After completing everything, Umbreon seemed to feel its power rising once more. It chirped happily and leapt into Natsuro's arms.
Soon, it clambered up to his shoulder again, nuzzling against his cheek.
Natsuro's expression grew a bit odd, he was starting to feel that he had slightly miscalculated.
Although Umbreon still retained full control of its body, and Kaguya could only observe the world through its eyes, meaning she had little influence…
Still, Natsuro knew that Kaguya was now sealed inside this little creature. So having such intimate contact did feel a little weird now.
But there wasn't much he could do, he couldn't just tell Umbreon to back off. With a shake of his head, he let it be.
Turning his eyes to the distant God Tree and the many white pods attached to it, Natsuro thought for a moment before looking away.
Now wasn't the time to free them. He had something else to do first.
A dark rift in space opened beside him, Yomotsu Hirasaka, a Rinnegan ability.
Natsuro stepped through and arrived in the Genesis Dimension Space within Amenominaka. It wasn't particularly special, but it was the location where he had unleashed his final Eighth Gate "Evening Elephant."
There, he found some black liquid on the ground.
It was the remains of Black Zetsu.
Utterly obliterated by Natsuro's kick, Black Zetsu had left only this lifeless puddle.
After a moment of thought, he reached out and activated Yin-Yang Release. The black liquid began to stir, life returned to it.
Soon, facial features formed atop the puddle, and Black Zetsu opened his eyes once again.
When he saw Natsuro, for some reason, he briefly felt a strange sense of familiarity, but that was immediately drowned out by hatred.
"Natsuro Shindōkawa! Where is Mother!?" Black Zetsu growled viciously, noticing that Kaguya was nowhere to be seen.
"Kaguya Ōtsutsuki? She's right here," Natsuro replied, playfully poking Umbreon on his shoulder. The tiny creature gripped his shoulder with its hind legs and began batting at his finger with its front paws.
"Mother!?" Black Zetsu's eyes widened. He spotted the vertical slit on Umbreon's forehead and immediately sensed Kaguya's presence within.
"How dare you—!"
Burning with rage, Black Zetsu wanted to curse Natsuro's ancestors, but before he could utter a word, he found his voice was gone.
Natsuro had severed his ability to speak.
All Black Zetsu could do now was glare furiously.
"…So, it still retained its previous memories?" Natsuro muttered, rubbing his chin as he studied Zetsu. He had originally expected this rebirth to produce a new lifeform using Black Zetsu as a template, but it turned out to be the same old Zetsu.
"Ah well. That actually saves me the trouble of training it again," Natsuro nodded.
He had intended to cultivate a new Zetsu anyway, someone who could manage the shadows of his soon-to-be-unified world. Given Zetsu's unique talents, it was perfectly suited for the role.
He had already drafted a plan to raise another one, but now, there was no need.
As he considered this, the air in front of him rippled. he reached through the spatial distortion, as if grabbing something.
A moment later, a crow appeared in his hand.
"…Didn't think I'd end up using you after all," Natsuro said to the bird. This was the crow Uchiha Sasuke had entrusted to him, carrying Shisui Uchiha's Mangekyō Sharingan.
And now, what he was about to do became clear... to use the eye's unique ability, Kotoamatsukami.
To be honest, given his current level, he found Kotoamatsukami somewhat underwhelming. It could only influence beings below Six Paths level. Anyone above that tier, like Kaguya or Six Paths Madara, would instantly detect it via their Yin Release-enhanced perception.
That's why illusion techniques were rarely used in the Six Paths realm. While not completely immune, most Six Paths-level beings could resist over 90% of genjutsu.
However, his Yin Release was now powerful enough to give Kotoamatsukami real penetration.
He turned his gaze to Black Zetsu. Though Zetsu was unique, it didn't possess overwhelming power. Its will was merely a fragmented shard of Kaguya's, a far cry from Six Paths level.
More importantly… even someone as naïve as Kaguya could be overwhelmed by a powerful enough illusion.
After thinking for a moment, the crow spread its wings and flew onto Natsuro's other shoulder.
Umbreon, noticing the new occupant, glared at the crow and tried to paw at it.
"Enough. Don't start." Natsuro gently held Umbreon down and injected a surge of Yin Release into the crow.
A moment later, the Sharingan within it, once just three tomoe, flashed with a new design.
"…No…" Black Zetsu realized what was about to happen. He tried to close his eyes, but found himself unable to move.
His body was completely paralyzed. His eyes remained wide open.
Then, he saw Natsuro's eyes. The Mangekyō Sharingan in the crow seemed to merge with them.
"Kotoamatsukami."
That was the last thing Black Zetsu heard.
His eyes instantly glazed over.
Moments later, the light returned to his gaze.
"Lord Natsuro!" Black Zetsu called out respectfully.
"You understand what I need from you going forward?" Natsuro asked.
"Yes, Lord Natsuro . I will become your eyes in the darkness. I will eliminate all obstacles in your path," Black Zetsu replied with complete devotion. He hesitated, glancing at Umbreon on Natsuro's shoulder, and added, "I only ask that you take good care of my mother."
"Of course," Natsuro, nodded.
In the illusion, he had done more than rewrite Zetsu's will—he had planted the next phase of his plan, including one crucial belief...
That Kaguya's current state, sealed within Umbreron and staying by Natsuro's side, was the best and happiest possible outcome for her.
With that conviction, he trusted that Zetsu would be even more loyal.
After all, while Black Zetsu had committed countless evil acts, he also had one undeniable virtue... Filial piety.
In Natsuro's original world, that might not have been such a rare trait, but in the world of Naruto, it was practically a sacred rarity. Especially when contrasted with all the disloyal "sons" and "brothers" in the series.
Now, with Orochimaru, Kisame, Zetsu, and even Kabuto potentially available, Natsuro's shadow operations were well-stocked.
After wrapping things up, he opened another Yomotsu Hirasaka and stepped into the black rift, with Black Zetsu following respectfully behind.
Back in the main world, Natsuro now had Umbreon on one shoulder, looking a bit jealous—and a crow with a Mangekyō Sharingan on the other.
The sight was… unusual.
Soon, he approached the God Tree and placed his hand against it.
In an instant, the tree came to life again, surging skyward.
He ascended to the very top of the tree, where the blood-red Rinne Sharingan with nine tomoe hovered.
He hadn't planned this initially, but now, having reached his current level, he realized he could do it.
He placed one hand on the eye, and the three tomoe within it began to spin, transforming into the same pattern as the Mangekyō Sharingan on the crow at his shoulder.
He thought deeply.
Should he make the Infinite Tsukuyomi force the whole world to follow him unconditionally?
That felt… dull.
A world of mindless slaves held no appeal for him. With his strength, he didn't need such flashy tricks. Instead, he would implant simple ideological rules, a unified mindset.
That way, when he later moved to unify the world, there would be fewer ideological barriers, and fewer people would need to die.
After a bit more thought, he nodded to himself.
This would do.
As for what came next, he would let Konoha serve as the center of it all, and he would personally handle the rest.
After all, an army is raised for a thousand days to be used in a single moment.
Having made up his mind, Natsuro rose into the sky. Under the blood-red moon hanging in the night sky, he formed a hand seal.
"Infinite Kotoamatsukami!"
In that instant, the crimson moon began to change.
First appeared the concentric patterns of the Rinnegan. Then, the six tomoe of the Rinne Rinnegan. Finally, the pattern of the Mangekyō Sharingan overlaid atop it all.
In an instant, the red moon once again radiated a blinding light, identical to the light of the original Infinite Tsukuyomi. A light that could pierce through any obstruction, shining directly onto all living beings.
Moments later, the moonlight vanished.
Natsuro returned to the earth.
But now, on the land where he stood, another figure appeared, The Sage of Six Paths.
"Was that really… the right thing to do?" Hagoromo asked, his expression mixed and unreadable. He hadn't expected Natsuro to take this step.
"What's wrong with it?" Natsuro replied casually, stretching his back. "Even if I didn't do it now, it would have happened later. And if it happened later, more people would've died."
The Sage of Six Paths fell silent for a long time, then sighed, "…Perhaps you're right."
"Besides," Natsuro continued, "I won't stay in power for too long. You don't have to worry. When this system becomes a hindrance to the world, the world will naturally birth a new protagonist to overthrow it."
The Sage was stunned. He couldn't quite understand his mindset. If he wanted to unify the world, didn't that mean he craved power? Then why say something like that?
Natsuro understood his confusion and explained, "Because there's something I'm more interested in."
After a moment's pause, Hagoromo understood, and smiled bitterly, "…You're truly… a devilish man."
"Heh, thanks for the compliment." Natsuro wasn't angry. He simply did what he wanted, when he wanted. Right now, he was interested in unifying the world, so he'd do it.
And while the act of ruling after unification was also somewhat interesting to him, unification itself posed no challenge anymore. The real difficulty was governance, something he'd put some effort into, for now.
But once he was done with that, he would likely lose interest and return to the only path he had ever cared about... the path of becoming stronger.
Even the Sage of Six Paths couldn't help but sigh at Natsuro's willful nature.
"I've already entrusted all my power to you," Hagoromo said quietly. "There's no way for me to stop you. Even in my prime, I wouldn't be your match."
He looked at Umbreon on Natsuro's shoulder, his gaze distant and reflective.
"So don't worry," Natsuro said. "This world will become better, unified, so it can face the threats to come… the Ōtsutsuki from beyond the stars."
He glanced toward the heavens, for he could now vaguely sense what was to come.
In truth, the danger didn't only lie beyond the stars. Even within this world, there were still scattered Ōtsutsuki, and a few other unusual beings.
But he had no interest in them. Compared to him, they were like ants.
He would leave them to the "younger generation."
"Let's hope those remaining Ōtsutsuki don't require me to step in," Natsuro sighed. None of them stirred his interest.
If someone appeared with a body even stronger than Kaguya's and combat instincts on par with Madara's, then maybe, maybe, he'd find it intriguing…
But he seriously doubted anyone in the Ōtsutsuki clan like that even existed.
"I hope this world becomes a better place too," said the Sage of Six Paths, his voice filled with emotion.
Then he looked at him once more, sighed, and began to fade away, returning to the Pure Land.
At this point, he no longer had any power. His appearance here was only possible thanks to lingering traces within Naruto and Sasuke, but now… it was time to go.
Just before vanishing completely, he spoke one last time:
"Natsuro… may I ask you for one final favor?"
"I'll take care of her," Natsuro replied, glancing at the fading figure. He already knew what Hagoromo wanted to ask.
"…Thank you."
The Sage of Six Paths smiled.
And then, he disappeared.
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