Naruto: The Senju After the Age of Gods

Chapter 279: Above the Moon (Part 1)

Deep beneath a mountain within the Land of Fire, inside a vast underground cavern, Hikaru silently stared at the scene before him.

Kakashi had not lied.

This place could indeed be considered a cave.

But looking at the massive pit stretching downward for over a hundred meters, especially the marks left around it, no matter how he looked at it, it did not seem naturally formed.

The place was bizarre beyond measure.

More importantly—

why was it completely different from the cave he remembered?

After pondering for a long while, Hikaru finally gave up trying to force an answer.

Right now, the only thing that mattered was finding out what lay beneath this cavern.

ANBU had indeed discovered this place, but they had no way to proceed deeper because an extremely strange barrier existed here.

And beyond that—

outside the cave itself, another equally bizarre barrier had completely hidden everything.

If an ANBU ninja had not accidentally been blasted away by the barrier and noticed something unusual, this place might have remained buried forever.

At least in Hikaru’s previous life, he had never seen anything mentioning such a cave.

"Could this be the cave Naruto entered in the future?"

The thought flashed through his mind.

Soon afterward, he activated his Jogan.

In an instant, everything inside the cave unfolded before his vision.

"So many seals... and barriers?"

What had previously been invisible now appeared crystal clear under his gaze.

Beyond the layers of seals and barriers stretched a long underground path.

No traces of living creatures.

Nothing.

Only ancient stalactites hanging overhead, droplets of water falling endlessly and splashing against the stone floor.

Further ahead—

he could no longer see.

Even the Jogan had limits.

If he wanted answers, he would have to enter personally.

"It seems that whether or not this is what I’m looking for... this place definitely hides secrets."

Hikaru knew all too well that he still had no idea how many mysteries the Naruto world truly held.

The existence of the Ōtsutsuki Clan alone had shattered his understanding of everything.

They were practically higher-dimensional beings descending upon a lower-dimensional world.

Even though Hikaru had become incredibly strong—

if he actually faced a true Ōtsutsuki now, he felt he would still be killed instantly.

Just look at Kaguya.

Her combat instincts and techniques were honestly terrible.

But even if a pig accidentally swallowed a golden pill and ascended to immortality, it would still be immortal.

The difference between mortal and god remained absolute.

"Still... I haven’t detected any living creatures. As long as I stay cautious and leave Flying Thunder God markers behind for escape, I should be fine."

"And these seals aren’t really a problem."

"After all..."

"I can see their structure."

Since he already understood sealing techniques, and now possessed eyes capable of perceiving every detail of their construction, breaking them apart was hardly difficult.

No matter how ingenious they were—

before the Jogan, they were practically naked.

Without hesitation, Hikaru turned toward Kakashi.

"I’m going in alone."

"You take everyone back."

"...Lord Hokage?!"

Kakashi’s expression changed instantly.

Even Sakumo immediately frowned.

"Lord Hokage, how can you act alone? Konoha can’t function without your leadership. Even if you’re powerful, what if—"

"What if I die?"

Hikaru grinned.

"Then just revive me."

"..."

"..."

Kakashi and Sakumo both froze.

Because after hearing that...

they suddenly realized they couldn’t think of a single argument.

After all—

Sakumo himself was standing here alive as proof.

Seeing their helpless expressions, Hikaru laughed.

"Relax."

"I still have Flying Thunder God."

"If I want to leave, nobody can stop me."

"Sakumo-senpai hasn’t even completed his rehabilitation yet. Following me won’t help."

"I’ll leave a shadow clone behind and head back with you."

"This mission... I’ll treat it as a solo operation."

Neither of them liked it.

But at this point, they could only agree.

After all—

they each had responsibilities of their own.

Kakashi still needed to coordinate ANBU operations.

And Sakumo...

was still far from fully recovering.

Following Hikaru now would only become a burden.

Soon after, Hikaru leapt into the cavern.

As he moved, his Jogan continuously scanned ahead while he rapidly dismantled every seal blocking his path.

His speed was astonishing.

Not long after Kakashi and the others left, he had already entered the tunnel he had discovered earlier.

And immediately—

he realized something.

The tunnel was far longer...

and far darker...

than he had imagined.

Even someone like him felt an invisible pressure closing in from every direction.

"Heh..."

"Quite an impressive design."

"Nothing alive is inside, yet it still creates this feeling."

Without slowing down, he accelerated further.

At the same time, he continuously left Flying Thunder God markers along the way.

Just because he hadn’t found enemies—

didn’t mean there were none.

Preparation was everything.

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