Chapter 332 – Admiration Is the Emotion Farthest from Understanding
"How… how could this happen…"
The moment the words spoken by Kitagawa Gen in the sky fell, the entire world seemed to plunge into deathly silence.
Those standing beside Gen's God Tree clone all wore expressions of sheer terror, as if they could not believe what they had just heard.
"What exactly… is going on?"
The people who had only just arrived were equally stunned. An extreme unease and fear began to echo through their hearts.
"This can't be real… Gen, stop joking around…"
Deidara swallowed hard. He tried to force a laugh to lighten the mood, but for some reason, he simply couldn't.
"Senior… what is this…?"
Sasuke gulped, his eyes unfocused, his body trembling uncontrollably.
"Gen… what's going on?"
Kakashi and Guy stared behind them in disbelief, then instinctively looked back up at the sky.
Confusion, fear, and grief intertwined in their hearts. They couldn't even begin to comprehend what they were witnessing.
Even Nagato, Obito, and Kimimaro—whose souls had just been reclaimed from beneath the domination of the three Ōtsutsuki—were utterly bewildered.
Only Obito's gaze flickered slightly. He glanced at Kakashi, as though finding it unsurprising that Kakashi would be caught up in something like this.
The former Hokages, meanwhile, collectively fell into silence and disorientation, as if their minds had completely failed to catch up.
"What… is happening over there?"
Far away, within the Allied Shinobi Forces, countless ninja were gripped by confusion.
They didn't know what was happening at the front lines, but they all felt it—something truly horrific was about to unfold.
"Ino, are you okay?"
Shikamaru looked at her with a strange expression. From the moment things started going wrong, he had sensed something off about her. Chōji was clearly worried as well.
"Are you worried about that guy? Relax, it'll be fine. Everyone's here—nothing will go wrong."
"With Senior Gen here, everything will be okay."
Rock Lee and Neji spoke almost in unison. Hinata nodded along quietly.
"I think… we should still be careful."
Ino really didn't want to dampen everyone's spirits, but she felt that something was deeply wrong. The unease in her heart was growing stronger by the second.
"How does that guy know Naruto? And his words… why do they sound more and more like Gen…?"
She didn't dare say it out loud—nor did she dare admit it to herself.
Because the truth was simply too terrifying.
And far too unbearable.
Yet fate so often refuses to grant what people wish for.
"Gen, you—"
Tobirama swallowed, disbelief written all over his face.
"What's happened to you…?"
"Nothing much. I'm just saying what needs to be said."
But the one who answered him wasn't the Kitagawa Gen standing before them—
It was the Ōtsutsuki Genshiki in the sky.
The Gen on the ground withdrew his hand, smiled faintly at Naruto, and shrugged indifferently.
"Though I am curious about one thing. When exactly did you realize something was wrong?"
As he spoke, the Gen before them slowly lifted his head toward the sky.
Above, "Ōtsutsuki Genshiki" continued speaking—
and his voice had completely changed.
It was Kitagawa Gen's voice.
"I noticed a long time ago that your emotions were off. I just didn't expect you to see through all of this. Truly astonishing…"
"What… what are you talking about?!"
Sasuke finally snapped. The others were just as hollow-eyed—shock, confusion, and fear choking their voices into silence.
"What are we talking about?"
The answer still didn't come from the Gen in front of them, but from the "Ōtsutsuki Genshiki" in the sky. The Gen below merely shook his head lightly.
The golden motes of light began to spread, slowly enveloping his entire body in a radiant halo.
At the same time, the "Ōtsutsuki Genshiki" raised a hand to his mask—and slowly removed it.
"You actually knew already, didn't you, Sasuke? You just refused to admit it. Refused to accept it."
"Shut up—shut up!"
Sasuke screamed hysterically. It felt as if a chunk of his heart had been carved out—bloody and raw, yet with no visible wound.
His eyes were irresistibly drawn to the figure in the sky, while the Gen beside him, now swallowed by golden light, shook his head gently and continued.
"I don't blame you. I understand. But unfortunately, this world never truly had lies or truths—only—"
Before the sentence could finish, the Gen bathed in golden light vanished entirely.
And in the sky, "Ōtsutsuki Genshiki" fully removed his mask.
His true face was revealed at last.
It was Kitagawa Gen.
And his voice fell like a final verdict.
"—unchangeable facts."
Buzz—
Sasuke felt as though his head had been struck by a sledgehammer. He stood there blankly, ears ringing.
Not just him—everyone else, even the distant Allied Shinobi Forces, were struck the same way.
"You've got to be kidding…"
Deidara finally broke, his eyes unfocused. In the distance, Ino fell completely silent.
The scene she had dreaded most had still come to pass.
"This… this can't be real…"
Neji and Lee stood at a loss. Shikamaru and Chōji were speechless. The rest were no better.
Suddenly, the world—bathed in the golden glow of the "Golden Tree"—felt unreal.
In that instant, it was as if sound, color, even temperature had been stripped away.
All that remained was the dull ache in their chests, and a crushing pain that made it hard to breathe.
"Even so," Gen said calmly, almost mockingly, as he looked at the shattered mask in his hand and crushed it into fragments,
"all living beings in this world choose to believe only the truths that benefit them—because that's the only way they can survive."
He lifted his head, looking at everyone with that faint, ever-present smile.
"But for the powerless majority, the truths that harm them are often the real ones—just like now."
Those words drained the spirit from everyone present.
They had never imagined that the end of the world would look like this.
Nor that the one who had given them hope—who seemed capable of leading them beyond the dead end of history—
Would turn out to be both their savior and the destroyer known as Ōtsutsuki Genshiki.
That despair was beyond description.
For the people of Konoha, it was even worse.
The Fifth Hokage—the man they trusted enough to give everything for—had been hiding such an identity.
And for Gen's friends, the memories they shared now felt like shards of glass stabbing into their hearts with every breath.
"Why… why would you do this?"
In the midst of the suffocating silence, Naruto's roar suddenly rang out.
Boom—
An even greater surge of chakra erupted from his body, responding to his rage and despair. It grew stronger and stronger.
"Naruto…"
Sasuke stared at him, dazed. But Naruto ignored him, fixing his gaze on Gen in the sky.
"Why?! Why would you do this?!"
"Why?"
Gen found the scene oddly familiar.
Suddenly, he remembered.
When he had seized the Totsuka Blade and been influenced by its illusion—he had seen something like this.
Only back then, the illusion had underestimated him. In that vision, he was merely surrounded by Konoha's ninja.
Now—
He was the enemy of the entire world.
Still, he didn't care. He looked at Naruto with a faintly amused expression.
"Before I answer that, shouldn't you tell me how you recognized me?"
"Eight years ago. Ichiraku Ramen."
Naruto clenched his fists, shut his eyes, and shouted.
"You once looked at the sky and said, 'The vacancy of the Heavenly Throne should end.' I thought you were joking—maybe talking about becoming Hokage!"
"But I never imagined it would end like this! Tell me why! Why did things become like this?! Why?!"
"Ichiraku…"
Gen's expression turned slightly strange. He remembered—he had joked like that once.
Who would've thought Naruto remembered it all these years?
He found it almost amusing.
"So that's how it was. Naruto… it seems I really did leave quite an impression on you."
"Now it's your turn."
Naruto opened his eyes.
In that moment, pain, confusion, even despair vanished—replaced by a resolve he had never known before.
"Tell me, you bastard—why did you do this?! You're not the Kitagawa Gen I knew!"
"Not the Kitagawa Gen you knew?"
Gen raised an eyebrow, his smile growing brighter.
"That's unfortunate. That was always your—all of your—misunderstanding."
"Because the Kitagawa Gen you first knew…"
"Never existed in the first place."
Boom—
Before Gen could react, Naruto shot into the sky.
Chakra roared around him, his power surging wildly.
He glared at Gen and shouted.
"I won't accept this! Even if it kills me, I'll beat you awake!"
Roars and fury intertwined as his chakra burst into dazzling brilliance.
Ashura's chakra resonated through his body, Kurama's power fully enveloping him.
"I'll never forget the real Gen! And I'll never accept you!"
"Naruto!"
The others gritted their teeth—and charged in after him.
Naruto was already in front of Gen, his fist—wrapped in Kurama's chakra and Ashura's power—swinging down.
"Wake up!"
Yet faced with a blow so heavy it compressed the air and warped space itself, Gen merely shifted slightly.
In an instant, he passed Naruto—
And appeared calmly behind him.
Naruto reacted at once, spinning around and forming a massive Rasengan.
"Yang Release: Rasenshuriken!"
"A bit childish."
Gen raised his blade and swung once.
A power that seemed capable of splitting heaven and earth erupted.
The Rasenshuriken was cleaved in half instantly, and the residual blade force struck Naruto head-on.
He shot downward like a meteor, slamming toward the ground.
"No technique really means much to me."
But just then, a kunai flew toward him.
Gen glanced at it; an invisible force knocked it aside.
In the next instant, the kunai vanished—
And Sasuke appeared in its place.
"Rinnegan… Amenotejikara?"
Gen raised an eyebrow as Sasuke's chakra exploded, his blade slashing down.
"Why?!"
Sasuke roared.
"Why did you lie to me—why?!"
Clang—
Gen raised his blade with one hand, effortlessly stopping Sasuke's strike.
"I trusted you! I believed in you! I admired you—I chased after your back! Why would you do this?!"
Sasuke screamed, his Eternal Mangekyō power surging endlessly.
His chakra grew stronger and stronger, his emotions spiraling out of control.
Yet no matter how powerful he became, Gen suppressed him completely.
It was like facing an insurmountable mountain—no matter how he climbed, he could never reach the summit.
"Gen!"
At that moment, Kakashi and Guy charged in. Lightning crackled violently in Kakashi's hand as he surged forward.
"Stop this! Are you really going to do what Naruto said—ignore everyone who cares about you?! Ignore all of us?!"
"Trust…?"
Gen shook his head lightly as the lightning approached.
He sidestepped again. Kakashi's hand swept past him—
And Gen's blade flashed toward Kakashi's back.
"Watch out!"
Guy shouted.
But just as disaster struck, space warped.
A figure appeared and blocked the fatal blow.
"That guy—he's—"
"Obito?"
Kakashi stared in shock. Obito, however, looked utterly unconcerned—his face twisted in mockery.
"Kakashi, looks like I was right. Even if you die, your student won't mourn you."
"Obito…"
Pain flooded Kakashi's eyes once more.
It felt like the people he knew were once again walking down paths he feared most.
The cruelest part was that he had seen the light before—
And that light had grown, filling his heart completely.
But in the very next moment, that light was completely extinguished—what it illuminated instead was a vision straight out of hell.
"Don't make that face, and don't lose focus at a time like this!"
Obito suddenly shouted, his gaze locked firmly onto Kitagawa Gen in the sky.
"I don't need your forgiveness. Everything that happened to me—I deserved it. But Rin is different. She's still in Konoha, so…"
"Kill this guy—and while you're at it…"
"Try to give this hellish world a new view."
Perhaps because he had already died once—nearly having his very soul erased under the suppression of the Ōtsutsuki—Uchiha Obito, though he still believed this world to be hell, no longer wished to keep running from it.
Setting aside the fact that everything about him was now held firmly in the hands of the "cold and ruthless Sage of Six Paths," his hatred for the Ōtsutsuki alone was reason enough for him to fight.
What was more—
The real Rin was still in Konoha.
No matter the reason, he would fight these Ōtsutsuki to the end.
"Is that so…"
Kakashi murmured softly.
At that moment, Might Guy had already leapt into the air!
Brilliant blue chakra erupted from his entire body—it was clear that the Eight Gates had been opened.
"Gen, I don't know what happened, but this definitely isn't the real you!"
He roared as his body was engulfed in azure chakra, launching a fierce kick toward Kitagawa Gen.
"The real Gen is kind, trustworthy—not someone like you, standing above everyone else in a way that makes people sick!"
"Blue chakra, huh?"
Gen recognized the level of the Eight Gates at a glance. Facing the kick tearing through the air, he reached out and caught it with one hand.
Guy's face filled with shock—this speed, this power… and it still wasn't enough?
"Guy-sensei, it seems you don't understand what I've been pursuing at all."
Gen still wore the same faint smile, still looking like the boy they once knew—yet his aura had undergone an incomprehensible transformation.
"Let him go!"
Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha charged in fiercely, thunderous power surging from both of them.
"Sage Art: Yang Release—Wood Dragon Technique!"
A roaring wood dragon burst from the ground, while Madara abandoned Susanoo entirely, chakra surging wildly within him.
"Sage Art: Yin Release—Lightning Dispatch!"
Wood and lightning intertwined, Yin and Yang merging, exploding with rage as they rushed toward Gen.
"Trust is synonymous with reliance—and reliance is the behavior of the weak."
With a casual shove, Gen sent Guy flying backward, smashing into the distance. He turned calmly, icy eyes fixed on the incoming Wood Dragon.
"Unfortunately, I don't need it."
Boom—
The golden God Tree swayed violently. Bathed in golden light, an even more massive dragon burst forth, roaring as it lunged forward.
It clamped its jaws around the Wood Dragon formed by Hashirama and Madara. With a violent wrench, the Wood Dragon shattered into countless fragments!
"You bastard—!"
Hashirama and Madara were already behind Gen, Yin and Yang chakra erupting from their bodies.
"All living beings survive by believing in and blindly following the exceptional," Gen said calmly, without even turning around. His long blade twisted slightly in his hand.
"When those beneath can no longer bear the burden, they seek someone above them."
"Those above, in turn, seek someone even higher—thus giving birth to the concept of 'Kage.'"
Slash—
Everyone's vision blurred. A single silver flash cut through the air.
In the next instant, Gen had shifted positions—still with his back turned to Hashirama and Madara.
The two of them clutched their chests as blood sprayed into the sky.
"But that's still not enough. Because beyond that…"
Gen vanished again, evading Tobirama Senju and Minato Namikaze's attack. His blade gleamed once more.
In a blink, he struck again.
Tobirama and Minato's bodies froze for a split second before crashing violently toward the ground.
Yet at that moment, accompanied by roaring chakra, Sasuke and Naruto surged upward, catching Guy and the others midair.
Gen's voice echoed once more.
"And thus, gods were born. That—has always been the goal I pursued!"
As he spoke, the golden radiance in the sky grew even more brilliant.
The massive fruit atop the God Tree had fully ripened. Endless chakra churned within it.
Inside that fruit seemed to dwell power capable of shaking heaven and earth—energy that could annihilate everything.
"When did you become like this…?"
Kakashi stood up slowly, his eyes filled with ashen despair. He stared at Gen in disbelief, his voice hoarse and heavy.
"Why do this? Why must it be this way? Is what Naruto said true—do you really not care about anything anymore?"
"Didn't I already tell you?" Gen said calmly, gazing up at the fruit nurtured by his God Tree. "From the very beginning, I was never the Kitagawa Gen you imagined."
He felt it was time to eat that fruit.
After all, he had enjoyed himself thoroughly. At most, one more overwhelming blow would be enough to end everything.
As for Kakashi's question, Gen merely chuckled softly.
"Do you remember what I once told you? Betrayal you can see can at least be guarded against. What's truly terrifying is betrayal you can't see, Kakashi-sensei."
"Why did you lie to everyone?! Why—why?!"
Naruto roared, Sasuke doing the same—but Gen didn't even spare them a glance.
Buzz—
A pillar of golden light descended upon Gen, while countless vines exploded outward, instantly enclosing everyone present.
Such a horrifying scene failed to cause panic—because by now, everyone was already numb.
Bathed in golden radiance, Gen's body slowly ascended toward the fruit. Only then did he shake his head and smile faintly.
"I'm sorry. I never intended to deceive any of you."
"It's just that none of you ever truly understood who I really was."
"My true self…"
Those words plunged everyone into utter silence. Naruto and Sasuke clenched their fists until their knuckles turned white.
"Don't blindly believe in others," Gen continued, his smile unchanged as his gaze swept over the crowd.
"And don't casually admire someone either—because…"
He paused, then spoke slowly and clearly.
"Admiration is the emotion farthest from understanding."