The atmosphere shifted. The council members straightened, their attention sharpening.
"The first aim," Ryu said, "is to prevent the civil war. Any thoughts?"
Taro nodded slowly. "I believe our sacrificial policy is partially to blame." He hesitated before continuing. "Except for the head of the clan and the designated heir, all people of the moon eventually sacrifice their eyes to power the Tenseigan Energy Vessel."
The branch members of the council just sat there without moving. They also knew it to be true but did not dare to say it.
His gaze dropped to the table. "The branch family sees it as slavery dressed in duty. The main family sees it as necessary for survival. Both are correct. Both are wrong."
Taro looked back at Ryu, and his expression shifted to curiosity. "That humanoid machine you created during our battle. How were you able to replicate the Byakugan?"
"Creating an artificial eye is not simple," Ryu said, "but it is also not impossible."
Several council members leaned forward. The concept of an artificial Byakugan immediately grabbed their interest.
"I have studied the human eye extensively. Its structure, its function, the way light refracts through the lens, how the retina processes information, and the neural pathways that transmit data to the brain." Ryu's tone was entirely matter-of-fact. "In a few years, I believe I will be able to fully replicate a functional eye from synthetic materials. This dreamscape just made it easier for me in the moment."
"So it is possible," Taro said quietly. "In the real world."
"Very much so."
"Then." Taro hesitated, as if almost afraid to ask. "Can it replicate all its abilities? Could you create an artificial Byakugan that functions like the real thing?"
Ryu considered the question carefully. "The Byakugan does not have world-altering abilities like the Mangekyō Sharingan, Rinnegan, Tenseigan, Jōgan, Kokugan, or Senrigan."
Ryu paused. "The Byakugan is primarily a sensory tool. It provides enhanced vision, chakra sight, and near-three-sixty-degree perception. Those are complex functions, but they are still rooted in physical and chakra-based mechanisms. With enough time and resources, yes. I believe I could create a functional artificial Byakugan."
One of the younger council members spoke up, his voice tinged with disbelief. "How many ocular bloodlines are there in the world? You just listed seven different kinds."
"You think the Ōtsutsuki clan is so simple?" Ryu said, his voice carrying a sharp edge. "Your ancestors' Byakugan and Tenseigan are just two of many powers possessed by the original Ōtsutsuki clan." He looked directly at the young council member. "This clan is a branch family. A mere fragment of the original."
"Watch your mouth, kid," one of the older council members snapped.
Taro raised his hand. "The kid is right." He looked around the table. "We kept the name. We carry the blood. But truthfully, the original Ōtsutsuki clan possessed far more power and limitless varieties of abilities and unique ocular bloodlines we have never even seen or heard of. We are their descendants, yes. But we are not them."
Ryu nodded and steered the conversation back. "Your Tenseigan Energy Vessel replicates the effects of the Tenseigan using many Byakugan clustered together. Am I right?"
Taro nodded slowly.
"Tell me about it. How was it created?"
Taro sat back in his chair, his gaze turning distant. "When our ancestor Hamura Ōtsutsuki was near death, his power began to fade from the moon. The artificial atmosphere he maintained and other things like those puppets all relied on his eyes. He thought his descendants would leave the moon before his death, so he sought help from his artificer son. He was a great artificer, the likes of whom had never been born."
Taro's voice carried heavy reverence. "His designs still function perfectly after a millennium."
Ryu's expression did not change. "Ryūken Hamura."
Taro nodded. "Yes. He was not as strong as his siblings, but far from talentless. Ryūken, along with the first clan leader after ancestor Hamura, collaborated to create a device that could replicate the Tenseigan's functions. It was built to maintain the lunar city, provide breathable air, and operate the puppets that sustain our civilisation." He paused. "The fertile soil on the moon is extremely limited. We need the Tenseigan's power to grow even the small amount of food we can produce here."
Kiyomizu spoke for the second time, his voice measured. "Ryūken designed the device knowing it would require a constant power source. Either a Tenseigan or many Byakugan and huge chakra reserves. From the beginning, he understood sacrifices would be necessary. First, Lord Hamura Ōtsutsuki's Tenseigan was used, then the first leader after Lord Hamura gave his eye. After some years, it was one Byakugan from one member each, sacrificed to power the machine that would preserve our civilisation."
Taro continued, his voice heavy. "As decades passed, our population increased. Children were born. Families expanded. And with each generation, the city's needs grew larger."
He looked around the table. "More oxygen. More water. More food. More power for the puppets that maintained everything." His voice dropped. "The number of Byakugan required grew with it. What started as one eye from a willing leader became a systematic requirement. The one-eye sacrifice rule became both eyes. Then it became expected of everyone to give both eyes, except the clan head and heir."
"So, to save your people, you decided to systematically blind them," Ryu noted, his voice filled with sarcasm. "A truly brilliant strategy. You could have just headed back to earth…. "
The room fell into an uncomfortable silence.
Ryu sighed, not wanting to go into details why they choose to stay on moon and said, "I have thought of several possible solutions."
Every eye turned to him.
"The best-case scenario," Ryu said, "is to provide you with resources that replace the entire need for the Tenseigan Energy Vessel. That can be accomplished in four ways."
He raised one finger. "Option A. Perfectly replicate the Byakugan artificially. If I can create synthetic eyes that function at the same level as real ones, you can power the device without sacrificing your people."
A second finger. "Option B. Increase the efficiency of the existing device. If we can reduce the power consumption or optimise the energy conversion, the number of eyes required drops significantly."
A third finger. "Option C. Build separate, specialised devices for each function. Instead of one massive machine doing everything, we create individual systems for oxygen generation, water recycling, and food production. Each system is optimised for its specific task to lighten the load on your Tenseigan Energy Vessel."
A fourth finger. "Option D. Build a new moon city entirely. Design it from the ground up with modern principles using modular construction, independent life support systems, and solar power integration. No reliance on the Tenseigan Energy Vessel at all."
Several council members exchanged shocked glances. A new city? The scope of what he was proposing was unbelievable to them.
He lowered his hand. "Even if we do not achieve perfection in any single option, progress in all four will still drastically reduce the burden. You could relax the sacrificial requirements. Perhaps only the elderly volunteer, or perhaps only one eye is needed instead of two. If we achieve maximum efficiency, the device could run on almost no real Byakugan at all."
"You are right," Taro said quietly. The constant weight that had pressed on him for decades seemed to ease just slightly. "The Byakugan we feed to the Vessel deteriorates over time. Because the process consumes them, we are constantly in need of new ones."
Taro looked at Ryu with something approaching genuine hope. "If we could reduce or eliminate that need."
Murmurs rippled through the council. Some voices carried surprise, others heavy scepticism.
"If you do not believe it," Ryu said, "we can build prototypes here in this dream world. I have the designs ready in my head."
"No," Taro said. "I believe you." He glanced at Kiyomizu. "Kiyomizu told me about you and the Ironheart City project… You want to harness the power of the sun to power an entire city." His eyes returned to Ryu. "You are trying to build something similar for us?"
Ryu nodded. "To achieve this and keep your secret secure will require thorough planning."
He raised his hand and focused. The dreamscape responded immediately.
A three-dimensional hologram materialised above the table. It formed a perfect scale model of Earth and its moon, both slowly rotating in the empty space. Continents were visible on Earth's surface, and craters on the moon.
"The moon is tidally locked," Ryu explained, gesturing to the hologram. "It does not spin on its own axis relative to Earth. One side perpetually faces Earth. The far side never faces Earth at all."
He rotated the moon model, highlighting the hemisphere hidden from terrestrial view. "We can hide our industrial facilities on the far side. No one on Earth will ever see it. But the far side still experiences two weeks of darkness every month."
The hologram zoomed in on the top and bottom of the moon. Small markers appeared, indicating potential construction sites.
"To collect solar energy continuously, we build the arrays at the Lunar Poles," Ryu continued. "The Peaks of Eternal Light. The sun's power is constant there. There is no atmosphere to weaken it and no weather to interfere. We build the arrays at the poles and route the power through underground conduits to your city on the near side."
A few council members exchanged glances. The scepticism was fading, replaced by cautious belief.
"But what of resources?" one asked. "The moon might not have sufficient materials for such construction."
"I will help provide what you need," Ryu said. "You have sufficient labour in the form of those puppets. With the right materials and guidance, construction is just a matter of time."
He looked around the table. "We can achieve your dream of maintaining the moon city without any sacrifice of young eyes. We work on options A, B, C, and D simultaneously. Artificial Byakugan research, device efficiency improvements, independent specialised systems, and a new city design. All four approaches running in parallel development."
"I would need to see your Tenseigan Energy Vessel. Study its design and understand how it functions," Ryu said.
"I will show you the designs," Taro said. "When you are ready."
Ryu nodded. "I will start immediately. Building a new infrastructure for the moon, powered entirely by solar energy collected through arrays hidden at the lunar poles. The people of Earth will never find your city. But you will be able to keep watch over them and guide future generations if needed. Just like our ancestor intended."
Taro's eyes narrowed slightly. "You know what the ancestor wanted from his descendants?"
"Hamura chose to make his home on the moon to keep his mother company," Ryu said quietly. "He felt responsible for her. He felt sorry for what had happened and for her sealing. But he loved Earth too. He loved his brother." He met Taro's gaze. "He wanted his descendants to watch over both worlds."
"What is your goal?" Taro asked. "Truly?"
"A better future than the one I have seen."
Taro leaned forward. "Can the future be changed? I have read the records of many seers throughout our history. All of them said the same thing. Destiny is fixed. What will happen, will happen."
"They might be right," Ryu interrupted, his voice cutting through the doubt. "But sometimes destiny is not written in the stars. Sometimes it is forged by the hard work of people who refuse to accept what they are told is inevitable." He stood, placing both hands on the table. "I have seen the future. I know what happens if we do nothing. But I did not come here to watch it unfold. I came to change it."
The council members stared at him.
"The future is not a book already written," Ryu continued. "It is a forge. And we are the smiths." He looked at Taro. "Your people do not have to go extinct. That civil war does not have to happen. Toneri does not have to be the last survivor standing in the ruins of everything you have built."
His gaze swept across the table. "But only if you are willing to work. Only if you are willing to change."
Taro was silent for a long moment. Then, slowly, he stood as well.
"Then we forge a new destiny," Taro said quietly. "Together."
One by one, the other council members rose to their feet.
Kiyomizu was the last to stand. When he spoke, his voice carried heavy conviction. "The moon will not fall. Not while we have the will to save it."
Ryu nodded.
The dreamscape around them began to brighten, the white expanse taking on a warm golden hue. The meeting was coming to an end. The connection was weakening as dawn approached in the waking world.
"We will meet again," Taro said. "In dreams and in waking. Until the work is done."
"Until the work is done," Ryu echoed.
The world dissolved into light.
A/N:
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