On the moon, Takuno stood in the air, looking at the faintly glowing Earth in the distance, and couldn't help but sigh.
"Finally... I've reached this point."
Decades have passed since he first understood the truth of this world as the Hokage world; he had already begun to formulate a step-by-step plan.
Becoming the Jinchuriki of the Mini Ten-Tails was considered his ultimate goal at that time.
Even at that time, Takuno himself did not have the confidence to complete this plan.
But now, it is no longer an elusive dream, but a real power already held firmly in his grasp.
The power he gained by climbing to this peak was even greater than the blueprint he originally envisioned.
That Tenseigan, which could rival the Six-Tomoe Rinnegan, and that extraordinary bloodline, which had quietly transformed and infinitely approached the fundamental rule of "Kekkei Mora"...
The great power they converged into far exceeded the limits he could have imagined when he made his plans.
A trace of emotion quietly spread in his heart.
However, when he truly stood here, with a broader vision...
This glorious achievement, once considered the end, now became a new beginning!
The scenery on the mountaintop was magnificent, but it was far from the end of the world.
Stagnation? Satisfaction? No! A more intense flame instantly ignited in Takuno's eyes.
His journey would never stop!
Now, what power could truly help him become stronger?
In fact, the answer was very clear, given Takuno's current strength.
Only the power of the complete Ten-Tails, or even further, the Chakra Fruit that had devoured the entire Shinobi World and finally condensed!
However, Takuno also understood.
The supreme fruit formed from the essence of this Ten-Tails had already been completely devoured by Kaguya.
Making it bear a second fruit? That was unrealistic.
Therefore, if Takuno wanted to seize that power capable of overturning everything, his target could only be locked onto a single existence, Kaguya herself!
He had to forcibly take the power of the fruit from this Ancestor of chakra.
This was also the reason why Takuno chose to do so at this time.
He did not directly control the complete Ten-Tails; instead, he sealed this "Mini Ten-Tails" into his body, merely becoming its Jinchuriki.
Why was this?
Was it because he was unable to control the complete Ten-Tails?
Absolutely not!
Even before becoming the Mini Ten-Tails Jinchuriki, his strength had already entered the "Six Paths realm."
Looking at the current world, besides the Sage of Six Paths himself, who had long since passed away and was in the underworld, personally manifesting and bestowing the power he had collected over the past thousand years upon others, who else could possibly stop him?
He didn't even need a year to collect all the Tailed Beasts and become the most perfect Ten-Tails Jinchuriki!
Therefore, his choice of the Mini Ten-Tails Jinchuriki path was by no means due to insufficient ability, but rather a choice that better aligned with his subsequent plans.
He needed to leverage Black Zetsu's conspiracy, meticulously planned for a thousand years!
Black Zetsu's goal was to revive his mother, Kaguya, while Takuno set his sights on the power of the fruit that Kaguya would possess after her revival!
You might say that Kaguya might not be very strong in terms of combat power, but you absolutely cannot say that her stats are weak after devouring the chakra of the entire Shinobi World!
Although Takuno didn't know much about the Ōtsutsuki in Boruto: Naruto Next Generations, he could be certain of one thing.
That is, Kaguya's stats were definitely still top-tier; only other Ōtsutsuki who had devoured Chakra Fruits of the same or higher level could surpass her stats!
Therefore, Takuno was determined to get this fruit!
His attention was on Black Zetsu's plan to revive Kaguya, and there was a crucial step: the vessel for Kaguya's revival.
Takuno obviously couldn't put himself in the dangerous position of being possessed and becoming someone else's body.
So, for this "glorious" but tragic role, there was only one suitable candidate left: Madara.
In fact, Takuno's current situation was almost a replica of Madara's final battle in the past.
Only the final step remained: activating the Infinite Tsukuyomi to envelop the world and absorb the chakra of all living beings, and then, at the most critical moment, being pierced through the heart from behind by the lurking Black Zetsu, becoming a sacrifice for Kaguya's resurrection.
Even more, with Takuno's current strength, he was even more suitable than Madara at that time to become the perfect vessel for Kaguya's revival, possessing more immense energy and a more compatible "soil."
However, the biggest difference between Takuno and Madara was that he had already seen through everything and was well aware of Black Zetsu's plan.
He would never give Black Zetsu any opportunity, and he would never allow himself to become a pawn to be used.
He would become the ultimate hunter at the last moment, not the sacrifice!
So the next steps were also simple: on one hand, assist the Akatsuki in collecting the Tailed Beasts.
Due to his previous interference, the major ninja villages had already upgraded their protection of the Tailed Beasts, with strict security.
This made the Akatsuki's efforts to collect the Tailed Beasts unprecedentedly difficult, almost impossible.
Even so, Takuno believed that with the strength of the Akatsuki's core members, which was enough to shake the Shinobi World, forcibly capturing the Ichibi to Eight-Tails, though hindered, was not an impossible task.
The real obstacle was Konoha, the location of the last Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, Naruto, and Kushina.
At this moment, Konoha's defensive power was like an iron wall.
Minato, known as the Yellow Flash, had long since firmly established his combat power at the Super Kage level;
Not to mention Shisui, who had awakened his Mangekyo Sharingan, and Itachi, who was incredibly talented and in a critical period of rapid growth in strength.
If you also include two of the legendary Sannin, Jiraiya and Senju Tsunade, plus Kakashi, who very likely mastered the Sharingan technique Kamui prematurely under the inspiration of the Uchiha Clan's dōjutsu...
This formidable lineup formed an impregnable fortress. For the Akatsuki to launch a frontal assault and successfully seize the Nine-Tails with their own power alone would be nothing short of a fool's dream, with a minuscule chance of success.
Therefore, Takuno knew very well that he had to intervene at a critical moment to tear open a breakthrough for them.
There was no need to necessarily kill Kushina or Naruto; with his current Yang Release Power, extracting a Tailed Beast would not be difficult to recover from.
Coupled with their Uzumaki Constitution, it would be even simpler.
This was an indispensable "assist" for the smooth progression of the plan.
On the other hand, a more arduous and crucial task weighed on Takuno's mind.
He had to solve an ultimate problem before Kaguya's revival.
How to safely and completely transfer the power of the Chakra Fruit contained within her to himself.
This was the most troublesome part of the entire plan.
The biggest difficulty in the research was the extreme lack of experimental samples.
He had no second Chakra Fruit available to analyze the mechanism and risks of its power transfer.
If there were ready-made fruits, why would he bother so meticulously and go to such great lengths to choose Kaguya as his target?
Wouldn't it be simpler and more direct to just find and devour a new fruit?
Thinking of this, Takuno couldn't help but shake his head slightly and sighed.
The road ahead was full of unknowns; it seemed he could only take one step at a time.
Even though he had climbed to such a peak of strength, capable of looking down on the Shinobi World, what awaited him was by no means a smooth path.
It was still shrouded in thick mist, requiring him to use his wisdom and strength to gradually push it aside and find the hidden path to his ultimate goal.
The only thing to be thankful for was that Takuno never lacked the will and determination to explore in the face of this unknown and challenge.
And this unwavering belief was his strongest reliance to overcome obstacles and forge ahead bravely.
Takuno stopped thinking about other things; he calmed his mind and meticulously observed the torrent of power flowing deep within his body.
A moment later, a smile slowly bloomed at the corner of his mouth.
He took a deep breath and formed hand seals.
If Hiruko were here to witness the trajectory of those hand seals, he would find them very familiar.
Because this was precisely the secret seal used in the Chimera Technique to separate fused bloodlines.
"Release"!
Takuno had only occasionally used this seal in the past when he needed to fuse new bloodlines.
Now, the "slots" for fusion within his body were already filled with various powerful Kekkei Genkai, theoretically making the use of this seal unnecessary.
Moreover, on this empty lunar wasteland, there was no device capable of receiving the bloodline energy that might overflow after separation.
However, Takuno still formed this separation seal with unwavering determination.
Time flowed in the silent vacuum.
The anticipated scene of bloodline separation and the reappearance of figures did not occur.
Around him, it was still the same eternal silence.
Had the seal failed? Or had Takuno deliberately not infused chakra to activate it?
Neither!
Precisely this "no reaction" result was the reason for Takuno's joy!
In the past, he had forcibly fused many bloodline powers using the Chimera Technique, but that was essentially a crude "splicing".
As long as he wished, he could use this "separation seal" to completely peel away those bloodlines like disassembling building blocks, restoring them to their original forms.
This always made his body like a vessel carrying many fragments, rather than a naturally formed whole.
But now, after the comprehensive evolution triggered by becoming the Ten-Tails Jinchuriki, his body had finally completed a qualitative leap!
The shackles of the Chimera Technique's "piecing together" were completely broken, and all the bloodlines integrated into his body thoroughly fused in the furnace of the Ten-Tails' power.
This was no longer a simple stacking, but a truly irreversible "fusion"!
From then on, what flowed in his body was an unprecedented ultimate bloodline belonging solely to "Takuno."
It was the sole crystallization forged from the essence of countless powers in the furnace of life, the ultimate creation that fused the powers of various Kekkei Genkai, Uzumaki, Uchiha, and Ōtsutsuki.
Takuno even realized that, from the most fundamental life form perspective, he, standing on the moon at this moment, was an entirely different existence from the one who previously relied on the Chimera Technique to "piece together" power.
At this moment, the black Texture that had previously been on his body due to the Chimera Technique had completely faded, leaving no trace.
This process was like the dawn dispelling the dark night, naturally dissolving into nothingness, as if it had never existed.
Where the Texture dissipated, an unprecedented perfect body was revealed!
Unfortunately, Takuno still needed to engrave some Texture on this perfect body.
This perfected Six Paths Body almost placed him at the pinnacle of Ninjutsu; ordinary chakra Ninjutsu could no longer harm him in the slightest.
However, this was not invulnerable; the Senjutsu derived from Natural Energy remained the only weakness of this powerful body.
The long preparations made for this finally reached the moment of implementation.
In the past, his Shadow Clones had dedicated themselves to research, and it was not without results.
Those seemingly dormant researches, countless deductions and failures, had one ultimate goal: the Sealing Jutsu now being engraved on his body.
It was a Sealing Jutsu used to defend against and absorb Ninjutsu; Takuno had once inscribed a lower-level version of it on himself.
It's just that he is now researching a Sealing Jutsu that can defend against and absorb Senjutsu!
And it's not simply about crudely injecting Senjutsu chakra into the original Ninjutsu defense technique to resist Senjutsu.
This requires a completely new, independently operating system; the past defensive Sealing Jutsu only provided a few reference blueprints.
And this Sealing Jutsu was named by him... Sealing Path Body!
Takuno's eyes narrowed, and he formed hand seals.
In an instant, the chakra within his body surged like a rushing river, tumultuous and powerful.
As if an invisible divine brush was painting on his skin, intricate patterns, shimmering with faint light, suddenly emerged with his heart as the core, spreading rapidly outwards like living vines.
The patterns were precise and profound, eventually covering every inch of his skin, forming a seamlessly integrated protective network.
The moment the technique took shape, in Takuno's eyes, the three-tomoe Rinnegan, fused with the power of all things, and the Tenseigan, which could perceive all things, simultaneously burst forth with captivating light.
Even more refined and powerful Yin-Yang Release Power was precisely guided and injected into the patterns on his body surface.
Instantly, the sealing patterns covering his entire body erupted with dazzling brilliance, as if stars were igniting beneath his skin.
As the brilliant light slowly receded, Takuno's body surface had returned to its pristine state, without a trace of any markings.
The complex "Sealing Path Body" Sealing Jutsu had completely merged into his flesh and bones, becoming an inseparable part of his body.
Things were different now; he no longer needed to clumsily engrave with his fingertips as he did during his first attempt.
Sealing Jutsu: Sealing Path Body, engraving complete!
The core ability of this technique was clear and powerful.
It could not only defend against any form of Ninjutsu attack released by enemies but also absorb it and convert it into his own chakra.
Most importantly, it finally achieved the goal that the Ten-Tails Jinchuriki physique had not reached: defense against and absorption of Senjutsu!
However, absolute immunity had not yet been achieved.
The power of the Sealing Path Body was unquestionable; its defense threshold had been raised to an astonishing level.
Only Six Paths-level Senjutsu could possibly penetrate this barrier and cause substantial damage to him.
But even if Six Paths Senjutsu struck, the Dark Release contained within the technique would first convert and devour a considerable portion of its destructive energy.
Only the residual power exceeding the Dark Release's conversion limit would truly act upon Takuno's main body.
Takuno clearly perceived the newfound power within him.
This "Sealing Path Body" was far from the end; it was more like a cornerstone with infinite potential.
As his mastery of Yin-Yang Release continued to improve, the strength and absorption limit of this sealed body would undoubtedly climb to even more terrifying heights!