— — — — — — —
Senju Tobirama and the others cast a look at Kaito, who was acting all high and mighty, before turning their attention to Jigen, examining him closely.
Tobirama even reached out with his spiritual energy and chakra to conduct a thorough scan and analysis.
After a moment, he withdrew his hand, frowned slightly, and said, "So this is the parasitic form of the Ōtsutsuki's Karma seal (Kāma)? Quite the peculiar ability."
"Kaito, do you have a way to deal with this state? Can you limit its parasitic effects, separate it from the host, or even completely kill it in this form?"
If he couldn't, then eliminating Otsutsuki for good would become an impossible task in the future.
"Of course, I can!"
Kaito nodded confidently, stepping forward as he scanned Jigen with his spiritual energy. "Whether I absorb him into the space-time Gate or use my Death Dojutsu, either way, it's an easy fix."
"Additionally, I feel like my Origin Power can also harm him."
"This ability might seem unbeatable, but that's only true for you guys—for those below the Six Paths level."
Everyone immediately felt speechless.
Do you even hear yourself? What do you mean 'only for you guys'? That's just rubbing it in.
"Forget about killing him for now. Let's fully contain him first and take our time studying him."
"Both the genetic makeup of the Otsutsuki clan and this Karma seal are worth researching!"
"If we can replicate its principles, our survival abilities will improve tremendously." Tobirama stated.
"Agreed!"
Vegapunk and Orochimaru both nodded, their eyes gleaming as they stared at Jigen. They looked eager to dissect and analyze him right away.
Not far away, the Divine Tree also caught their interest.
"Alright!" Kaito agreed and nodded. "But for safety's sake, let's send him directly into the research facility inside the main space in Space-Time Gate."
"That way, we can guarantee there's no risk. Even if he has some hidden escape tricks, once he's in there, he'll have zero chances of breaking out. What do you guys think?"
Even though Kaito was confident in his sealing techniques, he didn't want to take unnecessary risks.
After all, his understanding of the Otsutsuki clan's abilities wasn't yet complete.
"Agreed! That's exactly what I was going to suggest." Tobirama immediately nodded without hesitation.
Even if Kaito hadn't brought it up, he would have proposed the same thing.
A dangerous figure like Ōtsutsuki Isshiki should obviously be locked away in a secure dimension in the Space Gate.
Within that space, Kaito held absolute control. No matter what tricks Isshiki Otsutsuki had up his sleeve, escaping would be impossible.
In the next moment, Kaito waved his hand, instantly transporting Jigen and all the other Kara members within the subspace into the main space's research facility.
Using his authority over space, he froze their souls in a permanent state of temporal stasis.
Unless Kaito chose to release them, they would never wake up—no matter what kind of experiments were conducted on their bodies.
"Kaito, can this Divine Tree transform into a Ten-Tails?"
"If I became its Jinchuriki, would I be able to break through to the Six Paths level?"
Uchiha Madara studied the Divine Tree sapling and couldn't help but ask.
If possible, he naturally wanted to reach the Six Paths level as soon as possible.
That way, not only would the issue of the Sage of Six Paths be completely irrelevant, but his power would also surpass Hashirama once again.
"Turning it into a Ten-Tails is definitely possible! But as for whether becoming its Jinchuriki would allow you to break through to the Six Paths level… that, I'm not entirely sure."
Kaito shook his head and continued, "In the future I know of, you did indeed break through to the Six Paths level after becoming the Ten-Tails Jinchuriki and even condensed Truth-Seeking Orbs."
"But I don't know exactly how much of a role the Nine-Tails, the other tailed beasts, and the previous Ten-Tails' power played in that process."
"To be on the safe side, it's best if you first master Kekkei Mōra and then condense your own Truth-Seeking Orbs to reach the Six Paths level."
"That would be the optimal path, ensuring your future potential remains intact."
"After all, external power is still just external power. Relying on the Ten-Tails Jinchuriki transformation to reach the Six Paths level is too unstable!"
"You should have understood that from the future intel I provided."
Mastering one's own developed power is the most reliable path.
"That makes sense!"
Madara nodded in agreement, his expression filled with pride. "Hearing you say that, I have no reason to chase after the Ten-Tails Jinchuriki route. It's simply not suited for me!"
"With my talent, plus all the techniques and resources you've given me, I'm confident I can reach the Six Paths level on my own within a year or two. There's no need to rely on external power."
At this point, he had lost interest in using the Ten-Tails to ascend.
"That's the Madara I know!"
Hashirama couldn't help but laugh and give Madara a thumbs-up.
"Hmph."
Madara scoffed in annoyance.
What was this? Did he look like a child who needed praise?
Of course, the slight upward curve of his lips betrayed his true feelings.
"Since you're not interested in it, how about letting us study this Divine Tree sapling instead?"
At this moment, Vegapunk spoke up.
He was incredibly intrigued by the Divine Tree, which could absorb a planet's essence and produce unique power-granting fruits.
A phenomenon like this truly lived up to the name "Divine Tree."
If he hadn't learned from Kaito that Devil Fruits in the Pirate world were the miraculous byproducts of human consciousness from 800 years ago, he might have suspected they were somehow linked to this tree.
"I have no objections!"
Madara and the others shook their heads.
Since this thing wasn't useful for advancing to the Six Paths level, its value had significantly dropped.
They might as well hand it over to the researchers.
Who knows? They might develop something beneficial from it.
Just look at the Bloodline Potions and the cloned Zoan-type Devil Fruits—they were amazing examples.
Over the past six months, the research division had produced numerous valuable results, making everyone take it more seriously.
"Kaito, what do you think?" Vegapunk turned to Kaito.
"Sure!"
Kaito agreed without hesitation. "I'll store it in the space gate as well for you to study."
"Leaving it outside makes me uneasy."
"If it takes root in the Ninja World and continues absorbing its essence, I fear the already-weakened planet could suffer irreversible destruction, eventually turning into a dead world."
There was no helping it—the Divine Tree's absorption ability was simply too powerful.
.
.
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