Chapter 314: Accept My Order
Ōtsutsuki Isshiki, at this very moment, was seized by an utterly mad thought.
He stared fixedly at the Divine Tree that was blooming before his eyes.
Based on past experience, once the Divine Tree bloomed, it meant that the formation of a Chakra Fruit was only a step away.
As long as he harvested the Chakra Fruit, once consumed, his power would soar dramatically.
Although this was supposedly the fruit that Ōtsutsuki Kyōshiki had designated, that was nothing more than what that fellow Ōtsutsuki Urashiki had said.
Who could be sure whether he was telling the truth or not?
What if that brat was just tricking him?
And besides, even if, taking the most cautious step back, Kyōshiki truly wanted this Chakra Fruit—was he not absent right now?
Since he was not here, why should this Chakra Fruit not be his to enjoy?
First of all, his own status as Ōtsutsuki Isshiki was higher than that fellow standing in front of him.
Even though Urashiki was not his designated guardian, in theory, he still had to obey him unconditionally.
Moreover, if he could devour this Chakra Fruit, his strength would grow immensely, giving him more confidence when facing Kyōshiki.
In fact, there was already such an unspoken rule within the Ōtsutsuki clan.
As long as one kept competing and seizing more Chakra Fruits, evolving without end, their strength would rise, and naturally, their status would rise as well.
Those who voluntarily abandoned the struggle only had one outcome—the Chakra Fruits would never fall to them. They would end up as slaves to higher-ranking Ōtsutsuki, serving until their lives were utterly burned away.
Ōtsutsuki Isshiki would never accept such a fate.
Of course, there was also one final point, the most important of all: though Urashiki's reasoning sounded plausible—by simply planting a Divine Tree on a neighboring planet, one could condense another Chakra Fruit—the premise was that he first had to transform the Ten-Tails into a Divine Tree.
Without special means, for the Ten-Tails to evolve into a Divine Tree would take an unimaginably long time.
And every Ōtsutsuki knew the method to shorten that time—feeding the Ten-Tails another Ōtsutsuki, or a being with vast enough chakra.
By sacrificing such an existence to the Ten-Tails, it could rapidly evolve, maturing into a Divine Tree in a very short span.
And only a Divine Tree could absorb the chakra of a planet to condense a fruit.
Without that crucial step, everything Urashiki said was meaningless.
So right now, not only was Isshiki staring intently at the massive, sky-piercing Divine Tree and the Chakra Fruit that was about to form, but within his heart, a streak of madness surged forth.
At this point, he intended to have it all.
He would seize the Chakra Fruit about to ripen before him for himself, take away the Divine Tree as well, and even drag Urashiki along.
The fruit he would devour, and his strength would then grow enormously—his trump card against Kyōshiki.
The Divine Tree was necessary for harvesting Chakra Fruits and naturally could not be left behind.
As for Urashiki—too bad for him.
If Isshiki wished to gain more strength quickly, he could only sacrifice Urashiki to his Ten-Tails.
In this way, he would have two Divine Trees in hand.
After devouring two Chakra Fruits, his power would reach an entirely new realm.
At that point, things would no longer be so urgent.
He could simply wait patiently for the remaining two Divine Trees to produce Chakra Fruits.
Isshiki's mad plan surged wildly within his heart, and at last, he turned to face Urashiki.
His ill intent was written plainly in his eyes.
Urashiki instantly realized something was wrong. He instinctively stepped back, a bead of cold sweat trickling down his cheek, and hesitantly said:
"Brother Isshiki, what are you planning to do? Don't tell me you intend to seize this Chakra Fruit?
I've already warned you, this belongs to Lord Kyōshiki…"
"I command you, in the name of a higher-ranking Ōtsutsuki, to first dedicate this Chakra Fruit to me.
In addition, you must also serve as my nourishment. You can revive later with the Kāma."
Isshiki spoke with righteous confidence, issuing orders at Urashiki.
Urashiki's face instantly changed upon hearing this.
His eyes and expression darkened. "You really dare say such things, Brother Isshiki.
You're putting me in a very difficult position.
There's no way I could hand this Chakra Fruit over to you. This is Lord Kyōshiki's possession—are you truly not afraid he'll come after you?
And besides, I cannot become your sacrifice. I have no obligation to give myself up for you. That's what your guardian, Kaguya, is supposed to do."
Though he was deeply, deeply wary of Isshiki, Urashiki still voiced his true thoughts, making his refusal clear.
Yet Isshiki did not grow angry at this rejection. His expression didn't even flicker.
He merely nodded quietly.
"In that case, you can die here."
With those words, Isshiki struck without hesitation, unleashing Sukunahikona directly at Urashiki.
...
Ambitious Ōtsutsuki Isshiki, out in the void of space, had turned against his own kin, seeking to forcibly plunder another Ōtsutsuki's Chakra Fruit.
Meanwhile, within the Shinobi World—
Uchiha Dali, under the sparring of thirty-five clone copies, was also improving at a tremendous rate.
With his heaven-defying comprehension, in the midst of ceaseless battle he was gaining new understanding and insights of his power nearly every moment.
Not only did he further consolidate and strengthen his existing abilities, but during this period he also kept grasping entirely new powers.
But such intense training greatly shortened the lifespan of his clone copies.
In less than twenty minutes, all thirty-five vanished one after another.
Uchiha Dali, gasping for breath, calmly drew in air, wiping the sweat from his forehead as he looked around in puzzlement.
Then, countless memories and experience flooded into his mind.
At once, he understood what had happened.
"So, not only do these clone copies have a time limit, but if the battle is too intense, their energy decays faster as well—shortening their lifespan even further.
But the good news is, this time the harvest really was quite substantial…"
Dali did not immediately create more clone copies. Instead, he began carefully sorting through the gains he had just obtained.