area51novel Chapter 535 The Demonic Statue of the Outer Path
Chapter 535 The Demonic Statue of the Outer Path
Perhaps Naruto was indeed a bit too lenient with Gaara last time.
That tolerance, that gentleness, that indulgence of "you can use that puppet however you want," stirred a subtle jealousy in Zuo Yue's heart. That jealousy swelled, turning into a kind of confidence, and then into—assertion.
Sōzuki has been particularly strong lately.
In bed, in the kitchen, on the sofa, in every moment they were alone together, she made no attempt to take, possess, or assert her dominance.
As the initiator, Naruto naturally felt a bit tired, but he chose to bear it all.
Because behind that domineering attitude was Zuo Yue's care for him, her possessiveness towards him, and her obsession with "you are mine".
It's tiring, but it's worth it.
At this moment, Naruto stood on the walls of Konoha, looking out at the densely packed White Zetsu army that formed an encirclement.
Tens of thousands of pale figures surged like a tide under the moonlight, completely surrounding the entire Hidden Leaf Village.
He had just overheard the purpose of this group of White Zetsu.
Hand over the new owner.
Naruto knew perfectly well who they were talking about.
Uchiha Satsuki.
Those newly formed Rinnegan were the root cause of the White Zetsu's restlessness. Sensing a master they could serve, they awoke from their slumber, emerged from the ground, and converged on Konoha.
Naruto thought that these White Zetsu would remain asleep underground after losing their masters.
Unexpectedly, Zuo Yue awakened the Rinnegan and awakened them all.
"Jiraiya-sensei, Third Hokage," Naruto said first, addressing the two solemn-looking elderly men beside him.
"Don't attack. They... aren't really our enemies."
Jiraiya and Hiruzen were both stunned.
They then looked at Naruto, their eyes filled with confusion and doubt. "Naruto, you mean...?"
Jiraiya spoke, his voice tinged with a hint of probing. Being intelligent, he immediately understood what was going on: "Do you know who these guys' owner is? What exactly are they trying to do?"
Naruto nodded.
He didn't explain further.
The next moment, his figure vanished from the spot, the light of the Flying Thunder God Technique flashing and disappearing in an instant.
Less than a second later, the light shone again, and Naruto returned, with another person by his side.
Uchiha Satsuki.
Her usually cool and aloof face showed obvious displeasure. Her eyes were filled with the frustration of having her "good time interrupted."
Because her favorite thing was interrupted, Satsuki became a little temperamental.
She didn't care what that white mass below was—it was the enemy, right? Since it was the enemy, then she'd just eliminate it.
The next moment, Zuo Yue's eyes began to change.
His left eye turned a deep purple, while his right eye retained its scarlet base color. He possessed the six-tomoe Sharingan and the nine-tomoe Sharingan.
She raised her hand, and chakra began to gather in her palm—
"Satsuki, don't rush."
Naruto reached out from the side and gently took her hand.
He looked at her, a hint of helplessness in his voice, and said, "Didn't you feel it?"
Satsuki paused for a moment. "What do you feel?"
She asked back, but as soon as the words left her mouth, she sensed it.
Below, the White Zetsu army, which had been restless, clamoring, and preparing to launch a general offensive, suddenly fell silent.
All sounds, all movements, all commotion vanished in that instant.
Tens of thousands of pale figures stared in unison in one direction.
He looked at her, he looked at Uchiha Satsuki.
This is the White Zetsu's instinct.
They lack emotions, self, and independent will. But something is deeply ingrained in their very being, more powerful than any command—the unconditional obedience to their instinctive duty.
Obeying the creator of the Rinnegan.
"If I'm not mistaken, it's Satsuki." Naruto stood on the wall, looking down at the White Zetsu army that had fallen silent because of Satsuki's appearance, and spoke slowly.
"Use the natural psychic powers of your eyes."
He turned to his wife beside him and said, "After using that, it should be over."
"The psychic powers in those eyes?"
A thoughtful look flashed across Zuo Yue's face, and then she remembered.
The moment she awakened those eyes, information about the Rinnegan naturally flooded into her consciousness. Six Paths-level eye techniques, the power of the Bloodstained Net, Universal Pull, Divine Raid, Planetary Devastation—and, a summoning contract.
A psychic contract she had never used before.
Because she and Naruto were in their honeymoon period, because they were immersed in the sweetness of their world together, and because there was really no need to use this power—that summoning contract was forgotten in a corner of her memory.
"Okay, I understand."
Zuo Yue nodded. Without hesitation, she leaped off the wall of Konoha.
It landed lightly on the open ground illuminated by the moonlight.
Behind them were the walls of Konoha and the tense, vigilant ninjas.
Before her stood an endless army of white Zetsu, all staring at her intently.
She raised her hand and began to form a hand seal, a seal for a psychic spell, which was no different from that of a regular psychic spell.
But when she channeled her chakra into that seal, she felt something—something was responding to her call from afar.
"Summoning Jutsu—" Satsuki's voice echoed in the night sky.
"The Demonic Statue of the Heretic!"
"boom--!!!"
The earth trembled violently!
Not far from Zuo Yue, on an open ground, countless cracks suddenly appeared in the ground, as if some enormous creature was struggling to emerge from the depths of the earth!
The next moment, a giant hand burst forth from the ground!
The hand was enormous; a single finger was as tall as a person. It was the color of withered wood, with rough texture, and each finger exuded an ancient and eerie aura.
Then came the arms, the shoulders, the torso—the entire behemoth slowly rose from the ground!
"roar--!!!"
A deafening roar echoed through the night sky!
The sound was so loud and so shocking, like a mountain collapsing and the earth splitting, that it made all the houses in Konoha Village tremble slightly!
Everyone saw the monster.
Its body was as large as a mountain, a grayish-brown color like withered wood, and covered with strange and ancient patterns. Ten pillar-like protrusions stood tall on its back, and it had nine eyes on its face.
The Demonic Statue of Heretics.
The body of the Ten-Tails.
It stood there quietly, like a silent mountain, motionless.
Its entire figure blocked out half of the sky.
Zuo Yue stood at its feet, turned around, and looked at the enormous creature.
She could feel her chakra connected to this thing. The feeling was strange, like some invisible bond was binding her to the Gedo Mazo.
But—and then what? How do you use it?
Zuo Yue blinked, her gaze passing over the huge figure and landing on Naruto on the wall, her eyes carrying a hint of pleading.
Naruto received that look, but at that moment, he was dealing with something else.
"Nine-Ra, don't be afraid, don't be afraid—"
He reassured himself.
Inside the sealed space within his body, the Nine-Tailed Fox was curled up in a corner, its fur standing on end, its huge beast eyes filled with terror.
"That thing—!" Its voice trembled. "How did that thing get out—!"
It is the Nine-Tails, one of the nine tailed beasts, and an entity that separated from the Ten-Tails. It knows better than anyone what that thing is, and fears it more than anyone else.
The tailed beasts can be resurrected no matter how they die.
Being killed, sealed, or extracted—it doesn't matter. As long as there's enough time, one can always be reborn.
But if it's absorbed by the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path—then it's truly gone.
"Don't worry, don't worry," Naruto's voice echoed in its mind, gentle as if coaxing a child. "I won't let Satsuki absorb you with the Gedo Mazo, I promise."
Nine-tailed Fox huddled in the corner, its eyes still filled with fear, but at least the trembling slowly stopped, and it mumbled something.
"You...you better keep your word."
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(After the White Zetsu issue is resolved, the author wants to write about Naruto and Sasuke from this book visiting other timelines, or Naruto and Sasuke from the original work coming to this book's timeline. Do any readers have recommended timelines?)