Momochi Zabuza slowly opened his eyes.
Before doing so, he had already remained fully alert for several minutes. Only after keeping his eyes closed and confirming many things did he reluctantly open them.
At that moment, a vast, distant, and somewhat ethereal voice spoke.
"Not bad. Your qualities are the strongest."
Momochi Zabuza: "..."
The terrifying voice shook his body until he trembled like a sieve.
Zabuza felt deeply humiliated by his reaction, but it also extinguished his impulse to suddenly launch an attack.
He followed the sound and saw a god.
Yes, a god.
The being wore an imperial crown and an azure ceremonial robe embroidered with a coiling five-clawed golden dragon.
Zabuza noticed that twelve strands of jade beads hung from the front and back of the crown, concealing the god's face entirely.
Yet he could still sense supreme majesty and solemnity.
Feeling his legs trembling uncontrollably, he understood that if there hadn't been a long table before his seat, he probably wouldn't merely be supporting himself with both hands.
He would already have prostrated himself completely and been unable to rise.
Zabuza's heart pounded in terror.
He hurriedly lowered his gaze and looked toward the god's azure ceremonial robe.
His eyes were involuntarily drawn toward the five-clawed golden dragon embroidered upon it.
Suddenly, the dragon glanced coldly at him.
Zabuza's hair stood on end, and he no longer dared look at it.
The dragon upon the robe was actually alive...
As expected of a god.
Momochi Zabuza suddenly found something strange.
Why had he immediately decided that the being before him was a god?
He didn't dare look directly at the other party.
Using the corner of his eye, he secretly examined the magnificent figure and nodded inwardly, confirming the being's identity.
[So enormous! He must be a god!]
Although Zabuza was only eleven years old, he had officially become a Kirigakure ninja two years earlier.
His eyesight and experience were both remarkably mature.
Even with only a glance from the corner of his eye, and even though the other party was seated, he could still estimate the figure's height.
It was definitely over six meters and might even be seven.
A single knee was taller than Zabuza himself.
No matter how courageous he was, Zabuza couldn't help feeling afraid.
He carefully withdrew his gaze and no longer dared look.
...
Uchiha Yoru hadn't decided to establish the Divine Court from the very beginning.
As his research into the Golden Core progressed, he gradually understood the core law of his Golden Core.
It was actually the Law of Karma!
No wonder he had been able to see karmic threads as soon as he achieved some success.
However, Uchiha Yoru couldn't understand at all why the Law of Karma had become his fundamental core.
He had always believed it would be either the Law of Five-Spirit Natural Energy or the Law of Fate.
Because of his immortal cultivation, he had studied Five-Spirit Natural Energy extremely deeply and mastered it comprehensively.
Every breakthrough during the Foundation Establishment stage had been closely connected to it.
It seemed only natural for that to become his core law.
Meanwhile, through his active interference after turning eighteen, he had changed the fates of many people.
Among them were Uchiha Shisui and Shinichi, Obito's teammate, from Konoha, as well as Nekosuke and seventeen ninja cats from the Cat Castle who had mastered senjutsu chakra.
He had also killed many ninja from other villages.
These included thousands of Kirigakure ninja, Ying, the Three-Tails' jinchūriki Ōnishi Kyōhei, and several Sunagakure ninja.
After changing so many people's fates, making Fate his core law would also have been perfectly reasonable.
Yet in the end, it was the Law of Karma that successfully occupied the core.
As his research into utilizing the otherworldly heavenly demon advanced, and as the Golden Core's core law cooperated more closely with the heavenly demon's abilities, he finally understood the reason.
In truth, Uchiha Yoru's interference with fate hadn't been particularly strong.
The changes to Shisui and Shinichi's fates were still merely brewing.
Whether they would truly change remained unknown.
The Kirigakure and Sunagakure ninja had been killed by him, but they had already thrown themselves into the Third Shinobi World War.
Death had most likely been their original fate.
The only difference was whose hands they died by.
Viewed this way, his interference with fate hadn't yet produced changes of sufficient weight.
However, the karmic relationships he had established throughout the war were genuinely numerous.
The changes he had caused within the Uchiha clan were also substantial.
The Three Cultivation Methods he had developed and spread had produced an influence so vast that it was difficult to estimate.
He had planted countless "causes" and clearly understood how many original "effects" he had altered.
Now that he thought about it, the Law of Karma becoming the core law of his Golden Core was entirely natural.
By the time he understood this, it was already mid-February.
Afterward, construction of the Divine Court finally entered the proper track, and its progress accelerated significantly.
His research into the Golden Core also achieved enormous results through the construction of the Divine Court.
The information revealed by those results convinced Uchiha Yoru that the Great Dao of the Golden Core wasn't something that could advance merely by hiding at home and living peacefully.
As Uchiha Yoru successfully engraved the three laws of the seasons, life, and war, the Golden Core's second expansion consumed natural energy and the three treasures of essence, energy, and spirit until he reached the limit of what he could endure.
All the natural energy Uchiha Yoru had accumulated over many years was absorbed into the Golden Core.
He no longer possessed the conditions necessary to support further growth.
Naturally, forcing himself to the limit caused many problems.
When Uchiha Yoru was completely drained and fell into a weakened state, his meridians were empty.
The chakra within his cells once again showed signs of reverse permeation.
Unfortunately, the Golden Core's second expansion required a considerable amount of time before stabilizing because the supporting force of its core Rule Seal was insufficient.
That crisis left an unforgettable impression upon Uchiha Yoru.
Clearly, the Great Dao of the Golden Core wasn't a matter of simply piling things together.
Uchiha Yoru needed to invest sufficient time and energy into continuously deepening his understanding of laws, tempering his three treasures of essence, energy, and spirit, and accumulating abundant natural energy.
None of those three requirements could be fulfilled by becoming a shut-in.
Uchiha Yoru had to involve himself in worldly affairs, explore the deeper secrets of the shinobi world, and perhaps even obtain the Sage of Six Paths' divine artifacts for research.
Only then could he rapidly deepen his understanding of laws.
Tempering the three treasures required Uchiha Yoru to obtain a stable supply of resources capable of supporting continuous cultivation.
As for accumulating natural energy, he needed a sufficiently safe and stable sacred land with a high concentration of natural energy.
Satisfying all these requirements demanded resources and manpower.
He needed an organization under his complete control.
Thus, constructing the Divine Court organization was placed upon the agenda.
Today, the Divine Court's physical framework had finally been completed.
It was time to recruit people.
The Divine Court combined the abilities of the otherworldly heavenly demon with the Law of Karma.
It possessed the ability to connect with those who shared karma with its master and pull their souls into the seats.
After subduing the Heart Ape, Uchiha Yoru connected both the power of faith and divine authority to the Divine Court.
Only after passing through it would they be redirected into the Heart Ape.
He exploited the heavenly demon's instinctive craving for the power of faith, using that instinct to pull open an even larger gap.
He inserted additional sealing techniques and illusion structures, transforming part of the heavenly demon into an illusory divine kingdom.
Finally, he projected the illusory divine kingdom over the Divine Court, creating an unparalleled sense of holiness.
The heavenly demon's illusions were truly astonishing.
Even Uchiha Yoru, the designer and builder, couldn't detect the slightest flaw in that sacred atmosphere while seated upon the dragon throne and observing carefully.
Using such a Divine Court to deceive people was more than sufficient.
Uchiha Yoru smiled.
"Then who should become my first group of 'subjects'?"
He opened his eyes and looked toward the karmic threads.
At that moment, the Divine Court and the Purple Mansion world vanished entirely from his vision.
Only a pitch-black void remained.
Countless karmic threads spread outward from his body, extending into the void and connecting to independent intelligent life-forms.
There were ninja, ordinary people, children, the daimyō of the Land of Rivers, and even ninja beasts.
Uchiha Yoru began carefully selecting among them.
First, he rejected anyone he didn't know at all.
He disliked matters that depended entirely upon luck when he possessed absolutely no understanding of the person involved.
Second, he rejected those whose personalities or potential possessed obvious flaws.
For example, the old man Nobutada was simply too elderly, while Uchiha Obito was far too unreliable.
Finally, he rejected anyone who was already a leader and possessed a mentality unsuited to becoming a subordinate.
For example, if Orochimaru were brought in, Uchiha Yoru would merely be waiting for the day he betrayed him.
He didn't even want the members of the Tiger Unit.
Otherwise, this organization would simply duplicate one he already possessed.
Although he eliminated so many candidates, plenty of possible targets remained.
Fortunately, Uchiha Yoru was no longer a mortal.
He processed information extremely quickly and soon selected three targets.
Uchiha Yoru extended his hand, picked out three karmic threads, and pinched them between his fingertips.
Then the Golden Core released countless rays of light, and the towering, majestic Divine Court began vibrating.
The karmic connections locked onto their targets.
The immense power of the Golden Core drove the otherworldly heavenly demon's soul-seizing ability.
Three souls were instantly extracted from different locations across the shinobi world and drawn into the Divine Court.
According to their individual traits, the souls landed within three separate seats.
After receiving an infusion of divine power, the souls expanded and returned to their original appearances.
However, the instant they manifested, all three collapsed like noodles directly onto the tables before their seats.
They didn't move at all.
Every one of them had fallen unconscious.
Uchiha Yoru sucked in a cold breath.
"I used too much force. I really used too much force."
"This is bad. I didn't crush them to death, did I?"
After an emergency examination, he confirmed that none of the three were in mortal danger.
Only then did he relax slightly.
Their souls had indeed suffered considerable damage.
However, with divine power continuously being infused into them, they were rapidly recovering.
They should wake up shortly... probably?
There was no helping it.
The series of operations involved in seizing souls was far too complicated.
This was Uchiha Yoru's first attempt, and without any prior experience as a reference, mistakes were inevitable.
Moreover, to ensure the extraction succeeded, he had instinctively used excessive force.
The three souls had been injured quite severely.
Even with divine power restoring them, they couldn't awaken immediately.
Looking at their miserable condition, Uchiha Yoru couldn't help feeling guilty.
He apologized.
"You have suffered greatly as the experimental subjects of my first soul extraction."
"Please rest assured. In the future, I will do my best to compensate the three of you."
As Momochi Zabuza awakened, Uchiha Yoru began his first performance.
...
At that moment, a soft groan came from the seat opposite and to the right.
It drew Zabuza's attention and gaze.
A blue-haired girl sat up while clutching her head.
Konan was dazed.
Her head hurt so intensely that she had to press it firmly between both hands to reduce the pain even slightly.
The headache prevented her from concentrating, leaving her entire body groggy and disoriented.
After panting for a long while, she finally released a painful groan.
Only then did she mutter, "Where is this? How did I get here?"
Zabuza stared closely at the girl opposite him.
He was astonished to discover that he could tell at a glance that she was sixteen or seventeen years old.
He could even see her expressions and subtle changes in emotion.
But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't clearly perceive her appearance.
No.
That wasn't quite right.
He had seen her face, but immediately afterward, he forgot it.
Zabuza was secretly shocked.
This should be the effect of an illusion.
But what kind of illusion could accomplish something like this?
Even the three-tomoe Sharingan of Konoha's Uchiha clan couldn't do it.
Otherwise, how could Kirigakure have resisted until now?
After looking around, he discovered that there was also a blond young man seated to his right.
His face was equally impossible to perceive.
Yashamaru had been awakened by the words, "Your qualities are the strongest."
As a Sunagakure ANBU ninja, he was far more cautious than Zabuza.
He remained lying down while investigating his surroundings, confirming the number of people nearby and collecting relevant information.
He even waited until the blue-haired woman opposite him woke before quietly sitting upright as well.
Yashamaru wasn't as bold as Zabuza.
He respectfully stood and performed a standard greeting.
"Great Being, what do you desire?"
His question drew the attention of both Konan and Zabuza toward the elevated platform.
The jade bead curtains swayed slightly.
The giant figure gently nodded.
Then the vast voice echoed within each person's heart.
"I have only recently awakened from my slumber and wish to know what the world has become."
"That is why I summoned you here to ask."
A giant hand rose and pointed toward Konan.
"You are from Rain Commandery. As a major transportation route, its information should be extensive."
Then it pointed toward Momochi Zabuza.
"You are from an overseas vassal state. Commerce there is quite prosperous."
Finally, it pointed toward Yashamaru.
"You are from the Central Commandery, so you should possess the most information."
"How many generations has the Human King's line passed through?"
The three stared blankly at one another.
None of them understood what the other party was talking about.
In truth, Uchiha Yoru had invented all of it.
Using the clues he had discovered over the years, he carefully fabricated a mythological background for the shinobi world's primordial era based upon the Yanhuang mythological system.
The figure seated upon the elevated platform, dressed in an imperial crown and ceremonial robes, was Uchiha Yoru.
This place was the Purple Mansion world—the newly restored main hall of the Divine Court above the white clouds.
The entire Divine Court's architecture was modeled after the main hall of the Weiyang Palace from the Han dynasty.
Its building materials were entirely white jade, green jade, corundum, and emerald.
Pearls, agate, gold, and coral served as decoration.
Purple qi formed veils.
White mist became curtains.
Celestial fragrance lingered in the air, while auspicious clouds gathered in brilliant colors.
Jade terraces were wrapped in radiant ornaments, and treasure pavilions floated amid hazy light.
Everything was modeled after the descriptions of the Heavenly Court in Journey to the West.
His behavior was likewise inspired by the Lord God and Mr. Fool.
Classics became classics for a reason.
Clothes made the man, just as a saddle made the horse.
Uchiha Yoru's level of divinity was low, and his divine power was shallow.
He couldn't make others feel overwhelming divine authority merely through his existence.
Especially when he intended to disguise himself as the Heavenly Emperor, the sovereign among gods.
He could only rely upon external embellishments such as these.
But he had to admit that the result was quite good.
After Konan, Zabuza, and Yashamaru were drawn here, every one of them trembled in fear.
Not a trace of a ninja's usual unruliness remained.
They didn't dare question even the nonsense he spoke.
Instead, they carefully tried to understand and earnestly explain.
Yashamaru answered first.
"Great Being, my home is now called the Land of Wind. It is no longer known as the Central Commandery."
"It was renamed the Land of Wind?"
"How strange. How could the Central Commandery, whose ancient forests stretched for tens of thousands of li, come to be called the Land of Wind?"
Yashamaru stared dumbfounded.
"Our Land of Wind is a desert..."
Uchiha Yoru's gaze swept faintly across him as he continued fabricating nonsense.
"A desert... how inconceivable."
"Was its foundation torn away by some existence?"
"Then what is the situation where you live?"
The moment he was observed, Momochi Zabuza's entire body stiffened.
He hurriedly answered, "We live in the Land of Water. It is governed by the daimyō and... and Kirigakure."
As the gaze shifted, Konan quickly responded as well.
"We are from the Land of Rain. It is ruled by Amegakure."
When the gaze returned, Yashamaru immediately added, "We are governed by the daimyō and Sunagakure."
Uchiha Yoru deliberately sighed with emotion.
"Seas become mulberry fields, and the affairs of the world transform..."
"How long have I slept?"
He remained silent for a while before commanding, "Tell me what each of you knows."
"Allow me to understand what this world has become."
"Also, what is this world currently called?"
Zabuza answered, "Great Being, we now call it the shinobi world—the world of ninja."
"What is a ninja?"
Zabuza was a standard combat specialist.
His cultural education was atrocious, and he immediately became speechless.
Yashamaru continued in his place.
"Great Being, one thousand years ago, the Sage of Six Paths established Ninshū and spread the power of chakra."
"In the end, ninja became the wielders of chakra and also came to rule this world."
"Even the world itself was renamed the shinobi world."
"Chakra?"
Uchiha Yoru extended one hand and extracted a strand of chakra from each of the three.
He blended them together in his palm and pretended to examine them carefully.
Then he spoke with apparent surprise.
"This seems to be the power of the Ōtsutsuki clan."
"Did the Ōtsutsuki clan invade this world?"
"Has the shinobi world now become a barren wasteland everywhere?"
Facing Uchiha Yoru's inquiry, Yashamaru shook his head.
"No, Great Being."
"Except for the vast desert of the Land of Wind, the current shinobi world remains full of life."
"Especially the Land of Fire at the center of the shinobi world."
Uchiha Yoru pointed forward.
A map of the shinobi world was projected above the imperial path.
"Where is the Land of Fire?"
All three immediately reached out to indicate it.
They also specifically marked the existence of Konoha.
Uchiha Yoru laughed inwardly, but his disguise remained flawless.
In truth, the entire conversation was merely preparation.
It was meant to help the three adapt to the sudden change, become familiar with their surroundings, and grow accustomed to communicating with him.
The exchange continued for a long time.
Only when all three showed signs of fatigue did Uchiha Yoru finally end the conversation himself.
"Very good."
"I now possess a preliminary understanding of this 'shinobi world.'"
"My time is limited."
"Let us end here for today."
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