A rift opened in space, just a few centimeters above the ground, but it quickly expanded to a size big enough for a person to pass through. Pass through, a person did; a person with skin as pale as snow and hair just as white. However this person was not Kaguya Otsutsuki, although they were an Otsutsuki, and the ground that their feet touched down upon was not the earth. It wasn't even a planet, but rather, the moon Itself. The Otsutsuki turned his head from side to side, inspecting naught but a barren and soundless landscape of gray moonrock. He wasn't feeling the raw and unfiltered sunlight that he expected upon his arrival, since moons didn't tend to have atmospheres, but he could taste the oxygen and nitrogen around him. The sunlight was being dulled as well, such that a lesser being could survive on the surface without much difficulty.
But what he couldn't figure out was why? If a place like this had a habitable atmosphere, then why wasn't there anyone or anything to make use of it?
He pondered this, tapping habitually against his hip. Even if the technology that existed on this natural satellite was produced by the denizens of its home planet, it would make sense that there'd be at least one or two people present for maintenance or some other menial task.
"Abandoned, huh?" He wondered in disappointment. That was the most likely explanation. This moon must have previously been inhabited by some population, but they were no longer present. They must have died off, and therefore, abandoned their duties.
However, he couldn't just leave, though he certainly wanted to. He had business here, and if there was nobody to receive him, he'd proceed on his own anyways.
He took a single step, before his instincts began to flare. He quickly activated his Byakugan, a trait of all Otsutsuki, and he detected something rapidly approaching him from behind. He sidestepped, and avoided a collision with a yellow ball of chakra. It continued to sail forward until eventually dissipating, but the Otsutsuki had more to think about, like who or what fired upon him.
The Otsutsuki found the culprit, or rather, culprits. Multiple figures had suddenly and silently arrived, each seated upon a vehicle shaped like a large winged animal. One of them had one of their hands raised and pointed at him; that one must have been responsible for this less than warm welcome.
"Well, I stand corrected." He mumbled to himself, glad that at least he wasn't completely alone. He extended his arms to his sides, as if he was greeting them. "Hello, folks of this planet's moon. I'm here to talk to the one in charge."
He said that loud enough for them to hear, he was certain of that, but none of them moved an inch to respond. They didn't even look at each other to contemplate their next action. They just continued to stare silently at him.
The Otsutsuki, dissatisfied, shrugged his shoulders. "Fine. I guess I'm not making myself clear enough."
While he lowered one of his hands, he gathered chakra into the other. In just a few seconds, without so much as a gesture or hand sign, a slender blue pole sprouted from his palm.
In the blink of an eye, he crossed the distance between himself and his attackers. Although none of them blinked, and instead, raised their arms to respond. He'd already reached them before more than a second shot could be fired and evaded, and the Otsutsuki struck one of them with enough force to split stone with ease. But upon contact, his attitude shifted slightly. He felt contact, but he neither felt nor heard due sound of bone splitting or flesh tearing. The person he hit wasn't a person, it was a lifeless doll, a puppet.
The Otsutsuki proceeded to strike another two, confirming that it wasn't just a fluke. Seemingly, all of them were just automata, seemingly a security measure of this moon.
"Just some left behind tools huh, fine." The Otsutsuki accelerated his speed, dispatching each puppet one by one with ease. Their skill in hand to hand wasn't all that impressive, by his standards at least. Their performance must have degraded over the years of disrepair they've accumulated.
One after another he did away with the automatons until all that remained was a large pile of broken mechanical bodies and scattered artificial limbs. It was hardly an effort, but the Otsutsuki didn't come here to find an exciting fight.
Having dealt with the area's security, the Otsutsuki focused his attention on the ground beneath him. He must have been remotely close to something important If he was triggering an automated security, and if there was nothing on the surface of the moon, it would surely have been underneath. Unfortunately, using space-time jutsu to get underground wasn't an option. Something inside the natural satellite was generating some kind of interference; a protective barrier that prevented anyone from using space-time jutsu to enter. Although there must have been some kind of authorized access, a portal that was able to allow entry, but finding that portal would take far too much time, even assuming it was anywhere on this moon.
Then, he was just going to have to break his way in, and it was at this realization that he sighed deeply. Heavy work wasn't his forte, not by a long shot. But his options were quite limited.
That was what he thought, before he detected something with his Byakugan. Chakra, and a lot of it, was gathering beneath his feet. His danger sense kicked in, and he moved quickly to escape the range of the accumulating chakra. However, before he could get very far, an enormous torrent of wind burst out from beneath the surface. It was as if a tornado had been trapped beneath the ground and finally managed to escape, but this was far from a natural wind. It was an attack meant for the Otsutsuki. The wind pressure was unnaturally strong as well, enough to injure him, at least.
After a few seconds, when the wind had finally started to dissipate and return to normal, a large hole was left behind on the surface of the moon. With a decent telescope, it might even be visible from the planet below. What wouldn't be, although, was what followed the tornado out of the hole.
Another man, one with pale skin and white hair, appeared from the hollowed crater. He stood upon a birdlike automata, which rose softly and slowly, but silently as well. Although his eyes were closed, he seemed to be looking for any remnants of his quarry.
"Man, that packed a punch, you know." He heard from the voice of his target, from behind him. He turned to face his enemy, and if his eyes were open, he'd see that his attack was fruitless. The uninvited guest was completely unscathed, save for a wrinkle on his forehead.
"What are you doing here?" The Otsutsuki that created the hole asked, no, demanded.
"Isn't it obvious? I'm here to investigate. I didn't expect to find a clan member here though. That certainly complicates things, now doesn't it?" The invader asked sarcastically. But then he narrowed his eyes a bit, and his relaxed expression disappeared. "But I don't recognize you. You're new, aren't you. You might not even know what you are. What's your name?"
"I have no reason to answer your questions. You haven't even introduced yourself yet either." The Otsutsuki of the moon replied sharply.
"Of the Otsutsuki Clan, Urashiki." The invader named himself, and then pointed his chakra rod at the other. "You?"
"Toneri, of the Otsutsuki Clan of the moon." The defender replied in turn.
Urashiki scratched his chin in contemplation. "Of the moon? Since when did we form a branch, and why here? No, that didn't happen. I see now, one or two of us must have come here in the past, lost contact somehow… but you don't know who I am… ah, I see now." Urashiki lowered his hand and his weapon, and started to chuckle to himself.
"Is there something funny?" Toneri asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I understand it all now. Whoever the Otsutsuki that came here were, there must have been a rebellion, a betrayal. That is why our clan's name would have been taken by some lot who don't even know its meaning. That makes you the child of a traitor. Isn't that worth a laugh or two?" Urashiki asked, smiling enough for both of them.
"If there is nothing else, leave." Toneri commanded, gesturing subtly underneath one of his sleeves. It was a command to the moon's security systems to prepare for another attack.
"Afraid I can't do that. You see, the planet that you're protecting is quite a point of interest, but reaching it is proving difficult because of you. Lower the barrier you placed around its orbit, and you'll be forgotten for the transgressions of your predecessors."
They stared at each other for another couple of seconds, or rather, Urashiki did. Toneri's eyes remained closed, as did his lips. The seconds that ticked by started to get on Urashiki's nerves, and before much longer, he'd reach his limit.
Finally, just as he was about to say something, Toneri twitched, and his feet shifted slightly. Urashiki noticed the slight change and tightened his grip around his chakra rod. Toneri moved like a blur from where he stood, disappearing for a moment and forcing Urashiki to reactivate his Byakugan to follow. He spun to his side in time to raise his tool and block a punch from the native Otsutsuki. The force of the impact pushed air quickly enough for Urashiki to feel it against his hair, but the rod and his arms remained firm.
"Hm, not a bad punch." Urashiki remarked, feeling the pole rattle slightly from their pushing. "You have a little bit of strength in you, not much though."
With a push, Urashiki repelled Toneri's assault and moved to counterattack, but as he took one step, he suddenly jumped back, and avoided a volley of chakra-born projectiles. Toneri had called for reinforcements during their conversation, knowing that a fight would ensue, and that he wasn't strong enough on his own. This made Urashiki chuckle again as he easily dodged every projectile.
"Are you, by chance, alone on this rock? Did your clan die out somehow?" Urashiki called out to Toneri. He struck down each of the puppets with even greater force than before, disabling them with a single blow for each. "If you're all they left behind, then surely they deserved to perish. They forgot completely."
While he was busy dealing with the automata, Toneri circled around Urashiki's position, still issuing more commands to both the automata and otherwise. Whatever happened to him, whatever he was told, he had to prevent someone like this from breaking through the barrier and reaching the earth. With all of the power he could muster, he vowed to be its first line of defense.
With a powerful roar, Urashiki swung his rod and swatted away the puppets. As weak as they were by comparison, they were beginning to get annoying. Toneri was the only one he had any reason to be concerned with, and he didn't want to waste his time any more than he had to.
Again, he blocked Toneri's attack, catching a fist with a palm and a knee with an ankle. He rewound his arm and swung down vertically, but Toneri was able to catch the pole just above Urashiki's hands. He guided it down towards the ground and thrust his elbow into Urashiki's throat, but Urashiki allowed one of his legs to give way, allowing him to fall just underneath Toneri's fist as it sailed towards him when Toneri lifted his leg to stomp on Urashiki, the latter was able to regain control over his weapon, and used it to narrowly block Toneri's foot.
Suddenly, Toneri disengaged, not bothering to push down harder with his foot, or pinning the other Otsutsuki in place for any longer. Urashiki jumped back onto his feet and proceeded to dust off his sleeves and chest. But as he did, the ground started to shake violently, throwing off his balance. He would have been able to recompose himself before long, but there was enough time for Toneri's plan to commence.
The ground beneath Urashiki's feet began to tear itself apart, splitting in half as if he were standing on the lips of a massive creature. The maw opened quickly, leaving Urashiki to fall into its mouth, and closed around his waist with a vice grip.
"What? What kind of technique is this?" Urashiki said aloud, trying to break free from his restraint. He couldn't hit the ground hard enough to break out, nor did he have any suitable weapon on him. He was careless, and with Toneri standing upright several meters from him, he had a guess or two as to what was about to happen.
"Let this be a message for the rest of your clan. This planet is protected, and not for your kind." Toneri said as he raised his hand above his head.
It didn't take a special eye to know that something was building up beneath Urashiki. Even the captive himself didn't bother to resist anymore. In a flash of light, Urashiki was engulfed in a massive tower of golden light, rising high and far into space, allowing not even a single piece of debris to escape from its grasp.
The beam of gold light, just as the tornado before it, was an offensive mechanism designed by Toneri himself, based on attacks he'd created and used years ago. He'd never used it between then and now, but he was glad that it functioned just as it was intended to. He wasn't quite sur4e if they would. After all, he required the power of the Tenseigan, created by Hamura Otsutsuki, to unleash those attacks.
Regardless, once the light disappeared and the attack was concluded, Toneri was glad that nothing was left behind. A hole in the ground, albeit smaller than the last, with nothing in it; not so much as a torn piece of cloth or a stray hair. He was going to have to repair the damaged automata, and patch up the holes he made, but they were acceptable prices to pay. With some slight relief, Toneri walked to the edge of the small hole left behind by the golden beam, and waved his hands over it. By his authority the wound began to heal, as rock and stone merged together to seal the opening, just like when Urashiki was trapped and pinned.
Toneri walked away promptly to close the other and much larger hole. Though there wasn't much he could do about it, there was one drawback to the attacks he could unleash. But as he reached the edge of the larger crater, he felt a sharp pain pierce his back. He could no longer move either, as if the pain had disabled his entire body. And then, to his dismay, he heard a voice he didn't expect to hear again.
"Whew, man, that was a surprise. If I were anyone else, I'd have been fish food… then again, the others aren't too shabby either." Urashiki's voice reached Toneri's ears with the same relaxed confidence he spat before. Although it was a bit deeper in tone than before. Toneri wouldn't know, but if he could look at Urashiki now, he'd have seen a few more wrinkles and a bit of loosened skin on his body.
"But I'll admit you did pretty well for an offspring of an offshoot, and no eyes at that. You should be proud of yourself. But sadly, we can't play together anymore. I have a job to do, after all."
Another sharp pain ran through Toneri's body, and still, he wasn't able to move. In fact, he felt his body becoming even more stiff with each second.
"But I won't kill you just yet. You've made me use up quite a bit of chakra with those surprise attacks. If that generator of yours isn't enough, I'll be back to take whatever you have. See you then."
Urashiki watched as Toneri was encased completely in a crystalline cast. Its outer surface resembled the shining blue surface of an ocean teeming with life. However, this casing was entirely inert. inside of it, Toneri was still conscious, but subjected to simulations similar to the genjutsu bubbles that filled the corridor connecting earth to the moon. Once the seal was complete, Urashiki walked to the edge of the crater, and looked down into it. It wasn't just a crater, it was a tunnel, one that led straight to the very heart of the moon.
With but a single breath, he hopped from the ledge, letting gravity perform most of the work of getting him to his destination. As he descended, he felt a smile grow across his face. Other than the moon's crust, the planetoid was actually hollowed out. The interior was covered by architecture, buildings that were likely homes and temples for quite a large number of people. there were even some bodies of water. He'd hit the nail on the head with his previous assessment. Toneri was the last leaf to sprout from a deceased branch.
But none of the ruins were his concern. Instead, he sought what laud at the center of the hollowed moon; a large chunk of stone surrounded by a stone crescent moon.
Who builds a moon inside a moon? Who came up with that? Urashiki wondered, staring at his destination incredulously.
Eventually, he managed to reach the center sphere, and upon it, an entrance. What he would learn upon entering, was that the inside of this second sphere was larger than its external dimensions. No doubt, it too was a product of the reason he came here for.
The house-sized energy vessel that brimmed with golden light and a massive amount of chakra. It was, in essence, a reactor, fueled by tens of thousands of eyes, Byakugan to be specific. Considering that aspect of its functionality, Urashiki could immediately identify what he was looking at; a piece of technology created by an Otsutsuki. Although it didn't seem to be in the best of shape. There were clearly signs of damage to the outer shell, which must have been repaired rather crudely. That, or it was completely destroyed at some point, and reconstructed by someone who didn't know how it was built in the first place. Even so, with a device like this, creating a spatial barrier around a planet was easy. In fact, it was practically a waste. Although this glorified battery didn't quite compare to a fully ripened chakra fruit, it was still enough for a decent harvest, and it was being used to prevent an even greater harvest at that.
Although, it wouldn't be an issue for much longer. Once Urashiki disabled it and lowered the barrier, the others would be able to arrive, and the cultivation of the planet below could commence.