Naruto: Starting with the Ōtsutsuki Bloodline

Chapter 104: The Newly Awakened Eyes

"What the hell is going on?!"

Inside an ANBU base just outside Konoha, Hiruzen Sarutobi glared furiously at a sheepish Jiraiya.

Since the Fourth Raikage couldn't be brought directly into the village, they had chosen a neutral location for a temporary holding. Jiraiya selected this ANBU outpost, and Hiruzen had rushed over the moment he was informed—though not to meet the Raikage just yet. First, he needed answers.

His face was pale, and the lingering smell of antiseptic clung to him—it was clear he had just come from the hospital. Upon receiving Jiraiya's report, he had nearly collapsed.

His chest tightened, dizziness set in, and it was only thanks to a nearby ANBU that he made it to the hospital in time. Otherwise, who knows what could have happened?

"Well, uh... there might be a bit of a misunderstanding here."

Jiraiya quickly shot Tsunade a pleading look, eyes full of desperation.

Tsunade wasn't in the mood to speak up—but ultimately, she stepped in to help him out.

"Old man, I'm not sure what exactly happened either. That Fourth Raikage insisted on following us back, and no amount of persuasion could stop him. It was like... if we let him go, it was the same as sentencing him to death."

"Letting him go equals killing him?"

Hiruzen frowned, confused. "How does that even make sense?"

"That's exactly how he acted."

Tsunade gave Jiraiya a sidelong glance and then looked to Kakashi, speaking lazily.

"Though... it might have something to do with him secretly eavesdropping on our conversation."

"...What exactly did you say?"

Watching Tsunade's nonchalant expression, Hiruzen could only take deep breaths to calm himself.

He could already sense something wasn't right. Did they say something truly outrageous?

"Don't ask me. I'm too embarrassed to repeat it."

Tsunade snorted and looked away.

"Can't believe this is what Konoha's come to..."

Hiruzen's unease only deepened. He glanced at Jiraiya, then finally looked toward Kakashi.

"Kakashi. You explain it."

"Huh? Me?"

Kakashi felt his scalp go numb but reluctantly nodded.

"Actually... it really was all a big misunderstanding."

"Just get to the point."

"Gen suggested that we release the Fourth Raikage in a public area—then mark him with the Flying Thunder God seal and..."

"Stop. That's enough."

At that, Hiruzen immediately understood why the Fourth Raikage had insisted on coming back to Konoha.

As Hokage, he'd dealt with many Raikages before. He knew how these "battle maniacs" thought.

They weren't afraid of dying—not really.

Just look at the Third Raikage, who held off ten thousand Iwagakure shinobi alone for three days and nights so his men could retreat.

What they feared was dying dishonorably—by trickery, ambush, or betrayal.

The Fourth Raikage must've sensed a trap and decided it was safer to come to Konoha directly. After all, he figured Konoha wouldn't dare kill him openly.

"You people really know how to stir up trouble."

Hiruzen rubbed his temples, trying to steady his emotions. After a while, he calmed down enough to speak again.

"Forget it. I'll meet with him personally. He does have the Flying Thunder God mark on him, right?"

"Yes. Gen confirmed it himself—I trust him."

Jiraiya nodded quickly.

Hiruzen brushed off his robes and nodded.

"Good. Last time, Konoha didn't have a choice. But now... things are different."

There was no turning back. While Hiruzen hoped for peace, he was fully prepared to retaliate if necessary.

Especially against Kumogakure—he hadn't forgotten their past crimes, like trying to force Konoha to hand over a Hyuga after the war.

Back then, Konoha had just ended a devastating conflict and hadn't yet recovered. The death of the Fourth Hokage and the Nine-Tails incident had left the village reeling.

Faced with Kumo's unreasonable demands, they'd been backed into a corner.

If not for Hiashi's twin brother offering himself as a sacrifice, Konoha might've been plunged into war again.

But now, the situation had changed—and Hiruzen had more leverage.

"Still..."

Hiruzen suddenly turned back toward the others.

"Next time you people want to 'plot,' could you at least do it somewhere more private?"

"..."

"That plan... in extreme situations, it's not entirely off the table."

"..."

Jiraiya fell silent. Tsunade snorted again, clearly unimpressed with Konoha's leadership.

Kakashi just hung his head, not daring to speak.

After a long pause, Jiraiya mumbled:

"As expected of the strongest Hokage..."

"?!"

"No, wait, old man! Don't hit me—you just got out of the hospital!"

"It was you people who put me in there in the first place!"

"Stop, stop! At least we got intel on Kakuzu and the Akatsuki. No one even ended up in the hospital this time!"

"You bastard—I'm someone, aren't I?!"

---

Whoosh—

With a faint ripple of chakra, Kitagawa Gen suddenly reappeared inside his home.

Looking around the small space, he nodded in satisfaction.

"A little cramped, but cozy enough."

He opened the window and saw the vibrant flowers blooming on his windowsill.

"Heh. Looks like Naruto's been watering them for me every day."

Gen nodded again, clearly pleased.

"That kid's not bad."

After a moment's thought, he made a decision.

"When the Chūnin Exams come around, I won't sit next to him. I'll stand behind him instead."

Sure, it wasn't a huge difference—but it might make things a little less intimidating.

"Anyway, back to business."

Gen scanned the area briefly, then created a shadow clone without hesitation.

In the very next instant, his entire figure vanished from the room.

Although he had already confirmed that the Tailed Beast chakra granted by the system wouldn't cause any major issues, he still had to proceed with extreme caution.

After a few teleportations, his figure appeared in a valley within the Land of Fire.

When he looked up, he could even see the towering statues of the Valley of the End in the distance.

"This place will do."

Gen didn't care who had originally left the Flying Thunder God mark here. To him, they were all the same.

His perception range with the Flying Thunder God had grown incredibly vast, allowing him to deal with many enemies with calm and ease.

"Still not far enough. It'd be great if I could sense the mark inside Loran all the way from home."

He hadn't forgotten—hidden deep within Roran was what he called a "gift from nature."

He didn't fully understand the nature of the chakra stored there, but he knew one thing: its reserves were immense.

"Activating that chakra can even enable time travel. If I don't check it out eventually, it'd be a waste of opportunity."

As a blank-slate Ōtsutsuki, his potential and adaptability were off the charts.

A "gift from nature" like that? There was no way he wouldn't have plans for it. At the very least, it could significantly boost his chakra reserves.

"Still, I need to investigate it carefully. If there's anything wrong with that chakra, it could be dangerous. For now, I should deal with the matter at hand."

With that thought, he sat down cross-legged and activated his system.

"System, use the chakra of the Seven-Tails."

The moment he gave the command, a peculiar surge of power began flooding into his body.

Just like with the chakra of the Three-Tails last time, this energy immediately started resonating with his own.

Perhaps because of the residual Three-Tails chakra still within him, the integration with the Seven-Tails was even smoother this time.

Guided by his chakra, the Seven-Tails' power surged straight into his eyes.

"As expected, the power of the fruit still targets the eyes."

From what Gen remembered, the Ōtsutsuki's way of "eye-swapping" was absolutely outrageous.

One moment they had a Rinnegan, next moment the eye turned a different color and gained a new ability.

"Not to mention people like Deidara, opening up a whole new 'art path' in their hands…"

While his thoughts wandered, the pressure in his eyes continued building. He could feel them swelling with power.

With the ongoing influx of Seven-Tails chakra, the pulsating sensation he'd felt earlier intensified drastically.

His eyes, now absorbing chakra with wild hunger, felt as if they were consuming all the power he had.

Fortunately, he had an absurd amount of chakra at his disposal now—anyone else would've been drained to a dried-up husk on the spot.

"With my bloodline boiling like this, it looks like something big is truly awakening."

He murmured to himself, tilting his head to the sky. He could vaguely sense a mysterious presence above—a unique sensation seemingly drawing him toward it.

But that was a concern for later. Right now, his focus was singular:

"What kind of evolution will my eyes undergo?"

To be honest, he still had no clue what form his eyes would eventually take.

He hoped it would be the Tenseigan—but other possibilities had to be considered.

"The first and most likely one... is the Byakugan."

After all, the Byakugan was the foundational template of all ocular powers. Ōtsutsuki Kaguya's eyes never changed—only the one on her forehead evolved into the Rinne Sharingan.

The second possibility was the Rinnegan. It was rare now, yes, but…

"Eventually, everyone and their uncle will have one!"

As for the Jōgan… he hadn't even figured out what that eye did.

Apparently, it could see shadows in space and even predict the future. But...

"Seeing shadows in space? That's oddly specific. And as for predicting the future? I am the future source of information!"

He grumbled to himself, while his bloodline seemed to surge toward a breaking point.

In that moment, his body began to transform.

Previously seated cross-legged, he now appeared to float off the ground, as if gravity no longer held sway over him.

At the same time, the chakra pulsing through his body shattered the dye on his hair, slowly turning it white strand by strand.

His eyes remained tightly shut as a storm of chakra gathered within them.

The throbbing sensation in his eyes intensified, the power gestating within growing stronger and stronger.

No one knew how long it lasted, but eventually the chakra flow slowed.

Gen gently returned to the ground.

And then—

He opened his eyes.

A dazzling blue—deep and vast, as though containing stars within—silently appeared in his gaze.