Chapter 633: Ino and Tobi
Ino scanned the battlefield below and soon spotted the reanimated Second Mizukage (the one with the mustache).
She actually had some respect for him, so she gave him special treatment.
"Chibaku Tensei!"
This time, she didn't use a chakra core. She used the Second Mizukage himself as the core, just as Rinnegan Sasuke had done to the Tailed Beasts. It was a private, custom-made Planetary Devastation.
He had no chance to struggle and was sealed instantly.
The surrounding ninjas looked at her with pure adoration. She smiled back.
When you were this strong, many things simply didn't require an explanation. Those who understood, understood.
In the original timeline, did Naruto and Sasuke have to explain their Six Paths powers or how they got the Rinnegan? Not at all. No one asked. It was enough to know that the two of them possessed the power to cow all Five Great Nations.
It was the same for Ino now.
In one fell swoop, she had taken out nearly twenty thousand White Zetsu and sealed three reanimated Kage.
The tide of the battle turned instantly. As the reanimated powerhouses were sealed one by one, Kabuto—the "ally" who had brought his own army to the fight—was discovered by Minato Namikaze. The Fourth Hokage and his master, Jiraiya, teamed up to battle Sage Kabuto, and the allied forces of the four villages and the Land of Iron began their counter-attack.
Ino didn't participate in the subsequent battles. She walked, bold as day, to the Konoha Prison. She had a mission on this trip back, and she was here to see a specific "person."
"Hey! You two! You're so big, you must take really big poops, right? Can you tell me what that feels like?" As soon as she entered the prison, she heard Tobi's incessant chatter.
He was bound in countless sealing tags, wiggling on the ground like an earthworm. In the cell opposite him were two simple-minded giants.
They were the Fujin and Raijin brothers—great names, but in reality, they were just two idiots with brute force and no brains. When the Zetsu army attacked, they had tried to escape in the chaos, only to be recaptured and thrown in the cell opposite Tobi as "high-risk" prisoners.
Ino ignored the two morons and focused on Tobi.
"What's with that look? Do you know me? You must be here to save me! Quick, get me out! I can't hold it anymore, I'm gonna poop my pants!" Tobi yelled frantically.
Ino shook her head. "We've never formally met, but I do know you. Or rather, I know your original self."
At the mention of his "original self," Tobi's demeanor changed instantly. His voice became androgynous.
"I don't know you at all. Please leave."
"Teacher wants me to help you escape this sea of suffering. You are kind, gentle, and full of love. You should never have become this... Haori-neesan," Ino said.
Tobi froze. The name sounded familiar, but his chaotic mind couldn't place it.
"Y-You really know me?"
"I... suppose so."
Ino sighed. She never thought she would see the Sage of Six Paths' childhood sweetheart a thousand years later.
Or rather, this was a part of Haori's consciousness.
Back then, Kaguya Ōtsutsuki had hung her own son's first love on the Divine Tree. The old woman did it herself, with her own hands; she was truly ruthless. In a fit of rage, Teacher Six Paths (Hagoromo) had walked the path of rebellion against his mother.
But his rebellion had come a little late. When he went to save Haori, he was half a step too slow.
He saved her body from the tree—it hadn't turned into a White Zetsu—but her consciousness was gone. In the end, after a "brilliant operation" by Ino, Hagoromo, and Gamamaru, the mostly soulless Haori was made into the ancestor of the Priestess (Miko) clan.
The operation had been sloppy, but... you know, they were all young back then. And when you're young, you make mistakes.
Ino thought that was the end of it. She never expected that a fragment of Haori's consciousness had been sealed within the Gedo Statue, eventually giving birth to this bizarre creature, Tobi.
Tobi had no facial features or a proper body because Haori's body had been rescued just as her consciousness was being converted. The fact that she could use Wood Release and all five chakra natures wasn't surprising—could the woman Hagoromo fell for be an ordinary person? Her aptitude must have been high.
But now, she had become a split-personality buffoon. It was a pity.
You were once a beauty; why did you become a monster?
Hagoromo couldn't bear to see this, so he had entrusted Ino with handling it—to let this part of Haori's consciousness rest in peace.
"Ullambana Bridge!"
As Tobi clutched his head in apparent pain, Ino activated her Kekkei Mōra ability.
The flower bridge ignored the prison's sealing tags and materialized directly in front of Tobi. This time, it wasn't for automatic burial. Instead, layers upon layers of pollen covered Tobi, slowly drawing out the consciousness that belonged to Haori.
After a thousand years, this incomplete consciousness couldn't even form a human shape. The real Haori was long dead. This fragment, unable to rest in peace and too incomplete to be reincarnated, was stuck—neither living nor dead.
The pollen of the Ullambana Bridge acted as the soil, burying it, and more importantly, dissolving the resentment hidden within the fragment, allowing it to truly dissipate.
Ino had too much to do to wait. She left a note on the cell door: Do not disturb the pollen. Then, she left.
"Passing one's home without entering" was not her style.
She went home, took a bath, and had someone prepare food for her. She hadn't eaten in nearly two days, ever since leaving for Kumo on the morning of October 7th. Normally it wouldn't matter—she could just absorb natural energy—but now that she had stopped, she was actually hungry. She would eat, rest, and then go fight Madara.
"Passing one's home without entering"—that was Madara's style.
The moment he was out of Ino's sight, he had made a beeline to capture the Jinchūriki of the Seven-Tails.
Without a space-time ability, he was still running while Ino was already home taking an afternoon nap. Running from the Land of Lightning (Kumo) to the Land of Earth (Iwa) was no short trip.
Both of them were dissatisfied with their last fight; if you can crush your opponent, why wouldn't you? When Madara was young, he might have enjoyed a "clash of techniques." But at his age? He wasn't interested in "testing" anything.
Ino was busy upgrading and preparing her ultimate move. He would do the same.
The Ten-Tails, in its second form, had massively enhanced sensory abilities. It might not cover the whole planet, but it could sense most of the ninja world.
Madara quickly found his target: Fū, the Jinchūriki of the Seven-Tails.
A White Zetsu delivered the unconscious Hyūga Hikari (from the Konoha battle) to Madara. Madara checked his forehead: no Caged Bird seal. Without a doubt, a Main family member.
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