The Sage of Six Paths didn't look frightened at all when he saw Hyuga Gakuya poised to strike. Instead, he sighed and shook his head.
"Sigh… You truly don't remember anything from your past life after reincarnating."
"You're actually the reincarnation of my younger brother, Ōtsutsuki Hamura. A thousand years ago, the two of us sealed our mother together. You should already know that much."
"But let me tell you something you don't know. We made a vow to protect the shinobi world together. To fight off those from our mother's homeland and gain greater power, you voluntarily reincarnated your chakra and spirit—so you could evolve."
"It was a bloody path, but it seems you succeeded. Your current power has already surpassed Mother's. You now hold the strength to stand against the Ōtsutsuki clan."
The Sage of Six Paths sighed again.
"I never had your kind of resolve. All I could do was guard the shinobi world from the shadows."
Gakuya narrowed his eyes in suspicion. Was the old man trying to manipulate him by pretending to know he was a reincarnated soul from another world?
But the Sage's tone and expression felt sincere. It didn't seem like an act.
That left only two possibilities.
The first: the Sage misread the situation. Gakuya's soul was powerful due to being a transmigrator, and perhaps the events of recent weeks had led to a misunderstanding.
But that seemed unlikely. No matter what, the Sage of Six Paths was still a being of god-tier power—mistaking someone else's chakra for his brother's would be a rookie mistake far beneath him.
That led to the second possibility—and the one Gakuya found far more plausible.
This version of the Naruto timeline might not align perfectly with the original. During the Moon Arc, Gakuya hadn't encountered the soul of Ōtsutsuki Hamura at all.
Yet in his past-life memories, he clearly recalled that Hinata had received guidance from Hamura during that time.
So it was very possible that on the night he annihilated the Hyuga clan, Gakuya had inadvertently consumed the reincarnation of Hamura.
After all, Hamura's reincarnation would've either been among the Moon's Ōtsutsuki or the Hyuga clan.
And if one of the people Gakuya devoured had been Hamura's vessel, then of course that chakra would now reside within him.
So when Gakuya unleashed his power and caught the Sage's attention, the old man simply assumed he was witnessing his brother's reincarnation.
Not only did that mean the Sage wouldn't stop him—he might even secretly aid him.
And even if the Sage somehow figured out the truth, he no longer had the power to stop Gakuya anyway.
Now that Gakuya understood what was really going on, he also grasped why Sasuke and Naruto had started treating him with such unexpected respect.
When the Sage had revealed the truth of the world to them, he'd also told them Gakuya was his brother's reincarnation—the one who rebuilt the Moon and thwarted Toneri's plans.
Gakuya narrowed his eyes and stared coldly at the Sage.
"I'm Hyuga Gakuya. Not this Ōtsutsuki Hamura you're talking about. Not in the past. Not now. Not ever."
He spoke the truth—he could never be Hamura, because he never was to begin with.
The Sage didn't seem surprised. Calmly, he said,
"Whether you believe it or not, the choice is yours. But know this: the crisis facing the shinobi world has not yet ended. Uchiha Madara has absorbed the power of the God Tree. If he's not stopped, the world will be plunged into eternal ruin."
Gakuya shrugged.
"I don't need you to tell me that. I'll handle it. That's my business—not something an old man like you needs to worry about."
The Sage gave him a long, solemn look.
"Deny it all you want, but I can still sense Hamura's presence within you. I know you have your own goals and convictions… but don't forget what it means to protect this world."
Gakuya sneered.
"Hmph. I don't need you to remind me of my purpose."
He hadn't forgotten—not at all. In fact, he was about to fulfill it in the most complete way possible—by devouring Ōtsutsuki Kaguya herself.
That "presence" the Sage sensed wasn't Hamura's will.
It was his death certificate.
...
At that moment, a powerful disturbance shook Gakuya's mental space. His brow furrowed.
Kaguya had revived.
It was time to carry out the final phase of his plan.
"Looks like I don't have time to keep chatting with you," Gakuya muttered, before instantly ejecting the Sage's consciousness from his spiritual world.
The Sage of Six Paths still looked like he wanted to say more, but he had no power to resist Gakuya's will.
He was forcibly expelled.
...
Gakuya's eyes snapped open.
Back in the real world, he was greeted by the sight of the massive trunk of the God Tree, its twisted branches spreading across the earth like a spider's web, cocooning countless Allied Shinobi inside fleshy pods.
Only seven shinobi remained untouched by the Infinite Tsukuyomi: Naruto, Sasuke, Obito, Kakashi, Sakura, and the reanimated forms of Sakumo Hatake and Minato Namikaze.
In the center of the battlefield, Uchiha Madara's body was swelling grotesquely, enveloped in chakra from across the shinobi world. Black Zetsu clung to him, completely covering his form.
Even though he was using White Zetsu's body, Black Zetsu had still managed to betray Madara in the end.
Madara's hulking body shrank and twisted—
—and then reformed into the shape of a woman.
Her long hair cascaded in blue-white waves that reached the ground. Her eyes were pure Byakugan white, and on her forehead was a Rinne Sharingan that gleamed with chilling light—like a key to the cycle of life and death.
The two horns atop her head marked her heritage clearly.
She was one of the Ōtsutsuki.
...
Gakuya stood slowly, cracking his neck and flexing his stiff limbs, his entire body trembling with excitement.
He looked at her seductive figure and muttered to himself in a voice no one else could hear:
"At last... Ōtsutsuki Kaguya… the final step in my plan… my ultimate nourishment."
Her appearance confirmed that all his efforts hadn't been in vain.
Ten years of preparation had brought him to this moment.
Kaguya might be unimaginably powerful—
—but Gakuya held the trump cards to beat her. Even on his own, he could go toe-to-toe with her.
And he wasn't alone.
He had a buffed-up Sasuke. A buffed-up Naruto. Obito with dual Kamui. Minato reanimated and ready.
Gakuya held a full house in his hand, while Kaguya was a noob who'd just learned how to play.
Soon, he'd devour all the chakra and genetic power inside her body.
And then, using the God Tree, he'd begin to invade other planets… and plant more Trees.
...
Meanwhile, everyone else had their eyes locked on the mysterious woman who had suddenly appeared.
No one noticed the strange glint in Gakuya's eyes—or the unsettling aura beginning to leak from his body.
----------------
Pls Drop some Power Stones
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