Chapter 4: The Coming Storm
The sun rose over the flourishing hidden village, bathing the sturdy cottages in warm light. Kaguya stood atop the central tower, looking out over the crops and livestock beginning to stir. In the two decades since arriving, they had built a sanctuary here for the weary and displaced.
Seeing smoke rise from kitchen fires, she allowed herself a smile. Even after the devastation wrought by Hagoromo's madness, life endured. As long as it did, hope endured with it.
Turning, she descended the winding stairs to the archives below. Rows of shelves lined the walls, filled with scrolls and stone tablets recounting the clan's history and legends. At the back, one large scroll lay unfurled across a central table.
It depicted an immense gnarled tree with ten tails, under which stick figure beings fought and died by the thousands. Kaguya's smile faded as she traced it with a finger. The Divine Tree, whose fruit had cursed their family with power beyond mortals' comprehension. Gifted and yet so limited.
Her partner Yhwach entered silently, placing a hand on her shoulder. "It still haunts you."
Kaguya sighed. "We sought peace and brought only pain. Our gifts poisoned generations to come."
"Do not doubt your wisdom. Our bloodline carries both darkness and light within." Yhwach squeezed gently. "With guidance, the light may prevail."
Footsteps echoed from the stairwell. "Lord Yhwach, Lady Kaguya!" Their guard captain, Noboru, appeared flushed and out of breath. "You must come quickly, something strange lurks at the village outskirts!"
They hurried to follow as Noboru explained breathlessly how a patrol had discovered bizarre traces on the forest edge at dawn. Like trees warped and distorted by an unseen force. Kaguya and Yhwach exchanged a tense glance as they ran - such occurrences often heralded grave threats.
Reaching the tree line, they saw a gathered crowd muttering anxiously. "Make way!" Noboru shouted, parting them to reveal a nightmarish sight.
A massive oak tree stretched before them, its bark mottled and limbs twisted into clawing tentacles. Sickly purple light seeped from cracks in the warped wood. The very air around it felt heavy and oppressive.
Kaguya's veins bulged around her eyes as she scanned its chakra network with her Byakugan. To her horror, a mutated but familiar pattern lurked within.
"Hashirama..." she whispered. "But how?"
Yhwach's expression darkened, his brows knitting. "Not just him. Look there." He pointed to strange symbols etched at the base of the tree.
Kaguya's breath caught in her throat. "Black scriptures. What is that? A new threat?" If so, grave danger lay ahead. A monk walked slowly their way with his hands inside his giant tunics.
A rumbling came from the distorted oak. The eerie light intensified as its trunk creaked open, revealing a hunched figure within. Formerly warm brown eyes now glowed with purple malice as Hashirama Senju staggered forth. Black markings swirled across his skin like parasites.
Seeing Kaguya, his scarred lips twisted into a rictus grin. "So you return, witch," he rasped, voice harsh and guttural. "But your cursed reign ends today."
With surprising speed, he thrust a clawing hand toward her face. But Yhwach intercepted the strike, expression icy. "You are not yourself. Let us free you from this madness."
Hashirama cackled wetly. "Madness? No, I see with perfect clarity now!" He broke away, warping tree limbs to encircle them. "Foul oathbreaker, you twisted my power, condemned me to undying torment!" His voice rose to an inhuman screech. "Now you will join me in the void!"
The demented Senju lashed out with uncontrolled savagery, targeting both his former friends. Yhwach deflected strikes aimed at Kaguya, who avoided the attacks with Graceful poise. She saw the clan members behind them staring in horror and gestured urgently. "Quickly, flee this place!"
Reluctantly they retreated toward the village while Yhwach and Kaguya kept the raging Hashirama at bay. He fought without discipline, but his raw power was immense. Colossal roots hammered the earth like jackhammers. Blight oozed from warped foliage to corrode all it touched.
Seeing an opening, Kaguya struck at his chakra points, only for tree limbs to block her attack. Yhwach covered her with a reishi shield against the uncontrolled strikes. "He's lost all reason," Yhwach said gravely. "We cannot hold back."
Kaguya nodded reluctantly. Mournful duty demanded she end this tortured soul's misery. They synchronized flawlessly, Yhwach restraining their foe with vines of spiritual energy. Hashirama thrashed and contorted, but could not break free. Kaguya embraced him gently, whispering, "Forgive me, old friend," before striking his heart with Gentle Fist.
All strength fled Hashirama's body. The red glow faded from his eyes as he collapsed into her arms. "Kaguya...Yhwach..." he murmured, sanity restored in death. "I curse you..." With faint smiles, they lowered his body gently.
As the fallen Senju's breathing slowed, crimson light bloomed behind them. Whirling, they saw flickering symbols coalesce into blinding rippling portal. From this void strode another ghost of eons past - Ichibē Hyōsube, monk of the Soul Society.
He eyed the surroundings impassively. "So the whispers were true. You two still linger in this world? No matter. The threat you pose to the Soul Society ends today." Dark power swirled around his brush as he advanced.
Yhwach grabbed Kaguya and folded space around them, warping away just before torrential ink blasted the area. They reappeared atop the central tower, both breathing hard. Looking down, Kaguya saw villagers staring up in confusion and fear.
"Quickly, flee into the tunnels!" she cried. With Hashirama fallen, only she and Yhwach could resist the monk. Obediently they hurried below ground as Ichibē approached.
"Petty tricks cannot save you, usurpers," he declared coldly. "As the Soul King's voice, I decree your sentence - oblivion!" With a slash of his brush, reality itself warped around them. Colossal fingers of energy sought to grasp and crush them out of existence.
Kaguya and Yhwach joined hands, combining their powers to withstand the assault. The very fabric of creation shook with the forces colliding. But even together, the monk's power overwhelmed them. They fell to their knees as annihilation loomed.
In desperation, Yhwach drew deeply on his Quincy heritage, reshaping reishi into a impenetrable shield. "We must retreat, recover our strength," he urged Kaguya. She created portals into her shadow worlds using Rinnesharingan chakra. Supporting each other, they slipped away to dimensions beyond the monk's reach.
Ichibē watched impassively as his targets vanished. "So be it. Our war is not yet over." Turning, he stepped through the crimson portal and was gone. The village fell eerily silent.
Days later, the people emerged cautiously from the tunnels. They found massive craters surrounding the ruins of the central tower. Of Yhwach and Kaguya, no sign remained. Fearing calamity, survivors quickly scattered, seeking rumor of refuge far from this accursed land.
Two decades passed while Kaguya and Yhwach recovered in her shadow realms. Dimensions linked to the world but outside its normal flow of time and space. There they meditated and trained, preparing for the looming battle ahead.
At last fully healed, they returned home, only to find the village abandoned and decaying. "What has transpired in our absence?" Kaguya wondered aloud. Yhwach's forehead creased in concern. This desolation boded ill for the future.
Scouring the dusty archives, they pieced together fragments of records left behind. Most had fled in fear of the otherworldly forces unleashed. But some remained in the area, led by Indra and Asura. Yhwach was heartened that his grandsons persevered despite the chaos. Perhaps unity could still be rebuilt.
Searching further afield, they discovered a hidden settlement in the forests. Approaching cautiously, guards emerged from the underbrush. Spears lowered on recognizing Yhwach and Kaguya. "My lord, my lady! You've returned!"
The joyous reunion was soured by grim tidings. Other splinter factions had turned to banditry and raiding the countryside. Famine and disease ran rampant. As they spoke, a lookout's horn blew urgent warning.
Moments later, Indra and Asura emerged from the woods, bloody and winded. "Grandfather, Grandmother," Indra greeted them briskly. "Your timing is most fortuitous. Marauders attack!"
Howls sounded just beyond the tree line as ragged brigands charged from the shadows. Yhwach gestured, capturing them all in bonds of reishi. Deprived of leaders, the survivors' will to fight evaporated. They turned and fled in terror.
With the threat neutralized, Asura gave a weary grin. "Once again, we owe you our lives." He winced as Kaguya treated his injuries. Though only teens, war had aged them beyond their years.
She embraced them both, heart aching at the hardships they had faced alone. "We should have returned sooner. But now we can rebuild together." Yhwach nodded agreement, praising their resilience and wisdom.
Working hand in hand, stability was gradually restored. Indra's stern leadership complemented Asura's compassion. Though scarred and weary, the people regained hope. Meager as it was, they had a home.
Years passed in relative peace. But Kaguya remained troubled by visions of the calamity still approaching. She knew Ichibē had only retreated, never surrendered. His master, the Soul King, was a threat that could doom them all.
Late one night, Yhwach found her atop the watchtower staring up at the cold indifferent moon. "Ominous dreams plague your rest," he said. It was not a question.
Kaguya nodded. "I fear the Soul Society marshals its forces against us even now. And Hagoromo's seal weakens over time." She lowered her eyes. "Must we be forever hounded by the past?"
Yhwach squeezed her shoulder gently. "Once, we relied only on ourselves. No longer. The future rests in more hands now." He meant their grandsons, she knew. As always, his faith lifted her spirits like sunlight piercing clouds.
Their hopes were rewarded some years later, on the cusp of winter. A breathless scout roused them urgently in the dead of night. His report chilled their blood - a massive army approached wielding weapons and armor unlike any seen before. Indra estimated ten thousand strong at least. Surely the Soul Society come at last.
Messengers were dispatched to rally their warriors. But Kaguya knew with sinking dread their motley militia could not withstand this onslaught. They must find another path. Gathering in the central hall, she spoke gravely. "This foe is beyond our strength to defeat in open war. We must divide them, deny them battle."
Asura nodded eagerly. "We know the land better! We can evade and harry them until they tire." Indra frowned but did not object to his grandmother's wisdom.
Yhwach unfurled a map, tracing routes and hazards they could exploit. "The wilderness itself will fight alongside us. We need only guide it."
They worked feverishly through the night to gather supplies and don disguises. By morning, the people had vanished into the trackless wilds. Empty cottages smoldered behind them.
When the endless ranks arrived at sunset, they found only ghostly ruins awaiting them. Dismayed murmurs rippled through their number. Where was the army they had braced for?
Pressing deeper, platoons probed side passages never to emerge again. Scouts were lured astray by phantom guides. The icy mountain nights sapped morale and strength no fire could restore. Strange beasts stalked their camps unseen.
After weeks wandering the endlessly hostile land, their numbers were halved and their will broken. The few surviving officers ordered a full retreat. Back in Soul Society, they would plead mercy from their unforgiving lord.
In the shadows, Yhwach watched the bedraggled forces stumble home in defeat. They had weathered the storm, but the respite would be brief. A reckoning was inevitable. But not yet, not here. Their future now lay among the stars.
When they reunited with the people, jubilation greeted them. Their bold gambit had driven back a force thought unstoppable. After mourning their dead, they set to work restoring their community anew.
Years passed in simple contentment. But Kaguya remained restless, gazing skyward at night as if remembering a half-forgotten dream. Yhwach knew what called to her, but held his silence. They had time yet before destiny's pull proved irresistible.
Late one autumn evening, as leaves fell in rustling curtains, Kaguya gathered her grandsons. "You both have grown so strong these long years," she said, caressing their faces. "But the greatest trials still lie ahead."
Solemn understanding filled their eyes. They had known this parting was coming. Yhwach clasped their shoulders. "The future is yours now. Guide it wisely." Swallowing down sadness, they embraced their grandparents one last time before stepping back.
Hand in hand, Kaguya and Yhwach tore open the fabric of reality. A portal yawned before them, revealing the endless cosmos beyond. Stepping through, they glanced back once more at the world that had been their home and their sanctuary for so long. But out there, destiny awaited.
Together they sailed into the dark sea between stars, towards challenges fit for gods. No matter what lay ahead in this uncharted eternity, they would face it side by side. The lights of their world dwindled behind them, swallowed by vast and beckoning night.
Aboard an observation vessel orbiting Earth, Yhwach studied scanner readouts pensively. It had been centuries since he and Kaguya departed, seeking answers on the Otsutsuki homeworld. They had gleaned insights, but found only ruins of a dying planet. Other clan members surely yet remained scattered among the stars. More troubling were signs of quickening activity here on Earth. What forces were stirring in their absence?
Kaguya placed a calming hand on his shoulder. "We cannot know what the intervening years have wrought. But I still sense Indra and Asura's chakra below. Some legacy of ours endures."
Yhwach nodded, buoyed by her faith, ever his balance. "Then let us go meet this new era. If darkness has risen, our light can cleanse it."
They descended through swirling clouds to find a war-ravaged land of toiling peasants and walled citadels. So the cycle of conflict persisted. Moving unseen in spirit forms, they sought traces of their grandsons' lineage.
To their relief, they found descendants had survived and even prospered. Though divided into rival clans, the bloodline's strength flowed true. But a grim revelation emerged - this persistent feud traced back to Asura and Indra themselves. The brothers had come to blows long ago over philosophies of peace and power, spawn of tensions left unresolved. Their animosity continued through the generations that followed.
Wandering ghostly through a village, Yhwach witnessed firsthand the suffering such endless warfare caused. Homes burnt, children orphaned and maimed, both sides twisted into monsters.
Kaguya wept in frustration. "How could they continue this madness? Have they learned nothing?" Yhwach shared her sorrow, but knew the solutions of the past would fail here. A new approach was needed.
Together they purified a pocket of reality and constructed an elaborate illusion. Then they drew the souls of children who had met untimely deaths in the endless battles. As the souls awoke in spectral forms, Kaguya and Yhwach explained they would experience an ideal society within this realm. For a time, they could forget pain and embrace lives cut tragically short.
At first the children were bewildered, having memories only of war's horrors. But gradually they accepted this gift, mingling freely as comrades, untainted by the prejudices ingrained throughout the land of shinobi. They knew joy and beauty for fleeting precious days.
But even this idyll could not last forever. As their spirits slipped toward reincarnation, Kaguya spoke to them of the world awaiting. "Go and live in light and peace. We will break this cycle someday." With those hopes to guide them, the children passed on.
Kaguya turned to Yhwach. "The living must unlearn hatred, or this curse will haunt generations unending."
He knew she was right. These souls returned with innocence intact, only to be poisoned anew by endless violence. The cycle must end. But their old order would never take root here. They needed power to guide, not dominate.
Pondering deeply, Yhwach recalled legends of singular sage who had communed with cosmic energies. His teachings might offer the insight needed to liberate people's souls. They had to find his sanctum, high in the mountains.
The journey was long, crossing lands ravaged by roving war parties. Yhwach sensed Kaguya's sorrow at the state this world had fallen into. But she did not falter in their purpose. At last, atop a sheer peak wreathed in clouds, they found the hidden temple.
An aged sage met them at the gates, unsurprised by their arrival. "Welcome, travelers. Share tea with me." They joined him in the tranquil garden, explaining their quest to heal the generational divisions below. The sage listened thoughtfully before responding.
"Worldly hatred is but a symptom of war." The monk said.
Yhwach sat across from the wizened monk, studying his serene features. This man claimed to be the legendary Ichibei Hyosube, yet he exuded no malice. Only compassion shone in his eyes. The monster that come after then in the past had vanished. Could it be he fought for peace in his own world now? Did he turn soft? No. Something else was been played here.
"So you have lived a thousand lives since last we met," Yhwach said.
Ichibei nodded solemnly. "I have walked many paths seeking wisdom. In my youth, I was blinded by zealotry." He lifted the teapot to refill Yhwach's cup. "Now I wish only to end the cycles of hatred poisoning this world."
Yhwach sipped his tea pensively. There was power in this monk still, but tempered by time's lessons. "You offer bold hopes. But peace cannot be forced."
"Indeed. It must flow from an inner serenity spreading soul to soul." Ichibei gestured, summoning an ornate black vessel. "I once sought to dominate you. Now I ask - may we heal our wounds?"
Yhwach tensed as the monk materialized in front of him, eyes hard with purpose.
"You!" Yhwach growled. "I should have known your talk of peace was but deception."
Kaguya stepped forward, ready to defend her partner. But Ichibei raised a hand. "Peace, my lady. I mean you no harm."
Ichibei's expression remained implacable. "Your chaos ends now. Be thankful I will spare both of your life."
He gestured, summoning a transparant giant hand with one giant line on the middle of its palm. It opened to reveal two giant pupils within a single bulging eye.
Yhwach leapt up, but bands of kido energy lashed out, immobilizing him. He strained against the bonds as Ichibei approached.
Kaguya moved to intervene, but more glowing bands restrained her as well. She cried out, "What treachery is this?"
"A necessary one," Ichibei replied. "To prevent greater bloodshed."
He now adressed Yhwach, "At last, the Almighty will trouble creation no more." The monk let out the grey transparent creature into Yhwach's body. It dive into his body before merging his multiple pupils into one single eye.
Agonizing pain lanced through Yhwach's mind as the parasite intertwined with his soul. He felt his prescience dim, futures fading away.
"What have you done?" he choked out.
Ichibei stepped back, grim satisfaction in his eyes. "The left hand of your father will bind your power. You are leashed at last."
The bands released Yhwach and he collapsed, clutching his head. Kaguya rushed to support him. The monk's words rang in his ears.
"Consider this mercy. Do not force my hand again." Reality warped as Ichibei conjured a portal gate. "We are done here."
He vanished into the shimmering void. Yhwach slammed his fist down in fury and anguish as the dazzling light faded.
Kaguya helped Yhwach sit up once the monk was gone. "That cursed monk has blinded your visions," she said angrily.
Yhwach grimaced, fury in his eyes. "For now. But he has only ensured the future he sought to prevent."
By trying to prevent Yhwach from seeking entry into Soul Society, Ichibei created that same future that gave Yhwach knowledge of the Soul Society's existence decades ago. Soul Society will crumble beneath his heel.