While Shinichi was stirring up trouble all over the world, Neji discovered that the Spacetime Marker had suddenly lit up. The moment his consciousness touched the Jade Jue, he was instantly sucked inside.
After a long while, Neji came back to his senses and felt an invisible force tugging at him, his consciousness rising and sinking through chaos. He could faintly hear water nearby, like countless streams converging into a river, or an ancient beast murmuring deep within an abyss.
"Drip—"
A cold droplet landed on his forehead, and Neji abruptly opened his eyes.
Before him stretched a dim yellow sky, devoid of sun, moon, and stars. Only drifting clouds spread through it like diluted ink. He found himself floating above a broad river, mere inches from the surface, yet strangely, not even the hem of his clothes was wet.
"This is..."
Neji instinctively tried to circulate his chakra, only to discover that what flowed within him was no longer the familiar energy. It was a purer, more fundamental power, as though it resonated directly with heaven and earth.
He looked down at his hands. Beneath his translucent skin, faint fluorescence flowed like a galaxy trapped inside his veins.
"Welcome back, Hyuga Neji."
An aged yet gentle voice came from behind him. Neji turned and saw the Sage of Six Paths seated cross-legged atop a pitch-black reef, with nine Truth-Seeking Orbs floating around him.
The old man was dressed no differently from their last meeting—white robes, twin horns on his forehead, and six black Magatama hanging before his chest.
But this time, Neji could clearly see the Threads of Law winding around the old man. Fine golden strands, thin as hair, extended from the void and coiled around the Sage of Six Paths' fingertips and the ends of his hair.