LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 78
Just before Menma had trapped the Alliance within his Six Crimson Ray Formation, Mileena had exited the battlefield with Jugo and a gravely injured Obito. Using the eyes her father had given her, the symbiote had put the Taka member under Kotoamatsukami, having him heal the Akatsuki leader by using his sage transformation to graft the flesh of the Ten-Tails clone onto Obito; Mileena sits leisurely on a boulder while she waits for Jugo to replace Obito’s missing parts, amusing herself as she waits.
“♪ …girl and I’m here to save the world. You can’t stop me ‘cuz I’m Kim Pos-si-ble. ♫” Mileena sings, nodding jovially to the rhythm.
Earlier, Mileena had just watched Yomi, Moryo’s second-in-command, die a fiery death. Realizing what was about to happen, the medic ninja banged ferociously against the barrier, begging the symbiote to help him. However, she just gave him an innocent smile and waved goodbye, watching as the blast vaporized him.
“♪ Doesn’t matter where, doesn’t matter when. I will be there for y–♫”
“W-Who are you… and--*COUGH**COUGH*--w-why are y-you helping me…?” Obito wheezes, interrupting the symbiote.
The man who declared war on the entire world lies helpless on his back with Jugo filling the hole in his chest with Ten-Tails parts. Coughing up blood, he stares at the being who resembles Black Zetsu.
Mileena hops down from her rocky perch, she towers over the defeated Akatsuki member with a calm demeanor. The black biomass stares down at him with a look of contempt.
“You dumbass simp, you are a pawn--Madara and Zetsu have been using your dumbass ever since you got crushed by that fucking rock!” The symbiote’s tone changes from apathetic to sadistic as she continues. “You get to be Fa--Jin’s pawn now. Do your best to be of use to us~!”
“*COUGH*--W-What’re you…?”
Mileena maintains eye contact with the downed Obito, amassing chakra in both of her eyes and activates Kotoamatsukami once again. As Obito is still weak from his injury, he is unable to get away and falls victim to the symbiote’s genjutsu.
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With anxious anticipation, the team vigilantly watches Menma enact his next move. They see the doppelganger hover ominously inside his barrier, he claps his hands together and from his back, the Ten-Tails emerges; the ground rumbles as the behemoth falls to the ground on its back. The beast closes its massive eye, its limbs and tails dig deep into the earth; a bulge grows from the behemoth’s stomach, forming into a colossal flower bud. The rest of the Ten-Tails grows taller and taller, morphing into a towering tree trunk.
The crimson barrier goes down only for the tree’s roots to blast out of the ground and scatter in multiple directions, seeking out all those who possess chakra. A small herd of roots stampede toward Jin and company.
“Everyone, stay close to me!” The terrified Onikage shouts. I REALLY hope this crazy and insane idea works…
Jin thinks back to one of the chapters of Boruto he read in his previous life, Boruto Chapter 55. He recalls how Isshiki told Code that he can become an Otsutsuki as long as he sacrificed either Boruto or Kawaki to the Ten-Tails and ate the fruit it bore.
The young Uzumaki hurriedly jumps in the way of the roots to shield his team; standing firm, Jin stares down the roots and extends his left hand out to make a ‘stop’ gesture. The oncoming roots part, seamlessly passing over the team much to Rito and Ayanami’s bewilderment.
“Oh, thank God--it actually worked…” Jin breathes a sigh of relief.
Rito scratches his head in confusion. “Wait… why did they ignore us?”
“Yeah…” Ayanami adds, cocking her head to one side. “Why weren’t we sucked dry of our chakra?”
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Root member of the Anbu Black Ops, Sai, is one of many ninjas desperately running away from the oncoming roots of the Divine Tree; the ground behind the fleeing shinobi quakes and shatters as the roots continue to elongate, seeking out all who possess chakra.
Sai takes a quick glance behind him only to see several unlucky souls grabbed by the rhizomes. The helpless ninja caught by the roots are completely drained of their chakra, their faces grow hollow, and their eyes sink into their skulls, their emaciated bodies flow lifelessly in the breeze. The sight of the slain husks left in the wake of the roots make onlookers want to throw up. It looks like hell on Earth.
“Quick! Run! It Sucks out all your chakra and kills yooouu!!” A cloud ninja screams with tears and snot running down his face.
Blood roars in Sai’s ears as he desperately moves his legs, he feels the same exact emotion he had felt when he first met Sasuke and Jin, fear on a deep, instinctual level--only a thousand times stronger. While he is ostensibly running, he is surrounded by people fleeing in all directions. Even Sai, who is faster than the average jonin, is slowed down by the sheer numbers in the crowd.
“Out of my way!” A sand ninja screams, pushing through the crowd.
“I don’t want to die!!!” A kunoichi shrieks in terror.
A panting Sai looks to his left and can see the Eight-Tails jinchuriki, Bee, sprinting gravely away from a drove of roots. To his right, Sai witnesses a Stone ninja trip and fall, he is trampled to death by the stampede of frightened shinobi to the anbu member’s horror; in a matter of moments, their bodies are quickly ground into a thin red paste by the herd of panicking ninja.
“INOOO!!!”
The Sai looks ahead and sees Shikamaru carrying Choji, the young tactician calls out to his friend and comrade. The anbu ninja looks back and sees the next Yamanaka clan head trailing behind, her injuries slowing her down, and a tree root is right behind her.
Images of Team 7 and of Ayanami flash in the young man’s mind, he knows what he has to do; Sai takes a deep breath and turns back, dashing toward his fellow leaf ninja. The anbu grabs Ino by her arm and in one quick motion, pulls her over his shoulder and throws her; the Yamanaka kunoichi is sent flying away.
“You have to live, beautiful.” Sai calls out, smiling.
Sai feels the tree root grabs ahold of him; its grip feels as tight as a constrictor. The anbu member feels his chakra being sapped from his body, he grows weaker and weaker. Sai doesn’t feel sadness or fear, but happiness, the anbu member feels happy that he was able to save a dear comrade in his final moments; he finally closes his eyes, and everything goes black.
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Not that anyone is complaining, Rito and Ayanami continue to feel perplexed as they watch the roots persist in passing them by, ignoring them entirely. They all feel the ground shake as the roots keep on growing.
“Heh… heh heh heh… Ahahahaha!” Echo laughs for the first time in years.
The time-traveler’s guffaw only adds to the dubiety of their situation.
“What’s so funny?” The curious Hyuga asks.
“...Heh heh heh… This only confirms what Jin and I already know: Divine Trees exist to serve, update, and evolve Otsutsuki clan members. And Jin evolved the moment he ate the chakra fruit produced by the tree.”
“So… Jin’s an Otsutsuki now?” Rito queries, shrugging.
“A fledgling one by the looks of it. See? He doesn’t have their clan horns.” Echo points at Jin’s head.
Jin imagines himself with a pair of protruding antlers like Kaguya’s, Momoshiki’s, and then Isshiki’s. A wave of disgust immediately washes over him.
The Uzumaki sheepishly rubs his head. “It’s bad enough my hair and skin were bleached white… I’ll be damned if I ever grow hor–”
“I have new information I need to relay to all the Alliance!”
Using Ino’s Mind Transmission Jutsu, Hashirama links to the five Kage and the Allied Shinobi Forces. While the First Hokage catches everyone up to speed with the intel he acquired, the Divine Tree’s roots come to a full stop. The perennial plant stands tall overall, towering over even the very heavens themselves.
Oh, yeah… I’m still holding back some, aren’t I? Jin reflects, stroking his chin.
The Onikage reaches for his forehead and parts his bangs. His third eye opens, revealing his Rinne Sharingan. A pleasurable sensation washes over Jin due to the third eye’s power being unleashed, a smile forms on his face.
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After hearing what Hashirama had to say, the Ninja Alliance is speechless with despair. The battlefield has become quieter than a graveyard, the only thing audible is the Autumn night breeze. The Alliance shinobi just stand where they are in defeat, waiting for death; some have fallen to their knees.
“Ugh. I told you not to give up hope!” The First Hokage shouts into the minds of the Alliance.
Most remain dead silent while others just murmur defeatist thoughts in the background. Their fear and despair make something bubble up deep from within Jin, they are revulsion and anger.
“Easy for you to say…” A Hidden Stone ninja finally speaks up, snapping back. “You’re a reanimation from the past brought back to life! We’re still alive!”
“It’s all… over…”
“PATHETIC--ALL OF YOU!!” Jin breaks the silence, chastising the entirety of the Allied Forces. “YOUR COWARDICE, YOUR WEAKNESS, IT ALL DISGUSTS ME! YOU MAKE ME FEEL ASHAMED TO BE A NINJA!!”
The Onikage’s brutal honesty cuts deep, damaging many egos.
“Cowardice?! How dare you?” Offended, Sakura speaks. “You have the nerve to call us cowards after what we--The Ninja Alliance ha–?!”
“Aha hahahaha! Alliance? ALLIANCE? Sorry, toots, but *I* see no Alliance--all I am surrounded by is fear. And dead men.”
“Okay~! I think you’ve said enough, Jin. Cool it.” Ayanami interjects, quelling her friend. “Let’s save the world.”
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“Heh heh heh… Dread it. Run from it. Destiny arrives all the same. And now it’s here…” Menma monologues, snickering. “Or should I say… *I* am.”
Something most unusual occurs; a dark, evil energy surges deep from within Menma. Chakra erupts from the deranged double’s body, taking the form of a Kurama avatar. However, Menma’s Tailed Beast Mode is drastically different from Naruto’s; the doppelganger’s possesses a translucent black color with a prominent magenta swirl design over their stomach, and various other lines extending along its body.
The dark Kurama avatar prowls around the divine tree like an apex predator, its open maw vaguely resembles a savage, mocking leer. It bares its fangs and digs its claws into the base of the trunk.
Menma jeers, “Whether I kill you or the Infinite Tsukuyomi activates, know this: One thing is certain this war is–!”
“Is it possible for you to shut the fuck up for 10 seconds?!” Jin shouts in annoyance.
To the Black Kurama’s confusion, it turns to its right and notices two figures of comparable size charging right for it. One is a giant, bipedal reptile made of wood while the other is an enormous, humanoid Susano’o made of golden yellow chakra.
The Susano’o leaps high into the air and dives at the black fox, the ethereal warrior brings down its sword with immense force behind its swing. However, Black Kurama thrusts several of its tails forward and catches the blade. Jin’s avatar gradually puts more weight behind its weapon as Menma’s puts more effort into pushing it back, the ground quakes and crumbles under foot due to the two titan’s struggle.
“You're just a cheap imitation of the real thing. Obito’s little helper…” Jin looks down on his adversary with an icy glare. “...A stepping-stone. In other words: You’re in my way!“
“You must not have a brain in that head of yours if you think you can talk to me like that and get away with it…!” Menma growls back.
“It’s a 2-on-1 fight, moron!” Ayanami shouts.
Right behind Black Kurama, the kunoichi grows out from the tree roots along with her wooden kaiju. The wooden reptile grabs hold of the dark fox’s free tails and heaves, Menma’s avatar lurches back; Ayanami’s golem begins spinning and steadily increases the speed of her rotation in an extremely brief moment. Ayanami has her monster release its grip and the black fox is launched high into the air.
“Jin!” A determined Ayanami builds up more chakra.
“Yeah, I know!”
Quickly infusing his chakra as well, Jin’s Susano’o focuses six paths sage chakra along with gelel energy into its hand, forming a Fire Style: Gelel Rasenshuriken. The ethereal warrior winds its arm back and throws the jutsu with great force; at the same time, the kaiju builds up six paths sage chakra in its mouth and spits out a Lightning Beast Running Fang, both attacks fly straight toward Menma and his Kurama avatar at absurd speeds.
““Six Paths: Plasma Style Arc Flash Beast!””
Halfway through their given trajectory, the two projectile jutsu spiral and coalesce into a massive, rabid wolf made of pure, burning plasma with violent flashes of red and white occurring all throughout its body; its intense heat ignites the very air around it, leaving a trail of smoke and fire.
The creature flies up into the air at blinding speeds and lunges for the Black Kurama avatar, its scorching fangs sink into the ethereal fox’s jugular. The wolf emits a bright light before detonating, the explosion is massive, the heat it gives off is absurdly intense. Flower bud at the top of the divine tree is caught in the enormous explosion and subsequently set ablaze.
“H-Hey, Jin? After the war…” A sweating Ayanami pants, she hurriedly fans herself. “...we need to come up with different combinations of jutsu. This heat is just UNGODLY.”