Chapter 235: The Road Ahead, Visitors from Beyond the Heavens

"Madara Uchiha!"

When Sasuke and Naruto saw Madara in an instant, their complexion changed dramatically.

They were far too familiar with Madara; over the years they hadn't truly clashed with him, but they had at least imagined it.

After all, this Madara Uchiha is the only one who can face Yuzhi; even if they lack the ambition to surpass Yuzhi, they still yearn to defeat Madara!

"If we defeat this guy, won't the Akatsuki Organization collapse, and true world peace finally arrive?"

The matter of the Otsutsuki is known only to a few; although Naruto and his peers have potential and are all children of Hokage and Hokage disciples, they still cannot reach those matters.

Even those who truly understand Madara's situation are few, so when they saw him, they immediately assumed a battle stance.

"Oh, the little guys have some guts, don't they?"

Madara crossed his arms over his chest, calmly watching the three youngsters before him.

In his mind, he recalled the glorious record of when he was first summoned, still a little brat, and 'beat up' these three youngsters.

Back then, he felt these three weren't cute, and the feeling remains; he couldn't help to entertain some thoughts.

"I just don't know if you three have the ability to dance before me!"

"Enough, stop babbling, Madara."

Madara only wanted to play, but Yuzhi had no patience for his antics and, without hesitation, cut him off.

"What sense does bullying kids give you? You should also know what Sasuke's eyes are like; otherwise I wouldn't have brought you here."

"Eh?"

Sasuke, Naruto, and Ningci heard Yuzhi's words and instantly froze.

The three, previously on edge, were momentarily confused as to why Yuzhi's relationship with Madara, the greatest villain, didn't seem so hostile.

Aren't they enemies?

Shouldn't they have fought as soon as they met?

What on earth is going on?

"Tch, you're really boring."

Madara didn't mind the three's stunned expressions, but after a moment he nodded and said.

"Fine, Sasuke's little eyes aren't fit for battle right now, but I recall you have your own method, so why still..."

"Our methods are all a bit like walking a tightrope."

Yuzhi shook his head, chuckling as he said.

"Why not use a more convenient method? Besides, Itachi Uchiha, though a traitor, was also born to Sasuke's mother."

He was born owing Sasuke and Meiqin; using his eyes now as compensation is still far insufficient, but it's better than nothing."

When Yuzhi spoke, Sasuke showed no emotional change; he knew the purpose of his trip to the moon.

At first, Sasuke felt uneasy, especially upon hearing that Itachi Uchiha's eyes would be merged with his; it made him extremely uncomfortable.

But after Yuzhi's explanation, he understood that, no matter how despicable Itachi Uchiha was, he was still Meiqin's effort, and this guy had always owed them.

Upholding the principle that his mother's effort must not be wasted, and since Sasuke's eyes truly couldn't bear it, he accepted it with a clear conscience.

As for why Madara appeared here, it's simple: Yuzhi isn't skilled in Sasuke's eye transplantation, but Madara Uchiha has ample experience.

Thus Yuzhi didn't hesitate to locate Madara, and to ensure everything went smoothly, he also brought Dou to the moon to assist.

"That's indeed correct; that idiot truly owes Sasuke's little family."

Madara nodded, then turned and walked forward.

"Prepare yourselves; the eye fusion requires some preparation."

The little one you brought is fine; he has already handled the preliminary preparations.

Yuzhi, leading Hikari and the three bewildered youngsters forward, had a somewhat inexplicable look in his eyes.

Madara, "Everything's fine?"

It made Yuzhi find it amusing, because he recalled that in the original story Madara had called Dou a rat hiding in the sewers, but now everything had changed.

"Hey, that's not right!"

At this moment, the bewildered Naruto finally seemed to react, pointing incredulously at Madara and then looking at Yuzhi.

"Hokage uncle, isn't this guy our enemy? How could he..."

"Idiot, if you stay silent you won't expose your IQ!"

Sasuke, standing aside, gave Naruto a disdainful glare, but his peripheral gaze kept shifting toward Yuzhi, clearly curious.

Only Ningci remained quiet; even if curious, he wouldn't ask much, which is a good habit.

"Bastard."

Naruto's fists hardened; he craned his neck at Sasuke, looking ready for a fight.

They have been like this for years, and everyone has gotten used to it.

"Alright, actually Madara isn't really our enemy; more precisely, he's our ally."

Yuzhi, walking and laughing with the group, said that some matters should be explained to the youngsters.

"The world has never been simply black or white; some things aren't as oppositional as you imagine.

Of course, we have our own purposes, for the world we inhabit is an extremely dangerous one."

Yuzhi glanced at the youngsters' expressions, gave an indifferent smile, and then began his leisurely narration.

Since the decision had been made, he wouldn't hide anything; he earnestly laid out the entire background.

Meanwhile, Madara Uchiha also said a few things, helping Yuzhi supplement his explanation.

But Yuzhi noticed that Madara seemed to harbor great hostility toward the Sage of Six Paths.

None of his words were unrelated to the Sage of Six Paths; they all spoke of how the Sage would affect the ninja world.

These remarks made Yuzhi somewhat uneasy; although they were almost established facts, saying them on the moon seemed excessive.

However, Huīyè Jī already knows these things, so I suppose the problem isn't big either.

Yuzhi pressed his lips together without correcting them, and the three little ones, after hearing what the two said, were completely dazed.

They never imagined the ninja world could be so dangerous, nor did they think the source of its turmoil was anything other than the Sage of Six Paths who created the ninja world!

This information truly shattered their worldview, leaving their minds constantly dazed.

"So, to train more ninjas capable of facing future crises, war is inevitable."

Yuzhi gazed at the dazed three little ones and then gave his conclusion.

"War gives us tremendous training and growth, but its casualties are hard to bear, so I discussed it with Madara."

The ninja world needs both peace and war; peace can unite everyone's strength, which is why we have advanced to shape the present Leaf Village.

War tempers us, allowing continual growth, which is why Nagato and Madara of the Akatsuki have teamed up, constantly attacking us.

Let all ninjas feel the flames of war, keep them vigilant, and allow everyone to grow.

You three are extremely promising newcomers; you can absolutely grow to become the pillars of the village and even the ninja world.

That's why this information is being revealed to you; even in the entire Leaf Village, or the ninja world as a whole, few people know the whole truth.

Yuzhi's words left the three little ones staring at each other; shocked by the world's truth, they also felt a special excitement.

"So, we're really that highly regarded?"

Besides their excitement, their gaze toward Madara Uchiha shifted slightly, and a hint of respect began to appear in their eyes.

Madara and Nagato, the two singled out by Yuzhi, are acting exactly to become public enemies of the ninja world, thereby helping to train the entire ninja world!

"This reminded them of a saying Yuzhi once made: 'Dwelling in darkness, heart toward light, all things are empty, all things are permitted.'"

"Although these words were originally meant by Yuzhi for the ANBU, they now seem fitting for Madara and his group as well."

But the three little ones' gazes made Madara feel uneasy; although their eyes were full of respect, he always felt something was off.

"Alright, little guys, you're still far from enough; there's still a lot for you to learn and master."

Yuzhi timely interrupted all of this with a smile.

"Besides that, Sasuke's eyes need some time to adjust, Neji you too, and Naruto your study tasks are also heavy."

In the coming period, you need to study here properly, after all, this is crucial to your future.

Having said that, Yuzhi paused slightly, and then his smile became even more radiant.

"You guys look decent now, but your essence is still far too lacking, so you need to prepare mentally, because this training will be tough."

Moreover, I'm sorry, but you don't have the option to refuse; are you ready? The coming days won't be easy.

Yuzhi's smile made Sasuke and the others shudder; the silent Hikari beside them couldn't help but roll his eyes, and Yuzhi's nasty nature is truly deeply ingrained.

"However, his nastiness seemed to suit Madara Uchiha's taste; he turned his head to look at the three little ones and then flashed a smile."

"You brats, when you're ready, I'll spar with you properly to see just how good you are."

"If you're still about the same as ten years ago, I'll be disappointed."

"Ten years ago?"

Madara's words left the three little ones somewhat bewildered, but the next moment, dead memories began to frenziedly attack them.

At that moment they recalled some events from ten years ago, and the memory of that mysterious Uchiha who violently beat them surfaced.

That was an ordeal they couldn't bear to recall, and what made their minds unable to turn was that at this moment they realized who that person had been back then.

"It's actually Madara Uchiha?"

: —— (just a dash) No.

"Lord Hokage, Sasuke's surgery was a great success; now we just need to wait for time."

Inside the Feather Village Shrine, after Dou finished his work and Sasuke's surgery, he came to Yuzhi to report.

Dou still looks the same as before, and hasn't turned into the 'Great Snake Dou' from the original story.

His clarity and efficiency are the deepest impressions people have of Dou now, and this kid's aura is also exceptionally solid.

Even though he looks scholarly and wears glasses, once his aura and power fully erupt, it's an absolute disaster for his enemies.

"Not bad, your medical ninjutsu level is probably almost comparable to Tsunade's, right?"

Yuzhi was looking at the huge Reincarnation Eye before him, and after hearing Dou's words, he turned around with a smile.

"Such a complex surgery completed so easily—looks like you've walked onto a path that leaves people in the dust."

"I'm still far from enough, but my current achievements are entirely thanks to the Hokage's cultivation."

Dou is very humble; in front of Yuzhi he never shows any pretense.

To him, the most important people are his dean Yenou and Yuzhi; their influence on him is immense.

No matter the time, he will always truly maintain an attitude of respect toward those two.

"Alright, don't be humble—about how long will Sasuke take to recover?"

Yuzhi stroked his chin, then spoke, while Dou pondered for a moment before explaining.

"Normally it would take at least a month, but judging by Sasuke's condition, his recovery is expected to be faster than imagined."

After all, in the process of merging the eyes, following the Hokage's request, I used White Absolute Cells.

These cells work wonders when applied to Uchiha, so the progress speeds up.

But I can't judge how much it can be sped up; perhaps Mr. Madara could offer some reference opinions.

Having said that, Dou's gaze turned to the nearby Madara, who almost rolled his eyes.

When he fused his brother's eyes, he didn't have Hashirama's cells, so he himself couldn't say what the result would be.

"Forget it—he never experienced this either, so asking him how to do it is fine, but asking about the effect is pointless."

Yuzhi instantly understood Madara's thought, so he simply spoke up to break the siege.

"But speaking of which, after all these years, have you never thought about reviving your brother?"

I naturally have ideas, but I haven't acted because I have some concerns.

Madara Uchiha heard Yuzhi's words and didn't dwell on them; he directly stated his attitude.

Quannai is a proud person; his eyes have already been given to me, and after being resurrected via Impure World Reincarnation, his eyes will also disappear.

I'm worried that using someone else's eyes won't satisfy him; moreover, the enemies we'll face in the future are so strong that if he can't exert his strength, he might feel bad inside.

You really have thought of everything.

Yuzhi certainly knows that all these Uchiha are brother-con, but reaching Madara Uchiha's level of striving for perfection, there really is no one like him.

But upon reflection, that makes sense, given the Uchiha clan's proud nature—especially Uchiha Quannai, who once stood at the pinnacle of the shinobi world.

If he truly can't do anything about the future situation, it's hard to say he wouldn't feel especially bad inside.

As an Uchiha, he somewhat understands this mindset.

Moreover, for someone who truly once stood at the peak, once they fall from the summit to the valley, that feeling is especially unpleasant.

Do as you like, but I think you should ask him what he thinks.

Yuzhi shook his head, pondered for a moment, then spoke again.

Projecting your own subjective thoughts onto others isn't a good thing, and I recall that your brother seems to value the family much more than you do.

At the very least, using his past strength to assist me, helping the younger generation of the family grow, doesn't seem like a bad idea.

Yuzhi's words left Madara Uchiha somewhat silent; after a while he nodded.

Alright, in a few days I'll summon him and then actually ask his thoughts and feelings; if he refuses, you can't force him to stay.

Don't worry; if he refuses, I'll regret it, but I won't dwell on it too much.

Yuzhi smiled indifferently, then looked at Madara Uchiha with relative seriousness.

That said, your progress seems a bit slow, or you might be stagnating—this isn't a good omen.

Madara Uchiha furrowed his brows at Yuzhi's words, but didn't refute them, since it's also a fact.

Although his strength has been growing, this growth is largely due to the Ten-Tails inside him continually recovering.

A tailed beast's chakra can, under certain circumstances, continuously restore and develop on its own, even reaching the level of a true tailed beast, aside from lacking self-consciousness.

Of course, achieving this is difficult; at the very least it needs a host rather than being allowed to dissipate freely, otherwise it will vanish between heaven and earth.

Heima, who had long been dead, used his son Kong as an experiment, and Madara Uchiha had also excavated and performed Impure World Reincarnation on the Gold and Silver Brothers, so he also understands this mechanism.

The Ten-Tails is the ultimate form of all tailed beasts, and after being activated it continually restores its own power.

But the Ten-Tails' power remains ultimately that of the Ten-Tails; Madara Uchiha can wield and harness it to reach the 'Six Paths level,' yet his own strength hasn't completely transformed.

To be honest, Madara Uchiha also secretly worries that if one day the Ten-Tails' power fully recovers while he hasn't grown to the required height...

... then he could possibly be devoured by the Ten-Tails!

Do you have any ideas?

Madara Uchiha pondered for a moment, then chose to speak; Dou beside him blinked, wondering if he could hear these topics.

However, Yuzhi apparently didn't care; he seemed to already have an answer, and immediately he said with a smile.

It's simple; the fundamentals record that this is also a technique the true Sage of Six Paths once studied and researched, and we call this technique 'Senjutsu'.

More bluntly, it should be natural energy.

Senjutsu, natural energy?

Madara Uchiha heard these words, his brows furrowed further as he contemplated all of this.

And Yuzhi didn't mind either; he walked over to Hikari, who was reading a book, and sat down beside him.

What he said were all true, and this also counts as some of his own thoughts after his research.

Natural energy is forever one of this world's most extravagant and strongest powers!

Without further ado, the so-called Sage of Six Paths is a user and reliant of Senjutsu.

Besides him, Kaguya Otsutsuki's growth likely also couldn't do without the aid of natural energy.

You should know that the divine tree fruit that allowed Kaguya Otsutsuki to achieve 'ultimate sublimation' was also produced when the divine tree absorbed natural energy from the shinobi world during its gestation.

This shows that even the divine tree relies on natural energy to gestate, and such natural energy symbolizes infinite possibilities, with its exploitable value being unimaginable.

Moreover, Yuzhi has also been pondering one thing: is the Ōtsutsuki's growth only one path—absorbing life essence?

Although Yuzhi has the 'Soul Crucible,' self-improvement can't always rely on absorbing life essence, can it?

The Ōtsutsuki are few in number, and it's impossible for every one of them to be as foolish as Momoshiki and Urashiki, let alone every one as unlucky as Isshiki.

With such strength and accumulation, among them there will surely be someone as terrifying as Isshiki, to a degree hard to imagine.

Even stronger, after all, among the Ōtsutsuki there is a god belonging to them.

How extravagant the Ōtsutsuki god truly is, Yuzhi frankly can't imagine, after all humans struggle to imagine things they've never encountered.

It's like having a spring dream; many people wake up at the crucial moment precisely because they haven't experienced it, and their brains can't render the continuation.

Therefore, when the huntable Ōtsutsuki have mostly been hunted, or when Yuzhi is targeted by stronger Ōtsutsuki, he must find a new plan to replace it.

He naturally can't devour planets, nor can he passively wait for the inhabitants of other planets to die out completely.

After much thought, the most promising way for Yuzhi to improve seems to be only to research natural energy more and develop and utilize it more widely!

"Senjutsu?"

While Yuzhi was thinking, Madara Uchiha was also pondering; gradually his gaze became increasingly focused.

Having come this far, there aren't many things he can reference or use, so mastering Senjutsu has become an inevitable path before him.

After all, whether it's Yuzhi, Hikari, or his former opponent ZhuZhang, they all walked this path.

Of course, the most important point is that Yuzhi mentioned the Sage of Six Paths also excelled at Senjutsu!

"That's indeed a good suggestion!"

Thinking this through, Madara Uchiha also made a decision; in fact, in the original story he had already dabbled in Senjutsu, having literally ripped it out of ZhuZhang's body!

But now, because Yuzhi's involvement has deprived him of that opportunity, of course even if he had it, he would still need to worry about it.

Practicing and using Senjutsu isn't actually difficult; the Ten-Tails itself inherently possesses natural power, but how to better employ that power is what Madara Uchiha needs to consider.

In the original work, he only needed to control his power; as for later, he probably also had no time to think, being already in the midst of war, he naturally had to solve the problem and complete the Moon Eye Plan.

And now, this problem he needs to consider; and the places that possess the method of cultivating Sage Arts, according to what Ban knows, there are four in total.

Among them, these three are 'Wonderful Tree Mountain', 'Earth Dragon Cave', and 'Wet Bone Forest', the three great holy lands of the ninja world.

As for the last one, Ban's gaze involuntarily turned toward Yuzhi.

"Your Sage Arts."

After pondering for a moment, Ban then asked in a low voice.

"You probably haven't gone to any holy land, then you."

"Cultivating Sage Arts doesn't necessarily require going to a holy land; there are many methods that can be attempted to achieve."

Yuzhi did not answer directly, but his words already made Ban's eyes light up.

It is obvious that this answer has already revealed much key information, and this information is also something Ban longs for!

"You probably are still just suppressing the Sage Arts power to be able to use it, after all this power comes from the Ten-Tails."

Yuzhi rubbed his chin, he sized up Ban before smiling and speaking.

"Now you need to learn to truly fuse Sage Arts with yourself and try to use it; I can actually recommend someone to help you."

"Who?"

Ban had no hesitation, he directly asked, actually in his view the best person to help himself is naturally Yuzhi.

However, Yuzhi obviously does not intend to help the 'beginner' himself; teaching basics sometimes is indeed troublesome, and Ban also doesn't want to dwell on these.

"Him."

The result that Ban never expected was that Yuzhi actually raised his hand and pointed at the one nearby who was 'playing dead', Dou.

And this action of his also made Dou's complexion instantly become vivid.

"No, Lord Hokage, you want me to teach him?"

"Isn't this a bit of turning the heavens upside down?"

However, although Ban wore a displeased expression, his gaze also came over, which made Dou's face turn pale and break out in a cold sweat.

He knew, he probably couldn't escape.

"Looks like, this is the place."

In the starry sky, two figures stood upright; a white robe fluttered without wind in the universe, and they were Otsutsuki Momoshiki and Otsutsuki Kinshiki!

"This damned place is really remote; unexpectedly it let us search for so long!"

In Otsutsuki Momoshiki's white pupils lay some dissatisfaction, but also full anticipation.

"Isshiki, Kaguya, no wonder we couldn't find you; it turns out you were hiding in such a distant place."

"But it's good, we finally found you!"

"Lord, we didn't detect the aura of Isshiki-sama and Kaguya."

Otsutsuki Kinshiki said softly from the side, his expression extremely respectful.

"Besides us, there is a small planet; my subordinate feels that there seems to be a faint and intermittent force within this planet."

"Indeed there is such a force; you didn't feel wrong."

Otsutsuki Momoshiki said disdainfully; after thinking for a moment, he continued speaking.

"Perhaps this is the arrangement of Isshiki or Kaguya; moreover, don't forget that this damned place seems to also have a newborn Otsutsuki about to be born."

"Although we don't know exactly what happened, this place seems more interesting than we imagined; I am now even more curious."

"Lord, my subordinate thinks we should be careful, after all Lord Urashiki"

Kinshiki still worried; earlier, Urashiki's aura had dissipated, he still remembers it very clearly.

But Momoshiki seemed not to care; after glancing at Kinshiki, he immediately flew straight toward the ninja world.

He also remembers Urashiki's situation, but that guy Urashiki, in the Otsutsuki clan, is merely like a 'younger brother' existence.

Born not long ago, has absorbed little life essence; even if the ability is indeed not bad, that's all there is!

"Perhaps that newborn Otsutsuki has some tricks, but what of it?"

Kinshiki looking at Momoshiki's back, although somewhat hesitant, but as a guardian, he must obey the commands of the one he guards.

After scanning once more the small planet emitting strange power, he turned his body and flew down together with Otsutsuki Momoshiki.

No matter what, he needs to protect Momoshiki well; this is the lifelong duty of a guardian of the Otsutsuki clan.