Chapter 173:The Ruthless Uchiha Madara
"This is... the Sage of Six Paths' inheritance!"
Uchiha Madara's eyes trembled as he gazed at the ancient, glowing characters on the wall of the volcanic cave.
He hadn't expected that after continuously searching for the ruins of Kaguya Ōtsutsuki and the Sage of Six Paths without success, he would find the Sage of Six Paths' inheritance here.
"Could it be that... that Mōryō was actually a demon created by the Sage of Six Paths?" Uchiha Madara murmured, a hint of regret flashing in his eyes. "I was too arrogant. I should have realized that something immortal like this must be related to the Sage of Six Paths, or Kaguya Ōtsutsuki, or the Ōtsutsuki clan on the moon!"
Now, recalling himself, Uchiha Madara noticed many similarities between Mōryō and the Tailed Beasts.
For instance, the materialization of energy: Tailed Beasts are materialized chakra, while Mōryō is the materialization of negative emotions or evil energy.
For example, their immortality: even if the Ten-Tails regressed to its Gedō Mazō form, while space-time abilities could damage it, they couldn't kill it.
As long as there was life on this planet, the Gedō Mazō could repair its injuries by absorbing chakra or the planet's life energy.
After a Tailed Beast died, it would resurrect years later somewhere in the ninja world.
As long as the planet lived, the Gedō Mazō and Tailed Beasts were immortal.
Only the Jinchuriki sealing system developed by the Sage of Six Paths could seal Tailed Beasts inside human bodies, temporarily killing them by killing the jinchuriki.
Mōryō was the same; even Uchiha Madara's Rinnegan couldn't kill it.
According to the memories of the Land of Demons residents, only the Miko's power could seal Mōryō, and it couldn't be killed. This was practically an alternative Tailed Beast and jinchuriki sealing system.
An entity that even the Rinnegan couldn't destroy was definitely a masterpiece of the Ancestor of Shinobi or the Ancestor of Chakra!
So, Uchiha Madara began to carefully read the ancient characters on the wall. The more he read, the more astonished he became, and flashes of surprise and regret appeared in his eyes.
"The Onmyoton of the Rinnegan was just the basic. There are so many development paths and uses..."
The wall clearly inscribed the complete Onmyoton.
After reading the Onmyoton section, Uchiha Madara's heart sank.
At this moment, he was absolutely certain that Black Zetsu was problematic.
Onmyoton could indeed create manifestations of will.
The prerequisite was that the nature transformation and form transformation of both Yin and Yang attributes, as well as physical and spiritual energy, reached another dimension. Additionally, one had to be able to create objects at will, form shapes from nothingness, and imbue those shapes with life to create manifestations of will using Onmyoton.
Uchiha Madara was severely unbalanced; his Yin Release overshadowed the Yang Release he obtained from Hashirama Senju.
The basic Onmyoton of the Rinnegan only possessed the ability to create forms, i.e., Black Receiver material.
Uchiha Madara's Yang Release power was far inferior to his Yin Release power and had not reached the stage of imbuing life.
"Onmyoton product imbued with life, the will manifestation of Kaguya Ōtsutsuki... Heh heh," Uchiha Madara suddenly chuckled coldly. "So that stone tablet, and the writing on it, were all products of Onmyoton, including this altar and the walls. They were all masterpieces of Onmyoton... Only those with the Rinnegan and descendants of the Sage of Six Paths can unlock the secrets here."
"No wonder that Black Zetsu fellow guided me to awaken the Rinnegan and become the Ten-Tails' jinchuriki. It seems he intended to use my hand to break Ōtsutsuki Kaguya's seal!"
"The Rinnegan and bloodline power are the 'keys' to deciphering the stone tablet and opening this wall. So what is the 'key' to releasing Kaguya Ōtsutsuki's seal?"
Uchiha Madara pondered for a moment, then softly uttered two words: "Black Zetsu!"
"A manifestation of will will surely be the key to unsealing the main body. What is the keyhole?"
"The God Tree and the Chakra Fruit, the Ten-Tails and the Ten-Tails' jinchuriki... The Ancestor of Chakra and the Ten-Tails' jinchuriki... The 'fruit' returns to the 'God Tree,' and the 'God Tree' once again bears 'fruit'!"
Uchiha Madara's heart suddenly grew cold, and cold sweat streamed down him.
He looked up at the ceiling, filled with ancient characters. Uchiha Madara's gaze seemed to penetrate the volcano, directly looking at the moon in outer space, making eye contact with Kaguya Ōtsutsuki sealed within.
"The moon was cut, but Kaguya Ōtsutsuki didn't break free from the seal, which means even destroying the moon cannot undo the Sage of Six Paths' seal."
"Kaguya Ōtsutsuki can only break free from the seal in two ways: by undoing the seal, or by... possession!" Uchiha Madara gritted his teeth, pronouncing the name of a technique. "Onmyoton... Spirit Possession!"
"If I absorb the Ten-Tails, which was once the God Tree, and become the Ten-Tails' jinchuriki, then Black Zetsu can possess my body and release Kaguya's will, which had eaten the Chakra Fruit from the same source as the God Tree, to fight me for control of my body."
"Because of the same origin, or the difference in Onmyoton, no matter what, I cannot win against Kaguya Ōtsutsuki. Is this her method of revival?"
"What a... magnificent scheme! You bastard!"
Uchiha Madara was so angry that he uncharacteristically swore.
At this moment, Uchiha Madara felt like nothing more than a clown.
From the moment he deciphered the Uchiha clan's stone tablet, he had been Black Zetsu's pawn.
Infinite Tsukuyomi was not a way to sever karma and achieve permanent peace; it was a world-ending technique that would turn humanity into White Zetsu!
From the Valley of the End battle to his own resurrection, everything had been within Black Zetsu's predictions.
Even his own resurrection plan might have been an illusion suggested by Black Zetsu using Onmyoton.
Thinking of this, Uchiha Madara wished he could immediately instruct his Wood Clone to tear Black Zetsu to shreds.
But he knew he couldn't do that.
As a product of Onmyoton, the will of the Ancestor of Chakra, Black Zetsu, like Mōryō, was an immortal existence.
Just as only a Miko could seal Mōryō, this manifestation of the Ancestor of Chakra's will had to be sealed by becoming the Ten-Tails' jinchuriki.
"Ōtsutsuki Kaguya, Ōtsutsuki Toneri, Ōtsutsuki Black Zetsu..."
Uchiha Madara silently recited these three names in his mind, his eyes becoming incredibly sharp.
Whether permanent peace could be achieved no longer mattered.
His current goal was to clear obstacles for future generations, preventing the world-ending technique of Infinite Tsukuyomi from ever descending upon the ninja world again.
To achieve this goal, he still needed to become the Ten-Tails' jinchuriki.
And now, the people preventing him from becoming the Ten-Tails' jinchuriki were not only Ōtsutsuki Toneri but also Izayoi.
Looking at the latter part of the wall's text, Uchiha Madara murmured, "Six Paths Sage Mode, is that the brat's power?"
Indeed, the Sage of Six Paths' inheritance on the wall included not only complete Onmyoton but also the methods for training and acquiring Six Paths Sage Mode.
After finishing the latter part, Uchiha Madara realized that he had memorized all the text just by reading it once.
The next second, the characters on the wall automatically vanished.
The altar beneath his feet also let out cracking sounds.
Uchiha Madara floated up and flew towards the exit of the volcanic cave.
With a loud boom, a pillar of magma erupted, engulfing the altar.
As Uchiha Madara left, he didn't notice a soul form suspended in the air behind him, looking at his retreating back with a relieved expression.
"Finding your way back, truly understanding and moving forward... You, who have inherited the power of Indra and Asura yet freed yourself from their wills, might be able to achieve what even I could not." The Sage of Six Paths chuckled softly, then turned his head towards a certain direction, a hint of coldness and suspicion flashing in his eyes.
After Uchiha Madara left the temple, the Sage of Six Paths' soul and the barrier also disappeared.
Not long after, a figure with altered chakra appeared inside the volcanic crater.
"The altar is gone..."
Izayoi's Wood Clone stood on the winding path, looking at the place where an altar once stood, now filled only with surging magma. His expression was grim as he thought, "There's no lingering chakra signature, and even the Tenseigan can't see through it. Only three people could create a barrier of this level."
"It can't be Ōtsutsuki Isshiki; there are no traces of Karma on Uchiha Madara."
"Nor can it be Ōtsutsuki Hamura. So it can only be... the Sage of Six Paths!"
Thinking this, Izayoi's mood became heavy, but more so, he felt excited.
The Sage of Six Paths being on the opposing side was undoubtedly an extremely bad situation.
Because in the eyes of Izayoi, a transmigrator, the most dangerous and strongest person in this world was not Kaguya Ōtsutsuki, nor Ōtsutsuki Isshiki, but the Sage of Six Paths, who could interfere with the world of the living even after death, bestow Six Paths-level combat power upon Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha, and possess the power to seal Kaguya Ōtsutsuki.
A thousand years ago, the Sage of Six Paths needed Ōtsutsuki Hamura's power to seal Kaguya Ōtsutsuki.
A thousand years later, he could bestow the power of Six Paths — Chibaku Tensei upon Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha, indicating that he could perform such seals alone.
Furthermore, the Six Paths-level power of Naruto and Sasuke was granted by his soul, proving that the Sage of Six Paths' soul still possessed Six Paths-level combat prowess.
Even without consuming the Chakra Fruit or refining it into elixirs for longevity, the Sage of Six Paths had achieved an alternative form of immortality.
Being targeted by such an entity would make one restless even in sleep.
However, Izayoi felt a surge of pleasant surprise and excitement.
Because... wasn't this also a signal?
After all, Izayoi knew very well that he was not a descendant of Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo or Ōtsutsuki Hamura. With the Sage of Six Paths' abilities, he could clearly discern this.
If the Sage of Six Paths truly possessed invincible power, there would be no need to use Uchiha Madara to eliminate him.
But he didn't do that; instead, he chose to use unknown means to help Uchiha Madara.
This meant that the Sage of Six Paths was either unable to act or lacked the power and confidence to eliminate him!
Either way, it was good news for Izayoi.
The Sage of Six Paths' power was merely a strength of his mechanisms.
His raw stats, after all, couldn't compare to Ōtsutsuki Kaguya.
When the Sage Eye tag popped up, and he gained ultimate Yin power, this cunning old man didn't appear.
When he awakened the Tenseigan, this guy still didn't appear.
When horns grew on his forehead, he still didn't appear.
Now that Six Paths Sage Mode was unlocked, this cunning old man began to interfere with the world of the living.
Izayoi's Six Paths Sage Mode layered with Tenseigan Chakra Mode likely made him feel threatened and apprehensive.
Thinking this, Izayoi valued Shion even more.
Before he could enter Six Paths Sage Mode without relying on the Miko's power, to avoid any accidents, he would need to arrange for a Wood Clone to monitor Shion and protect her safety, even while he slept.
Transmitting everything he saw and thought in real-time to his main body, Izayoi's Wood Clone instantly vanished.
After Uchiha Madara left the temple, he ended his journey of searching for the ruins of the Land of Ancestors, but he didn't immediately return to Amegakure. Instead, he found someone.
"Your lost look is truly unsightly, Obito!" Uchiha Madara directly mocked.
"You've finally returned?"
Obito Uchiha, who was gazing at a landscape from a cliff, reminiscing about the past, not wearing his mask and expressionless at the moment, glanced at Uchiha Madara who appeared beside him. He said indifferently, "It seems you've found what you were looking for?"
"Indeed, but for you, it's bad news," Uchiha Madara said with a playful smile.
Obito Uchiha's heart suddenly skipped a beat, and he instinctively asked, "What bad news?"
"The Eye of the Moon Plan has been canceled," Uchiha Madara said, crossing his arms and enjoying Obito Uchiha's changing expression. He delivered a critical blow: "The Infinite Tsukuyomi is a fake; it cannot create a beautiful dream world at all."
"What did you say?!"
Obito Uchiha's expression instantly became distorted and terrifying. With one Mangekyō Sharingan and one three-tomoe Sharingan, he glared at Uchiha Madara, saying furiously, "Are you saying you've been deceiving me all this time?"
As he spoke, a black gas emanated from Obito Uchiha's body. It was Yin Release chakra, materialized negative emotions, and a manifestation of darkness.
This showed just how much Uchiha Madara's words impacted Obito Uchiha.
He could care less about losing control of the Akatsuki, or his identity being exposed, his status changing from behind-the-scenes boss to an outsider. He could also care less about his other eye being taken; now he even had to activate Izanagi to enter the Kamui Dimension, fearing that Ōtsutsuki Toneri might ambush him there and take his current eye.
Even his previous small ambition, to replace Uchiha Madara and cast the Infinite Tsukuyomi himself, now that his ambition was shattered, Obito Uchiha could still care less.
As long as the Infinite Tsukuyomi was successfully cast and a world with Rin was created, that was all that mattered.
It was precisely because the new world would not only have Rin but also everyone else and permanent peace that Obito Uchiha regarded this world as a junkyard. Whether it was his sensei and sensei's wife, or his clansmen and others, he could mercilessly kill them.
Because in the new world, they would all come back to life.
In that world, Rin would love him, Kakashi would acknowledge him, his sensei wouldn't be late, his sensei's wife would still dote on him, and even Naruto, who was similar to him, would become his disciple... These were all Obito Uchiha's dreams.
This dream world was the motivation that kept Obito Uchiha going.
If Uchiha Madara told him that this dream was actually false, that he had been deceiving him all along, then even if he had a cursed seal in his heart, Obito Uchiha would still kill him!
"I didn't deceive you; I only just found out myself."
Looking at Obito Uchiha's frantic state, Uchiha Madara spread his hands. "The Infinite Tsukuyomi indeed exists, and the dream world also exists, but this technique has a major flaw... Never mind, see for yourself."
After speaking, Uchiha Madara used the Rinnegan's genjutsu to pull Obito Uchiha into a genjutsu world, replaying the scenes that Nagato had seen.
Obito Uchiha was not interested in Kaguya Ōtsutsuki, the Sage of Six Paths, or even Black Zetsu.
When he saw that the Infinite Tsukuyomi was actually a technique to create White Zetsu, he completely broke down.
Even after the genjutsu world shattered, Obito Uchiha still had that lifeless, zombie-like expression.
At this moment, his mind constantly replayed beautiful childhood memories.
And in all these memories, except for Rin being killed by Kakashi, a black-robed, masked figure would appear and shatter all the other scenes.
His sensei, who was always late but very kind to him, his sensei's wife, who was wild and a bit scary but took special care of him, as well as his clansmen and the villagers of Konoha... these people, he had killed himself.
And they would not revive in the dream world.
At this moment, Obito Uchiha thought Uchiha Madara had triggered the cursed seal in his heart. He felt his heart ache intensely, suffocating as if drowning.
"Hahahaha..."
Obito Uchiha suddenly burst into laughter, enacting the famous scene of the "Uchiha mad laugh."
He laughed, trembling all over, laughing until tears streamed from his eyes!
Watching Obito Uchiha collapse into laughter, Uchiha Madara felt a secret satisfaction.
Right? Why should he bear the pain of shattered dreams alone?
Seeing Obito Uchiha, who was as firm as iron in will but as fragile as paper, in this state, Uchiha Madara felt a hint of comfort.
They were both pawns, both had shattered dreams. At least he wasn't the most miserable.
However, looking at Obito Uchiha, whom he had drawn into darkness, Uchiha Madara, now having found his way back and seeing things clearly, felt a slight pang of guilt, though not much.
So, Uchiha Madara continued to paint a grand picture for Obito Uchiha, emitting the devil's whisper.
"Do you want to revive those precious to you and start anew?"
Obito Uchiha's laughter abruptly stopped. Then, with a face full of tears, he looked at Uchiha Madara, and the light gradually returned to his eyes.
Uchiha Madara once again pulled Obito Uchiha into a genjutsu world, promising, "Help me with something. Once I become the Ten-Tails' jinchuriki, I will revive those precious to you."
"Alright."
The broken Obito Uchiha agreed with almost no hesitation.
He didn't even ask Uchiha Madara what he needed help with.
However, this time, Obito Uchiha had grown smarter. He said coldly, "But you must remove that thing first. You know what I'm talking about."
"Very well," Uchiha Madara readily nodded.
....
Get advanced chapters ahead of everyone else.
👉 Join now: patreon.com/Chaos_God