Freelancer in the Ninja World

Meanwhile, Kisame was watching Orochimaru kneel on the ground, gasping for air, and felt quite astonished.

"What the heck? Is that all one of the Legendary Sannin can do? That was way too anticlimactic!"

Kisame had expected a fierce clash between two major powers, yet it turned out Orochimaru—contrary to his legendary reputation—got dispatched by Itachi in an instant.

After releasing his genjutsu, Itachi said nothing. He simply continued on his way, as though defeating Orochimaru was trivial. No extra words, no additional reaction—he just left. Kisame glanced at Orochimaru, then hurried to catch up with Itachi.

Orochimaru stared at Itachi's retreating figure, his expression dark and grim.

"I underestimated him. That Uchiha brat really is unfathomable! His genjutsu is truly superb; I didn't notice a thing. And judging by how calm he looked, he must be hiding even more power. Even if I carefully planned an ambush, I still might not beat him."

That left Orochimaru deeply conflicted. Did he really have to pay a sky-high commission of 100 million ryō just to hire Senshi to capture a living Uchiha for him?

…

At the same time, within the Kamui dimension…

Obito recovered from the shock of having his identity unmasked. From behind his mask, he scrutinized Senshi again. Inwardly, he was thinking:

"So he saw through my identity in one shot. Surprising, but only that much. This is my Kamui dimension—my turf. Now that he's trapped here, he's at a total disadvantage."

With that in mind, Obito felt quite secure. As far as he knew, Uzumaki Senshi was a "musclehead" ninja—someone like a Kumogakure brawler specializing in Lightning-Style Taijutsu. If he dragged Senshi into Kamui, Senshi was as good as a sitting duck. People like that might be fearsome in close combat, but they weren't adept in space-time ninjutsu.

Hence, Obito began questioning Senshi!

Looking at Senshi, Obito spoke in a low, severe voice:

"All the intel on you in the Akatsuki—it's fake, isn't it? A ninja like you couldn't possibly have grown strong enough to capture the Three-Tails alone without some organization or clan backing you. So what's your real identity? Whom do you serve? And why did you really join the Akatsuki?

"You'd better get it straight: the position you're in now isn't favorable. Spill everything, down to the last detail."

Obito suspected that Senshi might be some secretly trained ninja from a certain clan or faction who had infiltrated the Akatsuki with hidden motives. Obito couldn't tolerate that possibility. After all, the whole business of collecting Tailed Beasts was something he'd orchestrated in the shadows—step by step—as part of his Eye of the Moon Plan. According to that plan, the Akatsuki was supposed to gather Tailed Beasts stealthily, and in his view, it was too early to start the capture phase in earnest.

After pelting Senshi with questions, Obito paused and waited. Since this was the Kamui dimension, Senshi had nowhere to run, so Obito believed he could take his time. Senshi listened casually and then answered in an indifferent tone.

"All the intel the Akatsuki has on me is actually correct. That data wasn't provided by me personally; the Akatsuki themselves investigated it. How could it be wrong? If the records they have are accurate, that already rules out me being from some big clan or major faction. I'm just an ordinary wandering ninja who happened to cross paths with them."

In truth, the more precise description would be that he was just a passing super-Kage-level ninja.

As Senshi spoke, Obito watched him keenly. Obito had asked several questions in one go, and Senshi obviously hadn't answered them all. Yet Obito didn't rush him. He had all the time he needed in Kamui.

Meanwhile, Obito was analyzing the impact of Senshi having joined the Akatsuki:

"The Akatsuki's top-tier forces are limited. They can't mount a swift blitz to capture all the Tailed Beasts. If the Tailed Beasts start disappearing one by one, the Five Great Nations will definitely notice. If they respond by deploying more elite shinobi to guard the beasts, the Akatsuki will have a hard time capturing the rest! So this Uzumaki Senshi, who already handed over the Three-Tails, is both a help and a hindrance!"

Pondering it all, Obito concluded that Senshi's presence in the Akatsuki was far more of a liability than a boon. Senshi had singlehandedly taken the Three-Tails, and then talked Nagato into aligning Amegakure with Kusagakure, pulling the Akatsuki away from the planned path and out of Obito's control. Obito didn't realize it wasn't entirely Senshi's doing, and that Nagato also had a different aim. Regardless, the organization was now on a course that didn't match his. Obito grew suspicious: did Senshi have premeditated reasons for joining? What was his actual goal?

Unable to figure it out, Obito pressed Senshi point-blank:

"Uzumaki Senshi, you've had time to consider. Now tell me—did you join the Akatsuki as part of some scheme? What's your real objective?"

His single Sharingan flared with intensity. Senshi, for his part, looked serious and answered:

"Obviously for the missions. Nagato seemed like he had a lot of them."

If Senshi's first encounter had been with Danzo's Root instead of Kakuzu, he might have already forced Danzo into early retirement and taken over the group. That might've been amusing—he could inherit Danzo's "door-slamming" legacy, monopolize all of Konoha's mission requests, and so on. But that was all theoretical. With his unique "information advantage," he could have set up anywhere—in Konoha or the other Great Nations.

Of course, Obito didn't believe that. He was certain Senshi was hiding something.

"Heh… Senshi, that's no fun. Plus, I'm just trying to gather some intel; I'm not out to kill you. Are you sure you don't want to be honest?"

Senshi shrugged helplessly.

"I'm telling you the truth, Tobi—don't get carried away imagining things. Besides, aren't you the one collaborating with the Akatsuki for that particular goal? You've seen Akatsuki's situation, and you've seen my capability. The organization is short on members and lacks high-end strength. Relying on them alone to hunt Tailed Beasts could take ages. Waiting is painful, isn't it? But me—I can do missions faster than anyone else. How about hiring me for your plan to gather Tailed Beasts?"

Senshi's intention was to advertise his services. Obito needed manpower regardless of his objectives, and he could delegate tasks to Senshi—if he was willing to pay. On hearing that, Obito was startled. Senshi seemed aware of the real reason behind collecting Tailed Beasts. Not only that, Senshi's claim about his mission efficiency was no boast.

Obito stroked his chin.

"No question your efficiency is impressive. But I don't plan to pay you."

Senshi got angry. So he wants to exploit me for free? That was outrageous. Senshi had hoped to earn some "commissions" from Obito's myriad scheming. But if Obito wasn't going to pay, that was that. Senshi had no intention of working for free:

"If you're not paying, forget it."

In the shinobi world, it was either you mooch from them, or they mooch from you. No way would Senshi let Obito mooch off him. Doing paid missions and receiving system rewards was how he kept powering up, preparing for possible future alien threats. Obito might have been willing to hire Senshi if the price wasn't so high, but he had no money saved and didn't care about wealth. At that point, negotiations broke down.

After some thought, Obito decided to confine Senshi in Kamui for a while. Maybe after being locked up, Senshi would become more compliant—making negotiations easier later. So Obito said:

"Uzumaki Senshi, do you realize where you are? This is a personal dimension created by my Mangekyō Sharingan. Once you're trapped here, you can never leave. You'll remain here, reflect on things, and then come clean about your motives and sincerely work with me. Only then will I let you out. Otherwise, you'll stay here forever. And if I do release you and you still refuse to cooperate, I'll just drag you back in again. If I could catch you once, I can catch you twice!"

Finishing, he stared at Senshi, expecting shock. But Senshi showed no reaction at all. That left Obito puzzled:

"Guess he's not taking my words seriously. Maybe he thinks he can escape Kamui somehow. Heh, he's dead wrong."

With that, Obito waved his hand.

"Think it over here, Senshi. I'm leaving now, but I hope next time I come back, you'll be ready to cooperate."

He used his eye jutsu, forming a transparent spiral ripple, and vanished from Kamui, feeling rather smug at having trapped Senshi so effortlessly. But the moment he reappeared, he was stunned—because Senshi was standing right there with a broad grin!

"Ah, Tobi. Long time no see!"

That bizarre scene nearly scared Obito half to death, making him question whether he'd been caught in a genjutsu. He yelled inwardly, "What's going on? How did he get out?!" No answer came. Alarmed and uncertain, Obito dove back into Kamui to investigate. Once inside, sure enough, Senshi appeared shortly afterward as well. Previously, Kamui had been Obito's personal domain. Now it was evidently open to Senshi at will. Obito finally saw Senshi open some kind of dark-red, black-hole-like portal and just walk in again.

At that point, the Mangekyō-wielding Obito felt an overwhelming dread under Senshi's "tattoo-based" space-time ability.

"Damn! How is this possible?"

His mind nearly crashed. He was experienced with space-time ninjutsu, but Senshi's method was something entirely different. Plus, even if Senshi could use teleportation, entering Obito's private Kamui dimension was a different matter altogether. Looking at Obito's shocked face, Senshi said cheerfully:

"If you hadn't brought me in here, I never would've known where this dimension is located. Now that I do—thanks, by the way…"

Though Senshi hadn't yet decided how he might use the Kamui realm, he could certainly imprison enemies he didn't want to kill. Or maybe he'd find other creative uses for it in the future.

Hearing his casual remark, Obito felt both fury and dread, his already contorted features twisting further. A storm of thoughts raged in his mind. Other than Kamui, the only space-time jutsu he was familiar with was Flying Thunder God, but what Senshi had just demonstrated was on another level. Near-instant activation, apparently able to break into Kamui itself—too frightening!

Senshi became a genuine threat, and the situation looked dire. Without a word, Obito cast his Mangekyō and fled again via Kamui, determined to find safety and rethink his approach. Senshi pursued him instantly, but by the time he stepped outside, Obito was gone. Tapping his chin, Senshi used his sensory ability ("Mantra") to sweep the area, then shrugged.

"Looks like he's run off."

From not far away, Karin's concerned voice called out:

"Senshi! What happened?!"

~~~

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