Naruto: Tales of Ashihara

Naruto: Tales of Ashihara

The Shinden Saga – Arc 3: The Dragon Sage

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Chapter 132 – Plains of Takama

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In the end of the year 1208 A.R (After Rikudo), a noble celestial of the Otsutsuki clan, member of the council of the Shinden, the divine lords who rule over all universes, came to accomplish a mission in the ninja world. His invasion resulted in the loss of hundreds of thousands of lives, and the destruction of a third of one of the world's largest villages, and one of the 5 great nations' hidden villages.

This conflict wasn't the first between humanity and celestials. Pariahs and wanderers of the Otsutsuki clan such as Katashiki and Momoshiki trespassed on these territories before. All of them fatally found out how naively they underestimated Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha, the heroes of the ninja world. But this time, with the invasion of the god of destruction, Hyakki Otsutsuki, it is different. Neither of these protectors were involved, yet the conflict concluded in the death of an influential figure of the modern celestial dynasty.

This conclusion would lead to terrible consequences. It is at least what the leaders of the Shinobi Union believed. But it has now been a year and half with no new intervention from the inhabitants of Ashihara. Sakitsuki Otsutsuki, who lost the shine of her golden eyes, still didn't completely recover her limitless sight. Therefore, as decided by the Ryu Shinsen, no one attempted to take her away from Earth.

Be it out of guilt or simply common sense, Sakitsuki however refused any interaction with the Shinobi Union's Kage council, to avoid sharing any unwanted information about her superiors. She already feels responsible for the god of destruction's death and her apparent betrayal of her mistress' esteem. Further implication would feel dishonorable and worth punishment to her. Therefore she spent all her time since then living in Kiri with Takeshi Minamoto.

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Now almost 2 years later, in 1210 A.R, the inhuman couple of Takeshi and Sakitsuki are resting on a cliff on the border of the ocean, on an island on the east coast of the land of Water. Here on the shore, they witness the parade of one of the Biju, the giant turtle Sanbi, swimming at the surface of his territory. Behind them, Yoshinari, Takeshi's younger sister, is playing in the field alone with Kasha, the tengu in her mind.

Seeing the colossal turtle demon move near the surface along the waves, surrounded with a shoal of whales, Sakitsuki stays amazed and carefully breathes in and out. She describes her experience in her own words.

"The sensation of touch of the ambient air, the smell of the sea and the sound of these creatures brings so much more to this moment than the simple images that my eyes saw countless times." she explains to Takeshi who just quietly looks in the distance as well.

Hearing no answer from him, Saki gives up this attempt to start a conversation and looks at Yoshinari behind her. The little girl is running in the mud on which she seems to flawlessly jump around. Unlike her brother and father, she was still too young to even remember anything 2 years ago. Her mother, to her, will only be a figure of the past. A memory that she will keep as she grows up but that will never slow her down.

However, Takeshi, just like Tsubai, still didn't forgive himself for the risks taken against Hyakki in the name of vengeance, for all those who died for their sake on this mission, and for this never ending grief. Even after 2 years, the god of destruction still often busies the silenced thoughts of the ninja in black. Right now, as he lies by Saki's side and holds her hand, he reminds himself of this battle and thinks of questions he never dared asking until now.

"You should probably ask these questions now." says the Daitengu, Sojobo, who is still present within Takeshi's soul. "Actually I'm curious about the answers as well. In fact, the silhouette of this individual from the illusion you've shown to Hyakki seemed somewhat familiar. I'd like to know more about who this person was."

To follow the advice of his ancestor, but not sound too sudden, Takeshi starts with another topic. He firmly holds Saki's hand to get her attention.

"It's been a while since you talked about Tojiki." he says, mentioning Rihetsuki's daughter. The young girl who awakened the rare Sharin-Byakugan and whom Sakitsuki took as her pupil. "How's she doing?"

"I actually stopped training her a while ago." Saki reveals. "I'm pretty proud of what I did there. It was my first time training a child, and she learned all there is to know. She got at least all the fundamentals of my clan's training for the younger."

"So 2 years were enough?" Takeshi asks, genuinely interested. "I guess these fundamentals still outclass anything we learn at the academy. What are they exactly?"

"Indeed, it's far more than the skills of a genin." Saki explains. "It's all the basic things that all of us celestials do regularly. Levitating, manipulating natural energy, using our eyes, elemental Senjutsu,… You know the standards."

"Not really standard here." the ninja argues. "It's already enough to make you more powerful than even a Kage. Are you saying Tojiki, who is just 8 years old, is already that strong?"

"Not sure… Taijutsu is only barely taught to children and combat skills aren't a focus at all." she corrects. "Whether she wants to go further or not depends on her. The rest of her education is up to her father. Now she's at the stage where we're generally instructed to choose our own purpose and start working on our Hijutsu."

Takeshi doesn't question the basics of the Otsutsuki further, even though he's pretty sure that even the barely taught Taijutsu Sakitsuki mentions is already superior to the skills of a high level jonin.

"… Do all of you have a chosen unique jutsu?" he asks instead, about what she said at last.

"It's not always chosen, but we all have something unique." Saki answers. "Otherwise, we're not considered adults. In my case I didn't get to choose. I was unique from birth and getting to master my eyes took too much time and focus for me to develop something else at the same time… Also, it's not always completely unique. Sometimes, they're Dojutsu abilities, or jutsu from past generations. And obviously, just like the divine titles, the most powerful of us have more than one Hijutsu."

Satisfied by this answer, Takeshi doesn't ask further questions. More curious about Sojobo's advice, he brings up his original question now.

"I've been meaning to ask about something for a while." he says. "Do you know who Hyakki's father is?"

"Isshiki Otsutsuki." Saki answers, upset. "He is one of the Tenshin, the celestial judges. They're a group of celestials that travel universes and hunt traitors and criminals from our clan to punish them. I've told you about them before."

"Yes, but never about their members." he replies. "I know you don't want to talk too much about your clan, but I just want to know about that guy. Isshiki. Hyakki really feared and hated him. What kind of person was he?"

"From my understanding, he is the one who put that cursed seal on Hyakki-sama's life." Saki starts to tell. "I've never met him in person, but he seems very vile and egoistic. Even compared to the other Tenshin, he really stands out of the lot. While the group is mostly under Shiva-sama's command, Isshiki acts more on his own."

While she talks, Takeshi slightly tilts his head when he hears the name she mentioned. Shiva-sama. He feels like he's heard it before. Tentoki, in his mind, has the same feeling but directly connects it to the ultimate summoning of Izuna and Sakura Uchiha. Though he understood it, he doesn't mention it, considering that Takeshi must have guessed it as well.

"His intentions, instincts and abilities are unknown to me." Saki continues about Isshiki. "All I know is that he's frighteningly senseless and brutal. I've heard that without rules such as those of the Shinden, he would have destroyed this world long ago. I guess the past that his son seems to have in common with this planet is part of the reasons he'd want to do so. He must have known that Hyakki-sama would attempt suicide and cursed him to prevent it. But I can't tell why he wanted him alive at all cost."

Takeshi gulps down, a bit troubled by how unruly and dangerous this person sounds. For a moment he feels threatened by the thought that, considering that he is the one who broke the seal and allowed Hyakki to kill himself, Isshiki could target him in the future.

"This isn't worth your worries." Sojobo comments, answering Takeshi's untold thoughts. "I do indeed feel like this man, or something about him, is connected to me or my fate. But as such, he isn't your enemy. His interests are more in conflict with Naruto Uzumaki, and Sasuke Uchiha."

Takeshi slowly nods to show himself reassured. He then replies to Saki to keep the conversation going.

"If he is so strong and solo, why does he go by the rules?" he asks.

"Some whisper that the Ryu Shinsen's existence is the only thing that prevents him from taking action." Saki answers, before giving a much needed reminder. "The same actually applies to a lot of us. Before you ask, Yamitsuki-sama is really as powerful or even more than he sounds. His essence, abilities and mind are mythical, unmatched, nearly perfect. It is with no doubt that I can tell you his Hijutsu is even more powerful than Kami Musubi."

"You tell a lot about him, Yamitsuki, but do you know how benevolent he is?" Takeshi questions.

"This, I couldn't tell." she embarrassingly answers. "Even with my eyes and their 3 wisdoms, I can't read through the actions and intentions of such an above ascended spirit."

"That's weird… But then, what does he show about his intentions? Is he more like you or like Momoshiki when it comes to his consideration of humans?"

"This is also complicated… From his own words, whatever happens or is committed by one of us, he could not care less. He shows very little concern or implication. Yet he still sometimes acts inconsistent and decides to get involved. So far, he has helped the people of Konoha a few times. Like, he personally gifted temporary eyes to Izuna Uchiha, and he may not know that I noticed, but I saw him intervene during the battle of Momoshiki against Naruto and Sasuke. In fact, I think they wouldn't have won without the little help he provided."

Takeshi sits up, surprised and startled by this sudden revelation. So the god that Izuna claims to have seen in his dream is really the ruler of the Otsutsuki clan? And what did she just say about the Momoshiki's fight against the Hokage and Sasuke Uchiha? Did she mean that the Dragon Sage sneakily made the defeat of Momoshiki possible? Why would he do such a thing? Why would he help humans to kill one of them?

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At the same moment, on the other side of the land and of the ocean, in the land of Fire, the 7th Hokage is discussing the same concerns in a meeting with Konoha's honorable council. Added to Shikamaru, Shizune and Kakashi who are long members of the council, Moegi, the Hokage's assistant, Sakura, recently added member of the council, and Izuna, star student of the Hokage, are present as well.

All together in the Hokage's office, they discuss the matters of the ninja world and celestial invasion. As this meeting goes, Kakashi and Shizune are chatting about and planning a couple's vacation and are therefore not paying much attention. This doesn't bother anyone, but Sakura doesn't fail to notice that, despite the distraction, the 6th Hokage still quickly looks up whenever someone mentions the name of Takeshi Minamoto, the prodigy of Kiri to whom he taught his best jutsu, the Shiden.

To tickle him, she brings up the case of Sakitsuki Otsutsuki by referring to her as Takeshi's celestial acquaintance.

"She is still only one of two potential allies we have from this clan." Shikamaru says about her. "But there's no intel we could get from her, and the same goes for that Rihetsuki guy from the land of Water and his daughter…"

"I'm happy with that." Naruto answers. "I really don't need them to give any intel. I don't want them to turn against their clan. I want them to act as connections. A gateway to a peaceful future."

"Still, we need to know about what is to come. Don't you find it weird that no one else showed up since Hyakki Otsutsuki's death?" Shikamaru insists. "According to Sakitsuki, he was some kind of higher graded being. His death should be more of a problem for their clan."

"Shouldn't we be glad for that?" Moegi asks. "I mean, it's good news that no Otsutsuki is attacking. We barely stand a chance against them anyway. Each time one showed up, at least a village was destroyed."

"They're not all that powerful." Sakura answers. "Kiri managed to defeat Hyakki Otsutsuki without Naruto's help. He was even trying to avoid confrontation with him."

"But Kiri couldn't have won without Sakitsuki's help." Moegi argues.

"Sure, but she wouldn't even be a threat to Naruto." Sakura replies. "They're not even all as powerful as Hyakki."

"Hmm…" Kurama comments, in Naruto's body. "Sakitsuki is still an Otsutsuki. She may not be a threat to you or Sasuke, but she's probably out of reach for anyone else."

"Yeah…" Naruto answers. "And they're omitting the real concern."

Izuna, who seemingly has the same idea as his sensei at the same moment, brings up the real issue.

"But Mom, what about those that even Hokage-sensei couldn't handle?" the young Uchiha says.

"Izuna's right. This is what we need prevention for." Shikamaru gives his opinion. "What about the woman who kept Naruto unaware of the fight against Hyakki, and who almost killed Sasuke?"

"Well this kind of person is who I'd prefer to have on my side." Naruto says. "As long as she doesn't turn against us, we can envision peace."

"But we shouldn't settle on this." Shikamaru interrupts the Hokage. "We have to prepare for war. An opponent like her would have to be dealt with by you and Sasuke together. It would be the only way. And she may not even be the worst drag. Do I have to remind you that we still barely know their leader? All we know is that he's most likely one of those who appeared to you in Sojobo's illusion."

"The Ryu Shinsen. The one with the golden horns…" Naruto slowly remarks thoughtfully.

"Golden horns? Is he the same man who appeared in my dream and gave me eyes before I fought Oshio?" Izuna asks. "If yes, from his actions so far, he seems unlikely to be an enemy."

"Since he was in a future that Sojobo saw, we could ask him for more details via Takeshi…" Naruto suggests, now aware of the presence of the Daitengu within Takeshi, before answering his own self. "Naah… There's no way he'd accept interacting with us in any way."

"It's more intel about the Otsutsuki clan that we need. Not about the future." Moegi suggests.

"… Oh! About that!" Sakura suddenly remembers when she hears this suggestion. "I got a visit from Sasuke last week-end."

Everyone in the room looks at her surprised. They haven't heard of Sasuke in nearly 2 years, so it is unexpected.

"Sasuke?" Naruto asks. "Did he talk about Boruto? Last time I asked him, he just said that he was training, and that I should trust him. I sure do, but a bit more detail would be good."

"No. Nothing new about Boruto." Sakura goes on. "He just passed by in the night and told me something I had to report for him. He said he found the place he's been searching for these last 2 years, and will potentially learn a lot about the Otsutsuki clan's powers and origins."

Kakashi and Naruto look at each for a moment. Sasuke seems confident enough to take this on alone. From their intel, he was looking for an entire planet. What kind of place did he find?

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Just a few hours ago, Sasuke finally set foot on the plains of Takama. An unbelievably massive planet made from all forms and states of matter. From instinct, the wanderer would say it's even bigger than the Sun, making it at least 110 times larger than Earth. This absolute aster is by far the most impressive thing he's witnessed since he began his travels.

The reason it was so difficult to find despite its unique aspect is its actual location. Not only is it billions of light years away from Earth, but it is only in a completely different 3D space. In a dimension that Sasuke never explored until now. A universe far more expanded than any other, but oddly desert. He couldn't sense a single life form in any surrounding world.

From this planet, just from standing on it, Sasuke gets a terrible feeling of discomfort. He feels like gravity is much stronger here than in any other world he's visited before. In fact, the gravitational acceleration is 50 times stronger here, causing time to flow slightly faster as well. Sasuke may be tough enough to only be barely affected, but this weight intensity would have any other ninja paralyzed, unable to lift a finger.

The sky of Takama is illuminated by a source that seems like something he shouldn't be allowed to witness. A shining white star, tainted gold watching over him like the eye of God. Judging from the distance he senses it from, It must be 2000 times larger than the Sun. Just looking toward but not exactly at it feels like his strength and chakra are being drained.

And Takama is the only planet rotating around this star. Other nearby planets are satellites of this world. One thing is sure. This is definitely the place he was looking for. He can't imagine anything that feels more like the original cradle of life in the multiverse than this place. However, this planet is just as desert as the rest of this universe.

As he explores the surface of this majestic world, he finds it far more desolate than he could expect. Shattered moons in the sky, unstable weather all around its atmosphere, thunder storms of black lightning… But more than environmental issues, there appears to be man-made anomalies.

Oceans larger than the surface of Earth are dried, reliefs millions times higher than Earth's biggest mountains are deformed, colliding and collapsing. It all feels like the portrayal of the apocalypse by a colorblind painter. Rivers of blue magma, black icebergs, green clouds in the sky, columns of rubies, diamonds and crystals. To his surprise, he even finds traces of black eternal flames. The same flames of Enton that he can create and manipulate.

But in this mad spectacle, the most intriguing objects are what displays the strongest energy and monopolizes Sasuke's attention. When he reaches the north pole to find the source of this feeling, he sees enormous Gudodama orbs, seemingly each at least as big as the moon, floating over an infinitely deep hole in between 3 glorious temples.

Using Chimatakami he moves around the border of this giant crater to analyze it and the inside of the temple. It looks like something was unearthed from here. Barely able to withstand all the information he received from this wanders and the sensation of insignificance it gives him, Sasuke sits down to take a break and to focus.

Is this world really what Rihetsuki wanted him to find? If it was, he would have probably warned him about the astronomic scale of this place. Yet, even if it isn't what he was supposed to find, it is certainly related to the celestials. Added to the planet-sized Gudodama above him and the natures and elements he found, the unique star illuminating the sky also reminds him of the golden eyes of Sakitsuki Otsutsuki.

Based on what he saw so far and how he feels, he sure is glad that he didn't find anyone living here. If a society of people comparable to Momoshiki and Kaguya had been here, he would certainly have been doomed. But this temple and other clues definitely suggest that people used to live here. What kind of person would inhabit such ridiculously large territories? It would take a lifetime for an average human just to circle around the massive hole in this temple.

As he walks around into one of the 3 temples, admiring the undeniable beauty of this architectural structure, he reaches a hallway that leads to the dug canyon. In this room, he finds gigantic statues, mostly damaged. All these statues emit traces of powerful chakra, as if they were inhabited by fragments of souls from the past. To withstand these tributes, Sasuke uses his Susanoo to get closer to their height and move across them.

Curious about something, he goes to find the same corridor in the two other branches of the temple. It turns out that there are indeed 3 halls filled with massive statues. But each representation is different. In each hall, the statues are arranged in lines, back to the hole. The closest statue to the canyon in each corridor is at least thrice as big as the others, and has what seems to be an eye on its forehead. The silhouettes of these 3 statues could be considered ideal. Surprisingly, these 3 statues are also floating on their own, unaffected by the gravity.

As he flies above the halls, he analyzes the 3 ranges. The first he investigates has far less statues than the others. The biggest of this range represents a topless woman wearing shirtless sleeves and a majestic skirt. With her arms wide open, she seems to manipulate floating orbs, supposedly representing Gudodama. She has 4 horns, including 2 ridiculously large spikes heading to the sky coming from her forehead. Others from this range represent unknown men and women. On some statues he sees a trigram symbol that reminds him of something he may have seen on Earth in the past. But he can't remember what.

In the second hallway is where there are the most statues. They all represent men. The biggest is a bald and long bearded figure with thick horns protruding from both sides of his skull. This one wears a classy mantle. The last statue from this long range is a horned man with a pointy nose, pointy chin, voluminous and spiky hair, and a long robe. This ghostly appearance also seems familiar.

Finally, the one that gets Sasuke's attention the most is the range of statues from the last hallway. The largest statue there wears high heels boots, an elegant skirt, and a mantle similar to Madara's. She has long and voluminous hair reaching her ankles. On her head, massive curvy devil horns that are twice as large as her head. She also has what looks like eyes in her palms and the back of her hands, and also smaller ones in slits under her normal eye sockets, making a total of 9 eyes at least.

This range of statues has only women, isn't as long as the previous one, but far longer than the first one. Besides the demonic and intimidating appearance of the largest statue, what intrigues Sasuke about this hall is the symbol he sees on the clothes or forehead of the represented women: a crescent moon around a sun. The symbol of the Otsutsuki clan.

Each corridor must represent one of the celestial clans, and this one is for the Otsutsuki. Yet, he doesn't recognize any face, and is disappointed not to find the father of Kaguya that he saw as a statue before in another dimension. At the foot of some statues, he can read names that probably belong to who is represented, written in a cryptic dialect that even he has trouble deciphering.

The first statue after the biggest one bears the name Kaguya-hime, but it looks nothing like the one he knows and must be another person. Guessing that the order of statues must be chronological, he goes all the way to the last, furthest from the hole. From this statue, he senses a clearer chakra, easier to figure out. The name written on it is "Ayaka-Shikone".

If he wants clues or even answers about the mystery that surrounds this planet, he obviously has to find an interlocutor, and this one seems to be the most clever choice. From the chakra he senses, the name he knows, and the appearance of this statue, he attempts to summon a soul from the dead.

Gedo

Using the same jutsu with which he summoned Madara a few years ago, he gets an answer from a celestial soul. Here she appears, the woman represented by this last statue. A long light-blue haired mature woman, with dark contours around her eyes and the symbol of her clan on her forehead. Two massive horns that each look like two tangled roots merging together, and a different Dojutsu in each eye.

Her right pupil is a Byakugan, identical in details to Kaguya's, and her left eye is apparently a Mangekyo Sharingan that looks like a 8 branch star. She wears a long and tight sleeveless dress with black and golden lines, magatama symbols and a large boob-window. On her hands, she has black mitten gloves going up to her biceps and letting her long pointy red claws free.

Wandering around, acting unbound by her condition of lifeless soul, she ignores her summoner at first. Sasuke quietly looks at her, wondering what he just did, and observes her figure. She's… huge! She's the biggest woman he's ever seen. And her face… is doubtlessly beautiful. If she had a scent, it would certainly be mesmerizing. He couldn't exactly describe this feeling, but she looks like she has the right to control him. Troubled by these thoughts, he frowns, shakes his head, and stays on his guards.

"Ayaka-Shikone!" he calls her by the name he read on her tribute, but she doesn't mind him.

"Normally, the remains left behind by the sovereigns are meant for the next generations to demand advice." she suddenly says, seemingly to her own self.

"Don't… ignore me." Sasuke starts to yell, but lowers his tone. "The name I called. Is it who you are?"

"Quite uncharacteristic for the summoner to ask for an identification." she acknowledges Sasuke, and stares right at him. "Wouldn't it be more suitable for you to introduce yourself first?"

The Uchiha doesn't answer. Instead, he feels unwell from just her presence. Feeling at threat, he instinctively prepares to dispel the summoning, but stops himself. For a second he wonders about how disrespectful this would be. Does he even have the right to undo this summoning? It's as if she's too powerful for him to control. Hearing no answer, the woman reveals her current awareness by answering her own request.

"… Megumi Uchiha, Tomura Uchiha, Madara Uchiha… Sasuke Uchiha. You're the last incarnation of Indra Otsutsuki, grandson of Kaguya Otsutsuki." she introduces him. "I know who you are. I know how you got there. I've been watching over my descendants from the Jodo."

Sasuke is unsettled by this discourse. Unlike Madara, she seems aware of what happened after her death. From her presence, and all the abilities she displays, he understands that she is likely on par with the strongest people he's met so far. At the moment, he shouldn't be hostile. But more importantly, one thing she said intrigues him.

"Did you call me your descendant?" he asks, before reformulating his question with more respect. "I… I am Sasuke Uchiha, a ninja wanderer from Konohagakure. I apologize for summoning you. I'm here to find answers about the Otsutsuki clan. I assumed you were a figure of importance in the past. Am I at least right about your name, Ayaka-Shikone?"

"This is only how I am known by worshipers." she peacefully replies. "To answer your question, Sasuke, my name is Ayaka Otsutsuki. Queen sister of the Otsutsuki clan, the 3rd and most powerful of the celestial families descending from the elders of all life." she adds at last, staring at the largest statue of this hall in the distance, before going on to answer Sasuke's first question.

"I am the last ruler of my clan before the end of the second divine age. The age of prosperity. The age of Taikyo, the Absolute Spirit. I am the mother of Enotsuki Otsutsuki, the former Ryu Shinsen and father of Kaguya. Therefore, wanderer, I am your great-great-grandmother."

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End of Chapter 132 – Next Chapter: Otsutsuki Ayaka