Chapter 339: Seeking Help from the Sage of Six Paths
Because of this limitation, the rogue clone could only exhibit chakra control with jutsu that the original had already mastered. Once it stepped beyond what the original knew, it lost the ability to freely alter chakra nature and use various jutsu.
"What do I do?"
The rogue clone panicked, his expression anxious, eyes darting around.
No matter how hard he thought, he couldn't come up with a solution.
Without the original's supreme chakra control—the ability to alter chakra nature at will—his strength was stuck at its current level. He couldn't progress further, at least not as rapidly as the original could.
Meanwhile, the original would continue to evolve and enhance his jutsu.
Like Black Hole Space.
Or the Kotoamatsukami that he was on the verge of copying.
Once the original developed stronger Black Hole Space techniques, the clone was doomed.
"What now?"
"Is there any way to escape?"
Only by escaping could he expose the original's existence. Only by doing that could… wait—the Sage of Six Paths!
The rogue clone's eyes suddenly lit up.
He himself might not have a way to defeat the original, but there was one person in the ninja world who could—and whom the original deeply feared.
The Sage of Six Paths!
In his current situation, only the Sage could help him.
But… how to contact him?
"The Rinnegan!"
"Use the Rinnegan's powers to connect with the Pure Land!"
His thoughts became clearer. The Rinnegan could revive souls from the Pure Land and had the power to absorb them—it must be able to connect with that realm.
Thinking this, the rogue clone immediately gathered Rinnegan chakra and used the Hell Path to establish contact.
"Sage of Six Paths!"
"Sage of Six Paths!"
As he invoked the Hell Path, he loudly called for the Sage.
The Pure Land.
A special soul realm created by the Sage of Six Paths a thousand years ago. It was not the shining paradise one might expect, but a dim, vast expanse.
Like a still, clear lake at night, the surface calm and transparent, revealing the faint outlines of tiles or stone at the bottom—barely visible and oddly placid.
There was no sun. No moon. No horizon. No end. No visible souls.
Suddenly… a ripple disturbed the water's surface, revealing the image of the rogue clone.
Ding... A bell chimed.
A seated figure appeared above the ripple, legs crossed in mid-air.
He had pale-orange hair, an aged but spirited face, and a crimson Rinnegan on his forehead.
Floating beside him was a staff adorned with six Truth-Seeking Orbs formed from the Kekkei Mōra chakra. The bell sound came from the chime on his staff.
This was none other than the Sage of Six Paths himself.
He gazed at the man reflected on the water's surface, his eyes deep in thought. After a moment, his face revealed a hint of surprise.
"Who is this?"
"How can he use Rinnegan abilities?"
Since discarding his physical body and taking up permanent residence in the Pure Land, the Sage's soul power had grown so immense that he'd developed a prophetic ability similar to the Great Toad Sage's.
Over the years, he had observed countless parallel versions of the ninja world in dreams.
In all of them, only one person awakened the Rinnegan after him—Uchiha Madara.
And by this point in time, that Rinnegan should reside with Nagato.
But the man in the reflection was clearly not Nagato, nor did he even have Rinnegan eyes.
So why could he use its powers?
The Sage couldn't understand.
Still, he could tell the man was calling out for help.
He considered it quietly—and then chose to do nothing.
Perhaps something had gone wrong in this world, just as unexpected things had happened in others.
Some who should've died had lived.
Some who should've lived had died.
Right or wrong—such concepts were unstable.
Regardless, now was not the time for his power to reappear in the ninja world.
Even if the final moment of chakra unification never arrived, he would simply remain hidden and continue gathering strength.
If he revealed himself too early, he'd risk the fate he had seen in other worlds—where "he" had acted prematurely and paid the price.
No matter how unique this man was… in the face of time, everything would return to balance.
After one last look at the man's image in the water, the Sage vanished—just as silently as he had come—and the Pure Land returned to peace.
Back in the real world.
The rogue clone was still using the Hell Path to reach out, still calling for the Sage of Six Paths.
But an hour had passed—and there was no response.
Meanwhile, the Kotoamatsukami Mangekyō Sharingan implanted in Li Yao's left eye had fully recovered, nourished by the life force of his Wood Release cells.
The Mangekyō spun slowly, condensing the Kotoamatsukami genjutsu chakra. Li Yao focused carefully.
Five seconds later, he had it.
The strongest genjutsu—Kotoamatsukami—was now his to use freely.
From now on, Li Yao no longer needed the Sharingan eye to cast the technique.
Immediately, one of his shadow clones attempted to use Kotoamatsukami on the rogue clone.
Just as Li Yao had suspected…
Without direct eye contact, even this supreme genjutsu couldn't penetrate the Black Hole Shield surrounding the rogue clone.
Not Kotoamatsukami.
Not any other ability.
Not even the soul-based powers of the Rinnegan.
There was no way around it.
Li Yao could only continue the standoff with his clone, each racing to see who could first develop a jutsu to break the black hole barrier.
"I'll finish first."
Li Yao smiled faintly. Even without knowing the clone's current situation, he was confident he'd get there first.
The clone was distracted, fending off attacks, and couldn't sense the Ryūmyaku chakra up close like he could.
This round belonged to Li Yao.
So, with the Ryūmyaku growing increasingly unstable, Li Yao spent the month remaining before its disappearance focusing entirely on sensing its changing chakra nature.
Meanwhile…
In the Naruto world that Li Yao had originally arrived in, the Fourth Great Ninja War was still raging on.
As more and more shinobi died, their souls entered the Pure Land—bringing their memories and experiences with them.
The Sage of Six Paths, from his eternal slumber, awoke once more.
"The Third Tsuchikage is dead?"
"The Fourth Kazekage too?"
"…And wait, the Fourth Kazekage is now someone called Kazekage Fūryū? Who uses a Wind Release jutsu on par with Kekkei Tōta?"
"There's a new Fourth Tsuchikage too?"
"…What is going on?"
From deep within the Pure Land, the Sage stared blankly at the chaotic changes unfolding in the ninja world. Even after witnessing countless alternate futures…
He was stunned.
(END CHAPTER)
Thank you for the support, friends. If you want to read more chapters in advance, go to my Patreon.
Read 30 Chapters In Advance: patreon.com/Kira1997