"This talisman is of no use to me anymore. Perhaps, on the path that lies before you, it may save your life when you face a fatal crisis."
Hearing those words, Hagoromo froze for a moment before his eyes lit up with uncontrollable delight.
He immediately accepted the softly glowing talisman with both hands, treating it with the utmost respect.
A talisman capable of healing any injury was no different from having an extra life.
With a life-or-death battle against his mother and the God Tree looming ahead, the value of such a life-saving treasure was beyond measure.
"Gamamaru... I can never repay this kindness with words."
Hagoromo's voice trembled with emotion.
Carefully storing the Senjutsu Talisman, he bowed deeply once more.
"This gift is of immeasurable importance to me. I will never forget your generosity."
Gamamaru gave a slight nod without another word.
His small figure gradually disappeared into the mist cascading from the waterfall until he vanished from sight.
Filled with newfound power and now carrying the invaluable talisman, Hagoromo's confidence grew stronger than ever.
Leaving the forest behind, he made his way back toward the Divine Realm, already planning his next move.
He needed to speak with his younger brother.
He needed Hamura's support.
What he failed to realize was that his plans were no longer a secret.
After returning to the vicinity of the Divine Realm and taking a brief rest, Hagoromo went, as usual, to pay his respects at his mother's palace.
His demeanor remained respectful.
His conduct appeared unchanged.
But beneath that composed exterior, his resolve had already turned cold and absolute.
He believed his plans were flawless.
He believed his mother knew nothing.
Inside the palace, Kaguya remained seated upon her throne.
As Hagoromo entered, she slowly raised her eyes.
Her gaze rested calmly upon her eldest son.
It seemed deeper than before...
And far more difficult to read.
"Mother."
Hagoromo bowed respectfully.
Kaguya watched him silently for a long moment before finally speaking.
"Hagoromo... you've grown."
"And you've become much more mature."
To Hagoromo, those words sounded like nothing more than a mother's casual observation.
He politely asked after her well-being, reported a few trivial matters, and, seeing that Kaguya had no intention of continuing the conversation, respectfully excused himself.
"Very well. You may go."
Kaguya answered calmly, yet her eyes never left him.
Hagoromo turned and walked steadily out of the palace.
Only after his figure disappeared beyond the palace entrance did the composure Kaguya had maintained finally begin to crack.
The light in her eyes dimmed slightly, as though veiled by a layer of sorrow.
She let out a faint sigh.
It was so soft that it was almost inaudible, yet it seemed to carry an unbearable weight.
Within it lay regret...
Disappointment...
And the quiet pain of a mother whose heart had been wounded.
"Hagoromo..."
Her gentle murmur echoed through the vast, empty palace.
"I never imagined..."
"...that you had hidden so much within your heart."
"That you had already walked so far down this path."
"You were the child in whom I placed the greatest hopes..."
Her gaze drifted toward the towering God Tree outside the palace, as though searching it for an answer—or perhaps one final confirmation.
"Please..."
"Don't disappoint your mother."
Those whispered words were a warning.
A hope.
And the final trace of a mother's lingering tenderness.
Unfortunately, Hagoromo had already set foot upon a path from which there would be no turning back.
Whether he never heard those words...
Or would no longer have been able to answer them...
The outcome would remain the same.
Outside the palace.
Hagoromo stepped out of the magnificent yet suffocating palace into the warm sunlight.
Despite the sunlight falling upon him, he felt no warmth whatsoever.
He paused and looked back once at the residence that symbolized his mother's absolute authority.
The last traces of warmth and respect maintained by his careful disguise disappeared from his eyes.
Only icy determination remained.
Without the slightest hesitation, he turned and strode directly toward Hamura's residence.
He knew the conversation awaiting his younger brother would determine everything.
He had to persuade Hamura.
The two brothers had to stand together.
As for the lingering hesitation born from blood ties...
The complicated emotions he still felt toward his mother...
He buried them deep within his heart the moment he walked away from her palace.
The scene shown by the Heavenly Curtain shifted accordingly to Hamura's quiet and modest residence.
Seeing his elder brother arrive unexpectedly after so long, Hamura immediately smiled with genuine happiness.
The two brothers sat facing one another and dismissed everyone else.
Their conversation continued for a very long time.
After speaking at length about family matters and their cultivation, the gentle smile gradually faded from Hagoromo's face.
He drew a deep breath.
His expression suddenly became incomparably solemn.
Looking directly at his younger brother, he spoke in a low, steady voice.
"Hamura..."
"There is something of the utmost importance."
"It concerns the very fate of this world."
"I must speak with you about it."
Hamura had been smiling as he listened to his brother's insights on cultivation.
The moment he heard those words, however, he froze.
Seeing the unprecedented gravity in Hagoromo's expression—even a hint of suppressed anguish—he immediately put away his smile, straightened his posture, and grew equally serious.
"Brother," Hamura said earnestly, his clear eyes filled with trust.
"There is no need for formality between us."
"Whatever it is, just tell me."
"No matter what you have to say, I'll listen."
Meeting his brother's sincere gaze, complicated emotions briefly stirred within Hagoromo.
They were quickly replaced by unwavering determination.
He remained silent for a moment, carefully choosing the words that would be both the most convincing...
And the cruelest.
Then he began to speak.
He did not begin with Die's death.
Nor with Kaguya's rule.
Nor with his own suffering.
Instead, he revealed the greatest truth of all—
The true nature of the God Tree.
He recounted everything Gamamaru had told him.
The God Tree was not a natural life-form.
It was an alien parasite that survived by devouring the world's life force and its very essence.
Its enormous body and terrifying power existed only because it continuously consumed the world's foundation.
By devouring the Chakra Fruit, Kaguya had obtained immense power.
Her rule over the world was, in essence, an alliance with the God Tree—one that accelerated the world's gradual decline.
As for the so-called sacrifices...
Perhaps they were never merely a means of maintaining her reign of terror.
Their deeper purpose was to feed the God Tree itself, enabling it to extract the world's essence even more efficiently.
Hagoromo spoke calmly and methodically.
Yet every sentence was like a blade, stripping away the sacred halo surrounding both the God Tree and the so-called Goddess, exposing the cold, destructive truth hidden beneath.
At first, Hamura simply listened.
But as Hagoromo continued, his expression gradually froze.
Surprise became disbelief.
Disbelief became utter shock.
Finally, he sat there in complete bewilderment.
His pale eyes—so similar to his brother's—were wide open, as though he were seeing this world...
And his own brother...
For the very first time.
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