Naruto: From Fake to Real, Deceiving the Ninja World

Chapter 578 Condescending Pity

Rumble!

At this moment, the entire underground palace had fallen into chaos.

The roots of the divine tree continued to extend, some as thick as giant pythons, others as thin as vines, with countless tiny branches growing out of the main root and spreading in all directions.

They burrow into rock crevices, climb walls, and entangle themselves in anything they can reach.

"what!"

"Help! Help me—"

"What the hell is this thing?!"

"Chakra—my chakra is being drained!"

Among the Allied Ninja, those genin and chunin who couldn't dodge in time had their torsos entangled by roots, tightening around and forming cocoons.

Chakra flowed along the roots towards the Divine Tree itself, and the person inside the cocoon rapidly paled, their strength to struggle dwindling.

However, some of the stronger Jonin reacted quickly.

Some used Wind Release to cut the attacking vines into pieces, some used Fire Release to burn the roots beneath their feet, and some wielded kunai to cut off the branches that entangled their companions.

They fought and retreated, barely maintaining a safe area within the roots of the sacred tree, but it was clear to everyone that this was only temporary.

Hinata Kumokawa didn't even glance at any of this.

"Don't keep me waiting too long." He looked at the white and pink pillar of light in the distance and spoke to the "Shadow" beside him.

"Ah, don't worry." "Shadow" nodded. "I'll be there shortly."

Hinata Kumokawa nodded without saying anything more, then turned and headed towards the fifth level of the underground palace.

"Stop right there!" Jiraiya shouted almost instinctively, his face terribly grim. "What the hell are you—"

"Hyuga Kumokawa!"

Before he could finish speaking, Otsutsuki Isshiki's angry, hoarse roar exploded out: "Die!"

Bang! !

The roots of countless divine trees, like thick, coiled dragons, surged past the nearby Allied ninjas, rushing straight towards Hyuga Kumokawa from dozens of meters away.

In an instant, a terrifying aura stirred up a storm. The distance was so close that the robes behind Hyuga Yunchuan fluttered violently, as if they would be torn apart and swallowed up by that root in the next second.

However, the "shadow" simply stood still.

Hyuga Kumokawa, with his back to all of that, didn't even turn his head back.

"The chosen ones of heaven, the iron walls, the dragon's flight, the lion's roar, the tiger's howl, the wolf's run, cutting off heaven and earth before collapsing—" the shadow said, his voice neither loud nor soft, but clear and resonant.

"The Eighty-First Path of Binding".

Hinata Kumokawa continued walking without stopping, simply replying calmly, "Broken Void."

boom!!

An invisible barrier suddenly rose up in front of the Shadow and behind Hinata Kumokawa.

The roots of the divine tree crashed against the invisible wall like a monstrous wave, producing a deafening roar, yet they could not advance an inch.

The roots wriggled and squeezed frantically against that invisible barrier, trying to find a way out, but it was as if they had hit an insurmountable mountain, and they could not cross that boundary no matter what they did.

"Damn it! What kind of power is this?"

Through the gaps left between the compressed roots of the divine tree, Ōtsutsuki Isshiki stared intently at the receding figure.

However, that figure never turned around to look at him once.

Wherever Hinata Kumokawa passed, the surrounding raging sea of ​​fire parted to make way for him.

The flames seemed to come alive, retreating to both sides, and ashes scattered and danced around him. Only the firelight illuminated his profile, making his face appear both divine and ghostly.

"asshole!"

Completely ignored, Otsutsuki Isshiki's gaze hardened even more, and he roared in a fit of impotent rage, "Die!!"

hum!

He suddenly raised his hands, his dark eyes wide with anger.

Countless enormous, incredibly heavy blocks were released from the alternate dimension of "Daheitian" and blasted towards the invisible barrier.

but----

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Each one of those weights, enough to crush the Ten-Tails, slammed into the barrier of "Broken Void," yet it didn't even cause a ripple.

From the depths of darkness, the sound of a stone door opening could be heard.

Click—click—

Hinata Kumokawa's footsteps did not falter for a moment, neither fast nor slow, as he stepped into the open entrance of the fifth floor.

The light from the sea of ​​fire danced on the broken wall behind him, stretching his shadow long until it disappeared into the darkness he had created, indistinguishable from his own.

No one moved.

It's not that I don't want to.

No, I dare not.

The shadows flowed slowly along everyone's ankles, and the shadow blocking the entrance was an invisible wall that even the roots of the divine tree could not break.

Otsutsuki Isshiki, Jiraiya, and the others could only watch helplessly as Hyuga Kumokawa's figure walked step by step into the depths of darkness.

And just like that, they were swallowed up by the unfathomable darkness and disappeared before their eyes.

Why?

"Why is that?"

"Why did it turn out like this?!"

Jiraiya clenched his teeth so hard that the taste of rust seeped from between them.

"Did I make the wrong choice again? Just like Nagato back then?"

"Was it because I failed to guide the prophesied child towards good that he turned out the way he did?"

No.

wrong!

The image of Hyuga Kumokawa kept appearing in Jiraiya's mind.

In the presence of his "partners," he was humble, gentle, and compassionate.

In the face of "enemies," he was decisive, rational, and ruthless.

But the real him, the real Hyuga Kumokawa, is neither of those two, but rather—

Jiraiya suddenly looked at the shadow, staring intently at the face beneath the black robe.

However, beneath the hood, only a dense shadow surged like swamp water, chewing up and swallowing his gaze, leaving not a trace of residue.

A monster as deep as the abyss.

This thought suddenly popped into Jiraiya's mind.

Hinata Kumokawa is like an isolated island.

They could only see the lush, vibrant forests on the island from afar, but they could not see the swamps on the island, nor the countless skeletons trapped deep within the swamps.

Even the prophesied child mentioned by the Great Toad Sage still has the potential to be guided and changed.

However, it was absolutely impossible for Hinata Kumokawa to continue from beginning to end.

In his eyes, there were no allies and no enemies.

Everyone is the same.

--arrogant.

That condescending arrogance is its true nature.

The arrogance of others is based on their incompetence.

But his humility was based on arrogance.

It is precisely because they don't care about anyone else that they are so generous in showing their kindness.

No, that wasn't a kind gesture.

It should be called ————

Condescending pity.

"But—" Jiraiya's thoughts suddenly stopped.

Why would such an arrogant, indifferent monster, who clearly has the ability to kill everyone, leave "Shadow" behind?

What is he waiting for standing there?

Could it be that...?

The moment Jiraiya realized something, intelligent people, including Isshiki Otsutsuki and Kakashi, who was not bound by the roots of the Divine Tree, also suddenly turned to look behind them.

Their gazes simultaneously fell upon the pillar of light that was as striking as the divine tree.

Compared to the beginning, the beam of light has shrunk considerably, and its color has gradually changed from a dazzling pinkish-white to a deeper, more eerie crimson.

Hyuga Aoi, who was originally pierced through the heart by a sword and was on the verge of death, was now suspended in the pillar of light, curled up like an infant.

The aura emanating from her body grew increasingly vibrant, becoming less and less like the aura of someone who was about to die.

She came back to life.

The "lust" within her is merging with her soul and is coming alive at this moment.

"Shadow, are you waiting for that 'Lust' weapon?!"

Upon seeing that scene, the same thought popped into the minds of Isshiki Otsutsuki and the others almost simultaneously.