Chapter 64 Six Eyes (Three chapters combined, including a bonus chapter...)

Konoha, Hokage's office.

The atmosphere was so heavy it was almost palpable. Amidst swirling smoke, Hiruzen Sarutobi sat in the main seat, puffing on his pipe, his brow furrowed into a deep frown.

Opposite him stood three senior advisors: Danzo Shimura, Homura Mitokado, and Koharu Utatane.

"Uchiha Kokusatsu ran away with Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naruto!"

This news came like a sudden hurricane, sweeping through the entire Konoha leadership.

Uchiha Sasuke is the only surviving member of the Uchiha clan and the bloodline inheritor of the Sharingan. His value and symbolic significance are self-evident.

Naruto Uzumaki, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, is crucial to the village's strategic balance and is one of the ultimate weapons that must never fall into the hands of outsiders.

Now, these two crucial figures have been taken away from the village by the mysterious Uchiha Kokusatsu, and their whereabouts are unknown.

"Hmph!" Danzo's sinister, hoarse voice was the first to attack, his single eye flashing with undisguised mockery and anger. He slammed his cane heavily on the floor. "Hiruzen! I told you long ago! That Uchiha who suddenly appeared was definitely up to no good! But you insisted on letting him run wild under the pretext of observation and stability. Now look what's happened, he's run off with the Uchiha's orphan and the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki! Let's see how you explain this to the whole village, how you explain this to the Land of Fire!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi remained silent, smoking, the smoke blurring his tired and heavy face.

Danzo's accusations pierced his heart like needles, but he couldn't refute them. He had indeed agreed to let Michikatsu become Sasuke's guardian with the intention of observing and utilizing Michikatsu's power to stabilize Sasuke, but he had underestimated the man's decisiveness and ulterior motives. Now, with the bitter consequences, he couldn't escape blame.

Mitokado Homura adjusted his glasses and added in a serious tone, "Hiruzen, Danzo's words may be unpleasant to hear, but they do make sense. The loss of Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naruto is a huge loss to Konoha and will seriously shake the village's strength and power. We must take immediate action."

Koharu sighed, her voice filled with worry: "The most urgent task is to determine their whereabouts as soon as possible and find a way to bring them back. Especially Naruto, the Nine-Tails must not be lost."

Complaints, accusations, and anxieties filled this office, which symbolized the highest power in Konoha.

However, everyone knew that words would be futile at this point. The man named Uchiha Kokusatsu had displayed strength and a style of operation far exceeding their expectations. Taking the person back from him would be no easy task.

***

Deep within the Akatsuki headquarters in the Land of Rain.

The colossal Outer Path Golem, like a sleeping ancient demon god, stood in the empty underground space, radiating a suffocating sense of oppression.

Yan Sheng stood before the demon statue, his expression as calm as ever. He took out a specially made sealing scroll and broke the seal.

"Bang!" "Bang!" "Bang!"

With a few soft sounds, eight unconscious figures were summoned and scattered on the ground—the eight Jinchūriki, from the One-Tails to the Eight-Tails.

Next, the Gedo Mazo was used to extract the Tailed Beasts.

According to Black Zetsu's original statement and the Akatsuki's plan, this step would require the cooperation of multiple members and would take several days to complete, consuming a great deal of chakra and energy.

However, Yan Sheng did not intend to follow this conventional procedure.

He raised his hand, palm facing the Gedo Mazo, and a vast and pure chakra began to condense. He was attempting to guide the Mazo to extract the Tailed Beasts from the eight Jinchūriki single-handedly.

A ghostly purple light shot out from the Gedo Statue's massive maw, coiling like chains around the unconscious Jinchūriki on the ground. The Statue emitted a deep, ancient hum, and the entire underground space began to tremble slightly.

Standing in the shadows not far away, Obito Uchiha, who had originally intended to observe the process, suddenly contracted his Sharingan beneath his mask.

He could clearly feel that the immeasurable power emanating from Yan Sheng was forcefully urging the Gedo Mazo to accelerate the process of the tailed beast's separation in a tyrannical manner.

The tedious process that originally required multiple people to work together and took several days seemed to become...exceptionally efficient in Yan Sheng's hands?

This guy—

A storm raged in Obito's heart.

His chakra reserves... and that terrifying control... it's almost like an old man in his youth! No, in some ways, perhaps even more so...

He had initially harbored some doubts about Yan Sheng's abilities, but witnessing firsthand how Yan Sheng effortlessly and single-handedly pushed forward key steps of the Eye of the Moon Project completely shocked him.

...Capturing Jinchuriki is as easy as catching chicks for him, and now extracting Tailed Beasts using the Gedo Mazo is just as simple.

Fortunately, he didn't act rashly on the night of the massacre.

Obito thought with lingering fear.

......

With all the Jinchuriki kidnapped, the ninja world is bound to be in turmoil, and the major ninja villages will certainly not let it go unpunished. Obito needs to closely monitor external developments and make preparations in advance to prevent any unforeseen events.

Since Yan Sheng didn't need his help (and couldn't get involved anyway), Obito naturally turned his attention to intelligence monitoring and strategic deployment.

However, as he left, his deep-seated fear and assessment of Yan Sheng reached a whole new level.

***

The atmosphere in the room assigned to temporary guests at the Akatsuki base was somewhat somber.

Sasuke sat in a chair in the corner, closing his eyes to rest. He appeared calm, but his slightly pursed lips revealed the turmoil in his heart.

He was trying to process the recent upheavals and pondering Yan Sheng's true intentions.

In contrast, Naruto appeared much more anxious. Ever since he was taken out of Konoha, he had been muttering to himself, his face full of confusion and worry.

"Hey, Sasuke, what's going on here? Why did Yan Sheng take us away from the village?"

"Won't everyone in the village worry about us? Teacher Iruka must be so anxious..."

When can we go back?

However, despite his many questions and worries, Naruto didn't do anything rash. He had deep trust in Mikoto and Sasuke, considering them his most important family members. This bond suppressed his urge to run back to the village immediately, so he only expressed his unease verbally.

The second day after arriving in the Land of Rain.

Yan Sheng still did not appear.

Early in the morning, Xiao Nan brought food. She was still wearing a black robe with red cloud patterns, and her expression was aloof.

Sasuke was about to ask about Mikatsu's whereabouts, but Naruto beat him to it, sidling up to Konan and asking expectantly, "Konan-neechan! Do you know where Mikatsu went? When is he coming back?"

Konan's gaze lingered on Naruto's expectant face for two seconds before she replied calmly, "He has important things to do right now and can't get away."

"Oh..." Naruto replied dejectedly, like a punctured balloon, and slumped down.

But children's emotions come and go quickly. His attention was soon drawn to the aroma of the food, and he cheered up, happily accepting his breakfast: "Thank you, Sister Xiaonan! I'm starting!" Then he wolfed it down.

Sasuke sighed inwardly as he watched Naruto's carefree attitude and how easily his attention was diverted by food.

He was a smart kid. Although he didn't know exactly what Yan Sheng was planning, judging from the fact that he forcibly led them away from Konoha and into this mysterious organization, and now disappeared to do "important things," Yan Sheng's intentions must be extraordinary and not recognized by others.

Naruto's naiveté might be a good thing in some ways. If he were to truly think things through and grasp the severity of the situation, given his impulsive nature and sense of belonging to Konoha, he would probably cause a scene immediately, which would be a real problem.

Sasuke silently picked up his portion of food and ate it in small bites. His longing for the truth about the massacre of his clan and his anxiety about the uncertainty of the future were intertwined, making the food taste like cardboard.

***

The scroll that can seal living people is engraved with complex spatial magic formulas and was produced by Tobirama Senju's laboratory.

However, the relationship between Yan Sheng and Senju Tobirama can be described as "very ordinary," so ordinary that they have never formally met.

When it comes to formal meetings, there are also informal meetings.

Yes, the two did have a first meeting, but that first meeting was a life-or-death struggle. Tobirama still doesn't know that the Mangekyou Sharingan Uchiha who seriously injured him was Kokushibo, and Kokushibo doesn't know that the person who stimulated him to "awaken" the Mangekyou Sharingan was Tobirama.

...So, why did Yan Sheng possess the special scrolls that Tobirama Senju didn't sell to the public? This goes back to his troublesome older brother, Hashirama Senju.

Hashirama Senju had a habit: whenever his younger brother developed any novel and useful ninja tools or techniques, he would always try to get a copy and then enthusiastically share it with Madara Uchiha.

Madara was usually uninterested in this, but he knew there was someone who would need it: his younger brother, Uchiha Kokusatsu.

This happened after Yan Sheng accidentally discovered that the stern-faced younger brother of the Senju clan chief was a scientific genius, and that the things he produced were all exceptionally practical.

Yan Sheng rarely shows interest in anything, so when he finally finds one, Ban naturally dotes on him.

Thus, an "industrial chain" was formed: Tobirama Senju developed it → Hashirama Senju acquired it → Madara Uchiha handed it over → Mikasa Uchiha used it.

This link was stable and efficient, and lasted for quite some time, so much so that Yan Sheng accumulated a lot of Tobirama Senju's non-saleable items, and this specially made sealing scroll was one of them.

Speaking of which, the scroll that sealed Black Zetsu before was also one of them.

......

Yan Sheng's work of removing the tailed beast entered its third day.

It seems that even if he can handle the enormous workload that originally required multiple people to collaborate on, the time it would take is not reduced at all.

The two boys spent three days with the aloof older sister who took care of them, while their parents were absent.

Sasuke's vigilance and the inherent reserve of the Uchiha clan made him even more taciturn in unfamiliar environments and with unfamiliar people, spending most of his time in his own thoughts and observations.

Naruto, on the other hand, fully utilized his talent for getting along with people wherever he went—despite Konan's aura of keeping strangers at bay, she couldn't resist Naruto's fiery and somewhat silly enthusiasm, like a little sun.

He would initiate conversations with Xiao Nan, sharing things he found interesting and asking if she was tired. This pure and unguarded approach made Xiao Nan, who appeared cold on the surface but was not actually cold on the inside, feel somewhat at a loss, yet she found it difficult to truly dislike him.

Thus, their relationship, under this one-sided outpouring of enthusiasm, became subtly "good".

Naruto stood on tiptoe and peered out the window, looking at the gloomy sky and the endless drizzle, and sighed heavily.

The seemingly endless rainy weather in the Land of Rain is not a natural phenomenon. It originates from the ninjutsu used by Nagato Uzumaki, the leader of the Akatsuki organization: Rain Tiger Free Technique.

The effects of this technique go far beyond simply bringing rain. Its primary function is reconnaissance and surveillance.

Every drop of rain falling from the sky contains Nagato's dispersed chakra. When an unfamiliar chakra individual enters the Land of Rain, Nagato can immediately pinpoint their location and movements through the senses transmitted back by the rain.

It is worth mentioning that even if the intruders try to avoid the rain in various ways, they will still be detected by Nagato—under the continuous rain, Nagato's chakra almost fills the entire Land of Rain.

The act of deliberately avoiding the rain is as conspicuous as ripples on a calm lake. In this way, Nagato can easily identify those with ulterior motives who are trying to hide their whereabouts—if you have nothing to hide, why would you go to such lengths to avoid this "ordinary" rain?

Furthermore, Nagato's raindrops can recognize and ignore the chakra of the native inhabitants of the Land of Rain, reacting only to unfamiliar, unrecorded chakra.

As for why Nagato would expend so much chakra and mental energy to maintain this sensory barrier that covers the entire country, the root cause lies in the death of his best friend, Yahiko.

That tragedy warped Nagato's mind, making him believe that only in absolute pain and fear could a brief period of peace be born.

Like a twisted wishing machine, if you wish for "world peace," it will choose to annihilate all of humanity to achieve it—Nagato's way is to use the majesty of a god to inflict pain on the world, forcing people to fear and not dare to fight.

Naruto really disliked this kind of weather. The dampness, gloom, and lack of sunlight made him feel uncomfortable all over. He had only been there for three days, but he already felt like he was about to mold.

He couldn't help but complain to Xiao Nan, "Sister Xiao Nan, when are we going to stop this raining? When will the sun come out? I feel all damp, like mushrooms are going to grow on me!"

Xiao Nan looked at the blond boy's furrowed face, which was full of distress, lowered her eyes, and said in a voice that was still calm but less cold than before: "It may take a while longer."

"Eh—?!" Naruto drawled out his disappointment, like a puppy drenched in rain.

However, one of Naruto's greatest strengths is his ability to quickly process negative emotions. Frustration comes and goes quickly.

It was precisely this tenacious vitality, like that of wild grass, that prevented him from turning to extremism and darkness in the past environment filled with discrimination and loneliness.

Naruto quickly found a new topic, blinking his blue eyes and asking curiously, "By the way, Konan-neechan, I noticed that you don't just bring food to Sasuke and me every day, you also go to other places. Are there other people living here? Can I go and meet them?"

He asked that question simply because he was bored being locked in his room and wanted to find something new to do.

However, Xiao Nan's first reaction upon hearing this was to be wary.

Is this an attempt to gather intelligence on the organization?

But looking into Naruto's clear, innocent eyes, and at his naive (silly) personality these past few days, she quickly dismissed the idea.

This child simply doesn't understand that concept. Besides, who would be so direct and obvious when gathering information?

Speaking of which...

Xiao Nan's heart stirred slightly.

Naruto Uzumaki's surname is Uzumaki. He shares the same surname as Nagato.

She thought of Nagato, who had become increasingly taciturn since Yahiko's death, and who had become emaciated and crippled due to overuse of his power, spending his days hiding deep within the tower controlling the Six Paths of Pain.

How long has it been since he last saw sunlight in his true form...? The introverted yet gentle Nagato of the past seems to have completely vanished into endless pain and obsession.

If it's this child... this child who also shares the surname Uzumaki, with such pure eyes and infectious charm...

A sudden thought flashed through Xiao Nan's mind.

Looking at Naruto's expectant face, she suddenly and somewhat awkwardly curled the corners of her lips into a smile.

"I'm going to deliver food to my best friend," she said softly, her gaze seemingly piercing through the wall as she looked towards the distant tower. "Do you... want to see him?"

"Okay, okay!" Naruto agreed excitedly without hesitation, a bright smile spreading across his face.

Sasuke, who couldn't stop him in time: "..."

Naruto, that clueless idiot!

Konan led Naruto and Sasuke, who had followed along out of concern, through a complex network of steel passages, arriving at the depths of a tall tower. Pushing open the heavy stone door, the scene inside instantly stunned Naruto.

The room was dark and empty, filled with the smell of medicine and an indescribable sense of decay. Most striking was the emaciated figure sitting in the center of the room on a strange mechanical device, his back to them.

Countless black chakra receivers pierced his back like thorns, connecting him to the machine that sustained his life and power. His once fiery red hair appeared dull and lifeless.

"Nagato, I brought a child to see you." Konan's tone was gentler than usual.

The figure—Nagato Uzumaki—slowly and somewhat laboriously manipulated the machine to turn around.

He glanced at the two children, a hint of rejection and coldness flashing in his Samsara eyes.

They were brought by allies of "Uchiha Madara," and Nagato was wary of them.

"Konan, take them away." Nagato's voice was hoarse and weak, but it carried an undeniable refusal.

If they were ordinary children, it wouldn't be a problem, but clearly, they aren't.

Konan lowered her eyelashes in disappointment. She had actually guessed that Nagato would react this way, but she had only held onto a sliver of hope. Just as she was about to obediently lead Naruto and Sasuke away, the former seemed not to have heard the cold order to leave, her gaze completely drawn to Nagato's extremely poor physical condition.

...His gaunt, emaciated face, sunken eyes, and clearly immobile body filled Naruto with intense worry and sympathy.

"Uncle, are you alright? You look so weak!" Naruto couldn't help but step forward, his bright blue eyes filled with genuine concern. "Have you been eating properly? You should eat more. Yan Sheng said that you need to eat well to get better when you're sick!"

Nagato frowned, about to shout at him to get out, but when he caught a glimpse of the hidden sadness and faint expectation in Konan's eyes, he swallowed the words that were on the tip of his tongue.

He didn't want Xiao Nan to be sad.

So Nagato chose to remain silent, then turned back to them, showing her resistance.

But Naruto wasn't so easily appeased. Seeing that Nagato remained silent, he began to ramble on to himself.

From complaining about the endless rain in the Land of Rain, to talking about how lonely he was in Konoha, to feeling like he had a home after meeting Sasuke and Kokushibo, and then mentioning that he hasn't seen Kokushibo for several days now and doesn't know what he's been up to...

His words were disorganized, his thoughts jumped around, and he was full of childlike complaints and sharing.

At first, Nagato only felt annoyed by the noise. But gradually, the unguarded, slightly silly sincerity in that incessant chatter, like a gentle stream, slowly seeped into his frozen heart.

This kid... is different from those ambitious, calculating guys.

His attempts at comforting her were clumsy, such as, "It's okay, uncle. You look miserable, but maybe things will get better in the future." These kinds of words were both funny and exasperating, but the sincerity they contained made it impossible for Nagato to be truly angry.

Anyway... he's just a kid.

Nagato thought silently.

In this dark tower, immersed day after day in pain and grand plans, he had not heard such aimless, simply "speaking" voices for far too long.

As Naruto clumsily tried to comfort him again, telling him that he believed there was always hope as long as he didn't give up, Nagato finally spoke, his voice hoarse: "Child, what do you think of this world?"

Naruto was taken aback by the sudden question and scratched his head. "The world? Hmm... Sometimes it's pretty good. There's delicious ramen, Iruka-sensei treats me to meals, and now I have Sasuke and Mikiri. But sometimes it's also bad. Some people inexplicably hate me, and there's war... War is the worst. A lot of people die." He recalled what he had heard in class about the several Shinobi World Wars.

“War…” Nagato repeated the word, a deep pain appearing in his Rinnegan. “Yes, war…it took away the most important thing from me. It displaced countless people and spread hatred like this rain, without end.”

He manipulated the machine, turning his body around again, his wavy eyes staring at Naruto with a world-weary compassion and a gloomy obsession.

"As long as humanity exists, as long as this system of competition between nations and villages exists, as long as people cannot understand each other... war will never stop. Hatred breeds hatred, and pain breeds pain... It is an unbreakable cycle."

He seemed to be speaking to Naruto, or perhaps confirming his own long-held beliefs.

"I once believed in communication and understanding, but reality has given me the cruelest answer. True peace can only be achieved when the world experiences the same pain, and people are forced to stop fighting in the face of immense fear."

He slowly explained his distorted concept of "peace," which was based on his own painful experiences, to Naruto.

He didn't know how much the child could understand... Perhaps he just needed someone to confide in, a temporary vessel to hold his heavy thoughts.

Naruto listened with wide eyes, seemingly understanding but not quite. He didn't quite grasp the specific meaning of "making the world feel pain," but he could sense that the frail old man in front of him was filled with the same loneliness he had once felt, and a deeper sadness that he couldn't comprehend.

Nagato's heavy and despairing words, like cold rain, soaked the empty room.

Konan lowered her eyes in silence, knowing that this was Nagato's deepest wound and obsession; Sasuke frowned, though he was young, he was old enough to understand things, and having experienced the cruelty of the clan's annihilation, he was perhaps the one who could understand Nagato the most.

However, his hatred has not yet accumulated to the extent that of Nagato.

...In a tense silence, Naruto did something that surprised everyone.

He was not intimidated by the grand and dark discourse about war, hatred, and pain, nor did he attempt to refute it with words.

After a brief silence and a bewildered look of understanding, the blond child suddenly ran forward to the strange machine supporting Nagato's broken body. He then carefully extended his warm little hand and gently covered Nagato's withered hand, which was almost nothing but skin and bones.

This simple touch sent a shiver down Nagato's spine.

Immediately afterwards, Naruto raised his head, his azure eyes as clear as the sky after the rain, reflecting Nagato's haggard face.

He looked into Nagato's unusually wavy eyes and said earnestly in a still-childish voice:

"Uncle, I don't understand what you mean by war, hatred, and pain right now. Maybe I'll understand when I grow up and experience more things."

He paused, his small hands tightening slightly, as if trying to transfer his strength, his tone becoming more firm and sincere: "But my heart can feel it now—"

You are crying.

"Although you didn't shed any tears, and although you said a lot of powerful and scary things... my heart tells me that you must be crying very, very sadly inside, Uncle."

"It's like...like when I used to hide on the swing and watch other children being picked up by their parents. At that time, I was also very sad, but I wouldn't say it out loud, I would just cry secretly by myself."

Naruto's words were devoid of any flowery language, and were even somewhat clumsy and inarticulate, but the pure and empathetic sentiment they contained pierced through the layers of ice and darkness that bound Nagato's heart like a faint but persistent light.

Those eyes, which had become as still and indifferent as if filled with divine superiority since the death of their dearest friend, trembled slightly at this moment, revealing a hint of human unease and astonishment.

Konan stared at Naruto in shock, then at Nagato. She was pleasantly surprised to notice that the deathly aura that had been stagnant on Nagato for many years seemed to have been pried open by these childish words, creating a small crack.

Sasuke was also stunned.

The room fell silent. Only the pattering rain outside continued.

Naruto stared intently at Nagato with his blue eyes, waiting for his response, his small hand conveying a child's warmth—small yet undeniably genuine.

At this moment, something seemed to quietly melt a corner of the long-frozen lake of Nagato's heart.

***

Obito was currently dealing with the chain reaction caused by the mass disappearance of Jinchuriki, completely unaware that his house had been robbed.

He mobilized his White Zetsu clones to closely monitor the movements of the various ninja villages, attempting to buy more time and space for the Eye of the Moon Plan before the storm took hold.

Yan Sheng devoted himself entirely to the work of extracting the tailed beasts, and naturally knew nothing about what was happening outside.

If he knew that Naruto could shake the Akatsuki leader with just a few words and a touch, he would probably be a little surprised, but he would eventually understand.

After all, he chose Naruto because he valued his unwavering spirit and sunny disposition, which he wanted to use to entangle Sasuke.

He hadn't expected Naruto to be so powerful. Had he known, even if he hadn't intervened, given Naruto's level of attention to Sasuke, the two would have eventually made contact.

However, even if Obito and Michikatsu knew all this, their level of shock could never compare to that of Itachi Uchiha, who had quietly returned to the base at this very moment.

—What did he see?

As he passed through one of the base's passageways, he caught a glimpse of a figure not far away—a figure he should never have been there. It was his younger brother, whom he worried about day and night, the brother he was willing to bear anything to protect.

What's Sasuke doing here?

Itachi Uchiha's heart nearly stopped beating for a moment. He instinctively hid himself in the shadows, his Sharingan fixed on the familiar figure until Sasuke and the other blond boy disappeared around the corner with Konan.

He was also very familiar with that blond boy.

Itachi had been away on missions assigned by the Akatsuki, minimizing contact with Konoha to avoid complications, and therefore hadn't received the latest intelligence. Consequently, he was completely unaware that his younger brother and the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki had been kidnapped from Konoha, and even less aware that all the other Tailed Beast Jinchuriki had suffered the same fate at the same time.

What's the situation with the third generation?

Anger and anxiety surged in Itachi's heart, and various speculations churned within him, making it difficult for him to calm down.

Could it have been that masked man disguised as Madara Uchiha? Thinking about it carefully, he is indeed the most likely culprit.

Itachi decided to go find the other party and ask them for clarification.

However, Obito was too busy to be "home" at the moment. Itachi searched the base thoroughly, but as expected, he couldn't find a trace of Obito, which made him even more uneasy.

Meanwhile, at the deepest part of the base.

Yan Sheng finally completed the massive project of extracting all the tailed beasts from the Jinchuriki and injecting them into the Gedo Mazo.

Even he, single-handedly undertaking this massive project that originally required the collaboration of many people and lasted for several days, almost completely exhausted his strength.

Feeling the varying degrees of deterioration in his body, Yan Sheng thought that if his body couldn't "store" itself back to the state it was in before he transmigrated, he would have to go see the Senju clan leader. Otherwise, Madara and Izuna might put him in solitary confinement, although they couldn't really do that anyway.

In short, try to avoid doing this if possible.

......

Standing before the Gedo Mazo were Yan Sheng, Obito, and Black Zetsu, who had been temporarily released by Yan Sheng.

On the golem's massive body, several eyes that had been tightly closed were now open, radiating an ominous yet powerful chakra fluctuation. However, one eye was only half-open, not fully activated, as if it still lacked the final bit of power to reach its full potential.

“Something’s not right,” Black Zetsu murmured in confusion. “It seems like something’s missing. The tailed beasts have already been injected…” It carefully sensed the state of the Gedo Mazo. “Never mind, it’s just a little bit missing, it’s not a big problem.”

What it didn't know was that the other half of the Nine-Tails' Yin-attribute chakra was missing.

Back then, the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, used the Reaper Death Seal to seal the Nine-Tails' Yin-attribute chakra along with his own soul inside the Shinigami's belly.

Yan Sheng ignored Black Zetsu's mutterings and turned his gaze to Obito, confirming the next step in a deep voice: "Next, we need to find a vessel that contains both Ashura's and Indra's chakra, right?"

“That’s right!” Black Zetsu’s beady eyes narrowed into slits with excitement, his voice filled with barely suppressed thrill.

Its ideal vessel was actually Uchiha Madara, but with Yan Sheng, that scourge, around, how could it dare to attack Madara? Wouldn't that be courting death?

so--

Obito sensed that something was wrong.

Yan Sheng's words initially startled him. He was wondering if this step was part of the Eye of the Moon plan, and what kind of vessel it would require. What were the chakra of "Ashura" and "Indra"? He had never heard the old man mention it before, nor had the old man's will (Black Zetsu) told him about it.

Before he could even process this sudden influx of information, he noticed that both Black Zetsu and Yan Sheng's gazes were fixed on him, as if they were locking onto their prey.

Although Obito didn't know exactly what "vessel" meant, he knew the meaning of the word itself.

Therefore, he almost instinctively activated his divine power, trying to suck himself into the space to escape this place.

However, Yan Sheng was well-prepared.

The instant Obito's thoughts stirred, an invisible and powerful spatial confinement force suddenly descended. It turned out that the entire area had already been sealed off by a barrier set up by Kokushibo, specifically to counter Obito's space-time ninjutsu.

Obito felt a sudden tightness all over his body, as if he were sinking into an invisible quagmire, his Kamui amplification forcibly interrupted. Then everything went black, and in the last moment before he completely lost consciousness, only one angry thought remained in his mind:

You old fool! You lied to me!

Seeing Obito collapsed on the ground, unconscious, Black Zetsu was so excited he almost trembled.

After a thousand years of planning, we have finally reached the most crucial step! The dawn of Mother's resurrection is just around the corner!

Suppressing its excitement, it said to Yan Sheng, "Alright, the vessel is ready. Now we'll go find Nagato, retrieve the Rinnegan, and transplant those eyes into yours. You will then initiate the final step—Infinite Tsukuyomi!"

Yan Sheng, carrying the unconscious Obito, arrived at the tower where Nagato was with Black Zetsu. Konan wasn't there, nor were Naruto and Sasuke; only Nagato sat listlessly on the machine that was keeping him alive.

When Yan Sheng explained his purpose—to take the Rinnegan—Nagato was not surprised.

After all, those eyes never belonged to him, and the other party had already said they would take them back. However, the person who came to take them back wasn't "Uchiha Madara" who had given him the eyes before, but someone else entirely.

He didn't care who the candidate was, as long as world peace could be achieved and the Eye of the Moon Project could be successfully implemented.

Therefore, Nagato did not resist, nor could he resist.

Yan Sheng stretched out his hand, his fingertips gathering power, and easily tore open the skin and flesh around Nagato's eye socket, digging out the Rinnegan.

Blood streamed down Nagato's pale face, but he only let out a muffled groan before losing consciousness.

Immediately afterwards, Yan Sheng expressionlessly stuffed the Rinnegan, which had just been dug out and was still stained with blood, into his own eye socket.

The whole process was so simple and brutal it was outrageous.

Yan Sheng also found it absurd.

In his original world, eye transplantation was an incredibly complex and delicate process, involving countless tiny nerve connections and blood vessel anastomoses. It was not something that could be done as easily as replacing a part, with a simple digging and inserting.

But then I thought about it again. People in this world can breathe fireballs, walk on water with chakra, and create clones and transform themselves... Compared to that, the fact that eyes can be used instantly doesn't seem too outrageous.

He adapted to the completely different vision and immense power coming from his new eyes, and merged and adapted with his own power.

Yan Sheng closed his eyes slightly, and when he opened them again, his purple Rinnegan eyes, with ripples in them, completely replaced his original deep black eyes.

Yan Sheng knew that different eyes existed in this world, and the Uchiha he was reincarnated as was one of them.

Therefore, he only regarded the Rinnegan as something similar to the Sharingan, and now that he used it, he felt that it was only slightly more powerful than the Sharingan. Hence, Yan Sheng was not that interested in the Rinnegan.

He was also thinking of getting his own eyes back after he finished using them.

With all preparations complete, Yan Sheng returned to the Gedo Mazo, formed hand seals, and activated the power of his Rinnegan. At the same time, he connected his spiritual power with the Mazo and with Obito, who had been chosen as the vessel.

"Infinite Tsukuyomi!"

As his deep voice rang out, an indescribable surge of immense energy erupted from him. The Rinnegan in his eyes emitted an eerie light, and an invisible force pierced through the base's layers of barriers, soaring straight into the sky.

At the same time.

The enormous body of the Outer Path Golem began to writhe and deform violently, eventually transforming into a gigantic tree that pierced through the ceiling and rock strata, continuing upwards until it finally reached the sky.

At the top of the tree, a huge eye, like a blood moon, slowly opened—it was the Eye of the Moon.

An eerie red light shone from the eye of the moon onto the earth, swept across the clouds, pierced through buildings... and enveloped the entire world.

Wherever the light touched, whether it was ninjas in battle, sleeping civilians, or birds and beasts, their eyes instantly became empty and confused, and then they fell into an eternal and beautiful dream.

The entire world, in a short period of time, fell into a deathly silence of "peace".

As the caster of the spell, Yan Sheng was the only conscious person (Hei Jue was not considered human), so he could sense a vast, cold, and terrifying will coming from another dimension through the passage constructed by the tree and the Eye of the Moon.

That will, flowing through the connection between the tree and its vessel, surged into the unconscious Uchiha Obito's body.

Obito's body convulsed violently, his skin gradually turned pale, and a crack appeared on his forehead, revealing his third eye—the Rinne Sharingan. His original aura was replaced by an even more terrifying and inhuman pressure.

Kaguya Otsutsuki, the progenitor of chakra, after being sealed away for countless years, finally... returned to the world through the Infinite Tsukuyomi activated by Mikasa and through Obito Uchiha as her vessel.

She floated up slowly, her long white hair moving without wind, emanating a godlike aura. She opened her pure white eyes, scanning this world that was both familiar and strange, her gaze filled with indifference.

Black Zetsu was so excited that he immediately prostrated himself at Kaguya's feet.

Yan Sheng stood quietly to the side, watching Kaguya Otsutsuki, who had just been resurrected, adapt to the long-lost present world and perceive the world shrouded in the Infinite Tsukuyomi through Obito's body. Her Byakugan swept over the living beings trapped in the eternal dream, her gaze filled with only cold indifference.

Once Kaguya's attention finally fell on him, the one who led the resurrection ritual, Yan Sheng nodded slightly and said, "Your Highness Kaguya, good day."

Kaguya had a good impression of this greatest contributor who had rescued her from the endless seal, and asked in a clear, echoing voice:

"What do you want?"

Yan Sheng didn't beat around the bush and went straight to the point: "I want to know everything about the Otsutsuki clan—" He paused, calmly meeting Kaguya's narrowed Byakugan, "Someone like you should be able to see that I am not from this world. My original world is facing the threat of the imminent arrival of the main clan, which shares the same origin as you."

Kaguya immediately understood. She remained silent for a moment, seemingly weighing something. After a long while, she finally spoke:

"After you return, follow the procedures here and resurrect me in that world. I know my clan inside and out, and I know their style of doing things and their weaknesses. By resurrecting me, you will gain my trust and assistance. If we join forces, we will be able to drive my clan out."

However, Yan Sheng shook his head and refused without any hesitation: "No."

"If I must use Infinite Tsukuyomi to turn all living beings in the world into puppets in order to achieve my goal, then it loses its meaning for me."

Kaguya was not angry and nodded understandingly.

“Infinite Tsukuyomi can be dispelled,” she explained. “The essence of using this technique is to recover the scattered chakra and return me to my peak. If this path is blocked…” She turned her gaze to Yan Sheng with a scrutinizing look, “You ninjas all have my blood flowing through your veins. Although it is far less pure than that of our main clan, there are still those among you who can rival our clan.”

As she spoke, Kaguya suddenly raised her hand, and her slender, pale fingers, in a way that transcended the concept of space, instantly touched Yan Sheng's forehead.

A pure, powerful force, seemingly originating from the very source of life, surged into Yan Sheng's body like a gentle torrent.

Yan Sheng's body trembled slightly, but he did not resist.

He felt something long dormant within him being forcibly awakened by this external force.

A moment later, the skin in the center of his forehead felt a burning sensation, and then it quietly cracked open, revealing a brand new Rinnegan that emitted a faint purple light.

“The Rinnegan you are currently using is not your own, and you cannot unleash its full power.” Kaguya withdrew her finger. “I have activated and purified the bloodline that belongs to me within you. Once you regain your own eyes, those eyes will naturally be upgraded to Rinnegan. As for the third eye on your forehead…” At this point, Kaguya’s voice paused slightly, a rare occurrence, and a hint of surprise appeared in her Byakugan.

"This was not my original intention. I only wanted to refine your bloodline to help your eyes advance. This extra Rinnegan... is a mutation that occurred after your own bloodline combined with my power."

But Kaguya's surprise came too soon. The instant she finished speaking, the newly formed Rinnegan on Yan Sheng's forehead suddenly split into two, then into four.

The four newly formed Rinnegan eyes were not crowded in the center of his forehead, but were symmetrically positioned on the left and right, above and below his original eyes respectively.

But this was not the end. The four Rinnegan eyes seemed to have a life of their own, their pupils slightly adjusting their position and angle, eventually stabilizing and forming a strange, symmetrical arrangement.

Six eyes, three pairs of Rinnegan, were set on Yan Sheng's face.

Yan Sheng seemed to sense something, raised his hand, and gently brushed his fingertips across the four newly added eyes.

This form... is so similar to how he looked when he was a demon in his previous life.

Kaguya stared silently at the six Rinnegan eyes emitting a faint purple glow on Yan Sheng's face, unsure of how to evaluate them.

This was clearly beyond her expectations. She simply wanted to give this "hero" a boost in power, but she never expected it to trigger such a...unique anomaly.

"It seems that your bloodline and my power have resonated unexpectedly," Kaguya could only say in the end.

-----------------------

Author's Note: Ahhh, although I didn't get to write about raising kids, I did get to write about Kaguya TT

Definitely tomorrow! (bows)

Our Naruto's talk-no-jutsu is the most powerful! (Just kidding) Actually, as long as you're sincere enough, you can move people who aren't inherently bad. Poor Naruto, carrying that bag of rice up and down those stairs, he'll have to live a good life with his junior brother (though Naruto hasn't officially become Jiraiya's student yet) from now on! [Dog head with rose in hand]

The Obito character is something I made up. The premise is that he has Hashirama cells and used Madara's eyes, which roughly translates to him having Shuin's chakra.

Oh right, Obito's alright too! He'll survive.