Chapter 363: When Gods Clash, the Innocent Suffer
The loud commotion from Naruto's outburst suddenly faded away.
High above, Hagoromo Gengetsu examined the unexpected token in his hand. Under the discerning gaze of his Rinnegan, he could indeed sense the same energy source in the token as that of the Dragon Vein. With the combination of a curse command, he could partially control the Dragon Vein.
"As expected, Naruto truly is my lucky star," Hagoromo Gengetsu mused, smiling as he stored the token away.
This was yet another blessing Naruto had unwittingly brought to him.
It seemed worthwhile that he hadn't disturbed Naruto's family reunion earlier.
"Now, it's time to get to business."
After this brief interlude, Hagoromo Gengetsu returned to the main task at hand. A purple vortex stirred in his Rinnegan, and he thrust his left hand into the void.
Heavenly Absolute Order!
A sacred object wrapped in zigzagging golden strips of paper rapidly materialized.
With a voice imbued with divine decree, Hagoromo Gengetsu declared, "I hereby forbid this planet from any other dimensions!"
In the next instant, the entire Shinobi World underwent a massive upheaval!
Roran Desert.
After Hagoromo Gengetsu vanished, Naruto was racked with guilt for not guarding the token properly. Minato Namikaze and Kushina tried to comfort him, but their hearts were heavy with concern about Hagoromo Gengetsu's sudden appearance and what it could mean for the future of the Shinobi World. Even Orochimaru, who had returned and stared silently at the spot where Hagoromo Gengetsu had disappeared, was speechless.
Suddenly!
White smoke began to sizzle from Minato and Orochimaru's bodies.
"What is this..."
Both men reacted swiftly, immediately pulling out the sealing scrolls they carried with them, which were emitting the same white smoke, and threw them away.
In an instant, the scrolls automatically unfurled.
All the ninja tools, soldier pills, and instruments stored in the scrolls poured out from the void, crashing to the ground.
But that wasn't all.
"Minato! Something's wrong!"
Kushina's urgent voice rang out just as violent Nine-Tails chakra erupted from her.
With a furious roar, the massive form of the Nine-Tails rapidly began to separate from the seal inside her.
"This is bad!"
Minato, Naruto, and Orochimaru's expressions changed drastically.
There was no time to ponder the abnormality of the sealing scrolls; they quickly moved to Kushina's side, trying to forcefully suppress the Nine-Tails back into the seal.
But it was futile.
The power of the Heavenly Absolute Order was not something they could resist.
Even the Nine-Tails itself was bewildered as it found itself being effortlessly expelled from the seal.
However, recalling the fearsome aura of Hagoromo Gengetsu, and knowing that the people outside were not to be trifled with, the Nine-Tails decided to leave part of its chakra within Kushina to ensure she wouldn't die from the tailed beast's extraction.
"ROAR!!!"
The moment the Nine-Tails appeared outside, its colossal form loomed before Naruto and the others. The beast's nine gigantic tails lashed out, roaring triumphantly as it reveled in its return to the outside world.
"Kushina!"
"Mom!"
Knowing all too well what happens to a jinchuriki when a tailed beast is extracted, Minato and Naruto anxiously looked at Kushina.
"I'm fine."
Kushina, who had expected to be at death's door, realized that a familiar power was sustaining her life. "It's Kurama! It saved my life."
"I'm fine! Don't worry!"
Kushina hugged her husband and son tightly.
Orochimaru, who had been watching the Nine-Tails, noticed that it hadn't gone on a rampage or shown any killing intent. It simply stood there, roaring.
Understanding that nothing drastic was likely to happen in the short term, he turned his attention back to the series of events that had just unfolded and began to ponder:
"The sealing scrolls and the jinchuriki seal malfunctioned at the same time. This is no coincidence; it must be deliberate."
Reflecting on who had just been here and who possessed the power to do such a thing, Orochimaru was almost certain.
Having narrowly avoided losing Kushina, Minato also regained his composure.
If he wasn't mistaken, among the four of them present, both he and Orochimaru had sealing scrolls. And now, Kushina's seal had malfunctioned at the exact same moment.
If it was indeed that person responsible, then to affect things from such a distance...
This likely wasn't confined to just them—many places would have been impacted as well.
Naruto, realizing something, immediately exclaimed, "I remember now! Hagoromo Gengetsu! He has an incredibly powerful ability: whatever he declares, he can make it so. The Sage of Six Paths said this ability could even affect the entire planet!"
"A power of divine decree? That's truly an enviable ability!" Orochimaru muttered with a mix of awe and dread.
Kushina, having just escaped death, glanced at the Nine-Tails nearby and panted, "Why would he do this?"
Minato looked off into the distance, his expression serious. "I don't know what his ultimate goal is. But one thing is certain—starting now, the Shinobi World will face an invasion from beings of another world!"
As Naruto and the others had feared, the moment they were affected by the Heavenly Absolute Order, people all over the planet were impacted as well.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
White smoke erupted as sealing scrolls stored in various ninja villages, and those carried by ninjas, all simultaneously unfurled. The vast array of items stored within spilled out in an avalanche, causing many buildings housing the scrolls to collapse instantly.
And this was just the beginning.
Although the items inside the scrolls remained largely undamaged, the real terror gripping the villages and ninjas was the deafening roars of tailed beasts suddenly freed from their confines.
Not every tailed beast was as restrained as the Nine-Tails, who had encountered a truly fearsome individual.
Freed after being sealed for so long, the tailed beasts immediately unleashed chaos, seeking revenge in a storm of bloodshed.
The entire Shinobi World plunged into turmoil.
Hagoromo Gengetsu's entrance into this world left the ninjas with an unforgettable disaster.
Though it wasn't his intention, his actions had never considered the tailed beasts.
Just as one might unknowingly step on an ant while walking, the destructive power of a being at the Six Paths level was fully displayed at this moment.
Moreover, aside from the sealing scrolls and the release of tailed beasts, other mysterious entities found themselves unexpectedly ejected from their own dimensions into the real world.
This included beings like the Shinigami and Jashin, whom Hagoromo Gengetsu had once known well.
These ancient entities, well-versed in the art of survival, did not recklessly reveal themselves like the tailed beasts. Instead, they hid, cautiously observing the situation before making their next move.
Hagoromo Gengetsu paid no heed to these insignificant spirits.
As the golden paper on the sacred object beside him burned at a speed far exceeding the last time, Hagoromo Gengetsu's Rinnegan scanned the surroundings.
Soon, his gaze locked onto the west.
"Found you!"
With a sharp gleam in his eyes, Hagoromo Gengetsu took a step forward, opening the Yomotsu Hirasaka, and stepped into the black portal.
In the next moment, as his right foot stepped out of the black portal, he had already arrived at his destination.