Naruto: Getting Observation Haki By Sacrificing The Byakugan

But before Madara Uchiha could react, the Sage of Six Paths spoke again: "Listen to me, thousands of years ago, I had a son named Indra. He is the ancestor of your Uchiha clan, and you are his reincarnation in this life."

Black Zetsu's Actions

Even with the Sage of Six Paths' explanation, Madara Uchiha's expression remained sour. Unless the person in front of him was Tajima Uchiha, who would want an extra father out of nowhere?

"Indra, you need power right now, don't you?"

Madara Uchiha: ...

Madara Uchiha wasn't a fool. This Sage of Six Paths suddenly pulled him over, told him that he was his son's reincarnation, and asked if he needed power.

The implication was obvious.

It would be a lie for Madara Uchiha to say he didn't want the power of the Sage. However, admitting that he had an extra father was far more impossible.

Fortunately, the Sage of Six Paths seemed to understand his embarrassment and didn't make things difficult for him. Rather, he didn't seem to care much about Madara's attitude.

The Sage simply reached out, and two streams of extremely high-quality chakra were injected into Madara's body.

"This is the power of the ultimate Yin Release, once possessed by you, and the power of the ultimate Yang Release of your brother, Asura. Once, compared to you, I favored the pure-hearted Asura. But that was unfair to you. Now, I will pass this opportunity to you. Prove yourself worthy."

"You and Asura have been reincarnating and competing for thousands of years. Now, Asura's power has also been given to you. Go, and do whatever you want."

After saying that, without waiting for Madara to react, the Sage of Six Paths waved his hand.

Madara Uchiha felt a sudden trance, and the familiar sensation washed over him.

When he came to, he found himself still standing on the high tower in the Rain Country, as if he hadn't moved a step.

Was it a dream? Or had his consciousness been pulled into that space?

Madara wasn't sure, but he was certain that he had seen the Sage of Six Paths, and he had received the so-called power of Indra.

The unprecedentedly powerful force inside him couldn't be mistaken. The visual prowess in his eyes surpassed the Mangekyō Sharingan.

Most importantly, Madara could feel a force perfectly matching him merging into his body—this must be the power of Indra.

Instinctively, Madara knew that once this power fully integrated, he would reach the legendary Six Paths level.

However, Madara couldn't feel joy from obtaining this power.

It felt as if it had been given to him. Worse, it made him feel like a pawn of another's game, a realization that disturbed him greatly.

He hadn't even been given the chance to refuse.

Along with the power of Indra, Madara felt another force within himself: Asura's ultimate Yang Release, which was ten times more potent than Hashirama Senju's.

Combining this with the words of the Sage of Six Paths, Madara deduced that the reincarnation of Asura, aside from Hashirama, could only be someone else.

So... should he revive Hashirama?

Yes, with this power inside him, he could certainly revive Hashirama—no doubt about it.

But would that fool come to his aid after being revived? There was no need to even think about it. There was no way.

"Handing the choice to me? Heh, then let me be your only pawn. I want to see what other secrets this ninja world hides," Madara muttered as he began absorbing Asura's Yang Release power within his body. After transplanting Hashirama's cells, his body could now fully bear this power.

Yin and Yang combined—one could obtain the power of all things.

After Asura's Yang Release entered his body, Madara underwent a fascinating transformation.

The essence of his life began to evolve, unaffected by any unforeseen influences. The path to the Six Paths level was steady, but something seemed to be completing itself in the process.

But the most obvious change was in Madara's eyes. Though his original Mangekyō Sharingan had merged with him, it still wasn't his true, original eye.

Now, the essence of those eyes' genes had been completely altered, integrated into Madara, and began evolving toward a higher level.

A new Rinnegan was beginning to form, and Madara knew this process all too well.

The last time he'd spent over ten years trying to awaken the Rinnegan. But now, Madara had a premonition that, as long as he wished, the Rinnegan could be born at any moment. Yet, he chose to wait, for the final transformation. Only by fully absorbing these two immense forces could the Rinnegan he was nurturing reach its peak.

The gap between this Rinnegan and the one Nagato possessed would be like the difference between heaven and earth.

It would even surpass the Tenseigan in Konoha.

No, surpassing that child was a certainty. Even if that child hid his strength, reaching the Six Paths level was impossible for him.

When Madara completed his transformation, even without the Rinnegan, he would easily crush that child to death.

This change in strength also altered Madara's mentality. He no longer saw Kawaki Aoba, who had embarrassed him before, as an enemy.

But the only regret Madara felt was that this power hadn't been earned through his own schemes—it had been given to him by the Sage of Six Paths.

Because of this, even after gaining such immense power, Madara could not rest easy. He always felt like he was being used as a pawn, and he was certain that the Sage of Six Paths had some ulterior motive.

Therefore, Madara would never sit idle and wait for death.

The fusion of the Ten-Tails had to continue, and the Eye of the Moon Plan still had to be carried out.

At this point, Madara Uchiha seemed to have no choice but to place his hopes on the legendary Ten-Tails.

Suddenly, Madara narrowed his eyes, as if realizing something important.

If he wanted to escape the fate of being a mere pawn, merging with the Ten-Tails was the only option. However, the stone tablet detailing the Ten-Tails and the Eye of the Moon Plan had been created by the Sage of Six Paths.

Didn't that mean that what he was doing now was still part of the Sage's original design?

Madara was uncertain, but what he knew for sure was that he had no other choice.

Nevertheless, even if he had to walk this path, there was no need to rush.

Feeling the vitality coursing through his body, Madara smiled. Accepting the power of the Ten-Tails had rejuvenated him. It wasn't the unstable youth restored by forbidden techniques, but a true return to his prime—a true revival of his vitality.

With the threat of aging no longer looming, Madara now had far more time at his disposal.

Soon after, Madara summoned Black Zetsu and issued some instructions.

On the surface, Black Zetsu remained as respectful as ever, with no outward signs of change. But once he had retreated, his typically dark face grew even more grim.

'Indra has been revived, and now, he possesses Ashura's power as well. Madara's life force is reaching the level of the Sage of Six Paths. What exactly is happening?'

The situation in the ninja world had become completely uncontrollable. In the past, Black Zetsu would have withdrawn without hesitation, waiting for a hundred or even two hundred years for everyone to die of old age, then coming back to stir trouble and begin his planning once again.

But this era was different. It was the closest Black Zetsu had been in a thousand years to reviving his mother, Kaguya Otsutsuki, and he could not afford to miss this opportunity.

Once Madara's transformation was complete, he would be a suitable vessel for Kaguya's revival.

But the problem was, Black Zetsu had no confidence that he could control Madara once he had fully transformed. The idea of subduing Madara long enough to complete the technique for Kaguya's resurrection seemed nearly impossible.

'It seems I'll need to rethink my plans. Fortunately, Madara no longer needs Nagato's Rinnegan. There is still hope,' Black Zetsu thought, beginning to plan once more.

As for betraying Madara, that thought hadn't crossed Black Zetsu's mind—at least not yet.

Though Madara had grown uncontrollable, he was still useful. Black Zetsu began to consider how he could persuade Madara to use Nagato as an experimental subject for the Ten-Tails Jinchuriki.

He also needed to gather more information—how had Madara become so powerful?

If it was merely the power of Indra, it was understandable, but Ashura's power had somehow also fused with Madara's, which was far from normal.

Meanwhile, within Konoha Village, Kawaki Aoba's expression was serious. He could sense Madara Uchiha's aura, which was growing stronger by the minute.

Without a doubt, this power boost was the work of the Sage of Six Paths himself.

However, the fact that Madara was reaching Six Paths-level strength meant that the Sage wasn't planning to intervene personally.

This was typical. Hagoromo Otsutsuki had withdrawn from the world millennia ago. Even though Kawaki Aoba was an anomaly in the ninja world, it would only draw the Sage's attention to a limited extent.

After all, the Sage of Six Paths had never actively interfered, whether Kaguya Otsutsuki was unsealed or the alien Otsutsuki clan invaded.

The likelihood of Kawaki Aoba forcing Hagoromo to take action was slim, which was why he felt confident in his own power, even going so far as to target his younger brother.

The situation had proven him right.

Although Hagoromo had yet to make a move, he had nonetheless created a Madara Uchiha strong enough to challenge Kawaki Aoba.

For Kawaki Aoba, this was the ideal situation.

Even if Madara attacked after completing his transformation, Kawaki Aoba felt confident he could handle it.

The reason for his confidence was simple—he had his own trump cards.

Glancing at the ancient Zanpakuto resting on the altar, Kawaki Aoba felt even more assured.

The Zanpakuto had been a surprising find.

His thoughts were interrupted as he looked down at a list in his hands.

Kabuto Kawaki, Shisui Uchiha, Anko Mitarashi.

This was the list of team members. Although the team seemed unremarkable on the surface, they had drawn the attention of Konoha's leadership.

First, there was Kabuto, the "adopted" younger brother Kawaki Aoba had picked up on the battlefield in the Land of Wind. After several years of training, Kabuto had grown into a skilled... Genin.

While he wasn't yet at the level of a full-fledged Konoha Genin, thanks to the Teigu Kawaki Aoba had provided him, he now had the strength to face a Jonin.

But that wasn't the real point. What truly drew attention was his identity—he was Kawaki Aoba's younger brother. Even with his current mediocrity, that connection guaranteed him special consideration.

Next, there was Shisui Uchiha. A member of the Uchiha clan, and a descendant of Kagami Uchiha. It could be said that he grew up under Hiruzen Sarutobi's guidance.

The strength of the Will of Fire was clear to anyone who saw it. Shisui's connection to Hiruzen Sarutobi made it obvious that he was on the side of Konoha.

Finally, there was Anko, who represented the Sannin faction and the group that quietly supported Tsunade.

Anko's identity also held significance, as she was considered an heir to the Hokage lineage. After all, Orochimaru—though trapped in Amegakure—had not yet defected and had continued to pass information to the village.

Kawaki Aoba suspected that Danzo's shadow was involved in Orochimaru's original defection in the timeline. Otherwise, Hiruzen Sarutobi had no reason to act against his disciple.

It was clear that the blame for Orochimaru's fall had been shifted entirely onto Danzo, and now, Orochimaru's image was rehabilitated. Even Minato Namikaze, who had suspected something, hadn't pursued the matter because of his guilt toward Orochimaru.

Now, as Kawaki Aoba looked over the list, he fell into deep thought, troubled by his decision.

Just then, Kurenai Yuhi approached. Noticing Kawaki Aoba's frown, she glanced at the list in his hands.

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