In reality, Isamu had discovered Black Zetsu attached to Uchiha Madara the moment he arrived. However, he had no intention of exposing him yet. He still wanted to see for himself what Ōtsutsuki Kaguya actually looked like.
"Nineteen days left… That should be enough time. Before I leave, I'll see whether I can reopen the passage to the Small World. It's been so long since I last saw my clan members."
With that thought in mind, Isamu used Kamui to teleport to the site where he had once battled the Five Great Nations.
Moments later, he arrived at the old battlefield.
Looking at the now-lush landscape covered in trees and vegetation, a complicated expression appeared on his face.
"Who would have thought that such an ordinary place was once the stage for a legendary battle—one clan against the Five Great Nations? Time really changes everything."
He shook his head with a bitter smile.
"Great Elder… Zhan… I wonder how the two of you are doing."
As he spoke, he gathered his power and directed it toward the location of the old passage.
Boom!
A thunderous explosion rang out.
Instead of opening the passage, his power was instantly repelled by a powerful spatial barrier.
"Damn it! I really can't open it."
Looking at his hands, Isamu sighed.
"Back then, I made the barrier too strong. I never imagined I'd end up locking myself out. What a joke."
The spatial barrier before him left him completely speechless.
To protect his clan members, he had used nearly all of his strongest spatial techniques when creating it.
Now, after recovering only half of his former power, even he could not break through.
Still, he had expected this outcome.
This visit had only been a test.
"Sigh… Looks like I won't be seeing my clan this time."
He looked at the hidden space one last time.
"Great Elder. Zhan. Wait for me. I will return."
With that final promise, Isamu turned and headed south.
After half a day of travel, he crossed the southern coastline and entered the endless ocean.
"If it's truly a space-time passage, it should produce spatial fluctuations. If I spread my sensory perception across the sea, I should find it eventually."
His senses expanded outward like a gigantic net covering the ocean.
Unfortunately, reality was far less cooperative than theory.
Eighteen entire days passed.
He found nothing.
Not even a trace.
At some point, Isamu built a shabby raft from driftwood and simply floated across the sea.
Holding a freshly caught fish, he bit into it raw with a look of frustration.
"Damn it. This Ultimate Yin-Yang Power really isn't easy to obtain."
He took another bite.
"I've been searching for eighteen days and found absolutely nothing. At this rate, I'm going to vomit from eating raw fish."
The system's missions were clearly not designed to be easy.
"I remember there's a space-time artifact somewhere in this world… that turtle called Karasuki."
His expression darkened.
"If the system wants me to find that thing, I'm finished. It's the size of a palm. How am I supposed to locate it in the middle of the ocean?"
The more he thought about it, the more anxious he became.
"System! Get out here!"
He shouted at the sky.
"If you really want me to find Karasuki, then I quit! There's no way anyone can find something that small!"
As expected, the system gave no response.
"…"
Silence.
The system remained as cold and indifferent as ever.
"Fine. If I can't find it by tomorrow, I'm leaving. There's no punishment for failure anyway. Figure it out yourself."
Still no answer.
"Tch."
Rolling his eyes, Isamu resumed his search.
Although he talked about giving up, his actions said otherwise.
After all, the system was his greatest advantage, and the reward was far too tempting to ignore.
On the thirtieth day—the final day of the mission—his persistence finally paid off.
A strange fluctuation suddenly entered his perception.
His eyes widened.
"This… there's no mistake!"
"It has to be the space-time passage!"
Without hesitation, he activated Six Paths Mode and shot across the sky at maximum speed.
Hundreds of kilometers later, a small island appeared on the horizon.
The island was only about five kilometers across.
Not particularly large, but not tiny either.
After landing, he pushed through dense vegetation until a series of ancient ruins gradually came into view.
"Ruins?"
Isamu raised an eyebrow.
"To find surviving structures in a place like this…"
The buildings were heavily weathered and nearly reduced to rubble.
Judging by their condition, they had likely stood there for centuries.
"What kind of people once lived here?"
As he examined the ruins, his gaze suddenly froze.
"Hm?"
On a crumbling wall, he spotted a familiar symbol.
A tomoe.
Although worn down by time, traces of the design remained.
"A tomoe?"
His eyes narrowed.
"Could this be connected to the Ninja Sect?"
Besides Ōtsutsuki Kaguya herself, the earliest known users of the tomoe symbol were followers of the Ninja Sect founded by Hagoromo.
The possibility immediately captured his interest.
If this truly was an Ōtsutsuki ruin, there could be all kinds of fascinating secrets hidden inside.
Excited, he continued deeper into the ruins.
Soon, an altar-like structure appeared before him.
Beyond it stretched a narrow stone pathway leading up a small hill.
The path was only about fifty meters long.
However, the moment Isamu stepped forward, something stopped him.
An invisible force blocked his way.
"What the…?"
He reached out and touched the empty air.
It felt exactly like a wall.
Summoning Chidori, he attempted to force his way through.
Nothing happened.
The barrier remained completely intact.
"What exactly is at the end of this path?"
His curiosity intensified.
"There's even a spatial barrier protecting it."
He stared toward the top of the stone steps.
"Could there actually be an Ōtsutsuki hidden inside?"
Just as he was making wild guesses, his Rinnegan suddenly activated on its own.
Golden light erupted from his eye.
The invisible barrier instantly dissolved.
Isamu froze.
His surprise quickly turned into excitement.
"The Rinnegan opened it automatically?"
A smile appeared on his face.
"Things are getting more and more interesting."
Without hesitation, he stepped onto the ancient stone staircase and began walking toward whatever awaited him beyond.
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