Chapter 581: Want to Experience Having Both Parents?
The Sage of Six Paths felt that something had changed.
Logically speaking, things shouldn't have developed this way.
After thinking for a long time, the Sage of Six Paths came up with a solution.
He felt that Naruto himself wasn't the problem. He had merely gone slightly off course.
The current ninja world's method of using genjutsu to let people experience an entirely new life so they could grow and mature was something the Sage of Six Paths deeply appreciated.
So he made up his mind.
He would also make a small "adjustment of fate" and guide Naruto inside the Engraved Tsukuyomi.
The Sage of Six Paths had realized that Naruto wasn't refusing simply because he didn't believe he was the real Sage of Six Paths from the real world.
Naruto genuinely didn't agree that Kaguya's resurrection should be stopped.
Therefore, inside the illusionary world, he wanted Naruto to understand just how dangerous Kaguya's revival would be.
That way, even if Naruto still stubbornly believed he was only inside an illusionary world, his stance in the real world would still change.
Once he made up his mind, he acted immediately.
Coincidentally, the Sage of Six Paths was already feeling mentally exhausted from talking to Naruto.
He directly left the conversation with Naruto, leaving behind only an empty "shell" that truly became a guide NPC and continued talking with Naruto.
Meanwhile, his true consciousness entered the world of the Engraved Tsukuyomi, intending to examine the key story nodes Kushina had originally set up and modify them.
However...
Whether it was Orochimaru's modifications or Kushina's modifications, they were both ultimately edits made on top of Uchiha Hikari's Engraved Tsukuyomi.
Neither of them was the true owner of the technique.
Uchiha Hikari had simply granted them administrator permissions.
It was just like when Shiromo first met Hikari. Back then, Hikari had given Shiromo access to Tsukuyomi's permissions and used them to show him the state of the ninja world.
Therefore, the moment the Sage of Six Paths tried using administrator privileges, Uchiha Hikari immediately noticed.
More importantly...
The so-called Engraved Tsukuyomi was, in essence, a combination of Yachihoko and Tsukuyomi.
The "Engraved" part referred to the Yachihoko Mark.
Only those whose chakra had been absorbed by the Yachihoko Mark could enter the world of the Engraved Tsukuyomi.
That was its fundamental operating principle.
Even when the Sage of Six Paths entered, he had willingly allowed the mark to be placed on himself.
Yachihoko's absorption ability wasn't all-powerful.
It was similar to the Rinnegan's chakra absorption.
There were many abstract forms of existence that it couldn't absorb.
For example, the reincarnated Indra and Asura chakra residing within Naruto and Sasuke.
Or the ghostly Sage of Six Paths wandering through the ninja world, along with the Yin Power and Yang Power he carried.
But now...
The Sage of Six Paths had materialized into a tangible form.
And he had willingly accepted the Yachihoko Mark.
In that case, Uchiha Hikari wasn't going to be polite.
She couldn't absorb the Yin Power or Yang Power.
Nor did she want to absorb the source of power behind those two "bond-powered" ninjas.
She simply didn't want the father of those two bond-powered ninjas—a creepy old man—to do whatever he wanted inside her illusionary world.
Why should he?
Just because you have the Rinnegan, you're automatically superior to everyone else?
Hikari instantly entered Sage Mode and, using the natural energy Shiromo had given her, immediately drained away the chakra sustaining the Sage of Six Paths' physical manifestation, forcing him back into his wandering ghost state.
The Sage of Six Paths was completely startled.
From his perspective, the normal chakra suction suddenly intensified.
Then, within the dark illusionary space, an intense beam of light burst forth.
The chakra absorption became so overwhelming that even he couldn't resist it.
The chakra maintaining his presence in the real world was instantly drained away, forcing him back into the state of a wandering soul that could neither observe nor interfere with the ninja world.
The Sage of Six Paths had no idea what had just happened.
The instant he was drained dry, he even thought Kaguya had attacked him.
But after thinking it over afterward, the feeling that brilliant light had given him was completely different from Kaguya's presence.
In the end, he could only classify this mysterious power alongside beings like Urashiki, Momoshiki, and Shiromo, who had appeared before.
Now that the Sage of Six Paths had lost the power allowing him to manifest in the real world, the only way for him to appear again would be for another Indra reincarnation to awaken the Rinnegan and draw out the Sage's power once more.
While the Sage of Six Paths was tragically crushed by Uchiha Hikari, who had surpassed him through reverse evolution...
Naruto, on the other hand, became very happy.
The moment the Sage of Six Paths returned to being an NPC, he instantly started talking like a normal person again.
"Hurry up! Hurry up! I want to choose the Sasuke template! I want to become Sasuke!"
Naruto urged impatiently.
"Naruto, don't rush. Let me recommend another template first. Take a look before you decide."
The NPC Sage of Six Paths waved his hand, and a panel appeared before Naruto.
The panel was titled: [Uzumaki Menma: Both Parents Alive]
The moment Naruto saw that description, he immediately fell silent.
Did this mean...
He could finally experience a childhood where both his father and mother were still alive?
Naruto's heart immediately filled with excitement.
And gratitude.
"Thank you, Kakashi-Sensei... for giving me such an amazing gift..."
Naruto was wiping away tears when a sudden sense of caution rose within him.
He looked up at the NPC Sage of Six Paths.
"Wait."
"Tell me first... In this template... What kind of people are my father and mother?"
Naruto had suddenly remembered Gaara's past, which he had learned about during the Chunin Exams and the Konoha Crush.
Back then, he had said that he used to dream about how wonderful it would be if his parents were still alive.
But if his father turned out to be someone like Gaara's father, Rasa...
Then they'd be better off dead.
As for the name Uzumaki Menma, Naruto naturally recognized it from the Limited Tsukuyomi series.
But wasn't he originally creating a furry world?
The "NPC Sage of Six Paths" had mentioned that earlier.
If it was the same as the Limited Tsukuyomi world...
Then Naruto absolutely couldn't accept it.
As a father, Namikaze Minato had actually become his son's love rival, fighting with him over the Nine-Tails.
That was way too much.
Of course, Naruto was imagining Minato stealing Sakura away from him—not that he had actually fallen in love with the Nine-Tails.
So Naruto wanted a clear answer.
What kind of people were his father and mother in the Uzumaki Menma template?
He couldn't just see "both parents alive" and choose it blindly.
Otherwise, after entering, his father Namikaze Minato might first steal away the person he liked...
Then his father Namikaze Minato might even steal his chastity.
The first thing had actually happened in the Limited Tsukuyomi.
As for the second...
That was a real case involving Rasa and Gaara.
Even now, Rasa's words—
"My, Gaara, you're looking more and more like your mother."
"Don't you understand filial piety?"
—still left Naruto with severe psychological trauma.
Every time he started imagining what it would be like to have parents...
His thoughts always stopped there.
Even though the Uzumaki Menma template clearly stated that both parents were alive and his mother was still around, meaning something like Rasa's situation probably wouldn't happen...
There was no guarantee.
Naruto had secretly read several of Jiraiya's and Kakashi's Icha Icha books.
Some of the stories even included lines like:
"Don't tell your mother about this, okay?"
So he still wasn't safe.
Not to mention...
Kakashi-Sensei had told him that his father, Namikaze Minato, possessed the powerful space-time ninjutsu, the Flying Thunder God Technique.
Which meant...
His father could strike at any time...
And escape at any time.
There would be no way to guard against him.
(End of this chapter)