At their temporary lodgings.
Madara leaned against the wall with his arms folded.
"That Hyūga Tenshu is getting ahead of himself awfully fast. He just got those eyes and already wants to unite the Shinobi World. Does he think the Tenseigan is a master key?"
Hashirama sat down.
"The power has gone to his head. But the Tenseigan's power is real. We can't underestimate it."
Tobirama analyzed the situation. "He mentioned refining bloodlines, turning the Hyūga and Kaguya back into Ōtsutsuki. If he actually succeeds, his level of power might approach that of the legendary Sage of Six Paths."
"Then we don't let him succeed," Ryuto said.
"Exactly." Madara sneered. "Find him, kill him. Simple."
The night passed without incident.
Early the next morning, Ōtsutsuki Jing arrived.
He looked a little better than yesterday, but his eyes were bloodshot; he probably hadn't slept all night. He told them that Hyūga Tenshu had looted the Branch Family's archive and gone into hiding. Judging by his movements, he had likely learned the details of the moon from the Branch Family's grand elder and hidden himself well. With no leads for the moment, Jing could only order his people to intensify the search.
Several more days passed before Jing came rushing over.
"We have a lead," he said, getting straight to the point. "Tenshu hasn't gone far. A while ago, he looted a secret Branch Family warehouse and took a large number of texts on bloodline refinement, puppet construction, and ancient formations, along with a batch of rare materials."
"Where is he?" Hashirama asked.
"Based on fragments of the warehouse guards' remaining memories and testimony from several Branch Family members with relevant knowledge, he's probably hiding in an abandoned underground base on the far side of the moon," Jing said. "Long ago, the