novelhk Chapter 159 The Dark Side of Gen Takuno?
Chapter 159 The Dark Side of Gen Takuno?
Chapter 159 The Dark Side of Gen Takuno?
Yuan Tuoye's gaze swept over the point where the barrier met the sea, and the faintly visible, seemingly man-made, simple pier in the distance.
A more convenient solution quickly took shape in my mind: since Turtle Island is not completely closed, there must be channels for people or supplies to enter and exit.
Instead of wasting effort and time breaking the barrier, it's better to hide in the shadows and wait for these people to enter or leave the barrier, then quietly blend in.
Yuan Tuoye's figure blended into the shadow of the reef, his aura concealed, as he patiently observed this colossal object disguised as an island, waiting for the best entry point for him.
Time slipped away quietly in the silent wait.
Sure enough, a Cloud Village ninja appeared in the distance, speeding towards Turtle Island. His goal was clear, indicating that he had access to the barrier.
The time has come! A glint flashed in Yuan Tuoye's eyes, and his figure transformed into a swift shadow that was difficult to catch with the naked eye, instantly closing in on the Cloud Ninja.
Before the other party could even react, only a blurry afterimage was reflected in their pupils, and the next moment, they met Yuan Tuoye's deep eyes directly.
In his eyes, three jet-black tomoe suddenly spun rapidly, unleashing a surge of powerful illusionary energy.
The Cloud Ninja's body stiffened abruptly, the light in his eyes instantly extinguished, and he was completely trapped in the illusionary cage meticulously woven by Gen Takuno, as if he had lost his self-awareness.
Seeing the Cloud Ninja Puppet with its empty eyes and stiff steps successfully pass through the barrier and enter Turtle Island, Gen Takuno did not choose to replace him directly.
This "living key" also has another use; he needs this puppet to guide him quickly to the core objective of this trip: the real waterfall.
After all, inside Turtle Island, he couldn't very well use the Peacock Mystic Art: Wings to search for the real waterfall from the sky. So blindly searching the vast Turtle Island himself was obviously a bad idea. Using the puppet's memories could save precious time.
Completely controlled by illusion magic, the Cloud Ninja moved through Turtle Island like machines on a pre-programmed route.
When he encountered familiar companions along the way who greeted him, he was able to mechanically respond by mimicking their usual tone and demeanor, relying on his remaining instincts. Everything seemed no different from usual, cleverly concealing the fact that the other party was being controlled by illusion.
The puppet continued forward until it entered the depths of a dense, somewhat eerie forest.
He stopped and, with slightly stiff movements, took a seemingly insignificant seed from his pocket and pressed it into the soft soil.
The moment the seed touches the earth, it bursts forth with astonishing vitality, like a thirsty fish leaping into water.
It frantically absorbed nutrients from the soil, and its branches and vines grew at an abnormally fast pace.
In the blink of an eye, an enormous flower bud, far exceeding the height of an average person, burst forth from the ground and stood tall in the forest clearing.
Then, the petals unfolded outwards layer by layer, blooming.
However, what was wrapped inside this strange flower was not a delicate flower stamen, but a figure sitting cross-legged, Yuan Tuoye's wooden clone!
The wooden clone suddenly opened its eyes, its gaze clear and sharp.
He nimbly stepped out of the flower's heart and came to the Cloud Ninja Puppet standing to the side, where he accurately found the Reverse Summoning Scroll on its body.
Without the slightest hesitation, the wooden clone decisively tore open the scroll and used the Reverse Summoning Technique!
"Bang!"
A thick white smoke instantly rose up next to the wooden clone. The smoke quickly dissipated, and Yuan Tuoye's true form had appeared on Turtle Island.
The wooden clone had completed its task. With a slight thought, Yuan Tuoye released the wooden clone, allowing it to dissipate into pure life energy and vanish into the air.
At this moment, the cloud ninja puppet seemed to receive a new command, and it started walking again without saying a word, mechanically heading deeper into the forest.
Yuan Tuoye immediately concealed his aura and followed closely behind the puppet.
After walking through the woods for a while, the sound of rushing water gradually came to my ears.
Pushing aside the last vine obscuring the view, a waterfall, not particularly grand in scale, finally came into view.
Compared to the magnificent Takigakure Waterfall in my memory, which resembled an inverted Milky Way, the actual waterfall in front of me was pitifully small, like a white ribbon formed by trickling streams hanging on the mountainside.
Yuan Tuoye stood beside the rushing stream, gazing at the cascading water, a hint of confusion and inquiry flashing in his deep eyes.
He pondered to himself, "How can such an ordinary little waterfall possess the magical power to reflect the user's inner world? What secrets are hidden within it?"
With his current level of knowledge, he is unable to decipher the underlying principles in a short time.
"Perhaps, beneath or deep within this waterfall, lies a treasure with special powers?" Gen Takuno habitually made his deductions.
After all, as one of the five great ninja villages, Kumogakure has no shortage of treasures.
For example, the famous rogue ninja duo, the Gold and Silver Brothers, used several incredibly powerful Six Paths Ninja Tools, which were very likely once treasures belonging to the Hidden Cloud Village.
The wonder of this real waterfall may well originate from some similar, unknown wonder.
Although Gen Takuno was somewhat tempted by it, it was only a guess after all. If he were to destroy it carelessly and render the real waterfall useless, it would be a loss.
Because, according to his plan, he wasn't going to use this real waterfall just once.
Without the slightest hesitation, Yuan Tuoye immediately used his transformation technique, accurately transforming into the appearance of the Cloud Ninja he controlled.
He took a deep breath and walked toward the legendary real waterfall.
Although this place is a hidden treasure of Kumogakure, the security is surprisingly lax.
The island's seclusion goes without saying, but more importantly, there's the real waterfall, a geographical marvel, massive and deeply rooted in the island's very fabric, its very existence serving as an unsolvable defense.
Even those who covet it can only sigh in despair, unable to move or take it away.
Thanks to the information he had extracted from the mind of that Cloud Ninja, Gen Takuno had a thorough understanding of the mechanism of the Real Waterfall.
He knew that those who dared to confront their inner darkness and challenge the real waterfall were extremely rare in Kumogakure.
The lack of conviction deterred most ninjas.
The identity he was currently disguising was that of one of those arranged to come here for meditation, but he had already fallen into his control before even setting foot in this place.
Therefore, entering the waterfall area with this appearance would hardly arouse any suspicion.
Moreover, the trial of the real waterfall is not an uninterrupted one-way street.
Once he senses an external threat or personal danger, he can withdraw his mind and return to his physical body at any time.
After careful consideration and confirming that the risks were manageable, Yuan Tuoye took steady steps and finally stood before the roaring, real waterfall.
The waterfall plunges straight down, filling the air with mist, carrying a strange power that penetrates straight to the soul.
Without further hesitation, he slowly closed his eyes.
Almost the instant he closed his eyes and concentrated, an indescribable, mysterious fluctuation that acted purely on the spiritual level permeated through him.
Yuan Tuoye was no stranger to this kind of soul-level tremor. Thanks to his repeated use of the Spirit Transformation Technique, he was exceptionally perceptive of spiritual entities.
He suddenly opened his eyes and looked down to examine himself.
Sure enough, what stood before the waterfall at this moment was no longer a body of flesh and blood, but a spiritual entity stripped of its physical form and composed purely of will.
This makes sense, since a real waterfall reflects a mental image rather than a physical entity.
His gaze fell upon the ever-flowing curtain of water.
However, the next second, his pupils suddenly contracted!
From the depths of the misty water curtain, a figure was coalescing, its outline becoming clearer and clearer, as it steadily emerged from within.
That figure, that face—so familiar it sent chills down my spine!
"You—" Yuan Tuoye's voice carried a hint of inquiry and coldness, "are you my dark side?"
'
Yuan Tuoye, who was standing opposite him, also raised his eyes, scrutinizing him with a complicated expression.
Unexpectedly, the face that looked exactly like his was not as ferocious or distorted as he had imagined; instead, it showed a strange expression that was almost one of confusion.
A moment later, a startling statement rang out clearly: "I think—compared to me, you are the dark side, aren't you?"
In an instant, Gen Takuno was struck dumb, and all the words he had prepared to say froze in his throat.
A stunned silence spread amidst the roar of the cascading waterfall.
Two identical figures gazed at each other across an invisible spiritual space, as if time were stretched out infinitely.
After a long while, the two of them simultaneously let out a heavy sigh.
"This result—it really took me by surprise." Gen Takuno broke the silence, his voice low.
Across from him, Yuan Tuoye gave a knowing, bitter smile: "Don't you understand? The Real Waterfall never reflects a simple dark side. It reveals the most hidden, most authentic self deep within a person's heart. But—"
He paused, his words tinged with a mocking twist of fate: "That deliberately concealed truth—is often—more likely to slip into the abyss of darkness."
Yuan Tuoye remained silent. In the instant the other party appeared and in this brief exchange of words, he had roughly figured out the key to the matter.
Why is the reflected form before me not the dark incarnation I expected? The reason is actually quite simple.
Throughout his life, Yuan Tuoye has often worn various masks and played different roles, but everything he has done is rooted in his most genuine inner will.
There was no coercion, no compromise against one's will.
Looking back, some choices may have brought regrets afterward, but at every moment of making a decision, he absolutely followed the voice of his heart and carried out his "self" choice without hesitation.
Therefore, the "Yuan Takuya" standing in front of him at this moment may be slightly different from him in minor details, but those differences are merely ripples produced by the reflection of his mind.
His core essence, that choice and will originating from the depths of his soul, is no different from his own.
This is not a battle between light and darkness, but a direct confrontation with one's "true self".
The icy water droplets splashed, wetting Yuan Tuoye's clothes and hair. He stood at the edge of the waterfall, rubbing his temples, his brows furrowed into a deep frown.
Reality dealt him another heavy blow. He had intended to use the real waterfall to resolve the side effects of the troublesome device, but the current situation clearly indicated that the plan had fallen apart.
"Heh, I didn't say no."
A voice identical to his own, with a hint of mockery, pierced through the roar of the waterfall and precisely stabbed into his mind.
It's another "Yuan Takuya".
He seemed to be able to see through the thoughts of the person in question, and at this moment he was provocatively raising one eyebrow slightly, with a knowing smile on his lips.
"Huh?" Yuan Tuoye was suddenly taken aback.
"Yuan Tuoye" did not answer his question directly, but lazily raised his hand and casually pointed his fingertips towards a misty area beside him.
Yuan Tuoye looked in the direction indicated, and his pupils suddenly contracted.
Within the thick, impenetrable white mist, several blurry figures were slowly and stubbornly coalescing into shape.
As the outline became clearer, Gen Takuno's heart seemed to sink into a cold, deep pool.
Those figures all bore similarities to his own, yet were completely altered in the details, becoming the carriers of those profound symbols in his memory.
The closest one stood tall and straight, like a drawn blade. He wore only a dark gray sleeveless vest, with a pitch-black cloak casually draped over his shoulders, fluttering wildly in the steam.
That defiant gaze, that familiar posture—it was none other than the image of the proud and aloof ninja named Uchiha Sasuke from the original work, deep in his memory!
A little further away, another figure's face was completely obscured by a strange orange mask with spiral patterns, leaving only the space for one eye, which emitted a deep and unfathomable light.
That iconic black robe with red clouds silently revealed his identity: fragments of Uchiha Obito's memories.
Beneath the mask, an aura of indescribable distortion and heaviness settled.
Beside him, a figure stood casually, wearing the dark green Jonin vest standard of Konoha Village.
His face was covered by a black mask, completely concealing the lower half of his face, revealing only a pair of slightly lazy yet sharp eyes.
Most notably, Konoha's headband was worn askew on his forehead, completely obscuring his left eye.
Kakashi Hatake, the genius who copied a thousand ninjutsu, is recreated in this way.
Not far from Kakashi, another figure had not yet fully materialized, but the pure killing intent and icy aura emanating from it already stung the senses as if they were tangible.
A scarlet "love" character was clearly etched deep on his forehead, and fine sand floated and gathered around him almost imperceptibly.
Even though the outline is blurred, the loneliness and violence that belonged to Gaara, forged from endless pain and hatred, is already overwhelming.
And there are more—shadowy figures lurking in the depths of the mist.
"Them?!" The scene before him far exceeded his expectations. Even Yuan Tuoye could not hide his shock. His deep voice was filled with confusion and bewilderment.
The voice of "Yuan Tuoye" rang out calmly, carrying a kind of all-knowing cruelty.
"Because they are you, yet they are not you."
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