Just like how he didn't sense Sarutobi Hiruzen's traces at first, Sarutobi Hiruzen couldn't possibly sense him either.
He just needed to take the opportunity to dig into Sarutobi Hiruzen's heart from behind, then immediately flee.
With only one Uchiha Fugaku, he probably couldn't stop Uchiha Obito.
"How… how is this possible?", Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes widened in astonishment as he looked at the black hand that pierced out from his heart.
His heart was shaken beyond words.
He actually didn't sense the other party's approach at all, not even his presence.
'This guy…'
'Just who is he!'
Sarutobi Hiruzen really wanted to turn his head to look, but now there was no more chance.
He could feel his life rapidly slipping away.
With his heart pierced, it wouldn't take long before he completely died.
"Amaterasu!"
Suddenly, black flames ignited on Black Zetsu's body in an instant.
"Ah!", Black Zetsu immediately let out a miserable scream, pulled his hand out of Sarutobi Hiruzen's body.
His whole figure split into black and white halves, and Black Zetsu instantly escaped into the ground.
The separated White Zetsu main body was burned to ashes in the black flames.
"This… what on earth is that thing?", Uchiha Fugaku was shocked. He had originally thought victory was in hand, completely not expecting such a sudden situation to occur.
When Black Zetsu pierced Sarutobi Hiruzen's heart, Uchiha Fugaku, who snapped back to his senses, immediately used his Mangekyō Sharingan eye technique.
That's right, he had awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan back during the ninja war period, but had never revealed it.
He also hadn't expected that his invincible eye technique would be neutralized in this manner.
'Was that guy a lizard?'
At the same time, without Black Zetsu's support, Sarutobi Hiruzen's legs went limp and he heavily knelt to the ground, but had not fallen over yet.
Those dim gray eyes revealed unwillingness, watching as the soul he had pulled out a large portion of slowly shrank and retracted.
'Just a little more…'
"Heh heh…", Uchiha Obito also slowly came to his senses. He hadn't expected that at this moment, he would actually be saved by Black Zetsu.
The suffocating despair receded like a tide, replaced by an uncontrollable surge of excitement that rushed to his chest.
The corners of his mouth began to tremble slightly, uncontrollably pulled into a widening grin, until eventually stretching to his ears.
"Ha, haha, hahahaha! HAHAHAHAHAHA!"
Uchiha Obito's manic laughter echoed through the entire forest. Unlike his previous impotent rage. The whole person appeared somewhat deranged.
This feeling of going from great sorrow to great joy left Uchiha Obito momentarily unable to recover.
Several kunai flew toward Uchiha Obito. After having been withdrawn for a while and with the cooldown over, Uchiha Obito once again entered a phasing state.
"Third!"
Uchiha Fugaku arrived beside the half-kneeling Sarutobi Hiruzen and found that the other party was exhaling more than inhaling… unable to inhale anymore.
"Hahahahaha!"
Uchiha Obito was still laughing wildly, "Sarutobi Hiruzen! You old undead thing, you lost! I won!"
"I won!"
"The disgrace of that day, I will remember. Next time, I will completely destroy the Konoha that you desperately protected!"
Buzz—
Uchiha Obito's words fell word-for-word into the ears of Sarutobi Hiruzen, who was already on the verge of death.
When a person's heart is destroyed, it causes massive bleeding and cardiac tamponade, leading to oxygen deprivation for the body and death in about 5 minutes.
The brain's consciousness still hadn't faded.
Sarutobi Hiruzen may have done countless wrong things in his life, but his determination to protect Konoha was second to none.
And miracles often erupt amidst fear and despair. Sarutobi Hiruzen had long been prepared for death.
However, he could still offer his final flame.
This state is called the flashback before death.
Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes regained brightness, and the kneeling him stood up once more, raising his head.
He took a half-step toward Uchiha Obito.
"Uchi…ha… this old man… absolutely… won't…"
The dying Sarutobi Hiruzen once again burst forth with a shocking aura.
With each word, a large mouthful of blood was sprayed out.
His wide-open eyes seemed as if they wanted to devour the man before him alive.
Uchiha Obito, who had been laughing wildly, had his laughter abruptly stuck in his throat. Facing Sarutobi Hiruzen's ghost-like posture, he couldn't help but take a step back.
"You… what are you trying to do?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen no longer had the strength to answer his question. His last bit of strength had been exhausted.
His gaze dimmed further, and his body fell powerlessly to the ground, unable to rise again.
Uchiha Obito looked at the other man in a daze, like a fool.
"Ha… haha, you guy, were you just bluffing after all?"
He just didn't notice that the tall Grim Reaper had already swung down the short scythe.
Watching the painfully howling Uchiha Obito.
Sarutobi Hiruzen's consciousness grew blurry, and the past began to flash before his eyes like a revolving lantern.
The story of the Third Hokage was about to come to an end.
Sarutobi Hiruzen couldn't help but reflect on his life…
'Was it glorious or a failure?'
His student Jiraiya had once told him that a ninja's value should be determined by his death.
When he was young, the teacher he respected most died in a foreign land, his favorite student defected from the village, his wife died, and he personally witnessed the sacrifice of the Fourth Hokage couple.
In the end, all his students left him.
At death's door, he was left all alone, and even if he gave his life, he couldn't completely eliminate this disaster.
From this perspective, his life might be a failure.
But in a daze, he seemed to see fireworks blooming in the sky.
The fallen Sarutobi Hiruzen's mouth faintly curled into a small smile.
'I have made so many mistakes in this life. Such an ending is what I deserve.'
'However, the Will of Fire would will to be passed on.'
'This old leaf, in the final moment of his life, burned itself, and the Will of Fire I preached for most of my life, I didn't disgrace it in the end.'
'Tsunade… I entrust Konoha to you.'
Sarutobi Hiruzen's pupils lost all color, and his final gaze fixed on Uchiha Obito's fear-filled Sharingan.
'That I couldn't destroy it, I am very sorry.'
'Fortunately, all the intel has been recorded.'
'Enma, I'm counting on you…'
The Konoha ninja named Sarutobi Hiruzen died on the first day of Konoha's New Year.
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