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"—Sasuke, you are NOT allowed to hurt Black Uncle!!!"
The shout echoed. In the outside world, a repulsive force blasted Sasuke away from Naruto's body!
Inside the six-pointed star barrier within Naruto's consciousness, Sasuke's figure grew translucent, while Black Zetsu's nearly vanished form… solidified once more!
Having cheated death in the millennium's greatest crisis… Black Zetsu's elation was beyond words!
"Ha… hahahahaha! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Naruto, Naruto, you truly are my lucky star…!!!"
"Urgh…!!!"
Pain twisted Madara's expression…!!
That familiar feeling was back, but this time, he couldn't resist it. The tide of Naruto's awakening… was unstoppable!!
"This time… it really is a changing of the guard."
The black abyss of the subconscious.
Thump! Thump! Thump-thump-thump!
A cocoon, pulsing like a heart, throbbed violently!!
Black vines covering its surface loosened with each swell. Through the gaps, golden light erupted, shredding the dark tendrils instantly…!!
Crack! The cocoon split. More golden radiance spilled forth… banishing the deep sea's darkness in an instant!
At the nexus of light… the boy who emerged, wings unfurled, was the golden-haired Naruto!!
He was naked. Sapphire eyes blinked open… Behind him, a pair of vivid crimson butterfly wings spread wide!
Those wings were the final power Kushina left for her beloved son.
Before him… hovered a white, prismatic crystal!
That was the three-tenths of the Black Cursed Seal forcibly stripped away by Minato, purified, and irrevocably bound to Naruto's will—a power even Madara couldn't reclaim!
"..."
Naruto's gaze was unfocused. Instinctively, he lifted his hand and grasped the crystal!
Within the six-pointed barrier.
Madara closed his eyes. Naruto opened his. Ashura lowered his lids. Kurama bared his fangs. Black Zetsu's face contorted in a grimace…!!
This was the final frozen image—because the one sustaining this barrier, Sasuke's form, had vanished completely!!
Crack! The barrier shattered. Dust to dust.
Everything on the consciousness plane took only an instant in reality.
The instant between Sasuke being blasted away and Orochimaru catching him from behind.
Izanagi reached its limit… yet Sasuke stubbornly refused to let his final eyelid close!
Through a frosted-glass haze…
He saw Naruto's silhouette stagger to its feet!!
See! See it clearly!!! Is that… really Naruto!!!
Tch…!!!
Blood vessels burst in Sasuke's pale irises!!!
He saw it!!!
On the three ripples of the Rinnegan in Naruto's right eye… six tomoe were embedded!!
"Ha…" Sasuke laughed.
It was Naruto. No doubt.
His judgment hinged on Naruto's recent experiences… and the growth mechanism of the Black Cursed Seal!
Like the White Cursed Seal, the Black Seal had four states, marked by eye manifestations: Mangekyō Sharingan, Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan, Pseudo-Rinnegan, and… the true Rinnegan!!
The first three states followed the principles of the Impure World Reincarnation—those eyes were projections of the soul, not real. Thus, State Three's Rinnegan was false, incapable of Rinne Rebirth, summoning the Gedo Statue, or the innate ocular power 'Limbo: Border Jail'.
State Three's peak was seven-tenths of the Black Seal's power.
During Madara's tug-of-war with Kurama, Minato had stripped three-tenths, binding it to Naruto.
So, State Three… was 'Naru-Madara's' limit. To grow stronger, Naru-Madara had absorbed Nagato's chakra. Even if Nagato's chakra surpassed the hollowed-out three-tenths, it couldn't bridge the power gap!
Because… those sealed three-tenths were the key to 'State Four'!
It wasn't a matter of chakra quantity… but the genesis of a genuine Rinnegan!!
Only the complete power of the Black Cursed Seal… could unlock 'State Four'!
Yes, that was merely the prerequisite. For the 'True Rinnegan' to manifest, another condition was needed!!
The destruction of the 'physical eye' Madara left in the living world!
Now… through a sheer twist of fate, that condition was met. Madara's right eye had been destroyed by Uchiha Obito's Izanagi!!!
Thus… a new, greater Rinnegan, born from Madara but never to be his, now gleamed within the pupil of Naruto's right eye!!!
"Naruto… you're finally awake. Sorry. Didn't manage to remove the pest for you."
Sasuke's right eye shut completely. His world plunged into darkness… He had exhausted everything. He didn't even have the strength to heal the burns covering the left side of his body!!!
"Sasuke!!! Bite me, bite me now!!!"
Karin rushed forward, frantic… but Sasuke lacked even the strength to bite down.
"Let me!!"
Kabuto lunged forward, medical ninjutsu already flaring at his fingertips as he began treating Sasuke.
"Sa…suke?"
Naruto, consciousness freshly restored, wore a face full of confusion, not yet synced with reality!
It felt like a long, long dream… the images within blurred between truth and illusion. A deep sense of unreality clung to him, as if he were still dreaming.
A voice echoed in his mind, Black Zetsu's voice: "Naruto, you're finally awake. Lord Jiraiya would be so relieved to see you…"
"B…Black Uncle?"
"It is I."
"Pervy Sage… he's not back yet?"
"Soon."
"Sasuke… what happened to him?"
"Sasuke was led astray by Orochimaru. He attacked Konoha. Just now… he even tried to kill me. You saved me."
"What? Sasuke attacked Konoha? Then everyone… Ugh!!!"
Naruto clutched his black-streaked-with-red hair in pain.
"My head hurts. My memories are all jumbled… What do I do? I can't just leave Sasuke like this!!"
"Naruto, I understand. Your condition is poor. The priority is to find a place to rest and recover. You must leave here now!!!"
"Leave… how? My body feels so heavy!"
"Leave it to me. I can manage…"
"How?"
"Relax. Don't resist…"
"Okay…"
Zzzzt…!
From the Black Cursed Seal on Naruto's nape, a black line crawled up toward his 'right eye'!!
Zzzt—!!!
A jet-black portal tore open behind him!!!
Black Zetsu, manipulating Naruto's body, leaped into the portal. As it closed, his gaze lingered on Orochimaru—a silent boast of victory.
Orochimaru, your techniques may be powerful, but they're mere centuries old. I, Ōtsutsuki Kuroshiki, have lived for millennia. I will not relinquish this future!! My Naruto, who has surpassed you, will inevitably surpass Sasuke as well!!
Orochimaru never once granted Black Zetsu a direct look.
His lowered, serpentine eyes held only the deeply unconscious boy whose lips still curved in a faint smile.
—"Rest well, Sasuke. When you wake, the world in your eyes will be irrevocably changed. In this life, Naruto has a new destiny he must grasp for himself. Our interference ends here. For a time, he may become your most formidable rival. But I, Orochimaru, swear in the name of truth: you, Uchiha Sasuke, will never fall from your throne."
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