Chapter 154: Face Your Heart, Ashura!
What does the deepest part of one's heart look like?
In the Ninja world, Naruto didn't have the conditions to understand it, but after becoming a soul in Soul Society and fully revealing his dual-soul state, Naruto finally had the opportunity to face his inner self.
Was it innate kindness, innate coldness, or perhaps a mix of both, or something else entirely... Today, there should be an answer.
Pitch black, unable to see one's hand in front of one's face, a thick stench of blood assailed his nose.
In the distance, there was a speck of light, not particularly bright but exceptionally conspicuous.
Upon arriving in his inner world, there were no familiar sewers here, nor that mountain-sized great fox, or the massive iron cage used to imprison it.
" Patter, patter. "
The ground beneath his feet felt like it had been poured with lead, heavy and sticky; the sensation of stepping on it was very strange.
Yearning for light is common to all humans, and Naruto was no exception.
He was now walking slowly toward that speck of light.
" You've finally come, Naruto. "
As he approached the light, the speck of firefly-like radiance, no larger than a grain of rice, suddenly expanded. The blinding light made Narutoinstinctively raise his hand to shield his eyes.
As if all his memories had been sealed, Narutofound this voice very familiar. Hazy memories reminded Naruto that he should know the name of the owner of this voice.
But no matter how hard he racked his brain, he couldn't recall it.
" You... "
" You should know my name. "
The light dissipated, and the previously pitch-black space was suddenly illuminated. Having adapted to the light, Naruto slowly moved his right hand away from his eyes, only then seeing the person's appearance clearly.
It felt like he had seen him somewhere before.
The black magatama evenly arranged in a circle on the shoulders of the white kimono looked more and more familiar.
" Those dark powers are not yours to possess; they are a mistake! " A pitch-black staff was held in his hand. " Defeat me, or let me completely correct you! "
" This is my place, get out! "
It wasn't that his memory had completely returned to normal, but the general sequence of events was clear; however, he just couldn't for the life of him recall the name of the person in front of him.
A Kunai, a weapon that shouldn't have appeared in Soul Society, was held in Naruto's hand in a reverse grip.
" Tell me your name! "
" Defeat me, or... let me completely dispel the darkness in your heart! "
Without further ado, Naruto lunged forward. The dark matter that had been scattered by the light condensed once again, rapidly spreading forward with Naruto at the point.
He would have to prove his worth through combat!
" Everything you know, I know, but there are things I know that you don't! "
The person floated into the air, and after a flicker, suddenly appeared behind Naruto, striking his back heavily with the staff in his hand.
Stumbling, Naruto fell forward, but immediately dissolved into a cloud of black mist.
Coincidentally, like nesting dolls, Narutoimmediately reappeared behind that person, the Kunai in his hand stabbing straight at his neck.
" Clang! "
He easily blocked it, then suddenly raised his right foot.
The next second, Naruto's chest took a heavy blow, and after flipping several times in the air, he slid a long distance on the ground before barely managing to stop his retreat.
But the attack wasn't over yet.
Almost as if he understood what Naruto was thinking, Naruto's attack rhythm fell completely under that person's control, like a cricket trapped in a cage, at his mercy.
The outcome of the battle was obvious; the increasingly intense light illuminated every corner of Naruto's heart, and the colors belonging to Naruto were gradually pushed to the brink.
" This is not what I want! " Naruto gritted his teeth and propped up his upper body. " Whether it's darkness or light, being too pure is fake; that's simply not realistic! "
" But it is the reality now. "
The person said in a flat tone, his floating body slowly approaching Naruto, the staff in his hand placed against Naruto's forehead.
" You have lost; your consciousness will return to the correct path. "
" I am indeed no match for you. " Naruto's mouth suddenly curled up. " But this is not the world you are familiar with anymore, Ashura! "
" You... "
Ashura felt his own power rapidly dissipating, most of it absorbed by Naruto, while a small portion of the power carried his consciousness toward another unknown place.
Between life and death, or existence and annihilation, there is great terror. Just as his consciousness was about to be replaced, the name hidden in the depths of Naruto's heart suddenly surfaced.
The second son of Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo, Ashura!
" If in the Ghost Path, with the power of a Protector, riding through the void, this is Ashura! " Naruto had a sudden flash of inspiration, and the Shikai incantation blurted out, " Face your heart, Ashura! "
This is impossible!
Watching his own body gradually being enveloped by darkness, Ashura, who could no longer speak, had horrified eyes; his original power was gradually disappearing.
Not only that, a wild, combative, and easily angered emotion sprouted from the depths of Ashura's heart, destroying his Heart-Nature that had persisted for thousands of years from the inside out.
Outside, the asauchi that Naruto had placed flat on his knees was also undergoing earth-shaking changes.
The blade, originally shining with a pale, snow-white light, was rapidly covered in pitch black. After the whole body became pitch black, a few white lines intertwined within it, as if only between the alternation of day and night could such a beautiful scene appear.
Suddenly opening his eyes, the bizarre situation of dual-soul coexistence was completely resolved. After devouring the more powerful soul of Ashura, a supreme Spiritual Pressure unique to Narutoerupted.
The dust on the ground vibrated, and after slowly decomposing into reishi, it began to swirl around Naruto's soul in a specific pattern, becoming more and more intense.
The dense reishi in Seireitei gathered rapidly, to the point that after the reishi in the entire Soul Reaper Academy was completely drained, the reishi in other places had to desperately rush toward the Soul Reaper Academy to quickly fill the void.
" What happened! "
" Is a captain-level Shinigami fighting?! "
" This Spiritual Pressure, has some captain-level Shinigami activated Bankai! "
" It's from the direction of the Soul Reaper Academy, this new powerful Spiritual Pressure... it really is... "
After possessing a zanpakutō and activating Shikai, the Spiritual Pressure overflowing from Naruto's soul covered more than half of Seireitei, which made many Shinigami suspicious while rushing toward the direction of Naruto.
In Squad 11, the smile Unohana Yachiryu held became even richer; she was very familiar with this Spiritual Pressure.
In Squad 1, Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto, who was handling various affairs, looked up. The zanpakutō placed to the side emitted a trembling sound, as if it had found the opponent it had dreamed of.
" The younger generation is to be feared! " He sighed heavily. " Soul Society will welcome another great general; it is time to completely resolve the threats of Hueco Mundo and the Quincy, and let the world created by the Soul King return to balance! "
" This is the true Ashura, focused on combat and killing, not on enlightening all living beings! "
Naruto retracted the Spiritual Pressure that had soared into the sky, gently stroking the black and white blade in his hand, a genuine smile appearing on his lips. He was finally himself again!
" So, the one who refused to face his own heart all along was you! "
Sheathing his sword, the massive Spiritual Pressure receded like a tide. The now gentle and refined Naruto looked up and smiled slightly at Unohana Yachiryu, who had rushed over to observe the situation.
His demeanor was extremely similar to Unohana Yachiryu at this moment, which made the latter slightly stunned. She then looked at the zanpakutōin Naruto's hand, the expression in her eyes indescribably strange.