His emphasis on "connection" and "understanding" sometimes sounded more like doctrine that had to be obeyed.
And his tolerance for those who strayed from the ideals of the Ninshū seemed to be diminishing by the day...
"After the Ninshū was founded."
Gamamaru's voice grew heavier, carrying a bleak chill born of one who seemed to see through everything.
"Hagoromo began to regard the Ninshū as his own personal domain—his own legacy!"
"He came to see those who received Chakra and practiced the teachings of the Ninshū as his 'disciples' and his possessions! And even..."
He raised a hand and pointed toward the boundless night sky and the earth beneath their feet.
"Even this vast world beneath us, he gave the name 'Shinobi World'! Is that not clear enough?"
Gamamaru's gaze was like a cold arrow piercing straight into Indra's soul.
"The 'Shinobi World'... has long since become Hagoromo's personal possession!"
"He spread Chakra and established the Ninshū not to truly 'return' freedom to others or liberate them, but to weave a vast net over the entire world! He has long regarded himself as the master of this land—as the one and only... master of all living things!"
These words were nothing short of earth-shattering.
They shattered the sacred image of the Sage of Six Paths, exposing an entirely different and chilling core—one filled with the desire for control and the ambition for power.
Indra felt as though he had been struck by lightning. The image of his kind and wise father within his mind violently collided with the image Gamamaru had painted: a hidden master ruling from behind the scenes. The two images overlapped, fractured, and collapsed... until all that remained was a bone-deep chill and a dark stirring deep within his heart, as though something he had always feared had finally been confirmed.
"Your father, Hagoromo... is no longer the Sage of Six Paths who once cared for all living beings and swore to break their shackles!" Gamamaru's voice fell like a final judgment, heavy and cold. Every word struck Indra's heart with tremendous force. "In the end... he became the very thing he once despised! He became the new—and only—dictator of this world!"
Boom—!
Those words were like thunder tearing through his soul, exploding within Indra's mind and utterly destroying the last illusion he had clung to in defense of his father.
His expression changed dramatically. His pupils contracted from the sheer shock of having his understanding of the world overturned, and his gaze lost focus, becoming dazed and confused.
Countless images and voices collided wildly in his mind: his father's disappointed expression when rejecting Indra's beliefs; his father's gentle yet unquestionable voice when naming Asura as his successor; his father's warning that "what the Shinobi World needs has never been a dictator"...
All of it was now given an entirely new and unimaginably dark meaning by Gamamaru's accusation.
His father... had become a dictator?
Then why had he rejected him, when Indra himself also pursued strength and order? Why had he chosen Asura—the seemingly weak brother who only spoke of "connection" and "sharing"—instead?!
The contradiction pierced deeply into his thoughts like a poisoned thorn. It brought agonizing pain while plunging him into even greater confusion and turmoil.
Watching him stand there in a daze, Gamamaru's eyes flashed with complicated pity before it eventually became a long, desolate sigh.
"Would a man who already sits upon the throne of a dictator truly wish to see another 'dictator' arise—one who likewise believes in the supremacy of strength and might challenge, or even replace him?"
The words were spoken almost casually, yet they struck Indra like a revelation. At the same time, they were like a cold and perfectly fitted key, clicking open every lock that had bound his heart.
So that was it!
The confusion and struggle on Indra's face vanished in an instant, replaced by an almost icy sense of realization.
Yes. Now everything made sense!
His father had long regarded the entire Shinobi World—including every living being within it and the network of Chakra itself—as his private property, a kingdom that no one else was permitted to touch.
What he needed was a successor who would preserve the status quo. Someone like Asura, who would continue to benevolently "share" Chakra, maintain the existing order, and never attempt to centralize power or challenge his father's supreme position!
And what about Indra?
He pursued overwhelming strength. He sought absolute order. He wished to reshape the world according to his own will...
In the eyes of a father who already saw himself as the master of the path—the sole master of this world—what an intolerable presence Indra must have been!
This had never been merely a conflict of ideals.
It was... a direct clash on the path to power!
Indra's very existence was a potential threat to his father's invisible throne—a challenge that could not be ignored!
An obstacle...
So that was what he had been from the very beginning: an obstacle on his father's path to dictatorship, someone who had to be rejected and removed!
The moment he understood everything, Indra felt neither anger nor sorrow.
Instead, he experienced something strangely extreme...
A cold, crystalline clarity.
It was as though the thick fog before his eyes—woven from familial affection, reverence, and ideals—had been completely scattered by an icy wind carrying the truth.
He could see clearly.
He saw the naked nature of power hidden behind this Ninshū supposedly woven from "love" and "connection."
He saw the possible desire for absolute control hidden beneath his father's benevolent face—and his father's deep wariness toward Indra, one he saw as his own kind.
And he saw the path he was destined to walk: a lonely and powerful road that would completely break away from his father's path and perhaps even... lead in the opposite direction.
At that moment, the Indra who had longed for his father's approval and struggled with his own ideals seemed to die, if only in part.
And in the forest beneath a night illuminated by the truth, another Indra was quietly born—more resolute, colder, and more firmly convinced than ever that strength was reality.
Time passed in the suffocating silence. It felt as though an entire century had gone by.
Finally, Indra found his voice. It was dry and hoarse, as though scraped raw by sand.
"So... it really was my father who attacked you? He... truly did this?"
Gamamaru did not answer immediately. He merely released another sigh, deeper than the night itself, filled with profound helplessness and the desolation of shattered hopes.
"Yes. I tried to awaken him. I reminded him not to forget his original purpose, not to lose himself in the illusion of power and control. But he... could no longer hear any words of warning."
"The only thing on his mind was the word 'eternity.' He wishes to rule this world forever—to become an eternal master who never falls, ensuring that everything in the Shinobi World follows his will for all time."
"Eternity? An eternal master?" Indra's brow furrowed sharply, his heart seeming to be gripped by an invisible hand. "What... does that mean?"
"How can a human possibly live forever? Is that why he attacked you—his teacher and closest friend?"
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