The Land of Lightning.
Somewhere in the far northern mountains, icy winds howled across a towering gorge. Though it was supposed to be the hottest time of October, this place was bone-chillingly cold. Goose-feather snow fell from the heavens, and at the base of the gorge, two figures appeared silently.
The frigid wind rustled the sage robes they wore, but their furrowed brows were not due to the cold.
"Is this the place, Hagoromo?"
Gamamaru lifted his gaze toward the mountain gorge ahead. His peerless insight let him clearly perceive the chaotic, turbulent flow of natural energy there.
Dark clouds hung low over the valley, muffled thunder rumbling within, black lightning flickering in restraint—it was suffocating.
That was pure, extreme lightning-nature energy.
"Yes. This is it."
Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo gave a slight nod.
For a thousand years, besides spreading chakra throughout the shinobi world and maintaining the structure of the Pure Land, the cautious Hagoromo had prepared a third contingency—gathering the primal sources of the world's energy itself.
Long ago, the Rabbit Goddess had stood beside the Divine Tree, devouring all the power of existence. As her son, Hagoromo had also glimpsed the original essence of this world's power.
In the terminology of chakra, that was the elemental origins of the five natural energies.
The five elemental energies formed the foundation of the world; yin and yang granted divine form; from them, all things in existence took shape.
Over the centuries, Hagoromo had already located three of these origins—fire, earth, and water. Not long ago, he had discovered the source of wind.
Now, only one remained.
Once he gathered all five primal energies, Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo would be able to command the power of the entire world itself.
If his mother, the Rabbit Goddess, had devoured the world's power directly by becoming the Divine Tree, then the Sage of Six Paths' method was different—he sought to leverage the world's origin energy, to move the power of the world and make it his own.
Different methods—but the same result: to draw upon the world's power and merge it with oneself.
Now, Yuki Yoru's power had reached its limit. After devouring the Rabbit Goddess, his strength had grown to the point where even the Sage of Six Paths could not face him lightly.
And with his thousand-year plan repeatedly interrupted, Hagoromo had to admit—without the world's power at his back, even he was no match for Yuki Yoru.
Fortunately, the lightning-nature origin of natural energy was right here. Once he seized it, everything would once again fall under his control.
"Let's go."
Hagoromo spoke calmly. With a single step, his figure vanished.
Gamamaru said nothing, following close behind. In the blink of an eye, the two sages appeared atop the gorge.
Pitch-black clouds blanketed the mountain valley. Even here, they could feel the faint presence of a barrier's power.
"As expected of lightning—the most violent among the five elemental energies."
Hagoromo murmured. His hand tightened in the air, and the Six Paths Staff appeared in his grip. The sacred and vast power of the Six Paths shook the heavens; condensed Six Paths chakra gathered at the tip of his staff and touched the void.
Ripples spread across the space itself. Then—with a thunderous boom—the entire valley and the earth trembled. A bolt of black lightning split the sky like the wrath of heaven.
Hagoromo stood unmoving. Behind him, Gamamaru gave a low hum, pressing his hands together. A burst of pure white senjutsu chakra shot forth, colliding with the descending lightning.
The terrifying thunder was shattered in an instant. Stray arcs of lightning crackled around them, stirring the hems of their sage robes. Then, the warped space swallowed both their figures.
Above, the dark clouds churned violently, as though a colossal storm was gathering within—something vast and boundless was about to awaken.
The space twisted—
The figures of the two men emerged, stepping into a radiant world filled with endless lightning.
Everywhere they looked, the sky blazed with thunder and light. Dazzling bolts flashed in every direction, accompanied by deafening roars that shook the heavens. Standing within this realm, the two seemed utterly insignificant.
"Such dense lightning-nature energy…"
Gamamaru spoke in awe once again. The concentration of lightning energy here had reached the absolute limit of this world. Compared to this, even places like Mount Myōboku paled into insignificance.
If one were to train here, it wouldn't take long to cultivate a top-tier sage—a master of lightning-style senjutsu capable of unmatched offense!
"And this is only the outer region," Gamamaru said solemnly. "The true source lies at the very heart of this area. Hagoromo, lightning is unlike the other elements—it's wild and volatile. You know this better than anyone."
"No need for concern."
Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo's expression remained calm. Chakra surged within him as nine black Truth-Seeking Orbs floated behind his back. With a single step forward, one orb expanded into a black barrier that enveloped him, shielding him from the countless bolts of lightning around.
The moment Hagoromo entered the thunder pool, countless streaks of lightning—like silver serpents—lashed toward him in fury.
But under the protection of the Truth-Seeking Orbs, lightning of this level could not breach the barrier born of Yin–Yang Release. Bathed in the sea of thunder, Hagoromo advanced unhurriedly toward the very center, expanding his spiritual perception to search.
Countless lightning serpents coiled around him, trying to halt his advance—but not one could slow him down.
A full day later, the Truth-Seeking Orb barrier surrounding Hagoromo suddenly expanded outward. From within, his gaze fixed upon a distant point deep within the sea of lightning.
From that direction came a powerful, oppressive aura—so immense it resembled the crushing chakra pressure of a tailed beast, yet countless times stronger.
In a sense, the nine tailed beasts were also manifestations of the world's primordial forces—but compared to the true source itself, their power was on an entirely different level.
"Found you!"
Sensing that terrifying presence, Hagoromo's heart trembled. Without hesitation, he sped toward that point in space.
Moments later, he halted.
Before him coiled a colossal dragon—its entire body pitch-black, radiating a violent and chaotic energy. It was surrounded by countless silver-white bolts of lightning, while black lightning crackled across its scales, bursting outward with overwhelming might.
"The lightning-nature origin of natural energy!"
"—Hummmm!!"
The black thunder dragon had clearly noticed Hagoromo's intrusion. Yet, instead of attacking rashly, it fixed its sharp gaze on him with wary caution. Lightning surged wildly around its body, a silent warning.
Hagoromo's eyes widened in surprise.
"To think it could evolve a corporeal form without the blessing of Yin and Yang… relying solely on its own power!"
The essence of chakra was energy itself—and only when combined with Yin–Yang Release could that energy give birth to life.
This was one of the fundamental laws Hagoromo had discovered during his thousand years in this world.
For example, the tailed beasts themselves had once been created by Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo through the power of Yin–Yang Release.
Yet now, before his eyes, a chakra entity without the blessing of Yin–Yang Release had evolved into a living being—and even possessed intelligence.
Such a phenomenon was completely beyond Hagoromo's expectations.
Compared to the other elemental origins he had encountered over the years, this one surpassed them all—both in strength and in every other respect.
"ROAR!!"
Before Hagoromo could think further, the black thunder dragon let out a deafening roar and lunged toward him with overwhelming force.
Black lightning split the void—blindingly brilliant!
The Sage's staff swung down to meet the dragon, the power of the Six Paths spreading through the heavens.
The battle for the final elemental source of nature's power had officially begun!
...
Rumor had it that this world was once whole.
But since the descent of the Rabbit Goddess and the chaos sown by the One-Eyed God—until the Sage of Six Paths brought peace—countless mysterious realms had appeared throughout the world.
There were hidden sanctuaries of sages mastering the secrets of senjutsu; descendants of gods who dwelled in the Moon Palace, gazing down upon the mortal realm.
Yet among all these, the most secretive, the most divine—and the one mortals dared not even glimpse—was the Pure Land.
It was the underworld of this world, ruled by the Sage of Six Paths for millennia—the land of the dead, the resting place of souls, the final destination of all spirits.
However, ever since Ōtsutsuki Isshiki had upended the natural order, even though the Sage had restored it, the world still felt eerily empty. Few souls lingered; it was quiet, almost indistinguishable from the living realm.
In that monochrome world of black and white deathly silence, a mountain shone softly with holy light.
At its peak sat a white-clad sage, cross-legged in deep meditation. Suddenly, his eyes opened.
Two upward-curving horns adorned his brow; his pupils were pure white, faintly etched with mysterious patterns. His calm gaze lifted to the dim heavens, as though waiting for something.
The next moment, the gloomy sky was torn apart by a blinding radiance, and a figure descended through the air.
"Hmm… this place isn't quite what I expected."
Yuki Yoru looked down upon the world below, countless eyes spinning within his sockets. With a half-smile, he glanced toward the temple where the lone sage sat.
"Isshiki did a really excellent job. If I had to do it myself, I'm afraid it would have been a fierce battle."
"Yuki Yoru."
Ōtsutsuki Hamura slowly rose to his feet. His tone was calm, his hands relaxed at his sides.
"You should not have come here."
"Oh?"
Yuki Yoru gazed down at him, her voice strange and mocking.
"I shouldn't have come here? Tell me, in a world as vast as this—what place is there where I, Yuki Yoru, cannot go?"
Hamura said nothing, but his chakra flared with terrifying intensity. Behind him appeared six Truth-Seeking Orbs.
From his pure white eyes burst a dazzling starlight. His expression hardened; a destructive aura spread outward from his body.
Without warning, the space where Yuki Yoru stood exploded—the sage's attack had already begun!
Clang!
A black blade blocked the attack. Yuki Yoru looked at Hamura, who now stood before him holding a golden sword, and his playful smile slowly faded.
Compared to Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo—the elder brother who reveled in schemes and contingencies—his younger brother, Ōtsutsuki Hamura, was far more direct and pure.
Hagoromo possessed the Ten Tails and had always held the upper hand in their battle against the Rabbit Goddess.
But if one stripped away the Ten Tails' power—purely in terms of raw combat strength—Ōtsutsuki Hamura surpassed his brother without question.
However, Yuki Yoru most enjoyed fighting people like this!
Ōtsutsuki Hamura's sleeves fluttered in the chakra torrent. The six Truth-Seeking Balls in his palm transformed into a dazzling golden sword.
In Yuki Yoru's eyes, countless pupils spun simultaneously as the black blade in her hand cleaved downward—its spiritual power sharp enough to split the heavens and earth.
"BOOM!!"
The collision between the black blade and the golden sword was deafening, causing spider-web cracks to appear in the space for ten miles around.
The Tenseigan, resembling stars, met Yuki Yoru's eyes. Both sides were well aware of the power the other possessed.
There were no meaningless pre-battle declarations, no shouted introductions of their techniques. All they did was swing their swords, and swing them again!
At the level of the Six Paths, size no longer held meaning. "Gigantic forms" and "massive auras" were irrelevant—what mattered was pure essence, the ability to pierce through creation itself. Physical scale no longer dictated the flow of such a battle.
Yet small forms did not mean a small battle.
Each collision between them unleashed overwhelming power, shattering the surrounding space again and again.
The golden sword sliced through the void. Yuki Yoru twisted away, and with a flicker of thought, countless Sacred Destruction Arrows formed in the air, raining down upon Hamura.
Hamura did not dodge.
Behind him, the Truth-Seeking Orbs spun in the air, stirring fierce winds that obliterated every arrow that approached.
"Golden Wheel Reincarnation Explosion!"
His voice was calm, almost indifferent.
Brilliant golden radiance burst forth from his sword, expanding into a cataclysmic beam of light that could destroy heaven and earth. He swung it down toward Yuki Yoru with unstoppable might.
Yoru only smiled faintly.
His palm swept outward, and the immense spiritual power in his body caused the black blade to expand limitlessly—like the Bankai of Sajin Komamura (Kokujō Tengen Myō'ō), it transformed in an instant into a colossal black sword that stretched from sky to earth.
Once again, black blade met golden sword.
The collision illuminated the entire Pure Land. Everything around them—matter, air, even space itself—was annihilated.
The sound of their clash vanished into silence; the golden sword, which had seemed capable of cutting through creation itself, was swallowed by the black blade.
The radiance flickered—like a ripple disturbed for a brief instant—and then the titanic black sword descended again, its power even greater than before.
"What?!"
For a single moment, Hamura's Tenseigan lost focus—his voice filled with disbelief.
But the black blade wouldn't give him a moment to catch his breath in shock. In an instant, his figure was completely engulfed by the black blade.
The descending black blade obliterated everything in its path.
Buildings, mountains, even the very fabric of the Pure Land itself—all were erased in that instant.
It was as though heaven and earth themselves had exploded.
The colossal shockwave spread outward, destroying everything in its wake.
The Pure Land—recently reconstructed by the Sage—was utterly shattered once more…