"You…"

  The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, dropped to one knee, barely able to support his body with one arm. His voice was weak and trembling:

  "ōtsutsuki…? I've never heard that name before. Why… are you here…?"

  As soon as the words left his mouth, his strength gave out. The arm propping up his aging body colpsed with a dull thud, and he fell to the ground.

  "Executor of Fate, return Sarutobi Hiruzen's soul to him."

  The powerful voice rang out again. The white-robed man who called himself Hazuki blurred and reappeared beside Hiruzen in an instant. From a miniature bck void, a hand emerged, firmly grabbing Hiruzen's arm.

  "You don't need to know who I am. Stop talking. Konoha is safe now."

  For the first time, Hiruzen felt true safety—reliable, warm, and strangely reassuring. Even though the white-robed man's chakra exuded a chilling intensity, the warmth in his voice and presence could not be masked.

  Hazuki himself wasn't sure why he arrived so precisely at this moment. He had only come to Konoha on a mission on behalf of his cn. Yet by sheer coincidence, he'd walked into an invasion—and when he sensed that a high-ranking cn official had been summoned, he rushed over immediately, ultimately saving Hiruzen at the st second.

  Feeling the unwavering will to protect Konoha in Hazuki's chakra, Hiruzen let out a faint smile before losing consciousness. Hazuki, fulfilling his promise, used his unique space-time ability to teleport the Third Hokage directly to the medical unit.

  "You insolent brat! I don't know who you are or why you're here, but for attacking Konoha today, you will die!"

  A thunderous voice boomed.

  "I am the Thirty-Second Successor of the ōtsutsuki Cn, the Executor of Fate. Those who stand in my way—shall perish!"

  This mysterious opponent was undoubtedly a top-tier powerhouse. Even though the cn had remained hidden for millennia, the strength of their bloodline and jutsu was beyond compare. His chakra burst skyward, so potent that it sent shivers down the Nine-Tails' spine a kilometer away. Kurama instinctively turned to look in Hazuki's direction. That chakra… unmistakably ōtsutsuki.

  Kurama was all too familiar with the origins of the ōtsutsuki Cn. His only acknowledged master—ōtsutsuki Hagoromo, the Sage of Six Paths—was the founder of Ninshū and a legendary figure in shinobi history. The Sage had once vowed that the nine tailed beasts would be guardians of the world, protectors of peace. The ōtsutsuki Cn was meant to remain in the shadows, intervening only when the world teetered on the brink.

  Was this such a moment? Kurama questioned silently, then abruptly shook off the shinobi attacking him and dashed toward the white-robed man emanating ōtsutsuki chakra.

  Meanwhile, the masked man facing Hazuki had already begun to panic. His original pn had gone awry. He was confident that, if he truly wanted to escape, no one could stop him. That arrogance still burned within him.

  But standing before a shinobi even more enigmatic than himself, he couldn't help but tremble. Still, trying to preserve his own dignity, he sneered and taunted:

  "Kill me? You think you can catch me? Go ahead and try. It's been a while since someone dared to entertain me!"

  Yet, his voice quivered slightly.

  Sharingan—Activate!

  Hazuki didn't waste words.

  As a direct descendant of the ōtsutsuki Cn, of course he possessed ocur powers. While Hazuki had only the Sharingan, that alone was sufficient for a messenger of his standing.

  As the tomoe swirled within his eyes, they began to evolve. Lines emerged at the edges—transforming.

  In mere moments, a new pattern solidified in his pupils.

  Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan.

  Eyes once wielded only by legends like Uchiha Madara.

  Just from that one look, Kurama felt immense pressure. The next second, the Nine-Tails knelt solemnly before Hazuki, acknowledging his dominance.

  He recognized the rule of Hagoromo. He would obey the will of the ōtsutsuki.

  He was born from them.

  Seeing Kurama suddenly defect mid-battle, the masked man panicked.

  "Hey! Kurama, come back! I thought we were in this together—why are you bailing now?! I swear, you're such a pain. Please, come back, I beg you…"

  "Enough. Shut your mouth, you clown."

  Kurama snarled, his fury boiling over.

  "You think your impure Sharingan can control me? You don't have the heart to lead a Tailed Beast. Now, pay for your crimes!"

  His words rang with wrath. Kurama had long harbored resentment over being controlled, and now he shed out.

  "Lord Kurama," Hazuki said calmly. "We need your cooperation. The ōtsutsuki Cn has work to do."

  At that, Kurama went completely still. It had been thousands of years since anyone had called him that name.

  Kurama—Lord Kurama.

  Perhaps… it was finally time for him to re-emerge.

  As for the masked man—Hazuki no longer even considered him worth noticing. What Hiruzen had found insurmountable, to Hazuki, was no more than an insect.

  Sometimes, bloodline does speak volumes.

  "Executor, if there's nothing else, please return to the cn estate." Hazuki turned politely to the towering figure beside him—the Shinigami, cd in white robes, holding orbs of matter identical to Truth-Seeking Balls. He too… was ōtsutsuki.

  Such techniques were proof that the ōtsutsuki were still very much active in the shinobi world.

  Just then, Minato Namikaze finally arrived.

  What he saw shocked him—a kneeling Nine-Tails, a terrified masked man, and a white-robed stranger exuding unimaginable power.

  For a man who had just struggled to contain Kurama using every st ounce of chakra, only to see it submit in a fsh… it was utterly crushing.

  Was training really worth anything at all?In the face of pure bloodline power, maybe not.

  Maybe…

  "Ah, so you're the Fourth Hokage, Namikaze Minato," Hazuki said once the Executor had returned to the cn.

  "The cn leader sends his congratutions on the birth of your child. The ōtsutsuki Cn has specially dispatched me to deliver our blessings."

  Minato was dumbfounded. No one would believe a cn this powerful would send a messenger just to offer congratutions—and then proceed to save Konoha in the process. Still, mustering his resolve, he forced out a weak:

  "Thank you…"

  He had no strength left after the battle.

  "Hey! Am I invisible or something?! I'm still here! I'm the one who released the Nine-Tails, remember?! Hellooo? I'm still alive here! Let me put on a show for you! Hahahahaha!"

  The masked man shouted desperately, trying to draw attention. But as the old saying goes: if you seek death, you'll find it.

  Hazuki hated noisy distractions. Hearing the obnoxious voice, he gnced toward the man with his Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan still active.

  He didn't even deactivate it.

  Just a single gnce—backed by raw ocur power.

  No one knew what had happened, but the Uchiha present felt a burst of eye-power. In that instant, Hazuki activated his dōjutsu, channeling chakra directly into the masked man's single eye with a flicker of cold fury.

  Ruthless. Overwhelming. Irrational strength.

  But the masked man wasn't entirely helpless. Feeling the mental intrusion, he forcibly broke free from the genjutsu and resumed mumbling nonsense. Only this time, he kept his eyes down and avoided eye contact with anyone.

  Realizing no one was paying attention to him, he made a reckless move.

  Fire Style: Majestic Destroyer Fme!

  In under a second, he completed four hand seals and unleashed a wave of bzing fmes, cutting off Hazuki's words.

  Hazuki's expression darkened.

  Amenotejikara!

  His body phased out, swallowed by a bck void. Not even the best sensory ninja could trace his movement.

  In the next instant, he reappeared—directly behind the masked man.

  All-Killing Ash Bones!

  A piercing bone spike shot out from Hazuki's palm, aimed straight at his enemy's heart.

  But the masked man, seasoned in battle, leaned back on reflex alone, narrowly dodging the strike. Realizing his entire operation had been derailed by a stranger, he decided to retreat.

  Still, his idiotic personality remained. As he vanished, he shouted:

  "Don't forget me, Konoha! Your good ol' pal will be back! Hahahahahaha!"

  Before the ughter faded, a swirling vortex engulfed his body. In moments, he was gone without a trace.

  Hazuki didn't bother to chase. To the ōtsutsuki Cn, such a ninja wasn't even worth pursuing.

  As long as the ōtsutsuki remained, no real chaos would take root in the shinobi world.

  They all firmly believed that—and lived by it.

  While Hazuki was still lost in thought, Minato—now supported by Kakashi—stood and limped toward him.

  "ōtsutsuki Hazuki, thank you for saving Konoha," Minato said earnestly. "From this day forward, the entire ōtsutsuki Cn shall be treated as honored guests. The gates of Konoha will always remain open to you."

  Minato understood politics. As Hokage, he knew the importance of winning over powerful allies.

  His sudden promise shocked Hazuki. He hadn't expected the Hokage to show such trust toward a total stranger.

  What came next left Hazuki completely speechless.

  With a sincere smile, Minato looked up and said,"I think your clothes are really clean… you don't seem like a bad person."

  …

  So that counts as a reason too, huh?

  "Well, good thing I dressed nicely today."

  "Then let's continue with the main topic…" He had barely spoken half a sentence when whispers came from behind him, "So handsome! A white-robed angel!" "Yeah, Konoha hasn't had such a clean and pure beautiful man besides the Hokage-sama!" "Mhm, he's truly a god descended to earth."

  Once again, the new skill "facepalm in speechless exasperation" came in handy.

  "Quiet down, everyone, Hazuki-sama has something to say," Minato said, stepping forward to stop the infatuated young women.

  This made Hazuki admire Minato even more. He then proceeded to tell Minato the mission entrusted to him by his cn.

  "We, the ōtsutsuki, are a powerful cn that has long resided behind the scenes of the ninja world. This time, the cn elders have sent me to entrust our cn's prodigy to Konoha, and we also hope that Kurama can be sealed within your child using your methods. We require such power."