"This is... the inheritance of the Six Paths Sage!"
Uchiha Madara looked at the ancient characters on the volcanic cave wall, his eyes trembling.
He hadn't expected that, after searching in vain for the remnants of the Rabbit Goddess and the Six Paths Sage, he would instead stumble upon the true inheritance of the Sage here.
"Could it be... that Wuliang was actually a monster created by the Sage of the Six Paths?" Madara murmured, regret flashing through his eyes. "I was too arrogant. I should've realized that something so immortal must be connected to the Sage, the Rabbit Goddess, or the Otsutsuki on the moon."
Now that he'd realized it, Madara saw the similarities between Wuliang and the tailed beasts:
For instance, both are the materialization of energy—tailed beasts of chakra, Wuliang of negative emotions or evil energy.
Both are immortal. Even the Ten-Tails, after reverting to the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, can't be destroyed by time-space power—only shattered. And as long as life exists on this planet, the statue can restore itself by absorbing chakra or life energy. When a tailed beast dies, it eventually reincarnates somewhere else in the world.
Only the Jinchūriki sealing system developed by the Sage of Six Paths can temporarily "kill" a tailed beast by killing its host.
The same went for Wuliang. Even Madara's Rinnegan couldn't kill it. According to residents of the Land of Demons, only the power of the miko could seal it—never destroy it.
It was practically a different version of the tailed beast system.
An existence that even the Rinnegan couldn't handle... It had to be the work of the ancestor of chakra!
Madara began carefully reading the ancient script. The more he read, the more astonished he became.
"The Yin-Yang Release of the Rinnegan... this is just the basics. There are so many branches and applications..."
What was written on the wall was a complete Yin-Yang Release technique.
Upon reading it, Madara's heart sank.
He was now certain—something was wrong with Black Zetsu.
Yin-Yang Release can indeed create incarnations of will, but only when spiritual and physical energy have reached a new dimension, allowing one to form things from nothing and breathe life into them. That's when the technique can be used to create a will-based entity.
But Madara's own Yin-Yang Release was unbalanced—his Yin Release (from his own body) was superior to the Yang Release (borrowed from Hashirama). So he couldn't create a living incarnation.
"A product of Yin-Yang Release injected with life... the embodiment of the Rabbit Goddess's will. Heh..." Madara sneered. "The stone tablet, its writing, this altar, this wall—it's all made with Yin-Yang Release. Only descendants of the Rinnegan and the Sage could unlock it."
"No wonder Black Zetsu pushed me to awaken the Rinnegan and become the Ten-Tails' Jinchūriki. He wanted me to lift Kaguya Otsutsuki's seal for him."
"The Rinnegan and Sage bloodline were the 'key' to deciphering the tablet and opening the wall. But what's the key to unsealing the Rabbit Goddess?"
Madara muttered to himself, then said aloud: "Black Zetsu!"
"The incarnation of will must be the key... so what's the keyhole?"
"The Divine Tree, the Chakra Fruit, the Ten-Tails, the Jinchūriki... the fruit returns to the Divine Tree, and the Tree bears fruit again..."
A chill ran through Madara's spine. Cold sweat poured down.
He looked up at the ceiling full of glowing characters, eyes seemingly piercing the mountain and staring straight at the moon—at Kaguya Otsutsuki, who was sealed within.
"The moon was split, but she didn't escape. That means the Sage's seal isn't bound to the moon itself."
"There are only two ways to free her: a seal-breaker... or possession!" he gritted his teeth. "Yin-Yang Release—Spirit Possession!"
"As long as I become the Ten-Tails Jinchūriki, Black Zetsu can possess me and release Kaguya's will. With chakra from the same fruit, he could fight for control over my body."
"And because of our shared origin... or the disparity in Yin-Yang Release... I'd lose. That's her method of resurrection."
"What a brilliant scheme! Damn it!"
Madara rarely cursed, but now he did, furious.
He realized he'd been nothing but a pawn since the moment he interpreted the Uchiha stone tablet. Black Zetsu had manipulated him every step of the way.
Infinite Tsukuyomi wasn't a path to peace—it was a world-ending technique that turned people into White Zetsu.
From the Valley of the End to his own resurrection—everything was planned by Black Zetsu.
Even the idea for his resurrection may have been planted by Black Zetsu through Yin-Yang Release.
Madara wanted to command a Wood Clone to tear Black Zetsu apart—but he knew that wouldn't work.
As a will-based creation of Yin-Yang Release, Black Zetsu was ghost-like, unkillable.
Just as only the miko could seal the ghost, Black Zetsu would need to be sealed by a Ten-Tails Jinchūriki.
"Otsutsuki Kaguya, Toneri, Black Zetsu..." Madara recited their names, eyes sharp.
World peace didn't matter anymore.
His new goal was to remove all threats—to ensure Infinite Tsukuyomi would never again descend upon the ninja world.
To do that, he still needed to become the Ten-Tails' Jinchūriki.
And now, his obstacles were not only Toneri—but also Izayoi.
Looking at the wall's remaining inscriptions, Madara murmured, "Six Paths Sage Mode... so that's the boy's power?"
Indeed, the inheritance included both Yin-Yang Release and instructions for attaining Six Paths Sage Mode.
After reading it once, Madara found the text etched into his memory. Then, as if on cue, the words vanished, and the altar beneath him began to crack.
Madara rose into the air and flew toward the exit.
A geyser of magma erupted, consuming the altar.
He didn't notice a soul floating silently behind him, watching with a gentle smile.
"Returning to the right path after going astray... You've inherited both Indra and Ashura's power but freed yourself from their will. Maybe you can accomplish what I couldn't," murmured the Six Paths Sage, before glancing elsewhere, suspicion flashing in his eyes.
Once Madara left, the Sage's soul and the barrier vanished.
Soon after, a new figure entered the crater.
"The altar's gone..." Izayoi's wooden clone stood on the scorched ground, looking grim. "Not a trace of chakra left... Even the Rinnegan can't see through this. Only three people could create a barrier this strong."
"It's not Isshiki. Madara has no wedge."
"It's not Hamura either. It can only be... the Six Paths Sage!"
Izayoi felt a chill, but also excitement.
If the Sage stood against him, that would be bad.
After all, as a transmigrator, Izayoi knew the Sage was more dangerous than even Kaguya or Isshiki.
The Sage could interfere with the world from beyond death, grant Six Paths powers to others, and had sealed Kaguya.
Thousands of years ago, he needed Hamura's help to seal her. Now he could grant Six Paths Chibaku Tensei on his own.
Even his soul alone retained Six Paths-level power.
Even without taking a chakra fruit, he achieved a sort of eternal life.
Being targeted by someone like that would make anyone sleep uneasily.
And yet, Izayoi also felt joy.
Because—wasn't this a sign?
He wasn't Hagoromo's or Hamura's descendant. The Sage must know that.
If the Sage really had power to erase him, he would've done it. But instead, he helped Madara.
That meant either he couldn't act directly—or he didn't have the strength or confidence to eliminate Izayoi.
Either way, good news.
The Sage's strength came from "mechanics"—not raw stats.
He hadn't appeared when Izayoi unlocked the Sage Eye or mastered ultimate Yin.
He didn't appear when Izayoi awakened the Rinnegan, or even when he grew horns.
Only now—after unlocking Six Paths Sage Mode—did he show up.
It meant he was scared.
Thinking of this, Izayoi became even more protective of Shion.
Until he could enter Six Paths Sage Mode without her power, he must keep her safe—watch her even in sleep.
He relayed everything to his main body, then vanished with a teleport.
...
After leaving the temple, Madara didn't return to the Hidden Rain Village right away. He went to see someone.
"You look like crap, Obito," Madara said mockingly.
"You're finally back?" Obito stood on a cliff, maskless, expression blank. "Looks like you got what you were after."
"I did. Bad news for you, though," Madara said with a smirk.
Obito frowned. "What do you mean?"
"The Moon's Eye Plan is off."
"What?"
"Infinite Tsukuyomi is fake. It can't create a perfect world."
"What did you say?!"
Obito's face twisted with rage. Dark Yin chakra leaked from him, swirling like black smoke—an embodiment of his emotions.
He didn't care about losing control of Akatsuki, or being exposed, or losing his other eye. He didn't even care if Toneri ambushed him again.
He only cared about Infinite Tsukuyomi—because in that world, Rin lived, and everything was peaceful.
To Obito, it wasn't illusion—it was salvation.
So when Madara shattered that illusion, Obito collapsed inside.
"I didn't lie to you. I just found out," Madara said, then cast a Rinnegan illusion and replayed what Nagato had seen.
Obito didn't care about Kaguya, the Sage, or even Black Zetsu.
But when he saw that Infinite Tsukuyomi created White Zetsu, he broke.
Even when the illusion ended, he stared into nothing, a hollow shell.
He relived his childhood in his mind... every joyful moment shattered by a masked figure—himself.
The teacher, the village, Rin—they wouldn't be there in the dream world.
He felt like he was drowning.
Then, suddenly, he laughed.
Mad, bitter laughter, trembling with grief.
Madara watched with some satisfaction.
Yes—how could I bear this pain alone?
But even Madara felt a hint of guilt watching Obito laugh himself into ruin.
So he gave him hope again.
"You want to revive them? Start over?"
Obito froze, turned toward him.
Madara cast another illusion.
"Help me. When I become the Ten-Tails Jinchūriki, I'll bring them back."
"Okay," Obito agreed without hesitation.
Then coldly added, "But remove that thing first. You know what I mean."
"Fine," Madara nodded.