Clang!
As the heavy alloy gate of the Kara Base closed slowly behind him, Shun's mood grew much heavier.
He drew a deep breath and in the next instant, his body shot forward like a streak of golden light, diving straight toward the desolate, lifeless desert.
Wind howled past his ears, and the sand it whipped up pattered against his Chakra barrier in a fine, brittle rattle.
Moments later, Shun's feet touched down firmly on the surface. The burning sand beneath his soles did nothing to dispel the chill in his heart.
From an inner pocket, he took out a palm-sized, airtight container. The box had been specially crafted by Amado, its surface was etched with dense seal patterns that perfectly isolated any aura.
Shun's fingers brushed the seal lines, hesitating for more than half a minute.
This single white hair of Shibai might conceal an unbelievable secret and naturally carried great risk.
At last his eyes sharpened and he tapped lightly along the pattern. A soft click sounded as the container's latch released.
Shun lifted the lid slowly. Inside lay a strand of silvery-white hair, about twenty centimeters long and glowing with a gentle lustre. It was no ordinary strand—it was tougher and more pliable than steel wire.
Pinching its tip between his fingers, Shun felt a weighty power, as though he held not a hair but a span of eons.
"Shibai…"
He murmured the name, brows knitting, his expression indescribably complex.
A golden hue glimmered deep in his pupils. He could clearly sense a majesty within the strand that towered above all things.
An intense intuition whirled through his mind: this hair was the key to Shibai. If he activated his Shinjutsu, this trace of Chakra could pull him into the presence of the legendary Ōtsutsuki god.
Yet the instant that thought surfaced, countless questions flooded in like a tide.
What would he say once he faced Shibai? Was the god friend or foe?
Given his strength, if the other party bore ill will, did he stand any chance? Even if there was no hostility, how much truth could he hope to wrest from a deity?
Shun lifted his gaze to the sky. Yellow sand and sky blurred into a distant hazy line, no trace of life anywhere.
The wind rose, whipping his black hair into disorder, carrying a hint of cold.
He drew another deep breath and tucked the container gently back into his pocket.
"Whatever the outcome, the truth must be uncovered."
He closed his eyes, cast every stray thought from his mind, and when he opened them again his gaze was utterly resolute.
Divine Eye—activate!
His pupils erupted into intricate golden patterns like the finest gears slowly turning, each line exuding a heart-shaking pressure.
Under the gaze of that dōjutsu, the silvery hair blazed with sudden brilliance, as though a slumbering dragon had awakened. The strand slipped free of his fingertips, hovering before him, spinning faster and faster until it formed a sphere of silver light.
The sphere swelled, its pull growing stronger—his body was drawn irresistibly toward it. He offered no resistance, letting that force wrap around him.
In the next heartbeat the world spun away— wind, sand, and stone vanished—replaced by a boundless chaos.
Within the chaos, there was no up or down, no time or space, only countless streaks of light shooting past like a surging river, their rushing roar the very sound of time flowing.
Shun's consciousness floated above the river, his body seemingly stripped away, only his soul left to feel that vast, mysterious power.
He could clearly see the scenes borne upon those lights: primordial nebulae giving birth to ancient stars, the first stirrings of life, the glory of rising civilizations, the despair of worlds ending—joys and sorrows of innumerable beings woven together, all swallowed silently by the torrent of time.
Then, from the depths of the river, an aged yet mighty voice rang out like a bell echoing through eternity, shattering the chaos.
"You have come at last."
Shun turned toward the sound.
At the vortex in the river's center stood a figure. A man in a white robe embroidered with faint golden threads that rippled like the river's own flow with every breath he took.
His hair fell to his waist, silver-white, glowing softly in the surrounding radiance. His features were veiled by a pale silver halo, exuding a pressure that inspired awe in every living thing.
Shibai, who had been lounging indolently at the river's edge, brightened the instant he saw his visitor. His languid aura snapped inward like a waking lion roused to full alertness.
He straightened slightly, the white robe swaying gently upon the current of time.
"Interesting. I hadn't expected you to find this place so quickly, nor to practice Divine Eye to such a level."
Shibai's gaze settled on him, carrying a measure of appraisal and approval.
Shun's Chakra snapped taut around him. The golden light of Divine Eye blazed brighter as he stared fixedly at Shibai, voice wary and puzzled. "You knew I would come? From the very start?"
He could feel the man's strength was unfathomable, far beyond anything he knew, yet he showed no sign of retreat, his eyes still resolute.
"Naturally."
Shibai chuckled softly, a trace of unperceived weariness in his voice, as if he had weathered countless eons.
He slowly raised a hand and the white sleeve slipped down, revealing a pale, slender wrist. With a light tap of a fingertip, a stream of light rose from the river of time and formed a clear image.
The scene showed an expanse of empty darkness. A faint soul drifted within, on the verge of dispersing.
Shun's pupils contracted slightly—he had never seen himself like this, his soul's light so dim yet still holding a stubborn refusal to fade.
"Now that you command Omnipotence, you should be able to guess: the System on you was created by me. The Ten Directions you wield also originates from me. It can observe and calculate every future path across all timelines in the Universe."
"What?!"
Shun's pupils shrank sharply, waves of shock crashing through his heart.
The System had been his greatest reliance since transmigration. He had always believed it his unique opportunity, never imagining it was tied to Shibai.
"Back then, I saw your soul drifting outside the river of time, nearly scattered, and simply fished you in."
Shibai's gaze fell upon that soul in the image.
"At that time, I had already used Ten Directions to glimpse your future. I saw the guardian-and-creation obsession hidden deep in your soul and knew you were the one who could mend my mistakes, so I resolved to grant you power."
The image shifted: Shibai's figure lightly tapped the frail soul, pouring golden power into it, and its light instantly blazed bright. Then the soul was wrapped in a gentle force and sent flying toward a destination—the Ninja World.
"I infused part of my own strength, along with the basic seal of Ten Directions, into your soul. Those forces evolved along with your ideology and eventually became what you call the system."
Shibai spoke flatly, as if recounting a trivial matter, "The system not only aids you in growing stronger, but also quietly guides you to awaken the complete Ten Directions, letting you follow the path I foresaw—step by step toward creating life and spreading hope."
Shun's frown deepened, his doubts growing heavier.
He forcibly quelled his shock and pressed, "Why did you do it? Save me for no reason and grant me power—surely not merely because I carry the obsession to guard and create?"
He refused to believe such unearned kindness existed, especially from a legendary deity.
At those words, Shibai's figure wavered slightly. He halo around him dimmed, and a touch of loneliness seeped into his once-majestic aura.
His gaze reached into the depths of the river of time, where countless scenes of planets' destruction emerged: colossal God Trees rooted in worlds, thick roots piercing planetary cores, madly draining life energy, countless beings screamed and fled in despair, finally turning to ash, leaving only dead husks of worlds.
"Once, in my pursuit of power, I destroyed innumerable planets and lives."
Shibai's voice carried deep guilt, each word heavy as a mountain.
"The life-force I seized became invisible chains, binding my soul within this river of time, never to escape. I tried countless methods but could never break these shackles."
"To atone, I secretly guided all of this."
He drew back his gaze and looked at Shun again, hope flickering in his tone. "Using Ten Directions, I calculated innumerable futures. Only you—only your soul—could bear my power and carry the obsession to guard and create, bringing life and hope to this dying Universe. I gambled... and you did not disappoint me."
The waters of the river of time slowly surged, carrying Shibai's voice to echo through the chaos long after the words were spoken.
Shun stood in place. The white strand of hair at his fingertip had drifted away at some point, merging into the river of time and vanishing as a faint stream of light.
Looking at Shibai's lonely figure, the vigilance in his heart gradually faded, replaced by endless sighs and bewilderment.
So his transmigration, his system—his everything—had been a plan of redemption from the very beginning. He had been a carefully chosen piece, moving along a preset path—seemingly free, yet in truth long since destined.
***
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