Chapter 274 – The Eighty-Second Ōtsutsuki Ascension
"Urashiki's Pill, huh?"
Gen's lips curved into a bright, satisfied smile as he gazed up at the glowing sphere resting atop the great Tree's canopy.
Of course, what he had done was quite different from what Momoshiki once did.
Momoshiki Ōtsutsuki had devoured Kinshiki whole—body, soul, and power—turning him into a literal fruit before consuming him entirely.
Gen wasn't that savage.
He didn't need the flesh, only the energy.
Everything else was just… waste material.
"The leftovers can always be used for sacrifice," he mused.
"That's how Kaguya did it, right?"
Kaguya Ōtsutsuki had offered half of Isshiki's body as a sacrifice to the Divine Tree.
Gen planned to imitate that process—though he wasn't entirely sure if the Tree actually needed an Ōtsutsuki's corpse to function.
"Technically," he murmured, "Kaguya's offering was still alive at the time…"
He chuckled softly.
"Well, one step at a time. We'll find out soon enough. Worst case, his Rinnegan might still be useful for research."
As he spoke, his system's interface suddenly refreshed before his eyes.
---
[Mission Rewards Calculated]
Reward Acquired: Complete Information on the White Kāma
---
"Oh?"
Gen blinked in surprise, then broke into an even wider grin.
The White Kāma, to most Ōtsutsuki, was considered a failure—a defective vessel incapable of properly carrying the user's soul imprint.
That meant it couldn't bring an Ōtsutsuki back to life.
But Gen never saw it as a tool for resurrection anyway.
"Just because they couldn't use it that way," he muttered, eyes gleaming, "doesn't mean I can't find another purpose."
The information surging into his mind was breathtakingly detailed.
It included not only the cause of its instability, but even theoretical methods to isolate the soul signature—essentially creating a White Kāma without the host ever risking possession.
"Perfect," Gen said, smiling. "This'll save me months of experimentation."
With a mere thought, the roots of the great Tree beneath him stirred, rising and coiling like living serpents.
A moment later, Isshiki's White Kāma was lifted to the top of the canopy—where the core of the Divine Tree pulsed faintly.
Then, he produced a scroll and unsealed it.
The Six-Tails' chakra flowed outward, merging into the Tree's roots like liquid fire.
---
A deep, rumbling growl echoed through the chamber.
ROAAAR—!
The Divine Tree's core began to tremble violently.
All nine traces of tailed-beast chakra—collected fragments from ages past—resonated, converging into a single swirling vortex of raw, ancient power.
The energy rippled through the entire realm of Heaven's Sanctuary, making even the void itself quiver.
"Well then…"
Gen sat cross-legged before the tree, resting one hand upon Isshiki's Kāma, his other hovering toward Urashiki's crystallized Divine Pill.
"Let's see what happens," he whispered,
"when the essence of the Ōtsutsuki merges with the power of the beasts."
---
Elsewhere — In the Vast Expanse of the Stars
Far away, drifting through the cosmic sea, Momoshiki and Kinshiki Ōtsutsuki suddenly halted mid-flight.
A strange pulse reached them—faint, yet undeniable.
"Weird…" Momoshiki muttered, tapping his chin.
"Urashiki's chakra signature just… vanished."
Kinshiki frowned deeply.
"Not only his. Isshiki's presence is gone too. But… I sense another. An unfamiliar one."
"Yes… something new," Kinshiki said quietly.
"And that aura… it feels like one of us. Did they—fight each other?"
He hesitated.
"But… we're forbidden from engaging in clan battles."
Momoshiki snorted.
"Oh, please. Rules are meant to be bent, not followed. And besides…"
A slow, sinister grin crept across his face.
"Even if fighting's forbidden, there are always ways around the law—aren't there?"
Kinshiki said nothing, though his eyes flickered uneasily.
He knew perfectly well what Momoshiki truly meant.
If things ever became desperate enough, Momoshiki would devour him without hesitation—to claim his strength for himself.
It wasn't exactly allowed. But if done "voluntarily"…
Well, who could object?
---
"Let's accelerate," Momoshiki finally declared, his tone almost cheerful.
"Whatever happened, that chakra will guide us to them. And honestly?"
He smirked.
"If they're killing each other off, that only saves me the trouble later."
Kinshiki gave a solemn nod.
"As you wish… Brother."
---
In the Pure Land
Hamura Ōtsutsuki stared up from the spirit realm, watching the events unfold, and turned toward his older brother with astonishment.
"Brother, it seems your judgment was right after all. That boy… he's far stronger than we imagined."
The Sage of Six Paths, Hagoromo, sighed in quiet admiration.
"Indeed. The hardships of the shinobi world honed him beyond measure. Against opponents like the Ōtsutsuki, that experience gives him a critical edge."
They had watched the entire battle between Gen and Urashiki.
That overwhelming display—of strategy, precision, and power—had stunned even them.
But amidst the awe, they also saw hope.
For the first time in centuries, the shinobi world had someone capable of standing against the gods.
"Still," Hamura murmured, frowning, "isn't he taking this a bit far? Devouring his kin, speaking of 'Divine Ascension'—he says it's to spread paranoia among them, but…"
"Trust him," Hagoromo interrupted gently. "What else can we do?"
He smiled faintly, though there was fatigue in his eyes.
"As long as he remains on the side of this world, the rest is… small matters."
"Small matters?"
Hamura raised a brow, speechless.
But after a pause, he sighed.
"Well, compared to the things we did back then… I suppose it's true. He's practically restrained by comparison."
They both chuckled quietly.
Then, Hamura gave his brother a sly look.
"By the way, brother… you really didn't plan all this in advance, did you?"
Hagoromo stiffened.
"Don't talk nonsense! Those are baseless rumors!"
"But the results speak for themselves," Hamura teased.
"Look at him. You said it yourself—his mastery and insight are the direct product of a thousand years of war. Isn't that exactly what you wanted?"
"…"
"Even Ashura's last reincarnation believed it. Don't tell me it's all coincidence, brother."
"…"
Hamura smirked.
"So you really are that cold and calculating after all, huh?"
Hagoromo groaned, rubbing his temples.
"I should've sealed you too when I had the chance."
The Sage of Six Paths fell silent.
For the first time, Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki truly understood how Isshiki must have felt back then—wronged, frustrated, and utterly speechless.
He hadn't done anything. None of this was his fault.
Yet somehow, every twist of fate always circled back to him.
"How does it always end up like this?"
His fists clenched slightly. This was not the first time his brother had teased him, and apparently, even death hadn't stopped it.
"Hamura," he said at last, exhaling through his nose. His tone was deceptively calm.
"I can't control that boy, Gen—but you? I still can."
Hamura raised a brow, his eyes narrowing in mock suspicion.
"Oh? Don't tell me, brother… you're planning to test the so-called 'Divine Ascension Path'—and your experimental subject is going to be me?"
Hagoromo's expression froze.
"…"
"So it's true," Hamura went on, lips curving into a grin.
"You really are cold-blooded and heartless!"
"…"
For a moment, even in the Pure Land, the brothers' bickering echoed through eternity. Their tone was light, teasing—but beneath it was genuine warmth, a rare reprieve from centuries of burden.
Yet while they joked, an old companion had no such levity in him.
---
At Mount Myōboku
The Great Toad Sage's ancient eyes were half-lidded, but his expression had grown unusually grim.
"Devouring one's kin to climb the 'Path to Godhood'…"
He muttered softly, his gravelly voice heavy with unease.
It was true—the fall of the Ōtsutsuki race through internal strife was no tragedy for this world.
But what happens afterward?
The Sage could not forget the nightmare that was Kaguya Ōtsutsuki—her betrayal, her insatiable hunger for power.
And now, this Gen…
If even he would not spare his own kind, would he truly spare this fragile planet?
The ancient toad's eyelids lowered.
"It seems… the time has come."
He inhaled deeply.
For three long years, he had watched and waited. His strength had nearly returned.
"It's time for me to move once again."
---
Within Heaven's Sanctuary
Violent chakra storms tore through the dark chamber. The very air rippled with chaotic energy, saturating every inch of space.
At the center of this maelstrom, Gen sat cross-legged, eyes closed, his silver hair whipping wildly.
He could feel it—his blood boiling, surging with power beyond anything he'd ever known.
"This intensity…" he muttered through gritted teeth.
"It's far greater than any breakthrough before. Looks like Urashiki's Divine Pill really works."
Unlike Momoshiki, Gen hadn't absorbed Urashiki wholesale.
He had only extracted the refined essence—the energy condensed into that radiant golden sphere.
Yet even that was enough to make his entire body tremble with transformation.
He could feel every cell screaming, every drop of blood singing in resonance.
His vision pulsed; his body reforged itself.
And at the center of his forehead—where something ancient slept—
a force was awakening, swelling as though it could burst forth at any second.
"This feeling…"
He sensed the chakra within him intertwining, merging, reshaping itself into something entirely new.
"Is this… the fusion of the Bloodline Web accelerating?"
Gen's voice was low, almost reverent.
He didn't know how long this would last, but he could feel it—his chakra streams blending, harmonizing.
Each current flowed into another, their borders dissolving, transforming him on a level beyond flesh and soul.
It was transcendence.
For the first time, he could see the subtle latticework of space itself—the countless nodes linking worlds together.
He could even faintly perceive the river of time flowing all around him.
"It's as if… I can see the exact moment my attack strikes when I use Yomi no Tsu, the Nether Path…"
His voice echoed softly through the void.
The energy around him continued to surge and spiral, but the Divine Pill at the heart of the process began to dim.
The once-brilliant golden light flickered weakly, losing its luster.
Soon, it was little more than a fading ember.
"That's enough."
Gen opened his eyes.
The moment he did, countless streams of data and symbols filled his vision—the system interface unfolding before him.
---
[Status Panel]
Name: Kitagawa Gen
Bloodline: Ōtsutsuki Clan (Development Rate: 82%)
Eye Technique: Reincarnation Eye (Eye of the Full Moon)
Divine Technique: Yomi-no-Tsukuni (The Nether Crossing)
Unique Ability: Source of the Divine Tree (Stage Nine)
---
He exhaled slowly.
"Eighty-two percent… huh."
His reflection shimmered faintly in the pulsing light of the Tree.
The corners of his mouth curled upward.
"Looks like I'm still not done climbing."