You're Not Dead?

Kaguya's gaze fell on Hagoromo's bloodshot eyes, and her tone carried a trace of deliberate pity:

"See? This is what happens when you rebel against me. You killed Hamura with your own hands, and now you're all alone. If you're willing to turn back, I might be able to find a way to bring him back to life."

"It was you who forced me into this, Mother!" Hagoromo roared.

"You treated human lives like weeds! You controlled Hamura with a controlling technique and caused his death! You're the one who killed him!"

Hagoromo shouted angrily, and the might of his Rinnegan surged.

Kaguya's brows suddenly furrowed, fury burning in her eyes.

She truly couldn't understand why her own son would oppose his mother and his closest kin for the sake of those fleeting "ants."

"You were born to stand above all living things. Why cling to these ordinary mortals?

You can live for a thousand years, ten thousand years—long enough to watch generations rise and fall!

Five hundred years from now, the people you care about will have already turned to dust. What will you have left?!"

Before her voice had even faded, Kaguya shot toward Hagoromo like an arrow loosed from its bow. The Chakra gathered at her fingertips transformed into razor-sharp blades of air, carrying enough force to tear the heavens and earth apart.

If that was the case—

Then she would reclaim Hagoromo's Chakra!

Just as the blades of air were about to touch Hagoromo—

"Smack!"

A crisp sound rang out through the surroundings.

A bony hand suddenly reached out and seized Kaguya's wrist. Its strength was like an iron clamp, preventing her from advancing even an inch.

"He... still has me."

Manji's voice was calm and flat as his gaze settled on Kaguya's astonished face.

"!!!!!!!"

Kaguya's pupils contracted, and the Chakra around her instantly fell into disorder.

She abruptly looked up. When she recognized who it was, her face went deathly pale, and she cried out in shock:

"It's you?!"

"You're not dead?"

Ōtsutsuki Kaguya exclaimed in disbelief.

The newcomer stood tall and graceful. His black-and-red robes billowed fiercely in the gale, and his ink-black hair fluttered with the air currents. His handsome face remained as it had been all those years ago, with red lips and white teeth, but his brows now carried the weathered traces of time, while a bottomless stillness lay hidden in his eyes.

It was Manji, whom she had believed had long since turned to ash.

"Master!"

When Hagoromo recognized him, the despair that had weighed on his heart was instantly replaced by overwhelming joy. His voice trembled uncontrollably.

From the corner of his eye, Manji glanced at the Rinnegan in Hagoromo's eyes. Its patterns radiated earth-shaking power. He then calmly ordered:

"Use the Immortal Talisman to save Hamura."

"After that, I'll have a little 'spell fight' with your mother."

Before his voice had even faded, Manji abruptly exerted strength through his wrist. Kaguya felt a domineering Senjutsu Chakra surge along his arm!

"Why aren't you dead?! How could you possibly still be alive?"

Ōtsutsuki Kaguya muttered in shock, staring at Manji in disbelief.

All-Killing Ash Bones and Infinite Tsukuyomi—how could Manji possibly have escaped those two techniques?!

"Heh heh. Kaguya, are you surprised to see me?"

"Now it's this old man's turn to have a little spell fight with you!"

Manji let out a cold laugh.

Before she could react, Manji had already slipped to her side. His right fist, wrapped in Senjutsu Chakra, shot toward her face with a sharp whistle as it tore through the air!

"Whoosh!!!"

Kaguya hurriedly leaned backward while striking toward Manji's ribs with her left palm. The force of her palm was as sharp as a blade.

"Boom—!"

Golden-green and shimmering-white Chakra collided violently, erupting with a deafening roar.

In the blink of an eye, Manji and Kaguya had already exchanged hundreds of blows in a flash.

Palm strikes, fist shadows, and the radiance of techniques interwove into a net. They moved too quickly for ordinary people to see, leaving only the suffocating pressure of power capable of destroying heaven and earth.

"Bang bang bang—!"

"Smack smack smack smack smack smack—!!!!"

In an instant, the two had woven themselves into afterimages where they stood, the crisp sounds of their Taijutsu clash dense as drumbeats.

Manji's moves combined the flexibility of Mount Myōboku Immortal Art with the ferocity of the Monkey Demon Clan. Every punch and kick carried overwhelming immortal power!

Wherever his palm strikes swept, clouds of dust billowed from the ground, and stone slabs shattered into powder.

Though Kaguya possessed the power of the God Tree, had reached the pinnacle of Taijutsu mastery, and possessed an unparalleled body after eating the fruit, she was forced back again and again under Manji's fierce immortal assault.

In fewer than a hundred exchanges, Kaguya's sleeves had already been shattered by the force, and a trace of blood leaked from the corner of her mouth. She was being completely suppressed by Manji!

"Your power... is more than twice what it was back then!"

Both shocked and furious, Kaguya avoided Manji's sweeping kick and was sent flying backward. Her eyes remained fixed on him.

Manji said nothing. His body flashed as he pursued her, and the Senjutsu Chakra gathered at his fingertips transformed into fine blades of light that slashed toward the vital points all over Kaguya's body.

His movements were impossibly fast. The corners of his black-and-red robes sliced through the air, leaving behind afterimages. Hundreds of exchanges were completed in the span of a breath, and every collision of limb against limb erupted with a deafening boom.

The two fought from the ground into midair. Manji's fist slammed into Kaguya's palm as she blocked!

"Sage Art: Multiple Frog Kumite!"

Manji exerted his strength!

Under the eruption of immortal power, Kaguya was struck as if by a mountain. She flew backward, smashing through several towering ancient trees before crashing into the ground and creating a several-zhang-deep crater.

Before the dust could disperse, Manji had already teleported before her!

"Sage Art: Kirin!"

Manji suddenly raised his hand. Violent lightning Chakra gathered in his palm, while dark clouds instantly converged overhead amid flashes of lightning and peals of thunder.

He violently swung his arm, and a gigantic lightning Kirin roared out from the dark clouds!

Silver-white lightning wrapped in destructive power opened its bloody maw and viciously bit down at Kaguya!

"Rumble—!!!"

The instant the lightning Kirin struck the ground, the earth shook violently. Countless cracks spread like a spiderweb, and the surrounding buildings were instantly flattened!

Dust and lightning intertwined, forming a terrifying wasteland of destruction.

The shockwaves spread like a tsunami, shaking even the distant mountains until they seemed ready to collapse.

Yet Kaguya still flew out of the smoke!

For Kaguya, even though Sage Arts could inflict massive damage on her—

She had ultimately eaten the fruit, and her body was extraordinarily tough.

Taking a Sage Art: Kirin head-on was no problem.

Using the force of the recoil, she retreated several zhang. Looking at Manji's relentlessly advancing figure, she asked in confusion, "If you were still alive, why didn't you show yourself all these years? Do you know that I..."

"What nonsense are you talking about?"

Manji spoke coldly.

He truly couldn't understand Kaguya's logic. She had betrayed him back then and pierced his chest with All-Killing Ash Bones, yet now she was asking why he hadn't shown himself?

If he had really gone to her as she wished, another fatal attack would probably have been waiting for him.

If I'd really come, you wouldn't have been happy about it either...

Thoughts raced through Manji's mind, but his hands never stopped moving. He stepped onto the empty air, and Senjutsu Chakra condensed into solid stairs beneath his feet. His body closed in once again, his palm strike carrying enough force to destroy heaven and earth. "There's no point in saying more!"

"Enough noise! Take my killing move!!!"

"Sage Art: Gale Palm!"

"Boom—!"

The two collided once again high in the sky. Terrifying waves of air spread outward from the point of impact, and the estate below was instantly reduced to dust!

The ground split into crisscrossing ravines so deep their bottoms could not be seen. Dust surged into the heavens, blotting out the sky and sun.

On the ground, Hagoromo held Hamura's cold corpse in his arms and gazed up at the two figures moving at impossible speed overhead. His eyes were filled with shock.

"Master's strength... has actually reached such a level. He can fight Mother head-on and even suppress her!"

"But now that I possess the Rinnegan, I should also have the strength to contend with Mother..."

Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo clenched his fists. He could feel how powerful he was now!

[In the original work, the Hagoromo and Hamura brothers couldn't use Susanoo, much less ninjutsu. They both fought using Truth-Seeking Orbs and Yin-Yang Release.]

[The same goes for the later original plot involving Indra and Asura. Indra was the one who created ninjutsu, and he was the only one who knew how to use it. Asura didn't know Wood Release or a ninjutsu resembling Rasengan. He fought using Truth-Seeking Orbs, Yin-Yang Release, and what seemed to be Nine-Tails Chakra Mode.]

[I'm saying this because the plot of this book references the TV anime. Don't bring up the manga's plot.]

He hurriedly took the Toad Immortal Talisman from his robes. The talisman was warm to the touch and radiated a faint golden light. Without hesitation, Hagoromo pressed it against Hamura's brow.

"Buzz—!"

Brilliant golden light erupted instantly, enveloping Hamura's corpse.

The golden light flowed into Hamura's body through his seven orifices. His icy body gradually regained its warmth, while the wound piercing his chest healed at a visible speed. Color returned to his pale face.

A moment later, the golden light faded. Hamura suddenly opened his eyes, his Byakugan activating at once as he began coughing violently. His chest rose and fell, and he was completely restored.

Golden light flashed as the Immortal Talisman unleashed its power!