"Ow—!"
The sharp pain at his neck made Akira spin around instantly.
Kaguya had already drifted back, stepping away lightly. "Slurp~" She licked her lips, a teasing smile curling at the corner of her mouth. "Thanks for the meal~!"
Akira pressed a hand against his bleeding neck, caught between laughter and helplessness. "So this is your revenge?"
"Hmph." Kaguya crossed her arms. "You got off easy. I haven't even settled the matter of my broken horn yet. How about this—once you become the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki, I break one of yours too?"
Akira sighed. "Please spare me."
Madara and Obito finally caught on.
"So… she's been won over."
"Finally."
"ROOOOAR—!!!"
The Ten-Tails howled in agony, its back swelling as the seed within threatened to burst forth.
Kaguya's expression turned serious. "The Ten-Tails is about to become the Divine Tree. Focus on what matters first. Once you become its jinchūriki… I'll give you a gift."
Akira nodded. "Then I'll gladly accept."
He turned back—
And in the next instant, stepped through a spatial rift, landing firmly atop the Ten-Tails' back. His hands formed a historic seal before his chest.
"Buzz—!"
His left eye flared to life.
—Mitsubō Energy · Six Paths Ten-Tails Coffin Seal!
"CLAP—!"
A violent storm erupted. Lightning tore across the skies of the Peach Blossom Sanctuary.
Obito's eyes widened. "Hey… that was his left eye, right? Don't tell me—"
Madara grinned. "Yeah. He even enhanced the jinchūriki transformation itself. This guy… he won't let a single advantage slip."
"RUMBLE—!!!"
Beneath the Myojin Gates, the Ten-Tails' massive body collapsed—
Turning into a torrent of crimson-brown fluid that surged into Akira's body like a tidal wave.
And then—
Transformation.
"Whoosh—!"
His hair remained black, yet changed in texture—
Glossy, flowing like a cascading waterfall of dark leaves.
"Crack—!"
His forehead hardened, forming a crown-like horned crest.
From beneath his bangs, a pair of pale gray horns—shaped like kunai—extended diagonally toward the sky.
"Swish—!"
A black Six Paths cloak wrapped around him, styled like his familiar divine robe, its hem flickering with blazing black chakra flames.
Golden magatama patterns spread across the collar and sleeves.
On his back—
A dark-gold Rinnegan sigil formed, interwoven with a Six Paths matrix.
"Whoosh!"
One Truth-Seeking Orb after another appeared behind him—
Black spheres wreathed in silver aura—
Twelve in total, forming a halo.
A thirteenth orb formed at the center—
Flattening into a ring, hollowing out—
Encircling the twelve like a clock face.
A fourteenth orb appeared in the center—
Splitting into three arrow-like hands.
Akira glanced down at his watch.
3:56:53 AM.
"Click—!"
The three pointers aligned perfectly.
He didn't need numbers.
Time itself was now instinct.
This had always been his flaw—
He couldn't keep time internally.
Even with training.
And yet—
He wielded time-based abilities.
So he had relied on his watch.
A weakness… exploitable.
But no longer.
The Truth-Seeking Orb clock—
Was absolute.
Still—
He kept the watch.
Because… life needed its small comforts.
"Whoosh! Whoosh!"
Two more orbs formed in his left hand—
Merging into a Sage Staff.
One end bore Yang energy.
The other—Yin.
A perfect balance.
"Whoosh—!"
The markings of Slug Sage Mode and Asura Sage Mode manifested together—
Once incompatible—
Now unified within his Six Paths power.
Obito stared, stunned. "The same Ten-Tails Six Paths Mode… yet the difference is this huge…"
Madara nodded. "There is no stronger Six Paths form… unless he creates one himself."
Kaguya watched silently.
Hagoromo…
You called yourself the Sage of Six Paths…
And yet—your descendant has surpassed you.
In power… in technique… in everything.
Only one thing remains…
Dual Rinnegan.
But even that—
Akira's single Rinnegan and Eternal Mangekyō—
Already rivaled it.
He has surpassed you.
And with our support… he will go even further.
Kaguya stepped forward.
A glowing sphere formed in her palm.
"Akira… this is your true gift."
He took it, closing his hand.
"This is…?"
"The Freedom of Truth-Seeking Orbs. The ability to freely refine Sage and Ten-Tails chakra into them. Without it, they're just disposable tools. With it… they truly belong to you."
"…Thank you. This helps a lot."
Akira nodded, then smiled faintly.
"In that case… I should return the favor."
His right eye focused on the ground.
—Danmetsu Sentī · Yomotsu Hirasaka Time Reversal!
"Whoosh—!"
Through causality and time—
The Ten-Tails reappeared beneath the Myojin Gates—
At the threshold of becoming the Divine Tree.
Two Ten-Tails now existed.
One sealed within him.
One… alive.
"ROOOOAR—!!!"
The limit broke.
The Divine Tree erupted forth—
Its roots burrowing into the earth—
Its trunk piercing the heavens—
Devouring natural energy.
Akira turned—
Smiling like a boy.
"Kaguya… this Divine Tree is my gift to you."
"Absorb it… and you'll regain your former power."
Kaguya's eyes trembled.
Tears streamed down her face.
"…How can you be this good to me…?"
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