"Details can wait for the road. For now, let's go find one more person!"
As he spoke, Shinju gestured for Rin to place her hand on his shoulder.
The next instant—Flying Thunder God activated!
Shinju brought Rin straight into the Akatsuki's secret base! Sasuke was right there!
Rin: "Flying Thunder God! Y-you you… (꒪⌓꒪)"
Shinju ignored Rin's shock. With a few punches and kicks, he took down the White Zetsu guarding Sasuke, then turned his gaze to Sasuke, who was sitting there blankly.
"He's under a genjutsu…"
Shinju muttered, his eyes instantly shifting into Sharingan.
Rin at the side: "Sharingan! (꒪⌓꒪)"
"You you you…"
Very soon, Shinju dispelled the illusion on Sasuke!
Sasuke's eyes regained clarity. He looked at Shinju, lips trembling: "Shinju, thank you! (*꒦ິ⌓꒦ີ)"
Seeing him like this, Shinju couldn't help feeling a little guilty. It was he who had asked his team to help protect the Eight-Tails and Two-Tails…
"I should be the one thanking you… you've been through a lot."
Shinju placed a hand on Sasuke's shoulder, saying each word slowly and firmly!
Rin at the side: "…"
Before Rin could ask anything—
The next moment!
"Fwoooom—!!"
Chakra surged from Sasuke's body!
Shinju wrapped him in a blood-red cloak using his own chakra!
Feeling the overwhelming amount of chakra inside him, Sasuke's face lit with excitement—then confusion: "Shinju, what are you… Σ(っ °Д °;)っ"
"While you were captured, the Fourth Great Ninja War broke out…"
"For certain reasons, I can't directly join the battle, so I'm giving you chakra."
"Oh, and—since the one who started the war is the Masked Man, and you must be pissed at him for capturing you, think of this chakra as help from me for payback! ୧⍢⃝୨"
Sasuke panicked: "But if you give me all your chakra, what about you… Σ( ° △ °|||)︴"
Shinju blinked in surprise: "All? Nah, that's not even one-tenth. I've got plenty left. o_O"
Sasuke: "…"
The clown… was him!
Shinju: "Alright, I'll send you both to the battlefield now. I'll explain the details through Mind Transmission…"
...
On the battlefield in the Land of Grass.
Fourth Hokage: "This giant tree is absorbing the Alliance's chakra. In that case, the chakra Shinju gave everyone is meaningless…"
Naruto stared at the towering tree before him, pupils trembling, despair creeping into his heart:
"W-what… what even IS this thing?!"
Up in the sky, Obito seemed to hear Naruto's question and replied:
"The Ten-Tails' ultimate form. The origin of all chakra. Every bit of chakra now spread across the shinobi world originally belonged to it."
"You still don't know how ninjas were born, do you?"
With Infinite Tsukuyomi close to completion, Obito explained cheerfully:
"Back then, humans didn't even have the concept of chakra."
"But humans were greedy and waged wars even then."
"At some point, the Divine Tree bore a single fruit. Even though people didn't know what it was, there was a strict rule forbidding anyone from harvesting it."
"Until one day, a princess desperate for power picked the fruit, seeking strength from the Divine Tree, and ate it."
"Thus, the princess gained godlike power and ended the wars by herself. Her name was Ōtsutsuki Kaguya, the first person to obtain chakra."
"Later, the Divine Tree, stripped of its chakra, went berserk to reclaim its power. That was the Ten-Tails."
"And the one who stopped the Ten-Tails was Kaguya's son, Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo."
"He was also the one who unraveled the principles of chakra and founded Ninshū—known to the world as the Sage of Six Paths."
"Divine Tree… fruit… Kaguya…" As Naruto repeated these new terms, something felt… off.
"Right! The Divine Tree and Shinju!"
Naruto suddenly shouted, thinking he had uncovered the world's greatest secret!
The Divine Tree was the origin of all chakra—and Shinju possessed chakra that dwarfed the entire ninja world…
There might really be a connection!
But that idea felt a little far-fetched. After all, his name was given by the Third Hokage…
Soon, Naruto remembered another word Obito mentioned—"Sage of Six Paths"!
"So… could Shinju be the Sage of Six Paths reincarnated…?"
"Is he Kaguya's reincarnation? Σ(っ °Д °;)っ"
"Or maybe… he's the fruit she ate!?"
"…What the heck am I even thinking! (✘Д✘๑)"
While Naruto was lost in wild thoughts—
Obito continued speaking.
"By now, you should understand—the existence of ninjas was foolish from the very beginning."
"Kaguya sought peace by taking the fruit and gaining power, but instead of peace, she only intensified human conflict."
"So a world like this is better off inside a grand illusion!"
He looked toward the massive flower bud at the top of the Divine Tree.
"When the Divine Tree's bud blooms, the eye inside will be reflected on the moon."
"At that moment, Infinite Tsukuyomi will be complete! (｡ì _ í｡)"
Obito looked down at Naruto's group, still unwilling to accept defeat:
"Give up. You no longer have hope."
"Sink into the dreams created by Infinite Tsukuyomi. Only there will you know true happiness."
Though Obito spoke of happiness, none of it showed on his face.
He looked at the Divine Tree, at the people ensnared by its roots…
And only then did he realize—Infinite Tsukuyomi was progressing even faster than he expected.
He originally thought that without all nine Tailed Beasts, the Divine Tree would need far more time.
But now, it seemed the difference was minimal…
Obito frowned, thinking: Or… something is accelerating the blooming of the Divine Tree…
He recalled that earlier, many in the Allied Forces had been wearing blood-red chakra cloaks!
Could it be… Shinju's chakra sped up Infinite Tsukuyomi's activation?! ∑(°Д°)
The more Obito thought about it, the more plausible it seemed!
That guy Shinju had always been mysterious, with chakra beyond comprehension—maybe he really was connected to the Divine Tree!
So he began thinking about how to obtain more of Shinju's chakra…
Suddenly, his expression changed! (๑ʘ̅ д ʘ̅๑)!!!
He sensed something shocking!
Down below—
"Yeah right! I'm not living in some dream every day!"
"And as long as Shinju's here, there's no way you're succeeding!! Ծ‸ Ծ"
As he said this, the stubborn Naruto prepared to throw a Rasengan up at him.
Which was exactly what Obito wanted. He mocked:
"Great! You should call him over!"
"His chakra makes excellent fertilizer for the Divine Tree!!"
Just as Obito finished speaking—
A hand suddenly appeared behind Naruto and gently rested on his shoulder.
Next came a bright, cheerful voice!
"Obito! I'm here!"
"And I even brought you a little gift! ( ´▽` )"