Chapter 261: The Tenseigan
"This crab is quite intelligent."
Walking out of the Earth-Moon passage, Kitsuchi looked at the giant crab that had been following them and remarked, "And it knows to protect its own, not abandoning its kin in times of crisis. It's a good summoning beast."
Minato nodded in acknowledgment without commenting further.
If it weren't for the summoning beast guiding them, their first journey through the Earth-Moon passage might have taken even longer.
Controlling the crab through Hyuga Fuji's ocular technique, Chōmei (the Seven-Tails) rolled its eyes at the comment.
Had Minato and the others seen this foolish crab before, they would surely have noticed something amiss.
As a gatekeeping summoning beast, the Otsutsuki didn't require the crab to possess much wisdom—just enough to kill any intruders in the passage. Without specific commands, this summoning beast wouldn't normally show mercy to anyone entering the passage. Earlier, when the puppets on the crab's back suddenly shut down, the Otsutsuki hadn't had the chance to give it any orders. Without Chōmei's control, the crab and Toneri might have perished already.
"Let's move on and return quickly to inform Tsunade-sama of our findings," Minato said. "It seems this crab won't leave the child's side, so let's bring it along."
"Alright."
Everyone nodded in agreement, having no objections.
…
Having brought the last puppet under his control, Hyuga Fuji arrived at the desolate Otsutsuki altar, pulling out several items from a scroll.
First were several hundred Byakugan, never once out of his grasp.
Next was the cultivated Toneri chakra and the cloned synthetic soul of all attributes…
Finally, he placed the Otsutsuki clan chakra orb, which he had extracted from himself, onto the altar. This orb contained the bloodline power of the main branch and was the final piece for the Tenseigan's evolution.
Now alone on the moon, Hyuga Fuji had already scoured all locations, finding no other individuals or any unusual chakra presences.
Compared to the ninja world, the moon was undoubtedly safer now.
It was time for the Tenseigan's evolution.
Even with Hyuga Fuji's usual composure, a trace of excitement flickered in his eyes.
He meticulously inscribed a chakra formation on the altar, modified from the Yomotsu Hirasaka technique, to aid him in absorbing the power more efficiently.
Hyuga Fuji took a deep breath, focusing his concentration. He closed his eyes, sensing everything around him, as the objects on the altar began to emit a faint glow. The energies of the Byakugan, Toneri chakra, synthetic soul, and the Otsutsuki clan chakra orb began to merge, forming a powerful energy field.
He guided this energy according to the steps of the ritual he had created, progressing step by step toward the Tenseigan's evolution.
He drew forth the power of the Byakugan, shaping them into a massive vortex of energy in the air. Then, he infused the vortex with Toneri's chakra.
Instantly, the entire altar was bathed in intense light.
The energy of the synthetic soul followed, merging perfectly with the Byakugan and Toneri's chakra to form an even more stable and powerful entity. Finally, centered on the Otsutsuki clan chakra orb, all the energy began flowing into Hyuga Fuji's body.
Hyuga Fuji felt a surge of immense power emanating from the altar, coursing through his entire being. His body started to change, his eyes glowing with a blue light as the flow of chakra within him became smoother and stronger.
His blue pupils seemed to transform into a deep, starry sky, exuding a crystalline luster, as if stars were twinkling within, radiating a mysterious and captivating brilliance.
Waves of ocular power turned into a storm of repulsive force, obliterating everything around him.
Under the overwhelming chakra, the entire ground began to quake violently. Massive cracks appeared around the altar, with rocks and dust swirling in the air.
Standing at the center of the altar, Hyuga Fuji felt the unprecedented power surging within him. His consciousness seemed to be drawn into an endless starry sky, where everything around him became illusory and distant. Blue light burst from his eyes, illuminating the entire altar and piercing through the surrounding darkness.
One after another, black Truth-Seeking Orbs rose behind him.
Previously, he could only manifest two Truth-Seeking Orbs. Now, under the amplification of the Tenseigan's ocular power, he had formed eight in one go.
As time passed, the storm of repulsive force gradually subsided, and the ground ceased trembling. Hyuga Fuji slowly lowered his hands, the blue glow in his eyes gradually fading as he closed them.
He had entered the gestation period... The power within his body needed some time to balance and fully evolve into the Tenseigan.
With this thought, Hyuga Fuji willed himself to leave the altar, appearing in one of the Otsutsuki's residential chambers, where he took a seat.
He now possessed all-attribute chakra and the Tenseigan.
Now, he just needed to wait patiently for the gestation period to pass.
…
"You guys really know how to cause me trouble." In a mansion, Tsunade looked at Toneri, whom Minato had brought back, feeling a headache coming on.
"Sorry, Tsunade-senpai, but I couldn't just watch him die there. He's about the same age as Naruto; I can take care of him."
"Ah, fine. Since you've already brought him back, I can't ask you to throw him out."
Tsunade sighed. "Let me discuss it with Hiashi to see if he's willing to add this child to the Hyuga clan's registry. If he agrees, then whether the Hyuga clan adopts him or you and Kushina take care of him will be up to you."
"Understood." Minato breathed a sigh of relief and smiled. "Thank you, Tsunade-senpai."
"Enough with the pleasantries. Now, tell me everything about this trip to the moon."
Tsunade's expression turned serious, and Minato mirrored her solemnity, recounting in detail their team's experiences on the moon.
"…In the end, we escaped just before the passage completely collapsed."
Tsunade listened intently, silently repeating a few key terms in her mind.
Akatsuki, Giant Tenseigan, Otsutsuki Hamura, Hyuga Fuji…
She pondered for a moment before asking, "The Earth-Moon passage was maintained by the Otsutsuki clan's Giant Tenseigan. Now that it's destroyed, does this mean Hyuga Fuji has won? He'll inherit all the Otsutsuki clan's knowledge?"
Minato gave a wry smile and nodded, "Yes."
Tsunade wearily closed her eyes, contemplating how powerful Hyuga Fuji would become after acquiring the Otsutsuki clan's knowledge and abilities.
After a long thought, she suddenly recalled the battle from two years ago.
The Tenseigan had appeared before Kakashi, but it was a power Hyuga Fuji controlled through the future version of Hyuga Toneri.
Come to think of it, this indirectly proved that in the future, Hyuga Fuji could obtain the means to awaken the Tenseigan.
And Hyuga Toneri, though manipulated at the time, this also indirectly proved that he had the potential to awaken the Tenseigan.
(End of Chapter)