Naruto: Tales of Ashihara
The Shinden Saga – Arc 3: The Dragon Sage
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Chapter 141 – Ryujin Kata
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As Naruto and Sasuke displayed all their abilities to take down the ruler of the celestials, Yamitsuki Otsutsuki, they finally managed to pierce the veil of the mystery surrounding his abilities. Now aware that, thanks to Naruto's Gudodama, they have the means to kill him, Sasuke makes a strange and bold demand to the Ryu Shinsen.
"Go ahead. Use the Ryujin Kata." he said, leaving the Dragon Sage speechless. Naruto, in confusion, waits to learn more and understand what this means. Sasuke explains his request.
"You gave us enough time to figure out your abilities. You must know it's not safe to take us lightly anymore. So go ahead. I know about your true power. The form that justifies your reputation. An energy that transcends space and time. A type of chakra unique to you."
"Wait…" Naruto interrupts him. "You mean he wasn't even going all out until now?"
"Uzumaki Naruto!" Yamitsuki exclaims. "Do not show such mindless weakness so easily. You are above the fear of a greater opponent. It is true. There is much more to my power than what I have displayed so far. But you have all the cards in hand to overcome it now. In case of defeat, it could only be blamed on yourself for not having been ready at the right time."
Naruto is unsure of how to feel about this answer. Is the Dragon Sage trying to make him feel better about losing, even before the true fight could start for him? Once again, it sounds arrogant, but also brutally honest. Ready to accept Sasuke's request, Yamitsuki closes his eyes and focuses.
"Cherish this moment. For as you demanded, you will witness the greatest power to have ever been designed for the living."
Ryujin Kata
On the Ryu Shinsen's face, red pigments and claw marks appear under and around his eyes. His horns change color and texture, becoming identical to pure gold. The release of his power takes over the atmosphere of this planet, making the sky go dark and causing a terrible rainstorm to begin as the winds of this planet lift the ocean and the blizzards consume the mountains.
Naruto, seeing this, recognizes exactly what he could barely see in Sojobo's illusion 10 years ago. Yamitsuki's chakra, to Sasuke's eyes, didn't change at all. But to Naruto's senses, it has grown to unbelievable proportions. It already felt greater than all he had seen before. But now, it is as if this whole universe vibrates in harmony as a choir with his chakra as the conductor. It feels to him like the Dragon Sage boosted himself with a new layer of Rikudo Sage Mode.
He hasn't felt that small and frightened in front of an opponent since… Since the first time he found himself face to face with the demon inside him. The said demon, Kurama, lost all sensation of the Dragon Sage's power. But he guesses how terrible it is by his jinchuriki's reaction.
Sasuke, seeing the Ryu Shinsen open his eyes and show his dark red sclera, notices his partner stepping back. He never saw Naruto behave this way before. However, unlike him, Sasuke is blind to what there is to fear. He's sick of being afraid, sick of lurking around enemies. All that occupies his mind is a life long thought of revenge. Fueled by determination, he activates his eye power.
Amaterasu
With his left eye, he summons the black flames of Amaterasu that appear directly in Yamitsuki's back, in his blind spot. However, rather than melting him, the flames drop to the ground, unable to grasp on the intangible target who is still using Moshirikara. Yamitsuki, sensing the flame's nature, nullifies them.
Inyoton – Haki
"Nothing but low chakra?" he says as the flames vanish. "Uchiha Sasuke, have you consumed all your natural energy? This leaves you vulnerable, unprepared to heal from these burns."
He leaves no time for Sasuke to think of the ambiguity of these words and, thanks to Okuninushi, reproduces and upgrades Sasuke's power.
Ryuton – Amaterasu
Combining it with the draconic nature of his chakra, Yamitsuki creates a mass of deep purple flames that appear onto Sasuke's cape, as hot and deadly as the black flames of Enton. Naturally, Sasuke tries to eliminate these flames with Kagutsuchi, the ability of his right eye, but fails. The fire of a dragon cannot be extinguished by such means. Startled, he lets time for the flames to consume his cape and harm his flesh. Hurried to save himself, he uses his Rinnegan.
Ameno Tejikara
By switching places with the Dragon Sage, he saves himself from the flames and lets Yamitsuki burn. Those flames, just like the Gudodama, seem to be able to touch the Dragon Sage. However, his body demonstrates surreal durability as this sun hot fire only bruises his skin. The Ryu Shinsen, master of these flames, knows that only nature can stop them, unlike Enton.
Suiton – Dai Kozui (Downfall)
By manipulating the planet's atmosphere, he moves the intense rain and makes it denser above himself, letting the water stomp down the blue flames. The rainstorm is such that it already starts flooding the entire battlefield and covers the whole planet's surface. Sasuke, lying under the rain, has to wait to recover, since he needs to absorb more natural energy in order to heal his wounds.
In the meantime, it is Naruto who takes the fight upon himself. With a dozen clones, he rushes to ambush the Dragon Sage who notices and takes them bare handed. Until now, he let the Hokage believe that he could match him in speed and strength. But right now, he demonstrates physical capabilities far greater than anything Naruto ever saw. Within seconds, he skillfully claws down all of Naruto's clones and catches the original by the face before slamming him into the ground.
Though he's shocked by the unreal power of this form, Naruto doesn't let it stop him. In his back, his Biju mantle shapes into the 9 tails of Kyubi and turns into chakra limbs that lift him and the Dragon Sage off the ground. Standing on two of them, Naruto uses the 7 other hands to catch on his remaining Gudodama. Knowing that these are the key to beat the enemy, he makes these orbs grow and spin in his palms before throwing them down on the target.
To counter this, Yamitsuki unleashes deep purple chakra limbs growing from his own mantle, copying Naruto's skill. These hands grasp on the ankles of Naruto's limbs and stop them from falling on him. Feeling the Dragon Sage take over in this arms wrestle, Naruto lets the Gudodama go down on the target and turns them into spikes that grow as they fall to impale him. Yamitsuki sees the blades fall on him with his Sharingan and takes cover.
Omamori (Great Protection)
A chakra barrier, even more resistant than the condensed wings of Susanoo, appears to block the Gudodama. Yamitsuki, immobile to maintain this protection, uses his space-time jutsu to get away.
Kandakoro
He warps through a wormhole and appears again out of range for the black spikes. Naruto sees him in his back and decides to give a familiar shape to his Gudodama to keep using them as a weapon.
Nunoboko no Ken
He assembles 6 of his orbs into the same sword that the Rkudo-Sennin used to redraw the world ravaged by the Juubi. Yamitsuki noticed that, as the sword took shape, one of the 7 Gudodama vanished. It will certainly be used against him later, so he stays aware. Right now, Naruto tries to attack him with the Nunoboko, so he summons his own black sword to counter.
Ameno Ohabari
With a reduced version of the double-edged sword of his Susanoo, Yamitsuki blocks Naruto's blade and starts a sword fight in which he quickly takes the upper hand, noticing how Naruto only made this shape by instinct, lacking real swordsmanship skills. Yet, the Hokage knows at least how to put his blade's size to profit. After letting it be thrown away, he catches the Nunoboko's handle again with a chakra tail and hammers down on Yamitsuki who blocks firmly with his Ohabari.
The fall of the blade and the collision splits the land in two, opening the soil under Yamitsuki's feet and forcing him to levitate to maintain his resistance. The rising water of the rain flushes down the crack. The sky is split as well, erasing the nearby clouds and stopping the rain fall. As he keeps holding Naruto back, he senses a movement behind him and uses another copied power to see.
Byakugan
His Sharingan's pattern turns white as veins appear around his eyes, letting him catch a glimpse of Sasuke right before he sneaks in his blind spot to strike with his blade. The Ryu Shinsen is no fool. He knows very well that the sword that Sasuke holds is made from the Gudodama he saw vanish earlier, and can therefore touch him. Feeling cornered, he decides to widen the space around him with a repulsion.
Shinra Tensei
With this jutsu copied from the Rinnegan, he pushes both of them away with their weapons. To withstand this force, Sasuke covers himself with the wings of Susanoo. The Uchiha stabilizes himself in the sky and looks down to see Naruto rolling on the ground and barely getting up as the Ameno Ohabari flutters through the air toward him.
Ameno Tejikara
To save his friend, Sasuke transports himself instantly in the way and lifts the Nunoboko blade with a Susanoo arm. By swinging it, he smashes the Ohabari away and, from the arm and wings of his avatar, he manifests its full form again. As the Susanoo takes shape, Naruto merges the Gudodama disguised as Sasuke's sword with the Nunoboko and makes it grow to fit its new wielder. Sasuke, seeing Naruto by his side, calls for his support.
"Naruto!" he exclaims.
"Alright, Kurama!" Naruto gets the message and, with his Biju, unleashes his chakra to fill the Susanoo and form their unmatched combined avatar.
Rikudo Iso – Biju Susanoo
"Certainly not!" The Ryu Shinsen exclaims before taking immediate action to stop this fusion.
Izunome
Thanks to his beloved Naobi's space-time jutsu, which he generally avoids using, Yamitsuki instantly appears within the merging armor, between Naruto and Sasuke. In the slight instant during which he is unnoticed, he forms a chakra bomb in his hand.
Ryudama
Just as Naruto turns around, Yamitsuki shoots the orb as a chakra beam that irradiates the Hokage and pushes him out of the Susanoo. Left alone with the user, the Dragon Sage turns around to put him down as well. Sasuke, seeking for a safe space, tries to push him away.
Shinra Tensei
He tries to strike with Tendo but, to his surprise, sees the repulsion force field be stopped bare handed by Yamitsuki who holds it back and slowly walks through it.
"The greatest mistake of Momoshiki was to underestimate your union. Do you think I am as foolish as he was?" the Dragon Sage declares as he stops the repulsion by catching on Sasuke's ankles.
Sasuke tries to resist and fight away, but this attempt only lets him realize how terribly weak he is compared to the Ryu Shinsen. Not entertained by the Uchiha anymore, Yamitsuki abruptly pulls his arms toward him and strikes his stomach with his knee. He stops holding his ankles and lets him flutter away, pushed by this kick. Sasuke breaks through his own Susanoo and violently crashes into the ground, hundreds of meters below.
Nearly passed out, he doesn't find the strength to move his limbs. As he stays lying on the ground, he hears Naruto screaming his name as a desperate warning. Aware, he looks up just too late to take action against the Dragon Sage's last attack.
Tomogoroshi no Haikkotsu
Flying through the air, Sasuke sees a projectile that he identifies just as it reaches his skin. It is one of Kaguya's all-killing ash bones, thrown by Yamitsuki. Sasuke panics as it starts digging through him, but sees a clone of Naruto appear, right in time to save him.
Ameno Tejikara
By switching with him, he saves himself from the bone's effect and lets the clone be reduced to ashes. Yamitsuki, seeing the scene in the distance, floating above the field, acknowledges the clever use that the Hokage makes of his favorite jutsu. Thoughtfully, he copies the sight of the Byakugan again to find Naruto approaching him once more with the Nunoboko sword. Before they collide, he brings his own blade to him as well.
Bansho Tenin
With an attraction force, he draws the Ohabari back to him and starts an aerial sword fight with the Hokage. Naruto once again quickly realizes that he can't compete with this type of weapon. To fix this issue, he waits to be pushed away and uses this little respite to choose a new weapon.
He disassembles the Nunoboko and makes a pair of gauntlets and shakujo with the orbs, to simply use staffs and fists which he is much more familiar with. However, Yamitsuki keeps the upper hand and cares to explain why, in the heat of action.
"These simple shapes, even made from the mighty Gudodama of the beast, are only soulless utensils. On the contrary, this sword I wield, Ameno Ohabari, is a history, a bond, a myth. It births chains of volcanoes with each of its slices."
After this lesson, he slides his blade along the crossed staffs of Naruto and pushes through to cut one of them in half and send its pieces away. He then pushes his opponent with his foot, blocked by the black coated forearms of the Hokage. As he presents his victorious weapon, he declares "Dare to defy it again after you fashion a rival for this blade." before dispelling it.
Pissed off, Naruto flies forward to Yamitsuki and tries to hit him with his punch in the face, but is stopped by his opponent's bare hand. The Dragon Sage then avoids a swing of the Hokage's stick and, as they begin fighting hand-to-hand, he mirrors the Hokage's every movement, simply to infuriate him.
Sick of this, Naruto creates a misty cloud from which 2 clones emerge and assault the enemy. Yamtsuki dodges them both, catches their legs and smashes them into each other. Yet, he lets himself be fooled by a trick of the Kage Bunshin as, out from the resulting cloud, he receives a slap to the shoulder from Naruto's staff.
Unbothered by this landed hit, he catches the stick to pull on it and sends its holder fluttering away. He then shatters the staff between his clawed fingers. Naruto, with only 2 Gudodama left, stops in the air and promptly turns around to face Yamitsuki. In his momentum, he takes off one of his black gauntlets and turns it into a spinning orb.
Rasengan
All while turning around, he aims to land this jutsu into the Dragon Sage's abdomen but, not much surprisingly, finds the same chakra orb in his hand, upgraded by his Ryujin Kata.
Rasen Ryugan
Naruto approaches this collision with confidence. If all that matters against Okuninushi is to be better than the Ryu Shinsen at your own game, then he just has to prove that his Rasengan is superior. However, Yamitsuki keeps this trial for another time, as he rather uses this moment to trap both his enemies, by copying the ability of Uchiha Sasuke.
Ameno Tejikara
All of a sudden, Naruto sees Sasuke cluelessly appear between the two chakra orbs right as they were about to collide. To save his friend, he undoes his own jutsu, but can't stop Yamitsuki's. The spinning dragon orb strikes Sasuke and propels him into Naruto. Together, they're forced into the ground and land onto each other. Naruto makes sure to lighten the impact for Sasuke. The power he felt in that orb could have killed him in his current state. He can still feel life in him, but he needs to be saved as soon as possible.
After rolling around for a few meters, Naruto leaves his unconscious friend aside safely and tries to slow down on his feet. As soon as he manages to stop and raise his eyes, he's confronted with the sight of a divine fist burning in spiraling deep purple flames. Of course, the Hokage recognizes the signature jutsu of his student, Izuna. As he catches a glimpse of the Dragon Sage's face in the fire, Naruto smiles, reminded of his vision of the Ryu Shinsen in another fate.
At this exact moment, yet certain to lose, the new Rikudo decides to defy destiny, simply out of stubbornness. Rather than taking cover or running away, He leaps forward into the enemy's attack and fiercely pushes his black coated fist through the flames.
Rasen Ryu Enken
The Dragon Sage's fist and revolving energy land into Naruto's abdomen, making him nearly vomit his own guts, expel his own chakra from all cells of his body, and roll away for hundreds of meters. However, after this strike, Yamitsuki slightly and uncontrollably trembles in surprise. He raises his own hand to his nose and wipes blood off from it. When confronted with the end of this battle, the Hokage took one last chance and broke his nose. It may seem insignificant, but it is the first time in over a thousand years that the Ryu Shinsen takes such damage. With blood running down his face, Yamitsuki clears his mind and puts an end to this fight.
Mokuton – Daisoju
Out from the ground under Naruto promptly emerges a forest whose branches spread to impale him multiple times and abruptly stop his flutter. Immobilized, defeated, he sees the heavy rain suddenly stop. Yamitsuki walks to him through the forest and, after a quiet gaze and a time sufficient for his minor injury to heal, declares the end of this fight.
"I assume this fight is over. All your Gudodama have been destroyed, and you seem unaware of how to conceive new ones."
"What?" Naruto says with a muffled voice.
As a reply, Yamitsuki opens his hand and gathers 5 pieces of chakra, each being one of the 5 elements on top of a finger. He then, in his palm, molds Yin and Yang energy into a spiral that makes them merge, forming a Yin-Yang symbol. Into this chakra orb, he dips his claws and the 5 natures at their tip.
Naruto, astonished, stares at this demonstration. Yamitsuki makes it look so easy, yet he is certain that no one he's met before could reproduce such perfect and flawless manipulation of primitive energies. And, to conclude this unreal spectacle, the merging of all energies condenses in the Ryu Shinsen's palm and… becomes a Gudodama. After this lesson, Yamitsuki hides this orb away and carelessly changes the topic.
"It appears your attempt has failed… This could have been avoided simply by giving up a few fellows."
"Shut up!" Naruto yells. "I have no rights to give Sasuke away! And you definitely can't ask me to give up my son and expect me to comply! How can you not understand this? You're a million years old! Don't you have any children?"
The Ryu Shinsen, before giving any answer, sadly stares at the Hokage and sighs. He then turns around and sits down by his side to look at the rising sun. Sitting there, he turns off his Ryujin Kata and, after a long silence, speaks as equals to Naruto.
"Tell me, Lord 7th, are you not curious about what your partner, Sasuke Uchiha, said earlier about the soon-to-come extinction of my kind?"
Naruto doesn't answer. He just waits to hear more. Yamitsuki speaks.
"More than four thousand years ago, our ancestors, common ancestors, committed an unforgivable crime. They betrayed their high creator. The Absolute Spirit. They captured its power and attempted to domesticate it to rule over creation in its place. As a result, the Absolute Spirit cursed the traitors and their descendants. You have asked me twice if I had an offspring, Lord 7th. Unfortunately, the answer is no… For my kind was cursed to extinction. A slow paced extinction. Since the day of this crime, nothing has changed physically or spiritually about my kind. However, since then, when conceived, a celestial child has only a slight chance to escape the grasp of the void. Most of us… are never born. To tell it with numbers, less than one out of five hundred pregnancies of celestial mothers end in the successful birth of a child. Even with the millennia long lives we live, even by spending all the time they have trying, no mother of my clan ever gave birth to more than 4 children. I myself have spent decades hoping to become a parent, but it only brought pain and despair to my beloved goddess of order…"
Naruto stays totally quiet, shaken by this revelation. Inside him, Kurama is just as agape as him. From Sasuke's point of view, this must sound like just excellent news, making his ideal possible. But to hear the perspective of one of them, one able to express love like no other before could… hits different. Yamitsuki, after this tale, brings in his question.
"Now, Lord 7th… From leader to leader, tell me… In my place, as the sovereign of celestials in their last age, how would you face this end? How would you handle the disorder among your fellows?"
"… The end?" Naruto instinctively asks. "Is it really a forced end? You said this was slow paced, didn't you? Well, maybe that Absolute Spirit or whatever actually just wants to give you time to fix your wrong. There must be some way to fix it, right?"
"… Hm…" Yamitsuki smirks and stands up, trying to contain his reaction in vain. "Haha! Hahahaha!"
Naruto, still impaled on his branches, confusingly stares at the Dragon Sage, feeling like he's being mocked. But on the contrary, this laugh is a praise.
"Lord 7th! This is you. This is exactly you!" Yamitsuki exclaims. "To find a solution to the final problem of all universes. To seek for an answer just comes naturally to you. That your kind is set to disappear simply cannot occur to you. Whether your world is doomed or not, you could simply not care less. Whatever comes in your way, if it threatens your people, you will overcome it. Because it is your ninja way, Naruto Uzumaki."
"I don't get it! Are you being nice or making fun of me?" Naruto asks confusingly.
Suddenly, The Dragon Sage becomes fully serious again. He breathes in and prepares to tell what will happen next, regardless of what he just exclaimed, much to Naruto's confusion.
"I have changed my mind. I will not summon the Tenshin. They will pursue their mission uninterrupted and will reach your world when they intend to… However, you have insulted my proposal and my kind by causing chaos on the surface of this planet. And the careless words of your partner are no less than a declaration of war. Therefore, as a consequence for your arrogance, I will no longer offer you my clemency. So no longer will I take your defense against my own kind. About whatever happens to your world from now on, I could not care less."
"What? That's bullshit!" Naruto yells. "Why the hell have you been helping us until now? What are you playing?"
"You should save your strength, Lord 7th." Yamitsuki answers. "You barely have enough left to heal your injuries."
Indeed, the branches stabbing Naruto have been absorbing his and Kurama's chakra all along, preventing him from regenerating. Naruto would like to answer something, but suddenly feels his energy vanish even faster. Confused by the cause, he notices that it is not only his chakra, but the planet's as well that is being absorbed. The world around him even starts to dematerialize, reduced to energy that vanishes faster than light toward the sky. Yamitsuki embarrassingly looks around and comments.
"Hm… It has already reached this far… Oh dear Saetsuki… Your realm does not have much time left…"
"Listen to me, Yamitsuki!" Naruto yells as his voice fades. "I won't let you or any of your fellows hurt my world. From leader to leader, I tell you. I make it my mission to beat you! I don't care how powerful you are, or how many jutsu you know. The next time I fight you, I'll win!"
"This is so you, is it not, Naruto?" The Ryu Shinsen replies as the world disintegrates around them. "Make sure to stay true to these words then."
After hearing this, Naruto and Kurama give up their struggle and let their consciousness fade. Yamitsuki, now alone with his two defeated enemies, hurries to escape this place.
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In the middle of Konoha, Sakura, Kakashi, Izuna, Inoue and Takeshi are with Boruto and Toneri. All together, they united to think through what to do considering the disappearance of Naruto and Sasuke since their meeting with the Otsutsuki visitor.
Kandakoro
Suddenly, interrupting their discussion, Yamitsuki Otsutsuki appears out of a wormhole. With him he brings the passed out, out of chakra and severely wounded bodies of Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha. They all stand up in panic, frightened by the return of the enemy, seemingly victorious as they refuse to believe. The Dragon Sage walks around and looks with both sadness and respect at the Hokage lying on the ground.
For a short moment, he stares at Takeshi Minamoto, and at his right hand's palm. He then looks at Boruto and Toneri who, after thinking about Sasuke's last question, figured out their crime against the celestial kind. Yet, Yamitsuki stays calm and speaks, hoping that Naruto can still hear him.
"It is not my mission to take you…" he says before turning around and opening a black gate of Chimatakami. "Mark my words, for I will not go back on them. If I am ever brought to lay a foot on the surface of this planet again, I will immediately reduce it to ashes."
After this threatening declaration, he vanishes in his portal. As soon as he's gone, Sakura falls down to check on her husband. Izuna and Inoue go to help their sensei. Behind them, Boruto and Toneri look at each other fearfully. Takeshi and Kakashi do the same. By the Minamoto's side, visible only to him, the Daitengu passes by and stares at the two defeated heroes, then where the Ryu Shinsen was a second ago.
"I've seen this path. I know what it is." Sojobo says, before giving a brief but explicit description that will stick in Takeshi's mind. "Worlds at war."
Up above the village in the high atmosphere, Naobi Otsutsuki, goddess of purity and order, stares with remorse at the scene with her Byakugan. Seeing this scene, she's intrigued to learn what decision Yamitsuki will take. That he lets them live is curious. He's giving them a second chance, but what for? Before leaving, she looks aside, all the way to the land of Water, where Sakitsuki stares back. Naobi wonders what this means for her.
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In the great castle of Izumo, on Ashihara, Tokubei Otsutsuki is sitting in the council room with his wife and son standing behind him. After he came back from his encounter with Sasuke, he knew that the Dragon Sage would return with new instructions, so he came here to wait patiently, hoping to finally get what he wants. And as he anticipated, Yamitsuki appears and sits at his place.
"Naobi, Yasona." the sovereign says as soon as sat, to summon the rest of the council.
Naobi, hearing his call, appears by his side on her seat, ready to hear what he's decided. Out from a sliding door that appears in the back of the room, Yasona walks in with her 3 pupils. She sits down and waits to learn of the events.
Yamitsuki doesn't tell anything about how his meeting with the Hokage went, or about what he proposed to Earth to get this reaction. He only gives his fatal conclusion, as a message for the fellows that he calls by the name he wants.
"Yasona goddess of mischief, Tokubei god of winter, Naobi goddess of creation… You who stand above creation as rulers of its worlds and dimensions. You who sit as my fellows in the council of the Shinden. No more shall there be laws to bind your will. As a sentence for the world of the new Rikudo, my promise to Hamura is no more. No longer will you be punished for trespassing this territory."
Hearing this declaration, Tokubei smiles under his mask. By letting Sasuke escape to face the Dragon Sage, he acted in favor of his wish and got what he wanted. He slightly bends his neck to confidently look at his wife behind him, and then at his son, Taiyoshiki, who recently debated these intentions and their realism with him.
Yasona raises an eyebrow and displays the same sassy smile as usual, showing dimples on her thin cheeks. In appearance, she is just as gullible as ever, but in her mind she celebrates as she gets exactly what she foresaw and intended from this event. She proudly stares around and discreetly shows her happiness to Torushiki, Kuboshiki and Chishiki. Only Kubo smiles back, blindly agreeing with his mistress' fantasies.
Naobi, alone at her seat, stays inert, in shock. Is the Dragon Sage's mind lost in such a way that he'd let the universes sink into the chaos he forbade for centuries? Yamitsuki notices his woman's embarrassment and knows that she won't let it slide with no discussion. To give her this opportunity, he stands up to leave.
"Yamitsuki-sama, …" Tokubei calls before he leaves, thinking of the presence of Ayaka's soul, left behind. "There may be a task for you on Takama."
"I know." he answers. "None shall adventure on its plains until I do. Tokubei, I also have a new mission for you. Wait for my demand." he adds, remembering a doubt he couldn't confirm about Takeshi Minamoto.
After these words, he gazes toward Naobi and vanishes. To get a private exchange with him, the goddess of order follows him by synchronizing her movement through space-time with his. They find each other in the emptiness of space, facing a star that once carried a fragment of the golden light. At first, he pretends to ignore her, so she speaks first in all honesty.
"This is madness! This isn't you!" she exclaims, with a sobbing voice. "You know that Yasona will do her best to take advantage of Earth. You know that Tokubei will hunt Sasuke Uchiha relentlessly. They will declare war upon the ninja world and break the balance we've maintained until now. They could even transgress the laws of the Tenshin, like Momoshiki did. Have you thought about this? How will Shiva react when she sees that you let the Shinden break the order she maintained? Have you thought about what Isshiki will do if you exonerate the laws that bind his mind? Have you thought of what your disciples, Kojin and Shitsuki, will think of you, the great Ryu Shinsen, when they find out how far your lack of concern has gone?"
"Naobi, my beloved goddess…" Yamitsuki calmly answers, still facing the star. "You have brought the following words to my mind yourself centuries ago. When the inheritance of the 3rd age was left in my hands, my destiny and that of all universes have been bonded. But they do not have to drag each other to oblivion. I am not the only pillar of peace. Never was I alone, and neither will you be."
Naobi stays agape, unsure of what she should understand of these words, purposefully ambiguous.
"I am sorry, Naobi. You are the one who will have to witness and endure the consequences." Yamitsuki says. "But you have always been the wisest and purest of us. Therefore do I entrust you with the mission to look after your fellows and maintain order as you can. After all, it is natural for you, goddess of order."
"This… is terribly egoistic. You let everyone confuse their ideal with reality, except me?"
"But my dear, your ideals are reality. You, from all of us, are the only one who has the will to do so." he answers, referring to her unmatched Genjutsu, Kamimusubi. "So I give you a mission of order. By breaking my oath to Hamura, I allow you to bring discipline upon your nephew. Momoshiki hopes to escape the trial of the Tenshin. He has programmed his resurrection from a human host. Please, cancel this attempt in my name. My actions may not reflect intentions, but I promise to you, I have not planned for any of us, celestials, to sin against the Absolute Spirit once more."
Naobi, despite her deception, can't bring herself to oppose him. If so is her mission, she shall accomplish it. At a loss for words, she leans forward and hugs Yamitsuki in the back. Even she can't read through the mind and plans of the Ryu Shinsen. She can't even guarantee to herself that their love remains. Yet, she has to trust his word. She should only bother to maintain the absolute law among her kind.
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End of Chapter 141 – Next Chapter: Earth as Prey