"Moon, those two brats are gone now. Stop making that mysterious face—it's kinda awkward."
Hiroki said.
Seeing her like this, he couldn't even picture her as the same girl who used to cling to him nonstop.
Kaguya pouted slightly and smiled.
"Let's go find a place to absorb the power of these Chakra Pills..."
"I'll take us to my place," Kaguya said.
Another spatial portal opened, and Kaguya led him into the Origin World.
Thanks to prior preparation, although the Origin World was filled with rocks and looked desolate, it was livable.
After swallowing a Chakra Pill (chakra-infused pill), Hiroki felt something begin stirring slowly inside his body, like tiny creatures writhing and trying to break free.
He frowned, feeling his body becoming abnormally uncomfortable, as if a flame was burning in his chest.
On Hiroki's forehead, the mark of the Immortal Body began to appear. At first just a faint outline, it gradually became clearer over time, its color deepening from light gray to dark black.
This mark resembled a vortex, with black energy constantly swirling at its center, while countless black lines radiated outward, forming a mysterious pattern.
As the mark of the Immortal Body gradually expanded, he felt his body becoming increasingly unstable and difficult to control, as if a powerful force was retaliating against his body.
He tried to rein it in, but the force only grew stronger, like it was actively fighting against his control.
"This feeling..." he murmured, as if searching for an answer.
"Perhaps you might also need to, like me, nurture two lives within you to resolve the excess power you can't handle," Kaguya said playfully.
"Don't joke around at a time like this," Hiroki sighed helplessly, though he felt slightly reassured.
The fact that Kaguya stayed so chill told him it wasn't that bad after all.
"Will I become... a monster?"
...
With a soft smile, Kaguya activated her Byakugan, placed her hand on him, and simultaneously transmitted her power to help calm the backlash caused by absorbing the Chakra Pill, preventing him from losing control.
Hiroki felt Kaguya's palm warm and firm against his body, as a surge of energy flowed into him.
This energy made him feel comfortable and relaxed; he no longer felt unable to control his power.
...
Outside.
Hayato and Hamura hurried back to the Tree Village.
Nothing had happened to the village.
The two stood before the God Tree, their expressions resolute, making the exact same move.
[Yin Yang: Planetary Devastation]
As they unleashed this incredibly powerful technique, the ground nearby seemed to come alive, wrapping around the entire God Tree and forming a rough sphere.
The sphere slowly ascended into the air, while the surrounding ground began shaking violently. More stones were drawn upward, accumulating around the original Planetary Devastation sphere.
The orb grew larger and soared higher, with the stones embedded in its surface tracing beautiful curves across the sky.
Meanwhile, the pit where the God Tree once stood became deeper and deeper.
This spectacular sight quickly drew the attention of many villagers. They gasped in shock and froze on the spot, staring up at the sky.
Hayato and Hamura had always told them this place was forbidden, and none were allowed near it.
Despite their burning curiosity, no one dared step closer.
After a moment, they snapped out of it and started whispering nervously among themselves.
Someone asked, "What was that?"
Others noticed the God Tree's disappearance and said in astonishment, "Huh? Where did that giant tree go?"
"That's right."
A little later, they realized that the enormous orb was flying farther away, shrinking in size until it finally disappeared from view.
This unexpected event threw the villagers into even deeper confusion and unease.
When Hayato and Hamura stepped forward, the villagers rushed toward them.
Though fully aware of the villagers' curiosity and anxiety regarding this sudden event, Hayato and Hamura also knew that too much explanation at this stage might make things more complicated.
So they kept their explanation brief. They simply told the villagers not to panic, to stay calm, as the danger had passed.
Still full of doubts, the villagers dispersed.
Then, Hayato and Hamura discussed a series of follow-up actions.
Hamura would remain in the village while Hayato went to repair the battlefield where Kaguya and Shinigami had fought, then carve out the Shinigami Realm.
Every night thereafter, people were astonished to discover a reflective orb appearing in the night sky.
Hamura told everyone in Tree Village it was called the "Moon."
"It's also the direction the sun faces during the day."
...
Time passed like a calm traveler, moving steadily through the years.
Inside the Origin World, there was no change between day and night.
Hiroki wasn't sure how long had passed inside the Origin World, but gradually, his body returned to normal.
At this moment, the black vortex-like mark of the Immortal Body had completely vanished. The pressure on Hiroki lifted, and he finally sighed in relief.
He had successfully absorbed all the power, and gained the original ability of the Shinigami—the capacity to compress and expand enclosed spaces.
So now, this place could also be...
"Ka ka ka"—a loud sound, like colliding and overlapping walls, echoed around.
As the ruler of this space, Kaguya clearly sensed the Origin World shrinking.
She raised an eyebrow slightly but didn't intervene.
After a brief test, he soon stopped manipulating it.
Palm open, a Truth-Seeking Ball suddenly appeared in his hand. With a thought, the ball transformed into a hollow sphere, then expanded several times its original size. He murmured, "Guess space really can mean a lot of different things."
"Expansion means vulnerability," Kaguya reminded beside him.
Hiroki nodded in understanding.
"How do you feel now?" Kaguya asked.
A hint of contemplation flickered across Hiroki's face.
According to the power ranking of the entire Ninja World, the first tier naturally belongs to Kaguya with the complete form of Ten-Tails.
Next comes the Jinchuriki of Ten-Tails, the Sage of Six Paths...
Then there's Uchiha Madara, who briefly became an incomplete Ten-Tails Jinchuriki...
In between are some characters with partial Six Paths power—Six Paths Naruto, Six Paths Sasuke Uchiha, Six Paths Obito Uchiha... and so on.
Hamura also falls into the Six Paths level.
Hiroki, who originally possessed the Tenseigan and Immortal Body, stands at the same level too.
As for now...
"What's wrong?" Kaguya asked again.
"To know exactly how things stand, we'll need to try it out," Hiroki said, looking into her eyes.
Isn't she the benchmark by which strength can be measured?
"Then let's begin," Kaguya said lightly, raising her brow slightly in confidence and elegance.
...
After a round of confrontation, Kaguya ultimately gained the upper hand.
Sitting on a stone, he sighed helplessly. "I still can't beat you."
He had confirmed it already—he'd surpassed the Six Roads level, yet still couldn't match up to Kaguya, who wielded the power of the Ten-Tails.
Knowing that he didn't mind much, Kaguya didn't attempt to console him. Instead, she smiled faintly and offered her suggestion. "Outside of the Tenseigan techniques, you don't have much else to rely on—that's your real problem."
"But my thing was never really fighting anyway," Hiroki stood and smirked confidently.
"I can now do what I previously told you about. I promise you this. Moon, give me Isseki's list of names."
Consuming a Chakra Pill mainly enhanced his spiritual energy; the losses caused by splitting his consciousness were no longer that significant...
The plan to steal the identity of a member of the otsutsuki clan could finally be put into action...
"My social circle doesn't perfectly align with Isseki's. In fact, his connections reach further than mine. There are some otsutsuki he knows that I don't recognize, making it impossible to verify their authenticity. I'll just have to choose someone among those whom both of us are familiar with."
She began comparing the otsutsuki names on Isseki's list with the ones she already knew.
"But that could tip our hand..." Although unable to change his mind, Kaguya couldn't help but voice her concern.
"That's why I plan to do it during our crossing over. No matter whether it works or not, even if they realize what's happening, there's no way they can catch up. Let's leave now."
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