Chapter 127: My Foolish Little Brother
While everyone was chatting about whether the First Hokage would be dragged off by the Ōtsutsuki to be used as a milk cow, Uchiha Hikari quietly sneaked over to Nagato's side.
"Can I leave a mark on you?"
Uchiha Hikari asked for Nagato's opinion with her mouth, but her hand had already pressed down on him.
Nagato naturally noticed this and was left somewhat speechless. "…What are you trying to do?"
Regarding Uchiha Hikari, Shiromo had mentioned her to Nagato before. He didn't harbor any hostility toward her and trusted her.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have allowed Hikari to leave a mark on the Gedo Statue earlier, letting her draw on its chakra at any time.
But now?
What did it mean for Uchiha Hikari to directly leave a mark on 'him'?
Was she planning to drain all of his chakra?
"Relax. My mark isn't as perverted as that Senju old man's. It can be removed."
Uchiha Hikari waved her hand, trying to brush the matter off.
Unfortunately, the surroundings had just quieted down, and everyone's attention shifted over.
"You innately evil Uchiha brat, what are you planning to do to the Uzumaki child, an ally of our Senju clan?"
Tobirama was extremely alert. With a flash, he appeared in front of Nagato and shielded him behind his back.
Nagato was a key part of his upcoming "mission," directly related to whether they could pull off stealing Madara Uchiha's eyes. Nothing could be allowed to go wrong.
"Nothing. Don't worry about it."
Uchiha Hikari pursed her lips and didn't elaborate.
But that attitude only made Senju Tobirama even more vigilant.
She didn't even call him "You inherently self-entitled Senju old man" Based on his many years of psychological research into the Uchiha, this kid 'definitely' had something fishy in mind!
"You evil Uchiha brat, don't tell me you've set your sights on the Rinnegan?"
Tobirama probed while staring straight into Uchiha Hikari's eyes.
"O–of course not."
"This look, this is the look of lying! You're lying!"
"Big brother, help me. This brat's strength is no joke, especially now that she can absorb massive amounts of chakra from the Gedo Statue at any time."
Seeing Hikari's gaze wander, Tobirama immediately became highly tense and hurriedly called out to Senju Hashirama for support.
"Tobirama, don't be so nervous. You probably misunderstood something…"
"I've never misunderstood the Uchiha! They're sensitive to love and obsessed with power. Did you forget Madara? This Uchiha brat looks so much like him, her heart must be just as evil as Madara's…"
"Tobirama, I told you to shut up!"
Hashirama barked angrily.
The usually goofy First Hokage was genuinely angry.
It wasn't clear whether it was for Hikari, for his beloved Madara, or for the Uchiha as a whole.
"Stop overthinking it. I'm just leaving a mark as a precaution, that's all."
Uchiha Hikari pouted and then explained her reasoning.
Leaving a mark on Nagato really 'was' because of the Rinnegan, but not because she wanted to dig out his eyeballs or anything like that.
She had learned that Nagato, as a wielder of the Rinnegan, could use the Rinne Rebirth technique to resurrect people.
She trusted Shiromo, but that didn't stop her from leaving herself a backup plan.
If something were to happen to Shiromo, she would directly force-control Nagato and instantly [create a world where Shiromo exists].
After hearing Hikari's explanation, everyone fell silent.
Fair enough. Very Uchiha.
While lamenting how universally trusted Shiromo was, Nagato also felt a bit of a headache coming on.
So his life just didn't count, huh?
Still, Nagato didn't feel envy or jealousy, only relief.
It wasn't that there was no one who would give their life for him. It was just that such a person had already died.
The others also thought of their own respective someone, and for a moment, no one spoke.
As for Hikari's approach, everyone felt it was a bit extreme, but not entirely incomprehensible.
"Let's keep watching. They've arrived."
Tobirama sighed, stopped dwelling on it, and motioned for everyone to continue watching the live feed.
The place where Adult Sasuke was unconscious was outside a cave near the river at the bottom of a cliff.
Urashiki, on the other hand, had come ashore somewhere else.
Tobirama's earlier speculation showed a flaw here.
Urashiki didn't linger in Adult Sasuke's "gentle countryside," nor did he choose to go after Adult Sasuke. Instead, he sensed Naruto and the others' location and decided to chase after Naruto.
Shiromo and Itachi arrived at the place where Adult Sasuke lay unconscious.
After staring at the unconscious Adult Sasuke for a while, Itachi stepped forward, grabbed Adult Sasuke by the collar, and dragged him into the cave.
He recalled what Shiromo had said to him on the way here.
To distinguish the two worlds more concisely, Shiromo referred to the future era as the "Boruto era."
Shiromo told him that in the Boruto era, what was weakened wasn't just combat power, but mindset, mental resilience, and many other aspects.
Those who should have been willing to do anything to gain power became hesitant.
Those who should have explored all unknowns chose compromise instead.
At sixteen, Sage Mode was a newly mastered trump card. At thirty-two, Sage Mode became the only thing left worth mentioning, and all one could leave their daughter was a promise they themselves couldn't even guarantee: "I'll come back alive."
If the one who traveled through time with Boruto had been Naruto, Shiromo wouldn't have had the slightest desire to change anything.
Naruto was the type who would keep going even after smashing into the south wall.
His talent and drive had long been worn down by endless low-level missions.
And wasn't Sasuke of the future, already assimilated by Naruto, much the same?
The only difference was that Sasuke had once been something else.
And so, Shiromo gave Itachi this suggestion.
Shiromo pressed his hand against the rock wall, and the stone inside the cave twisted and warped.
This was the power he gained after the Dragon Vein incident in the Land of Wind.
Unlike his previous abilities, which relied purely on awakening through special attacks, this one was mixed with his own understanding and insight.
It was based on the sensations he experienced while strengthening Gaara and Temari.
Added to that was the late-stage effect of the Gedo Statue absorbing Dragon Vein chakra, producing a miniature version of the kind of heaven-and-earth-altering phenomena that only the Ten-Tails could use.
'(Heaven and Earth Change: one of the Ten-Tails' abilities, using endless chakra to directly interfere with natural energy, triggering earthquakes, lightning, tornadoes, floods, and other natural disasters.)'
If Shiromo were to continue naming this ability after his "stand" conventions, it could be called "Weather Forecast." But in essence, the upper limit of this ability far exceeded merely controlling the concept of "weather."
At its core, this was the utilization of natural energy.
The bad news was that the power of this ability could only be increased gradually through deeper mastery of natural energy.
The good news was that after helping the Land of Wind remove the Dragon Vein, Shiromo clearly felt his control over natural energy rise to a new level.
This feeling wasn't that his own comprehension had improved, it was more like nature itself had begun to draw closer to him.
Besides that, Shiromo had also learned a similar technique based on the Gedo Statue's "Absorption Chakra."
Normally, Shiromo used natural energy by default. His normal state was equivalent to other people's Sage Mode.
After activating this ability, however, he truly entered his own version of Sage Mode, a state with a time limit and a massive boost in power.
This was the confidence he relied on to face Urashiki and Momoshiki.
As for now…
Inside the cave, Sasuke slowly woke up.
After awakening, Sasuke groggily opened his eyes. Upon seeing the familiar scene before him, confusion came first, then terror.
That's right.
What Sasuke saw was Uchiha Itachi sitting on a stone seat, Mangekyō Sharingan revealed. The surrounding environment was exactly the same as the place where he once fought Itachi to the death!
The underground chamber of Naka Shrine!
"My foolish little brother… have you enjoyed these past dozen years spent within Tsukuyomi?"
(End of this chapter)