Chapter 190 – Ōtsutsuki Genshiki: Do You Know the Truth of This World?
"...So it really is for Mother."
Chakra surged endlessly into Kitagawa Gen's body, but Black Zetsu had no time to dwell on that.
The words alone were enough to paralyze him.
He had suspected as much long ago—but hearing the Ōtsutsuki admit it so bluntly shattered the last thread of composure he had.
The Ōtsutsuki clan… the clan of gods themselves.
His mother had fled from their pursuit, and in desperation, sought to turn every living being in the ninja world into White Zetsu.
An army of deathless, fearless soldiers—her only hope to resist them.
But all of that had been ruined by her two "good sons."
"It's over… everything's over…"
Black Zetsu's face was ashen, the weight of despair sinking in. The only thing that comforted him, however faintly, was that this intruder seemed not to know where his mother was.
But then again… if he himself died, would that even matter anymore?
"Hmm?"
Gen suddenly froze.
He seemed to sense something—his expression unreadable, his thoughts veiled.
Before Black Zetsu could process it, a massive serpent's head lunged toward Gen with earth-shaking force.
BOOM—
The colossal snake head smashed into the ground, shaking the earth as dust exploded upward.
Amid the haze, Black Zetsu realized something—Gen had released him.
A surge of joy flickered across his face.
Seizing the chance, he dove underground, darting away until he surfaced again beside Uchiha Obito.
"Tch. How unexpected."
Bathed in moonlight, Gen had already sidestepped the serpent's strike.
His gaze shifted briefly downward—to the pale, eight-headed serpent whose size rivaled a tailed beast. He shook his head slightly.
So, this was Orochimaru's technique.
But Gen's interest wasn't there. His attention turned instead to the black chakra writhing in his hand—extracted
Curiously, he found himself unable to absorb it directly.
"…Strange. Do I need to refine it… into some kind of pill first?"
He wasn't sure. And for the moment, no answer presented itself.
"Forget it. I'll deal with the immediate problem first. Two tailed beasts are still waiting for me."
If he couldn't figure it out, he simply set it aside. He was not the type to brood endlessly. He knew exactly what he needed.
And after so many encounters with Akatsuki—perhaps it was time to show Black Zetsu his true weight.
"Ha!"
Orochimaru wasted no time. Seeing Gen unmoving, he drove his monstrous body forward, eight giant heads lunging with hissing roars.
"Not a bad attempt," Gen remarked, raising his blade, the Totsuka Sword, which gleamed with dazzling light. "But your jutsu is ugly beyond measure."
Then his gaze sharpened.
"…And yet, you and your comrades carry traces of his chakra. Curious."
With a single swing, the Totsuka Sword ripped through the air.
In a blink, blood erupted as several of the serpent's heads were cleaved clean off.
BOOM—
The massive severed heads crashed into the earth, scattering dust and rubble.
"Tell me—do you know the truth of this world? Or is that why you're working with him? To seek it?"
Gen's voice was calm, yet carried the weight of judgment. His blade flashed again—another serpent head fell.
"…But that truth is cruel. For lowly creatures like you, some truths are better left untouched."
Another arc of his blade. Blood sprayed. The colossal serpent's bulk was nothing but a hindrance before him.
"Because no matter what you do, you will never escape the circle of fate."
One after another, Orochimaru's serpent heads were severed—yet not once did Gen so much as receive a scratch.
"What… what is he?"
On the edge of the ruins, the shinobi of Kumogakure finally arrived. Though their will to fight was nearly broken, duty forced them forward.
What they saw, however, left them shaken to their cores.
Hadn't they just suffered Konoha's surprise attack? And now, barely time to breathe, they found themselves in the midst of another, even stranger conflict.
"…What do we do now?"
Darui's eyes narrowed. This battle might not rival the giant Buddha they'd seen earlier, but it was far from ordinary.
"…Wait and see."
C murmured after a long silence. His gaze fixed on the battlefield.
"One of them is Orochimaru. That man…"
"Orochimaru?"
Darui's pupils contracted. According to intelligence, Orochimaru had fought alongside the Raikage and Kazekage—but those two had already fallen. Only Orochimaru's fate had been unknown.
And now, here he was.
"Why has he come here?"
"…Uncertain."
C shook his head, but after a pause, spoke again.
"He's a rogue ninja from Konoha… and tied to that mysterious Akatsuki. Which means…"
He trailed off, but the implication was clear.
A potential ally.
Still—they would not move rashly until the outcome was certain.
BOOM—
Another thunderous crash shook the ground. The serpent's final head was severed, crimson rain splattering across the battlefield.
Gen stood above it all, gaze cold, lips curled in disdain.
"Pathetic. Your resistance bores me. With power like this… you dare reach for the truth?"
"…The truth."
Despite losing its heads, the serpent's body still writhed—Orochimaru's will forcing it to move, regenerating what was lost.
At that moment, Obito appeared beside him, emerging from the serpent's body, his expression grim.
He didn't know what Gen meant. But his instincts screamed—this had to do with Black Zetsu.
And yet, he could no longer hold his tongue.
"I don't know what truth you're talking about. But whatever it is—I will uncover it! I will find every secret in this world!"
His voice rose with fury.
"And I will uncover your truth as well!"
Obito's eyes burned. He couldn't stand it anymore. This man's arrogance, his untouchable presence—it was unbearable.
"I'll rip off your mask, and see who you really are! I'll see your truth with my own eyes!"
"…Is that so?"
Gen tilted his head, faintly amused. The words sounded… strangely familiar.
Hadn't Naruto once said something like that to Obito?
"…So I've taken his script, then?"
With a small shake of his head, Gen smiled, lifting his Totsuka Sword once more.
"I only came to retrieve the power I lost. But it seems… you are far more entertaining than I expected."
The words had barely left his lips when his chakra erupted—moonlight incarnate, radiant and overwhelming.
It blazed so brightly it shattered the surrounding darkness, burning through the storm clouds until night itself seemed to turn into day.
"That chakra…"
"This presence… it feels even more terrifying than Kitagawa Gen's…"
"What are they talking about? Lost power?"
The Kumogakure shinobi heard everything. Gen hadn't lowered his voice. But none of them could understand what he meant.
All they knew was that this man's existence alone eclipsed even the giant Buddha from before.
"…It's over. It's all over."
Unlike the ignorant Cloud shinobi, Black Zetsu's mind was collapsing.
All this time, he had hidden himself beneath the guise of Uchiha Madara's will, clinging to the shadows.
But now…
But everything that had happened tonight… it could truly cost him his life.
He needed to think carefully about how to salvage the situation, or else nothing else would even matter.
---
"I've noticed something about you lower beings," Kitagawa Gen's voice rang out once more as his chakra fully condensed within him.
"Your strength is hardly worth mentioning, yet your will… is astonishingly unyielding."
He paused, his tone sharpening like the edge of his blade.
"But such unwavering resolve often feels more like self-deception. Still, that's understandable. After all—"
"For beings like you, without such illusions, how could you possibly endure in this merciless world?"
---
Hum—
In that instant, his blade descended. Energy, compressed to the limit, exploded outward in a devastating release.
"Just stall him for a moment, I'll get you out!" Uchiha Obito shouted, finally daring to act. He had learned from Black Zetsu's mistake—he had to wait until Ōtsutsuki Genshiki moved first.
Even as he spoke, his Kamui surged violently, and Orochimaru also sprang into motion.
---
Whoosh—
The colossal body of Yamata no Orochi twisted madly, each movement stirring winds as fierce as a wind-style jutsu.
But such desperate thrashing was meaningless before Gen. The moment the blade descended from the heavens—
Slash!
The world itself seemed split in two by that single strike.
The valley quaked violently, torrents of blood erupting from the massive serpent's body.
"AHHHH!"
Orochimaru's shrill, tearing scream echoed through the chaos as Yamata no Orochi's mountainous form was cleaved cleanly in half.
And still, that terrifying force continued to spread, the valley itself beginning to collapse under its weight.
---
At last, Gen's cold voice descended with finality.
"How unfortunate… this world exists only as it is—unchangeable fact."
---
BOOM!
A deafening roar engulfed the valley, reverberating endlessly through the crumbling cliffs.
In the blink of an eye, the towering canyon collapsed into a flat wasteland.
---
"What… what is this?!"
When the storm of debris finally settled, the shinobi of Kumogakure lifted their eyes in shock.
For a moment, none of them could even find words.
In that brief instant, they had felt like drifting weeds—powerless, rootless—no matter how strong they were, resistance had been impossible.
Now, staring at the flattened valley, a deeper despair swelled in their hearts.
"Kumo… what has become of us? Why must we face such a monster…" Darui muttered in disbelief.
Beside him, C muttered, his throat dry, unable to form a full response.
---
"Enough,"
A calm, icy voice cut through their dread.
They looked up—and there he was, descending like a god from the heavens.
Those brilliant azure eyes shone down upon them, threatening to annihilate their very souls.
"Now then… it's your turn, lower beings."