"I am Yushento! State your name!"
Yushento spoke while staring at Naruto, whose body radiated brilliant golden light.
For someone as extremely proud as Yushento to act this way, it meant Naruto had already gained his recognition.
"Uzumaki Naruto!!!"
Naruto smiled faintly as he answered. At the same time, he unleashed a powerful attack.
A massive chakra dragon composed of compressed high-frequency chakra surged forward like a living storm of energy, roaring toward Yushento.
Boom!!!
Yushento was blasted away, his body streaking through space like a falling meteor. He slammed into a massive asteroid several hundred meters away.
The asteroid shattered instantly upon impact.
Yushento's body embedded itself deep into a ten-meter slab of rock.
Slowly, he pushed himself upright. Wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, he spat out a mixture of saliva and blood.
With a forceful step, the rocks beneath his feet exploded into fragments. In the next instant, he leapt forward again, unleashing a devastating slash that tore through space toward Naruto.
Naruto's hands glowed with intense chakra fluctuations.
The energy rapidly condensed and compressed into his fist before he threw it forward with explosive force.
The two attacks collided.
Countless waves of chakra detonated outward like ripples in space.
In the distance, Sasuke watched the battle with sharp concentration. A rare look of excitement appeared in his eyes.
When would he be able to reach this level of combat power?
Although his current realm was slightly higher than Naruto's, Naruto's actual fighting strength far surpassed his own.
However, as the Lord of Reincarnation and ruler of the Underworld, increasing his power was not difficult.
As long as he continued perfecting the authority of the Underworld, his strength would naturally rise. Self-cultivation was still possible, but it would simply take longer.
The present Underworld was little more than an empty framework that required constant development.
In other words, his future was already destined to be extraordinary.
Time slowly passed.
Soon, nearly an entire day had gone by, yet the battle still continued.
However, both fighters were clearly reaching their limits.
Naruto's golden chakra state had already dissipated, and Yushento's aura had grown weak and unstable.
Yushento stared at Naruto.
At this point in the battle, he already understood something clearly.
He had lost.
Naruto's chakra aura revealed that his realm was actually two minor levels lower than Yushento's. Yet Naruto had still fought him to a standstill.
That alone meant defeat.
Yushento was not someone who refused to acknowledge reality.
Recalling the instructions of the Great Elder, the look in his eyes gradually changed as the burning fighting spirit within him faded.
He stopped in midair and slowly spoke through spiritual transmission.
"Stop, Uzumaki Naruto!"
"I propose a deal."
Naruto finally halted his attack when he heard this.
The purpose of their battle had already been achieved.
Still, Naruto felt slightly regretful.
Fighting someone like Yushento had noticeably sharpened his strength.
However, the cost was not small.
Nearly one-tenth of his stored chakra had been consumed.
Even for Naruto, whose chakra reserves were terrifying, that was not a trivial amount.
Still, it was worth it.
If he could repeat such battles ten more times, Naruto estimated that his combat strength would increase dramatically.
"How do you want to deal?" Naruto asked calmly after recovering slightly.
Yushento spoke slowly.
"The birth of Reincarnation is favored by heaven and earth. It conforms to the natural evolution of all things."
"Our Shinigami Clan is inherently compatible with Reincarnation. We are responsible for the cycle of life and death across the universe and are favored by the Heavenly Dao."
"I want control over Reincarnation. In return, we will grant you significant benefits."
"Your planet can become a first-class subordinate world under the Shinigami Clan. Because of your strength, you may exceptionally become one of our affiliated races and enjoy our protection."
His voice remained cold as he finished speaking.
But Naruto immediately sneered.
In Naruto's eyes, Yushento's proposal was nothing more than a joke.
A subordinate world?
What difference was that from becoming someone else's lackey?
Even if they were granted a higher status, they would still only be an affiliated force.
And as for protection—
Protection could easily disappear the moment it became inconvenient.
What Naruto wanted was something entirely different.
An equal alliance.
"Are you joking?" Naruto said coldly.
"You want us to become your subordinates?"
"Receive your protection?"
"Don't make empty promises."
"What I want is a relationship of mutual benefit and equality."
Naruto's tone carried no politeness whatsoever.
Yushento's expression darkened immediately.
"Do you understand what you're saying?" he replied sharply.
"Your planet is insignificant!"
"Even large civilizations that control dozens of star regions are not qualified to establish an equal alliance with us!"
"And do you know what our protection represents?"
"Your strength is impressive, but it may not be enough to protect this world."
Yushento spoke calmly.
He was not exaggerating.
Naruto's power was indeed formidable.
But the universe was far more dangerous than Naruto could imagine.
The Shinigami Clan was not the only peak race.
There were countless powerful civilizations in the cosmos.
Some of them possessed strength that far surpassed anything within the ninja world.
For the Ninja World to compete with the great races of the universe, it would still require at least a hundred years of development.
This estimate was based on the Ninja World's current growth rate.
Even so, achieving such progress within a century would already be astonishing.
"Listen carefully," Naruto continued.
"With the establishment of the Underworld of Reincarnation, the World's Will has granted us enormous benefits. At the same time, the highest authority of Reincarnation—the Son of Heaven—is already bound to Sasuke."
Naruto's cerulean eyes shone brightly.
"Even if he dies, the position of Son of Heaven will not re-form elsewhere."
"As long as Reincarnation continues to exist, Sasuke will always have a chance to revive."
In truth, as the pioneer of the Reincarnation system, Naruto could technically re-condense the Reincarnation Mark.
However, aside from Sasuke willingly transferring it, the only other possibility would be after Sasuke's death.
And even then, no one other than Naruto would be capable of seizing the authority of the Son of Heaven from Sasuke.
Therefore, Naruto was not lying.
This was also the foundation of his confidence in negotiating with the Shinigami Clan.
At the same time, anyone who fought within the domain of Reincarnation would suffer suppression.
As long as Naruto possessed part of Reincarnation's authority, any enemy fighting within that system would have their strength reduced by thirty percent.
Naruto looked directly at Yushento and continued.
"I can grant half of Reincarnation's authority to your Shinigami Clan."
"In exchange, we establish an alliance."
"What do you think?"
Naruto deliberately left something unsaid.
He did not mention the hostile relationship between himself and the Ōtsutsuki Clan.
Naruto suspected that Yushento did not yet know the true depth of that conflict.
From the outside, the appearance of a few Six Paths–level Ōtsutsuki such as Momoshiki on a remote planet would not be unusual. After all, members of the Ōtsutsuki frequently traveled the cosmos planting Divine Trees.
However, what Naruto did not know was that the Shinigami Clan had already learned about this world's connection to the Ōtsutsuki long ago.
When the Sage of Six Paths first opened the Pure Land, the Shinigami had briefly made contact with him.
Through that encounter, they discovered that this planet had ties to the Ōtsutsuki Clan.
But for someone like Yushento, such information about a small, remote world was hardly worth remembering.
At that moment, Yushento recalled the instructions given to him by the Great Elder before his departure.
The Great Elder had spoken very clearly.
They must obtain a portion of Reincarnation's authority.
If they could seize it entirely, that would be ideal.
But at the very least—
They had to secure half.
Unexpectedly, Naruto was offering exactly that.
Half.
If the Shinigami Clan gained control over part of Reincarnation, their rise would become inevitable.
Sooner or later, they would ascend to become the number one race in the universe.
Yushento suddenly remembered the prophecy the Great Elder had once told him.
Twelve simple words.
"Mist shrouds the heavens. Light erupts. The universe changes."
And then the Great Elder had added one more sentence.
"You will meet the favored one of Reincarnation."
(End of Chapter)
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