The boundary between life and death.
The threshold between the living world and the underworld.
Uchiha Sasuke looked around with unease, surprised by his surroundings. It felt as if he were lying between pools of water. Instinctively, he stood up.
"Today is quite the rare occasion…"
"To meet two new visitors at once…"
An aged voice came from behind, instantly making Sasuke tense as he turned around warily.
In front of him stood an old man.
His face was deeply wrinkled, two strange horns protruded from his forehead, and a red spiral symbol marked his brow. Long white facial hair hung neatly, and he wore a robe adorned with black tomoe patterns. In his arms, he held a staff—the Shakujo.
The way he looked…
Reminded Sasuke of Uchiha Obito when he became the Ten-Tails Jinchūriki.
But the clearest giveaway…
Floating beneath the old man's serpentine lower body were several black orbs—Truth-Seeking Balls.
"The Sage of Six Paths…"
Sasuke's expression turned serious at once.
"That's what they once called me."
The old man nodded gently, confirming his identity without hesitation.
"..."
Sasuke's expression stiffened. He hadn't expected Tobirama's suggestion to be true. He'd really met the Sage of Six Paths!
Their plan…
Had actually succeeded!
But Sasuke quickly caught on to a detail and asked urgently: "You said two visitors? Who's the other one?"
"Uzumaki… Naruto."
The Sage answered calmly.
"!!!"
Sasuke's heart clenched. He spoke with resolve: "Then, Sage of Six Paths, can you bring Naruto back to life?"
"Hehehe…"
The Sage let out a soft laugh, surprise flashing in his eyes. "I didn't expect the bond between this era's reincarnations of Asura and Indra to be so strong. You care a great deal about that boy…"
"Hmph…"
Sasuke scoffed, unwilling to admit it, and quickly changed the subject: "Enough. What do you mean by reincarnations of Asura and Indra's chakra?"
"It's a long story…"
The Sage sighed softly, touching the surface of the water with his staff. Memories from long ago shimmered to life in the pool below.
"I hope you don't find this old man too long-winded…"
He began calmly recounting the tale: "Over a thousand years ago, humanity had no chakra. Then came the Divine Tree—and with it, a woman who served it…"
"Ōtsutsuki Kaguya."
"She was my mother."
His tone darkened as he spoke of her. He explained how she consumed the fruit of the Divine Tree, used Infinite Tsukuyomi to end wars, gave birth to two sons, and later fought against them when she sought to turn all humans into White Zetsu.
"My brother Hamura and I sealed her away…"
"But I failed to notice the darkness she left behind. That darkness influenced my sons, Indra and Asura, and their reincarnations. It incited conflict between them for generations—wars that have lasted over a thousand years…"
"..."
Sasuke listened in silence, his brow furrowed. He now understood.
His chakra…
Came from Indra, the Sage's elder son.
Just like Uchiha Madara's did.
As for Naruto…
His chakra came from Asura. The same as Hashirama Senju's.
They were all…
Vessels for the chakra of these two ancient brothers.
"I want the two of you to stop what's coming."
The Sage knocked his staff once more. The water now showed Madara absorbing the Ten-Tails and becoming its Jinchūriki. "If this continues, and Madara uses the Ten-Tails to cast Infinite Tsukuyomi, my mother will return—and all humanity may be turned into White Zetsu…"
"..."
Sasuke fell silent.
"Do you refuse?" the Sage asked, somewhat disappointed.
He had believed Sasuke to be the most reasonable of all Indra's reincarnations—not one to reject such a plea.
"No."
Sasuke shook his head and instead asked, "What do we have to do to stop this?"
"I will give the power of Yin and Yang to you and the reincarnation of Asura. With both, you can seal either Madara or my mother."
The Sage raised his hand, and in his palm appeared a crescent-shaped seal—Yin Power.
This Yin Power…
Once Sasuke received it, his Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan would instantly evolve, greatly boosting his ocular power—even awakening the Rinnegan.
Only with this power could they stand against Madara as the Ten-Tails Jinchūriki.
"I understand."
Sasuke nodded, then raised a far more difficult question—one even the Sage seemed troubled by: "Then what about Shigen? Who is that man? How can we defeat him?"
"..."
The Sage fell into silence.
A sigh escaped his lips as he spoke with helpless reverence: "That man…"
"Shigen…"
"…is someone even I cannot contend with."
He waved away the water's reflection and muttered, "Whether in the ancient world or this decaying present…"
"You're the Sage of Six Paths…" Sasuke frowned deeply.
"Sigh…"
The Sage tapped the water once more with his staff. His eyes grew dim. "If you must face Shigen as an enemy, at least understand his past first…"
"In ancient times…"
"Shigen and I were enemies."
"But in a way, we both wanted the same thing—to make chakra a force that brought happiness to the world…"
"However…"
"Shigen foresaw far more than I did—more even than the prophecy of the Great Toad Sage. He predicted that chakra would inevitably lead to even crueler wars."
"So…"
"He was manipulated by the darkness left behind by my mother. He stole the power I left behind and destroyed the Ninshū I had created."
"..."
Sasuke's eyes narrowed.
"But…"
"In the end, it was Asura's persuasion that led Shigen to believe in chakra's potential for good. He chose to believe it could bring happiness rather than suffering."
"..."
Sasuke suddenly felt like he understood Shigen.
No one could endure walking the right path only to be told by someone else to turn back and take a different one.
"We're lucky, I suppose…"
"That Shigen didn't choose to destroy the world."
"..."
The Sage let out another sigh. He didn't want Sasuke siding with Shigen. "But the wars of this world… most are stirred by the darkness left behind by my mother…"
"That same darkness…"
"Has used Shigen… and every reincarnation of Asura and Indra across the centuries, continuing their endless conflict, and plunging the world into lasting pain…"
"And…"
"Countless souls suffering in agony."
As the Sage spoke, he looked down into the water.
The surface slowly shimmered with countless stars—like a boundless galaxy, brilliant and entrancing.
----------
Powerstones?
For 20 advance chapters: patreon.com/michaeltranslates