Chapter 301 – Isshiki's Ten-Tails? The Sage of Six Paths' Grand Design!
Gen had no idea that the three Ōtsutsuki—Isshiki, Momoshiki, and Urashiki—had already lost their minds.
Of course, if he had known, he probably would've just thrown in more fuel for fun.
After all, the "Bloodline Web" currently forming between their vessels was the kind of thing that could drive even gods insane.
Still, as Gen watched Obito, Nagato, and Kimimaro struggle before him, his thoughts began to drift elsewhere.
"There's no point in dragging this out anymore."
Nagato and Obito wouldn't release the Ten-Tails—
not yet.
"They're waiting for the final convergence," Gen murmured, eyes narrowing.
"To unleash the Ten-Tails and summon Ōtsutsuki Genshiki."
But until then, they were using him—Kitagawa Gen—as a catalyst to accelerate their so-called "evolution."
"Or rather," he smirked faintly, "they're helping those Ōtsutsuki bastards unfreeze themselves."
He had no intention of explaining that truth to them.
If they realized that their bodies were merely incubators—vessels feeding the revival of higher beings—
they'd stop fighting in an instant.
And if they stopped fighting, then his God Tree's Core would lose its nutrients.
For people like them—driven by will, ego, and the illusion of control—
accepting that their future selves would no longer exist… that they'd become nothing but empty shells…
was impossible.
So instead, Gen simply chose to say nothing.
To mock them, provoke them, and let them burn themselves out.
And maybe, just maybe, to disgust the Ōtsutsuki inside them while he was at it.
"Still, this situation is… awkward."
He sighed softly.
If he hit them too hard, their Karma seals would unseal too quickly—and the Ten-Tails would be lost.
But if he went too easy, the Karma would unseal too slowly—and his energy harvest would dry up.
A frustrating balance.
"Well, at least I have options."
His eyes glimmered with thought.
"After all, there's always another Ten-Tails."
He smiled faintly at the idea.
"Nagato's Ten-Tails should be enough to sustain me for now… but why not prepare a backup?"
His God Tree Core was nearing full restoration.
His first fruit was almost ripe.
But for the best results—and the most potent chakra—he'd need more.
"My second fruit will use the remains of Ōtsutsuki Shibai," he mused,
"so the first one shouldn't be anything less."
And Shibai's corpse, along with Isshiki's Ten-Tails, were likely sealed within the same dimensional pocket.
He'd have to go there sooner or later.
"Besides, it'll take time for Kabuto to deliver what I asked for."
"So…"
He clenched his fist, decision made.
"Let my clone keep them busy."
"Meanwhile, I'll raid Isshiki's nest myself."
---
A grin spread across his face—
and his next strike came down like judgment.
BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!
The sky itself trembled.
Four figures clashed like gods, their power tearing the very air apart.
The earth below was crushed, rivers vaporized, mountains split like glass.
The shockwaves rolled across the nations, the land itself howling in protest.
In Gen's pursuit, the battle spilled out of the Land of Hot Springs, cutting a trail of ruin straight toward the Land of Whirlpools.
Everywhere they passed—stone, forest, mountain, river—
everything was reduced to dust by the uncontrolled flood of chakra.
"Damn him…"
Obito's voice was hoarse, his body battered beyond recognition.
But none of them stopped.
Even as they fought and retreated, each blow, each clash, filled them with something strange—
a rising sense of power,
a terrifying growth.
They could feel it.
Their bodies were changing.
Their chakra was mutating.
It should have been exhilarating—
if not for the cold, merciless fists of Gen, smashing every illusion of triumph to pieces.
Their bodies were shattered, their skin cracking, bones splintering—
kept together only by the regenerating flood of alien energy within them.
"Pathetic," Gen said quietly.
"You're still far weaker than I thought."
And then—
he vanished.
A single gust of wind followed,
and before Obito could even blink, Gen's fist collided with his chest.
Half of Obito's body exploded into the ground like a meteor.
"Tch—damn it!"
Nagato and Kimimaro's eyes widened in alarm.
They lunged toward Obito to pull him out, but Gen's expression barely shifted.
"How sad."
He raised his hand.
A sphere of spiraling black-and-white chakra—a Yin-Yang Rasengan—formed in his palm.
It screamed through the air, crashing into Nagato's defenses like thunder.
The impact sent shockwaves through his body, the repulsive force of Shinra Tensei crumbling against it.
Before Nagato could recover, Gen's form flickered again—
appearing beside Kimimaro.
The short blade of Yin-Yang chakra cut through the air—
and Kimimaro was sent flying, his bones cracking like porcelain.
Gen stopped.
The battlefield was engulfed in smoke and flame.
He stood at the center of it all, his figure dimly visible through the haze,
his aura rippling with the vastness of nature itself.
"This…" his voice carried, calm but cold.
"This is what you call 'evolution'?"
His words echoed over the scorched earth.
He didn't move again.
He didn't need to.
Even standing still, the sheer pressure of his chakra made the world tremble around him—
a figure wreathed in light and shadow,
half-god, half-storm.
"Kuh—damn it…"
A ragged voice broke through the static of destruction.
The three lay scattered amid the ruins—broken, trembling—
and yet, somehow, still alive.
"Are you even… human…?"
Gen smiled faintly.
"Does that question still matter?"
Nagato staggered to his feet, coughing, his voice hoarse and trembling.
"Damn it… I can't keep this up much longer…"
His body felt like it was falling apart from the inside out.
He forced himself to stay upright, glaring toward Obito.
"If you can't handle it, then step back. I'm preparing to release the Ten-Tails."
"No." Obito's tone was sharp, his jaw tight. "It's not time yet. We wait until everyone's assembled."
He could barely stand, but his pride refused to break.
Even if his legs were shaking, he wouldn't admit defeat—especially not in front of them.
"If we summon the Ten-Tails now, Genshiki will come. And when he does—"
"Tch."
Kimimaro's cold scoff cut him off. His pale eyes flickered with disdain.
"We can wait for the Ten-Tails. But the real question is—can you?"
"You—!"
Obito's temper flared. He'd never expected Orochimaru's pet project to speak to him that way. His expression darkened, fury twisting across his face—
—but before he could spit out a word, the dust before them parted with a deafening roar.
Gen walked forward through the smoke, his presence suffocating, his gaze utterly indifferent.
All three froze.
No one dared to speak.
No one even breathed.
They could only brace themselves, forcing their broken bodies back into formation.
But deep in Obito's mind, a different thought surfaced—dark and poisonous.
"The Path to Godhood…"
Gen's words echoed in his head.
"He awakened 'evolution' before us. His power makes sense… but I can't keep falling behind like this!"
His fists clenched so tightly his knuckles cracked.
His Sharingan whirled violently, his gaze shifting between Nagato and Kimimaro.
He was already thinking—how to steal their energy.
How to take their power and complete his own evolution.
---
"What the hell is going on?"
While Obito and his companions suffered under Gen's relentless assault, Uchiha Madara's face elsewhere had grown dark.
He could handle five Kage without much trouble.
But Black Zetsu's sudden reappearance changed everything.
"Didn't you go to retrieve the Sage's brother's relics?" Madara demanded. "What happened?"
"Something went wrong," Zetsu replied grimly. "The Nine-Tails' jinchūriki—Naruto Uzumaki—found me."
Even he sounded annoyed.
"I got the relic, but I had to stash it. I left it with one of Orochimaru's spies embedded in Konoha. It should be safe—for now."
"Orochimaru's spy…?"
Madara's frown deepened.
He'd planned to keep the Kage occupied to give Zetsu space to move.
Instead, the idiot had drawn attention to himself.
"Damn it," Madara muttered. "How could you be this sloppy?"
Before he could say more, Minato turned toward Naruto, brows knit.
"Naruto. You said you uncovered Madara's plot?"
"Yeah!"
Naruto nodded earnestly, his voice echoing across the battlefield.
Everyone's eyes turned toward him.
"That black thing was sneaking around the Hyūga compound. It looked like it was searching for something, so I attacked it."
He pointed to the darkened sky where remnants of battle smoke lingered.
"It can split into halves. The white one's trapped in the village—Mom's keeping guard. But the black half ran here!"
"The Hyūga?" Tsunade's brow arched sharply.
"Searching for something?"
The realization hit them all at once.
"Don't tell me…" Shikaku muttered, face pale.
"The Hyūga have a relic too?"
A stunned silence swept through the Kage.
It seemed impossible.
Sure, the Hyūga were vital to Konoha—their Byakugan made them unmatched scouts.
But in high-level combat? The Byakugan was nearly useless against gods and monsters.
So why—why would the Sage of Six Paths leave his brother's relics with them?
Could it be…
the Hyūga clan were descendants of the Sage himself?
---
"Madara," Hashirama finally spoke, his tone low but steady.
"What's your endgame? What are you and Zetsu truly after?"
"You stole the Senju relics," Tobirama added sharply.
"Why? What do you want them for?"
Madara lifted his chin, his eyes blazing.
"To build a peaceful world!"
His voice thundered through the ruins.
Even surrounded by the five Kage, there wasn't a trace of fear in his expression.
"Hashirama—you still don't get it." His tone hardened.
"The system you created, the world you dreamed of—it's rotting from the inside out!"
"Wars. Lies. Greed. Every ounce of chaos this world has birthed is a product of your so-called peace."
"I told you long ago—either unify the shinobi world, or let it burn."
"But your small-mindedness blinded you."
His voice grew louder, fiercer.
"And as I predicted, the moment you died, the world collapsed into endless war!"
"Now, I'm here to correct that mistake—to restore true order to this ugly world!"
Madara's words were like fire—fierce, righteous, unyielding.
Even those who opposed him could feel it:
beneath the darkness, his heart still burned with a longing for peace.
For a fleeting moment, silence fell.
Even Naruto and Sasuke exchanged uncertain glances.
Then Sasuke frowned, his voice quiet but edged with dry amusement.
"No wonder…" he muttered.
"Now I understand why Master Gen said the Sage favored Indra. Seems Asura wasn't exactly the—"
"Enough!"
Tobirama's voice cut him off like a blade.
"That's just a theory. Stop spouting nonsense!"
Madara's eyes narrowed.
"Oh? So Gen's been telling you bedtime stories now?"
A low chuckle escaped his throat.
"Not surprising. The Uchiha have always inherited remarkable things."
Black Zetsu blinked, feeling a cold sweat form.
What the hell is he talking about now?
---
"Madara Uchiha," Tobirama snapped, his expression darkening.
"Do you actually believe you're right?"
Madara folded his arms, his Sharingan gleaming.
"And what would a hypocrite like you know of being right?"
"Hmph."
Tobirama's lip curled in a mirthless smile.
"You're nothing but a fool—blind, deluded, and completely ignorant of the truth."
"Oh?" Madara tilted his head.
"And what 'truth' is that, exactly?"
Tobirama stepped forward, his eyes glinting.
"Did you ever wonder," he began slowly, "why war has lasted a thousand years?"
"Why the Sage of Six Paths never intervened in the conflict between Indra and Asura?"
"Why, even after the Ōtsutsuki descended, the Sage remained silent?"
Madara's brows furrowed. Even he couldn't immediately respond.
Black Zetsu's eyes flicked nervously between them.
He didn't like where this was going.
And then—Tobirama spoke, his voice cold and cutting:
"Because all of it… was the Sage's design."
The air froze.
Madara and Zetsu both stiffened, eyes wide in disbelief.
Had they heard wrong?
Had Tobirama gone mad?
But then—Hashirama didn't deny it.
He stood in silence.
And that silence said more than words ever could.
Madara's eyes darkened.
Zetsu's face twisted in confusion.
"Could it be…" Zetsu murmured, voice trembling.
"There's something… we never understood at all?"