"Um, um… I'm not an adult yet. I can't go down below. Could you do me a favor? After you leave, find the Gedo Statue. Years ago, some jerk stole it from the Moon. If you can find it, my father could finally rest in peace."
Obito felt sweat prickling his brow, unusually guilty. Luckily, Toneri's eyes were blind.
"Oh, right, you probably haven't seen it. It's… a really weird thing. Hmm, it has ten eyes and sits like this." Toneri demonstrated the posture of the Gedo Statue. "Chains on the wrists, really big. That's the shell of a really powerful monster. If used by bad people, it could summon our ancestors' mother. My father said it's terrifying."
Obito cleared his throat. "I'll try to find it for you. What do you mean the chakra is a 'coordinate'?"
"Literally what it sounds like."
At that, a rumble came from his stomach. Toneri didn't look embarrassed, only cheerful.
"I'm hungry. Can you stay and eat with me? I haven't spoken to anyone for years. The puppets aren't fun at all. I'll make you delicious food. Hmm… you're guests from far away, okay?"
His pleading expression was genuinely warm.
Obito and Kita exchanged glances, then nodded. "Alright."
"Great! A feast! You should stay a few days. I have so many questions for you."
After saying that, Toneri clapped his hands. The female puppet pushed the door open, and Toneri, without any cunning, grabbed both their hands with astonishing precision. One might suspect he truly had no eyes.
"Wow, human hands… so warm. Come on, I'll show you around. I thought I'd never see people again. Ah, by the way, what are your names?"
Finally remembering to ask, Toneri's innocence made it hard to believe this child had survived alone.
"I'm Uchiha Obito. That one is Kita."
"Eh, a woman's hand." Toneri lightly pinched Kita's much larger hand, feeling its softness. He didn't consider it rude. Kita didn't resist; from his expression and actions, it was clear he was a child, utterly naive.
"My name's Ōtsutsuki Toneri. I already said it. The Uchiha clan, descendants of Indra."
"You even know Indra?" Obito asked, slightly surprised.
Toneri casually swung their hands. "Of course. Hamura-sama often visited below. We recorded the events of Indra and Ashura. We know."
"You can go down there?"
"Mm." Toneri nodded. "Once we're adults. But since you're always at war, we go down less. Ugh, I hate that. Every time you fight, more cracks appear."
"What do you mean?"
"I said it! The 'coordinates' you mentioned are the Tailed Beast chakra. When you fight, it fluctuates wildly and causes spatial cracks. The main clan could find you through those cracks. We seal them when they appear."
"First time I've heard of this."
"Yes, our ancestors figured it out. I don't know the exact method, but whenever a crack appears, we seal it. It hides your presence. Why aren't you speaking?" Toneri asked, turning to Kita. Obito nodded slightly. "Kita was injured. She can't speak."
"Oh!" Toneri's mouth dropped open. "First time I've seen a living mute. Amazing!"
But it wasn't really that impressive.
Toneri released Kita's hand, placing a dark green chakra orb in her palm. As Kita raised her hand, the orb merged into her body. Obito's eyes widened, and he snatched Toneri's wrist. "What are you doing?!"
Toneri froze, timidly answering, "Giving… a voice."
"Kita, how do you feel?"
No major sensation—just a slight tickle in her throat, with a hint of warmth. She waved her hand. There was no malice in the chakra; it was harmless. Tentatively, she spoke.
"N-no… it's okay."
Soft and light, to Obito it sounded like Kita's own voice.
"L-let him go. He… has no malice."
Her speech was halting, unfamiliar with forming words. Obito looked down at the childlike Toneri, who appeared innocent and confused by being grabbed.
"How did you do it?"
"I constructed a virtual vocal channel with chakra, filling in the missing parts. Artificial synthesis. Our ancestors used this to give puppets voices."
Obito sheepishly released him. Even without fully understanding, Toneri sensed it and pouted.
"You're so suspicious. Always thinking someone's out to get you. It's really nothing."
Obito felt awkward. Kita smiled and tentatively said, "S-sorry… s-survival… environment… h-harsh…"
"Oh, I know, we used to be like that too," Toneri said. "But later it all got destroyed. I wasn't around for the war."
"Destroyed? What do you mean?" Obito asked.
Toneri shrugged. "Wars. My father said there were many people. Branches and main families, differing ideas about protecting you. Then they fought. The branch won. Few survived. My mother died when I was born. Only my father and I. A few years ago, he died. Now I'm alone."
"And your… eyes? What happened?"
"Ah, this? I was born without eyes. I can control the Tenseigans. I can sense what you're doing even if I can't see you. From here, I can see the castle's perimeter. Look right, there's a huge temple. That's our ancestor Hamura's shrine. You pass it once a year. It takes some time to reach it."
Indeed, a large, impressive temple could be seen with a slight tilt.
"What's a Tenseigan?" Obito asked. Toneri shrugged.
"Our knowledge isn't on the same level. It's unfair. You ask me a question, I ask one back."
"Go ahead," Obito answered promptly. Toneri grinned.
"Down below there's a clan called the Hyuga. Are there girls in the main family? Are they pretty? What do they look like? Long hair?"
Obito and Kita fell silent.
Toneri fired question after question like a machine gun, continuing even through mealtime.
The food was exquisitely prepared, flawless in texture, doneness, and seasoning. Drinks and wine were equally refined, from purity to aging and carefully selected ingredients.
"Ah~ so curious about looks, huh? Want to see what she looks like~" Toneri's childish tone. Kita cut meat on her plate, barely eating, then softly asked, "You can… use chakra to create broken objects, why… can't you create… eyes?"
"Because my eyes can only endure Byakugan. Not all eyes can be used."
"Byakugan?"
"Yes, our clan has Byakugan."
"Your father's eyes couldn't be transplanted?"
"No. They evolved into Tenseigans. The Gedo Statue disappeared, leaving a huge crack. My father could only temporarily suppress it with Tenseigans. Tenseigans require fusion of all eyes from both main and branch families. Missing one pair and it doesn't work."
Kita paused to think, then said, "I… understand. You… help me restore my voice, I… I will help you… with your eyes."
"Eh? How to restore?"
"Find… a pair of Byakugan. Also, why did main and branch families… fight each other?"
Toneri put down his utensils and scratched his head. "Father said your world always causes wars. Eventually, it will attract the Ōtsutsuki main family. The Six Paths order gets messed up. So they want to destroy and rebuild—use Tenseigans to crash the Moon, damage the world, then restore it, erasing chakra fluctuations so they can't find us. That's our branch family's idea. The main family? They say leave it. No obligation to care about you. Just don't let them find us. That's why there were so many wars. Many died. The branch won, but almost everyone was dead. By the time it reached me, only I was left."
Whether branch or main, the methods were simple and brutal.
Obito frowned. "This is how you protect the world below?"
Toneri shrugged. "Not my fault. You caused it. You fight with Tailed Beasts. Use a Tailed Beast Ball, and a crack appears. Or do some massive disaster. We react to it. It's annoying. We hide spatial fluctuations, and you… act like you're afraid others won't notice your chakra, creating huge waves. Think carefully. When you fight, we suffer. If the main family finds us first, you'd be destroyed anyway. Better we handle it, leaving something behind. They'd leave nothing."