Rainbow Squad

Dust motes danced like Hotarubi as the technique reached its full completion, and the faces of the four Otsutsuki clansmen manifested at that very moment.

Even in the state of Impure World Reincarnation, that innate arrogance between their brows remained.

"Hmm... am I still alive?!"

"No, we should be dead..."

"Is this... the surface?"

One of the younger-looking Otsutsuki clansmen was the first to open his eyes, looking around in confusion.

The familiar jade pool... the familiar fluctuations of space-time.

Isn't this the Earth-Moon Passage that Aoshiki proposed they build?

How could they be here?

And who is this kid with the Byakugan in front of us?

"Kid, are you... from the Hyuga Clan on Earth?!"

A flash of wariness crossed the young clansman's eyes, but it quickly turned to astonishment.

He looked down, sensing the death energy within his body, and couldn't help but mutter, "This flow of chakra is exactly the same as the resurrection technique Aoshiki described back then..."

"Is this... the technique called Impure World Reincarnation?"

The other three companions woke up one after another, feeling the contradictory sensations in their bodies.

Almost simultaneously, they recalled a piece of intelligence from their memories.

Long before the final battle between the main and branch families on the moon broke out, they had often looked down upon the ninja world, witnessing countless brilliant and talented ninjas.

Senju Hashirama's Wood Release and Uchiha Madara's Susanoo had both been recorded in their files.

But the one Aoshiki rated the highest was always that white-haired, red-eyed man.

Senju Tobirama.

In his words, the combined talent of Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara didn't even compare to Senju Tobirama.

The various forbidden techniques developed by that guy were things even they, living on the moon, marveled at.

And the one that left the deepest impression on them was Impure World Reincarnation.

Which was exactly their current state.

Legend had it that it summoned the souls of those who had returned to the Pure Land, binding them to sacrifices to serve as weapons of war.

And now, they were experiencing this "masterpiece" firsthand.

"Young man, did no one ever tell you that the souls of the dead are not to be profaned?"

The clansman among the four with the calmest and most immense chakra sneered, and as his voice fell, a terrifying pressure like an abyss erupted violently.

BOOM—!

The entire cavern hummed and vibrated, and gravel fell from the ceiling in a rustle. The jade pool rippled, and the glowing light distorted in the tremors.

A massive surge of chakra attempted to forcibly break the shackles of the Impure World Reincarnation.

"If you want to imitate Senju Tobirama and treat us as puppets for battle, then it's time for you to wake up from your dream."

His pure white eyes stared fixedly at the figure in the black robe, his tone icy.

"Although I don't know how you found this place, there is only one thing we must do..."

He looked toward that deep pool of jade green, his heart filled with anxiety; in his last memory, the civil war on the moon was in a state of desperate, bloody stalemate.

And Aoshiki had been hit head-on by that devastating killing blow...

His fate was unknown.

At this moment, he had only one thought in his mind.

Even if the main family was at the brink of life and death, he had to return to the moon to find Aoshiki...

"Even after crossing the threshold of life and death, your first reaction is still to return to the moon to help..."

"Long time no see... Chi."

Hyuga Qinglan felt the familiar yet far-from-peak chakra fluctuations before him, and the corners of his previously indifferent lips suddenly curled upward, revealing a smile mixed with helplessness and nostalgia.

He slowly removed the black hood that covered most of his face, and purple chakra intertwined on his features, reflecting a radiance that left the four of them momentarily stunned.

"And also..."

"The Rainbow Squad."

Meanwhile, on the outskirts of the Rock Battlefield.

A Shadow Clone of Hyuga Qinglan was stepping nonchalantly through a pool of viscous blood; he casually flicked the bloodstains off his kunai and precisely pierced the heart of a surviving Rock ninja supply soldier.

Although they shared consciousness, the personality of this clone was clearly more prone to sarcasm, and his expression carried a laziness rarely seen in the original body.

""Rainbow Squad"... that guy, the original body, actually still remembers such a cringeworthy code name."

He skillfully looted the sealing scrolls from the corpses while rolling his eyes in his heart.

Chi, Orange, Qing, Blue, and Zi.

Except for "Qing," which was his own codename, the other four had been the most elite members of the Main Family, and the original intention behind forming this Rainbow Squad was to prevent the Otsutsuki Branch Family from going mad and destroying the world.

But in the eyes of this Shadow Clone, those so-called high-ranking officials of the Main Family were all hopeless, stubborn old fools.

If they had listened to Aoshiki's advice back then and eliminated the threat of the Branch Family early on, how could they have ended up with their bloodline severed and the entire group wiped out?

"Purity of bloodline," "the ancestral teachings of our forefathers"...

These rigidities and arrogance were the true culprits that buried them, just like the elders of the Hyuga Clan.

Endless greed and infighting were simply disgusting.

After his attempts to persuade them failed back then, he resolutely chose another path: heading to Earth to seek a power that could serve as a counterbalance.

To that end, he had specifically collected the cells of the Rainbow Squad and had them placed at the Earth-Moon Passage.

As for Qing, he had seized the opportunity to head to Earth, intending to strike a deal with Senju Tobirama, form an alliance with Konoha, and use the Reanimation Jutsu to bring the Otsutsuki Main Family back to slaughter their way to the moon.

The plan was beautiful, but unfortunately, man proposes, God disposes.

Before he could even begin to implement it, the war broke out.

Relying on the foundation of the Main Family, they were initially able to hold their own in the war; even after the Giant Tenseigan was created, the situation had not yet deteriorated to the point of a total rout.

But in the very end, just as they were advancing triumphantly, he was suddenly struck by a golden light and lost consciousness.

That move was perhaps the full-power version of the "Golden Wheel Reincarnation Explosion."

The Shadow Clone Hyuga Qinglan lifted his eyes to look at the moon shadow in the sky.

He had no idea where his own corpse had been blasted to.

Perhaps it had turned to dust, or perhaps it still existed.

The story of what happened on the moon afterward could perhaps only be learned from their mouths.

"I'm just a Shadow Clone, why am I worrying about these ancient, dusty accounts..."

The Shadow Clone muttered to himself, casually wiping away the blood spattered on his face, just as he was about to take a water bottle from his ninja pouch to take a drink.

However, before the cool water could reach his throat, a voice filled with morbid excitement drifted out from the shadows of the dense forest behind him without warning.

"The Rock Battlefield... I really came to the right place."

"I've already obtained the Explosion Release Kekkei Genkai, and I've also gotten one Sharingan from the Uchiha. I was planning to stop there, but to think I'd see a lone Byakugan..."

"Hehehe... I really have to thank the dear Third Hokage and Orochimaru. If they hadn't ordered the pursuit, I wouldn't have had the chance to hunt these perfect materials in such an unnoticed corner."

Following the rustling of footsteps, a short figure slowly emerged from the woods.

He wore a high-collared white robe that covered most of his face, revealing only a mop of messy silver hair and a pair of pupils filled with madness and greed.

"The Byakugan of the Hyuga family... I'll be taking this pair!"

The moment the words fell, he had already arrived in a flash.

And the target of those pale, small hands.

Was none other than Hyuga Qinglan's pair of pure Byakugan!