At this moment, Kakuzu stood motionless ten meters away.
Having lived for nearly a century, he had witnessed countless ways to die over the past hundred years: hacked to death by blades, stabbed to death by kunai, blasted into ash by ninjutsu, crushed into meat paste by Tailed Beasts...
Yet this was the first time he had ever seen someone slowly drained dry by power they had created themselves, just as Hyuga Yu was experiencing right now.
Inside his sleeves, Kakuzu's fingers tightened slightly.
It was not out of fear, but rather because—
He was hesitating.
Yu's previous words echoed in his mind: "The only person I can think of who might be able to pull me back from a dangerous situation, Kakuzu-san... is you."
So, was that a genuine heartfelt statement, or was it a test from this brat?
Kakuzu understood the rules of power games all too well.
He had seen far too many superiors use "trust" as bait to test the loyalty of their subordinates:
If you act, it proves you possess the capacity to threaten me; thus, you are a threat and must die.
If you do not act, it proves your loyalty; yet loyal people often die even faster.
What's more, the relationship between him and Yu had never been built on trust; it was defined by profit, the restraints of Earth Grudge Fear, and the absolute suppression of Tenseigan chakra.
If Yu died, the source of Earth Grudge Fear's restraints would vanish, and he would regain his freedom.
Kakuzu narrowed his eyes, staring at Yu's increasingly pale face.
Yu's body began to tremble uncontrollably, trickles of blood oozing from his seven orifices to draw several terrifying red lines across his pale face. His breathing grew shallow and rapid, the rising and falling of his chest growing smaller and smaller.
Kakuzu recalled an event from the past:
Decades ago, the leader of Takigakure had instructed him in much the same way. Back then, he didn't possess Earth Grudge Fear yet; he was just a fool willing to risk his life for the village.
The leader had said: "Kakuzu, you are the shinobi we trust the most."
And then sent him to assassinate the First Hokage.
And after he returned from his failed mission, they locked him in prison on the charge of "damaging the village's interests."
Trust.
"Heh." The corners of Kakuzu's mouth curled up beneath his mask in a mocking sneer.
At this moment, Yu's condition was deteriorating rapidly. A corpse-like ash-gray hue washed over his face; it was obvious that if he did not cease his cultivation, he would suffer immense, crippling damage even if he managed to survive. In fact, even Kakuzu could ruthlessly defeat Yu in such a weakened state.
Yet right then, Kakuzu suddenly moved.
It was not out of trust.
It was because of business.
The Tennin's employment, the business dealings of the Headquarters, and the grand claim Yu had once promised—a feat even the God of Shinobi had failed to accomplish: unifying the entire Shinobi World...
A businessman always maintained an extra measure of tolerance toward his business partners.
"Secret Technique: Heart Capture!"
Black tentacles erupted furiously from Kakuzu's palm.
The threads of Earth Grudge Fear sliced through the air with a sharp screech, piercing straight into the left chest of the defenseless Yu. Simultaneously, Kakuzu charged forward against the wind, seizing Yu forcefully to pull him upward into a spin!
Yu's body was hoisted into midair, suddenly snapping taut.
The moment Kakuzu's tentacles touched them, all five hearts throbbed violently at the same time!
"What are you doing, Kakuzu-san?"
Yu's faint voice reached Kakuzu's ears, yet his tone lacked fear, containing only a calm composure as if everything were within expectations.
"Doing what you told me to do," Kakuzu replied coldly.
His tentacles had already entangled the four Earth Grudge Fear hearts inside Yu's chest cavity, ready to rip out one or all four at any moment.
"Which one?" Kakuzu asked.
The corners of Yu's mouth curved into an expected smile. After a brief moment of thought, he immediately made his decision:
"Water."
Kakuzu did not hesitate.
The tentacles tightened and yanked outward violently—
Yu's body arched like an electric shock as a deep, muffled groan escaped his throat. Wrapped in black tentacles, a fresh, beating heart gleaming with a blue luster was ripped cleanly from his chest, dragging out a cloud of dark red blood mist!
The blue glow extinguished the instant the heart separated from his body.
The chakra circulation within Yu's chest cavity underwent a violent tremor. The absence of the Water-attribute heart shattered the equilibrium constructed by the seven natures.
Yet simultaneously—
The Truth-Seeker Orb still suspended two thousand meters underground suddenly ceased its draining force and began to quiver destabilizingly.
The formation of a Truth-Seeker Orb required seven elemental natures.
Seven—lacking even a single one would not do.
The moment it lost the support of Water-attribute chakra, the structure of that pitch-black water drop began to collapse. Like a shattered pane of glass, it disintegrated from within, fractures spreading across the smooth surface of the 'water drop', and then—
Bang!
It shattered.
Turning into a wisp of black dust, it dissipated deep within the subterranean layers.
Yu felt the bone-deep, parasitic suction within his body vanish completely. As if all his strength had been drained away, he fell straight backward, his head hitting the ground with a dull thud.
Yet he was still alive.
His breathing was faint, his heartbeat chaotic, one leg severed, both palms gone, and his chakra reserves practically reduced to zero.
Standing in front of him, Kakuzu looked down with a slight frown. Paying no heed to Yu's current injuries, he asked directly:
"You knew this would happen all along?"
This question was asking whether Yu had known long ago that Kakuzu actually possessed the power to initiate an attack against him through the connection of Earth Grudge Fear.
Lying in the underground cavern, Yu stared blankly at the ceiling above. It took a few seconds of dazed silence before he shook his head slightly.
"I didn't know."
"I merely deduced that since Earth Grudge Fear can bestow hearts, it can also extract them. Once ripped away, the corresponding nature transformation would vanish."
Answering past the question.
Kakuzu stared at him for three seconds. He didn't bother asking irrelevant questions like why Yu believed he would act to save him. Instead, he directly threw the dead heart in his hand aside, pulled out a roll of bandages from his robes, squatted down, and began treating Yu's severed limbs.
Then, with a solemn face, he spoke:
"Brat, you owe this old man a life."
"Put it on the tab."
"Will you ever pay it back?"
"There will be an opportunity."
Neither of them spoke any further.
Quiet descended upon the training ground, filled only with the rustling sound of Kakuzu wrapping bandages and the steady thudding of the four hearts in Yu's chest finding their rhythm once more.
Thus, Yu's first attempt to break through to the Six Paths level ended in failure.
An unknown amount of time passed.
Kakuzu had already left, leaving Yu alone in the training ground to recuperate from his injuries.
At this time, after replenishing a portion of his chakra through Sage Mode, Yu utilized Yang Release to repair half of his body. Suddenly, he felt a burning sensation in the palm of his right hand.
It wasn't pain, but rather... a sense of fullness.
As if something were growing there, taking shape.
Raising his eyebrows slightly, he strained to lift his right hand and turned his palm over.
In the center of his palm, a sun-shaped mark was slowly surfacing. Golden lines flowed beneath his skin like molten lava before finally solidifying into a simple pattern—
It was a golden circle paired with a black crescent moon, surrounded on the outer edge by six interconnected arcs that formed a crescent-like curve.
It looked like a sun with a crescent moon attached, bordered by six line segments of different colors.
The six arcs corresponded to six elemental natures:
Yin, Yang, Fire, Wind, Lightning, and Earth.
Though his attempt to break through to the Six Paths level had failed—or rather, this hadn't been an attempt to reach the Six Paths level at all, but merely an experiment in creating a Six Paths-level weapon—Yu had not walked away completely empty-handed.
Staring at the mark, Yu manipulated his internal chakra to flow into it.
And then, he felt it.
This was something named the "Mark of Yin and Yang." However, while it was similar to Naruto's Yang Mark—which could execute Six Paths: Chibaku Tensei to seal Kaguya or restore Might Guy to life—it was also somewhat different.
As the foundational structure, the two were likely identical; however, 'Yang Release' and 'Six Paths: Chibaku Tensei' were likely extra abilities attached by the Sage of Six Paths on top of it. Yu's "Yang Mark" did not possess those two specific abilities.
Through the fusion of the six chakra natures, this Yang Mark could grant Yu enhancements in reaction speed, taijutsu speed, raw power, ninjutsu potency, and chakra capacity.
Although Yu wasn't lacking in those areas, it was... better than nothing.
More importantly, this attempt allowed Yu to verify further intelligence regarding the so-called "Six Paths":
This experience proved at the very least that—
The Six Paths level was not a realm one could step into simply by fusing seven chakra natures to generate a Truth-Seeker Orb.
Fusing a Truth-Seeker Orb was merely a capability of the Six Paths tier. Even if one managed to forge a Truth-Seeker Orb, their own power would not undergo a qualitative leap because of it. It could be understood that a Truth-Seeker Orb was merely a weapon used by entities at the Six Paths level.
Even if one created the weapon, lacking Six Paths power meant they couldn't even wield it properly. It was like a child trying to swing a massive broadsword they couldn't lift—a utterly laughable endeavor.
Looking across the entire history of Naruto, the fundamental reason those at the Six Paths level held that status was that—they were born at the Six Paths tier.
The Sage of Six Paths, the Ten-Tails, Kaguya Ōtsutsuki, Isshiki, Hamura Ōtsutsuki...
For latecomers seeking to achieve the Six Paths level, there was one and only one pathway:
Whether through devouring, replacing, or evolving, one could only truly be called "Six Paths" upon reaching their level.
This was ultimately a world governed by lineage theory.
At this moment, a somewhat hasty set of footsteps echoed from the corridor of the training ground.
Yu raised his head.
Yamato's figure emerged from the corridor entrance, still clad in standard Foundation attire with his honest, straightforward face.
He walked quickly into the training ground, and the very first thing he saw was Yu lying in the center, repairing the remaining half of his body's injuries.
Yamato's footsteps ground to a sudden halt.
"Tennin-sama, you are..."
"It's nothing," Yu's voice was as calm as if the severed hands and leg weren't his own. "A minor accident during cultivation. They'll grow back soon."
Yamato swallowed hard, his eyes lingering on Yu's severed limbs for several seconds before forcing himself to look away.
"The latest frontline battle report," he handed over a scroll, his voice slightly tight. "Senior Terai asked me to deliver it immediately."
Yu took the scroll and unrolled it.
The handwriting on the intelligence scroll was somewhat hasty. Yu's eyes quickly scanned the densely packed text and diagrams, his brow slowly furrowing.
The contents of the report were worse than he had anticipated.
After Minato Namikaze arrived at the eastern front, he quickly adjusted the tactical deployment. Leveraging the mobility of the Flying Raijin Jutsu, he led teams to inflict heavy damage on Kirigakure's supply lines during the early stages of the battle, consistent with Yu's previous assessment.
However, problems soon arose—
Weaponry.
Kirigakure was equipped with new types of ninja tools, and Konoha had captured a portion of them. Based on the weapon illustrations drawn in the intelligence scroll, Yu recognized them at a glance—they were unmistakably:
Automatic rifles, light machine guns, rocket launchers... modern firearms.
Weapons that should not have appeared in this era.
These weapons had minimal effect in squad-scale skirmishes; after all, shinobi could genuinely dodge bullets, and avoiding the primary damage of a rocket launcher via the Body Flicker Technique was not a major issue.
The problem lay in the fact that this time, Kirigakure condensed their supply lines and invasion routes, forcing Konoha into large-scale massed engagement battles.
In massed engagements, the efficacy of such weapons was amplified exponentially, inflicting heavy casualties on Konoha's shinobi forces.
Yu continued reading down the scroll, which contained a brief summary of the battlefield situation:
"Chūnin are already unable to break through the machine gun firepower network set up by Kirigakure on the front lines. Only Jōnin can breach the suppression fire to decapitate the gunners, but they are immediately targeted for concentrated strikes. As of now, the eastern front has lost seven Jōnin—three died from direct rocket launcher hits, and two were assassinated from long range by snipers."
"During the day, Kirigakure advanced the battle line; the battlefield situation once turned into a meat grinder."
"Minato Namikaze-sama has ordered a full shift toward night battles and small-squad infiltration tactics. However, due to the enemy's overwhelming firepower advantage, progress remains slow."
Yu's brow pulled into a tight knot.
Judging from this, these modern weapons—which far surpassed what the current technology tree could produce—were clearly sourced from the "Kara" organization in the Land of Lightning.
Kirigakure had received assistance from Kara.
However, Yu couldn't quite fathom why Kara would aid Kirigakure at a time like this.
Even if Kirigakure pinned Konoha down, what benefit would that bring to an organization like Kara, whose primary objective was helping Isshiki Ōtsutsuki achieve resurrection?
Taking a deep breath, he continued reading.
A second problem was quickly exposed on the battlefield—
High-end combat power was leveled by Kirigakure.
Following the Kirigakure collapse event, the Three-Tails and Six-Tails broke free of their seals.
After the plan to seal the Three-Tails into Rin Nohara and send her to Konoha as a Tailed Beast weapon failed, Yagura Karatachi assumed the position of Fourth Mizukage to stabilize Kirigakure's situation, subsequently becoming the Jinchūriki of the Six-Tails.
According to the battle report, Yagura Karatachi and Minato Namikaze could do nothing to defeat one another, forcing them into a battle of attrition that further escalated the casualty rates on both sides of the field.
Furthermore, a brief summary at the end of the report drew Yu's special attention—
"It is reported that Jiraiya-sama subsequently led reinforcement troops to support the Kirigakure front. However, en route he encountered an individual self-identifying as 'Madara Uchiha'. Jiraiya-sama was stymied by the opponent around the Unnamed Forest area and failed to reinforce the front line in time."
Seeing the words "Madara Uchiha" pop up on the battle report, Yu's brow furrowed tightly.
He naturally knew that this "Madara Uchiha" was Obito Uchiha in disguise. But why were Obito Uchiha and Black Zetsu choosing to step onto the battlefield now? What were they plotting?
At this point, Rin Nohara had already undergone surgery; she only needed the Sharingan genjutsu within the Three-Tails inside her cleared to be fully cured and become a functional Three-Tails Jinchūriki.
Rin was saved, and Kakashi was fine.
So what kind of madness was Obito Uchiha throwing now? What kind of stance was he operating under?
First, the Moon Ōtsutsuki from the Land of Wind unsealed Ryūki/Mōryō and raised an army to press forward.
Then Kara secretly funded Kirigakure to wage war.
And now, Obito Uchiha—who should have turned over a new leaf and returned to Konoha—attacked Jiraiya, pulling off such brain-dead maneuvers?
It was chaos, absolute chaos!
The entire Shinobi World situation was gradually descending into a chaotic mess that even Yu could not comprehend...
Right then, Yamato spoke up: "Tennin-sama, besides this, there is another piece of news to report to you."
"What is it?"
"In light of the unfavorable battlefield situation, the Advisor Elder Council expects to dispatch additional troops to the Kirigakure front."
Hearing this, Yu seemed to realize something, grasping a single thread amidst the thousands of tangles that could connect all these events together.
What if the target of all these people... was himself?
Realizing this, Yu looked at Yamato and asked:
"The higher-ups... want to send me as reinforcements?"
At present, the master-disciple pair of Minato Namikaze and Jiraiya were pinned down on the Kirigakure front. Orochimaru was at the Headquarters leading research on various projects. Tsunade had already left the village with Shizune two weeks ago.
Unless the Third Hokage or Danzō Shimura personally went to the battlefield, mobilizing himself seemed to be the only option left among top-tier combat forces.
However, Yamato shook his head.
"Danzō-sama brought this up during the council meeting, but it was voted down. The Third currently intends to personally lead the Uchiha, Sarutobi, and Aburame clans into battle."
"I see."
Yu thought for a moment, feeling that he might be overly suspicious.
Yet after weighing it over and over, regardless of what the outside world was plotting, his current objective remained unchanged—
Namely, according to his original plan, Yu needed to acquire the Sage Body of the Hamura lineage as quickly as possible to complete the integration of all his powers and obtain a true Tenseigan.
"No matter what the outside world is plotting, regarding Kirigakure right now... I need to make another trip!"
"The pinnacle of the Kaguya clan in this world... can probably only be reached by Kimimaro Kaguya."