The Ten-Tails inside Ōtsutsuki Reishiki had been completely extracted by Kaito. His aura instantly weakened, dropping almost to the lowest point.
When Obito first had the Ten-Tails pulled from him, he didn't die. From the Nine-Tails' words, one could tell that a Ten-Tails jinchūriki was extremely special— even if the Ten-Tails was removed, the husk of the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path would remain inside the body, sustaining the jinchūriki's life.
But because this Ten-Tails had not yet consumed an Ōtsutsuki body, it had not taken physical form. There was no "husk" like the Demonic Statue.
Even as a pure-blooded Ōtsutsuki, Reishiki could hardly endure the consequences of losing the Ten-Tails. Wrinkles were already forming on his skin— the ultimate sign of extreme aging.
"The Ten-Tails is mine!!!"
Reishiki let out a hysterical roar, once again unleashing his ocular jutsu, Shikome-no-Kami, removing himself from reality just long enough to keep himself alive.
At the same time, countless black tendrils of blood vessels burst from his body, latching onto the black mass that Kaito had torn out, desperately trying to draw the Ten-Tails' power back into himself.
Kaito immediately commanded his Truth-Seeking Orbs to attack Reishiki, but every strike was blocked by the red aura wrapping around him.
Seeing this, Reishiki laughed triumphantly. At this rate, he would recover soon and escape this damned space.
Naturally, Kaito had no intention of letting his efforts go to waste. Staring at the black tendrils latched into the Ten-Tails, a thought flashed through his mind:
"If Reishiki can absorb the Ten-Tails, then why can't I? Isn't the Ten-Tails the source of Devil Fruits?!"
With that thought, Kaito suddenly grasped the black mass formed from the Ten-Tails and activated the power of the Preta Path.
A terrifying suction burst from his palm. The Ten-Tails' energy surged wildly into Kaito's body.
Even the bit of Ten-Tails' chakra that Reishiki had just managed to draw back flowed out through those black tendrils and was sucked into Kaito— stolen effortlessly.
For the first time, Reishiki was truly afraid. He screamed frantically:
"No!! Give it back! That's mine! All mine!!"
But why would Kaito care? Yours, mine—once the Preta Path is unleashed, everything becomes mine, Uchiha Kaito's!
Kaito intensified his absorption. The black mass in his hands shrank rapidly, while Reishiki's body visibly withered, collapsing in on itself. His voice grew weaker and weaker, muttering over and over:
"Give it back… it's mine… mine…"
Until finally, it vanished.
Kaito had completed the absorption of the Ten-Tails. Compared to when he had absorbed Devil Fruits before, this was far slower— of course, that was only because the Ten-Tails' energy was unimaginably vast.
When it was over, Kaito's body did not undergo any dramatic change. The only clear difference was a blood-red Rinnegan with twelve tomoe that had opened on his forehead.
Other than that, his body brimmed with a ceaseless stream of power. The sensation brought a look of intoxicated pleasure to his face. Fortunately, Kaito did not lose himself in the ecstasy of power— he quickly sobered and glanced at the lifeless Ōtsutsuki Reishiki before him.
Reishiki was barely clinging to life, half-dead and drifting weakly in midair.
Naturally, Kaito had no intention of wasting this Ōtsutsuki body. The Ten-Tails inside him was still alive, and to transform it into the God Tree and bear fruit, he still needed the nourishment of an Ōtsutsuki body.
Black energy surged around him, rising into the sky and condensing into the Ten-Tails' head.
The moment the Ten-Tails saw Reishiki, it revealed a disturbingly human expression of hatred and greed. Without even waiting for Kaito's command, it lunged forward, swallowing Reishiki whole in one bite. The air filled with horrifying chewing sounds.
But after devouring Ōtsutsuki Reishiki, the Ten-Tails did not transform into the God Tree as Kaito expected. Its body simply became more solid.
Kaito's eyes narrowed thoughtfully. He guessed that this must be because this particular Ten-Tails was different.
According to Reishiki, this Ten-Tails was formed from Ōtsutsuki Shibai's body. It could even produce Devil Fruits without transforming into the God Tree. To bear the ultimate God Tree fruit, however, it would require far more energy— certainly more than a single Ōtsutsuki body could provide. It needed more Ōtsutsuki!
Once it did transform into the God Tree, the fruit it bore would undoubtedly be a supreme masterpiece. Eating it might even elevate one to become the next Ōtsutsuki God.
As for the level of power an Ōtsutsuki God would possess, Kaito figured it had to at least reach single-universe scale.
Whatever the case, this Ten-Tails had opened a new evolutionary path for him. Whether he could complete it would depend on whether he could find enough Ōtsutsuki to feed the beast.
For Kaito, now the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki, that wouldn't be difficult. Reishiki had said before that this Ten-Tails had the ability to traverse dimensions!
Reishiki hadn't had the chance to use it because he had only just escaped from Imu's seal, and wanted to feed Kaito to the Ten-Tails first.
With this ability, Kaito could return to the Naruto world— and that place certainly wasn't lacking in Ōtsutsuki.
At the thought, a meaningful smile tugged at Kaito's lips.
The Ōtsutsuki clan, who spent their days hunting the life of entire planets, would never have imagined that one day they themselves would become the hunted.
Kaito tilted his head back, gazing at the crimson sun hanging high above. The red Rinnegan on his forehead half-opened, releasing an invisible pulse.
The Rinnegan pattern on the sun gradually faded, its crimson hue dissipating, until it became just an ordinary sun again.
The cocoons scattered across the world dissolved, and the people inside slowly opened their eyes with dazed expressions.
Then they awoke fully, and all at once dropped to their knees, as if worshiping something.
What Kaito hadn't expected was that the Infinite Tsukuyomi's dream was shaped by the caster's will. When Madara cast it, he had wanted people to live in their own happiest dream worlds.
But Reishiki had no such kindness. He delighted in watching the despair on the faces of lesser beings. In his dream, all people saw was endless darkness— and a blood-red sun hanging above.
He had even "helpfully" told everyone in the dream: you are trapped in a world I created, your bodies will be my nourishment, so sit tight and wait for death!
When Kaito deactivated the Infinite Tsukuyomi, his form appeared within the dream as well. Everyone saw Kaito ending it, and knew that he was the one who had saved them.
Thus, in their hearts, Kaito had become the true savior— far more genuine than the Celestial Dragons' self-proclaimed "descendants of the Gods."