166. The Moon

Feeling a glimmer of hope, Uchiha Gin pushed down the strange feeling in his heart, swinging his giant axe with even more vigor.

Guided by the call of his bloodline, he cut through the obstacles in his path and eventually arrived outside a mountain cave concealed by layers of ancient cedars.

"Boom!"

Unbothered by these pesky ancient trees, Uchiha Gin clapped his hands, and a light green glow appeared on his palms. The power of Wood Release channeled through his feet into the ground. As his chakra connected with the roots underground, the thick cedar trees before him seemed to come to life, slowly shifting on their own. With a rumbling sound, a wide entrance appeared between the trees.

"Alright! Time for an adventure!"

Seeing the dark entrance of the cave, Uchiha Gin showed no trace of fear; instead, he looked eager, diving into the cave without a second thought.

Once inside, he activated his mutated Byakugan. The dark surroundings instantly became visible, eliminating the need for a light source. The cave was dark and damp, seemingly endless, with the humid air dense and heavy.

The walls were smooth and covered with moss, while the black ground was strangely flat, clearly an artificially crafted pathway. The winding cave was filled with the sounds of dripping water and whistling wind, creating a chilling atmosphere.

Feeling the coldness around him, Uchiha Gin pulled his thin clothing tighter and continued deeper into the cave, following the ever-stronger pull in his bloodline.

"Drip... drip..."

The dripping sound grew clearer as he advanced, and the air became more humid. It seemed that there might be a water source at the end of the cave.

And indeed, when Uchiha Gin reached the deepest part of the cave, he found himself in an open space.

In the middle, a pool of water lay still, as smooth as a mirror, reflecting slivers of moonlight filtering down from above.

"Well, doesn't this place look familiar?"

His bloodline was pulsing wildly, but Uchiha Gin didn't rush forward. Instead, he gazed at the pool, vaguely feeling he’d seen it somewhere before, although he couldn't recall where.

Pushing his doubts aside, Uchiha Gin decided to focus on his goal. He stepped to the edge of the pool and used his Byakugan to peer into the depths, searching carefully.

"Ah! There it is!"

With his enhanced vision, he spotted a black longsword embedded deep at the bottom of the pool. However, even with his mutated Byakugan, he couldn't gauge its full depth—it looked like a discarded piece of scrap metal.

"Hiss..."

He tried putting his hand into the water, but the icy chill made him gasp. Clearly, this wasn't ordinary water. Not willing to back down, Uchiha Gin wrapped himself in a layer of chakra, held his nose, and dove in.

Protected by the chakra coat, he no longer felt the chill as before. He steadied himself, kept his blue eyes fixed, and swam toward the black sword.

"Quite the struggle."

The further he swam, the heavier he felt, as though the surrounding water were filled with lead, offering no buoyancy at all. Thankfully, his strong body prevented him from suffocating, and after about ten minutes, he finally reached the sword.

The black longsword was simpler than Uchiha Gin had imagined—almost overly plain, with a dark blade that revealed nothing of its material. But knowing the story, Uchiha Gin guessed it was likely a Yin-Yang Release weapon, one fitting for the Sage of Six Paths himself.

Without hesitation, he extended his hand to pull out the ancient weapon. Yet no matter how much strength he exerted, he couldn’t budge it at all.

"Strength contest? I'm not losing here!"

His pride flaring up, Uchiha Gin gripped the sword’s hilt with both hands, channeled his chakra, and unleashed his full strength. A blue glow burst from his hands.

With that powerful force, Uchiha Gin felt invincible, as if he could punch away a tailed beast blocking his path.

"Get up!"

With veins popping in his arms and his feet digging into the ground, Uchiha Gin strained with all his might, yet the sword didn’t move an inch.

Frustrated, he released a deep breath, shook his sore hands, feeling humbled. This marked his second defeat since his transmigration.

The first was when Senju Butsuma had taught him a lesson with a single punch. Since then, Uchiha Gin had learned to keep a low profile, to develop cautiously without taking unnecessary risks. He thought he’d grown strong enough with the system’s help, even becoming an Otsutsuki-class powerhouse.

But here he was, stumped by an ancient weapon.

"Huh?"

As he was about to search for another method, his Byakugan noticed faint symbols around the sword’s embedded spot. He crouched down to examine them carefully.

"It seems to be some sort of jutsu... like a summoning jutsu, but not quite."

Using his limited knowledge, Uchiha Gin tried to decipher the symbols, guessing it was some type of spatial summoning technique.

He sighed, realizing the importance of learning more. Once he returned, he’d study diligently every day.

"Huh? Why is it glowing?"

Just as he was about to brush away the mud covering the symbols, they began to emit a white light, startling him. He instinctively tried to jump back.

But Uchiha Gin had forgotten his current surroundings, and with the water around him as heavy as lead, he barely managed to move a centimeter before the light engulfed him.

"I got tricked! The Hagoromo Clan really is full of schemers!"

That was Uchiha Gin's last shout before he was swallowed up by the white light, ascending toward the moon hanging in the sky.

"Oh no, am I heading to the moon?"

Unable to control his body, Uchiha Gin could only watch as he was broken down into particles of light, drawn toward the distant moon above.

Meanwhile, in a dark space, an ancient figure floated in midair. Slowly opening his eyes, which had concentric purple rings radiating an aura of mystery, the elder stroked his long, goatee beard and frowned slightly.

"Another descendant has entered. I told that Hagoromo boy not to open the door carelessly."

"Who is it this time? Indra? Or Ashura?"

Sensing that his weapon had been touched, a hint of resignation flickered in the elder’s purple eyes. He carefully examined the situation, and what he sensed deepened his frown until it matched the furrows on his wrinkled face.

"Indra, Ashura... and Hagoromo? What's with this descendant and their jumbled bloodline?"

The elder’s observation shocked him. This descendant bore a mix of different bloodlines, even his brother’s bloodline to a significant degree.

"Maybe... this boy could be the one."

A flicker of contemplation appeared in the elder’s eyes.

After all these years, he’d begun to sense a looming crisis.

The strange descendant could be the perfect one to test his theories.

"Then, let’s see if he’s worthy. If he dies easily, then he’s not fit for this."

With that, the elder closed his eyes once more, and the space returned to silence.

"Where... am I? Is this even my homeland?"

After what felt like an endless transmission through the jutsu, Uchiha Gin finally regained control of his body. Opening his eyes, he found himself in a dense jungle.

"Did I actually make it out?"

Surveying the forest around him, Gin wondered if his apparent flight to the moon had been just an illusion.

He began searching around for signs of his previous path, but he quickly realized this forest was entirely unfamiliar.

"Cre-e-eak!"

"Well, looks like I’ve really flown somewhere."

Before he could process more, a strange figure appeared before him. Gin's dead-fish eyes stared blankly as he let out a sigh and muttered:

"Intruder detected, intruder detected!"

The figure’s limbs twisted at bizarre angles. Seeing Uchiha Gin, it sounded an alert from a mouth covered in bandages on a pale face. Then, another pair of long arms sprouted, launching itself toward Gin.

"Really? Who even understands this?"

Uchiha Gin sighed, realizing his little adventure had somehow landed him in this bizarre place. Facing the creature with its long limbs, he punched it square in the face, using his full strength.

"Boom!"

The creature exploded into fragments, the scene too gruesome to look at directly.

"In... tru... der..."

More terrifyingly, the shattered head continued muttering in broken phrases. On closer inspection, its interior was filled with gears—this strange being was an intricate puppet.

"Great, so much for lying low! Now I'm stuck here!"

Unmoved by the victory, Gin looked off into the distance at the approaching swarm of dark shadows, and sighed deeply.

He had made it to the moon—the place where his ancestors were sealed.