The Sage Chakra of Senju Hashirama was, of course, overwhelmingly powerful and domineering compared to ordinary chakra. But it was not the chakra of a tailed beast—and merging it with the chakra of the Ten Tails…
Was it a blessing or a curse?
Kyoichi couldn't quite tell. Judging from its nature, Hashirama's chakra contained a potent force of yang, which might enhance the power of the Six Paths.
The problem was—
What about yin?
That was what troubled Kyoichi now. According to his original plan, as long as his yin power reached a certain threshold, he could easily master it through Yin Release's nature transformation.
But now…
It seemed he had celebrated too early.
Orochimaru fully understood why Kyoichi was studying the Ten Tails' chakra.
—The Six Paths-level Chibaku Tensei!
For the moment…
Whether it would cause any side effects remained unknown.
After pondering for a moment, Kyoichi turned toward the Nine Tails.
"You really have no idea?"
"Huh? Why should I, the great me, care about something like that?!"
The Nine Tails glared back.
What, they didn't know either! If they really understood something so complicated, why would they even need to ask it?
It saw no problem with that logic.
Orochimaru sighed helplessly.
"Should we go ask the Great Toad Sage then?"
"For now," Kyoichi said, "I'm debating whether to separate the chakra—or to fuse it even further. The latter's riskier, but if it succeeds… I might be able to reach the final step in one go."
That was what made him hesitate.
The Ten Tails' chakra was now far more complex than before—but if he could manage it properly, there was a real chance he could simultaneously master both yin and yang power.
That was the power of a Sage of the Six Paths.
He thought for a moment… and decided—
—to try.
"If that's the case, then it's worth attempting. I'm not that familiar with Yin Release, but I can study it… If you truly grasp Six Paths-level power…"
A glint of madness flashed through Orochimaru's eyes.
The Sage of the Six Paths—
A figure known only in legend. And although the Sage himself had not been resurrected, the chance to witness power on that level was too tempting for Orochimaru to resist.
If possible, he would have loved nothing more than to dissect Kyoichi—or the mock God Tree—for research. Sadly, neither was currently an option.
He narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Then let's start by studying the God Tree first?"
"We're short on chakra, so we'll have to use it sparingly. For now, let's work with what we have…"
As he spoke, Kyoichi released a small portion of the Ten Tails' chakra and handed it over to Orochimaru.
Orochimaru's mouth twitched.
That little bit…
What could he possibly do with that?
"Just observe it for now. If you need more, I'll give you some—but don't waste it, got it?"
After transferring the chakra to Orochimaru, Kyoichi was left with none himself.
Still…
He could study the God Tree up close.
Once he released his clone, Kyoichi nearly stumbled to the ground.
Good grief.
So this was what his clone called 'no big deal'?
He'd nearly fainted!
But right after came a surge of thoughts and insights from the clone—its observations and experiments over the past days.
He had to admit—
It hadn't been idle.
While keeping watch over the Divine Tree, it had been studying how to make use of the Ten Tails' chakra.
In short—
In this world, apart from the possibly still-living Sage of the Six Paths, Black Zetsu, and Kaguya Ōtsutsuki, no one understood Six Paths chakra better than he did.
In fact…
He might even surpass Black Zetsu in comprehension.
After all—
Black Zetsu might be Kaguya's creation, but it didn't have her memories. Even if it had watched the Sage of the Six Paths in secret, deep understanding was another matter entirely.
…
Land of Fire—
Shisui was standing guard in the forest.
Minato and Kakashi were investigating underground, while Obito stayed above with Shisui to keep watch.
"Hey, are we really accomplishing anything like this? I can't shake the feeling that Kyoichi-sensei is just making fools out of us," Obito muttered.
He was exhausted.
For days now, he'd spent nearly all his chakra burrowing underground. He hadn't made much progress in other jutsu, but his Earth Release proficiency had skyrocketed.
Even Shisui—
Who'd never used Earth Release before—was slowly grasping some of its nature transformation, though his control wasn't refined enough for long operations yet.
Normally, Shisui wouldn't bother responding to Obito.
The guy complained daily, after all.
But—
"Sensei's judgment isn't wrong. If it were, would Lord Minato have agreed to come along? Or are you saying you're smarter than Minato-sama?"
"You! I—"
Damn it.
Why was he even arguing with this Kyoichi fanatic?
Obito clenched his teeth, holding his frustration in. After a long silence, he muttered, "I was just saying. Whatever. I just wonder when my eyes will finally… Never mind. Why am I even telling you this?"
Their relationship wasn't exactly distant, but they never really connected either.
At the heart of it—
Obito thought that geniuses like Shisui could never understand his hunger or his pain. So his words were nothing more than idle complaints.
But—
Shisui thought for a moment, then spoke seriously.
"In the end, our goal is the same—to become stronger. The eyes aren't the key. Our eyes reflect our hearts. If you can't awaken yours, it's not a matter of talent."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
Obito scratched his head.
He could tell Shisui was being serious, but his words were deep—individually clear, yet confusing when put together.
"The Sharingan awakens through emotion. It's a terrifying eye—you gain power only by losing something precious.
And the worst part is, if you try to force that loss on purpose, you'll never get what you seek."
Shisui explained calmly.
He then spoke about the Uchiha clan's chaotic history—all the tragedies born from the pursuit of greater power.
Obito listened, stunned.
He realized he had underestimated his younger clansman.
He'd thought Shisui was just precocious—but now, he seemed almost… like Fugaku.
After a long silence, Obito sighed. "Forget the Mangekyō. I just want to awaken my eyes. My body's getting faster, stronger—and I can't control it properly anymore."
His obsession with his eyes wasn't as strong as before.
Shisui looked at him in surprise.
Then he fell into thought. Just as he was about to speak—
He suddenly sensed a familiar chakra.
Sensei?
Without another word, he flickered away toward the source.
Moments later—
The ground split open. From below, Kyoichi's wooden clone dragged up a White Zetsu. When he saw Shisui, he casually sealed and packed the creature away.
"Not bad—you can sense me now."
"Sensei… is that a Wood Clone?"
Shisui could tell—it wasn't a normal Shadow Clone.
"Yes."
Kyoichi nodded lightly.
He'd only wanted to test something out.
He hadn't expected—
—that a White Zetsu would actually take the bait.
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