The ethereal forms of the dead stood silent witness as Minato faced the ancient, powerful spirit before him. The nine Truth-Seeking Orbs drifted behind the man like miniature black holes, absorbing all light and sound, lending him an aura of absolute authority.
"Perhaps," Minato began, his voice steady as he offered the powerful entity the respect it was due, "it is because the Sage appeared before me once, within my own spiritual space."
His words, though simple, carried immense weight. The appearance, the orbs, the mention of a brother—it all pointed to one undeniable conclusion. He was in the presence of the Sage of the Six Paths' younger brother, the progenitor of the Hyuga.
Otsutsuki Hamura.
"He appeared to you?" Hamura's stern, solemn face shifted, a flicker of profound surprise crossing his ancient features. He studied Minato with an intensity that seemed to peel back the layers of his soul, but found no deception. "I see. My brother's will still moves within the world of the living."
Hamura's gaze sharpened further. "And yet, I never imagined an outsider, one not of our blood, could master the power of Yin and Yang Release." His shock was palpable. It was with those very powers that he and his brother, Hagoromo, had performed the greatest sealing in history, imprisoning their own mother, Kaguya. To see it manifested in a man born thousands of years later was a revelation.
"It was only with the Sage's guidance that I was able to grasp it," Minato clarified, inclining his head respectfully. He then met the ancient spirit's gaze directly. "You have brought me here, to this place of memory and sorrow. There is something you wish to ask of me, isn't there?"
Hamura gave a slow, grave nod. "I can feel it, even from this spectral plane. A perversion of my lineage is abusing the power of the Tenseigan. They intend to use its great energy to pull the moon from its orbit, forcing it to collide with the Earth and scour it clean of humanity."
"The Tenseigan can do such a thing?" Minato's mind reeled. This dōjutsu was far more than just an evolution of the Byakugan. The vision he had witnessed proved it could be a weapon of mass destruction, capable of annihilating entire armies. Now, learning it could manipulate celestial bodies on a planetary scale elevated it to a threat beyond anything he had ever conceived.
The pieces of the puzzle slammed into place with chilling clarity. The meteor shower wasn't random. It was a calculated first strike, a bombardment designed to exhaust Konoha's resources and sow chaos, creating the perfect opportunity to abduct Hinata and Hanabi from under their noses.
"My brother placed his trust in you, even granting you knowledge of the fundamental forces of creation," Hamura's voice echoed with grim purpose. "This is proof enough of his faith. Therefore, I will place my faith in you as well." He took a step forward, his spiritual form radiating an intense plea. "I ask you to go to the moon, find the Tenseigan, and destroy it. Return the moon to its proper orbit."
His voice grew heavy with the weight of millennia. "I cannot allow the world my brother and I poured our very lives into protecting to be annihilated by the twisted will of our descendants!"
"You have my word," Minato replied without hesitation, bowing deeply to the Otsutsuki ancestor. "Protecting our world is the duty of all who live on it. We will not fail." It humbled him to realize that even after thousands of years, the two brothers continued to watch over the world they had saved.
"I can feel your strength," Hamura continued, his gaze appraising. "You are more powerful than any I have witnessed, save for my mother and my brother. But raw power will not be enough to destroy the Tenseigan. It is a sacred vessel of my clan's chakra. Only a descendant who carries my pure bloodline can nullify its power."
"I see," Minato responded, his mind immediately connecting the dots. If Hamura's words held true, then the only ones capable of stopping the catastrophe were the very people Toneri had kidnapped. Both Hinata and Hanabi possessed the pure Hyuga bloodline required.
Suddenly, the silent spirit who had guided him—and every single one of the thousands of souls filling the vast cemetery—knelt in unison. Their collective, silent plea was more powerful than any spoken word.
Minato could only nod, his expression hardening with solemn resolve. "I accept this charge. But before I go, I have one more question." His eyes shifted to the spirit of the puppet master. "The war I witnessed in your memories… the ones who wielded the Tenseigan as a weapon. They were of your people, were they not? Why would they turn such a power against their own kin?"
The spirit looked up, his face a mask of sorrow. "All of us here are descendants of Lord Hamura's main family, the carriers of the orthodox Otsutsuki bloodline of the moon." He explained, his voice a mournful whisper. "The branch family misinterpreted our ancestor's final decree—to watch over the Earth from afar. They came to believe humanity was a failure and that the world must be destroyed. They used the Tenseigan to start a civil war, seeking to enact their twisted judgment. We fought to stop them, and we were exterminated."
"Main family… branch family…"
The words struck Minato like a physical blow, a cold dread coiling in his stomach. The cursed seal on Neji's forehead flashed in his mind. The rigid, cruel tradition that the Hyuga clan of Konoha still practiced to this day, distinguishing bloodlines, binding one to servitude and the other to rule.
He had always disagreed with the system, but as Hokage, his power to interfere with the ancient traditions of a founding clan was limited. Now, seeing its devastating consequences mirrored on a celestial scale, he saw it not just as an injustice, but as the very seed of destruction. It was a rift that, if left to fester, could tear a family, and even a world, apart.
After this is over, he vowed to himself, I will be having a long discussion with Hiashi Hyuga.
"I understand," Minato said, his voice grim. "Then the one behind this current crisis, Otsutsuki Toneri… he is a descendant of the branch family?"
"Yes," the spirit confirmed. "He is the last of them."
"And he has taken both Hinata and Hanabi to the moon." Minato's mind was racing, putting the final pieces into place. "That also explains why the meteorites slowed. Toneri needed Hanabi's eyes to fully awaken his Tenseigan. During the transplant and adjustment period, he would have temporarily lost control of the moon's trajectory." He turned back to the spirit. "One last thing. Tell me how to get to the moon."
Even with the Flying Thunder God Technique, he couldn't teleport to a location without a marker or a known coordinate millions of kilometers away in space.
"High in the sky of this underground world, there is a hidden spring," the man replied. "It is a nexus of energy, a spatial gateway that connects the Earth's interior directly to the core of the moon."
"A gateway powered by the Tenseigan?" Minato surmised. It was the only logical explanation. Kaguya was a master of space-time ninjutsu; it was no surprise that the Tenseigan, an evolved form of her Byakugan, would possess a similar, albeit fixed, ability.
At his side, Hamura let out a soft, dry laugh. "I believe I understand now why my brother chose you."
Minato offered a faint smile. "Thank you. I have no more questions."
As he finished speaking, the spectral world began to dissolve. The figures of Hamura and the countless souls faded like smoke, the graveyard receding into blackness until, with a final lurch, his senses returned.
The heavy, cool air of the cavern filled his lungs. The torchlight flickered against the stone walls.
"Dad, are you alright?" Naruto and Chiharu's worried voices cut through the silence.
"I'm fine," Minato said, shaking his head to clear the last vestiges of the vision. The white orb of light in his palm was gone. He looked at his children, his expression now one of unwavering certainty. "I know where Hinata and Hanabi have been taken. We're going to get them back."
"Alright!" Naruto exclaimed, his face breaking into a determined grin. He jumped on the spot, bouncing with pent-up energy. He cracked his knuckles, a fiery resolve burning in his blue eyes. "Hinata, just hang on! I'm on my way!"
Chiharu watched her brother, a slight, knowing smile playing on her lips. "You seem a little different today, big brother."
"W-what are you talking about?" Naruto stammered, his bravado instantly evaporating.
"You've been on edge ever since Hinata was taken," Chiharu teased gently. "More than usual. It's almost like you're worried about her."
Naruto's face flushed a brilliant red. "Of course I'm worried! And… and it's because I promised her I'd treat her to Ichiraku Ramen after this mission was over! That's all!"
Anyone could see it was a clumsy, transparent lie. Chiharu just chuckled, shaking her head. "If you say so."
Minato allowed himself a small smile at their interaction before his focus returned to the mission. With a single hand sign, a shadow clone flickered into existence beside him. He then pressed a hand to the clone's shoulder, transferring the wealth of information he'd just received. The clone nodded once, then dispelled in a puff of smoke, sending the knowledge rocketing back to another of his clones stationed in Konoha, updating the village leadership.
The real work was about to begin.
"Dad's clone… its chakra just flared up!" Naruto noted, sensing the sudden surge from his father.
Minato was already gathering his power. "Once we destroy the Tenseigan, there's a high probability the spatial gateway will collapse," he explained, his voice taking on the commanding tone of the Fourth Hokage. "Getting there is one thing; getting back will be another. A Flying Thunder God jump from the moon all the way back to Earth will consume a massive amount of chakra."
He glanced at his son. Though having Naruto's vast reserves nearby was a comfort, in a situation this critical, it was always better to be overprepared. The fight for the fate of the world was about to begin, and he would not be caught off guard.