Chapter 469: Pure Land
What exactly did the Pure Land look like?
Before truly setting foot in this place, Naruto had many speculations in his heart. Hagoromo Otsutsuki, the Sage of Six Paths, had told him it was a resting place, but souls within could only fall into eternal slumber.
Now, after Naruto brought Satsuki and personally descended into this special space between life and death with his new administrator's authority, he finally obtained the most intuitive answer.
The answer was nearly absolute "nothingness."
This was a domain stripped of all worldly concepts. There was no concept of sky—overhead was eternal, oppressive blackness.
There was no solid earth. Underfoot was similarly a void, as if standing on an invisible position. No light, no darkness, only a uniform, shadow-less, drowsiness-inducing gray-dim brightness.
No air movement, no temperature changes, no scents. One could not feel time's passage. All senses became dull and blurred here.
The only proof this place was not completely empty were those countless blurred, semi-transparent humanoid shadows scattered throughout the endless void.
They were like flying insects frozen in amber, in various postures yet all maintaining absolute stillness. Their faces retained the final expression from before death... but all of this was covered by eternal "slumber."
Their consciousness had sunk to the deepest seabed, unable to awaken, also unable to truly perceive, wandering unconsciously in an endless dream.
No communication, no interaction, only a deathly silent, stagnant existence.
This was the truth of souls in the Pure Land—a massive, cold consciousness morgue named "rest."
"This place... is much worse than what that old man described." Naruto said in a low voice, his tone without much surprise.
Satsuki followed beside him, her brows tightly knitted. Even knowing this place now in some sense counted as Naruto's jurisdiction, her body's instinctive reaction was still faster than thought. She unconsciously positioned herself between Naruto and this unsettling void.
And Naruto, after personally witnessing this "post-death land's" desolation and coldness, the thought of establishing order in his heart had rapidly condensed from a vague concept into a clear blueprint.
The Sage of Six Paths wanted him to establish order here? Fine, then he would establish one.
An order different from this eternal stagnation, more... "warm," more in line with his understanding of "rest."
However, one must eat meals bite by bite, and worlds must be transformed bit by bit. Naruto decided to start first with the most basic environment.
He slightly closed his eyes, his mind sinking into that vast star-sea-like energy source within his body, connecting with that authority touching the world's fundamental laws. As his thoughts flowed, he softly spoke that divine art's name.
"Universal Manifestation."
No earth-shaking momentum, no dazzling light bursts. It was as if a painter simply lifted a brush and applied the first stroke of color to a blank canvas.
With Naruto's standing position as the center, the power of "correction" spread unstoppably in all directions.
First was the ground. The void beneath his feet was injected with the concepts of "solidity" and "support," rapidly solidifying, taking on color, transforming into a boundless verdant grassland.
Tender green grass blades grew silently, carrying a fresh, conceptually-existing fragrance, extending all the way to the horizon's end, replacing that heart-palpitating void.
Next was the sky. The eternal deep gray overhead was torn open, was "defined." A clear, water-blue firmament spread out. White clouds drifted leisurely, bringing perception of height and openness.
Then, Naruto raised his hand and gently plucked a wisp of pure light and warmth's essence from the distant real-world sun.
He placed this thread of solar concept at the firmament's center. It immediately unfurled, transforming into a wheel of golden radiance—not glaring yet sufficient to illuminate this entire newborn world—a small sun.
Warm yet not scorching brilliance fell, dispelling the eternally unchanging gray dimness, casting faint, reassuring shadows on the green grass.
In just a few breaths, a deathly cold void had been transformed into a miniature world possessing blue sky, white clouds, sunlight, grasslands—tranquil yet full of vitality.
Creating worlds, dividing heaven and earth, defining rules—this should have been authority belonging only to gods.
And now, Uzumaki Naruto could already exercise this power so effortlessly.
Satsuki stood on the newborn grassland, feeling the real sensation beneath her feet, looking up at that warm "sun." Without the slightest jealousy or inferiority, her heart held only pride and love.
Her gaze wandered across the grassland, soon drawn to a figure not far away.
It was a black-haired male soul shadow. Half his face bore obvious burn-like wrinkled marks. Even in slumber, his brows seemed to hold an indelible obsessiveness.
"Naruto..." Satsuki tugged Naruto's sleeve, pointing that direction. Her voice turned cold. "Look, that one... is that bastard, right?"
Uchiha Obito.
"Mm, that's right." Naruto's gaze swept over Obito's shadow. "But don't worry, Satsuki. I haven't forgiven this guy. If we're going to establish order here, then naturally there will be corresponding arrangements for souls who committed heinous crimes in life. We absolutely won't let them enjoy the same treatment as ordinary resting souls."
Immediately after, Naruto's gaze fell beside Obito's soul shadow, where there was also a relatively petite, quiet girl's soul.
He recognized her—Nohara Rin. The two souls in slumber maintained a subtle distance.
"Good grief... You kid, your movements are way too fast, aren't they?"
A voice carrying thick helplessness, fatigue, and some complaint suddenly sounded behind the two. The voice was very familiar.
Naruto and Satsuki turned around to see a figure reconstituted from chakra, appearing slightly illusory—it was precisely Hagoromo Otsutsuki, the Sage of Six Paths, who had just gone back to rest not long ago.
He looked obviously more substantial than when in the real world just now, like an actual entity. His face carried the weariness of "just fell asleep and was woken up."
"I accumulated a thousand years of fatigue. Finally managed to hand over the burden, wanting to have a good sleep in this familiar void. But my eyes hadn't been closed long when the sky suddenly brightened! Grass grew out! Even these old bones were stirred awake by this vitality, unable to continue slumbering... You kid, can't you let an old person rest a bit more?"
Hagoromo's tone complained half-seriously.
Hearing this, Satsuki spoke to refute without the slightest courtesy. "Don't say such irresponsible things. You yourself asked Naruto to take over this place and have him establish new order."
"Since you've handed over power and responsibility, you should have expected the person taking over would have their own methods. Did you really expect Naruto to follow your old path and continue maintaining this deathly void?"
Sage of Six Paths Hagoromo was choked speechless by Satsuki, only able to let out a long, helpless sigh. He felt like an extremely tired person who finally found a quiet place to lie down, just sank into sweet darkness, only to have the bed replaced with a sunny grassland, birds chirping in his ears, forcibly dragged back from deep sleep.
This feeling of forced awakening really couldn't be called pleasant.
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