Chapter 339: Divine Artifact — Yasakani no Magatama!
Elsewhere—
A massive creature, drifting like an island across the vast sea, was steadily approaching the coast of the Land of Frost along a predetermined route.
The sea breeze swept through, carrying the cries of seagulls high into the sky.
Turtle Island, the land of training.
Beneath the grand mural within the underground temple, beyond the pitch-black open doors—
Uchiha Ci sat cross-legged at the edge of the altar, his hands resting on his knees, eyes closed, his expression growing increasingly solemn.
In the next instant—
The peculiar natural energy flowing through the entire sealed chamber began to spiral slowly, converging into the boy's chest beside the altar.
Whoosh!
As a pair of deep purple serpent eyes suddenly opened, lines of text materialized before him:
[Based on your understanding of Yin Release and your continuous three-day observation of the flow of Yin-attributed natural energy within this room, you have discovered a hidden inheritance and gained partial insight.]
[You have learned: Sage Art: Yin Release — Wind Sever (—, Entry Level)]
[You have learned: Sage Art: Yin Release — Phantom Form (—, Entry Level)]
[As your comprehension of Yin Release deepens, you may eventually integrate it with other attributes, fusing them into new Bloodline Limits, or even Bloodline Selections.]
"Hoo…"
Uchiha Ci exhaled a long breath. The deep purple faded from his eyes, revealing the scarlet Sharingan with three tomoe beneath.
"Because the ancient inheritance was destroyed too quickly, no complete legacy could be passed down. In the end, they had to rely on such a roundabout method to preserve these ancient sage arts."
"Compared to sage arts of attributes like Lightning, Fire, Water, or Earth, only Wind—whose flow could be fixed and altered through architectural structure—managed to traverse millennia and now manifests before me."
"So that's why it's Sage Art: Yin Release — Wind Sever?"
Uchiha Ci raised a hand, veins bulging around his eyes as he formed the 'dragon' seal with one hand.
On the palm of his other hand, a clearly visible purple wind blade materialized in the next instant.
Yin Release, creation from nothing.
Wind Release, severer of all things.
The fusion of Yin and Wind Release in this sage art granted it astonishing speed—so fast it felt suffocating—along with tremendous cutting power.
This technique was one tier below the Sage Art: Yin Release — Lightning Dispatch used by Six Paths Madara.
As for techniques at an even higher level...
"Sage Art: Yin Release — Lightning Dispatch requires mastery of Purple Lightning first, then must be cast using sage arts."
"And the Sage Art: Storm Release — Light Fang used by Six Paths Madara, powerful enough to cut through Truth-Seeking Orbs, requires the fusion of Lightning and Water Release into the Bloodline Limit: Storm Release, then enhanced with Yin Release to ascend to the level of a Bloodline Selection, and finally combined with sage arts."
"Only then does the Sage Art: Storm Release — Light Fang truly pose a threat to Six Paths-level opponents."
After pondering for a moment, Uchiha Ci casually dispelled the short purple blade in his hand.
"So essentially—Sage Art + Yin-Yang Release + Bloodline Limit—are the bare minimum requirements for clashing with Six Paths-level foes."
"Sages of the post-ancient era didn't possess such capabilities, which is why they were stuck using crude, single-attribute techniques like Wind Sever and Lightning Dispatch to battle Kaguya."
Thinking of this, he glanced at the magatama on the altar and couldn't help but shake his head.
"No wonder she suppressed them so easily."
The altar where the magatama was placed was engraved with an ancient mural—
A group of tearful "sages," each wielding sage arts of various colors, charging toward a lone figure bearing a scarlet moon with nine tomoe on her back.
This ties into the piece of ancient history recounted by Black Zetsu in the original story—
Putting aside Kaguya's origin and romantic entanglements, what we see is that after consuming the Divine Tree's fruit, Kaguya unified the two nations of Land of Ancestors and other country almost effortlessly, hanging their people upon the Divine Tree.
Yet paradoxically, after this unification, her grip over the land weakened—frequent rebellions broke out, requiring her to step out and personally suppress them.
Uchiha Ci tentatively labeled this era:
The Post-Ancient Period.
During this period—
Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo (the Sage of Six Paths) had reached adulthood. From a fraudulent traveling apothecary in the Land of Ancestors, he learned that other country had risen in rebellion against the so-called "tyrant" Kaguya. While Kaguya went to suppress the revolt, Gamamaru snuck into her domain, guiding Hagoromo to the Divine Tree, where he discovered his late beloved Haori—sacrificed to "feed" the Divine Tree. (TV content.)
The rebels of other country were descendants of those once placed under the Infinite Tsukuyomi, their memories erased before being released to repopulate.
The reason they were able to resist Kaguya for so long was that the native inhabitants of the Shinobi World had undergone genetic modification by the Divine Tree during that era, gaining chakra.
The animals that secretly bore a grudge against Kaguya—passed down the inheritance of pre-Tree era sages—and merged it with chakra, giving rise to sage arts fused with chakra, which became humanity's foundation for rebellion against Kaguya.
Looking at things now—
Turtle Island itself, the Falls of Truth, the headless stone statue, and the chamber that leads into one's innermost mind—these pure natural energy mechanisms likely originated from a proper sage even before the ancient era.
But the structures on Turtle Island and the murals that obscure the truth—Uchiha Ci believed—came from a later generation.
It was during that period that humans, guided by animals, discovered the Falls of Truth and built this chamber, leaving behind these arts—and a shameful piece of history.
Because the only one who could defeat Kaguya—
Was her own son.
These so-called "sages" were merely bait—meant to lure Ōtsutsuki Kaguya out and buy time for Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo's growth.
This was the second layer of history on Turtle Island.
Uchiha Ci stood up from the altar, letting out a soft sigh, his gaze lingering on the structure before him.
Before entering this hidden chamber,
He had already thoroughly explored all of Turtle Island, including the room next door where Naruto and Killer Bee trained to master perfect Jinchūriki form.
The Sage Art: Yin Release — Phantom Form was an illusion technique attached to the sealed door—it wasn't difficult to open for someone with these eyes.
However, his hopes of finding a method to further enhance his Sage Form here ultimately came to nothing.
His [Sage Form] seemed to have surpassed even the sages of Turtle Island's past—this place offered him no further insights.
As Orochimaru had mentioned, the innermost chamber was only somewhat useful in helping to control alien powers; it held little other value for him.
Even so, Uchiha Ci wasn't leaving empty-handed.
After deciphering the techniques passed down within the dark room and absorbing the abundant Yin-attributed natural energy, the barrier around the altar dissipated on its own—
Revealing the magatama atop the altar.
At this moment—
As Uchiha Ci's hand touched the magatama—
A new line of text instantly appeared before him:
[You obtained: Divine Artifact — Yasakani no Magatama (True Form).]
[Divine Artifact — Yasakani no Magatama: A precious item that endured the fall of emperors, vengeance against tyrants, and the dawn of Ninjutsu. Once passed through the hands of the emperor of Land of Ancestors, Haori, and the Sage of Six Paths, it fulfilled Gamamaru's revenge plan and was ultimately buried here.]
[The artifact's power was extracted by the Sage of Six Paths and fused into his bloodline, becoming the spiritual core of Sasanoo (Stage Three: Complete-Body Sasanoo).]
[When a bloodline inheritor holds this artifact's true form, they may summon it ahead of time and unleash its full power.]
"I see..."
Reading the description, Uchiha Ci's expression sharpened.
So the magatama pendant worn by the emperor of Land of Ancestors, and later by Haori—the Sage of Six Paths' beloved—was in fact the same item. It ended up beneath the roots of the Divine Tree, where it came into the Sage's possession, and became a crucial tool in his battle against Ōtsutsuki Kaguya.
The Sage then fused its power into his Sasanoo and passed it down through his bloodline.
Which explained why every Uchiha Sasanoo pilot could manifest the Yasakani no Magatama in the third stage of Sasanoo!
"No wonder there are so many so-called divine weapons. Every time someone activates Sasanoo, out pops a Yasaka Magatama—ridiculous."
"So this is the root of it all."
Clicking his tongue in admiration, Uchiha Ci strung the magatama around his neck.
"Well, it's mine now."
Having discovered the hidden chamber and obtained everything on Turtle Island that could enhance him—
Uchiha Ci stood tall once more, stepping out of the room, walking out of the underground sanctuary. His condition had changed drastically from when he arrived—no longer frail, his eyes now sparkled with dazzling brilliance!
At that moment—
Sunlight bathed the ocean in shimmering light.
Seagulls flapped their wings high in the sky.
The moist sea breeze lifted his long bangs.
Staring toward the distant coastline of the Land of Frost drawing nearer in his sights, Uchiha Ci smirked.
"Well then—"
"Land of Lightning, here I come!"