Chapter 338: The Kaguya Who Wandered the Ninja World
Uchiha Madara's exasperation couldn't change the course of the world, nor could it stop Senju Hashirama from taking action.
No matter how many times he emphasized that Hikari was not his descendant—let alone his daughter—Hashirama simply gave him a knowing look, then went off to nag Senju Tobirama. With an equally exasperated expression, Tobirama listened to his brother say:
"Then I'll leave Hikari in your care. Madara still doesn't know how to face her and needs time to think."
"..."
Where exactly did you get the idea that Madara has a child? And if he did have a child, who's the mother?
You?
Tobirama let out a long sigh as he watched Hashirama leave.
He had long since given up trying to understand his older brother's thought process, but Hashirama's occasional bombshells still nearly sent him into cardiac arrest.
Did Hikari really resemble Madara that much? They were completely…
Tobirama carefully compared their appearances in his memory and fell into silence.
Actually… they did look quite similar.
But can't you at least gather some intel on her before jumping to conclusions?!
Tobirama sighed again and headed to the center of Ideal City, where he found Hyuga Fuji, who had somehow returned there without him noticing.
"So? Are there a lot?"
Fuji nodded. "Quite a lot. Just the birds that crashed mid-flight and the fish that got stranded due to being pulled into the Tsukuyomi space are already numerous."
"...I don't need your jokes."
Tobirama's mouth twitched. "I'm asking about the human casualties."
With ongoing wars in the real world, there were undoubtedly people who had already died while their consciousness was inside the virtual space.
If the virtual space collapsed, those people would instantly ascend to the Pure Land.
But if they intervened before that, perhaps they could intercept them.
Fuji replied calmly, "50,068 people."
"Fifty thousand, huh…"
Tobirama frowned.
Many had died from a lack of care—unattended patients in critical condition, similar incidents… If not for the number of people playing Ideal City instead of being pulled into the Tsukuyomi space, this number would have been double.
"Since you can give such an exact number, does that mean they're all gathered in one area? Who did it?"
"Obito."
"That makes sense."
With just a few words, Tobirama pieced together the situation.
It seemed Obito had deliberately chosen to pull in those with no hope of surviving in the real world to experiment with his Eternal Genjutsu space.
It was a reasonable choice.
After all, only people who couldn't survive outside the virtual space would view him as a savior and obey his every command.
"They've already sunk deep into their dreams, haven't they? What are you planning to do?"
"No need to wake them. Just let them keep sleeping. Ideal City has already become a defining feature of the ninja world over the past two years—it would be a shame to destroy it completely. Why shatter their beautiful dreams?"
Fuji extended his palm, and a stream of ethereal light gathered into it.
At the same time, the sound of virtual fractures filled the air—the Tsukuyomi space was beginning to collapse.
"If one day, you all grow weary… resting in a dream for a few decades isn't such a bad choice."
"...And then wake up to work for you?"
Tobirama scoffed. "Spare me. If I go in, I'm never coming back out."
"Even if an enemy comes knocking?"
"...Ōtsutsuki excluded."
As the glowing fragments of data were drawn into Fuji's hand and the virtual space slowly disintegrated, Tobirama lowered his gaze.
If one could enter and leave dreams at will… who would dislike dreaming?
---
With the collapse of the virtual space, those trapped within it gradually regained consciousness.
And then… many of them fell into utter confusion.
Who am I? Where am I? What was I doing?
Ninjas from the Land of Earth looked at their fallen stronghold in disbelief.
"I just lay down for a moment… and the Land of Water already won?!"
Ninjas from the Land of Fire woke up only to find the enemy's banners raised over their defensive lines—while they themselves were tied up in a POW camp.
"Wait… where's the fortress?"
Oh. It was breached without a single enemy casualty.
"And my comrades?"
Oh. They were right there in the next cell.
The now chakra-sealed prisoners exchanged awkward glances.
"Oh hey, you got captured too?"
"Yeah. I woke up and they immediately threw me in here. I was gonna resist, but then I saw you all in cells too, so I figured—why bother?"
"Fair enough. So, do you know what's going on?"
"What else? The enemy woke up before us and took advantage of the situation. And now here we are."
"…Got it. By the way, do they serve meals here? I've been unconscious for so long, I'm starving."
The ninja he asked blinked at him in surprise, gaining a newfound respect for his absolute indifference to their situation.
"I heard they'll be serving food soon, but don't expect much. The rations for prisoners aren't great."
"As long as there's food, it's fine." The middle-aged ninja shook his head.
At that moment, another group of guards arrived, leading a young girl with a chakra-restraining device strapped around her head.
"Another Kekkei Genkai user. She's from Konoha's Hyuga clan—a Special Jōnin."
The guard in charge jotted down a few notes. "Take her inside."
The girl with the Byakugan maintained a calm expression as she was led into the prison camp.
Before she could get a good look at her surroundings, she was thrown into an empty cell.
She didn't seem to care. Without a word, she walked to the corner and crouched down—completely withdrawn.
The middle-aged ninja from earlier noticed her and his eyes lit up.
That was his subordinate!
"Shizuka! You're alive!"
Before entering the Tsukuyomi space, he had seen her get hit by an explosive tag, leaving her grievously wounded and beyond saving.
Yet now, after just one trip into the virtual world, she was perfectly fine again?
Must've been Snow Country's advanced medical techniques.
After all, Hyuga Fuji could even bring people back from the dead—this wasn't that surprising.
The girl flinched slightly, a flash of killing intent in her eyes, but she quickly suppressed it. She then raised her head and gave the man a slight nod before falling silent again.
The middle-aged ninja assumed she was just struggling to adjust and didn't think much of it.
But what he didn't know was that at this very moment, the girl's soul had already been replaced.
"Tch. I got recognized that fast?"
Kaguya frowned inwardly, pondering her next move.
After escaping from Nagato, she had fled to the border of the Land of Fire.
It was a war zone. With many ninjas trapped in the Tsukuyomi space, it hadn't taken long for her to find the perfect host—a critically injured Hyuga ninja who was moments away from death.
Had the girl's soul not been pulled into the virtual world, she would have long since passed on.
And as the progenitor of the Hyuga clan, taking over a near-dead body was child's play.
But now that she had a new identity and body… what next?
Follow these prisoners to Snow Country?
No. Isshiki was there.
Try to escape back to Konoha?
Also a no. The ninja world stood no chance against Isshiki—they would fall sooner or later.
Was she doomed to hide forever, waiting for her slow demise once Isshiki fully took over?
Unacceptable.
Kaguya sighed.
When she had Black Zetsu, at least she had someone to strategize with.
But now… she was truly alone, wandering across the nations of the ninja world.