The object, possibly a falling star, landed beside the God Tree.
Although it had plummeted from high above, not even a single crater was left behind.
Isshiki otsutsuki slammed face-first into the ground, unmoving.
His crimson blood flowed from his body, vividly contrasting with the earth.
As if waking from a deep slumber, the God Tree stirred the moment Isshiki otsutsuki crashed onto its surface. Its branches moved instantly, wrapping around the "food" that had fallen beside it.
It was only at that moment that Hiroki finally saw clearly.
This wasn't any meteor fall—it was definitely a person!
At this very moment, Isshiki otsutsuki—who had been ambushed by Kaguya otsutsuki—was already gravely wounded, barely clinging to life.
He hadn't given Kaguya otsutsuki a second thought at all, let alone imagined she'd have the audacity to attack him directly.
The physical pain alone couldn't even cause a flicker of emotion across his face.
But he could feel more and more parts of his body losing sensation.
Those areas had already been consumed by the God Tree's roots.
"That damn traitor!"
Cursing Kaguya otsutsuki bitterly in his mind, only half of Isshiki otsutsuki's body remained—soon, he would vanish from this world entirely.
In this life-or-death moment, he activated his divine technique.
[Sukunahikona].
Instantly, his body shrank significantly.
Immediately afterward, he used another divine technique—[Daikokuten: Shokatsu].
Isshiki otsutsuki's body was pulled into an alternate dimension.
Everything happened so suddenly that Hiroki could only watch helplessly as Isshiki otsutsuki vanished before his eyes. He hesitated, unsure where to look next.
Meanwhile, after hurling Isshiki otsutsuki toward the God Tree, Kaguya otsutsuki also landed on the ground.
"Who is guarding over there? Could someone in this world actually be targeting the God Tree?"
Noticing a small wooden hut a short distance from the God Tree, she grew alert and flew directly toward it.
Now that she had completely severed ties with Isshiki otsutsuki, there was no going back to the Otsutsuki Clan.
Once anyone in the clan discovered her betrayal, she would face relentless pursuit.
There was no turning back now—it was time to draw the bow without looking back. She needed to grow stronger—fast.
The God Tree's fruit was hers to claim, no matter the cost.
...
At the same time, the Emperor of the Land of the Forefathers stood gazing at the night sky with a group of soldiers.
A glowing object streaked through the heavens.
"What is that? A star?"
"How could there be a star like that?"
"It's still moving."
Armed soldiers whispered among themselves.
"Pursue it," the emperor commanded solemnly.
"Yes sir."
...
"Who are you?"
A cold voice cut through the air, carrying with it a wave of Killing Intent.
Hiroki turned around—and when his gaze fell on the familiar face, he couldn't help but freeze, murmuring unconsciously, "Truly, not the slightest change..."
Hearing his voice laced with longing and sensing the way his gaze lingered on her, Kaguya otsutsuki's mood shifted subtly. Her Killing Intent unconsciously receded.
The gentleness in his eyes, the aura surrounding him—all made her feel that this man seemed intimately close to her.
Especially that familiar presence about him made her wonder—if somehow, at some point in the past, they had been close… perhaps even shared a bond far deeper than mere allies.
But how could that be?
Her memories clearly told her they'd never met before.
Today was their first encounter!
Then why did this illusion arise?
A trap? A temptation?
Why had someone suddenly appeared whom she couldn't help but feel drawn to?
Could it be this person just happened to match some subconscious image of her ideal guy, thus affecting her judgment?
Impossible! That was absolutely impossible!
She didn't have time for that kind of nonsense—let alone the desire...
Kaguya kept questioning herself inwardly.
She was getting confused.
"Kaguya."
The familiar yet gentle male voice reached her ears. She remained expressionless, forcefully suppressing the messy thoughts in her heart. Her eyes turned noticeably colder in an instant.
She didn't bother figuring out how he knew her name. It was just his overly intimate tone and gaze that made her feel somewhat irritated.
It was as if he were speaking past her, to someone else.
Hiroki didn't think his tone was particularly problematic. He had deliberately kept himself non-threatening.
This Kaguya wasn't that Kaguya. He didn't have much history with her yet.
If he provoked her anger, who knew whether she might decide to hunt him down.
The Otsutsuki Clan could traverse space and travel between planets—they were generally capable of using spatial jutsu.
Although not everyone could use Yomi-Hirasaka, creating a simple space portal was easy enough.
If things came to running away, he definitely wouldn't be faster than Kaguya.
In fact, the Tenseigan also held spatial abilities.
However, its primary function was to create spatial pathways connecting two planets.
It was difficult to apply directly in combat.
Kaguya now remained silent and showed no intention to attack, so Hiroki continued, "It should be Isseki. He's gone missing. Only part of his body remains, and somehow shrank and vanished."
"Isseki? You know him too? How much exactly do you know?" Kaguya questioned sharply.
"...I mean you no harm. Let's find him together."
He stared at her intently, a faint smile on his face. Her reflection floated within his blue eyes. Kaguya hesitated, her feelings tangled and uncertain.
If not for the strange sense of familiarity radiating from him, she would've killed him without hesitation.
Why was he acting so overly familiar!
Why!
Reflecting briefly on his words, Kaguya then stated, "Given his current condition, to survive he must parasitize someone else. He can't hide forever."
"So we must find him before that happens. Kaguya, you believe me now?" Hiroki's lips curled slightly upward.
Kaguya didn't respond. Instead, she reached out and patted his shoulder, imprinting a mark upon him.
Hiroki looked puzzled and formed hand seals with both hands.
[Shadow Clone Jutsu].
With two soft 'poof' sounds, two clouds of smoke appeared, revealing two clones stepping forward.
Looking at the three identical figures, interest gleamed in Kaguya's eyes.
Clones? This seemed pretty useful… possibly quite handy.
Without another word, the group split up and headed in different directions.
Kaguya parted ways with Hiroki and recalled the scene they had just shared, mimicking Hiroki's hand seal movements.
She formed the hand seal by bringing her two middle fingers together and crossing her hands into a cross shape.
In an instant, she felt as if half of her chakra had vanished.
A clone of herself appeared beside her.
Kaguya and her clone nodded at each other. Kaguya asked, "How does it feel?"
"Except for chakra reserves, it feels exactly the same as before."
"What about in battle?"
"If I take serious injuries, I'll disappear."
"Can you still use your jutsu?"
The clone paused in thought for a moment, then nodded again.
"He must have many valuable items on him."
Kaguya fell silent in thought. She flew into the sky, activated her Byakugan, scanned below, and began searching for Isseki's trail.
Meanwhile, Hiroki was far less efficient than her.
Though he could use the Tenseigan to manipulate gravity and repel himself for short flights, Hiroki still preferred to run like a ninja.
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