There was someone else who was just as unhappy about the situation but showed none of it, someone the others probably never would have expected.
It was none other than the man known as the "Legendary Ninja," who had once attempted to attack Konohagakure with the Nine-Tails, then later laid scheme after scheme to turn Obito Uchiha into his puppet...
Madara Uchiha.
When Naruto gritted his teeth and demanded of the Emperor of the Land of Ancestors, "You call this peace?!" Madara Uchiha also gave an inward snort upon hearing that the man intended to kill someone he was supposed to protect in the name of peace.
He had his priorities completely backward.
Being questioned by some child who had appeared out of nowhere clearly displeased the Emperor of the Land of Ancestors, and his brow furrowed.
"This is an internal matter of my Land of Ancestors! Besides, what do you know?! Once war breaks out, peace will be destroyed. How many people will die because of it?! How many will lose their homes?!"
"Foolish."
Madara Uchiha spoke.
His sheer presence was something few could match.
Those two words alone made the Emperor of the Land of Ancestors regard him warily. "You simply aren't in my position. You cannot understand the responsibility I bear."
Hah.
Madara Uchiha was so angry he almost laughed.
"You think backing down will end the war?" His gaze drifted briefly toward Hashirama Senju.
Although he now knew the truth and had reconciled with Hashirama, their different personalities and ways of thinking meant their political views were bound to clash.
Hashirama understood exactly what Madara was getting at. He scratched his cheek without saying anything.
After all, they still didn't fully understand the situation here. It would be unwise to jump to conclusions.
Naruto had always been the type to say whatever was on his mind and ask when he didn't understand something. "I don't get it! Why does peace mean she has to die?!"
"Exactly, Your Majesty!" Aino shuffled forward on her knees until she was before the Emperor of the Land of Ancestors. "Kaguya-sama is your beloved wife, isn't she?! And she's already carrying your child! This... this is far too cruel!"
"A child?!"
The Emperor froze, staring at Kaguya in utter shock.
"You... What did she say?... You're carrying my..."
He couldn't even finish the sentence. He simply couldn't believe that the aloof, exalted Kaguya-sama would bear a child for him, a mere human...
The mention of the child, and the reminder that Kaguya was now a mother, only made Naruto's anger burn hotter.
"You're the father of the child in her womb, aren't you?! You're going to sacrifice her and your own child for your so-called peace?! Are you serious?!!"
He thought of what his mother had told him before she died. Even though she had been a Jinchūriki, she had been happy because she had someone like his father who loved her. She had no complaints about her life. Her only regret was that she would never get to see Naruto grow up.
Naruto was so furious he wanted to charge over and beat some sense into the Emperor himself!
"I..."
The Emperor was torn. He didn't want things to end this way, but...
"I-I am the Emperor of the Land of Ancestors."
"I can't... I can't put my personal feelings first..."
Although he couldn't bear it, he had already made his choice, using that so-called responsibility to convince himself it was necessary.
"You bastard!!!"
Naruto charged straight at him, ready to punch him!
Smack—!
A hand caught Naruto and pulled him back.
"Wait, Naruto."
"Hamura-san..." Naruto stared at the person holding him back, unable to understand why he wouldn't let him punch the Emperor.
Hamura Ōtsutsuki ruffled Naruto's hair. "Thanks. But..."
"Leave it to me."
Huh?!
Just as everyone else was wondering whether Hamura Ōtsutsuki, who looked even more like Kaguya, had always been this kind of person...
A palm strike resembling the Hyūga Gentle Fist slammed directly into the Emperor of the Land of Ancestors!
Boom—!!!
The blow sent the Emperor flying several meters!
Kannabi Bridge Minato, who had once seen Naruto strike the Fourth Hokage Minato during the parallel world where Pain attacked the village, flinched. For some inexplicable reason, his stomach suddenly hurt...
"Your Majesty!!"
"Your Majesty! Please be careful!"
"You insolent fools!!"
The attendants of the Land of Ancestors hurried over and helped up the Emperor, who had nearly coughed up blood from that single strike.
Naruto cheered. "Nice hit!"
Sure enough, when it came to beating up your own father, you had to do it yourself!
Minato: ...His face twisted.
Hamura Ōtsutsuki's actions also left Kaguya stunned.
She looked at the young man before her, at the Byakugan in his eyes.
"I have never seen you among the members of the Ōtsutsuki Clan."
After a brief pause, she continued, "I can sense space-time chakra on you. Are you from the past... or the future?"
Hamura Ōtsutsuki, who had always carried guilt over sealing away his mother with his brother by their own hands, turned to face her.
"Yes, Mother."
He glanced toward the God Tree in the distance. At this point in time, his mother probably had not yet consumed the Chakra Fruit...
Mother?!
Kaguya's eyes widened in shock.
For a rare instant, genuine surprise appeared on her exquisitely beautiful, almost inhuman face.
She placed a hand over her abdomen, her expression serene as she sank into thought.
The Emperor and his attendants, having heard their conversation, seemed to understand as well.
The person who had just struck him was his own son from the future?!
How utterly absurd!
"Utter nonsense! From the future?! You're just trying to deceive us!"
At that moment, Naruto and the others hardly knew what to make of the Emperor of the Land of Ancestors. He was actually willing to kill his own wife and child for the sake of so-called peace.
Although Madara Uchiha knew perfectly well that Hashirama wasn't that kind of person, he still glanced at him several times.
"For the sake of peace, you'd be willing to kill your own brother, son, or friend, no matter the cost?"
"Madara, you know perfectly well that's not what I meant..."
Hashirama hung his head dejectedly, looking as though Madara was bullying him.
Tobirama and Izuna could barely stand to watch.
Ever since those two idiot older brothers had reconciled, they somehow seemed even closer than before, to the point that neither of their younger brothers could pry them apart.
The Emperor watched the group continue to disregard him entirely, and humiliation quickly turned to rage.
"I've already said it! This is an internal matter of my Land of Ancestors! If you insist on interfering, then my soldiers and I will consider you equally guilty!!"
Oh?
Not a single person on the other side had any idea what chakra even was.
And yet they actually dared to challenge...
Madara Uchiha, Hashirama Senju, Tobirama Senju, Izuna Uchiha, Minato Namikaze, Obito Uchiha, Kakashi Hatake, Hamura Ōtsutsuki, and Indra.
Forget those people. Pick any two of the weakest members of this group and they could wipe all of you out!
"My child, what is your name?"
Kaguya Ōtsutsuki suddenly addressed Hamura Ōtsutsuki in her strange yet regal voice.
Looking at his mother's still-flat abdomen, Hamura realized she probably didn't even know she was carrying two children yet, much less had time to name them.
He continued to ignore the incompetent ruler of the Land of Ancestors and crouched beside his mother.
"My name is Hamura Ōtsutsuki. My brother is Hagoromo Otsutsuki."
"Hagoromo... Hamura..."
She softly repeated the two names.
"I must go to the God Tree. That is my mission. It is something that coexists with me."
"!?"
The God Tree.
Everyone followed Kaguya Ōtsutsuki's gaze toward the enormous tree nearby.
Once the Infinite Tsukuyomi and the power of the God Tree were unleashed, the tree would absorb the vitality of the entire world and turn it into nourishment.
"Mother..."
Hamura knew what the consequences would be, but he didn't know what to say.
At this point, his mother had not yet eaten the Chakra Fruit. She had not yet become the Rabbit Goddess feared by later generations.
"Hagoromo, Hamura."
It was impossible to tell whether Kaguya was speaking to the children in her womb or to Hamura Ōtsutsuki, who had come here with Naruto and the others.
"Only after I eat it can I share my chakra with you and protect you when the true Ōtsutsuki Clan arrives."
"But, Mother..."
Hamura instinctively wanted to refuse.
He and his brother would rather never have chakra at all than watch their mother become what she later became. Even less did they want the battle fought to seal her away, a battle that had nearly destroyed half the world!
Indra, who had remained silent until now, suddenly spoke.
"Sharing chakra will not bring peace. It will only plunge the world into even greater conflict, whether over chakra or Jutsu."
"Ninjutsu and hand seals were all his inventions."
Although they had made people's lives more convenient, they had also caused wars to escalate even further.
"Brother..."
Ashura wanted to argue, but he couldn't think of any reason that might change his brother's mind.
"It isn't chakra or ninjutsu that causes war. It's the human heart." Tobirama Senju bluntly rejected Indra's argument.
Madara Uchiha raised an eyebrow but said nothing.
At least on this subject, those who had lived through war after war had more grounds to speak than Indra and Ashura from the ancient era.
Indra gave a quiet snort. He clearly disagreed with Tobirama Senju, but couldn't be bothered to argue with them.
The Emperor, who had been ignored this entire time, finally reached his limit. He snatched a bow from the attendant beside him, pulled an arrow from the quiver, and aimed it at Izuna Uchiha, the only person who had not spoken once.
"How dare you look down on me like this...!"
Before he could even finish, a dark blue chakra arm backhanded him and sent him flying more than ten meters away. He rolled over twenty times before finally slamming into a tree!
Everyone turned toward Madara Uchiha with complicated expressions.
The Legendary Ninja truly was a man of few words and ruthless action.
Still, the unlucky Emperor had only himself to blame. Of all the people he could have aimed at, he just had to choose Madara Uchiha's younger brother.
Maybe it was because Izuna was the only one among them who hadn't spoken. Despite being an adult, he looked relatively young and perhaps didn't seem particularly strong.
"M-Monster..."
"Monster!!!"
For the people of the Land of Ancestors, who had never seen chakra or ninjutsu and had already caused an uproar when Kaguya killed two people with nothing more than a look, seeing Madara Uchiha use Susanoo was enough to send them stumbling backward in terror.
They shouted that both he and Susanoo were monsters.
Izuna immediately snapped back, "You ignorant fools! You don't even know the Uchiha's Susanoo?!"
Supported by his attendants, the Emperor struggled back to his feet.
"You... Who exactly are you people? Why have you come here?"
Kaguya wanted to know that as well.
She looked toward Hamura Ōtsutsuki, waiting for an explanation.
Hamura, meanwhile, was thinking about how he could stop his mother from eating the Chakra Fruit.
Just then, someone came galloping toward them from far away.
"Your Majesty..."
Before the rider could finish, he fell from his horse.
On closer inspection, an arrow was still lodged in his back. He had clearly fled here after being attacked.
"This arrow is...!!!"
"It's from the Land of That!!!"
The Emperor's face changed drastically. He staggered over and shook the man who had fallen from the horse.
"What happened?! Answer me!"
Naruto, Sasuke, and the others exchanged looks. They had only just arrived and still had no idea what was going on.
Hashirama Senju walked over and used the Mystical Palm Technique on the fallen warrior, healing him enough to briefly regain consciousness.
Even such simple Medical Ninjutsu was enough to make the people of this era gather around them in amazement, calling it a miracle.
Naruto and the others could hardly imagine how a world without ninjutsu or chakra even functioned.
Naruto thought that a single Shadow Clone from him would probably scare these people half to death.
Then he raised his hand.
He was about to scare them half to death.
Yeah.