A week passed in the blink of an eye.
Monday, 9:00 a.m.
Kitazawa arrived at the Hokage's office right on time.
Konan had come a step earlier. After she watched him sit down in the Hokage's chair, she rose and moved behind him, gently massaging his shoulders.
Kitazawa casually picked up the documents on the desk.
They were reports from the Ministry of Economy and the Ministry of Engineering.
With the help of countless Earth Release ninja, the ninja world had preliminarily established a complete transportation network.
From highways, to railways, to airships—finally to teleportation formations.
Once the transportation system was in place, the economy could develop rapidly.
Given enough time, the entire ninja world would be turned upside down.
And once the internet was developed and rolled out, the ninja world would become something Kitazawa recognized—stepping out of a feudal age and into modernity.
Kitazawa read for a moment, then heard a knock at the door.
Konan withdrew her hands, stepped back, and slipped behind the bookshelf.
"Come in," Kitazawa said, setting the papers down.
"Good morning, Kitazawa-sensei!"
Uzumaki Naruto was as enthusiastic as ever.
With him were Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo and Uchiha Sasuke.
Kitazawa stood up and used the Flying Thunder God Technique.
In the next instant, the four of them were on the moon.
"Do you know the purpose of this trip?" Kitazawa asked.
"It's to defeat the evil Ōtsutsuki Kaguya!" Naruto immediately clenched his fist. "Kitazawa-sensei, just leave it to us!"
"If I can't beat her, then you can step in," Kitazawa replied.
The moment he heard that, he understood: Hagoromo had already told them about Kaguya.
That saved him a lot of time.
"Huh?"
Naruto's excited expression froze on the spot.
He felt like he'd come for nothing.
Sasuke felt the same.
Even though, according to Hagoromo, Ōtsutsuki Kaguya was terrifying, they had absolute confidence in Kitazawa.
[Current Mission: Defeat Ōtsutsuki Kaguya.]
[Mission Reward: Rinne Sharingan.]
[Accept?]
Seeing that, Kitazawa's spirits lifted.
He'd expected something like this—but only when it appeared did he truly relax.
The Rinne Sharingan was the supreme ocular form—an ultimate eye that could only be obtained by consuming the Divine Tree's fruit.
It had two unique abilities: Infinite Tsukuyomi and Amenominaka.
The former needed no explanation—it was a genjutsu capable of covering the entire ninja world.
The latter was a space–time ninjutsu that could transfer oneself or a target into another dimension.
That "other dimension" referred to the six spaces of Amenominaka.
Those six spaces were: the Lava Prison, the Frozen Mountains, the Sea of Acid, the Endless Desert, the Supergravity Space, and the Origin Space.
The most terrifying part of Amenominaka was this: once you were transferred into one of those six spaces, you basically couldn't leave without special means.
And if you couldn't leave, it meant waiting to die.
After all, the environments of those six spaces were brutal.
In the original story, only Dual Kamui could escape.
Amenominaka was undoubtedly one of Ōtsutsuki Kaguya's strongest killing moves.
But thankfully, Kitazawa had Yomotsu Hirasaka, which let him move freely within Amenominaka.
"Wait here," Kitazawa said.
He used Dual Kamui and walked into the depths of the moon.
Soon, Ōtsutsuki Kaguya came into view.
She was sealed by Six Paths: Chibaku Tensei, floating motionlessly in midair.
Just like in the original story, Ōtsutsuki Kaguya wore a white robe, had long white hair, and possessed two horns.
The only difference was that there was no Rinne Sharingan on her forehead.
Like the Sharingan, the Rinne Sharingan remained closed in its normal state.
Ōtsutsuki Kaguya instinctively opened her eyes.
When she saw Kitazawa, she froze.
She had been imprisoned here for a thousand years—this was the first time she'd seen an outsider break in, and for a moment she couldn't even react.
"Ōtsutsuki Kaguya," Kitazawa spoke first, "nice to meet you. My name is Kitazawa."
"Kitazawa?"
Ōtsutsuki Kaguya frowned.
She had never heard that name.
And this was the interior of Six Paths: Chibaku Tensei—by all logic, no one should be able to enter.
"You know me?" Ōtsutsuki Kaguya asked expressionlessly.
"Hagoromo told me," Kitazawa answered.
"Hagoromo?!"
Ōtsutsuki Kaguya's expression changed instantly, her voice rising without thinking.
With her personality, she didn't easily show emotion.
But her two unfilial sons were the exception.
Even in her dreams, she'd never imagined they would betray her, take the side of the ninja world, and seal her away.
"I'm already sealed. What else does he want?" Ōtsutsuki Kaguya suppressed her anger and asked coldly.
"He's him. I'm me," Kitazawa said with a smile. "I'm here to release you."
"What do you mean?" Ōtsutsuki Kaguya stared blankly.
She truly couldn't understand what was happening.
Had Black Zetsu sent him?
"Release you—then defeat you," Kitazawa explained.
"…?"
Ōtsutsuki Kaguya looked even more confused.
What was this person talking about?
"You really dare to free me?" She steadied herself, hope rising in her chest.
She didn't understand what Kitazawa wanted, but if she could escape, then to her, he'd be nothing more than an ant she could crush with a flick.
"Why wouldn't I?" Kitazawa raised his hand.
A shocking surge of chakra poured out.
Ōtsutsuki Kaguya was slightly surprised.
They said you could glimpse a leopard through a bamboo tube—just from that chakra, she could tell Kitazawa's strength was no joke.
But she was still extremely confident.
After all, she was an Ōtsutsuki who had eaten the Divine Tree's fruit.
In a one-on-one fight, she feared no Ōtsutsuki.
And Kitazawa wasn't even an Ōtsutsuki.
He lacked the signature white hair and horns, and the chakra in his body wasn't familiar to her.
If it were Hagoromo's or Hamura's chakra, she would have sensed it immediately.
Ōtsutsuki Kaguya stared hard at that chakra.
Soon, she felt the seal on her body loosening.
Her heartbeat quickened; excitement surged through her.
He was really going to release her?
Moments later, the seal vanished completely.
Ōtsutsuki Kaguya licked the corner of her lips unconsciously.
The instant she was free, her gaze locked onto Kitazawa's chakra.
For her—or for the Ōtsutsuki clan—chakra was everything.
With enough chakra, you could plant the tree, obtain the Divine Tree's fruit, and become even stronger.
The Ōtsutsuki's daily routine was sending people across the universe to plant trees on various planets.
Amenominaka!
A crimson light flashed on Ōtsutsuki Kaguya's forehead, and the Rinne Sharingan appeared.
An invisible ripple spread out. Kitazawa felt the world spin—then in a blink, he was in an unfamiliar space.
The moment he planted his feet, scorching heat rushed in from all directions.
This was the Lava Prison of Amenominaka.
Kitazawa raised an eyebrow and immediately understood Kaguya's plan.
She was worried Hagoromo had an ambush outside, so she dragged Kitazawa into Amenominaka to deal with him directly.
"Looks like you're not as naïve as you seem," Kitazawa chuckled.
Ōtsutsuki Kaguya ignored him and raised her hand.
In an instant, all the lava surged toward Kitazawa like tidal waves.
This lava was no ordinary lava.
Using Water Release would be completely useless.
Shinra Tensei!
Kitazawa activated the Rinnegan.
An invisible repulsive force blasted the lava back.
"You have the Rinnegan?" Ōtsutsuki Kaguya's eyes narrowed. "Are you Hagoromo's son?"
It was a reasonable guess.
Under normal circumstances, the Rinnegan could only awaken through bloodline.
"I'm not," Kitazawa said, the corner of his mouth twitching.
"Whether you are or not doesn't matter," Ōtsutsuki Kaguya clenched her fist. "Once I absorb your chakra, I'll defeat Hagoromo and Hamura."
Eighty Gods Vacuum Attack!
She got serious.
Countless fists appeared out of thin air, shaking the entire space.
The lava was instantly pulverized.
A storm of fists rained toward Kitazawa like a downpour.
Eighty Gods Vacuum Attack!
Kitazawa threw his fists forward.
Chakra transformed into a sky full of afterimage fists, meeting Kaguya's head-on.
Space warped, and a continuous series of muffled impacts exploded through the air.
"You can actually use Eighty Gods Vacuum Attack?" Ōtsutsuki Kaguya was stunned.
Because even her two unfilial sons couldn't use it.
"Who are you?" She didn't wait for an answer and pressed again. "Are you Isshiki? No—wrong. You don't have a Kāma."
Kāma was an Ōtsutsuki-exclusive method.
Its effect was to turn oneself into data and imprint it into a target's body—so you could take over that body and resurrect.
In other words, as long as Kāma existed, an Ōtsutsuki wouldn't truly die.
Back then, when Ōtsutsuki Isshiki was sacrificed by Kaguya, he encountered Jigen at death's door and survived by parasitizing him via Kāma.
"Beat you first, and I'll tell you," Kitazawa said casually.
Enraged, Ōtsutsuki Kaguya used Amenominaka again.
Kitazawa was instantly enveloped by an invisible ripple.
The environment shifted—and he appeared in another space.
A terrifying gravity slammed down on him, so heavy he nearly toppled.
This was the Supergravity Space of Amenominaka.
In this space, even Ōtsutsuki Kaguya couldn't completely ignore the omnipresent gravity.
But she could still unleash her abilities.
In the original story, she dragged Uchiha Obito into this space and turned him to ash with All-Killing Ash Bones.
Staring at Kitazawa as he resisted the gravity, Ōtsutsuki Kaguya raised her hand at once.
All-Killing Ash Bones!
Two bone spikes shot from her palm.
Kaguya's excitement surged.
Kitazawa's chakra reserves were easily among the top three she'd ever seen.
One person—almost comparable to the entire ninja world.
If she absorbed his chakra, her power would skyrocket.
Then even if the Ōtsutsuki sent pursuers, she wouldn't be afraid.
But the next second, her expression froze.
Kitazawa lifted his hand.
Two bone spikes flew out as well, colliding with hers and dissolving midair.
"You can use All-Killing Ash Bones too?" Ōtsutsuki Kaguya felt absurdity crash over her.
The Ōtsutsuki had a wide variety of abilities—so clan members who possessed both All-Killing Ash Bones and Eighty Gods Vacuum Attack were already extremely rare.
Let alone an outsider like Kitazawa.
Thinking that, Ōtsutsuki Kaguya immediately used Yomotsu Hirasaka.
She dove into a portal and vanished.
Kitazawa raised an eyebrow.
He knew she wasn't fleeing—she was heading to the Origin Space within Amenominaka.
Unlike the other five spaces, the Origin Space amplified chakra.
In the Origin Space, Ōtsutsuki Kaguya could use her ultimate technique: the Expansive Truth-Seeking Ball.
The official description was that it could erase all properties, return the world to nothingness—and serve as the starting point of a new space.
In the original story, if not for Six Paths: Chibaku Tensei interfering, the Expansive Truth-Seeking Ball could even destroy Amenominaka itself.
Without hesitation, Kitazawa used Yomotsu Hirasaka.
He stepped into the Origin Space and immediately saw Ōtsutsuki Kaguya charging power.
A gigantic Truth-Seeking Ball was forming in front of her.
"You can even use Yomotsu Hirasaka?!" Kaguya's mind wavered when she saw him appear.
The shock Kitazawa brought her was nearly on par with the day Hagoromo and Hamura suddenly joined forces to seal her.
"I don't believe you can use the Expansive Truth-Seeking Ball too!" Ōtsutsuki Kaguya stopped holding back. Endless chakra poured into the sphere.
Her original plan had been to charge first, then return to the Supergravity Space via Yomotsu Hirasaka and strike Kitazawa there.
But now that Kitazawa had followed her into the Origin Space, she could only release it on the spot.
"I really can't use the Expansive Truth-Seeking Ball," Kitazawa said calmly.
The prerequisite for using it was having Amenominaka.
And Amenominaka was an ability of the Rinne Sharingan.
Hearing that, Ōtsutsuki Kaguya felt a little relief.
Then Kitazawa brought his hands together.
Sage Mode.
Senju Chakra Mode!
Yang Release Chakra Mode!
Strength of a Hundred Seal: Release!
AmanoIwato!
Tenseigan Chakra Mode!
Chakra erupted from Kitazawa like boiling water.
Kaguya's heart jolted.
Kitazawa's chakra amount was now on par with hers.
And she had eaten the Divine Tree fruit—her chakra reserves exceeded most Ōtsutsuki by a large margin.
A sense of danger rose in her chest.
Gritting her teeth, Ōtsutsuki Kaguya poured all of her chakra into the Truth-Seeking Ball.
It expanded rapidly, like a massive sun, engulfing the enormous Origin Space.
Sage Art: Wood Release: True Several Thousand Hands!
Susanoo Armor!
Kitazawa clapped his hands.
A Thousand-Armed Kannon statue wearing armor appeared out of nowhere.
It reached out—and the rapidly expanding Truth-Seeking Ball stopped.
"That's impossible!" Ōtsutsuki Kaguya's eyes went wide.
Top Transformed Buddha!
Kitazawa unleashed his strongest strike without changing expression.
The Thousand-Armed Kannon clenched its fist.
A thousand hands moved at once—countless punches shattered the Truth-Seeking Ball and swallowed Ōtsutsuki Kaguya whole.
Even in shock, she didn't give up.
She transformed into a tailed beast, becoming a massive white rabbit.
The fists crashed into her body.
Ōtsutsuki Kaguya screamed.
The entire Origin Space shook violently.
All that remained was an endless torrent of fists pounding down on the white rabbit.
After a long while, everything finally went quiet.
Ōtsutsuki Kaguya lay on the ground.
She had been forced back into human form.
Her clothes were torn to shreds, and every patch of exposed skin was mangled and bloody, nothing like the original snow-white.
Kitazawa walked up to her.
He swept his gaze over her and saw that she was recovering rapidly.
This was the undying, unkillable body Ōtsutsuki Kaguya gained after eating the Divine Tree fruit.
Under normal circumstances, the only option was to seal her.