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JST Chapter 260: Deceiver and Deceived
🕑 Added 2025-04-26 01:42:39 +0000 UTCAfter a while…
Kaguya’s anxiety slowly subsided. She realized that she could no longer sense any probes from the Sage of Six Paths, Hamura, or Isshiki.
She was probably safe… for now.
Kaguya glanced at Kazuki, then looked around at her surroundings. A shadow of worry crept back into her heart.
Where was she?
She had definitely been sealed on the moon…
If everything had gone according to plan, Black Zetsu—her most trusted creation—should’ve revived the Ten-Tails in the ninja world, cast Infinite Tsukuyomi, absorbed the world’s chakra, and resurrected her in the perfect form.
Why was she in such an incomplete state?
Especially inside Kazuki’s body, Kaguya couldn’t shake the feeling that she had simply been transferred from the seal on the moon to another prison.
Kaguya stared at Kazuki’s face and physique, which suited her tastes quite well, and forcibly suppressed her unsettled thoughts. She wiped away the tearful, pleading look she’d shown him earlier, her expression growing serious.
She had realized something was wrong!
This place—this body—felt like a prison, even more terrifying than the one her wayward sons had sealed her in on the moon.
First, there was the beast chakra she had absorbed, burning inside her…
These flames weren’t particularly strong compared to her full power.
But once they took root inside her body, they continually drained her chakra.
True, she had seized the power herself…
Still, it felt bizarre and unnatural.
Once inside her, the flames were extremely difficult to remove. They had even fused with natural energy, making it nearly impossible for her to absorb or expel them at will.
Kazuki watched Kaguya’s subtle reactions and smiled slightly.
At her peak, Kaguya had been unimaginably strong—wielding the Ten-Tails, and the chakra of the entire ninja world.
She had been invincible.
But now...
Her chakra had not returned to her fully.
Though she still bore the proud blood of Otsutsuki she was now suppressed inside Kazuki’s body, with a gulf of difference between her skill at manipulating chakra and jutsu compared to him.
Against Kazuki—who could be seen as a fusion of a 'mini-Hamura' and 'mini-Hagoromo'—if it came to a real fight, it would just be a replay of the battle a thousand years ago.
"It’s not just the cursed flames… This place itself is strange. My chakra is being assimilated into it!"
The more Kaguya observed, the more terrified she became.
Her gaze toward Kazuki shifted from gratitude to guarded wariness.
This was a power born from Orochimaru—the Greedy Snake Soul!
A talent capable of gradually extracting the spirit, soul, and chakra of its host—and branding them with soul seals according to their will.
While the gap between Orochimaru’s power and Kaguya’s was as vast as heaven and earth—
In Kazuki’s hands, it had power enough to wound even gods.
Even as Kaguya’s expression grew darker, Kazuki offered no explanations.
Instead, he furrowed his brow slightly, pretending to be troubled.
A long silence passed.
Then Kaguya’s voice broke the stillness, deep and cold: “You… who are you? Why have you summoned me here? Who commands you? What are your intentions?”
Her demeanor shifted sharply, launching question after question like a barrage of kunai.
There was no softness left—only an icy, killing intent.
It was an expression almost identical to the one Senju Tobirama had worn the first time he met Kazuki.
The only thing missing was Kaguya crossing her arms and snarling: “Born evil, you Uchiha brat—I’ll personally—!”
Kazuki narrowed his eyes.
What was this, an interrogation?
Sensing Kazuki’s hostility, Kaguya steadied her heart.
She carefully studied his white hair and features.
Then, feeling his chakra—
Her eyes widened sharply.
“You little fool… did you think your earlier act could fool me?”
Kaguya’s voice was low and dangerous: “With my eyes and my senses, I can distinguish the descendants of Hamura and Hagoromo at a single glance!”
“You dare seal me within yourself? You have some nerve!”
Facing Kaguya’s interrogation, Kazuki smiled inwardly.
Once upon a time, Senju Tobirama had stood exactly where Kaguya stood now, saying almost the same words: With just one look, I can tell from your facial structure and bone frame whether you’re a Uchiha.
History repeating itself, right down to the detail.
But compared to Tobirama, Kaguya still fell far short.
When Tobirama confronted Kazuki back then, he had seen through Kazuki’s identity instantly.
Kaguya, for all her imposing aura, had just recently been terrified into a sweat by the Sage of Six Paths, Hamura, and Isshiki—then had made a fool of herself greedily snatching tailed beast chakra.
She couldn’t compare to Tobirama at all.
When it came to caution and critical thinking, Kaguya was severely lacking...
If it had been Tobirama, at their very first meeting, he absolutely would not have recklessly absorbed Kazuki’s chakra—let alone lose his composure like that.
“Who are Hagoromo and Hamura?”
Kazuki narrowed his eyes and said coldly: “It seems the historical records are riddled with errors… I thought the portraits of the Sage of Six Paths circulating in the ninja world were accurate, but it turns out they’re laughably wrong—they even mistook a woman for an old man.”
Kaguya’s expression changed—and Kazuki’s did too.
Faced with Kaguya’s questioning, Kazuki showed no guilt whatsoever.
Crossing his arms like Tobirama once had, he said icily: “Even though I just helped you escape your enemies’ pursuit, that’s irrelevant.”
“Outside this coffin, I’ve already made my preparations.”
“Inside this coffin—Sage of Six Paths, born inherently evil—I, Uchiha Kazuki, am here to personally seal you!”
Kazuki’s gaze turned ice-cold as he stared at Kaguya: “Don’t even think about escaping. You can’t.”
Kaguya was stunned.
The Sage of Six Paths—born inherently evil?
Although she didn’t actually know who the Sage was—after all, the title only became widespread after her sons sealed her away on the moon—
still, Kazuki had mentioned the words 'old man'.
In a flash, Kaguya blinked hard.
She conjured an illusion of Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo with her hand, then changed her tone to a softer, more tentative voice: “The old man you mentioned… did he look like this?”
Kazuki glanced at the illusion of Hagoromo she projected, then sneered and nodded: “So what if he did?”
“You snatched the chakra I had painstakingly gathered, then turned on me the moment I helped you through a crisis.”
“Exactly what I would expect from someone intent on destroying the world.”
Kazuki’s voice was calm, almost dispassionate, as he looked down at Kaguya: “Sage of Six Paths, stop pretending. The difference in appearance could be a distortion in the records over the millennia—or a result of your own genjutsu. But a person’s character, their nature—those do not change.”
“You won’t escape.”
Kaguya was completely bewildered.
From the unshakable look in Kazuki’s eyes, it seemed that this young man—clearly a descendant of Hamura and Hagoromo—was genuinely here to seal one of the two traitorous sons?
Normally, it would be difficult to comprehend such an act—after all, blood ties are strong, a powerful bond.
But Kaguya understood all too well.
She had, after all, been sealed away by her own two sons…
Now, centuries later, it seemed their descendants were walking the same path—seeking to seal the firstborn who had once sealed her.
What a mess this was.
After forcing herself to process this bizarre situation, Kaguya exhaled slowly.
No matter what, Kazuki should be considered an ally… right?
“No, not just a simple ally. This kid harbors deep hatred toward the one trying to destroy the world…”
Kaguya calculated silently:
“I can exploit his hostility toward Hagoromo. Let him collect chakra for me, let him serve me!”
“His talent is extraordinary—he can wield my chakra to even shield himself from Isshiki and my two sons’ perception! Compared to Black Zetsu, this boy is a far better pawn to bring me back in full power!”
Kaguya began plotting how to deceive Kazuki—how to manipulate him from the shadows.
Switching to a new, strangely gentle tone unfamiliar even to herself, she said softly: “Listen to me… there’s been a misunderstanding between us…”
"Six Paths Sage, are you going to continue pretending?"
Kazuki gazed at her face with chilling indifference, his voice devoid of any warmth: “You’re used to betraying those who trust you. Your facade has already cracked.”
The surface meaning was clear—
Kazuki was referring to how Kaguya, after he had helped her survive the crisis, immediately turned around to interrogate him.
But to Kaguya—
Those words struck a nerve.
Her features twisted with fury, veins bulging across her forehead and around her eyes.
Betraying those who trust you?
How could this possibly be something she had done?
Yes, she had ambushed Ōtsutsuki Isshiki—but that wasn’t a betrayal of trust; it was a rebellion against the main family that sought to exploit her!
All she had wanted was to find a way to survive this hardship…
Kaguya had split her essence to create two sons, hoping they would work together to absorb the essence of the ninja world and fend off the arriving Ōtsutsuki invaders.
But the problem was—her most trusted sons, Hagoromo and Hamura, betrayed her without hesitation for the sake of the world’s creatures.
They suppressed her, tore the Ten-Tails from her body, and sealed her alone on the moon for a thousand years!
How cruel and heartless!
