"..."
Sasuke, Naruto, Kurama, and Yuka all stared blankly at Moss.
You've got to be kidding, right?
But Moss wasn't joking. The Three-Treasures Beast had inherited the "Tang Monk's flesh" setting — within its Digicore was energy that could make someone immune to illness and grant eternal life.
This energy was known as the Power of Enlightenment.
Moss didn't have much of it, but it was still enough to form a Binding Curse. And even without that, she had the power of the talismans.
The Dog Talisman alone could make someone immortal.
"This immortal power can keep a person forever youthful. Even if you were an old man at death's door, with this energy you'd still be able to walk briskly and live like you were young again.
"And that's not all — there's strength like an ox, speed like a rabbit, invisibility, astral projection, flight…"
As she spoke, Moss began demonstrating the powers of the talismans one by one.
With just a flick of her slender arm, she lifted a decorative stone weighing several tons — the Ox Talisman's power.
Then, with a blur, her body vanished and reappeared several meters away — the Rabbit Talisman's power.
Naruto and Sasuke weren't all that surprised by these two. Super strength and high speed weren't exactly rare.
But then Moss touched a wall lightly with her fingertip — and the entire airborne fortress turned transparent. That was the Snake Talisman's power.
Only the fortress itself became transparent, which meant the hiding place of the Zero-Tails, as well as the prison where Hinata and the villagers were being held, were suddenly revealed.
"—!"
Naruto and Sasuke both stiffened in shock.
Hinata and the captured villagers panicked at the sudden change. Some of them, terrified of heights, saw that they were suspended hundreds of meters above the ground and screamed in fear.
All those emotions of terror were immediately absorbed by the Zero-Tails, converted into dark chakra.
Moss grimaced. "Uh-oh… that's not good."
Naruto, Sasuke, and Yuka all fell silent.
Moss released the Snake Talisman's power, returning the fortress to normal, and said, "Now, astral projection…"
In a flash, she appeared beside Naruto and Sasuke, placing her hands on their shoulders. A glow of magical light spread out — and their souls left their bodies.
"What?!" Both of them were stunned.
Gulp—
At that moment, red chakra surged out of Naruto's stomach.
"Crap!" Naruto's expression twisted.
The seal on his belly had been eroded after so many years; it was full of cracks. Lately, even the slightest anger would trigger the Nine-Tails' chakra, forcing him to suppress it with sheer will.
Now, with his soul out of his body, the Nine-Tails seized the chance to break free!
On Sasuke's side, though shocked, he quickly realized that his soul could move freely. He tested it by flying back into his body — and successfully returned, regaining control.
He let out a breath of relief, but the thought chilled him: If someone had sealed my body the moment my soul left it, would I ever be able to return?
Naruto, seeing Sasuke return, tried to follow his example — but a wave of red chakra blocked him.
"This body is mine now," said a voice.
Naruto's body stood up on its own, his blue eyes replaced with crimson slits.
"Nine-Tails!" Naruto's soul cried in alarm.
Sasuke watched coldly from the side.
Yuka looked left and right, completely lost. She was only a doctor's apprentice; she couldn't see souls at all. All she saw was Naruto's eyes turning red.
Kurama turned his gaze toward Moss and grinned. "Thanks for the opportunity."
"Back into the seal with you," Moss said flatly.
Kurama sneered. "I've waited sixteen years for this body. Why would I go ba—"
He stopped mid-sentence, his expression twisting.
"Ah! You damn Fourth Hokage—"
The red chakra dispersed instantly. Naruto's body collapsed as if soulless again, giving his spirit the chance to return.
And inside the seal, Naruto saw someone unexpected — the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze.
"Why… why are you here, old man Fourth?" Naruto asked in shock.
Minato smiled gently at him. "Because…"
He wanted to continue, but his eyes shifted. This was the seal's space. Normally, it would only contain Naruto, Minato, and Kurama. But now there were two uninvited guests — Moss and Sasuke.
Minato sighed. "You two… could you give a father and son a little privacy?"
"Father and son?" Naruto froze.
Sasuke's eyes narrowed as he realized the truth — Naruto was the son of the Fourth Hokage.
Moss folded her arms. "No. I came all this way, I'm going to watch."
She had forced her way into the seal using pure spiritual strength. Leaving now would mean her efforts were wasted.
"..." Minato was speechless. Monks were supposed to be reasonable… what was wrong with this one?
Sasuke had originally thought of leaving, but after hearing Moss, he decided otherwise. If there was going to be one extra spectator, what difference did it make if there were two?
With no way to drive them out, Minato reluctantly skipped the reunion and went straight to the point — the truth of the Nine-Tails' attack sixteen years ago.
He looked at Sasuke. "What I'm about to say also concerns the Uchiha. You should hear this."
Sasuke's eyes hardened. Good thing he'd stayed.
Minato described the night Naruto was born. He said little about his wife — that was something he wanted Kushina's chakra to share later. He focused instead on the culprit behind the disaster.
"There was a masked man who controlled the Nine-Tails. He called himself 'Madara Uchiha.'"
Sasuke's pupils shrank. "Impossible! Madara… is long dead!"
Kurama sneered in the background. Nobody knew Madara's eyes better than him, and the man from that night definitely wasn't Madara. But he kept silent. Moss knew too, but she also said nothing.
Minato continued calmly. "I can't be certain he really was Madara, but no matter who he is, he's the enemy you will one day face."
Naruto grieved briefly over his past, then looked to Sasuke. "Sasuke, we have a common enemy. Come back to Konoha."
"Shut up," Sasuke muttered. He wasn't interested.
Naruto expected that response and wasn't disappointed. Unless he literally broke Sasuke's arms and legs, there was no way to drag him back.
Minato frowned. His son's relationship with Sasuke was clearly… complicated. But it wasn't his place to interfere anymore.
"My time is almost up. Naruto, do your best."
He wasn't a living soul — just a remnant of chakra left behind. Now, having reinforced the seal, he was nearly spent.
"Dad…"
Naruto reached out, wanting to hug him, but hesitated.
Minato stepped forward and embraced him first. "Naruto… I'm sorry."
Naruto hugged him tightly, punching his father's chest with just enough strength to smile through his tears. "It's okay. After all, I'm the Hokage's kid."
Sasuke watched silently, envy burning in his chest. Naruto could still meet his father, even like this… while he, at sixteen, could never see his again. His hatred toward Itachi deepened.
Moss tilted her head. "Isn't there any way for you to stay?"
Naruto's eyes lit up with hope.
Sasuke flinched — why did Naruto get this kind of miracle, while he never could?
Minato shook his head. "No. I'm only chakra. I can't remain."
Kurama scoffed. Only tailed beasts could sustain themselves as chakra and recover. Humans couldn't. No matter what, Minato's chakra would fade.
And in the end, it did.
Back in the fortress's main hall.
Moss showed off another talisman — the Rooster Talisman's power — and declared, "My body itself is the ultimate treasure. Anyone who obtains me gains immortality, strength, and beauty."
Sasuke frowned. "Why are you revealing all your secrets?"
To a ninja, information was half their life. Even the strongest shinobi could be defeated if their abilities were exposed. And yet this monk-nun girl was just handing over her power's details like a fool.
Moss cupped her cheeks and giggled. "Because I want someone to devour me."
Despite her mature, older-sister figure, at that moment she looked like a little girl with candy. Adorable.
—But insane!
Sasuke, Naruto, Kurama, and Yuka all had the same thought at once.
If not for those words, anyone would've found her cute. But with them? She was nothing but a lunatic.
No matter how cute, a lunatic was still a lunatic.
Not long ago, she had been like a living bodhisattva, saving people with compassion. And now? She revealed her true colors as a complete maniac.
Sasuke thought grimly: I abandoned my past and went to Orochimaru for revenge. I thought my life was twisted, but this nun is even more deranged.
Naruto squinted, annoyed: I thought I was already the oddball of the ninja world… but this big-sister monk is on another level.
Kurama pondered: Is she trying to imitate the old Buddhist tales of feeding one's own body to beasts, striving to become a Buddha? This monk is really desperate to ascend.
Yuka rubbed her chin thoughtfully: If becoming a legendary healer is my path, maybe step one should be curing Master Moss's brain.
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