Like a dragon, the slash struck the Nine-Tails head-on.
A deafening explosion followed, and the shockwave blasted Yosuke out of the air.
The power of this sword form left Yosuke utterly stunned.
But power always came with a price.
The hands he had used to swing the blade were now nothing but exposed bone; every bit of flesh had vanished.
The chakra he had refined was completely drained, his chakra pathways throbbed in pain, and he was unable to refine any chakra again for a short while.
For the first time, the King of Demons, Yosuke, experienced the sensation of exhaustion.
As strong as he was, this sword form could only be used once.
The Nine-Tails, in contrast, was in truly miserable condition.
All of its orange fur had been blown off, leaving it completely bare.
Four of its tails had been destroyed—its state was pitiful beyond description.
"Blood Demon Art: Dar Binding!"
Yosuke once again bound the Nine-Tails tightly with Shadow Bind.
"Minato, now!"
Minato Namikaze appeared on the battlefield using the Flying Thunder God Technique, holding Kushina Uzumaki in his arms.
After forming a hand seal, Minato slammed his hands onto the ground. With a puff of smoke, a ceremonial altar appeared.
"You plan to seal me again?"
Seeing the altar, the Nine-Tails struggled even more violently.
Yosuke reinforced the binding to ensure the Nine-Tails could not break free.
Suddenly, it was as if time froze.
In the blink of an eye, Yosuke found himself in a pure white space.
The Sage of Six Paths sat cross-legged, floating in the empty expanse.
"Yosuke, we meet again."
"Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki? Things are critical right now—let me finish dealing with this first."
The Sage shook his head.
"No rush. Time here does not flow, so nothing in the outside world will be affected. I brought you here to stop you."
"Stop me? Why?" Yosuke asked in confusion.
"The Child of Destiny, Naruto Uzumaki, has already been born. But according to the ordained path, his parents, Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki, must die and return to the Pure Land.
With your interference, Minato and Kushina will most likely survive. This will severely affect Naruto's growth."
Yosuke frowned, anger building.
"Fate again… arrangements again… why do you people always try to control someone's life?"
"Yosuke, this world is not as simple as it seems. Though ninjas appear to be the center of this world, that is only the surface. If things were truly that simple, there would be no need for a Child of Destiny.
The true meaning of the Child of Destiny's birth is to resist threats from beyond this world."
Yosuke's expression tightened.
"Threats from beyond… what do you mean?"
The Sage began explaining slowly.
"Chakra is not native to this world. It was brought here by a clan from another planet—the Ōtsutsuki.
Chakra originates from the God Tree. Members of the Ōtsutsuki clan travel from world to world, planting God Trees. The Ten-Tails is the seedling of such a tree.
Once grown, the God Tree absorbs a planet, then bears a Chakra Fruit—this fruit is the source of the Ōtsutsuki clan's abilities.
This world was originally one of their designated cultivation grounds.
A thousand years ago, two Ōtsutsuki arrived on this planet. For certain reasons, one of them betrayed her duty. She consumed the Chakra Fruit and killed her partner.
Empowered by the fruit and its bloodline abilities, she connected to outer space and used celestial bodies as conduits to cast the Infinite Tsukuyomi, turning all humanity into offerings for the God Tree.
Only a small portion of humans were released after having their memories wiped—so they could enjoy supreme status on Earth.
Later, her two sons discovered the truth. To protect humanity, they repeatedly begged her to stop feeding the God Tree, but she refused and even attempted to reclaim their powers.
To save the world, the two brothers fought their mother. The battle lasted several months, causing massive destruction across the land. In the end, through a brutal and devastating struggle, they managed to seal her and released those trapped by the God Tree.
What remained of her vast chakra was divided into nine tailed beasts—that is their origin."
The Sage of Six Paths looked at Yosuke seriously.
"In that story, I was the elder brother. One day, the Ōtsutsuki will descend upon this world again. With the current strength of the shinobi world, humanity cannot hope to resist.
Thus, the Child of Destiny must be born and must grow."
He continued sternly,
"Yosuke, you are not of this world. When your purpose here is complete, you will return to your own world.
But we must protect ours—and Naruto Uzumaki is this world's savior. Anyone else may be sacrificed… but he cannot be allowed to falter."
Yosuke fell silent.
The Sage was right. To this world, he was merely a passerby. He had no right to interfere with its fate.
"…I understand."
The words were difficult, but Yosuke accepted them.
"Good. I will now bring Minato and Kushina here and explain everything to them."
As soon as the Sage finished speaking, Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki appeared in the white space.
"Where… is this?" Kushina looked around in confusion.
"A space similar to a temporal dimension… Yosuke-sama, you're here too? Is he the enemy?"
Minato drew a kunai, wary of the Sage.
"Relax, Minato. The Sage of Six Paths will explain everything."
Both Minato and Kushina gasped,
"The Sage of Six Paths—the ancestor of all shinobi?!"
The Sage gently explained the entire situation—their destined deaths, Naruto's mission, and his hope that the two of them would fake their deaths, leave the Hidden Leaf, hide their identities, and never meet Naruto again.
"No! I don't agree!" Kushina cried, shaking her head over and over.
"I just want to stay by Naruto's side, to watch him grow up! Why must Naruto become a sacrifice?!"
Minato's expression was pained. For a mother to leave her newborn child—it was unbearably cruel.
The Sage spoke with heartfelt sincerity,
"As long as you live, you will one day meet again.
When Naruto grows into a strong shinobi capable of standing on his own, you will be able to reunite."
After comforting Kushina for a long while, Minato gradually calmed.
They both knew the Sage was right—if they lived, there would be a day they could see Naruto again.
With great difficulty, Minato and Kushina finally said:
"…We agree."
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