Naruto: Starting with the Ōtsutsuki Bloodline-Chapter 336 - 334: Welcoming the New World

Chapter 334: Welcoming the New World

What was going on?

This question did not exist only in the Sage of Six Paths’ mind—it echoed in the hearts of everyone present.

They couldn’t understand it at all.

Weren’t they already finished?

Hadn’t they been completely destroyed?

So why... were they all still alive?

And then—

"Guy?!"

Kakashi suddenly turned around, staring in disbelief at Might Guy, who had sat up with a dazed expression on his face. Not far away, Lee was equally stunned.

"Guy-sensei, you—"

"Huh?"

Guy looked at Kakashi strangely, scratching his head as he gave a slightly disappointed smile.

"Kakashi, Lee... looks like you both lost again. Ah—wait, Gen?!"

It took him a moment to react. Instinctively, he tried to stand up, ready to continue fighting—but then he froze.

"Didn’t I open the Eight Gates? I should’ve died. So why—"

"Huh? We’re all fine... what?"

Deidara had already stood up as well, staring blankly at the people around him. Wherever he looked, everyone seemed exactly the same.

"We’re... still alive?"

"That feeling just now... it really felt like death."

"Wait, my injuries... they’re gone?"

"Huh? Mine too—what’s going on?"

Confusion spread everywhere.

Mei Terumī.

Ōnoki.

The Second Tsuchikage and Second Mizukage.

Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru—who was touching his stomach with a deeply puzzled look—

Everyone was the same.

Even—

"What exactly is happening to us?"

Uchiha Madara frowned deeply, utterly unable to make sense of the situation.

"I’m not sure either, but..."

Hashirama Senju lifted his head and looked toward Kitagawa Gen and the Sage of Six Paths. Almost everyone did the same after a brief moment of mental blankness.

They all felt the same inexplicable confusion.

"Gen... Sage of Six Paths..."

Naruto stared blankly at the figures in the distance, while Sasuke looked completely disoriented.

"You... we..."

Ino was sitting on the ground in a daze as well. Gen had brought her down from the sky earlier, but she was just as lost as everyone else.

What happened?

What was going on?

What did all of this mean?

These questions battered everyone’s mind relentlessly. The shock was simply too great.

"Everyone awake now?"

At that moment, Kitagawa Gen’s voice rang out. He smiled warmly as he spoke.

"There’s no need to sleep so long in life—after all, you’ll sleep forever once you’re dead. You’re not dead yet."

"Gen... Sage of Six Paths..."

Tobirama Senju suddenly realized something. He stood up abruptly and shouted:

"This was all planned, wasn’t it?!"

Planned.

Those words echoed across the battlefield, carried by the still-diffusing chakra of the Golden Tree.

In that instant, the shinobi finally snapped out of it.

A sentence resurfaced clearly in their minds:

’Sage of Six Paths, isn’t it time to end this? If this continues, they’ll really die.’

All eyes turned toward the Sage of Six Paths.

Given his reputation for coldness and ruthlessness, there was nothing he wouldn’t dare do.

After all, he had exploited his own brother, forced his sons into endless reincarnation after death, and even used his mother as a "shield."

A man who had orchestrated a millennium-long blood-soaked conflict in the shinobi world—

who knew what else he was capable of?

But still—

"Why?" Naruto demanded, unable to accept it.

Even though excitement and joy were bubbling uncontrollably inside him, what he had experienced earlier was too painful—too suffocating—to forget.

The same was true for Sasuke and the others.

Everything felt... too perfect now.

So perfect it felt unreal.

"Yes," Gen said calmly. "It was planned."

He didn’t deny it. He glanced at the pale-faced Sage of Six Paths, then sighed softly.

"As for why—it’s simple. The Sage of Six Paths wanted to test your capacity."

"Capacity...?"

"Yes. Your capacity. Whether you could withstand the most extreme circumstances—like what you just experienced."

"...Just now..."

The memories flooded back.

That absolute, crushing despair.

Faces across the battlefield twisted in pain. Even recalling it made their hearts feel like they were shattering all over again.

"That feeling," Gen said with a smile. "Exactly that."

He glanced at the Sage of Six Paths, noticing the old man seemed about to speak.

Following the principle of ’if you’re going to bully someone, bully the honest one,’ Gen immediately continued before he could.

"The Sage once told me that the shinobi world has had it too easy."

"Even after a thousand years of bloodshed, this world still possesses things no other planet has."

"Chakra. Shinobi. Countless powerful individuals born here—including the Sage of Six Paths himself."

"But the question is—do the people of this world truly have the courage and will to face the Ōtsutsuki?"

"Has that millennium of bloodshed really prepared everyone?"

"He wasn’t sure. So he came to me. He wanted me to do something."

Gen paused, looking at the tightly furrowed brows of everyone present, then smiled.

"Tell me—have you ever considered what this planet would be like without chakra? Without power? Without shinobi at all?"

"No chakra... no shinobi..."

The question made tens of thousands of shinobi frown.

It was only a hypothetical—but remembering the Ōtsutsuki battles, especially the towering Golden Tree still glowing in the sky, sent chills through them.

"No life would survive."

Kaguya finally spoke. Her gaze never left Gen.

She could feel it clearly now—Gen was completely different from before.

Even after consuming the fruit herself, she could not compare to the aura he now possessed.

Her suspicion deepened.

Perhaps Gen’s strength wasn’t only due to bloodline—

perhaps it was tied to what this world called emotion.

Or maybe it was inseparable from that so-called Pathway to Godhood.

Either way, she decided it was best to cooperate.

"Once stripped of chakra," she continued, "the planet would become a dead star. No matter how much time passed, it would never recover."

"All life..."

Even though they had heard this before, hearing it spoken by Kaguya herself felt entirely different.

Total extinction.

Complete annihilation.

A dead world.

It was terrifying.

"Yes," Gen nodded. "All life."

"That absolute despair. That total helplessness. That hell-like sensation—this is where everything begins."

"In an environment like hell, facing overwhelming enemies, impossible odds, and absolute despair..."

"The Sage of Six Paths wanted to see whether you could still summon the courage to stand up."

"Whether you could still clench your fists and fight on with the resolve of ’even if I die, I won’t give up.’"

"To seek hope even in death."

"To chase light even in hellish darkness."

"Courage and will are humanity’s eternal anthem. A thousand years of bloodshed tempered not only strength—but indomitable spirit."

"And that," Gen said softly,

"is the capacity the Sage of Six Paths wanted to confirm—the potential he hoped to see in all of you."

Gen’s words were calm—

yet they struck everyone’s hearts like a muffled thunderclap.

Utter despair.

A darkness as deep as hell itself.

What they had just experienced... fit that description perfectly.

The greatest hope of humanity—the man who bore the title of savior, Kitagawa Gen—had suddenly transformed into the embodiment of the world’s evil.

All bonds severed.

All emotions discarded.

Everything they believed in completely negated.

He had coldly raised his blade against everyone.

That collapse—

that despair—

needed no words to describe.

"To find the light of hope... even in hell."

Naruto murmured the words unconsciously.

Sasuke lowered his head, quietly repeating them.

"Even in death... seek the hope of life."

"Is courage... truly humanity’s anthem?"

Hashirama Senju looked dazed, while Madara clenched his fists tightly.

"Capacity... the capacity the Sage of Six Paths wished to see.

The capacity that belongs to us humans."

"But—!"

Naruto suddenly spoke up, looking at Kitagawa Gen in confusion.

"Why did it have to be like this? Haven’t we already defeated the Ōtsutsuki? Why—"

"Did you defeat them?"

Kitagawa Gen shook his head with a faint smile and sighed at Naruto.

At that moment, Tobirama Senju seemed to grasp everything.

"This wasn’t our victory," he said firmly.

"It was Gen’s. And it was the Sage’s. We were nothing more than the backdrop."

"Second Hokage...?"

Minato Namikaze looked at Tobirama in surprise as Tobirama stood tall and spoke loudly.

"I believe I finally understand the Sage’s true intention!"

"Time moves on. People age and fade. What the Sage of Six Paths desires isn’t merely our resolve."

"He wants us to engrave this pain into our souls—to never forget this despair!"

"Our descendants must remember it as well!"

"Never forget the Ōtsutsuki. Never forget their terror and the catastrophe they bring!"

"Only by experiencing it ourselves can we ensure that future generations will never forget!"

"Only then will we remain vigilant forever—guarding our home without complacency!"

"Am I right, Sage of Six Paths... Gen?"

Tobirama’s eyes burned with fervor as he looked toward them.

That overwhelming zeal could no longer be suppressed.

Everyone followed his gaze.

Combined with Gen’s explanation—and the Sage’s actions throughout history—

it became painfully clear:

This truly was the Sage of Six Paths’ design.

He had never focused solely on the present.

His gaze had always stretched far into the future.

Cold.

Ruthless.

Yet every plan he made was for the survival of the world itself.

He never cared how the people of today felt—

he only sought results that would endure.

"After experiencing something like this, we can never forget it."

"We’ll carry it in our hearts forever."

"When we return, targeted education will begin."

"The Kage will make their preparations—ensuring this lesson is never lost."

"So this pain becomes resolve. So this despair becomes faith."

"So this will is passed down... to face the next Ōtsutsuki invasion!"

"This... is the Sage of Six Paths."

At that moment, everyone’s gaze subtly changed.

The Sage of Six Paths—

a god who coldly calculated everything, solely for the survival of the world.

"So this was your plan all along..."

Hamura murmured in disbelief, then slowly nodded.

"No wonder you never told me. You thought far further than I ever imagined."

Black Zetsu sighed bitterly.

"No wonder I could never beat you... I was nothing but a chess piece.

Compared to you, I was firefly to moonlight. I truly lost without grievance."

Kaguya scoffed softly.

"As expected of you, Hagoromo. You truly played the entire world in the palm of your hand."

Hagoromo’s fists clenched tighter with every word.

And then Kitagawa Gen sighed lightly.

"I understood exactly what the Sage wished to confirm—that’s why I cooperated.

Everything he did was truly for the world."

The Sage of Six Paths’ fists finally stiffened completely.

He had only realized all of this minutes ago.

This wasn’t his plan—

not at all!

He thought Gen intended to shoulder all the world’s hatred himself—

So why...

did all the blame end up falling on him instead?!

Before he could explode—

"Wait!"

Naruto suddenly remembered something.

"Gen... you’re also an Ōtsutsuki, aren’t you?"

That question instantly drew everyone’s attention.

"If Gen-sama is this strong... then other Ōtsutsuki—"

"And if Gen is always here... do we really need to suffer like this?"

Even the Sage, Hamura, and Black Zetsu looked toward Gen.

Gen answered calmly.

"I am Ōtsutsuki—yes. But I only discovered that after becoming a shinobi."

"After becoming... a shinobi?"

Kakashi stared in disbelief.

"So the Ōtsutsuki blood awakened after that?"

"Yes," Gen nodded.

"And I must thank Giy-sensei, Kakashi-sensei, and everyone else."

"Without you, even this bloodline would never have bloomed."

Those who had taught Gen felt a strange mix of disbelief and awe.

They had... trained an Ōtsutsuki?

As for his bloodline’s origin—

Kaguya spoke softly.

"It likely comes from Ōtsutsuki Shibai—the one who became the Ōtsutsuki God."

The Ōtsutsuki God?!

A being beyond gods?!

"A being who transcended dimensions... life and death itself," Kaguya continued.

"His soul left this world, but his body remained."

"And perhaps it was here that his transformation was completed."

"That bloodline... may have endured. And you inherited it."

Everyone stared at Gen again—finally understanding why he was so powerful.

But—

If he truly surpassed gods—

Did that mean he could never remain here forever?

"Everyone leaves eventually," Gen said with a gentle smile.

"No matter how."

"That’s why you must rely on yourselves."

"One day, we won’t be here."

"Only by strengthening yourselves—and keeping this resolve alive—can you face the future."

The Sage of Six Paths went completely numb.

Why did everything keep looping back to him?!

And yet... the truth resonated.

Someone suddenly spoke up:

"Come to think of it... Gen-sama never really killed anyone, did he?"

"That’s right. Even when he attacked, it was restrained."

"Even Guy survived the Eight Gates!"

"He carried the hatred himself... just to awaken us."

The murmurs spread—growing louder.

The Sage of Six Paths’ face grew increasingly stiff.

He truly hadn’t planned this!

Naruto turned slowly toward Gen.

"Gen..."

Sasuke finally released the grief in his heart.

Ino whispered his name.

All eyes were on him now—burning with emotion.

"Alright, everyone," Gen said, patting the Sage’s shoulder before stepping forward.

"After this battle, you understand more now—

and understand the Sage’s true intention."

"Even former enemies stood together when the world needed it most."

"That’s what he wanted to see."

Madara and Hashirama exchanged a glance.

Kakashi and Obito did the same.

Enemies... no longer.

"Don’t blame the Sage," Gen said calmly, raising his hand toward the sky.

Fragments of the shattered moon still rained down.

Yet his smile was serene—no longer cold, but deeply peaceful.

"So—are you ready?"

His chakra surged.

The falling moon halted.

Time itself reversed.

The shattered moon reassembled—

And a full, silver moon once again hung in the sky.

Moonlight bathed the land.

Everything felt like a dream.

And Kitagawa Gen’s voice echoed in every heart:

"Welcome...

to the new world."