"Again?"
On the Moon, the three Ōtsutsuki elders had gathered.
Their expressions were grim, because the power of the Tenseigan had been activated once more.
For a moment, all of them were questioning the same thing—who was it that kept triggering the Tenseigan's power, and what was he after?
Why did he keep doing this at intervals? What was the point of it?
"This time, the energy fluctuation wasn't that strong—not like before."
The Great Elder's aging Byakugan held a trace of anger, but also a sliver of relief.
"Last time, he nearly destroyed the Tenseigan!"
"So what is his goal then? The way he went at it before... it was like he meant to annihilate something."
The Third Elder was still upset, but the Second Elder spoke up at last.
"Whatever his intentions are, his control over the Tenseigan is becoming more refined... and his access privileges are rising. I fear it's getting harder and harder for us to stop him."
"Then what do you propose?"
The Third Elder frowned and looked at him. The Great Elder also turned his head. After a moment of thought, the Second Elder answered: "We should observe his intentions first. If it doesn't pose a direct threat to us, we can afford to leave it be for now."
"Don't rush to respond—hear me out. Time is not on our side, and we still need to continue training Toneri."
"If we let distractions like this keep pulling us away, it won't do either of us—or Toneri—any good."
"As long as we're sure he's not trying to destroy the Tenseigan or do something truly reckless, we don't need to intervene further."
"At the same time, we can slowly investigate his identity. Think of it as early warning for Toneri."
He paused there, then continued: "Rather than keep wasting our efforts on that man, I'd rather devote all our remaining time to Toneri."
"Great Elder, didn't you once say... Toneri is our future?"
...
"Black Zetsu, you seem kind of uneasy lately."
"Maybe if you stopped bothering me, I'd feel a little better."
Land of Hot Water—Black Zetsu sounded irritable when he heard the half of White Zetsu's voice, though in the end, he didn't blow up at the fool.
"There's just been too much happening lately. You wouldn't understand."
Truth be told, Black Zetsu had been feeling deeply disturbed these days.
He couldn't shake the feeling that he'd run into a ghost.
That Kitagawa Gen... he was just too strange. There was something seriously off about that guy. At one point, Black Zetsu had even suspected he might be part of the Moon's branch family.
But he had no proof. And the situation back in Sunagakure had been far too bizarre.
"Was that really because of the Dragon Vein... or was it something else?"
Black Zetsu couldn't help but lift his head and glance toward the Moon. With so many chaotic developments, he was growing increasingly paranoid.
"I really don't get what goes on in your head. Why not just live every day with a smile?"
White Zetsu had no clue what was weighing on Black Zetsu. He just chuckled and said cheerfully: "Also, we still haven't found that Hiruko guy, have we? Do you think Obito's going to get mad again? He's scary when he's pissed."
"..."
Black Zetsu shook his head. He wished his mind could be that empty... but could he really afford to be?
"As for Hiruko, let's put that on hold for now. We need to go check in on Obito. Uchiha Itachi has started moving too—we need to keep a close eye on them. Where are they now?"
"Land of Fire, but..."
Before he could finish the sentence, Black Zetsu had already dragged him underground, speeding straight toward the Land of Fire.
"Hey! I wasn't done talking, you know, Black!"
White Zetsu muttered in irritation, but Black Zetsu sounded even more annoyed.
"Talk later. We need to move."
"Oh..."
Seeing this, White Zetsu could only speed up the activation of his Mayfly Technique. Not long after, they finally reached their destination.
"Hmm? What's going on?"
But just as they emerged toward the surface, Black Zetsu suddenly felt something was off.
[BOOM—]
Even underground, he could hear the booming impact, accompanied by the unmistakable tremor of the earth shaking!
"I've been trying to tell you this the whole time."
White Zetsu blinked innocently.
"Too bad you kept saying we had to hurry first."
"...What the hell is happening?"
Black Zetsu's eyes widened. An intense sense of familiarity washed over him, unsettling and inexplicable. White Zetsu, meanwhile, grinned.
"Obito and the others ran into a really strong enemy. Not someone from Konohagakure, but... super terrifying."
As they poked their heads above ground, White Zetsu raised a finger and pointed upward.
"Look, right up there."
Following the direction of his finger, they saw an intensely brilliant blue flash streak across the sky.
[BOOM—]
A deafening explosion echoed the next instant.
Then, they saw a half-bodied giant figure, wreathed in red chakra, crashing violently into the earth!
"Susanoo?!"
Black Zetsu was shocked. He knew Susanoo all too well—he'd seen countless iterations of it.
But being beaten down like this? That was rare even in his long memory.
[BOOM—]
No time to think further—another muffled blast erupted. He watched as a massive Water Release technique transformed into a giant water dragon and surged upward toward the airborne figure.
...
"Please don't think you can deal with me using something that childish. Haven't you learned your lesson yet?"
The voice was clear and resounding. The next moment, a blue energy barrier shimmered into view—within it, the massive water dragon was instantly deconstructed, absorbed completely.
That white figure then flickered slightly—vanishing just as Obito appeared from his spatial distortion. But by then, the red Susanoo had already gotten back to its feet.
[BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!—]
The four figures clashed in chaotic combat, reducing the once-majestic Fire Temple to a crumbling wasteland.
Susanoo's long blade swept across the battlefield, smashing towers and buildings to the ground. Meanwhile, Kisame and Uchiha Obito attacked relentlessly at its side.
The booming sounds were deafening. Violent tremors radiated outward, clouds of dust and debris filling the sky and spreading in all directions.
"What the hell is this?!"
Black Zetsu was completely dumbfounded, nearly lost for words.
Sure, it was technically three versus one—but he could clearly see they were the ones being beaten into the ground!
Yet when he looked at that white figure, his entire body trembled.
This guy... could he be—
...
"Chief Monk, who the hell are these people?"
Elsewhere, as the three intruders appeared, the monks of the Fire Temple immediately began evacuating with Chiriku and Sora leading the way.
Staring at the ruins of their once-majestic temple, and the distant figures locked in fierce battle, one of them finally couldn't hold back and asked aloud.
"I don't really know either... but we should get out of here."
Chiriku spoke weakly. He hadn't even gotten a chance to act—he was taken out in an instant.
That kind of disparity made it clear to him: they had no business staying here.
Feeling the tremors shaking the earth, watching the shockwaves of debris and shattered stone flying through the air, he let out a heavy sigh.
Maybe the only good thing was that this Ōtsutsuki Genshiki didn't seem intent on killing.
"At the very least... Sora is still alive."
...
While Chiriku was quietly reflecting, things couldn't have been worse for Uchiha Obito's group of three.
"This guy..."
All three of them were in a pitiful state, barely able to keep up with Kitagawa Gen's relentless assault.
Kisame was covered in wounds, and Samehada twitched in his hand like it was sticking out its tongue in protest.
Uchiha Itachi's eyes were bleeding at the corners, and his Susanoo was battered and falling apart—beyond his ability to repair.
After all, he could barely stand upright at this point.
Tsukuyomi had failed. His Susanoo had been forced to stay active this long. He was completely drained!
"Damn it!"
Uchiha Obito wasn't faring any better. Every move he made seemed to be predicted in advance—no matter what he tried, he couldn't land a single real hit on this man!
"Apparently has Rinnegan-like abilities, suspected space-time ninjutsu, and also Yin-Yang Release?"
He stared up at the figure still looming high in the sky—bathed in moonlight, completely untouched by dust or blood, eyes glowing with radiant brilliance as they looked down on them.
For once, the three of them shared the same thought:
We can't keep fighting him.
"Thinking of retreating?"
Suddenly, the figure in the sky spoke, as if he could see straight into their minds.
"Honestly, I think it's about time to wrap this up. I've spent enough time playing around with you—and I'm in a bit of a hurry. Besides... I'm getting bored."
As he spoke, he glanced up at the sky.
He was still puzzled—why was the chakra from that massive Tenseigan still flowing steadily?
Could it be that the amount he was drawing was too small to get noticed?
Either way, he figured it was time to stop. He had no idea when the Moon might cut off his supply.
More importantly, he was slowly beginning to grasp and adapt to this current combat mode.
That was critical. It would make switching bodies much easier in the future and give him deeper insight into how to develop this fighting style further.
"I never intended to kill anyone, really. There's nothing admirable about killing inferior creatures. But..."
Since he was about to sever his connection with the Moon, he might as well drain one last burst from it.
He slowly raised the black staff in his hand. As chakra surged, the staff began to shift—gradually reshaping itself into the form of a blade.
And in that moment, the Moon seemed to glow even brighter, and the chakra around him surged explosively.
"You three really are... fascinating."
"One of you carries the wailing souls of countless kin."
"One longs for the light, yet stumbled straight into hell."
"And one reeks of filth—tainted by both Indra and Asura."
But with just a few words, all three of them felt a jolt run through their bodies.
They couldn't even tell whether it was the weight of Kitagawa Gen's words—or the ever-swelling chakra rolling off him.
"But I have to say—"
"You truly are... exceptional specimens."
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