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"Hoo, hoo."
His breathing was extremely heavy; just by listening to that labored, almost broken breathing, one could tell this was a dying person.
Ōtsutsuki Urashiki struggled to prop himself up, the small amount of powder he held spilling onto the ground, vaguely revealing the pale, cooked shapes within. Large mouthfuls of blood splattered onto the ground, staining it with dark red plum spots.
The surface of his distorted hands was covered in charred marks, subtly emitting the scent of roasted flesh.
"That… damn, inferior race."
At this moment, Ōtsutsuki Urashiki had already lost one eye, and his entire lower body had vanished, leaving only his upper half struggling to crawl on the ground, leaving a deep, dark red trail behind him.
He lay on the ground, painstakingly maintaining his minimal life functions.
After waiting for a while, feeling a slight flow of Chakra gradually forming within his body, he suddenly opened his single eye.
It transformed into a azure Six Tomoe Rinnegan.
"Time Reversal."
In an instant of shifting light and shadow, he transformed from half a body to a complete one—only, compared to his original appearance, he looked significantly smaller.
He was only about ten years old.
"Thud."
For a moment, he couldn't support himself and fell to the ground again.
"Can I only recover to this extent?"
When he spoke, even his voice sounded much more childish.
However, Ōtsutsuki Urashiki's expression was extremely grim.
Unlike the human developmental process, all Ōtsutsuki are born in their adult form after emerging from the Divine Tree's egg, which also represents their most basic peak state. Subsequent growth relies entirely on various powers absorbed from the Divine Tree Fruit.
After using his last spatial-temporal power, Ōtsutsuki Urashiki barely managed to save his life, but the situation he now faced was even more dire than that of Ōtsutsuki Isshiki, who was also bisected in the past—he now possessed only the most basic physical qualities of an Ōtsutsuki Clan member; even the ocular power brought by the Divine Tree Fruit he had absorbed had completely gone dormant.
If he spent another thousand years or so, he might be able to return to his peak, but by then, it would be too late for anything.
Unlike others, Ōtsutsuki Urashiki was well aware of the terrifying changes that would occur in this world during the brief hundred years in the future—the Ōtsutsuki Clan, who ruled this star region, would be completely annihilated by the humans they considered an inferior race—naturally, this included him, hidden within the Ninja World.
"I must find a way to eliminate him."
"If I can't, I'll be dead within twenty, at most fifty, years."
Ōtsutsuki Urashiki took deep breaths. Though he appeared young, he was now exceptionally childish, yet his expression remained heavy and ruthless.
However, what method in this world could allow him to quickly recover his strength?
Divine Tree Fruit? Impossible.
It would cause too much commotion.
No one knew if that bastard Sawara Kiri still had the ability to unleash the power he displayed before.
If he were discovered prematurely, his current state would likely lead him to be mounted in a laboratory as a specimen for research, just like his future clan members.
This kind of humiliation was absolutely unbearable for the Ōtsutsuki Clan.
Return to the clan?
That was also unlikely.
Not to mention that their direct contact with the Ōtsutsuki Clan now would create a spatial-temporal coordinate for the future Sawara Kiri in this world, allowing him to cross worlds and timelines to deal with him. Just his current fragile body made it impossible for him to traverse vast spatial distances like a normal Ōtsutsuki to request aid from Shibai-sama.
No matter how he thought about it, it was a dead end.
Ōtsutsuki Urashiki gritted his teeth, looking at a human settlement not far ahead on the road, his thoughts growing heavier.
It seemed there was only one path.
Cooperate with the humans of this world—no, it should be said, temporarily manipulate these foolish humans.
If he remembered correctly, under Sawara Kiri's development, future humans also exhibited quite terrifying abilities, even capable of directly fighting ordinary members of the Ōtsutsuki Clan.
This itself indicated that these humans had extremely high potential for development.
As long as he could exploit the inherent infighting among these inferior races to force Sawara Kiri to die in an internal struggle, there was a great possibility of cutting off his future path.
"Hmph, the inferior nature of the lower races."
Little Urashiki let out a childish snort, his voice laced with disdain.
However, a glimmer of hope did rise in his heart.
After all, as long as there was no interference from 'outsiders' like them, even the future Sawara Kiri could not interfere with normal human conflicts—this was a result they had obtained from many 'experiments'.
In addition.
Ōtsutsuki Urashiki looked at the two pieces of 'flesh' held in his small hands, a heavy gaze in his Byakugan.
"I still need to find bodies for them."
"If it's just me… damn it."
Little Urashiki cursed under his breath, but there was nothing he could do.
These two idiots were his only two companions in this lonely world.
The only fortunate thing was that the Ōtsutsuki Clan was not a low-level race; as long as even a trace of their physical structure remained, they could invade and possess a body through energy, gaining new life.
At that point, they would not be without a fighting chance.
'However, all of this must happen quickly.'
Little Urashiki thought to himself.
Just as he was contemplating, the veins around his Byakugan subtly protruded, as if he suddenly sensed something, and his small figure quickly hid in the bushes.
Before long, two tall, dark-skinned Ninja suddenly dropped from the treetops, bending down to examine the marks on the ground.
"Any findings?"
"Only some charred marks and bloodstains, and they've been mostly burned away."
"Could someone have been grilling meat nearby?"
"Unlikely."
The Cloud Ninja who spoke had a grave expression, looking up at the distant sky: "Since the sensory Ninja said there was a spatial fluctuation, it should be correct. Most likely, it's related to the battle that just happened over there."
Hearing this, the young Ninja behind him also involuntarily sobered, a hint of fear in his expression, and he instinctively lowered his voice:
"That was Sawara Kiri's power, then?"
"Most likely. The border sensory Ninja said it was not far, near the Land of Hot Water border."
The older Cloud Ninja also instinctively lowered his voice, his eyebrows subtly trembling.
Unlike the young man behind him, he had personally fought Sawara Kiri back then and was fortunate enough to survive.
That kind of earth-shattering, god-like scene was enough to make him remember it for life.
Even now, despite sensing the other party's Chakra fluctuations not far from their country's border, he dared not go forward to investigate, only venturing to the nearby edges to examine the traces.
There was no other reason.
It was too terrifying.
Although the crack caused by that one blade was probably only about two hundred kilometers, the sudden burst of light and fire was enough to shock all sensory Ninja within a thousand-kilometer radius, and the soaring smoke clouds shot straight into the sky, as if tearing the heavens apart.
As long as one wasn't blind, they knew that such a place was absolutely not for them to pry into.
"This kind of monster, do we really still have hope…"
"Shut up!"
Just as the young Cloud Ninja behind him was lamenting in a low voice, the older Ninja suddenly raised his voice, turned around, and reprimanded him, stating seriously: "Even if he's strong, so what? He's still human. As long as we Kumogakure can preserve ourselves, there will definitely be hope in the future!"
"Wasn't Senju Hashirama like that back then?"
"And didn't he still die early on?!"
"We definitely still have hope for independence!"
"Yes!"
Hearing his teacher speak like this, the young Cloud Ninja immediately became serious.
However, just as the two of them were about to return to camp to report, they turned around and saw a small boy with a pure white Byakugan peeking half his head out from behind the bushes, timidly looking in their direction.
"This is…"
The young Cloud Ninja was startled at first, then immediately showed a look of wild joy and instinctively spoke.
However, before he could utter the name, the older Cloud Ninja in front of him reached out and stopped him, glaring at him sternly.
When he turned his head, the expression on his dark face softened again, and he bent down, waving towards the little boy with a kind smile:
"Little friend, why are you here?"
"I… I got separated from the merchant caravan."
After only a moment of hesitation, Little Urashiki spoke weakly—he was quite convincing in his act.
The moment they heard this, both the older and younger Cloud Ninja felt a surge of joy in their hearts.
This was a Byakugan!
And there was no hateful Caged Bird on his head.
Could it be a bloodline from a Hyuga Clan merchant caravan that had been lost outside?
If they could bring him back to the Village…
At this thought, the hearts of the two Cloud Ninja couldn't help but pound, and a hint of greed flickered in their eyes.
However, they didn't notice.
The little child opposite them was also staring intently at their bodies with covetous eyes.
"Sawara's Book of Friends: Character 'Ōtsutsuki Urashiki' Acquired"
"Bond Level Increased ↑"
"Ōtsutsuki Urashiki Bond Level: Zero → One"
"First-time acquisition of Lifetime Trait: Sworn Enemy"
"Knot Points +1"
"Oh, wow."
Looking at the line of text that appeared on the panel, Sawara Kiri subconsciously raised his eyebrows.
They even gave him a big gift before leaving; he really had to thank them.
"But..."
"Could this 'Sworn Enemy' trait be because I actually died once?"
Sawara Kiri looked at this so-called trait with a somewhat helpless smile, gently stroking his flat chest.
At this moment, all the wounds on his chest and torso had fully recovered to their previous state under the power of the Zanka no Tachi, and were even strengthened by the Chakra.
However, the feeling of his heart being gouged out was all too real.
At that moment, even though he knew he had a trump card for survival, when he hadn't used it and was completely immersed in the battle, he subconsciously thought his life was truly about to end.
This experience was extremely valuable, but also equally terrifying.
If he hadn't had a trump card and had truly been simultaneously attacked by four Ōtsutsuki, death would have been almost certain.
Therefore, the 'invincible' arrogance he had forged during the Second Shinobi World War shattered somewhat, gradually returning to its original simplicity, and he gained a desire for further advancement.
"My strength is still too weak."
"What's more, the Ōtsutsuki Clan specializes in sending the elders after the young ones."
"If this continues..."
Sawara Kiri's expression subtly grew more serious.
Although he still had one blade left in his hand, that was merely the strength for a single battle.
If, after he used this trump card, he still couldn't reach a level of strength where he could survive being ganged up on by several Ōtsutsuki, his death would be almost certain.
"My future self is really stingy. We're both me, so what's wrong with a little more?"
Sawara Kiri complained about himself in exasperation.
It was very much like a student frantically rushing homework late at night at the end of summer vacation.
But that was just talk.
Becoming stronger, after all, still depended on himself.
The only thing bothering him now was that, for the Ninja profession, he was already strong enough.
Even if Senju Hashirama in his prime were to reappear, Sawara Kiri had absolute confidence he could survive against him. If it were a sneak attack like Kakuzu's, it wouldn't be impossible to accidentally eliminate the opponent.
But precisely because of this, all paths ahead were cut off.
He could only forge his own way forward.
"Hard work..."
Sawara Kiri felt a faint sigh in his heart.
He was only eighteen, yet at such a young age, he had to bear the burden of pioneering a path for the Ninja World.
How difficult was that?
Sawara Kiri shook his head helplessly.
Additionally.
He looked up at the charred blade mark that stretched for what must have been several hundred kilometers, and couldn't help but feel a headache.
Setting fire to a mountain leads to a long prison sentence.
Although no one could arrest him and put him in prison now, the various roads, waterwheels, forests, and farmlands destroyed along this path would likely lead to a long list of compensation issues later.
It was too close to residential areas.
"My head hurts."
Just as he was worrying about how to solve the remaining problems, several figures were already flying towards him in the distance—the location after the Ōtsutsuki's spatial movement wasn't far from the original spot.
The people who arrived were Kono Motoichi and his two other squad members.
However, when they personally saw the battle scene before them, they all froze in place.
The long, charred mark, like an abyss, pierced through their entire vision. Even when they had looked from afar, they had anticipated that the scene would be extraordinary, but the shock of seeing it firsthand was indescribable to others.
Before, these recently graduated students had only learned from their teachers and others that this number one Ninja in the Ninja World was very strong.
But damn it, this was no longer a Ninja, was it?!
Finally, Harada Chikatada, one of the three, was the first to react, quickly walking to Sawara Kiri's side:
"Sir, your injuries—"
He hadn't finished speaking when he noticed Sawara Kiri's clean, toned muscles—his top was completely burned off, and only his pants were tattered but partially preserved, probably protected by Chakra to cover his modesty.
Clearly, not a single injury remained.
"It's nothing, it's already resolved."
"It just left some lingering problems, we'll talk about them later."
In front of his students, Sawara Kiri naturally wouldn't show any distressed expression—those were things lords should worry about.
Children should live in a carefree environment.
He had that much responsibility.
Therefore, when he spoke, he always maintained a calm and collected expression.
However, after a pause, as if remembering something, he said with some embarrassment: "By the way, do you have any universal capsules on you? Mine all burned up. Lend me a set of clothes."
"Lord Sawara, please wear mine!"
"You're still bringing women's clothes over? Lord Sawara, I also have matching Ninja shoes here! They're all new!"
"What's wrong with women's clothes! I have—"
The few of them started arguing again, bickering for half the day.
Ninja, it seemed, only showed a hint of age-appropriate childishness at times like these.
But it was good enough.
At least Sawara Kiri wouldn't have to travel naked.
After the group had left for a long time, returned to the merchant caravan to cancel the mission, and collected the battlefield traces at the fastest speed to return to the Village.
Under the night sky, blurred figures emerged from the distance.
It wasn't just one or two groups, but many small teams.
After appearing, they subconsciously confronted the figures opposite them for a while.
Only after reaching some kind of unspoken agreement and dividing the search areas did they begin their reconnaissance.
Clearly, these were teams sent by various Hidden Villages to investigate the situation.
This naturally included people from Konoha.
However, because they already possessed enough intelligence, they didn't fuss too much about the regional search issues and all went about their own business.
Sawara Kiri's battle traces could not be concealed.
Not to mention the Land of Lightning, which was only a short border away from the Land of Hot Water, the Ninja Villages of the other nations also discovered the terrifying battle aftermath that shocked the entire Ninja World almost immediately.
What kind of enemy was Sawara Kiri fighting? How was the power he displayed even stronger than before? Does this guy have any limits? What kind of inspiration can his various techniques provide for Ninjutsu development?
All of this, for every Ninja Village, was the most valuable asset.
No one could ignore it.
At the same time, this battle also subtly ignited a glimmer of hope in the hearts of the Kage of the various Hidden Villages.
—In this world, there actually existed someone capable of fighting Sawara Kiri to such a state.
If this had been before Sawara Kiri's appearance, they would probably only have been shocked.
But now, this was indeed a great boon for them.
This represented the hope of breaking free from the suppression of Sawara Kiri and Konoha!
Regrettably, apart from some very basic traces, they found nothing.
Everything had been burned to ash.
After this wave after wave of people had departed.
A slender figure slowly stepped out from the shadows.
Jigen, or rather, Ōtsutsuki Isshiki, was quietly gazing at the charred earth.
Unlike the world seen through ordinary eyes.
For him, all the Chakra clashes that had occurred here were so conspicuous.
The air still retained a large amount of battle traces and energy fluctuations.
However, this made him even more worried, wary, and even terrified.
"This is..."
"Traces of Ōtsutsuki Dojutsu?"
"And, more than one."
Jigen stared blankly at the battlefield before him.
As soon as Otsutsuki Momoshiki and the others appeared, he had already sensed their presence. The only thing he hadn't expected was that their target...
was also Sawara Kiri?!
Even more shocking was that he had won.
Jigen knelt down, touching a charred mark.
He could clearly feel that it was the remains of an Ōtsutsuki Clan member, burned into inorganic matter.
"Not even a trace of 'Karma' Chakra was left?"
"What exactly is this..."
Ōtsutsuki Isshiki finally realized.
The body he had been eyeing didn't seem to be some harmless little white rabbit.
join p atreon.com/KeyofStars and become a Sequence 9: Reader for advance chapters | Every 100 powerstones = 1 extra chapter | Report issues @discord.com/GVBdncd9Wr