Inoiki looked at everyone gathered around him, standing on slightly elevated root part. His gaze moved slowly across their faces, measuring reactions, weighing their understanding, before he began to speak.
"I will now tell you about the most powerful clan in the universe—according to my limited knowledge—the Otsutsuki clan.
In this whole universe… as you all already know, outside the Earth, there is the Moon, the Sun, and beyond that—endless space. Similarly, outside this solar system, there are countless other systems—countless stars, countless worlds.
So there are many planets like ours… and many that are completely different, yet still hold life. Life in forms we may not even be able to comprehend.
Among them, somewhere—I don't know where—resides the Otsutsuki clan. And whether they reside in a single place… or are scattered across existence… that too is beyond my knowledge.
These Otsutsuki clan members generally travel in pairs—from planet to planet that contain life.
They arrive… and they plant something known as a God Tree.
And then… they wait.
They wait for its fruition.
Even a basic member of the Otsutsuki clan has a lifespan of around a thousand years. That is their baseline. So you can imagine… just how long they truly live, and how much time they can afford to wait.
And that God Tree… is the Ten-Tails.
The very same one… we all just saw.
The Otsutsuki do not create it on the spot—they bring it with them. They arrive on a planet… and they plant it there."
He paused briefly, letting the weight of that settle.
"That God Tree sucks the entire vitality out of a planet.
It drains everything—every ounce of life, every trace of natural energy—until the world itself is left completely dry.
At that point… the planet is considered dead.
Not damaged. Not weakened.
Dead.
After absorbing all of that world's essence… it condenses everything into a single Chakra Fruit.
And that… is what they consume.
They eat it to gain even more strength—to become even more powerful than they already are.
And their strength… is on a completely different level.
Even someone like Obito—who you all witnessed—could only contend with them for a short period of time.
But not for long.
Eventually… even he would be killed by them.
They are not just powerful shinobi.
They are beings capable of destroying entire planets."
A faint silence lingered before he continued.
"Not to mention… the Otsutsuki clan possesses a technique through which they can mark a person—or even multiple people.
They place something known as a Karma mark.
They observe those marked… and choose the one with the best compatibility.
And then… they use that person as a vessel.
They can be reborn through that vessel… transferring their entire power into that body.
So in a sense… they are immortal.
They do not truly die.
They simply continue."
A brief pause.
"Now… coming to our planet.
More than a thousand years ago… two Otsutsuki came here.
One named Isshiki.
And the other… Kaguya.
Among them, there exists a hierarchy.
One is superior.
The other… is inferior.
You can think of the inferior one as a servant… or even a sacrifice.
Because that inferior member… is the one who is fed to the Ten-Tails.
When that sacrifice is made, the Ten-Tails grows—transforming into the God Tree.
Then it drains the entire planet… and produces the Chakra Fruit.
But that inferior member is not truly dead.
As I said before… they can resurrect through Karma.
They would have already prepared vessels beforehand.
In this case… Kaguya was the inferior one.
She was meant to be sacrificed.
And Isshiki… would have been the one to consume the fruit.
But at the very last moment… Kaguya betrayed Isshiki.
She severely injured him.
And fed a portion of him to the Ten-Tails… to initiate the growth of the God Tree.
Then… she consumed the Chakra Fruit herself.
Isshiki… despite those injuries… managed to escape.
He is alive.
Somewhere.
Where? I don't know.
Maybe he is listening to all of this.
Maybe not.
But because Kaguya betrayed him… we are still alive today.
Otherwise… this planet would have already become a lifeless husk.
Kaguya remained here.
And later… she gave birth to two children.
Hagoromo.
And Hamura.
To her… those two were truly her own.
And they would have become her generals… meant to stand against the Otsutsuki clan.
Because what she did… was treason.
And for that… she would be hunted.
It has been around a thousand years since then.
Which means… there is a real possibility that the rest of the Otsutsuki clan has already been alerted.
They may already be on their way here.
To complete what was left unfinished."
He let that implication linger before continuing.
"From there on… Kaguya intended to use the God Tree to create an army for herself.
An army capable of standing against the Otsutsuki.
And her two sons… would act as the leaders of that army.
To create that army… she needed to use the Infinite Tsukuyomi.
The White Zetsu you use so willingly… believing them to be your creation…
They are not.
They are humans.
Humans who were transformed by the Infinite Tsukuyomi.
However… Hagoromo had compassion for the people of this planet.
So he and his brother stood against Kaguya.
Together… they sealed her.
And in doing so… they created the Moon.
That is where she was imprisoned.
They also divided the Ten-Tails into nine parts.
One-Tail… Two-Tails… all the way to the Nine-Tails.
Nine separate Tailed Beasts.
Hamura remained on the Moon… to safeguard the seal.
And Hagoromo remained here… on Earth.
But before being sealed… Kaguya separated a part of her will.
And left it behind.
So that one day… it could resurrect her.
That will… is Black Zetsu.
Madara… the one you believe you created—thinking it is your own will—
It is not."
Madara's expression shifted, shock surfacing clearly.
Inoiki continued without pause.
"He has been the mastermind from the very beginning.
Hagoromo—the Sage of Six Paths—had two sons.
Asura.
And Indra.
Indra is considered the ancestor of the Uchiha clan.
And Asura… the ancestor of the Senju and Uzumaki.
Even Indra… was influenced by Black Zetsu.
Though at that time… he was not completely successful.
Because Asura was there."
A slight pause.
"He continued… waiting.
Planning.
Until the time when both of you were born.
Madara Uchiha.
And Senju Hashirama.
You two… are the reincarnations of Indra and Asura.
The moment he saw you… he knew his opportunity had finally come.
And especially you, Madara… your desire for peace… mirrored Indra's.
So he chose you.
The so-called revelation… written in the Naka Shrine of the Uchiha clan—
That was not written by the Sage of Six Paths.
It was written by Black Zetsu.
He deceived you.
Made you believe that only by combining Yin and Yang—by taking Hashirama's cells and awakening the Rinnegan—could you achieve true peace.
And you succeeded.
You awakened the Rinnegan.
But… you grew old.
So you moved your plan forward.
Through Obito.
You forced him into a situation where he could be controlled.
Where he had no choice… but to become a villain.
And Obito… did the same with Nagato.
And the Akatsuki.
Nagato carried your Rinnegan… but believed them to be his own.
Believed he was the chosen one.
Not knowing… that everything was part of your plan.
The eyes were given to him because he was an Uzumaki.
Because he could withstand their power.
And now… everything has led to this moment.
The gathering of the Tailed Beasts.
The sealing into the Gedo Statue.
The recreation of the Ten-Tails.
And the preparation… to cast the Infinite Tsukuyomi."
A pause.
"Your plan… the Infinite Tsukuyomi.
You believed it would create a dream world… where everyone could live happily.
You knew that as long as humans exist… there will always be conflict.
So your solution… was to end that reality.
To place everyone into an illusion.
To let them live peacefully… in dreams.
And die… without ever knowing the truth.
Which means… in reality… you would be forcing humanity into extinction.
This… is one of the most flawed and foolish ideas imaginable.
But even that… is not the full truth.
Those caught in the Infinite Tsukuyomi… do not simply remain in dreams.
At first… yes.
But later… they are transformed.
Into the very soldiers Kaguya intended to create.
And you… as the Ten-Tails' host…
Would become her vessel.
All it would take… is a single push from Black Zetsu.
And Kaguya would resurrect through you.
This was always the outcome.
This… is the full truth."
Silence lingered.
Then Inoiki spoke again.
"Madara… let the past remain in the past.
You are part of that past now.
You do not need to return… to fight for this world.
No one needs it."
He then turned his attention to everyone present.
"And all of you… understand this clearly.
Only through unity… can you stand against the Otsutsuki clan.
Otherwise… you will all die.
One by one."
After hearing this, the Raikage stepped forward immediately.
"You are absolutely right. With a threat like the Otsutsuki clan, we must be prepared. We must unite our forces and stop fighting among ourselves."
Onoki nodded.
Others followed.
Voices rose in agreement.
For the first time… they shared a single goal.
Madara watched in silence.
A common threat… had united them.
Hashirama stepped closer.
"My friend… now you understand. We could have talked this out."
Madara replied coldly, "As if you would understand. You would go to your brother, and everything would change."
Hashirama fell silent.
The distance between them remained.