Light and shadow flickered rapidly across the Sky Screen.
Kaguya continued wandering.
Then, by chance, Kaguya met a man.
He possessed no great strength, but he was gentle, kind, dependable, and steady.
Having spent her life amid her clan's schemes, deadly struggles, and cold rules, Kaguya had never experienced such pure warmth.
The Ōtsutsuki Clan knew only profit, exploitation, sacrifice, and slaughter. There had never been affection, much less companionship.
Yet this ordinary human gave her something she had never possessed in her life.
As they spent more time together, they grew increasingly comfortable with each other, and their feelings deepened rapidly.
For the first time, Kaguya had someone she cared about.
And it was precisely this unexpected affection that fully ignited the desire to live that had long lain buried in her heart.
She had never accepted her fate, never wanted to be treated as a sacrifice or reduced to a tool paving the way for Isshiki. Endless resentment and defiance had long been building inside her.
But before, even if she did not want to die, she could only submit to her fate. She had not prepared to resist.
Now, however, things were different.
She absolutely refused to die!
She did not want to sacrifice herself as nourishment for the God Tree, abandon everything she cherished, or throw away her life for Isshiki's ambition.
To survive, to protect this hard-won warmth, and to escape her fate as a sacrifice, Kaguya finally made up her mind.
She no longer hesitated or wavered. She took the initiative and sought out Imu.
Without wasting time on pleasantries, Kaguya asked for help directly, her gaze firm and her voice decisive.
"Imu, I need your help!"
She wanted to escape Isshiki's control. She wanted to survive. She wanted to break free of the