This puppeteer is a bit... well...

Chapter 264 Infinite Tsukuyomi

Unless one is born strong, everyone will undergo unimaginable trials on their path to becoming strong, and their will and beliefs will be forged into unparalleled power.

If it were a routine matter, it would be fine, but when it comes to life principles, beliefs, goals, and so on, it is definitely not something that can be swayed by a few words from others.

The feud between Asuras and Indras is the best example.

If some things could be accomplished simply by talking, then there wouldn't be so much misfortune in the world.

Therefore, the Sage of Six Paths simply gave up on trying to dissuade him. This greatly surprised Ryuji Ayaki.

"So straightforward?" Long Er looked at the old man who was floating and sitting cross-legged like a charlatan with surprise, and explained as if afraid that he hadn't understood, "I'm really going to kill them, not even sparing their souls. Don't you, as their father, have any other thoughts?"

"It's precisely because of ulterior motives that we've ended up with such disastrous consequences!"

The Sage of Six Paths sighed deeply, his face filled with grief.

"I should have stopped them from the beginning. But at the time, I thought, 'Even if I stopped the fight with force, they wouldn't be at peace with each other,' so I let them fight on, hoping that one day they could truly understand and reconcile with each other. Who knew that their grudges would only escalate, turning into obsessions that they couldn't let go of even in death, and that they would fight to the death for eternity... Now, it's too late for me to stop them. After all, I'm just a dead man, unable to interfere in human affairs."

"Are you really powerless?" Ryuji looked at him with a half-smile. "But I can clearly feel that you still possess great power. Even if I were to fight you now, I wouldn't dare say I would be 100% certain of victory."

"But what then?" the Sage of Six Paths sighed. "I am ultimately just a dead man. Interfering in human affairs will only cause more serious and irreversible consequences."

"is that so?"

Ryuji smiled noncommittally, without responding.

The universe has its own set of operating rules, and rashly breaking them will lead to unimaginable consequences.

This consequence may not happen immediately, but it will certainly happen, just as rampant environmental destruction triggers various natural disasters. And for the dead to interfere in the affairs of the living will cause even more unimaginable consequences.

Of course, this only applies to ordinary people.

If one reaches the level of the Sage of Six Paths, even if the world is on the verge of destruction, one can gradually restore it, just as he once repaired the world destroyed after his battle with Kaguya.

But the Sage of Six Paths is dead and can no longer stay in the human world, so he can no longer repair the world as before.

—Logically speaking, that's how it should be.

But Ryuji always felt that this guy had some kind of backup plan, and these problems that should have been unsolvable were not problems at all.

The reason I have this feeling is because this guy's behavior is completely inconsistent with his words.

He said the dead can't interfere with reality... but in the original Fourth Shinobi World War, this guy came out and shared his power with Naruto and Sasuke, helping them defeat Kaguya.

If what he meant by "the dead cannot interfere with reality" is that they cannot take action themselves, then perhaps it has some credibility.

No, if he really wanted to stop it, he could simply be reborn like Asura and Indra.

This eliminates the concern about the dead interfering with reality.

So, no matter what, this old man still hoped that his son could let go of their grudges and pass away peacefully without regrets.

"While I can understand your good intentions as a father, at times like this, you, with your ability to intervene in reality, have become the only variable..."

As he spoke, Long Er paused.

He stared intently at the Sage of Six Paths' face, trying to glean something from the changes in his expression.

Unfortunately, whether the other party genuinely didn't care or had an exceptionally strong mentality, remaining calm even after hearing such unfavorable news, Ryuji couldn't glean any useful information from his expression.

Ugh, dealing with people like this is such a hassle!

Ryuji sighed inwardly and continued, "If only you would attack me to protect Ashura and Indra, then I wouldn't be so conflicted."

People who share the same goals cannot necessarily become companions.

Although Ryuji's goal is to eliminate the hidden dangers existing on this planet and even in this universe, it is the same as the Sage of Six Paths' goal and ideal of protecting the world.

However, as long as people are human, they will have different opinions.

Even though both Nagato and Naruto were pursuing peace, they made different choices.

If the Sage of Six Paths intervened when Ryuji was eliminating Ashura and Indra, it would mean that his desire to protect the world was less than his desire to protect his family. In that case, Ryuji could also eliminate him as a threat.

But he did not stop them. Instead, he openly acknowledged the damage that Indra and Ashura's actions had caused to the world, believing that they deserved such an outcome... The more selfless the Sage of Six Paths appeared, the less able Ryuji was to act against him without feeling guilty.

After all, he wasn't so cold-blooded as to attack innocent people without any psychological burden.

"You don't need to worry too much. If your plan is feasible, I won't make things difficult for you!"

"Um?"

"You must deal with Mother and the enemy she fears will one day arrive!" The Sage of Six Paths paused, then continued, "Actually, I have also been worried about these things. I worry that one day Mother will break free of the seal and turn the world into a wasteland once more. I worry that the enemy Mother has always been wary of will suddenly descend, causing even more unimaginable consequences. Although I have prepared some contingency plans, I have no confidence in whether I can resolve these possible, no, inevitable disasters. If your plan can solve them, I will certainly do my utmost to assist you."

"I see!"

Long Er stood with his hands behind his back, head bowed in thought.

After a moment, he looked up and said, "Well, it's not that I can't tell you. But once you know my plan, whether you agree or disagree, I can't let you leave. At least not until this is all over. Are you still willing to listen?"

"It's alright, tell me about it!"

"Since that's the case, then I'll tell you. The plan is very simple, it's just..."

Ryuji told the Sage of Six Paths about his plan in detail.

The Sage of Six Paths was dumbfounded.

It wasn't that I found the plan particularly absurd, but rather that I found it incredible what Ryuji had revealed in the plan.

After hearing the complete plan, he was in a daze and it took him a while to come back to his senses.

He stared intently at the handsome young man smiling before him, and saw the madness beneath the surface.

"Phew~"

The Sage of Six Paths let out a long sigh and asked, "Have you considered the consequences of failing?"

"I've thought about it."

"So you know that if you fail, you'll die?"

"Know."

"So you know that if you fail, the universe could very well be destroyed?"

"Know."

"Then why are you carrying out the plan so nonchalantly? Aren't you afraid of failure at all?"

Upon hearing this, Ryuji grinned and confidently replied, "Because I won't fail!"

"..."

The Sage of Six Paths wanted to say something more, but looking at Ryuji who showed no concern whatsoever, he couldn't bring himself to speak.

He knew that the other party must have made such a decision after careful consideration.

He knew that the other party must have made this choice after countless days and nights of deliberation and calculation of the odds.

This fearless and determined young man, who knows all the risks of the plan, will absolutely not be stopped by his words.

So, should we stop him?

The Sage of Six Paths had this thought in his mind, but then dismissed it.

Having learned of Ryuji's plan, he knew he had no chance of winning... Although the outcome of a fair fight was uncertain, he had no chance against Ryuji in the realm of his own mind.

It wasn't that he lacked a fighting spirit, but rather that the reality that an egg couldn't break a rock made him rational.

"Ugh!"

The Sage of Six Paths sighed for what felt like the umpteenth time; he felt utterly exhausted.

"Fine, fine, I'll believe you then!"

The Sage of Six Paths raised his hands with a wry smile, and on his palms appeared the marks of a crescent moon and a sun.

"Now that things have come to this, there is no other way but to hope that you will succeed completely. I will entrust my strength to you!"

"Thank you for being so understanding."

A smile appeared on Long Er's lips as he raised his hands and pressed them tightly together with Long Er's palms.

Feeling the power being transmitted, Ryuji was even happier and laughed, "You don't need to worry so much. I made this decision after countless simulations using the observation instrument. The success rate is about 30%."

"Thirty percent...?"

Although the Sage of Six Paths didn't know what the observation device was, he understood that having a 30% success rate in such matters was quite high.

But overall, it's still too low.

"Let me finish," Ryuji smiled and continued, "Although the chance of success is only thirty percent, the probability of the world being destroyed after failure is zero, the probability of falling into crisis is one percent, and the probability of completely eliminating the threat is ninety-nine percent!"

"Are you... really that confident?"

"There are things that always need to be done," Ryuji said. "As my strength and knowledge grow, I find the things that ordinary people care about increasingly boring, and their desperate attempts to seize and protect things seem childish and tedious. If I couldn't still feel the bonds between people, perhaps I would have completely distanced myself from everything in this world..."

At this point, Ryuji paused for a moment, then added, "But this is also because the people who grew up with me are still here. As the long years pass and the people around me die one by one, I may even lose this last remaining bit of humanity."

The disappearance of humanity doesn't mean turning into a monster or some other disaster, but rather a complete indifference to everything that a person possesses.

It's like a person looking at ants on the roadside.

If you're curious, you can stop and watch; if you find it in the way, you can burn it down; but most of the time, people are indifferent.

"I don't want to become like that!" Ryuji said. "Although I don't know if this choice is right or wrong from a profit perspective, as a human being, I don't want to become so boring."

Perhaps I have these thoughts because I haven't completely lost my humanity. I haven't seen the scenery of a higher level of evolution, so it's the same whether I'm afraid of things at that level or nostalgic for things at this level.

At least for now, I, Ryuji Ayaki, am still alone!

"Really? That puts my mind at ease."

……

Opening her eyes, she saw a forest bathed in pale moonlight... Ryuuji Ayaki stood on the edge of the floating continent, stepping on Black Zetsu's head, facing the sky outside.

Hong stood quietly to the side.

"Red, how much time has passed?"

"Five seconds passed between the time the master entered the spiritual ocean and the time the question was asked."

"Five seconds..."

Ryuji chuckled softly, then released his foot from the back of Black Zetsu's head.

Black Zetsu carefully shrank back, then stood up, cautiously looking at Ryuji, a bad premonition rising in his heart.

"What do you want to do?"

"You were split off from Princess Kaguya's body, so in theory, I should have absorbed you in the end. But considering your ability to possess and seize control of bodies, I'll leave you for last."

"What do you mean?"

Black Zetsu was a little confused, looking at Ryuji with no idea what was going on.

"Just watch."

Ryuji didn't answer, but chuckled softly and then formed a hand seal with his right hand in front of his chest.

"What is this mark!?"

Black Zetsu's eyes widened, and then he saw Ryuji Ayaki looking up at the moon, a scarlet Rinne Sharingan appearing on his forehead, with nine black tomoe hanging from the ring inside.

"Infinite Tsukuyomi!"

Amidst Black Zetsu's changing expressions of astonishment and ecstasy, the figure of a woman appeared on the full moon.

"Come, descend! No one is more suitable to be your vessel than my body!"

"ha?"

Black Zetsu's ecstasy turned to astonishment once again.

What kind of operation is this?

At first, Black Zetsu thought that Ryuuji Ayaki had somehow obtained the same false information as Madara Uchiha.

But judging from Ryuji's words at this moment, the other party knows everything.

If they know everything, why do they still do it?

Could it be that Ryuji Ayaki is also a hidden trump card of her mother?

Oh my god, if you were my brother, you should have said so earlier!

If we join forces, wouldn't we have resurrected Mother long ago?

...that's weird!

So what exactly is the situation now?

Black Zetsu felt a surge of rage, but dared not do anything.

According to the original plan, Madara Uchiha was to grow up and then unleash the Infinite Tsukuyomi, so that his mother would be born.

But now that the plan has been implemented by Ryuji Ayaki, an entity outside his control, instead of Madara Uchiha, Black Zetsu feels uneasy.

Never mind, never mind... No matter what schemes Ryuji Ayaki may have, as long as Mother arrives, all problems will become nothing.

Although Ryuji Ayaki is very strong, she is still not on the same level as her mother's powerful chakra.

"Ryuuji Ayaki, don't blame others for your own death!" Black Zetsu said through gritted teeth.

Long Er looked down, his indifferent face half occupied by the woman.

(End of this chapter)