Chapter 138: The Best Place for Kitagawa Gen to End It All
With unspoken understanding, Kakashi and Kitagawa Gen set off together.
"Why does my student act more like a proper ninja than I do?"
Throughout the journey, Kakashi couldn't help but reflect on that unsettling thought.
After all, it had never crossed his mind to just keep tossing explosive tags into Kamui's dimension. But after Gen brought it up, he began to wonder—Could that actually work?
"It's shameless… but maybe not a bad idea."
While Kakashi remained tangled in this moral dilemma, Gen was more focused on another question: Who will I encounter this time?
---
"The Akatsuki members are all incredibly powerful and dangerous. Last time I beat them, it was partly due to raw power, but also due to intel. Now though…"
Gen had grown stronger—especially in terms of sheer ability. Even without prior intel, he felt confident he could hold his own.
"Especially since I've had quite the boost recently."
---
[Name: Kitagawa Gen]
[Bloodline: Otsutsuki Clan (Development Level: 38%)]
[Dojutsu: Tenseigan (Eye of Rebirth)]
[Special Techniques: Ice Release, Magnet Release, Silver Wheel Reincarnation Explosion]
[Unique Ability: Source of the God Tree (Stage 3)]
Looking at his stat panel, Gen couldn't help but smile.
The "Source of the God Tree" was something akin to his bloodline, but far simpler to use. Unlike the volatile development path of the Otsutsuki bloodline, this ability was direct and practical.
"The key is the chakra of the Tailed Beasts."
As long as he fed it Tailed Beast chakra, it would integrate and enhance his own power. It was absurdly effective.
---
"Thirty-eight percent Otsutsuki, huh…"
Aside from his bloodline, his most significant progress had been with his eyes.
Thanks to the God Tree's source, he had gained new ocular powers—some he didn't expect at all.
"Chakra Extraction and Heavenly Calamity: Star-Crushing Meteor(Tengai Shinsei)"
The Chakra Extraction was one of the Otsutsuki clan's fundamental abilities—allowing him to extract chakra directly to replenish and boost his own.
"As for the second…"
He had never imagined that he would awaken Tengai Shinsei—a technique that mirrored the Tenseigan's meteor-summoning power but gave it a more refined, formal identity.
---
"Still, without infinite chakra from Edo Tensei or the boost from Susanoo, how big of a meteor can I even summon?"
He didn't have an answer. Madara had gone through hell just to summon two. Could he even pull off one?
But it was worth experimenting with in the future.
---
"I've got quite a few abilities under my belt now—attraction and repulsion, chakra control, sealing and absorption, plus Chakra Extraction and Tengai Shinsei."
Gen had nearly mastered all his "minor" abilities, and each one was incredibly practical.
"But what excites me the most… is this feeling of planetary chakra."
---
Planetary chakra—the pure life force of the world—was the energy that made life on a planet possible. Without it, a world would become barren and lifeless.
Gen couldn't help but wonder: What secrets is this planet hiding?
Even after being drained by Kaguya's Divine Tree, the Earth still retained vitality. That alone was suspicious.
"Maybe there really is something no one knows about."
He thought about it for a while but found no answer—so he let the thought go.
"But maybe I can try using Chakra Extraction to extract planetary chakra…"
After all, he'd been obsessed with creating the Rasengan: Uzuhiko for a while now. No matter what, he had to give it a go.
---
"Well, everything's looking good… except for my main quest."
[New Main Quest Acquired]
[Become the Strongest in the Shinobi World]
Gen fell silent at that one.
The ninja world was crawling with monsters—Uchiha Madara, Hashirama Senju if he came back, and Otsutsuki Kaguya, the most terrifying of them all.
"Even if you become invincible on Earth, the sky might still drop an enemy on you…"
Still, the main quest was simple and clear. Gen was used to that kind of challenge. After all, he'd waited thirteen years just for his newbie gift pack—what was one more impossible-sounding goal?
---
Several days later, the two of them finally arrived in the Land of Rain, standing once more before the small cabin Jiraiya had last visited.
"Why didn't we go straight to the Land of Grass?" Gen asked, placing flowers at the cabin's doorstep. "Would've saved time."
"We'll visit on the way back," Kakashi replied, adjusting his straw hat.
"Better to finish the current task first. We have no idea what might happen while we're out here."
"You think we'll run into enemies?"
Gen raised an eyebrow. Kakashi nodded seriously.
"Absolutely. Every time we leave the village, something bad happens. Let's deal with the chaos in the ninja world first—then we can worry about everything else."
"Fair enough… though I think our luck's been pretty good so far."
"If you call constantly running into rogue ninja good luck, then yeah—we've been very lucky."
Kakashi rolled his eyes and gave Gen a pat on the shoulder.
"Let's go. Time to head to Amegakure."
"Alright."
---
Meanwhile, in Amegakure, Black Zetsu stared at the White Zetsu who had perfectly taken on the appearance of Hanzo the Salamander. He nodded approvingly.
"Not bad. Looks convincing."
"Of course! But… are you sure this is going to work?"
This White Zetsu wasn't like the one known as 'Tobi'—in truth, he was far less capable in many areas.
"It's fine. It'll be enough. You don't even need to say much."
Black Zetsu replied calmly. He had already prepared everything meticulously.
"Some things can be said through others. No need to get too close either."
He had no intention of letting Kitagawa Gen or the others actually enter the village. In fact, he was particularly wary of Gen—wondering if the boy might be trouble.
Though the sudden appearance of Otsutsuki Genshiki had drawn most of his attention, Black Zetsu hadn't forgotten about Gen.
At times, he even wondered if that brat came from the moon too!
But with Genshiki demanding so much focus, he didn't have time to investigate Gen thoroughly.
"Anyway, the Chunin Exams in a year should give us a clearer picture of what this kid is really about."
Black Zetsu muttered to himself, then turned away from the disguised Hanzo and looked toward the half-bodied White Zetsu beside him.
"Are Nagato and Obito in position?"
"They're already waiting at the border, hehe."
White Zetsu replied cheerfully, and added, "We've been monitoring their path too. Obito's been getting real-time updates."
"Good."
Black Zetsu nodded. Even though he wasn't optimistic about this mission, he had accepted it nonetheless.
Nagato was ready to go all-out, which suited Black Zetsu just fine—it gave him a chance to assess the limits of those Rinnegan eyes.
"I wonder just how much of their power Nagato can actually wield…"
While he pondered this, the disguised White Zetsu suddenly spoke again.
"Hey, they're here."
"Then get ready. It's time."
---
Meanwhile, in the Land of Grass
Pain and Uchiha Obito stood side by side. Not far away, Raiga Kurosuki leaned against a boulder, visibly irritated.
Having been defeated and recruited by Obito, Raiga wasn't exactly a willing ally. Still, a loss was a loss, and he had no excuse.
What made it worse was that Kisame was here too, which just made arguing feel even more pointless.
"They've already started moving toward the Land of Grass. Don't worry, White Zetsu's watching them every step of the way."
Obito said with cold certainty. Then he turned to Pain with a serious look.
"You shouldn't have given him that intel. It only increases the risk. We might not even encounter them now."
"It doesn't matter. What I'm more interested in is Zetsu. Has he been exposed?"
Nagato remained as cold as ever. If he didn't have to, he wouldn't even work alongside Obito.
He wasn't expecting Obito to understand either. As a 'god' leading all six bodies into action, he preferred direct confrontation.
"Hmph, relax. So far, everything looks normal."
Obito snorted. White Zetsu's disguise was undetectable to ordinary people.
And with Black Zetsu's support, it was nearly foolproof.
As far as they could tell, Kakashi and the others had already delivered the invitation and received intel from the fake 'Hanzo.'
Now, they were leaving Amegakure at full speed, heading for the Land of Grass. In Obito's mind, this was simply avoiding a head-on clash.
Still, he remained irritated by Nagato's decision. But arguing any further seemed pointless.
---
"Got something!"
Just then, a White Zetsu burst out of the ground, drawing everyone's attention.
"What is it? Intel? Hurry up already! I'm getting sick of waiting."
Raiga stomped over impatiently.
Obito simply asked, "Where are they now? Are they close?"
"Oh, they used Flying Thunder God to teleport away."
White Zetsu blinked and answered casually, immediately causing everyone's brows to furrow.
Did they get found out?
"But it's not that far from here."
Thankfully, Zetsu added quickly, "They're now in a forest near Kusagakure. No idea what they're doing there."
"Kusagakure's forest?"
Obito frowned. He'd been there before—it felt oddly familiar.
"Yeah, that's the place," White Zetsu confirmed, then added after a moment, "Looks like they teleported directly. There's probably a Flying Thunder God seal there."
"Direct teleportation… a seal?"
Obito's unease grew. A strong sense of déjà vu began creeping into his mind.
Then White Zetsu said something that made it all click.
"Oh, and that place isn't too far from the Kannabi Bridge."
"…?!"
Obito's eyes widened.
That place—wasn't that the very spot where he had once 'died'?
Kakashi, that bastard… he actually went there?
Was this some kind of twisted mockery?
"…Fine. Actually, it's not bad at all. A fitting place to bring things to an end."
Obito clenched his fist tightly. His hand trembled.
---
Back at the rocky area near Kusagakure
Kakashi stood silently among the scattered boulders.
Kitagawa Gen didn't disturb him. He simply looked out at the distant horizon, deep in thought.
"Maybe… after this mission ends, I'll head over there. If I remember correctly…"
"Karin should still be in that area."
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