In the Pure Land, upon the Naraku River, a small boat slowly sailed upstream, with Youtan Poluo and Yu seated at opposite ends.
Yu had only just glimpsed the truth of Shinto, and many of his thoughts had yet to be clarified, so he was not ashamed to ask.
"If the Takamagahara Melee ten thousand years ago had not led Root King to accidentally create the 'Ten-Tails,' then there would have been no Divine Tree or Chakra Fruit, and thus no birth or continuation of Shinto..."
Youtan Poluo rested her chin on one hand and gazed at the emerald ripples trailing behind the boat. "No, yet also yes."
Yu perked up. "How so?"
Youtan Poluo said, "No, because the fruit is ultimately merely a shortcut to power. Those born complete can make up for what they lack through acquired means. Yes, because the fruit broke the restrictions of the Soul Rings, granting its eaters immortal bodies. It turned acquired possibilities into reality..."
"With Hanging Root's peerless innate foundation, if he had found another path to immortality unconstrained by the Soul Rings, he would not have needed something as superfluous as the fruit to achieve what he had now. It would simply have taken longer. Ten thousand years would not have been enough; perhaps a hundred thousand years would have sufficed..."
"And you?" Yu asked. "Was your innate foundation inferior to Hanging Root's?"
Youtan Poluo snorted. "What a joke. Our foundations were equal. He merely had a little more fortune on his side..."
"Then why did you mention only Hanging Root just now?"
"After I died and reached the Netherworld, I had already transcended the Soul Rings. Why would I need the immortality granted by the fruit?"
"Then why did you meddle with the fruit..."
Youtan Poluo first shot Yu a