The Root of Disaster

"It is not your father who wishes to do this, but your mother."

"Otsutsuki Kaguya."

Beside them, the Toad Sage's voice suddenly rang out.

He had arrived at some unknown time and was now quietly watching them from within the Temple.

"Otsutsuki Kaguya is a stranger who came from beyond the heavens."

"She regards this entire world as her own territory, and she will inevitably bring great calamity upon it."

"And if no one can curb this desire of hers, sooner or later it will destroy this world."

"What exactly do you mean by this?"

Otsutsuki Hagoromo looked at the Toad Sage before him, frowning: "Speaking of destroying the world—that's going a bit too far."

They did find the practice of sacrificing human lives to the God Tree somewhat objectionable, but it was merely out of pity in their hearts.

But as for claiming such actions would destroy the world, they still did not believe it.

After all, from the current perspective, even the lives consumed by the God Tree's sacrifices were not that many relative to the world's total population.

It was still within a reasonable range.

"I am not exaggerating..."

The Toad Sage shook his head, indicating he was not overstating, and simply said: "That God Tree is the root of all evil."

"It not only needs to absorb the life force of living beings, but also continuously draws the Natural Energy from within the world."

"In this process, the world's Natural Energy will gradually be exhausted, until it completely turns into a wasteland."

The Toad Sage's eyes were deep, and as he spoke, various scenes reflected in his pupils, as if illuminating visions of the future.

The Hagoromo Brothers frowned.

At that moment, they felt a slight change occurring within themselves.

The Toad Sage stepped forward and handed them an oily substance.

"This is Toad Oil, a substance used to aid in contacting Natural Energy. Apply this to your body, and you will be able to sense the flow of Natural Energy."

He spoke thus, signaling the Hagoromo Brothers to experience it for themselves.

"Brother..."

Hamura looked at Hagoromo before him, a hint of hesitation on his face.

He felt that blindly trusting the words of someone of unknown origin and smearing that obviously dangerous substance on their bodies was somewhat foolish.

If the other party harbored ill intent, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Hagoromo, however, shook his head.

He was well aware of his younger brother Hamura's concerns, but for some reason, looking at the Toad Sage before him, he felt an inexplicable trust.

He had a feeling that the other party would not deceive him—at least not in such a trivial matter.

So he took the Toad Oil from the Toad Sage and began applying it in front of his brother Hamura.

As soon as the Toad Oil touched his body, various reactions immediately occurred. The sensations were so intense that Hagoromo couldn't help but frown, feeling a transformation taking place.

"Hiss..."

He sucked in a sharp breath, finding the sensation quite stimulating.

Hamura watched his brother warily.

A faint, glowing white light flickered within his Byakugan as he meticulously observed every detail of Hagoromo's condition.

In his eyes, his brother's arm gradually petrified, as if undergoing some unknown change.

"Brother!"

Seeing this, Hamura's heart jolted, and he immediately moved to stop him.

"It's fine."

Hagoromo waved his hand, timely halting his brother's action, and said: "Don't worry, I'm alright."

"So this is what Natural Energy is..."

Hagoromo stood still, feeling the changes around him, a look of dawning realization on his face: "If that's the case..."

He waved his hand, and in an instant, the Chakra within his body combined with the Natural Energy, unleashing a terrifying strike.

With just one blow, it pierced through a small hill ahead, leveling everything in its path.

Its power far surpassed that of pure Chakra alone.

Witnessing this, Hamura was astonished, and even the Toad Sage beside him looked somewhat surprised, a glint of admiration in his eyes.

"As expected of the offspring of the celestial outsider Otsutsuki Kaguya—not only are you powerful, but your talent in Sage Art is also this remarkable."

"With such talent, if you were to diligently cultivate Sage Art, your future achievements would likely surpass everyone who came before..."

Hagoromo glanced at the Toad Sage.

He said nothing more, simply turning his gaze to the God Tree before him and beginning to sense it carefully.

At this moment, he had not yet formally begun training in Sage Art, so his sensitivity to Natural Energy was not particularly sharp.

However, the presence of Toad Oil compensated for this, granting him a much clearer perception of Natural Energy.

Thus he understood that the Toad Sage had not lied.

Before his eyes, this God Tree, besides devouring life, was also slowly consuming the Natural Energy within the world.

The amount it consumed was not insignificant. If this continued over a long period, it would likely be enough to drain the surroundings completely.

And within the God Tree itself, there existed an immense amount of Natural Energy.

This was the accumulation of the ninja world's past, stored inside the God Tree as nourishment for the fruit it was gestating.

If this process were allowed to continue unchecked, it was only a matter of time before the God Tree completely drained all the Natural Energy from the entire ninja world.

"If the Natural Energy within the world were drained dry, what would happen?"

Hagoromo slowly opened his eyes and looked at the Toad Sage beside him as he asked.

"That would lead to a great calamity, even the destruction of the world itself."

The Toad Sage explained.

The so-called Natural Energy was a power generated during the operation of the world.

This power would be produced endlessly as the world functioned. Generally speaking, the more prosperous the world, the greater the amount of Natural Energy generated.

This energy was like a cornerstone that maintained the very foundation of the world's existence. Only with a sufficient amount of Natural Energy could the world's stability be ensured.

Once the God Tree completely drained the Natural Energy, a tremendous disaster would occur.

The world itself would become extremely fragile, and it would very likely fall into an abyss of self-destruction.

Calamities would arise everywhere on the land, and the entire world could collapse.

Hearing this near-apocalyptic outcome, the hearts of the Hamura brothers tightened.

"If that's really the case, then why did Father keep this God Tree?"

Hamura questioned.

Planting the God Tree, even if it meant the destruction of the world—if such a thing had been done by their mother, Kaguya, they would not have found it surprising in the slightest.

But Nanchuan You had not stopped this either. On the contrary, he had deliberately brought sacrifices here to offer them. That was far beyond their imagination.

If the God Tree truly would lead to such a terrifying result, why didn't he stop it?