Chapter 127: "You'll Regret It! The Kitagawa Gen You Knew Never Existed to Begin With!"
The Temple of Fire had fallen. Its gates were in ruins, and the destruction sent shockwaves throughout the Land of Fire.
In Konoha, the situation quickly escalated. With Chiriku's return, the incident stirred even more intense discussions.
---
"Was that person after the Nine-Tails' chakra?"
Inside the Hokage's office, Hiruzen Sarutobi wore a grave expression.
"Even members of the Akatsuki appeared—and were easily defeated?"
"Yes, Lord Hokage," Chiriku replied with a helpless nod. "That man… he's overwhelmingly strong. I didn't even get a chance to strike before I was taken down."
"Chiriku, isn't that a bit much?" Asuma stared at his old friend in disbelief. He knew how strong Chiriku was.
"You didn't even get a single move in? That's impossible…"
"Nothing is impossible."
Hiruzen cut him off, his tone heavier than ever.
"From what I've gathered, the Akatsuki members involved were Kisame Hoshigaki, Uchiha Obito, and Uchiha Itachi."
Kisame aside… Itachi slaughtered the Uchiha Clan, and Obito was the one who killed the Fourth Hokage and Kushina. He was the mastermind behind the Nine-Tails' attack.
And both wield the Mangekyō Sharingan… Yet they were soundly defeated and left on the brink of death?
The weight of it all pressed on Hiruzen's mind like a storm. As if the Akatsuki weren't already a serious threat, now a new figure had emerged—someone so powerful even those monsters stood no chance. How could anyone remain calm?
"What is happening to the shinobi world?"
Though deeply troubled, Hiruzen forced himself to stay composed. He turned to Jiraiya.
"Jiraiya, you must watch over Naruto closely. That man… he's not just after chakra, I fear."
"I know," Jiraiya nodded, his expression just as somber.
"But I plan to visit Mount Myōboku. So much has changed in the ninja world lately—I need guidance."
He'd encountered Obito, Kisame, and even Itachi many times in the past. He understood their capabilities. But now, all three had been crushed by a mysterious stranger—of course, he had questions. On top of that, Nagato still weighed heavily on his mind. Yes, a visit to the toads was overdue.
"By the way… Are you sure that's the name he gave?"
"Yes. He called himself Ōtsutsuki Genshiki."
---
Konoha – A riverside training ground
The "Ōtsutsuki Genshiki" that had the village on edge was, at this moment, just a shadow clone… hanging out with Naruto.
"Hey, Gen! Did you hear? Something crazy happened!"
Naruto and Sasuke were collapsed on the ground, panting from training. But Naruto's curiosity didn't waver.
"I heard some temple got attacked—lots of people died. There are monks all over the village now."
"Is that so? Funny, I heard there weren't that many casualties."
Gen (Kitagawa Gen's shadow clone) raised a brow and chuckled.
"You seem full of energy. Alright, both of you—get up. Training isn't over."
"Come on! We just finished a round!"
Naruto wailed. Even Sasuke groaned in protest.
"You're doing this on purpose, aren't you?! This is supposed to be Pervy Sage's job!"
"Tch. He's off in a meeting, so I'm babysitting. You think I want to be here?"
Kitagawa Gen snorted and shook his head. He didn't want to be there—he was just a shadow clone, after all.
But with the Fire Temple under attack and Chiriku running to Konoha, there was no way Jiraiya could stay idle.
"If Pervy Sage hadn't begged me to step in, I wouldn't be bothering with you brats."
Despite his words, the clone was thinking about the real body's situation.
"Looks like the real me stirred up a serious mess… Brought down an entire mountain? He must've run into the Akatsuki."
Given their shared origin and his own past experience, it wasn't surprising. Especially considering what he was after—a legendary artifact once sought by Orochimaru and eventually used as Uchiha Itachi's trump card.
A collision was inevitable. And judging by the fact that the shadow clone still existed, it was clear the main body had won decisively.
"The question is—what's the current status?"
Gen's clone pondered silently—until suddenly, he felt a ripple in his chakra.
"What… what's going on? Is something happening to the real me?"
Though separated, shadow clones were still chakra-based. If the main body encountered problems, the clones would feel it too.
Naruto himself had experienced this—when his Nine-Tails' chakra became unstable, his shadow clones all reacted.
"The battle's over… so this must be from absorbing the Nine-Tails' chakra. Or maybe… it's the artifact."
He quickly deduced a likely cause. But even so—without shared memory—he had no way of knowing for sure.
"Gen? What's wrong?"
Naruto looked up at him curiously. "You've been quiet for a while now."
"Idiot."
Sasuke groaned. He wanted to strangle Naruto on the spot.
Kitagawa Gen wasn't like Jiraiya—he trained them ruthlessly. And provoking him? That was a death sentence.
Even while barking strict training orders, he still had the nerve to call it "training according to my personal regimen."
No matter how hard Sasuke trained, knowing full well that this guy was clearly messing with them made it impossible for him to enjoy it.
"It's nothing," Gen's shadow clone finally said, shaking his head. "Just thinking over what happened recently. It all feels... off."
Not dwelling on it any longer, he smiled faintly at the two boys.
"Alright. Rest time's over. Time for the next round of training."
"You're serious?!" Sasuke groaned, pressing a hand to his forehead while Naruto's eyes widened in horror.
"Then what about you?!" Naruto yelled, pointing at Gen. "Why don't you train with us?!"
"Me?" Kitagawa Gen scratched his chin.
"I'm a Chūnin. You two haven't even graduated from the Academy yet. Plus, I'm here to instruct you. Why would I need to train with you?"
"..."
"You two are seriously losing sight of the power dynamics here."
"..."
"Now! Ten handstand laps around Konoha—nonstop! Move it!"
"Aaahhh! Damn you, Kitagawa Gen! You'll regret this!"
"I'm the—wait, no—I'm the Chūnin instructor, thank you very much."
As he watched the two grumbling boys follow his orders in absolute chaos, Gen nodded in satisfaction. Then he rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"The chakra's stabilized again… I wonder how the original body's doing now? Maybe he got what he was looking for?"
---
While Konoha's leadership was still reeling over the mysterious "Ōtsutsuki Genshiki," somewhere in a remote mountain cave near the destroyed Fire Temple…
Kitagawa Gen, in his true form, shattered a stone door and began making his way down a dark corridor.
After a few days of proper rest, he felt completely recovered. It was time to move.
"It's been days… Chiriku should've made it to Konoha by now. I'd better pick up the pace and prepare to return."
He felt a slight pang of regret. If it weren't for that encounter with the Akatsuki, he might've been able to head to the Land of Wind and claim the rest of the Dragon Vein too.
"Still, not a loss. I located the site of a legendary weapon, absorbed some Nine-Tails chakra… I'd say this trip was worth it."
With those thoughts, he stepped deeper into the cave. It was pitch-black, but it posed no obstacle to him. From the architecture, he could tell it was a tomb.
"Judging by the scale, this must've been someone important. Maybe an Uchiha clan leader from long ago?"
If so, that would be great news. It meant his intuition had been right all along.
"Just don't know yet… Was this place created by Indra, or is it one of the Sage of Six Paths' little 'toys'?"
After all, both the Totsuka Blade and Yata Mirror were spiritual weapons—best suited for users of Susanoo. And both the Sage and Indra were masters of that power.
Regardless of who made it, Gen figured the outcome would benefit him either way—be it residual chakra, a secret technique, or the artifact itself.
He reached the end of the tomb passage, where a sealed wall stood in his way.
"This must be it."
His eyes glowed with blue light.
"A barrier? And a genjutsu layered on top? They really didn't want anyone coming in here."
Drawing a black staff, he jabbed it precisely into the seal.
HUMMM—
An eerie chakra pulse radiated outward. In that instant, everything around him changed.
His chakra was pulled—distorted—and in the blink of an eye, the tomb vanished.
He now stood atop the Hokage Tower in Konoha.
---
"Gen, from now on, Konoha is in your hands."
A voice echoed in his ears—none other than the Third Hokage's. Gen turned his head and saw Hiruzen smiling warmly, offering him the Hokage's hat.
"…What the—"
He looked down. Somehow, he was now wearing the Hokage robes.
Behind him stood Kakashi, grinning with his little orange book in hand. Jiraiya gave him a big thumbs-up.
"You've got this, Gen."
"Don't let us down, brat. I hope you'll be even better than my grandfather."
Tsunade added her blessing, and down below the tower, the people of Konoha roared in celebration.
The thunderous cheers echoed in his ears. The warmth of the atmosphere enveloped him.
"…So this is a genjutsu… a 'dreamscape.'"
Of course he understood what was happening.
His eyes could see the illusion clearly now, and he couldn't help but chuckle.
"Looks like… this really is the Totsuka Blade."
But the moment he whispered that—
Everything shifted again.
The cheers vanished. The sunlight was gone.
Now he floated in the night sky, with the moon behind his back.
Below him lay a ravaged, burning Konoha.
Naruto, Sasuke, Kakashi, Jiraiya… all of them stood staring up at him with disbelief.
"Why?! Why would you do this?! Why?!"
Naruto roared, Nine-Tails chakra surging wildly around him.
"…"
Damn it. I knew this genjutsu would mess with me.
Gen sighed… then suddenly broke into a wicked grin.
"Why, you ask? Because…"
"The Kitagawa Gen you thought you knew—
—never existed to begin with."
---
While Gen wrestled with the illusions of the Totsuka Blade, far away, under the sunlight—
Black Zetsu stood frozen in confusion, gazing blankly up at the sky.
He didn't know how long he stood there before muttering to himself,
"…Mother, what… what am I supposed to do now?"
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