

"Tch! I thought he was the strongest one, but he just picks on the weak? Hmph, but..."

A glint of light flashed in his eyes, and a confident smile curved his lips.

"That guy, Ah Fei, isn't as simple as he thinks. Although his strength is definitely not as good as my art, hmm!"

He's still a candidate for Akatsuki, after all; he's not so easy to deal with! I'll take care of you, you shorty, soon enough. Tobi needs my artistic support! Hmm!

Deidara stopped talking and suddenly raised his hands. The clay bird in his palms, which had been shaped and was exuding a dangerous aura, was instantly infused with chakra. Its eyes lit up red and it was about to take flight!

Faced with Deidara's arrogant provocation and impending attack, Gaara's handsome yet indifferent face remained completely expressionless. He didn't utter a single word, but simply silently untied the scroll from his hand.

"Shua-"