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My Journey as Fourth Kazekage 68
🕑 Added 2025-02-05 10:03:36 +0000 UTCChapter 68: Changes in the God Tree
Above the Demon Desert, near the borders of Sunagakure.
Rasa had barely stepped foot back into the village before he was off again, racing into the vast desert at full speed.
The reason? Bunpuku had summoned him with great urgency.
And the cause of this summons? Something extraordinary had occurred to the God Tree he had planted.
It had only been half a month since Rasa had sown the Dragon Vein Chakra Fruit into the desert sands, yet its astonishing vitality had already begun to manifest.
By tapping into the hidden underground rivers coursing beneath the dunes, the chakra-infused tree had woven a network of verdant lifelines across the barren expanse.
From above, the sight was breathtaking.
Vivid green tendrils snaked across the golden sands, resembling the tributaries of a vast river, bringing forth life where once there had only been desolation.
Upon closer inspection, Rasa noticed that these veins of life were not composed of the usual hardy desert flora. Astonishingly, plants from other regions had also begun to take root.
The reason was clear—Sunagakure’s subterranean waterways originated from neighboring lands such as the Land of Birds, the Land of Rivers, and the perpetually rain-drenched Land of Rain.
As these hidden streams meandered beneath the Land of Wind, they carried with them seeds from distant territories. When exposed to the immense life force of the Dragon Vein, these seeds germinated and flourished at an unnatural rate.
This phenomenon was a miraculous blessing for Sunagakure and aligned perfectly with Rasa’s grand vision.
At this rate, in just ten years, the Dragon Vein’s influence could reshape the desert into a lush, habitable paradise.
But if its chakra could alter the land so dramatically, what effect might it have on the human body?
Could exposure to the Dragon Vein’s power fortify Sunagakure’s shinobi, enhancing their strength beyond natural limits?
With these thoughts swirling in his mind, Rasa pressed forward until he reached the edge of the flourishing greenery—
And what he saw left him utterly speechless.
---
Rasa had been meticulously monitoring the God Tree’s growth from the moment he planted it. Even amid his burdensome village duties, he made a point to visit daily, eager to observe its progress.
Three days ago, this area had been little more than a modest desert oasis, dotted with sparse shrubs and dry grasses.
But now—
A dense, thriving forest—comparable to the fertile woodlands of the Land of Fire—had sprung forth, seemingly overnight.
Though not expansive, roughly the size of a football field, its very presence in the unforgiving desert was beyond comprehension.
“Could this be the transformation Bunpuku spoke of?”
Descending on a floating wave of shimmering golden sand, Rasa touched down in the heart of the forest. At the center, encircled by four towering statues that anchored the Dragon Vein’s seal, stood an awe-inspiring sight—the God Tree itself, its emerald canopy reaching skyward.
Nestled at the base of the seal was a modest stone hut, the dwelling of Bunpuku, who had dedicated his life to safeguarding this sacred place.
As soon as Rasa’s feet touched the ground, his gaze swept across the landscape in quiet astonishment. The scene before him was both familiar and alien, an eerie blend of the known and the impossible.
Bunpuku, having sensed his arrival, had already emerged from his stone dwelling to welcome him.
Rasa turned toward the elderly man and asked curiously.
"Is this the ‘surprise’ you spoke of, Bunpuku-sama?"
Now an elder of the village, Rasa’s manner of address toward Bunpuku had changed. It was clear that in recent times, Bunpuku’s health had improved significantly.
Gone was the frail, deathly look he had when they first met—now, he seemed full of life and energy. His eyes gleamed with newfound vitality, his stance no longer weighed down by exhaustion.
At Rasa’s question, Bunpuku pressed his palms together in a solemn gesture, awe flickering across his aged features.
“Yes, Kazekage-sama… but this is only one of the surprises.”
Rasa arched a brow.
“One of the surprises?”
“That’s right, Kazekage-sama. Please, take a closer look at this God Tree. Do you notice anything… unusual?”
“???”
Narrowing his eyes, Rasa studied the tree intently.
At first glance, nothing seemed out of the ordinary—aside from its increased size. It had certainly grown larger, its thickened trunk and flourishing branches a testament to its continued expansion.
But then—
His pupils constricted. His breath hitched. A jolt of disbelief surged through him.
Because nestled among the tree’s lush, verdant canopy—
A fruit had appeared.
A spiraled fruit.
“..?”
Rasa stood motionless, his mind grappling with the sheer impossibility of what he was witnessing.
Had he not trained himself to maintain a Kazekage’s unwavering composure, he might have blurted out something wholly undignified. Because this fruit—this shape—was unmistakable.
It looked exactly like a Devil Fruit from One Piece.
‘Did I transmigrate into the wrong anime? His thoughts spiraled wildly. Is this even Naruto anymore, or have I somehow ended up in the world of One Piece?’
He turned sharply to Bunpuku, his confusion slipping into his voice.
“What the hell is going on, Bunpuku-sama?”
Bunpuku pressed his palms together once more, his expression mirroring Rasa’s bewilderment.
“Kazekage-sama, I do not know. If not for Shukaku’s warning, I might never have noticed this fruit.”
“Shukaku warned you?”
“Yes. As a being that has dwelled in the desert for centuries, Shukaku possesses an acute awareness of any disturbances in its surroundings. Three nights ago—the very night you left the village—I was resting in my hut when his voice echoed in my mind.”
Bunpuku paused, as if weighing his next words.
“He told me something had changed outside. And when I stepped out… I saw this fruit.”
Rasa’s brows knitted together as he sank into deep contemplation.
“…Did Shukaku say anything else?”
Bunpuku gave a slow nod.
“Yes. Shukaku said that this God Tree you planted is radiating an extremely peculiar chakra… and that this chakra is actively nourishing the land.”
“Nourishing the land?”
Rasa was stunned. His mind flooded with countless thoughts.
This wasn’t supposed to happen.
Rasa’s original goal had been simple—harness the natural energy of the Dragon Vein to alter the harsh desert environment, transforming it into something more hospitable. But ever since the chakra fruit had metamorphosed into a towering tree, an unshakable fear had taken root in his heart.
And that fear was this—
What if this tree was not a mere anomaly, but an Ōtsutsuki God Tree?
Because the true purpose of an Ōtsutsuki God Tree was never to restore life.
It was to consume it.
Each of these trees was nothing more than a tool, a monstrous siphon designed to extract the very life force of a planet. Its end goal? The birth of a Ten-Tails Beast. A harbinger of devastation.
Rasa’s gaze drifted downward, settling on his right palm.
There, etched into his flesh, was the unmistakable black spiral—the mark of the Kāma Seal.
A chilling thought slithered into his mind, sharp as a kunai’s edge.
‘Is this the true purpose of my Kāma Seal? Did the Ōtsutsuki intend for me to nurture a new Ten-Tails?’
Rasa might have been a transmigrator, but against the Ōtsutsuki Clan, he was still just a native of this world. A mortal.
And he had no intention of letting this planet become mere fuel for their endless cycle of evolution.
Yet now…
Shukaku had told him something unthinkable.
This God Tree wasn’t absorbing chakra.
It was giving it back to the land.
‘How is that possible? Is it because I deliberately sealed its roots inside the Black Tea Kettle? Or… am I just overthinking everything?’
As his thoughts twisted and tangled, trying to make sense of the impossible, a sound suddenly echoed through his mind—
A voice.
Deep. Husky. Feminine.
A whisper, strange and rhythmic, coiling around his senses like an unseen force—
[…Chakra… Chakra…]
