The soul of Ōtsutsuki Hamura could not possibly be stronger than that of the Sage of Six Paths.

Yet as the ruler of the ninja world's Netherworld, I still find it hard to bind or control him. There can be only one explanation —

His soul no longer belongs to this shinobi world.

That is hardly surprising.

Chiyu¹ never believed that the Pure Land of the Shinobi World's Netherworld was the sole Pure Land of the entire universe. Such a thing is impossible. He also doubts that any human could ever command the life and souls of the entire planet, much less the overwhelmingly powerful Ōtsutsuki clan.

Here, the Netherworld is merely the Netherworld of the shinobi world: a counterpart to the living realm, cycling in endless reincarnation. Hamura, who led his people to the moon and kept their bloodline alive generation after generation, had long since left both realms behind and become something new.

" 'Master of the Moon,' is it?"

Chiyu shook his head, unfazed.

…

By now the Chūnin Exams arena was drawing to a close. The scheduled final bout between Uzumaki Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke had lost its momentum; neither seemed inclined to fight after everything that had happened. Up in the stands, spectators were still overwhelmed by the bittersweet reunion and second farewell with their loved ones and had no heart to watch any more combat.

Chiyu therefore declared the exam finished. Naruto and Sasuke would share the champion's title. No one objected. And so the very first All‑Shinobi‑World Chūnin Exams ended.

Afterward, Chiyu convened the leaders of the shinobi world. Quite a few participants were promoted:

In Konohagakure – Uzumaki Naruto, Uchiha Sasuke, Hyūga Neji, Nara Shikamaru, Aburame Shino, and others.

In other villages – Gaara, Temari, Deidara, Kurotsuchi, and more.

Although the shinobi world was flourishing, darkness had not vanished entirely — for instance, the remnants of Akatsuki. Chiyu deliberately left them as a trial for the newborn era, ordering the Five Great Nations and the smaller states alike to send shinobi to subdue them. For Chiyu himself, such matters were trivial.

…

That day.

Suddenly every being in the shinobi world sensed an ominous foreboding from on high. The blood‑red full moon briefly shuddered. Though the tremor was slight, the vast celestial body rocked the very void, and a violent force swept toward the world below.

Earth shook, mountains split, and the sky seemed ready to collapse. Crevices opened in high peaks; the very ground quaked. All living things felt dread.

Each village immediately reported to Chiyu, the Lord of the Shinobi World:

"The anomaly comes from the moon!"

This conclusion raced across the nations, and within the newly reformed World Shinobi Council that stood above even the Five Kage, reports poured in. Never before had such a disturbance occurred. Even the daimyō of the Five Great Nations—the former Kage—felt a chill of doom.

Yet Chiyu remained serenely composed.

"I know."

Sensing their ruler's calm, everyone breathed easier. If the sky truly were falling, he would hold it up.

But this time, it really did look as if the sky were falling.

Uchiha Fugaku, nominal daimyō of the Land of Fire, frowned. "My lord… Our astronomical observers say the moon itself has left orbit and is hurtling straight toward us. If that is true, it would be an extinction‑level calamity beyond our power to contain."

Hatake Kakashi added gravely, "A meteor only one‑thousandth the moon's size could lay the world to waste and wipe out all life. If the entire moon strikes, the shinobi world won't merely lose its creatures—it will cease to exist."

All eyes turned to Chiyu.

"It's all right," he said mildly. "I will stop it."

The huge weight in every heart dropped to the ground.

"Then we can reassure the populace…"

"With our lord's word, we need not fear!"

Tsunade, curious, asked, "It sounds as though you already know what's behind this. What force could drive the moon itself into collision? Who holds such terrifying power?"

Chiyu answered, "The bloodline of Ōtsutsuki Hamura, who lives upon the moon— younger brother to the Sage of Six Paths, Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo.

"Long ago, the brothers sealed their mother, Ōtsutsuki Kaguya, and locked the Ten‑Tails' husk—that is, the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path—on the moon. To guard it, Hamura led his people there, but he first left one branch of his bloodline in the shinobi world…"

He looked at Hyūga Hiashi.

"Our Hyūga Clan?" Hiashi asked, shaken.

Chiyu nodded. "Yes.

"The Byakugan is the older dōjutsu, predating even the Sharingan. The Ōtsutsuki all bear the Byakugan; the Rinnegan came later, and the Sharingan is but a branch of Kaguya's Rinne‑Sharingan after she consumed the God‑Tree's fruit."

Only now did everyone grasp the roots of the three great eye techniques.

Tsunade pressed on: "So the force driving the moon is a descendant of Hamura?"

"Correct. Hamura's descendants possess a Byakugan evolved to its ultimate form—an eye called… the Tenseigan."

The hall stirred; Hiashi's eyes sparkled. The Hyūga prided themselves on the Byakugan, yet in today's world the Sharingan—and the godlike Rinnegan—symbolized true might. Now, from Chiyu himself, came news of the Byakugan's evolution. Tenseigan! Could the Hyūga attain such power? His heart raced.

Chiyu continued: "In truth, the moon is nearly empty—only one last survivor remains.

"His name is… Ōtsutsuki Toneri."

Hiashi blurted, "Then what became of the rest of Hamura's descendants?"

"Dead," Chiyu replied simply.

Even the moon could not escape war. Hamura's line split into Main and Branch families and fought until the Branch family won, but at terrible cost; their numbers dwindled and vanished.

Hiashi and Hizashi exchanged a sigh.

"Wars erupt everywhere… Our lord ended the Hyūga's Main‑Branch strife; otherwise we too might one day vanish."

Chiyu went on. "On the moon stands Hamura's Temple, enshrining a colossal golden Tenseigan containing the dōjutsu of nearly every fallen descendant — powerful enough to push the entire moon. Besides that, Toneri himself likely awakened the Tenseigan."

"How does one awaken it?" Hiashi asked.

"There are two ways," Chiyu said. "First, amass a large number of Byakugan in one place and force an evolution through sheer quantity—the method used to create the giant Tenseigan on the moon." Hiashi's face darkened; such a path meant slaughtering Byakugan wielders.

"The second is to fuse the purest Byakugan with the true blood of Hamura."

Hiashi and Hizashi mulled this over: difficult, but not impossible.

"Toneri, as Hamura's pure‑blooded heir, lacked eyes—he was born blind," Chiyu explained. "I once thought he would steal the Hyūga's pure Byakugan to awaken the Tenseigan, so I remained vigilant."

Hiashi bowed in gratitude. "Our clan owes you immeasurably…"

"But Toneri's visionless state meant he knew he could not seize eyes from me. So he abandoned that plan—yet he has awakened the Tenseigan, otherwise he could never have moved the moon. There is only one remaining possibility… Hamura aided him, perhaps with chakra."

Chiyu summed up: "Hamura sees himself as the moon's overseer of the shinobi world. The Demonic Statue was stolen and Kaguya revived; his brother Hagoromo and even Kaguya herself fell to me. He has judged this world a failure. Now he hopes to use the Tenseigan to obliterate it entirely."

Ōnoki snorted. "His own clan wiped itself out on the moon, yet he dares call us failures? Under our lord we've achieved peace; his lineage is extinct. How shameless!"

Others agreed. Such madness—crashing the moon into the world!

"We must stop them," Chiyu said. "Afterward, we can use their power to strengthen ourselves." The Hyūga elders caught his meaning: their clan could inherit Hamura's power and evolve.

Chiyu stood and gazed at the crimson moon drawing ever closer. "Stopping them is simple — kill the two of them and shatter the giant Tenseigan. Still… for a world long at peace, this is a perfect drill. Who will go with me?"

At once people rose.

"I will!"

"Iwagakure will not shrink!"

"Kumogakure will answer the call!"

Five nations, one hundred shinobi each. Young, but not children. In Konoha, Uchiha Fugaku and Hatake Kakashi stayed to keep order; Might Guy, Uchiha Tekka, Aoba, Genma, Hayate and others departed. From Kumo, Darui led a team; from Kiri, Mizukage Terumī Mei; from Iwa, Kitsuchi; from Suna, Baki.

Five hundred elite gathered beneath Chiyu's "Takamagahara Divine Realm." A moment later he opened a space‑time portal, and they vanished.

When Guy and the others opened their eyes, they were already on the moon. Awe washed over them: a single teleport over such distance! Yet for Chiyu, whose strength surpassed Kaguya's and who had absorbed the powers of the Sage of Six Paths, this was nothing; he now stood on the brink of true invincibility—perhaps omniscience and omnipotence.

While the others looked around, Chiyu had already located Hamura's Temple.

"Let's go."

But even as they moved out, a vast puppet army surged in, blanketing sky and land alike. Unlike ordinary puppets, they were controlled directly by the Tenseigan—tens of thousands, eclipsing the horizon.

Baki and the others gasped. "Such numbers… and all guided by a single person?"

Chiyu gave the order. "Kill."

The elite force charged, and battle erupted. At that moment a green‑eyed figure appeared ahead: Ōtsutsuki Toneri.

"So you're the so‑called Lord of the Shinobi World, Uchiha Chiyu?"

Chiyu's soul perception instantly found Hamura behind him. "You could never awaken the Tenseigan on your own. Come out, Ōtsutsuki Hamura."

Hamura's soul drifted forth. "As expected, your gaze sees through all. Uchiha Chiyu, we have no choice but to fight to the death. Even if you defeat us, you cannot stop what has begun. The moon will strike; your world is doomed."

Chiyu laughed softly. "A mantis trying to stop a cart."

Toneri roared, "Arrogant fool! Behold our power! Tenseigan Chakra Mode! … Silver Wheel Reincarnation Explosion!"

~~~

Patreon(.)com/Bleam

— This Fanfic is Completed in Patreon!