Natsuro gazed at the white pod-like sacs hanging from the God Tree, knowing full well that he didn't have much time to waste.
Although the people inside those pods weren't dead yet, such a state was clearly harmful for any human being.
So, without hesitation, he began using an ability he had obtained long ago but rarely used.
In the past, he had typically done the opposite, converting natural energy into chakra to better utilize ninjutsu.
Now, Natsuro worked quickly, but the sheer volume of chakra from an entire world was too much. The process of conversion would still take some time.
During this process, however, his aura began to change. A mark representing nature appeared on his forehead.
And it was slowly changing.
Natsuro didn't care about how his appearance was changing. What shocked him was this, after absorbing so much natural energy, his body seemed to be evolving once again.
That wasn't too surprising, though. After all, by extracting all of the world's chakra from Kaguya, he had essentially absorbed the entire Ten Tails.
Both Obito and Madara had undergone physical evolution after absorbing the Ten Tails. What Natsuro had absorbed now far surpassed even that, though it had been converted into natural energy.
Still, energy was energy. Its essence remained unchanged. When the quantity reached a certain threshold, it could trigger a qualitative transformation.
And that's exactly what was happening to Natsuro.
Even he was surprised. His body wasn't weak like Obito's or Madara's. It was already at the Six Paths level. Was it really still capable of evolving further?
As time went on, he realized, this wasn't just evolution.
His body was being perfected.
No matter the species, every living being is born with imperfections, due to genes or other factors. And after birth, daily life, diet, and even training slowly inflict invisible, irreversible damage to the body.
This kind of damage is often labeled as aging.
With chakra users, the problem is even worse. Chakra is extracted directly from the body's energy, it inevitably causes damage.
That's why most shinobi, if they didn't take care of themselves, entered physical decline prematurely. The short lifespans of ninjas had very real biological reasons.
In this world, all living things follow the same cycle—birth, growth, aging, and death. Even Natsuro, who walked the path of nature, couldn't completely escape that fate. His path merely slowed the process.
But now, he could feel it, his body was being repaired. Every congenital imperfection was being corrected. Even latent internal injuries that not even his Yang Release could detect were being healed.
It felt like a warm, tingling current coursing through him. Natsuro didn't know how to describe it. The sensation was so overwhelmingly pleasurable that he nearly moaned out loud.
It was the kind of bliss that came directly from the body's primal instincts, beyond the control of rational thought.
Eventually, after who knew how long, the process ended. Natsuro stood up. The world's chakra had been completely converted into natural energy, just as his restoration finished.
He stretched lazily, and his body felt better than ever before.
If this world were a cultivation fantasy, his current body might be considered a Flawless Divine Physique.
A slight smile curled on Natsuro's lips. A shard of ice formed before him, acting like a mirror, reflecting the altered mark on his forehead.
Previously, it represented the path of nature. Now, it symbolized the sovereign of nature, or perhaps even its emperor.
But the mark didn't matter to him. He didn't need some tiny symbol to define who he was.
What mattered to Natsuro… was that he had caught a glimpse of the path ahead once again. Though still blurry, it was there.
Even after surpassing Kaguya, he could still grow stronger.
And that… was what made him happiest.
Though he no longer had any worthy opponents to fight, at least the other thing that truly interested him, the pursuit of growth, wasn't over.
Still, that was a task for future Natsuro. For now, there were plenty of things he still needed to take care of.
First, he extended his hand, and in the next moment, a small, adorable figure sat gently in his palm. It was Umbreon.
Umbreon climbed up his arm and perched on his shoulder, licking his cheek affectionately.
"You little rascal… always causing trouble," Natsuro muttered with a wry smile. He gently pinched the nape of its neck and placed it back into his hand.
Umbreon tilted its head, curious about what Natsuro was doing.
Natsuro looked at it fondly. The reason he called it mischievous was because… he now understood where it came from.
Yes, unbelievably, he had created it himself.
Though at the time, Natsuro absolutely didn't have the ability to create true life.
But now? He did.
And conveniently, Umbreon was a lifeform of space-time. Given his current mastery over space-time abilities, it naturally possessed incredible spatial and temporal power.
Of course, even so, it couldn't just casually travel back in time and find him.
But if he had created it, then Umbreon had a vessel in the past. That's why Natsuro had said it was naughty. It had gone back to his younger self on its own.
Back then, if he had attempted to create a lifeform, the success rate would've been close to zero.
Just how low? Well… the decimal point would be followed by an uncountable string of zeroes, followed by a single lonely 1.
And since Umbreon chose to insert itself, as long as the chance wasn't literally zero, then the probability became 100%.
"A space-time paradox, huh…" Natsuro thought aloud, shaking his head. Still, even without Umbreon, that alternate timeline wouldn't have held him for long. All it did was change his return from difficult to easy.
Natsuro exhaled. Then, seemingly infinite Yin-Yang Release surged in his hand as he began repairing Umbreon's body.
Umbreon closed its eyes in comfort, sensing what he was doing. It nestled into his palm and patiently waited.
Soon, Natsuro had fully restored the parts it had lost when returning to the past.
In truth, Umbreon's power far exceeded what it had shown so far. Its support abilities were nothing to scoff at.
As long as it was present, even someone with no space-time talent at all could use Flying Thunder God.
More importantly, it allowed those with space-time affinity to rapidly master Flying Thunder God and deepen their spatial awareness. The deeper the perception, the less chakra Flying Thunder God consumed.
If someone had space-time attack techniques, Umbreon would greatly boost their effectiveness as well.
It even had an ultimate ability.
It could transform itself into a Flying Thunder God mark, planting it across infinite space. Within this area, Flying Thunder God could be used without ever having to set up the mark beforehand.
Of course, such support abilities weren't infinite, it cost a lot of energy to use.
And honestly, for him now, that support wasn't particularly meaningful anymore. He could do all of that on his own.
"Guruu~" Umbreon purred happily as it felt its powers restored. Then, as if it had discovered a new world, its eyes lit up, and it started yipping excitedly.
Indeed, even its voice had been messed up back when he created it. His past self hadn't been skilled enough to fix it, so Umbreon had been mute all this time.
Now, Umbreon finally had its own voice.
Natsuro looked at the sprite, then over at the withered, barely breathing Kaguya. After a moment of thought, he smiled.
"Kaguya Ōtsutsuki… can you still think clearly?" he asked suddenly.
"…Mm…" Kaguya's voice was low and faint. Her body was emaciated, and the fact that she was even still alive in that condition was proof of her incredible constitution.
"Next, I'm going to seal you," Natsuro said plainly.
"…Alright…" Kaguya showed no particular reaction. She only found it strange that he was informing her before actually sealing her.
"But I don't plan to seal you on the moon," Natsuro added.
"It… doesn't matter where," she replied weakly.
"Good. Then I'll proceed without worry. I'm going to seal you inside Umbreon," Natsuro said, "and I'll let you retain the ability to think during the seal. You'll also share vision with Umbreon."
"Hmm?" Despite her weakness, Kaguya's eyes widened at that.
"To be honest, I don't hold any deep hatred for you," Natsuro said. "But as a human of this world, when you tried to turn us into weapons of war, we had to resist. Every life has the right to survive."
"…Mm…" If it had been the old Kaguya, she might have argued with that. But now, having been completely defeated, she had begun to reflect, and could finally hear those words with a clear mind.
He also thought about Kaguya's life. It wasn't hard to understand, hers had been a tragic existence. As he remembered from the anime, she had first been betrayed by her husband, then sealed away by her own sons, spending a thousand years alone on the moon...
There was even one thing he hadn't known, Kaguya had nearly been sacrificed herself to plant a God Tree, only narrowly turning the tables and planting the tree on her enemy instead.
Natsuro didn't know how he came to this world, but he did know that Kaguya had eaten the fruit of the God Tree without the power or mental readiness to wield it properly, and was deeply affected, possibly even corrupted, by the Ten Tails' will.
Given that, the fact that she hadn't just annihilated humanity outright but instead chose to turn some into weapons for sustainable conquest… was honestly a lucky break for the world.
Really, he had never particularly hated Kaguya, even back when he was just watching Naruto. He didn't even dislike Madara much. The ones who bothered him were those two-faced traitors and backstabbers.
So he thought, maybe Kaguya deserved a second chance.
Now that she no longer had the Ten Tails' power, and had been utterly defeated by him, she would never have a second chance at resurrection. There was no need to throw her back onto the moon in exile.
"I see…" Kaguya glanced at Umbreon in Natsuro's palm. It was staring curiously back at her. Even by her standards, it was incredibly cute.
She slowly nodded. "…Alright."
For the first time, Kaguya felt a bit of peace. At least… she wouldn't have to endure another thousand years of solitude.
Seeing that she agreed, Natsuro nodded. Then, as if remembering something, he suddenly asked, "Can I ask you something? Do you know the King of the Land of Ancestors?"
"The Land of Ancestors… what an old name," Kaguya murmured. "That king probably knows who I am. But I have no reason to know him," she replied, looking curiously at Natsuro, not understanding why he would ask such a thing.
"Oh," Natsuro said with a nod, giving no further explanation. He just wanted to confirm whether this Kaguya followed the manga version or the anime version of the story…
From her answer, it was clear, she didn't know the king of the Land of Ancestors, which meant she followed the manga canon, where she conceived Hagoromo and Hamura with the people's blessings.
That got Natsuro thinking…
Could there really be something like a "world will" in this universe? A guiding force that deliberately created the Sage of Six Paths and his brother, who then, under the influence of the Great Toad Sage, sealed Kaguya as part of some grand design?
Chilling, if you think too deeply about it…
And if a world will did exist, would it try to target him, an outsider?
Natsuro was curious—but… He wasn't entirely an outsider. His soul had fused with this world's soul. In a way, he was part of this world too.
Whatever the case, if such a world consciousness ever tried to mess with him, he wouldn't be as easy to deal with as Kaguya.
In fact, part of him hoped it did exist, because then he could track it down and fight it. That would be an interesting opponent.
He chuckled and shook his head, brushing the thought aside. He placed one hand on Umbreon and the other on Kaguya.
Soon, Kaguya's body began to dissolve into pure energy, merging into the Moon Sprite.
And just like that, the world's first Jinchūriki—no, Beastchūriki, was born?
Afterward, a vertical mark appeared on Umbreon's forehead. Natsuro knew exactly what it was.
It was the blood-red Rinne Sharingan with nine tomoe?
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