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[RNZO] Ch 244: The End of Sage of Six Paths
🕑 Added 2025-05-22 16:31:25 +0000 UTC— — — — — —
"Pathetic."
With a single glance, Uchiha Renzo saw right through all of his opponent's schemes. He raised his Zanpakutō, and under Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo's watchful eyes, activated its Shikai in an instant.
"Shatter—Kyōka Suigetsu."
Schlick!
The next second, Hagoromo's staff pierced straight through Renzo's chest.
"Haha! You're mine now!"
Hagoromo laughed wildly as he grabbed Renzo's head.
No matter what tricks he might've had up his sleeve before, the moment he got stabbed by the Truth-Seeking Staff, it should've been over. Any plan he had was too little, too late.
Shing!
Suddenly, the sound of a blade slicing through flesh echoed out, and Hagoromo froze in place, eyes wide.
"Doujutsu: Takamagahara—Sealing Domain."
The voice came from behind him.
Right as the words fell, Hagoromo could feel his connection to the Pure Land severed—his ability to draw upon its power was completely cut off.
His strength plummeted, leaving him only with what little he had left in his own reserves.
Confused, Hagoromo looked down slowly… only to see a gleaming blade stabbing straight through his chest, blood pouring from the wound.
"Impossible…"
He could feel it now—Renzo was behind him. That sword had definitely been plunged into him by the real Renzo.
But… hadn't he just stabbed Renzo himself moments ago? He was sure of it!
And as a soul form, Renzo shouldn't have been able to use Shadow Clones or illusions… at least, not ones that would fool Hagoromo.
Then it hit him.
"…Why am I bleeding?" he muttered in disbelief.
But the answer came just as quickly—this wasn't ordinary blood. It was his soul bleeding out.
He could feel it—his life force, the essence of his soul, was draining rapidly. He tried to move, to resist, but Renzo pinned him in place with a single hand and the pressure of his blade.
All Hagoromo could do was stare helplessly as his soul-blood spilled away and his strength faded with it.
"This isn't regular blood," he muttered weakly.
"Correct," Renzo said with a calm smile. "That's your soul's blood. You don't have a physical body anymore, remember? So what you're bleeding isn't flesh and blood… it's your spirit, being carved away by my Zanpakutō."
"So just die already. Peacefully, if you can manage it."
"In this Takamagahara Domain, you can't access the Pure Land's authority anymore. You lost the moment you tried to pull me in."
"Honestly, you're a tough old ghost. Even in death, you weren't content to stay down. Over the past thousand years, you've actually managed to seize control of most of the Pure Land's power."
"If it weren't for the fact that I cut you off from that power in time… you might've beaten me here. After all, this place runs on a unique system, and you did manage to forge a soul-body far stronger than a regular wandering spirit."
"Still," Renzo added casually, "without that power, you're not much."
Hagoromo's gaze was dimming, but one last question lingered.
"Tell me… how did you end up behind me? I'm sure I hit you!"
His confusion was genuine. His senses had been dead-on.
Unfortunately for him… that's exactly why he lost.
"Kyōka Suigetsu," Renzo said simply, smirking.
"It can fool all of your senses. The moment I activated it, you never stood a chance."
"You really thought you stabbed me?"
Of course, if Renzo had stalled a bit longer, Hagoromo would've eventually caught on—he was the Sage of Six Paths, after all.
After all, pulling off a perfect illusion that fools even someone like him? That's not something just anyone can do. No... that level of deception was something only the real Aizen ever mastered.
Controlling perception itself, rewriting reality in people's minds—Kyōka Suigetsu under the true Aizen wasn't just illusion... it was god-tier manipulation. Even monsters who had survived for thousands of years didn't notice they were dancing in his palm. That's not just power. That's fear.
As for Aizen Renzo? Sure, he had the same Zanpakutō. The same potential. But that chilling, omniscient-level intellect? The terrifying genius that made Aizen Sōsuke a one-man war? Yeah… Renzo wasn't quite there.
---
Without waiting for a reply, Uchiha Renzo twisted the blade upward, cleaving Hagoromo's upper body into three pieces—including his head.
"You…" Hagoromo's eyes widened in disbelief as his last words left his lips: "…I'm not ready to go…"
And then, his soul began to disintegrate.
"Seal."
Renzo acted fast, using Takamagahara's rules to lock down the remnants of Hagoromo's soul. Then he sat cross-legged in the void, quietly absorbing the man's memories, sifting through them for anything useful.
...
After half a month
Renzo finally stood up with a long stretch, dismissing the restraints on Hagoromo's soul fragment and letting it dissolve completely into the realm of Takamagahara, absorbed back into the world.
Only then did Renzo wave his hand, dispersing Takamagahara and reappearing in the Pure Land.
"Finally showing up, huh?" A voice echoed not far away.
Ōtsutsuki Hamura opened his eyes, a complicated look in them as he gazed at Renzo. "I guess that means... my brother lost."
"Oh?" Renzo raised an eyebrow in genuine surprise. "So Six Paths didn't destroy your soul after all? Huh. I honestly thought he would've."
Hamura shook his head. "For all his faults, he's still my brother. He wouldn't go that far. He just sealed me away."
"But about half a month ago, I felt the power suppressing me vanish. Since then, I've just been waiting... waiting for you two to settle things."
"Now that it's over, I can finally let go of everything. It's time for me to move on."
As he spoke, Hamura turned and slowly drifted toward the far side of the River of Souls.
"You're seriously planning to enter the cycle of reincarnation?" Renzo looked genuinely surprised.
This guy really never stopped being full of surprises. He was nothing like his scheming, power-hungry brother. They were polar opposites.
"That's right," Hamura replied. "Reincarnation is the proper path for all who've passed on. It's the natural order of the world. Farewell."
Without turning back, he disappeared into the endless spiral of reincarnation. His presence vanished completely.
Far away, deep inside the Moon, Kaguya suddenly looked up toward Earth. Her eyes trembled as tears streamed down her face.
"Hamura... he's gone too?..."
Just earlier, she had felt Hagoromo's—Six Paths'—spiritual energy disappear entirely. And now Hamura's was gone too.
It wasn't like they were hiding. No, this time… it was final. They were gone for good.
They were her disobedient sons—children who defied her—but still, Kaguya couldn't help the hollow ache in her chest. She didn't know why, but the sorrow kept pouring out, and she couldn't stop it.
Renzo, who had watched Hamura choose reincarnation without hesitation, let out a low sigh.
"Man… talk about letting go. Who really can do that."
He looked around at the Pure Land.
"This place really is something special. Especially for someone like me, with the power of a Shinigami."
"But I can't just leave it be. I need to take control of this place's authority."
Wasting no time, Renzo created a shadow clone and sent it back to Konoha to deliver the message that he would be entering seclusion.
With that done, he immediately began training in the Pure Land itself.
.
.
.
