As Asura rushed over, Indra lifted his heavy eyelids and slowly raised his hand. Pressing his index and middle fingers together, he gently tapped them against Asura's forehead. His breathing was ragged, but a faint smile appeared on his lips.
"…Asura, the boy won."
"I believe he'll carry our chakra into the future."
"From now on… the fate of the shinobi world rests in his hands."
"And… I'm sorry, Asura."
"When I struck Itachi just now, I felt it deep in my heart—as if I'd returned to that distant time, a thousand years ago… when I fought you."
"That feeling… must've been what they call family."
"I'm truly sorry… Forgive me."
As Indra spoke his last words, his fingers slipped down from Asura's forehead, leaving a faint trail of blood across his brother's face. His body leaned into Asura's—then dissolved into glowing motes of light that drifted into the Totsuka Blade.
"…Brother," Asura murmured, eyes dimming. Slowly, he closed them.
"Itachi… put me beside him."
"We swore we'd remain entangled for eternity. Even a moment apart—one minute, one hour—would be a betrayal."
"Brother… wait for me."
And with that, Asura's body too dissolved into stardust, vanishing into the blade alongside Indra.
Itachi stared down at the Totsuka Blade in his hand.
"…"
(…)
Something about it… felt off.
"…Itachi!"
Izumi threw herself at him, arms wrapped around his neck as she clung to him with a radiant grin.
"So? Is it over? Did you get Indra and Asura's chakra?" she asked, nuzzling into his shoulder.
"…Yeah, I got it," Itachi replied. "But… something feels weird. Why were they being so… nice to me? That look Indra gave me—it felt like I was his kid or something."
"That's because I linked your emotional threads with theirs," Izumi said, matter-of-factly. "It took a lot of effort, but I bound your bonds with them as familial love."
"To them, you're their treasure—their flesh and blood. Of course they'd care for you. Who else would they love, if not you?"
"…Right," Itachi muttered.
No wonder Indra was acting so strange at the end.
So it was her doing.
He couldn't help but feel that Indra had died in vain—defeated, sealed, grateful, and completely unaware he'd been emotionally manipulated.
Izumi's abilities—bestowed by Ōkuninushi-no-Mikoto—were borderline unreasonable.
"By the way," Itachi added, squinting, "why did Asura voluntarily let himself be sealed too? It kind of looked like… a lovers' pact or something."
"W-Well…" Izumi's cheeks turned pink, and she fiddled with her fingers. "I may have… accidentally tied their brotherly bond as… a romantic one."
"…So that's how that happened."
She shot a quick glance up at him, shy and a little guilty.
She hadn't meant for it to work—but somehow… it had.
Itachi: "…"
No wonder they went out like a couple of star-crossed soulmates.
"Love is irrational and deep—it comes without warning. But it leaves the deepest scars. Don't overuse it," Itachi said seriously.
"Mm."
Izumi nodded sweetly. Only with you, she added silently in her heart.
With the red thread still intact, both of them now bore the marks of Six Paths Yin and Yang Power.
And then—Itachi's Rinnegan, which had begun to fade, reappeared.
But this time… it had changed.
Three-Tomoe Rinnegan.
Known as the "Eyes That Controls Life and Death," the Rinnegan is the ultimate ocular power born from the chakra of the Ōtsutsuki and the God Tree's fruit.
Its wielder can manipulate yin and yang, master at least six chakra natures, and wield divine power capable of either creating or destroying the world.
It's also the only dojutsu that can resist and break Infinite Tsukuyomi.
"Can you still enter Six Paths Sage Fox Mode?" Izumi asked.
Itachi nodded. "I can. Now that I've inherited both Indra and Asura's chakra, I also possess their jutsu… their experience."
"And with Asura's guidance, I've mastered Sage Mode and learned how to use Yin-Yang Release."
"Though neither Indra nor Asura ever awakened the Rinnegan themselves, and I'm still getting used to mine… there's still a lot we'll have to uncover—together."
"Got it." Izumi gave him a firm nod.
"Oh, and Izumi… I realized something else." Itachi glanced at her. "Asura was probably the true perfect jinchūriki."
"Perfect jinchūriki?" she asked, puzzled.
"Well—not technically. But he was fully accepted by the Nine Tails. He could use its power without restriction. That's something only the Sage of Six Paths ever managed before."
Asura's Nine Tails Mode was identical to Naruto's post-war Kurama Chakra Mode.
At that time, Kurama had already been extracted—he and Naruto were no longer physically connected.
And yet Naruto could still borrow the Nine Tails' chakra.
Asura's version was the same: a complete bond, despite being separate entities.
"So… what about the Nine Tails inside Naruto now?" Izumi asked.
"I've already absorbed the Yin Kurama that was sealed inside the Fourth Hokage," Itachi explained. "What remains in Naruto is the Yang Kurama. We just need to release it."
"…Wait," Izumi tilted her head. "Release it? You mean… you're going to absorb it?"
"No," Itachi replied, calmly. "I want you to absorb it."
"…Huh?" Izumi blinked, stunned.
"After awakening the Rinnegan, I gained a technique called Sealing Absorption Seal. It allows you to reverse your internal chakra flow and absorb chakra or jutsu through contact."
"Chakra, as you know, is made of physical and spiritual energy.
Sage chakra adds a third component—natural energy. All three must stay in perfect balance."
"You haven't trained in Sage Mode yet, so don't try absorbing Sage chakra from anyone. Once you've learned it, you'll be fine. But until then, steer clear."
He remembered how Pain's Preta Path was overwhelmed by Naruto's Sage Mode chakra.
He wouldn't let Izumi suffer the same fate.
"Understood." Izumi nodded firmly.
Itachi takes Yin Kurama. I take Yang Kurama.
Yin and Yang… combined…
Wait—was that a hint?!
Her cheeks turned red. Steam practically rose from her head. She was dizzy from the implications.
"Also," Itachi added matter-of-factly, "Yin-Yang Release is the power to create something from nothing—and give it life."
"Yin Release governs the spiritual—it gives form to the intangible.
Yang Release governs the physical—it gives life to form.
Together, they create Yin-Yang Release."
"You can use this to craft chakra black rods—perfect weapons that disrupt an enemy's chakra network.
When pierced into someone, they seal the chakra points, rendering the opponent helpless."
"They're especially effective against tailed beasts. One stab into Kurama, and he won't even be able to fight back."
Itachi continued explaining in his usual calm, thorough way.
Izumi didn't interrupt. She simply listened, soaking in his every word—because she knew this was how he showed he cared.
"Alright," Itachi said at last. "Time to release the Nine Tails from Naruto."
With a flash of Flying Thunder God, he brought over the unconscious Sasuke and Naruto.
Placing his hand on Naruto's navel, he twisted.
"Rrraaaaaagh!!"
A massive, earth-shaking roar exploded across the sky.
The colossal Nine-Tailed Fox emerged—unstoppable and blazing with power.