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Manji was floored.
He never would've guessed that this unassuming White Monkey King had actually traded blows with Isshiki Ōtsutsuki—the absolute ceiling of combat power in this world.
Was it possible?
Impossible?
…Actually—yeah, it was entirely possible.
The White Monkey King's taijutsu was genuinely formidable, and his physical body was built like a fortress. In a later era, even Monkey King Enma could tank a direct hit from the Kusanagi Blade without flinching. And this White Monkey King had Sage Arts reinforcing him on top of that.
As long as he wasn't afraid of those black rods…
Theoretically, he really could go toe-to-toe with Isshiki.
Manji knew the old ape was probably exaggerating his record—but in all the years he'd known him, he had never once seen the White Monkey King's defenses actually get breached. Even when Manji had blasted him with Sage Jutsu, the ape had walked it off without so much as a scratch.
Even if he couldn't beat Isshiki, stalling him shouldn't be a problem.
Manji began running the numbers in his head:
White Monkey King vs. Isshiki—roughly a 50/50 split.
Kaguya vs. Isshiki—roughly 30/70.
Himself vs. Isshiki—roughly 20/80.
White Monkey King = Isshiki.
Himself < Isshiki.
Himself + White Monkey King + Kaguya > Isshiki.
DING!
A lightbulb went off in Manji's head.
So if you round up—the three of them could basically 'devour' Isshiki alive??
"Dude—why didn't you tell me you were this badass sooner??"
"You've been sitting on this kind of firepower the whole time??"
Manji rushed forward and personally refilled the White Monkey King's cup.
The White Monkey King guzzled the liquor heartily, then—starting to feel the effects—slumped forward onto the stone table, mumbling through a drunken haze: "Manji… relax. You came to the right guy. I've been itching for a rematch with that Isshiki bastard!"
"I will make that alien regret ever setting foot on this planet!"
"Those backwater space hicks… thinking they can run wild in our world? They clearly have no idea that the great and valiant White Monkey King stands guard over this Earth!"
And with that—the White Monkey King's thunderous snoring filled the cavern.
IT'S LOCKED IN! EVERYTHING'S LOCKED IN!
"With this lineup, we've basically got this in the bag!"
Manji's spirits soared. Thank god for his animal friends—without them, doing this solo would've been borderline impossible.
Now he had the White Monkey King as a powerhouse ally.
Plus Kaguya.
Didn't that mean taking down Isshiki Ōtsutsuki was practically guaranteed?
"Isshiki—enjoy your last few days, pal. Your number's up."
.....
After leaving the Monkey King's Summoning Realm, Manji received word from White-Brow Toad.
The Concealment Cloak was ready.
That very night, Manji donned the cloak and went to find Kaguya.
His reasoning was simple—he wanted to field-test the cloak's effectiveness. If it couldn't even fool Kaguya, there was no way it would work against Isshiki.
.....
Land of Ancestors—the Emperor's Palace.
Kaguya Ōtsutsuki sat poised before her vanity mirror in her private chambers, her mind anything but calm.
Soon—very soon—Isshiki would send her to be devoured by the Ten-Tails.
This was her fate.
In every Ōtsutsuki pair, one was always destined to be sacrificed.
But ever since arriving on this planet…
She had fallen in love with humanity. And she refused to accept it.
She refused to be the sacrifice!
Why couldn't Isshiki be the one fed to the Ten-Tails instead??
Why did it have to be her?
This burning refusal—this raw, seething injustice—was precisely what had driven Kaguya to seek out Manji in the first place. She wanted to see if this planet's strongest native fighter could help her change her fate.
"Sigh… It seems he doesn't have the courage to come after all…"
Kaguya let out a soft, resigned breath.
And honestly—could she blame him? That man called Manji had always kept a low profile, never drawing attention to himself. He valued his life above all else.
Why would he risk everything to help her?
Besides, he probably didn't even know what the Chakra Fruit was…
Just as Kaguya was sinking deeper into despair—
Manji had already appeared in the corner of her room. No one knew when.
Draped in a white cloak, he watched her silently, his presence perfectly blended into the surroundings.
Kaguya didn't sense a thing.
Manji gave a quiet, internal nod of approval. "So it actually works. Kaguya can't detect me at all."
Then Isshiki probably wouldn't be able to either.
The Senrigan was powerful, sure—but nothing in the original series suggested it had perception capabilities surpassing the Byakugan. Otherwise, Isshiki wouldn't have needed to activate the Byakugan during combat at all.
At that moment, Manji stepped calmly out of the shadows.
"Kaguya—I'm here."
His voice was even and unhurried.
The moment those words reached her ears, Kaguya—still staring at her reflection—spun around with a violent start.
Her eyes went wide with shock and disbelief.
Because she—Kaguya Ōtsutsuki—hadn't sensed Manji's arrival at all.
The only person who could appear beside her without warning like that was Isshiki.
And yet this planet's native warrior had just done the exact same thing.
"How long have you been standing there?"
Kaguya rose to her feet, guard instantly up, her voice sharp and wary.
"Never mind that. I came to discuss our arrangement. I'm in—I'll join forces with you. And when it's done, the Chakra Fruit is mine."
Manji's tone was firm and final. He waved his hand, signaling Kaguya to stand down.
The moment she heard his agreement, Kaguya's expression visibly brightened.
"Done!"
She accepted without a heartbeat of hesitation.
Manji's brow furrowed slightly, his gaze searching as it settled on Kaguya's pale, ethereal face.
He couldn't figure out why she'd give up the fruit so willingly.
As a member of the Ōtsutsuki Clan, Kaguya should've understood the fruit's power even better than he did.
"Why? You told me yourself that the fruit is extraordinarily valuable. How can you just hand it over?"
Manji asked, calm but probing.
Kaguya's expression softened into a gentle smile. "Because… I don't want power. I just want to be with the one I love."
That answer put Manji's suspicions to rest.
Kaguya was in the middle of a passionate romance with the Emperor of the Land of Ancestors right now. Of course. Case closed.
"Then let's get down to strategy."
Manji cut straight to business.
In short order, the two of them hammered out their plan—and all that remained was to wait for the day of the sacrifice.
.....
A few days later.
Deep within a vast bamboo forest.
Inside a massive crater, the Ten-Tails sat waiting—its gaping maw wide open, hungry and howling, ready to be fed.
"The time has come to sacrifice Kaguya…"
Isshiki Ōtsutsuki gazed down at the Ten-Tails with detached indifference.
Kaguya had already begun her slow approach.
Not far behind—cloaked in white and blended seamlessly into the environment—Manji followed in her wake, every step silent as a ghost.
His guard was at maximum. The instant Isshiki showed any sign of attacking, Manji was ready to bail to the Toad Sanctuary and reverse-summon himself straight back to Mount Myōboku.
"Yo... dude—you're actually doing this??"
The White Monkey King—currently transformed into the shape of a staff—spoke up with a barely contained expression of panic.
"What, did you think I was bluffing?"
Manji glanced at him, genuinely confused.
The White Monkey King's expression crumbled. He swallowed hard, a single thought screaming through his mind: This has gone way too far.
"Hold on—don't tell me that whole story about fighting Isshiki for three days and three nights was bullshit??"
Something suddenly clicked in Manji's brain, and his composure nearly shattered as he stared at the White Monkey King.
"I… I…"
The White Monkey King stammered.
"Okay, fine! I can't hide it anymore! I… I can't beat Isshiki…"
The old ape confessed with the most pitiful expression imaginable.
"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?? You couldn't have mentioned that SOONER??"
"Then what was all that about going three days and three nights against him??"
Manji's face drained of color.
'We're literally at the enemy's front door and you're telling me the gun you handed me is a freaking toy??'
"I… I did fight Isshiki for three days and three nights! But… but… it was Isshiki pinning me to the ground and beating me for three days and three nights… Eventually I couldn't take it anymore, so I retreated to the Summoning Realm…"
The White Monkey King delivered this confession with the most strained expression of his life.
'Oh, that's classic. Absolutely classic. I thought "fought Isshiki for three days straight" meant you were some kind of legend—turns out YOU were the one getting your ass kicked the entire time!'
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