Chapter 162: Otsutsuki Black Zetsu?
"Is this the moon?"
Uchiha Madara, whose consciousness now occupied the Second Tsuchikage's body, flew invisibly, observing the moon's appearance. "It's truly desolate! And there's no chakra at all. What's going on?" he murmured.
Given that the spatial passage seal was deliberately released to 'invite' enemies to the moon, Otsutsuki Toneri should have set up an ambush at the spatial passage or its exit.
However, on the way, Madara saw only immobile animal puppets; there were no human puppets.
There was no ambush by a human puppet army or members of the Otsutsuki clan at the exit either. It was far too strange.
Even Madara couldn't immediately guess what Toneri was thinking.
So, he explored the moon while relaying information in real-time to his main body.
When his Wood Clone performed the Impure World Reincarnation, Madara had already departed from Amegakure.
In less than half an hour, he arrived at the spatial passage entrance.
Upon receiving the information from his Wood Clone, Madara didn't hesitate. He leaped directly into the green lake, quickly traversing the spatial passage to reach the moon.
Black and White Zetsu dared not follow, as Black Zetsu was afraid.
He feared that Otsutsuki Hagoromo and Otsutsuki Hamura had prepared something on the moon.
If he appeared on the moon, they might trigger that contingency, or perhaps sever the spatial passage, sealing him away as well.
If Uchiha Madara died, Black Zetsu could still manipulate a third Rinnegan.
But if he died, his mother would truly have no hope of revival.
Therefore, Black Zetsu dared not gamble, nor could he.
However, Black Zetsu also longed to see his mother, so he instructed a White Zetsu clone to infiltrate the moon, use the Mayfly Jutsu to reach the moon's interior, and locate Otsutsuki Kaguya, who was sealed by Six Paths – Chibaku Tensei.
At this time, Kaguya was not buried under meteorites but rather seemed to be a sleeping beauty, slumbering in a pitch-black space.
Just like the Giant Tenseigan's jutsu formula, the White Zetsu clone could not touch or approach that space.
Even if the moon were split in two, Kaguya could not awaken without breaking or dispelling this seal.
This was because the moon was formed by Six Paths – Chibaku Tensei, which absorbed a portion of the earth to create a giant meteorite, then ascended into outer space, continuing to attract meteorites from outer space to form the celestial body.
As long as the seal remained unbroken, the moon would absorb the sun's power and convert it into the energy required for the seal.
It was similar to how Otsutsuki Toneri, possessed by countless Byakugan, flew uncontrollably into outer space, constantly absorbing the sun's power, causing his body to swell.
After a close look at Kaguya through the White Zetsu clone, Black Zetsu thought, "Mother, don't worry, I will definitely save you!"
"Lord Madara, the enemy is above," a White Zetsu clone reported, returning to the moon's surface and finding Madara exploring the city, which had been desolate for years and recently destroyed by the Silver Wheel Reincarnation Explosion. He pointed towards the artificial sun.
"I see, no wonder there's sunlight here," Madara muttered, looking up at the artificial sun.
Madara activated his Perfect Susanoo and flew towards the artificial sun.
The blue armored samurai drew its katana and slashed at the artificial sun.
The incredibly durable golden light barrier was immediately cut open, revealing a massive gap.
The blue samurai rapidly shrank, passing through the opening and entering the artificial sun's interior.
As he entered, the light barrier healed again, and the White Zetsu clone could only watch, along with Black and White Zetsu, hoping for Madara's victory.
Upon entering the artificial sun, Madara finally sensed chakra.
However, to his surprise…
"Why is there only one chakra signature?" Madara wondered. "Did they transfer their clan members in advance, planning a decisive battle with me here?"
Though he couldn't understand it, Madara flew fearlessly towards the palace.
As he approached the palace, Madara didn't have his Perfect Susanoo swing its sword to destroy the palace as a greeting to Izayoi.
Instead, Madara released his Perfect Susanoo, floated down to the palace entrance using gravity, and then walked inside.
Without the illumination from the artificial sun's light barrier, the scene before Madara suddenly grew dim.
However, illuminated by the candles on either side of the hall, and through his Rinnegan's vision, he still saw the human-shaped chakra, as dazzling as the full moon even in the darkness.
As Madara approached, the humanoid chakra in his vision gradually solidified into a young man who appeared to be only eighteen or nineteen years old.
He wore a white robe adorned with black tomoe, seated on a throne, resting his handsome face on the back of his hand. A pair of beige dragon horns protruded from his forehead, and a pair of blue-white eyes observed Madara.
Gazing at Izayoi, who was disguised as an adult Otsutsuki Toneri and whose chakra signature had been altered to match Toneri's through previous chakra absorption, Madara stared at his dragon horns and asked with interest, "Your appearance is different from what I imagined. Are all members of the Otsutsuki clan mutated humans with horns?"
"These are symbols of a higher being."
Izayoi, though seated, carried an air of condescension, his eyes gleaming with disdain. "Only pure-blooded Otsutsuki can possess such horns. It's because of these horns that I awakened the Tenseigan at this age, while you needed to obtain Hashirama Senju's power and wait until you were nearing death to awaken Otsutsuki Hagoromo's Rinnegan."
"You knew all along that Nagato's Rinnegan was mine! Was it when I summoned the Gedo Mazo that your Otsutsuki clan discovered it? Otsutsuki Hagoromo, is that the Sage of Six Paths' name? He is indeed connected to the Otsutsuki clan!"
Madara finally confirmed his suspicions, then stared at Izayoi and asked, "The descendants of the Sage of Six Paths are the Uchiha, Senju, and Uzumaki clans; as long as the two poles unite, there's hope of awakening the Rinnegan. What about your Otsutsuki clan? Do you have descendants remaining in the ninja world? And you, with the Tenseigan, why do you look down on the Rinnegan and call the Sage of Six Paths a failure? Is it because you have horns on your head?"
These were the questions that kept Madara from having his Perfect Susanoo destroy the palace and immediately engage Izayoi in battle.
He had many more questions he wanted answered.
Besides the above, he also wanted to know if Izayoi was aware of the Ten-Tails? If so, why didn't he hunt the Tailed Beasts to prevent the Ten-Tails' revival, but instead wished to retrieve the Gedo Mazo?
Was he merely feigning contempt for the Rinnegan, secretly desiring to become the Ten-Tails' jinchuriki himself?
Izayoi didn't answer Madara's questions. Instead, he rested his face on his hand, displaying a playful smile identical to Warring States Madara's, and asked, "Interesting, did Otsutsuki Black Zetsu guide you to awaken the Rinnegan without telling you the origin of chakra?"
"?"
A huge question mark appeared on Madara's forehead, and his heart leaped fiercely. He spoke in a low voice, "Otsutsuki Black Zetsu? What do you mean by that? Since your Otsutsuki clan knew I awakened the Rinnegan in my later years, you should be well aware that Black Zetsu is my will. Are you trying to sow discord?"
"Heh… So, you're just a pathetic pawn."
Izayoi scoffed with even greater disdain, then his eyes shimmered with dazzling blue-white light, and he said softly, "In that case, let me, a frog in a well, understand the truth of the world!"
The next second, the scenery before Madara's eyes rapidly rewound, as if he were performing a Body Flicker.
When the scene stopped rewinding, Madara was back in the ninja world from the moon.
Before him was a woman with long white hair and white eyes, with horns on her head, catching a gleaming fruit that fell from a tree.
After eating the fruit, a vertical mark appeared on the woman's forehead, then split open left and right, revealing a red eye with Rinnegan ripples, adorned with nine tomoe.
Immediately, this woman soared into the sky, tearing it apart with immense power. The spatial rift connected to a celestial body in the universe, projecting the dōjutsu power of her Rinne Sharingan onto it, transforming the celestial body into a gigantic Rinne Sharingan.
Then, this enormous Rinne Sharingan unleashed dazzling white light that enveloped the entire world.
All humans engulfed by the white light lost consciousness.
Then, the God Tree, from which the fruit had fallen, suddenly burst forth from the ground, its roots seemingly spreading across the entire world, binding these unconscious humans into cocoon-like forms.
Although he hadn't yet become the Ten-Tails' jinchuriki, Madara had a premonition that the jutsu this woman was performing was the Infinite Tsukuyomi described in the stone tablet.
However, what puzzled Madara was: wasn't the Infinite Tsukuyomi supposed to be the true path to peace created by the Sage of Six Paths himself, passed down to his descendants?
Why was it this woman?
And… wasn't the god of shinobi, the progenitor of chakra, the Sage of Six Paths who sealed the Ten-Tails?
At this moment, Izayoi's voice echoed in Madara's ears.
"In ancient times, there was a God Tree in the world, bearing fruit once every thousand years. Its fruit was called… the Chakra Fruit."
"The woman who ate this fruit was named Otsutsuki Kaguya. She used her supreme power to quell the conflicts among Earth's inhabitants and was hailed by humans as the Rabbit Goddess."
"Thereafter, the Rabbit Goddess ruled Earth for a long time and gave birth to twins. The elder son was named Otsutsuki Hagoromo, and the younger son was named Otsutsuki Hamura. Both inherited the Rabbit Goddess's power."
The scene changed, and Madara saw the adult Otsutsuki Hagoromo and Otsutsuki Hamura, his attention drawn to their eyes.
"Why are they Byakugan?" Madara murmured, puzzled.
Since the Sage of Six Paths was the ancestor of the Uchiha and Senju clans, shouldn't it be the Sharingan?
Why would it be the Hyuga clan's Byakugan?
If he remembered correctly, that woman's eyes also seemed to be the Hyuga clan's Byakugan.
Could the Hyuga clan's ancestors also be from the Otsutsuki clan?
Suddenly, Madara remembered the Rinne Sharingan on Kaguya's forehead. Could it be that…
Soon, Madara's confusion was resolved.
The subsequent scenes focused on Otsutsuki Hagoromo as the protagonist. Madara witnessed the Sage of Six Paths' Byakugan transforming into the Sharingan, then his training in Sage Mode and awakening the Rinnegan, finally the brothers teaming up to seal Otsutsuki Kaguya.
During this time, Izayoi's voice continually narrated, as if explaining.
Through these scenes and Izayoi's narration, Madara also learned the secret of the Infinite Tsukuyomi.
"The Infinite Tsukuyomi isn't a true path to peace; it's… the creation of White Zetsu?" Madara's expression was somewhat dazed, as if his dream had shattered.
To finally find a method that could sever karma, only to be told that it was actually a ninjutsu to create idiots like White Zetsu—anyone would find that unacceptable.
Madara didn't fully believe these scenes, as he had once used Hashirama's cells to create White Zetsu.
However, the subsequent scene made Madara's lips twitch, his expression somewhat distorted.
As Otsutsuki Kaguya was being sealed, a blob of black liquid fell from her sleeve.
After this liquid landed, it quickly burrowed underground and then, from a distance, looked at its mother sealed by Six Paths – Chibaku Tensei.
Although its appearance was somewhat young, Madara immediately recognized this liquid: it was Black Zetsu, his will incarnate, created by Yin-Yang Release.
Izayoi's voice resonated once more.
"The world knows that the Rabbit Goddess had only two children, but they do not know that the Rabbit Goddess had a third child, the only one who did not inherit her immense power but inherited her will and immortality: Otsutsuki Black Zetsu."
"Black Zetsu is the Rabbit Goddess's son? That's utterly ridiculous!" Madara was even more incredulous, feeling that Izayoi was speaking nonsense.
But soon, Madara's expression became grim, his mood incredibly heavy.
After the Rabbit Goddess was sealed, the subsequent scenes matched what Madara knew: the Sage of Six Paths sealed the Ten-Tails, which was the transformed God Tree, becoming the first Ten-Tails' jinchuriki.
Afterward, the brothers went their separate ways for many years. The Sage of Six Paths traveled throughout the ninja world, while Otsutsuki Hamura had children and developed his family.
By the time the Sage of Six Paths concluded his journey of atonement, he had already distributed chakra to the world, establishing ninshū.
Then, he fathered two sons with a mortal woman: the elder son, Indra, and the younger son, Asura.
The twins should have borne the Otsutsuki surname, but for unknown reasons, the Sage of Six Paths did not bestow it upon them.
Due to his advanced age, fearing that the Ten-Tails would once again wreak havoc upon the ninja world after the brothers' deaths, the Sage of Six Paths divided the Ten-Tails' chakra into nine parts, creating the Tailed Beasts.
Otsutsuki Hamura took some of his clan members and the Gedo Mazo and migrated to the moon.
The branch of the clan that remained witnessed the inheritance struggle between Indra and Asura, and Madara also saw scenes of Black Zetsu manipulating Indra.
Ultimately, the brothers made a vow: their chakra would continually reincarnate, and their descendants would perpetually continue their destined battle.
As the Sage of Six Paths and his two sons died, the branch of the clan left behind by Otsutsuki Hamura, along with the descendants of Indra and Asura, gradually became influenced by the world. They used chakra as a weapon, igniting wars and ushering in the Warring States Period.
Ninshū was shattered, its legacy divided.
Because their ancestors had no surnames, the descendants of Indra and Asura adopted the surnames Uchiha, Senju, and Uzumaki.
The branch of the clan left by Otsutsuki Hamura initially maintained contact with the branch on the moon, but due to the outbreak of war on Earth, communication gradually ceased.
Many years later, this branch also changed its surname, becoming… the Hyuga clan.
The subsequent scenes flashed, focusing on the most outstanding members of the Uchiha and Senju clans.
Because the most excellent members of each generation died at each other's hands, the Uchiha and Senju clans, having lost the historical records of ninshū, became mortal enemies.
What made Madara's face grim was that in every confrontation between the most exceptional members of the Uchiha and Senju clans throughout the generations, Black Zetsu's figure was always present in the background.
There were even scenes of Black Zetsu using Yin-Yang Release to alter the stone tablet.
After an unknown period, the scenes finally reached Madara's and Hashirama Senju's generation.
Madara watched expressionlessly, seeing scenes identical to his own memories.
In these scenes, Black Zetsu's figure remained.
Especially when he obtained the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan and deciphered the stone tablet, learning how to acquire the power of All of Creation and Infinite Tsukuyomi, Black Zetsu's ecstatic expression was evident.
And when he awakened the Rinnegan and summoned the Gedo Mazo to prolong his life, Black Zetsu's permeation into his body through the Gedo Mazo's tubes left Madara feeling utterly numb inside.
He could no longer distinguish whether these scenes were real or fake.
If they were fake, then from Otsutsuki Kaguya at the beginning to his own generation, everyone was depicted vividly, unlike when Madara recounted history to the Akatsuki members, where he had to use shadows to describe the Sage of Six Paths and the Ten-Tails because he didn't know their appearances.
The story in the scenes was also very coherent and logical.
But if they were real, then it was simply absurd!
If 'Otsutsuki Toneri' knew about Black Zetsu, it implied that the Sage of Six Paths and Otsutsuki Hamura also knew about Black Zetsu. So why didn't they deal with Kaguya's third child?
They were ruthless enough to seal their own mother; surely they wouldn't show mercy to their own brother?
Even if they didn't act against their brother, they shouldn't have allowed him to manipulate their son, right?
And the descendants of Otsutsuki Hamura, if they discovered Black Zetsu continually manipulating generations of the best Uchiha members, why didn't they come down to eliminate Black Zetsu?
Was it due to their split from Earth?
Furthermore, he himself hadn't detected Black Zetsu's presence. How could the Otsutsuki clan members discover Black Zetsu so clearly, even knowing how Black Zetsu permeated his body? This was too fake!
However, Black Zetsu's meager strength shouldn't be a concern for 'Otsutsuki Toneri'. Why would he show him so many scenes? Could Black Zetsu truly be problematic? Is he really Otsutsuki Kaguya's third child? Is this real or fake? Madara couldn't understand, as his head was about to explode.
From being a frog in a well to understanding the truth of the world, Madara's brain was now overloaded.
Crack!
The scene finally froze on Madara creating Black and White Zetsu, and the genjutsu world shattered like breaking glass.
....
For early access to advanced chapters on p@treon
p@treon.com/Chaos_God
Thank you so much for your support and for reading