"Is this the moon?"
Uchiha Madara, whose consciousness was occupying the body of the Second Tsuchikage, flew silently while scanning the lunar surface. He muttered, "It's so desolate! And there's not a single trace of chakra. What's going on?"
He had deliberately opened the seal of the space channel to "invite" the enemy to enter the moon. Logically, Otsutsuki Toneri should have laid an ambush either in the passage or on the other side of it.
Yet, along the way, Uchiha Madara only saw some immobile animal puppets. There wasn't a single human puppet in sight.
No signs of ambush. No signs of the Otsutsuki clan.
It was all too strange.
Even Madara couldn't immediately figure out Toneri's intentions.
While continuing his exploration, he transmitted everything he saw back to his original body.
When the wood clone cast the Impure World Reincarnation, Uchiha Madara had already set out from the Hidden Rain Village.
In less than half an hour, he arrived at the space channel's entrance.
After receiving the information, Madara didn't hesitate and leapt directly into the green lake, passing swiftly through the space channel to the moon.
Black and White Zetsu, however, didn't dare to follow. Black Zetsu was afraid.
He feared that Otsutsuki Hagoromo and Hamura might've left behind some mechanism on the moon.
If he entered and triggered some hidden trap or if the passage was sealed, he could be permanently trapped.
If Uchiha Madara died, he could still groom a third person to awaken the Rinnegan.
But if he, Black Zetsu, died… his mother would never return.
He couldn't take that gamble.
But he still wanted to see his mother—so he had a White Zetsu clone sneak onto the moon using the Mayfly Technique. It eventually reached the hidden chamber where Otsutsuki Kaguya was sealed by the Six Paths Chibaku Tensei.
Kaguya wasn't buried under a meteorite. She was like a sleeping beauty, suspended in a pitch-black space.
Like the mechanism surrounding the Giant Rinnegan, even the White Zetsu clone couldn't get close to this space.
Even if the moon were split in half, she wouldn't awaken unless the seal was undone or shattered.
Because the moon was a massive meteorite created by the Six Paths Chibaku Tensei, it continuously absorbed the sun's energy to maintain the seal.
Just as Otsutsuki Toneri was once possessed by countless Byakugan and flew out of control into space, endlessly absorbing solar energy—his body swelling grotesquely.
From the shadows, through the clone, Black Zetsu looked upon Kaguya and muttered in his heart, "Mother, don't worry. I will save you."
"Madara-sama, the enemy is above us."
A White Zetsu clone returned to the moon's surface, located Uchiha Madara—who was exploring a ruined city destroyed by Silver Wheel Reincarnation Explosion—and pointed up toward the artificial sun.
"So that's where the sunlight's coming from," Madara muttered, finally enlightened.
He summoned his complete Susanoo and flew toward the artificial sun.
The towering blue warrior drew the blade at its side and slashed at the protective light barrier.
With a deafening roar, a hole tore open in the golden wall.
Madara's Susanoo shrank rapidly and darted through the gap.
Once inside, the barrier quickly mended itself. The White Zetsu clone remained outside, hoping that Madara would return victorious.
Inside the artificial sun, Madara finally sensed chakra.
What shocked him was...
"Why is there only one chakra?" he muttered. "Did he relocate his clan ahead of time to duel me here?"
Though puzzled, Madara continued toward the palace with unwavering confidence.
When he approached the grand building, he didn't have Susanoo slash it apart as a "greeting."
Instead, he dispersed Susanoo, floated gently down, and walked through the palace doors.
Without the sunlight from outside, the room was dim. But by candlelight, and through the Rinnegan's vision, he could see clearly.
A dazzling chakra—like the moon's glow—took the shape of a young man sitting on the throne.
Dressed in a white robe patterned with black magatama, the boy rested his cheek on his palm. A pair of beige dragon horns protruded from his forehead. His eyes were icy blue-white, and he stared down at Madara.
It was Izayoi.
He had assumed Toneri's appearance and altered his chakra aura using prior absorption.
Madara stared at the horns with interest. "You look different than I expected. Do all Otsutsuki mutants grow horns?"
Izayoi responded calmly, yet haughtily, "They're a symbol of higher beings. Only pure-blooded Otsutsuki possess them. Because of these horns, I awakened the Rinnegan at this age. You, on the other hand, had to steal Hashirama's power and wait until you were near death."
"So you do know Nagato's Rinnegan was mine!" Madara sneered. "Did your Otsutsuki clan detect me when I summoned the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path? Otsutsuki Hagoromo… so the Sage of Six Paths is one of you!"
He now confirmed his suspicions. Then he stared at Izayoi again, bombarding him with questions:
"The descendants of the Sage are the Uchiha, Senju, and Uzumaki clans. By uniting opposite poles, the Rinnegan can be awakened. But what about your clan? Do you have any descendants in the Ninja World? You with your Rinnegan—why do you look down on it and mock the Sage of Six Paths? Just because of horns?"
He didn't attack because there were too many unanswered questions.
He also wanted to know—if Izayoi knew about the Ten Tails, why didn't he stop its revival by sealing the tailed beasts? Why chase the Demonic Statue instead?
Was Izayoi feigning disdain for the Rinnegan while secretly wanting to become its Jinchuriki?
Izayoi didn't answer.
Instead, his tone turned mocking. He leaned on the throne and said with a smirk:
"Interesting. Otsutsuki Black Zetsu helped you awaken the Rinnegan, but didn't even explain the origin of chakra to you?"
"?"
A question mark practically popped out of Madara's forehead. His heart tightened. He said coldly:
"Otsutsuki Black Zetsu? Are you trying to sow discord? Black Zetsu is my will!"
"Heh... just a pitiful pawn." Izayoi sneered, and his eyes flashed with a brilliant blue-white light. "Then allow this frog in the well to see the truth of the world."
Suddenly, everything before Madara's eyes blurred, as if the world rewound in reverse.
When the image stabilized, Madara was no longer on the moon but standing on Earth.
Before him was a long-haired woman with white eyes and horns. She plucked a radiant fruit from a strange tree.
After eating it, a vertical mark split open on her forehead—a red eye appeared, rippling like a Rinnegan, dotted with nine magatama.
She floated into the sky and tore open space itself, linking to a star. Her third eye projected a glowing Rinne Sharingan upward, transforming the star into a massive eye.
It emitted blinding white light that blanketed the entire world.
All life fell unconscious.
Roots from the sacred tree rose and wrapped the slumbering humans, encasing them.
Madara realized this was the Infinite Tsukuyomi described in the Uchiha stone tablet.
But… wasn't that the Sage's method for peace?
Why did she cast it?
Wasn't the God of Shinobi—the chakra progenitor—the Sage of Six Paths?
Izayoi's voice continued:
"A long time ago, there was a sacred tree whose fruit ripened once every thousand years. The woman who ate it was named Otsutsuki Kaguya. She quelled conflicts with overwhelming power and was worshipped as the Rabbit Goddess."
"She ruled for many years and bore twins—Otsutsuki Hagoromo and Otsutsuki Hamura. Both inherited her power."
The image shifted. Madara saw the grown brothers.
"…Why do they have the Byakugan?" he muttered.
Weren't they supposed to have the Sharingan?
Was the Hyuga clan also descended from Otsutsuki?
Then he recalled the third eye Kaguya had… the Rinne Sharingan.
He saw Hagoromo awaken the Sharingan, master Sage Mode, unlock the Rinnegan, and—together with Hamura—seal their mother.
Izayoi explained everything: the truth of chakra, the origin of the Sage, the creation of the tailed beasts, and the lies of Black Zetsu.
"Infinite Tsukuyomi was never peace," Izayoi said coldly. "It was a weapon to create White Zetsu."
Madara stood frozen. His dream shattered.
He had believed he'd found the true path to peace.
But it was all a lie?
Then came the most shocking moment.
When Kaguya was sealed, a ball of black goo slipped from her sleeve and slithered away—it glanced back at her sealed form.
Young as it was, Madara recognized it.
Black Zetsu.
Izayoi's voice echoed again.
"Everyone knows the Rabbit Goddess had two sons. Few know she had a third—Otsutsuki Black Zetsu. He inherited no power, only her will… and immortality."
"That's nonsense!" Madara denied it outright.
But the next images broke his resolve.
He saw Black Zetsu manipulating every generation of Uchiha and Senju elites.
He even saw him tampering with the stone tablet using Yin-Yang Release.
Eventually, it reached his own time.
Everything unfolded as Madara remembered.
He saw Black Zetsu's ecstasy as he read the stone tablet with the Eternal Mangekyo.
He saw Black Zetsu attach himself during the summoning of the Demonic Statue.
The illusion ended as if shattered glass fell to the floor.
Madara stood in silence.
He couldn't tell what was real or fake anymore.
His brain… was fried.
Pssst! This story is already on Chapter 198 on Patreon!
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