Naruto: Passerby and Returnee

Chapter 542 Sinking into History

"My name is Hagoromo, the founder of the Ninja Clan, and also known as the Sage of Six Paths."

The old chakra man had two small horns on his forehead, and his eyes bore distinct purple growth rings. His deeply furrowed face looked like it could trap a mosquito. He wore an ancient-style robe adorned with many magatama. The most striking feature was the black staff in his hand, a pure Truth-Seeking Ball creation. One side had a complete circle nested with many small rings, resembling a sun, while the other side was a three-quarter circle, partially empty, clearly imitating a crescent moon.

Perhaps because the situation was urgent, the old man didn't waste any words and immediately introduced himself, trying to gain the trust of the two boys.

"The Sage of Six Paths?" Sasuke had already used up all the shock he had ever experienced in his life. At this moment, he didn't react with great surprise. Instead, he subconsciously pushed Naruto back a step, creating distance between them, and stood firmly in front of Naruto.

"Indra's successor, have you obtained all of Ashura's chakra in this generation?" The Six Paths' expression was somewhat subtle. He looked at the eyes that were similar to his own but also somewhat different, and then slowly shifted his gaze to Naruto, whose expression had not changed at all from beginning to end.

When facing this person, the Sage of Six Paths' expression changed slightly. He still looked majestic and powerful, but he still revealed a hint of wariness.

Sasuke, feeling a slight swelling in his eyes and a surge of chakra, hadn't yet realized that he had awakened his Sharingan again, and both of his eyes at once. If these eyes hadn't opened at just the right time, his Susanoo wouldn't have been able to withstand the "Moonlight." The Uchiha clan, always highly sensitive to emotions, noticed the old man's wariness and the amount of chakra comparable to a tailed beast, and naturally chose to retaliate with equal hostility, even Kurama's nostalgic sighs not affecting his performance.

"I don't know what you're talking about. If you are the Sage of Six Paths, what do you want to do by appearing at this time? Take a look at what you wrote about the Eye of the Moon, and see if it has come true."

"Sasuke, show some consideration for the elderly, don't say things like that." Naruto didn't care about this wariness and quickly patted Sasuke's head to prevent the old man's appearance from becoming a hindrance to their success.

The Sage of Six Paths' soul possesses the ability to reach the boundary between life and death, allowing him to constantly observe the world of the living. The light emanating from the ocean floor is so dazzling; it is a "core" capable of existing simultaneously in all dimensions, so vast that its aftershocks upon descending upon the mortal realm could directly destroy a planet. The Pure Land can observe that "core," and the Sage of Six Paths can even sense its power up close; it's not surprising that he would be wary.

Moreover, in his view, the whole process was just a terrifying thing that appeared out of nowhere and possessed the reincarnated person whose Ashura chakra was residing in this generation.

"I never wanted Infinite Tsukuyomi to happen again. The stone tablet I left behind clearly recorded the dangers of this technique, but I never expected that a reincarnated person would still come to this."

Sasuke frowned at the completely different account. He had, of course, examined the stone tablet, and it indeed contained exactly what Madara had claimed, only the wording was more archaic and required translation. Therefore, his suspicions intensified, not about the old man before him, but about the existence of a powerful force behind the scenes.

“No, you’re wrong,” Sasuke said. “The stone tablet proclaims that the Infinite Tsukuyomi is a ninjutsu that traps people in a perfect illusion, where all beings will unite as one, achieving a form of peace.”

"But I clearly wrote down the consequences of casting the spell, such as that those who connect to the divine tree for too long will gradually die and transform into puppets with both plant and animal attributes..."

"You mean those people who are all white but have green hair?"

"Yes."

Sasuke gasped. The Sage of Six Paths' words directly confirmed the origin of White Zetsu and proved that the Infinite Tsukuyomi was not a hope for achieving peace, but a despair that would drag the world into an abyss.

Will stone tablets wear out over time?

"Unlikely, as long as my soul is immortal, the protective barrier on the stone tablet will not disappear."

"So, the conclusion is that the stone tablet has been tampered with." Naruto stated the answer directly, but when he looked up, he could only see the inner wall of the purple Susanoo. "I really hope that person in the sky can hear this."

A moment of silence fell over the scene. Hagoromo was also baffled by the matter. After all, he didn't keep a close eye on the reincarnated person's life all the time, and he couldn't immediately figure out why the stone tablet's contents were missing. That was his creation; theoretically, no one but Hamura could modify it. Could there be another being in this world with similar power to him?

"It's not surprising that information from a thousand years ago has been altered by now. The important thing is how to break the Infinite Tsukuyomi. You should know, right, Sage of Six Paths?"

Yu Yi's rhythm was disrupted, and she could no longer even bother with telling the story, because the white light of Infinite Tsukuyomi was weakening, which meant that the caster was about to return to the ground.

“It’s very simple. You possess the Rinnegan and the power of all the Tailed Beasts. You can release it as long as you form the ‘child’ hand seal. Before that, I need to entrust you with a technique.”

Can it be dispelled with just one seal...? Wait, he just said, "possessing the Rinnegan"?!

Sasuke finally realized that the surging power he felt did not come from Kurama, but from the evolution of his eye power!

"No way, you're only realizing this now?" Kurama chimed in at the right moment. "Didn't you notice that Naruto in the spiritual world is no longer there? He's completely merged with you. I was wondering why your chakra looked so familiar; it turns out it's those two brats, Ashura and Indra."

"You know them?"

“They are the old man’s two sons, how could I not recognize them? But to be honest, you two are nothing like them. Indra is the kind of person who will never turn back even if he dies, and Ashura is even more so. He can fall asleep in front of the bamboo scrolls if he sits for even a second longer. Unlike Naruto.”

As the human and the beast were exchanging information and considering whether to accept Hagoromo's suggestion, Naruto urged him to accept it quickly, as if afraid of being a second too slow. Did this guy really not notice Hagoromo's wariness? How could he still laugh so happily?

Sasuke couldn't refuse him, so he held out his hand. Hagoromo cleanly and decisively left "sun" and "moon" patterns on his two palms, telling him that this was a ninjutsu capable of sealing the Ten-Tails, a safety net for them. He advised them to choose a suitable location when casting the jutsu, as the side effect would most likely be the creation of a second moon.

After quickly finishing explaining everything, the lights outside went out, and night returned, bringing with it the most dangerous enemy.

Madara Uchiha, the Ten-Tails Jinchuriki.