After Hiashi left, Jie thought back to Hinata's recent behavior and soon noticed something strange.
According to Hiashi, Hanabi had disappeared the night before. But Hinata had started acting differently months ago, which meant her mood had nothing to do with Hanabi's disappearance.
Something else had happened to her.
Jie wanted to ask, but Hanabi's matter was more urgent. Once he found Hanabi and dealt with the situation on the moon, he could talk to Hinata properly.
He still remembered that the passage between the ninja world and the moon was hidden inside a cave. There should also be a large crab guarding the place. The crab itself was not a problem, but finding the cave was.
There were countless caves across the ninja world. Searching for one specific cave without an exact location would normally take a long time, so Jie directly sent out Konoha's available ninja and ordered a wide search.
Because the order came from Jie himself, Konoha moved extremely quickly.
The Hyuga clan also joined the search. Their Byakugan was especially useful in mountains, forests, and underground caves.
With Konoha's manpower and the Hyuga clan searching at the same time, the range narrowed faster than expected.
Three days later, a team reported that they had found a cave matching Jie's description.
The place was remote, hidden deep in the mountains, and there were clear signs that ordinary people rarely approached it.
Jie immediately prepared to leave.
This time, Hinata insisted on going with him.
Jie originally did not think it was necessary. Toneri alone should not be difficult to handle, even if he had already awakened the Tenseigan Chakra Mode. With Jie's current strength, dealing with him would not be a problem.
But Hinata would not back down.
She was quiet, but her attitude was firm. She was not asking as the Hyuga clan's young lady or as Jie's student. She was asking as Hanabi's older sister.
Hanabi was her only younger sister. Hinata already felt guilty for failing to protect her. If she could not even join the rescue, she would not be able to forgive herself.
In the end, Jie agreed.
Bringing Hinata along was not a bad thing either.
The giant Tenseigan on the moon was connected to Hamura's descendants and the Byakugan. Jie was not completely sure what would happen if he touched it himself, so having Hinata there added another layer of insurance.
After reaching the cave, the large crab appeared just as Jie remembered.
To ordinary ninja, it might have been a troublesome guardian. To Jie, it was only blocking the way. He dealt with it in one blow, then entered the pool inside the cave with Hinata.
The moment they sank into the water, the space around them changed.
A passage opened before them, connecting the ninja world to the moon.
As Jie moved through it, he could feel the strange power holding the passage together. It was different from the Rinnegan's direct strength.
The Tenseigan's power had more unusual uses, such as creation, control, chakra absorption, gravity manipulation, and even maintaining a passage like this.
That was why Jie was interested in it.
The Rinnegan was powerful, but the Tenseigan was useful in many different ways. If he could obtain that power as well, this trip would be worth it even without Hanabi's matter.
With Jie's speed, the passage between the ninja world and the moon did not take long to cross.
Soon, he and Hinata reached the other side.
Hinata looked around in silence. Even with the Byakugan, this place felt strange to her, as if the chakra in the air did not belong to the ninja world at all.
But the scene waiting for them made Jie stop.
Puppets filled his vision.
They stood across the moon's surface in dense rows, silent and motionless. Their number was far beyond what Jie had expected. This did not look like a few guards left behind by Hamura's descendants.
It looked like an army.
Hinata's expression changed slightly. "Brother Jie..."
Jie raised a hand, signaling her not to panic, while his eyes swept over the puppet army.
"What is Toneri planning?"
This was the first time the situation had truly gone beyond what he remembered. In the original future, Toneri had puppets, but not on this scale. Hanabi's disappearance had also happened far earlier than it should have.
Something had changed.
Just then, a voice came from behind the puppet army.
"You came after all."
The puppets moved aside at the same time, opening a path. From behind them, a pale young man slowly walked out.
Otsutsuki Toneri.
His appearance was the same as Jie remembered, but the feeling he gave off was different. His expression was too calm, and there was something strange in his tone, as if he was not speaking only for himself.
Toneri looked at Jie. "Grandmother's will was not wrong. Jie Uchiha, you are the source of the ninja world's collapse."
Jie's eyes narrowed.
'Grandmother?'
Toneri continued calmly, "If the world is to return to the path our ancestors wished for, then an outsider like you must be erased. After that, I will guide mankind toward the true future."
Jie looked at him for a moment, then frowned.
This was not right.
Toneri should have followed Hamura's will, even if he had twisted it in his own way. But the words coming from his mouth now did not sound like Hamura at all.
They sounded like someone else's will had been mixed into him.
Jie's gaze turned colder.
"So that's what happened."
The moon was no longer only Toneri's problem.
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