"Naruto… the time has come."
Prince Suigen stood quietly in the courtyard, looking up at the vast sky. His eyes were deep, as if they could pierce through space itself.
When Naruto heard those words, his heart suddenly tightened.
His expression changed slightly.
"Grandpa…"
"Do you mean… the time for my decisive battle with the Ōtsutsuki Clan is approaching?"
Prince Suigen slowly turned his gaze back to him and nodded.
"Yes."
"According to intelligence from our scouts scattered across the universe, the Ōtsutsuki Clan has recently expanded their exploration range at an alarming rate."
"They have dispatched more than ten times their previous manpower."
"At this speed, it is only a matter of time before they reach this star field."
Naruto frowned deeply.
"What should we do…?"
Right now, although he had mastered the five elemental attributes—Fire, Water, Wind, Earth, and Lightning—and had integrated dark matter cultivation with his chakra system…
Compared to when he had first arrived, he was incomparably stronger.
However…
When facing true monsters like the Ōtsutsuki God, this level was still far from enough.
Even among the Chuigen Clan, he could not yet defeat the strongest masters.
Thinking of this, Naruto clenched his fists unconsciously.
A strong sense of powerlessness welled up in his heart.
He understood.
What he lacked most was not talent.
Not determination.
Not even courage.
It was time.
The Ōtsutsuki God's terrifying strength was built upon thousands of years of accumulation.
And Naruto had only been given a few short years.
Time simply did not wait for him.
Seeing Naruto's depressed expression, Prince Suigen smiled faintly.
He tilted his head slightly and said gently,
"It's not completely impossible."
Those words struck Naruto like lightning.
He raised his head instantly, his eyes shining.
"Grandpa! What do you mean?!"
Prince Suigen looked at him seriously.
"Do you remember what I told you before?"
"The foundation of the Ōtsutsuki Clan's power lies in the Mother Tree—the origin of the God Tree."
"It still exists in their homeland."
"All the Ōtsutsuki who travel through space to harvest chakra carry seeds separated from that Mother Tree."
Naruto nodded.
He remembered clearly.
The old man had told him this when he was first resurrected.
Prince Suigen's expression became deeper.
"There is something I have never told you."
"About… how I mastered dark matter."
Naruto froze.
Then his eyes widened.
Yes.
He had never seriously thought about this.
How did Prince Suigen abandon chakra cultivation and instead master dark matter?
This was the most critical question.
"Please enlighten me, Grandpa."
Prince Suigen chuckled.
"There's no need to be so formal."
"I'm just telling you an old story."
He looked into the distance, as if recalling the past.
"Back then, my brother was obsessed with cultivating chakra."
"He absorbed the life force of countless beings."
"I felt that this path was wrong."
"It was destroying nature."
"So, in order to stop him, I secretly went to the Mother Tree."
"At that time, I planned to destroy it."
"But… I failed."
"No matter what method I used, I couldn't damage its bark."
"And worse…"
"It had already formed a deep connection with my brother, Emperor Mikane."
"In the end, he found me."
Prince Suigen sighed softly.
"I was terrified."
"But he didn't kill me."
"He only imprisoned me."
"Later, through the guards, I learned that Emperor Mikane had resonated with the Mother Tree."
"The tree merged into his body."
"And was taken away from its original location."
Naruto murmured,
"That's like becoming the Jinchūriki of the God Tree…"
"The Mother Tree merged with him."
Prince Suigen smiled.
"That's right."
"I only confirmed it through later research."
He continued.
"After some time, I was released."
"The first thing I did was rush back to the Mother Tree's original location."
"I wanted to see what had happened there."
"What I saw shocked me."
"The land that had been dry and dead for tens of thousands of miles…"
"Was slowly recovering."
"The deeper I walked, the stronger the vitality became."
"When I reached the core…"
"I saw a massive pit."
"A bottomless pit."
Naruto listened intently.
Prince Suigen's voice became softer.
"When I stood at the edge…"
"I felt a strange attraction."
"My head became dizzy."
"And I fell straight down."
"At that time, I was completely terrified."
"I lost consciousness before I could react."
"The next day…"
"When the sun was directly overhead…"
"I slowly woke up."
"I found that the plants around the pit had spread apart."
"Allowing sunlight to shine down."
"And at the bottom…"
"There was a black boulder."
Naruto held his breath.
Prince Suigen continued.
"On that boulder were carved mysterious patterns and words."
"Complex."
"Ancient."
"Unfathomable."
"I felt a strange calling."
"So I walked toward it."
"When I placed my hand on it…"
"The boulder emitted five-colored light."
"In that instant…"
"It felt like something entered my mind."
He laughed softly.
"That was when I began to comprehend dark matter."
Naruto was stunned.
"So… Grandpa…"
"You also have all five attributes?"
Prince Suigen nodded.
"Yes."
"I am also a balanced-type cultivator."
"So far, I'm the only one who has reached this level."
"However…"
"That may be because of that stone."
"Not everyone can integrate it into their body."
Naruto was shocked.
"Integrate… a huge stone into the body?!"
Prince Suigen replied calmly,
"Yes."
"Otherwise, how could I be so strong?"
"How could I create this planet?"
"And lead my people through endless space?"
Naruto swallowed.
"Then… what exactly does that stone do?"
Prince Suigen smiled meaningfully.
"Simply put…"
"If you truly comprehend it…"
"The dark matter of the entire universe will be at your disposal."
Naruto's pupils shrank.
"That powerful?!"
"More than powerful," Prince Suigen said seriously.
"It is miraculous."
"I suspect…"
"That stone came into existence together with the God Tree."
"The tree grew upward."
"And the stone remained buried beneath it."
"I've studied it for countless years."
"But I still don't know its true origin."
"So later…"
"I placed it in the academy."
"To test talent and attributes."
Then he looked at Naruto.
"Do you know why I said you are the Child of Prophecy?"
Naruto shook his head.
"In fact…"
"I learned it from the patterns on that stone."
Naruto's heart trembled.
He suddenly remembered the Uchiha Stone Tablet.
The one left by Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki…
And later tampered with by Black Zetsu.
Was this boulder the same?
"Grandpa…"
"Do you know who left those messages?"
Prince Suigen shook his head slowly.
"I don't."
"The boulder is naturally formed."
"I only encountered it by chance."
"But I believe…"
"Everything in the universe has its destiny."
"Whether I fell into that pit."
"Or you were resurrected here."
"It was all arranged."
"What we can do…"
"Is follow the current."
"And do our best."
He stood up and placed his hand on Naruto's shoulder.
His voice was calm and heavy.
"Naruto."
"The stone…"
"Now belongs to you."
"My mission…"
"Ends here."
The weight of destiny silently descended upon Naruto's shoulders.