IUTT: Ch. 277

"Since none of you seem interested in continuing the fight, then come with me!" Shin's expression became more serious as he spoke. "It's time to hold a rather unconventional meeting."

With that, he strode forward.

The others exchanged glances, then hurried after him.

---

Inside the Hokage Building's conference room, Tsunade, the leaders of each village, and other chiefs sat around a large table in a circle.

Aside from them, everyone else stood. Shin stood behind Tsunade.

Behind the others stood, respectively, Madara, Minato, Fugaku, Hizashi, Hinae, Kushina, Fukuyama, Sakumo, and Jiraiya.

This one-to-one "watching" arrangement made the atmosphere unbearably tense.

What the hell is this? Intimidation?

Well... if it was meant to intimidate, mission accomplished. We admit it, we're scared.

Alright, everyone, put away your divine powers. We really can't handle this.

Especially when they saw the Rinnegan in both Shin and Madara's eyes, everyone kept their heads down, not uttering a single word.

Damn it, when did the legendary "invincible Sage eyes" become this common?

Konoha shows up with two of them, how's anyone supposed to survive that?

"Since you're all sitting here, I assume you no longer want to fight?" Tsunade's gaze swept coldly around the room as she spoke with authority.

Ōnoki sighed. "Truth is, we never really intended to fight. This whole thing... was just a misunderstanding."

"A misunderstanding? You know better than I do whether it was or not. But frankly, I can't be bothered to argue. I have only one thing to say, Konoha intends to unify the entire shinobi world. That's it. Now, who's in favor, and who's against?"

The moment Tsunade said this, a storm surged in everyone's hearts.

Unifying the shinobi world... such an outrageous statement, but coming from the Hokage herself, it didn't feel out of place at all.

After all, the entire shinobi world had joined forces to attack Konoha, yet they'd been crushed face-to-face without the slightest chance to resist. Unification was now inevitable.

The key was, no one had the courage to oppose it.

Shin hadn't given them the chance. He'd even said they could leave and keep fighting if they wanted, but if it came to that, they wouldn't even have the chance to beg for mercy. Konoha would wipe them from the map, erasing them from the shinobi world entirely.

No one doubted Konoha's power, especially after seeing those two pairs of glowing purple Rinnegan.

In this war, Madara had only acted once. Shin hadn't acted at all. If the two of them had gone all-out from the start, the fate of the major villages would have been far worse.

In other words, they had no choice.

"I agree!" said Hanzō, who had long since lost his fighting spirit, raising his hand to cast the first vote.

"I agree as well!" The leader of Taki quickly followed suit.

With two people agreeing in a row, the rest sank into despair.

Among the Four Great Villages, Pakura was the first to raise her hand. She sighed. "I agree."

By now, she fully understood what had happened to her, or rather, it wasn't that she'd just realized it, but that Shin had never bothered hiding it.

Since a few years ago, her life had been entirely within Shin's control. She had once been deeply unwilling to accept this, wanting to break free from the hand that held her, but pitifully, she'd discovered she could only compromise.

With Pakura leading the way, the other Great Villages stopped pretending.

"I agree!"

"I agree!"

"..."

Ten votes in favor. Not a single person willing to court death.

"Since everyone agrees, we should now discuss exactly how to implement it," Tsunade grinned. "Of course, you're free to raise objections, after all, we're all on the same side now."

"But since we are on the same side, I hope none of you make things difficult for me. When you return, you must carry this out seriously. After all, what happened in Kusa is something we in Konoha don't wish to see happen again."

---

The meeting lasted a full ten days. During this time, Minato was run ragged, he frequently had to accompany the leaders and chiefs of other villages back home to make arrangements, or bring people from their villages to Konoha.

His hard work paid off, this time, the major villages were truly and completely subdued by Konoha. With their own leaders explaining their decisions and calming their people, things went relatively smoothly.

Of course, there were still a few stubborn fools who voiced opposition. But everyone who did so mysteriously vanished, and, most likely, would never appear again.

Shin didn't bother with these trivial matters. The overall situation was already settled, and for him, there were far more important things to do.

Inside a secret laboratory, he activated the power of his left eye, constantly analyzing the Kāma mark on Minato's hand within his personal analysis space.

After a long time, he withdrew his gaze, though the deconstruction and reconstruction processes inside the analysis space never stopped.

The Kāma wasn't easy to decipher, but neither was it as impossible as imagined. After all, it was still a Six Paths-level power, and being cracked was only a matter of time.

His purpose in researching the Kāma wasn't to use it himself, nor to gain immortality through it. Rather, he wanted to find a way to break it, cutting off any possibility of the Ōtsutsuki clan resurrecting.

He had already understood most aspects of this clan, but the one thing that truly troubled him was their seemingly endless ability to revive. It might not pose an immediate, overwhelming threat, but it meant they could come back again and again.

Since he had decided to take action, it had to be once and for all, he could never give them the chance to turn the tables.

Time passed quietly in research.

---

Three years later, inside the secret laboratory, Madara stared at the head-sized white mass before him, his heart pounding with excitement.

"This... is the artificial God Tree fruit you've been working on?"

"Mm-hmm!" Shin was equally pleased. "Though my version is far more advanced than the original."

"Really?" Madara asked, thrilled.

"Of course! Orochimaru has completely deciphered Isshiki's secrets, he's figured out how the God Tree is born and the principles behind the Chakra Fruit."

"The Ōtsutsuki truly went to great lengths for greater power."

"do you know?" Shin spoke with a smile, "Orochimaru's research shows that the Ōtsutsuki are actually very weak."

"Impossible," Madara said with disbelief. "Whether it's Kaguya or Isshiki, they're all incredibly strong. And the other members you've mentioned are also powerful."

"That's only because they've eaten Chakra Fruits," Shin explained.

"To put it more clearly, their clan has spent an extremely long time continuously modifying and weakening themselves at the genetic level."

"Weakening themselves?" Madara grew more confused. "What on earth are you talking about?"

"You didn't mishear. They deliberately weaken themselves. This has led to the point where a newborn Ōtsutsuki infant is even more fragile than a human baby. But they do this for the sake of greater power. Because in such a weakened state, when they consume a Chakra Fruit, they can achieve a more perfect evolution and gain even greater strength."

"You mean, they deliberately weakened themselves and genetically modified themselves so they could perfectly adapt to the Chakra Fruit?" Madara asked.

"That's right," Shin explained.

"The Chakra Fruit is a crystallization of chakra that contains the life records of every living being on the planet. For the Chakra Fruit to allow the eater to truly evolve, there are two factors: the first is the immense energy it contains; the second is the genetic information it holds that can be absorbed by the eater. The energy part is easy to understand, the greater the energy, the greater the improvement it can provide. As for the genetic information, it's used to unlock the 'gene lock.' Otherwise, if the gene lock isn't opened, and one forcibly consumes such massive energy without being able to absorb it, the result will be body rupture and death."

"But the way the Ōtsutsuki clan chooses to obtain energy is extremely domineering. They first plant a Ten-Tails on a life-bearing planet. After the Ten-Tails devours a member of the Ōtsutsuki clan, it can grow into a God Tree. It was originally created from the genes of the Ōtsutsuki clan. After devouring one of them, it becomes fully activated."

"Then the God Tree absorbs all chakra from every living creature on the planet, and bears an enormous Chakra Fruit. This fruit is perfectly adapted to the Ōtsutsuki clan's genes, and under the stimulation of its vast energy, it can unlock their genetic shackles, allowing their life level to make a leap."

"For other races, if they recklessly eat the Chakra Fruit, they will either die from bursting apart or have greatly reduced effects. For example, if a Chakra Fruit were grown on Earth, you could all eat it. That's because the genetic information inside has some correlation to you, and since you all carry a trace of Ōtsutsuki bloodline, it can partially unlock your gene lock. However, the improvement you'd gain from eating a Chakra Fruit would definitely be far less than what the true Ōtsutsuki clan would get, because the portion of energy that doesn't match your genes would be rejected by your body. But if the Chakra Fruit doesn't come from Earth, and instead from another life-bearing planet, if you eat it recklessly, a small amount is fine, your faint trace of Ōtsutsuki blood can handle it, but if you take a bit more, you'll immediately burst and die."

"Because of genetic incompatibility?" Madara asked.

"Exactly." Shin pointed to the white mass in front of them and said, "But this is different. This is an energy fruit specially made for you. It's perfectly matched to your genes. Although it contains far more energy than a normal Chakra Fruit, once it enters your body and fuses with you, it will continuously and rapidly draw energy from the outside world, letting you grow stronger at every moment. When the accumulation reaches a tipping point, you'll achieve a leap in your life level. This is the result of combining all our past research with the secrets of the Ōtsutsuki clan's evolution, years of work."

Madara immediately reached out to take it, but suddenly thought of something and stopped to ask, "What about you?"

"I have to see how your evolution goes first."

"So, once again you're using me as a guinea pig, huh?" Madara complained lightly, but didn't actually get angry. He directly took the energy fruit from the container and began eating it in large bites.

As the energy fruit was completely consumed, Madara's body, while continuously absorbing and merging with it, began to radiate dazzling brilliance, exuding vigorous energy.

After a while, the overflowing energy began to contract, flowing back into Madara's body. At the same time, the surrounding natural energy, as if encountering a black hole, frantically surged toward him, so fast it was jaw-dropping.

"Natural energy?" Madara, feeling the growing amount of natural energy inside him, exclaimed in surprise.

"In theory, all energy comes from natural energy, it's just used in different ways. Our chakra is no exception, it only looks like it's refined from within the body. But the reason our chakra recovery speed is far greater than the extraction speed is because once our body forms a container for chakra, natural energy can flow in and quickly be converted into chakra."

"When will this process stop?"

"I'm not sure, but this is only the beginning. Once absorption stops, you can immediately eat a second one and continue fusing and absorbing vast amounts of energy. In this way, you can achieve an evolution similar to the Ōtsutsuki clan's so-called 'infinite evolution,' but without all the trouble, and with no side effects."

After recording all of Madara's data, Shin was very satisfied, and then began making an energy fruit for himself.

---

Time flew by, and another three years passed.

Over on Orochimaru's side, complaints were endless, he said he had nothing left to research and demanded that Shin bring him back immediately.

The real reason, however, was that Shin had secretly sent him a message, telling him that his research into immortality was now completely finished, and that through experiments, he had granted immortality to many people, including himself.

The moment he heard this, how could he possibly sit still? He was dying to return to Konoha immediately, unwilling to wait another second.

"Your research progress has been slowing down more and more lately," Isshiki said, clearly displeased as he saw Orochimaru slacking off again.

"That's because my task is already complete," Orochimaru replied with a cheerful smile.

"Complete?" Isshiki frowned. "Ever since the Kāma on Minato was somehow removed, you haven't found me a single new perfect vessel. And you call that completing your task? It seems I've been far too easy-going with you all this time, letting you develop... certain misunderstandings."

"The one who's misunderstood is you. I never said the task I completed was the one you gave me."

"What?" Isshiki's eyes suddenly sharpened.

In the next instant, a palm as large as a fan clamped tightly around his neck and slammed him against a thick pillar.

"The task came from me. Do you have a problem with that?" The owner of the hand, Shin, smiled faintly. "Isshiki."

"Shin..." Isshiki's eyelids twitched wildly, but before he could react, Shin's fist was already swinging toward his face.

Isshiki instantly used Sukunahikona, shrinking his body down to the size of a speck of dust, dodging Shin's punch.

Just as he was about to counterattack, a phantom the same size as him suddenly appeared behind him and drove a black rod deep into his body.

He was completely stunned, unable to react, but the flow of chakra within him had already stopped, forcing his body to return to its normal size.

Looking at Shin and Madara standing nearby, he nearly went insane.

Never in his wildest dreams did he think he would one day be defeated in a single move, but his downfall was only the beginning.

Because Shin had once said he would wipe out the Ōtsutsuki clan. And when he said it, he meant it.

---

Another ten years passed in a flash.

At the gates of Konoha, ten figures stood tall and proud.

Among them were Shin, Madara, Tsunade, Minato, Fugaku, Hizashi, Kushina, Fukuyama, Sakumo, and Orochimaru.

Over the years, these ten had undergone countless evolutions, their life levels leaping forward time and again. Their current strength could no longer be measured by common sense.

Perhaps, it was more fitting to call them gods.

Many others had also taken part in the evolution experiments, though their results were not as smooth as these ten. While they had grown far stronger than before, there was still a vast gap between them and these ten individuals.

At this moment, before the ten stood a spatial gateway.

Once they stepped through, they could cross the great river of time and space, arriving at any location in any time period.

And their goal was clear, to travel to the Ōtsutsuki clan's homeworld, wipe them out completely, and remove all threats to the shinobi world.

Shin took the lead and stepped into the gateway.

Only ten seconds later, the space-time portal opened again, and out stepped many figures, the very group that had gone to annihilate the Ōtsutsuki.

Everyone was stunned... We just came to see you off, and you're already back? Did the teleportation fail?

No, that wasn't it.

If the teleportation had failed, why were they all covered in blood, their clothes tattered and torn?

No one knew that while only ten seconds had passed here, within the great river of time they had spent who knew how many years.

Time, however, could no longer leave a single mark on their bodies.

But among them, two were missing, Shin and Tsunade.

Some speculated that the two had died. But when the Hokage, Minato, heard this rumor, he immediately issued an announcement telling everyone that Tsunade and Shin were still alive.

He did not reveal where they had gone, nor did he tell anyone when they would return.

---

Another hundred years quietly slipped by, the old generation had long since faded from the flow of history, and the new had replaced the old.

In that century, after an initial thirty years of peace, the shinobi world began to fall into chaos once more.

For various reasons, two decades ago, Konoha splintered into many new ninja villages, waging endless wars against each other.

Yet none of these new villages could dominate the rest. Skirmishes broke out and died down again, never ceasing for decades.

There was once a village that inherited Konoha's name and claimed to be its rightful successor, but the land they occupied was no longer the unified Konoha of the past, and the other villages did not recognize them at all.

We're all about the same strength, why should you get to act like the boss?

Because of this, that "Konoha" lasted barely over a decade before being destroyed by an alliance of many villages.

From then on, the Konoha that once unified the world was erased completely, surviving only in the pages of history.

For a long time afterward, many in the shinobi world, when studying history, could not help but sigh at that golden age from centuries ago, an age when every single figure among the ten could overwhelm the entire world.

But as the years passed, countless people began to doubt whether that era had ever truly existed.

It couldn't be helped, that era was simply too fantastical. As a result, whenever anyone brought up history, they were accused of exaggerating, and others believed the whole thing had been deliberately fabricated.

Later, the Kage of various villages even removed that part of history from the history books altogether, slowly erasing it from public knowledge. Only a few particularly stubborn individuals tried to uncover the truth of that time, but none had any success.

What the shinobi world did not know, however, was that on the other side of the universe, on an incredibly beautiful life-bearing planet, there existed a race called "ninja," the undisputed rulers of that star system.

Many of the names once recorded in Earth's history had long since settled there.

"Shin, when are we going back to Central World for a visit?" In a vast manor, Tsunade lay on a lounge chair, sipping freshly squeezed juice from her own orchard, enjoying a massage from Shin, and asking lazily out of boredom.

"Haven't we gone back plenty of times already?" Shin, also holding a glass of juice, reclined under the sun with ease. "By the way, when Minato, Kushina, and the others went traveling to other star systems, why didn't you go with them?"

"Seen it all before. Got tired of it ages ago." Tsunade sat up, looking bored.

"Oh, right, Sakumo told me recently he's planning to attack Dragnof. Want to go join the fun?"

"Did a dragon attack him?"

"Don't even mention it, his son Kakashi was almost swallowed whole by a dragon. If he hadn't run fast enough, we'd be mourning him now."

"Kakashi... he's not going after that dragon, is he?" Tsunade turned to him in disbelief.

"Cough, cough... nothing like that." Shin nearly choked. Kakashi isn't like that, and he's not that much of a pervert.

"Then forget it. No drama to watch, and beating up small fry is no fun." Tsunade sighed. "Honestly, I really admire my grandpa and Madara, those two have been bickering for so many years without getting tired of it."

"I'm surprised too," Shin said speechlessly.

Back when Madara revived Hashirama, the two had been overjoyed, talking all night, even sleeping side by side, so much so that the also-revived Mito nearly separated from Hashirama in anger. It took Tsunade and the others a long time to calm her down.

But by the third year, Madara and Hashirama had started quarreling again, and had been at it for decades, loving and fighting, never stopping for even a moment.

"How about we go back to Earth and unify the shinobi world again?" Shin suggested.

"Hahaha, if you go back now, in the eyes of the current shinobi world, what difference is there between you and the Ōtsutsuki who descended back then?"

"There's a huge difference!" Shin protested. "I wouldn't destroy Earth's environment, and besides, I'm way stronger than the Ōtsutsuki clan."

"Forget it. To you, it's just a game. To them, it would be an unprovoked disaster. Don't mess with them anymore."

"Sometimes I think immortality really isn't a good thing... all Orochimaru's fault," Tsunade grumbled.

"Haha, exactly, all Orochimaru's fault."