Chapter 25: The God Tree's Anomaly and the Anti-Kaguya Army.
Finally, the day had arrived.
For the entire world, this was a moment of immense significance—Kaguya was about to give birth, and every major power had its eyes fixed on her.
"So… it's finally come," a toad stationed outside the Palace thought to itself. It turned its gaze toward the distant God Tree that blotted out the sky. There were toads stationed there as well, keeping watch. Even inside the palace, the toad clan had secretly sent in a number of tadpoles. Though they couldn't speak yet, they still possessed awareness—and being nothing more than tadpoles, no one paid them any attention.
Inside the palace, in the delivery chamber prepared for Kaguya, everyone was already busy. Servants carried in piles of clean cotton cloth, others fed firewood into stoves to keep the water boiling, and basins of hot water were continuously brought into the room.
Kaguya lay on the bed, feeling waves of pain radiating from her abdomen. Her brows were tightly furrowed, yet her heart was filled with joy—her child was finally about to enter this world.
Every corridor within the Divine Palace was heavily guarded. Soldiers patrolled relentlessly, achieving a level of vigilance where even a fly could not slip through unnoticed.
At around nine in the morning, Kaguya's labor officially began.
At the same time, the distant God Tree underwent a shocking change.
As if affected by Kaguya's childbirth, the God Tree began to tremble violently. The toads of Mount Myoboku immediately sensed that the natural energy around it had turned chaotic—like the onset of the apocalypse itself. In reality, the tree's massive roots lashed wildly across the ground, as though it were venting unbearable pain.
The toads responsible for monitoring it fled in panic. Only after escaping the range of the God Tree's attacks did they stop, standing at a distance with cold sweat dripping down their backs. None of them had expected that Kaguya's childbirth would trigger such a terrifying reaction.
"Kill—!!!"
At that moment, a thunderous battle cry erupted from outside the Palace.
The guards inside instantly went on high alert. The palace gates were sealed shut, and soldiers lined the walls.
"Charge! Kill that demon woman and avenge our clans!"
"Kaguya! You demon! Today will be your death!"
…
These were the remnants of the clans that Kaguya had once annihilated, now gathered into an army seeking revenge.
But if their king hadn't coveted Kaguya's beauty and power in the first place, how would they have been wiped out by her? In the end, this was nothing more than karma coming full circle.
The captain of the palace guards watched the charging rebels with a cold sneer. Those who made their choices had to bear the consequences.
He wasn't someone coerced into serving Kaguya. Once a powerful common-born samurai, he had been persecuted by the royal family and noble clans in the past. When he learned that those very royals had been slaughtered by Kaguya, he came here and pledged his loyalty.
He and his son were the only two individuals personally enhanced by Kaguya's chakra. Compared to ordinary people, the two of them were virtually unstoppable.
"Loose arrows!"
At his cold command, the soldiers atop the walls released a volley of arrows. Instantly, large numbers of the charging rebel samurai fell.
"Ready!"
"Draw!"
"Release!"
Another wave of arrows rained down. This time, the enemy had learned—they quickly took cover behind thick trees, slowing their advance under the barrage.
"Fire back! Let's see whose arrows run out first!" the rebel leader shouted.
The rebels snapped out of it. They might be samurai, but there was no reason to charge blindly into a storm of arrows—they had archers too.
Immediately, those carrying bows climbed up tall trees and began firing toward the palace.
Seeing this, the guard captain immediately ordered, "Raise shields!"
Prepared soldiers lifted large shields, protecting both themselves and the archers beneath. As expected, casualties on the palace side remained minimal—only a few unlucky ones suffered minor injuries from stray arrows, and even the more serious wounds were limited to arrows in the shoulder or thigh.
"Quick—replace the wounded! Keep firing!"
The injured were swapped out as arrows continued to rain into the forest outside the palace.
The forest itself wasn't large. With over a thousand rebels crammed into it, there was little real cover, and the sparse trees offered poor protection. Cries of pain rang out frequently as arrows struck their targets.
"Damn it! Charge! Ignore the arrows—just charge! Once we're within ten steps of the palace, we'll be safe! Everyone, forward!" the rebel leader roared.
Seeing his forces steadily taking casualties, he knew they couldn't afford to wait any longer.
This was their final chance for revenge against Kaguya. If they failed today, even if they survived, they would inevitably be hunted down and tortured to death.
"Kill!"
The remaining thousand rebels launched a full assault on the palace.
The guard captain frowned as he watched them charge without regard for losses. He hadn't expected them to react so quickly—or to have the resolve to commit fully, even leading from the front.
He had noticed the leader earlier, but the distance was too great, and with so many people protecting him, arrows couldn't reach.
Finally, braving the storm of arrows, the rebels reached the walls.
Grappling hooks were thrown upward. Several caught onto defenders, yanking them off the walls, where they were immediately hacked to death by waiting rebels below.
Now, it was close-quarters combat.
Seeing more and more enemies climbing over the walls, the guard captain knew arrows were no longer effective.
"Draw your blades! Fight!!!"
With a roar, he led the charge alongside his son.
Among the rebels, there wasn't a single opponent who could withstand even one exchange against them.
"Boom!"
The palace gates collapsed.
A flood of rebels surged inside—only to be met by fully prepared defenders. After a brief moment of shock, both sides charged at each other.
The sound of blades slicing into flesh echoed endlessly. The clash of metal against metal sent chills down spines while simultaneously igniting a savage excitement. The scent of blood quickly spread throughout the palace.
Yet no matter how intense the battle outside became, the delivery chamber remained completely unaffected.
Three layers of soldiers surrounded it. Even if the rebels managed to breach the gates, they would still be stopped here.
Inside, Kaguya cried out in pain. The midwife continuously instructed her to breathe deeply and push.
Kaguya followed every instruction.
Though she was the Rabbit Goddess, this was her first time giving birth. She did not act recklessly, and under the midwife's guidance, the pain became slightly more manageable—though still immense. For the sake of her child, she endured it.
"Hot water! The room must stay warm! Keep changing the water—if even one basin cools down, replace it immediately! Cloth! Boiled cloth! Hurry, hurry!"
The midwife barked orders as attendants rushed to comply.
At the palace gates, the guard captain and his son fought like war gods, cutting down rebels with terrifying efficiency. Many enemies avoided them outright—but avoidance was useless.
The rebel leader also noticed the overwhelming strength of the father and son. He immediately gathered the ten strongest warriors and surrounded them.
"Kato Wada! It's you! How are you this strong?!" one of the encircling samurai exclaimed in shock.
"Oh? Well, well—if it isn't the once-arrogant Prince Olo," the guard captain said with a cold smile. "Why do you look so pathetic now? Back then, you and your royal guards surrounded me and stole my Ichimonji. Let me see… ah, a great blade indeed. And now it's in someone else's hands?"
Olo's expression darkened as he glanced at the man holding Ichimonji beside him.
After Kaguya wiped out the royal family of the Bear Country, this very man had seized the blade through his own clan's power—ironically mirroring Olo's past actions.
"A treasure belongs to the worthy. I'm stronger, so it's mine," the man said coldly.
"Well said. In that case… I'll be taking Ichimonji back."
With a savage grin, the guard captain exploded forward, closing the distance in an instant. His blade came down in a decisive strike—aimed at the man's hands gripping Ichimonji.
The man's eyes widened in terror. He saw the attack—but his body couldn't react in time.
Olo and another warrior tried to intervene, but the captain's son intercepted them.
"You won't interfere with my father reclaiming his blade!"
With a ferocious swing, he forced them back.
Meanwhile, the man holding Ichimonji had no chance to resist. His hands were severed cleanly, and the captain caught the falling blade.
Discarding the severed limbs, he grasped Ichimonji, a wide grin spreading across his face.
"Master… Keiko… look. Ichimonji has returned to me. And one day, it will pass to Takuya. The Way of Harmony will flourish in our hands."
Thinking of his slain master and his wife—killed by Olo—the captain's expression turned cold, filled with hatred.
The surrounding warriors felt chills as they faced him. The man whose hands had been severed writhed on the ground in agony.
The captain glanced at him once.
Ichimonji flashed.
Silence followed.
The man's head rolled across the ground.
"Terrifying…" the others thought, their fear deepening.
"Takuya, the man in front of you has a fine blade as well. Not as good as Ichimonji, but still decent. Go—take it."
"Got it," Takuya said with a dark grin. "A treasure belongs to the worthy. We're stronger—so it's mine."
In an instant, he surged forward, replicating his father's move. A clean strike—and the blade was his.
"Hahaha! Well done, Takuya! Looks like you've nearly matched me in the Way of Harmony. Before long, we'll be exchanging blades!"
"Everyone! We can't delay any longer—attack!" the rebel leader roared.
Seeing their morale falter, he took the lead and charged.
The others snapped out of their fear and followed. These were not ordinary soldiers—they were elite warriors.
The guard captain and his son began to face real resistance.
But they only needed to stall.
As long as Kaguya completed her childbirth, the soldiers guarding the delivery chamber would arrive as reinforcements. At that point, not a single rebel would escape.
Moreover, the captain could already tell—their side had the upper hand.
The difference in equipment alone was enough to decide the outcome.