239. Kaguya Sneaks Out

As night fell and the bustling night market wound down, groups of drunken revelers staggered home, leaning on each other for support.

The lively Konoha Village gradually quieted under the soft glow of the moonlight. Occasionally, a security patrol passed by, but their movements were swift and silent, leaving no ripples in the serene and peaceful scene of the village.

On the cliff overlooking Konoha—a spot that Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama once frequented for their meetings—a solitary figure stood. He gazed up at the luminous moon, his eyes filled with sorrow.
The full moon, a symbol of reunion, was a cruel reminder of the separation between mother and child.

"What are these fools thinking, going after the Tailed Beasts?"

After a moment, the lonely figure lowered his gaze to a wrinkled notice in his hand. A comically human-like look of disbelief crossed his darkened face as he muttered to himself.

When he first received the notice, he dismissed it as some trivial flyer blown in by the wind. But after carefully wandering around the village, he confirmed its authenticity. The realization struck him like a thunderbolt, leaving his mind spinning.

Previously, he had secretly meddled in Uchiha Madara’s plans, indirectly helping him awaken the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan. He had been thrilled at the prospect of finally grooming a capable reincarnation of Indra after centuries of waiting.

Seizing the opportunity, he modified the infamous Uchiha tablet left by that rebel to include instructions on awakening the Rinnegan. Confident in his scheme, he eagerly awaited Madara's descent into darkness, anticipating the awakening of the Rinnegan and the union of the two chakras for his own purposes.

However, to his utter disbelief, the supposedly fragile and melancholic Madara barely lingered on the tablet’s contents. Instead, he was promptly led astray by that accursed fish-eyed curly-haired Senju, returning to his righteous path.

"Damn that curly-haired brat! Uchiha Tajima’s worthless offspring is long dead—why are you still alive?"

As a creation of Yin-Yang Release, Black Zetsu should have been devoid of human emotions. But the mere thought of Senju Tobirama made his fists clench instinctively, his nostrils flaring with the faint smell of rancid butter. Grinding his teeth, he cursed,
"One day, when I find a suitable puppet, I’ll deal with that curly-haired menace. For now, I’ll set aside personal grudges. Once Mother is free, I’ll have her settle the score!"

"Still, if Madara hasn’t awakened the Rinnegan yet, the Tailed Beasts can wait. Those pets of Hagoromo’s are just oversized wild animals. With the Rinnegan in hand, they’re as good as captured."

Relieved, Black Zetsu loosened his grip on the notice. The task at hand was to refocus Madara’s ambitions and groom him into a suitable vessel. There was no point obsessing over the Tailed Beasts when the real work lay in subtly rewriting the tablet and ensuring Madara walked the path laid out for him.

"Let Madara duel Hashirama a few more times. Once he realizes the gap in their strength, he’ll naturally follow the road I’ve paved for him."

With a calculating glint in his eyes, Black Zetsu vowed silently,
"Mother, you must be suffering in solitude. Wait for me; your devoted son will surely free you!"


---

Meanwhile, in the Uchiha residence, a shaky figure leaned against the wall, emerging from a room filled with a pink-tinted atmosphere. His pale, handsome face looked utterly drained, as if he had been sucked dry by a demon, his spirit and soul nearly scattered.

"It’s not even dawn yet. How many times has it been already? Are you running away?"

The door opened to reveal Uchiha Hikari(Kuroko), a tall and graceful figure leaning against the frame. Her cold, expressionless face carried a lingering flush of passion. Her unfeeling gaze pinned Uchiha Fin in place as she spoke icily.

"Even the landlord’s family isn’t this demanding! You’re supposed to be my repressed dark side, not some sex-crazed maniac!"

Glancing at the crimson, sakura-shaped hand forming behind the girl, Uchiha Gin knew that if he delayed any longer, he’d be dragged back into the room to become a relentless laborer. Desperate, he activated his Sharingan, its scarlet glow flashing as he cried out,

"Spectre! Get me out of here!"

From the shadows on the floor, a small black hand emerged, instantly pulling him into the darkness. In the blink of an eye, he disappeared without a trace.

"Hmph, that trick again."

Uchiha Kuroko clicked her tongue in frustration. She could catch him if it were a mere escape attempt, but his retreat into a different dimension left even her Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan helpless.

"Only seven times, and he’s already sneaking around. He must’ve been sneaking snacks elsewhere lately."

She licked her lips, a thoughtful glint in her eyes as she felt the surge of energy still coursing through her.


---

In the Shadow Realm, Uchiha Gin let out a relieved sigh. Turning to the figure beside him, he said gratefully,
"Phew, good thing you were here. Otherwise, I’d have been reduced to nothing but scraps tonight."

His savior was none other than the product of his inherited Mangekyō Sharingan ability, Spectre. However, unlike the decrepit old jailer that the previous generation had summoned, this Spectre had undergone a complete transformation—down to its gender.

The current Spectre had become a cold-faced, dark-skinned beauty with striking white hair and fur-lined eyes. Her frosty demeanor made Uchiha Gin instinctively reconsider his words, worried he might offend her.

"Sorry, forgot you can’t talk. My bad!" he apologized with an awkward laugh.

The black-and-white girl’s expression didn’t change, but the piercing gaze she directed at him was full of silent disdain.

"Man, you really do act like a real person now," he muttered, nervously rubbing the back of his head.

Despite the eerie silence, Uchiha Gin couldn’t help but grin, realizing how much Spectre had evolved under the guidance of two puppet tutors. A true AI-like summoning, she had come a long way from her initial blank slate.

"Alright, enough chatter. The Shadow Realm’s threshold is reaching critical levels. I’m heading out. See you next time!"

With a final glance at Wǎngliǎng, Uchiha Yin vanished into the shadows, returning to his room. His confidence in his companion’s potential had grown even stronger.


“Whew~ That was a close one!”

Back in his room, Uchiha Gin finally let out a sigh of relief. His eyes reverted to their original black hue as he shook his head, brushing aside a string of inexplicable thoughts. He began contemplating the peculiarities of Spectre.

“This eye technique is really strange. I need to max out Spectre growth value to unlock the second stage. I wonder how Grandpa managed to grind it back then?”

Ever since Uchiha Gin returned from his moon escapade, he had been studying the eye technique left behind by Uchiha Igaku.

After successfully summoning the second-generation Spectre, his eye technique seemed to have reached a standstill.

Through repeated trial and error, Uchiha Gin deduced—based on feedback from his Mangekyo Sharingan—that maxing out Spectre growth value was necessary to acquire the transformation device.
As a mental construct derived from ocular power, the original Spectre—an old prison warden—had dissipated with Igaku's passing. The second-generation Spectre was a manifestation of Gin’s own psyche, starting as a blank slate.

This meant Uchiha Gin had to invest time and energy to nurture the construct. Once fully grown, it would reward him with a transformation belt of his very own.

“Heh, when I think about it like that, it’s kind of exciting~”

After Gin’s figure disappeared from the Shadow Realm, Spectre—a motionless, doll-like girl—suddenly smirked. Her previously vacant eyes began gleaming with intelligence as she rolled her eyes in mockery.

“Touching my head like that… such a bold junior!” she said, her cold yet playful voice breaking the silence.

The girl named Spectre disdainfully brushed her head, puffing up her cheeks in irritation. Gin’s audacity had already been marked in her mental ledger, waiting for the day she could settle the score.

“Still, I’ve finally found a suitable vessel. Although Hagoromo was a traitor, his descendants’ eye techniques are rather useful~”

With white hair, black skin, and glowing white eyes, Spectre raised a curious eyebrow. She reached out, conjuring a skewer of candied hawthorns from outside the Shadow Realm. Licking it with her dainty tongue, her practiced movements betrayed her guilty pleasure.

“The food these days is so much better than it used to be.”

The sweet and sour taste flooded her palate, prompting a smile that she couldn’t suppress. For a woman imprisoned for a millennium, this newfound freedom brought moments of pure joy.

Reclining on a bed in the Shadow Realm, Spectre swung her petite feet while savoring the candied treat. Her thoughts drifted to her first moments of reincarnation.

As a consciousness fragment of Ōtsutsuki Kaguya, she had slipped into the Shadow Realm when Gin activated it. Her initial plan was to manipulate this talented descendant to help fend off pursuers from her home.

But she lacked a suitable vessel. Though the realm contained a few puppets, Kaguya’s pride wouldn’t allow her to stoop so low. Just as she was considering her next move, Gin activated the Shadow Realm’s summoning mechanism.

Seeing the realm preparing to manifest a creation similar to Yin-Yang Release constructs, Kaguya seized the opportunity. Before the construct could fully form, she merged with it, using it to rebuild her physical body into the image she once had upon first arriving on Earth.

“Eh? Why doesn’t it look like Grandpa's version?”

This was the first voice she heard after her reincarnation. About to respond, she caught sight of Gin’s peculiar expression as he muttered to himself.

“Tsk tsk, it’s like meeting an old friend… too bad Spectre can’t talk; otherwise, it could’ve been a mother-and-son reunion skit~”

Hearing this, Kaguya immediately held her tongue. Though she didn’t understand what nonsense Gin was spouting, she quickly caught onto the “mute” setting for Spectre.

Feigning a blank expression, she pretended to be a silent construct.

“Is it possible Spectre forms based on the caster’s imagination?”

Circling the unmoving Kaguya, Gin inspected her with curiosity.

“Alright, reach out your hand!”

Gin stopped in front of her, eyes gleaming with anticipation as he issued the command.

Fuming internally, Kaguya resisted the urge to lash out. Her years of imprisonment had taught her patience. Suppressing her indignation, she reluctantly extended her hand, placing it in his.

The warmth from the contact sent a ripple through her emotions, faint yet undeniable.

“Huh? Why the delay? Is it because it was just activated?”

Gin frowned at the slow response, trying to engage with the construct more directly. Meanwhile, Kaguya felt a mental request to access her data. Alarmed, she assumed she had been exposed. But when nothing happened, she realized she could edit the information sent back.

She immediately crafted a message about Spectre requiring growth to reach its potential, cleverly buying herself time.

“What? I have to grind again? Ugh, so much effort~”

Gin groaned at the message, feeling defeated. Yet he resolved to delegate the task to his loyal puppets while he focused on other matters.

“Alright, you two can handle the training.”

Gin activated two dormant puppets, assigning them to teach Spectre the necessary skills. Satisfied, he left the Shadow Realm.

“Report to the master as usual.”

Kaguya, lying on her bed, dismissed the two puppets with a cold voice.

“Yes, mistress,” they replied obediently, already reprogrammed to serve Kaguya over Gin.

“Hmph, that junior of mine will one day kneel before me~”

Swinging her feet and licking her candied fruit, Kaguya smirked, savoring her scheming success.

Elsewhere, in a dense forest within the Land of Fire, Uchiha Madara arrived at the entrance to the Void Realm, following clues from his clan’s records.

“Hmm, such an obscure location…”

Before he could step through the gate, two childlike voices stopped him.

“Halt, stranger!”

“To enter, leave a toll… of fish!”

Looking down, Madara saw two small cats blocking his way.

“Cats?”

Recalling Gin’s past stories, Madara realized these might be gatekeepers of the Void Realm.

“I am Uchiha Madara, clan leader. I’ve come to speak with your master.”

Though still uncorrupted by hatred, Madara was no stranger to diplomacy. Smiling slightly, he addressed the cats without hostility.

“Uchiha? As in Uchiha Gin?”

The fatter orange cat sniffed him curiously before its demeanor relaxed.

“Yes, Uchiha Gin is my cousin.”

Satisfied, the cats stepped aside. “Well, if you’re his cousin, go on in!”

Madara paused. Could his cousin’s boasts about connections actually be true?

Inside the Void Realm, Madara encountered its enigmatic ruler. Reclining lazily, she eyed him with mild amusement.

“I’ve come for information. Gin sent me,” Madara stated, showing a coin Gin had given him.

Inspecting the coin, the woman smirked. “What do you want to know?”

“Everything about the Tailed Beasts.”

“Well, well… that’s a tall order. It won’t be cheap~”

Madara crossed his arms confidently. “Put it all on my cousin’s tab!”