A Story from a Thousand Years Ago 2

"Kaguya..." Madara repeated the name softly.

This is someone Izuna mentioned before, but at that time he only told stories related to Kaguya, without these background stories that serve as a major premise.

Is it that you don't want to tell them, or that you simply don't know?

Jigen said, "What Kaguya did was actually a betrayal, a betrayal of the Ōtsutsuki Main Family."

"According to the rules of the Ōtsutsuki Main Family, guardians should be devoured by Craftsmen and transformed into nourishment for the God Tree. Kaguya refused this fate."

"She injured Isshiki, seized the fruit, and claimed the power of the God Tree for herself. This is an absolute taboo within the Ōtsutsuki Clan."

"If her family discovers this, they will send people to retrieve her, execute her, and then continue the program of the God Tree, completely draining the life force of this planet."

"Because she was afraid of the main family," Jigen continued, "Kaguya did not continue with the God Tree's program. Instead of draining the planet's life force, she chose another path."

"She fed humans to the God Tree, turning them into weapons—those white things you see."

"Isshiki and Black Zetsu call it White Zetsu." Jigen nodded. "Kaguya attempted to amass an army to fight against the eventual reclaimers of the main clan. She sacrificed countless humans, turning them into puppets without their own will, just so that there would be enough shields to stand in her way when that day of judgment arrives."

The night wind rustled through the willow branches, carrying a low, mournful sound. The flame of the oil lamp flickered, casting alternating shadows on Jigen's face.

"But her plan failed," Jigen said. "Her sons betrayed her."

"They didn't want to see their mother sacrifice humans, nor did they want to see this planet turn into a wasteland overrun by white puppets," Jigen said. "So they joined forces to seal Kaguya."

"The Sage of Six Paths extracted the Chakra the Ten-Tails from Kaguya's body, divided it into nine parts, and scattered them throughout the world. These are the Nine Tailed Beasts that you know."

"The empty shell of the Ten-Tails, the vessel of the God Tree that had lost its Chakra, was sealed away by them together, and rose into the sky with Kaguya, transforming into the moon."

He slowly raised his eyes, his gaze passing over the eaves of the Hexagonal Hall, looking at the faint crescent moon in the night sky. "One of those two went to the moon, while the other walked on this earth to atone for the sins caused by that great war. Later generations called the one who stayed on this earth the Sage of Six Paths."

"And Black Zetsu... Black Zetsu is a fragment of Princess Kaguya's consciousness left behind before she was sealed away. His sole mission is to free Kaguya from the seal."

Hashirama subconsciously looked up at the night sky. The crescent moon hung quietly in the sky, its cold white light shining on the tiles of the Hexagonal Hall, clear and bright.

When Izuna told this story before, he thought it was a bit far-fetched.

How could the moon be something created by man? Yet now he had to believe that there really were enemies lurking in the heavens.

He suddenly remembered Izuna's condition; he could remember almost nothing, and most importantly, he had lost all his memories. They had previously thought that some kind of trauma had caused the memory loss, and he was even thinking about whether he could help to help Izuna remember so that they could deal with the situation.

It seems better that he can't remember now. If he did, given Izuna's... or rather Uchiha's personality, wouldn't he try every means to seek revenge on that Ōtsutsuki Clan?

Look at the spots!

Hashirama felt a chill emanating from behind him, his back soaked with cold sweat.

If it weren't for Izuna still being there, I'm afraid I would have really shattered the Heaven's Chosen and become the Heaven's Chosen!

"I see." Tobirama's voice broke the silence. "The Ten-Tails was split into Nine Tailed Beasts. The Tailed Beasts are too powerful to approach. Kaguya, sealed on the moon, and Isshiki were unable to use her or reclaim her power."

"That's right." Jigen nodded. "The Isshiki thousand years is not because he didn't want to act, but because he couldn't."

"His body was destroyed, and the vessel he inhabited was merely a mortal monk. His only choice was to wait—either until the Ōtsutsuki Main Family came to deal with Kaguya, or until Black Zetsu gathered Nine Tailed Beasts to release Kaguya from her seal."

"So Izuna is the one who's getting in their way," Madara gritted his teeth. "Isshiki and Black Zetsu want to get rid of him."

"To be precise, it was Black Zetsu who wanted it," Jigen corrected. "Isshiki's attack on your administrative district this time wasn't actually aimed at Lord Izuna. What he really wanted was the opportunity to release Kaguya."

"And the key to releasing Kaguya," his gaze shifted from Madara to Hashirama, "Is you two."

Hashirama pointed to himself, then to Madara: "Us? Why?"

"Because you two are the reincarnations of the Chakra of Indra and Asura, the two sons of the Sage of Six Paths."

Hashirama was stunned, and Madara and Tobirama were also taken aback.

"Indra inherited the Sage's Eyes, Asura inherited the Sage's Body. Their Chakra has been reincarnated for thousands of years, fighting each other and attracting each other. Isshiki desires is the power that might be born from the combination of these two Chakras: the Rinnegan."

Hashirama stared blankly at Jigen, his mouth slightly agape, like a fish that had just been pulled ashore.

Tobirama's brows furrowed into a tight knot as he stared at Jigen, a rare look of near bewilderment on his face.

Only Ban remained calm.

Tobirama keenly noticed this. He turned his head and stared at Madara with a scrutinizing gaze. "You bastard, did you already know?"

"We all know how to awaken the Rinnegan," Madara said calmly, "But this is the first time I've heard of reincarnations."

"Then why are you so calm?"

Ban leaned against the willow trunk, his Dead-Fish Eyes peeking out. "Heh, if you'd experienced what I've been through, you'd also think it's all no big deal."

Tobirama stared at him for a few seconds, then looked away.

Seeing this, Jigen smiled slightly and clasped his hands together, saying, "It seems that you all already understand the key point, so this old monk need not waste any more words explaining."

"Wait a minute." Hashirama snapped out of his Hashirama, leaning forward slightly, his fingers interlaced on his knees, his expression turning serious. "Old sir, I have another question. Those White Zetsu, if they were Kaguya the army Kaguya created to fight the Ōtsutsuki Main Family, then they're far too weak. Even our Genin could take them down. Aside from the trouble of impersonating them, their Strength isn't particularly high. How could something like that possibly stop the Ōtsutsuki Main Family?"

"Isshiki has also had doubts about this," Jigen said. "Kaguya created White Zetsu by consuming countless humans and taking a thousand years. If it was just to create a group of puppets that could be easily cut down, then it is indeed somewhat inexplicable."

"But since they are products of the God Tree, they must have their own special uses, though this old monk does not know them."

"In other words, the true purpose of White Zetsu can only be discovered by ourselves." Tobirama placed his pen on the scroll, looked up, and the Kakkō of the oil lamp reflected in his Red Eyes. "Actually, I've already begun my research based on the samples we brought back."

Hashirama turned to Tobirama behind him and smiled, "You're really fast, Tobirama. You're quite capable."

Tobirama scoffed, a hint of barely perceptible smugness in his indifferent tone. "Don't give me that. Even with a large sample size, there's only so much I can analyze. Don't get your hopes up too high."

"Any more questions?" Jigen asked.

"Yes." Hashirama's smile faded, his gaze returning to Jigen's face. "Is it possible for Isshiki to make a comeback? You said his connection with you was severed by Izuna's Light Blade, but I'm still worried."

"Won't."

When Jigen said those two words, his tone was resolute and without any hesitation. He looked directly into Hashirama's eyes and affirmed it again.

"Ōtsutsuki Isshiki has been completely erased from existence by Izuna. This old monk personally witnessed his demise. Even the wedges he drove have all perished without exception."

Tobirama quickly pressed on, "What is a 'Karma'?"

"It's a unique resurrection method of the Ōtsutsuki Clan," Jigen explained. "They can inscribe their consciousness into another person's body, just like carving words on a stone slab."

Even if the original body is destroyed, as long as one wedge remains, the consciousness can revive in the wedge's host, take over the host's body, and complete the reincarnation.

"After being brought to the brink of death Isshiki thousand years ago, Yi Shi transferred his consciousness into the old monk's body in this way."

Tobirama pressed further, "So, if Isshiki has left Karma elsewhere, it's possible for him to be resurrected?"

"Theoretically, that's true. But what Izuna cut off was the very concept of Ōtsutsuki Isshiki."

Jigen gently placed his hand on his chin, where a diamond-shaped wedge mark had once been etched, now only smooth skin remained. "That strike was incredibly precise, it didn't harm this old monk, it merely neutralized the Isshiki. Truly a powerful spell."

Tobirama silently noted this down.

Hashirama let out a long breath, his tense shoulders finally relaxing, and he leaned back. "That's great... This is probably the best news I've heard in the past few days."

Hashirama suddenly remembered something and straightened up again. "By the way, Master Jigen. You just said that Kaguya created White Zetsu to fight against the main clan, so did she leave anything behind... like a method to fight the Ōtsutsuki? Or a weakness?"

Jigen slowly shook his head. "This old monk is just Isshiki mortal who has been parasitized by Isshiki. This old monk knows very little about the weaknesses of the Ōtsutsuki Clan, but there is one thing this old monk can tell you: the reapers of the Ōtsutsuki Main Family will definitely come."

"Although it may take another thousand years, they will surely appear in the sky above this planet someday in the future."

"By then, the enemies you will face will be stronger, more numerous, and more ruthless than Isshiki. Isshiki is merely a paranoid individual who has lost his guardian and exists alone, while the Reclaimers of the Main Family are truly executioners who act according to the rules."

"They come here with only one concern: whether the fruits of the God Tree have accumulated enough energy."

Hashirama remained silent for a long time, then placed his hands on his knees and solemnly bowed his head to Jigen.

"I understand, Master Jigen. Thank you for telling us all this. We'll take our leave now. Please rest well; we apologize for disturbing you with our visit at night."

Jigen smiled kindly, the fine lines at the corners of her eyes smoothing out in the glow of the oil lamp. "Hehe, you should have said that when you came."

Hashirama raised his head, scratched the back of his head, and smiled, though there was a hint of shame in his smile.

Suddenly, something occurred to him, and he said solemnly, "Regarding your freedom..."

"This old monk doesn't care," Jigen's voice was calm as still water.

"No." Hashirama turned around, his usually gentle and smiling eyes now serious to the point of being stubborn. "We'll find a way."

"You were imprisoned by Isshiki for a thousand years, and now that you've finally regained your freedom, you're forced to remain trapped here because of us." He paused, his voice lowering, "Then what difference is there between us and Isshiki?"

Jigen his hands together, bowed slightly, and paid his respects to Hashirama.

"Then I'll await your good news." He said cheerfully, his words light and airy, seemingly just reluctant to refuse the young man's kindness.

Hashirama nodded vigorously, stood up, and the three of them left together.