Dekamoshi's scarred face remained cold. As his body disappeared into the darkness like a shadow.
Months spent fighting had hardened him not only mentally but also physically, and at night his strength was multiplied. His body seemed to instinctively merge with the darkness. An instinctive ability he obtained from his Kuragami lineage.
"You're pissing me off! You can't escape!!" he shouted as his Rinnegan changed into a Byakugan, scanning the surroundings.
"Here I am~"
Tomei leaped at Dekamoshi like a furious comet, his Byakugan piercing the surrounding darkness. Yet, as he reached his target, his hand passed through the supposed silhouette of Dekamoshi, striking an intangible form.
"What?" exclaimed Tomei, stunned, his cruel smile freezing.
Before he could react, Dekamoshi reappeared behind him, swift and silent like a living shadow. His hand struck with icy precision, piercing Tomei's flesh and emerging with his beating heart between his bloody fingers.
Tomei's eyes widened in shock, unable to believe that the slave he had so despised had dared and succeeded in attacking him.
"You're strong, Tomei," Dekamoshi murmured, a cold smile stretching his lips. "But your arrogance has blinded you."
Tomei collapsed, his gaze slowly emptying of all light as his heart stopped beating. Dekamoshi released the organ, letting it fall to the ground, where the roots of the Shinju tree immediately wrapped around Tomei's corpse, absorbing it with insatiable voracity.
The roots grew and twisted around Tomei's remains, pulsing with intense energy. The trunk of the Shinju tree seemed to widen, and the branches rose even higher into the glowing sky.
At the top of the tree, a light began to shine, catching Dekamoshi's attention. *The Chakra Fruit.*
He looked up, breathless. This fruit, he had heard about it through the tales of the Otsutsuki masters. A concentration of pure energy, capable of transcending physical and spiritual limits.
"At last..." he murmured, launching himself towards the heights of the tree.
Climbing through the massive branches, Dekamoshi felt that this fruit would be his key to escaping the oppression of the Otsutsuki and carving out a place for himself in this cruel world.
When he reached the summit, he reached out and grabbed the fruit. The light it emitted was almost blinding, and an intense heat pulsed through his fingers.
Without hesitation, Dekamoshi bit into the fruit greedily.
As he finished eating the Chakra Fruit, an explosion of energy instantly coursed through him. His eyes widened as an indescribable pain engulfed his being. He let out a primal scream, the fruit falling from his hands as he clutched his face.
"What... what's happening?" he stuttered, his voice breaking under the intensity of the pain.
His eyes began to burn, an unbearable sensation as if invisible flames were consuming his sockets.
He screamed, and a wave of chakra exploded around him, shaking the Shinju tree and illuminating the night with a dazzling light.
In that moment of extreme suffering, he thought of his mother's last words. "In the darkest night, the light shines the brightest."
Dekamoshi suddenly opened his eyes.
From his pupils, two intense beams of blue light burst forth, illuminating everything around him. The surrounding darkness was instantly dispelled, and at the center of his abyssal eyes, a blue iris shimmered like a star in the infinite cosmos.
The pure and absolute eye, envied by all. The legendary eye considered a myth by many... *The Jōgan.*
...
Dekamoshi stood still, his body vibrating with power, as the blue light of the Jōgan merged with the darkness that had become ingrained in him during his trials.
His skin turned black as the abyss, absorbing the light around him, creating an intimidating aura. His hair, previously dull and tangled, grew to his waist, a brilliant white streaked with jet-black tips, as if symbolizing a balance between light and darkness. Three majestic horns sprouted from his forehead, rising like fangs defying the heavens.
At the center of his forehead, the Rinne Sharingan now had 12 tomoe charged with a terrifying power, along with his two Jōgan, the ultimate source of his abilities. He was now an ethereal figure, both majestic and terrifying, embodying a dark beauty that seemed to defy the very laws of the universe.
Dekamoshi clenched his fists, feeling the power flowing into every fiber of his being. His mind, however, remained cold and focused.
As the transformation completed, a sound echoed in the stifling atmosphere.
Applause.
Dekamoshi raised his head, his eyes radiating with intense blue light, to discover a floating silhouette on the horizon.
" Perfect, Dekamoshi," said a soft yet commanding voice. "This is exactly what I expected from you."
The silhouette advanced, and Dekamoshi immediately recognized the figure standing before him. Shibai Otsutsuki.
Shibai floated gracefully, surrounded by a divine aura. His piercing Senrigan on his forehead, a testament to his near-divine status.
" Imust admit, I'm impressed," Shibai continued, his tone slightly mocking. " Few half-breeds would have survived this process. But you, not only survived, but you transcended."
" I sent you my servant, Tomei, as a test. And not only did you succeed, but you achieved something akin to my Senrigan."
Dekamoshi remained silent, his eyes fixed on Shibai, analyzing every word, every gesture.
'So, he wanted to test me? If I die, I have no value, and if I survive, I become his object?'
" Itso happens that I need a companion," Shibai declared as he slowly descended, his overwhelming aura filling the space. "Someone who can help me attain absolute divinity. And you, Dekamoshi, are perfectly suited for this role."
He stopped a few steps away from Dekamoshi, a mysterious smile on his lips.
"Of course, this means you will put your new power at the service of the Otsutsuki clan. For I will not tolerate you doing... let's say, something stupid."
Dekamoshi narrowed his eyes. He understood the underlying threat.
"And if I refuse?" he asked in a cold tone, his voice deeper.