Chapter 299: Sadness

The moment Riku activated his Nine Tomoe Rinnegan, Urashiki Ōtsutsuki immediately felt the overwhelming pressure of the golden eye that utterly suppressed his own power.

Even Urashiki’s Rinnegan involuntarily rolled back in its socket.

Riku’s Nine Tomoe Rinnegan radiated a terrifying level of ocular power.

His dōjutsu far surpassed Urashiki’s golden Rinnegan.

Trapped within the cage of time and space, Urashiki began to panic. Seeing Riku’s unflinching gaze, he trembled and shouted, “Rinnegan—activate!”

But it was useless. Under the crushing dominance of Riku’s Nine Tomoe Rinnegan, Urashiki’s Rinnegan refused to respond.

The pupil power of Riku’s eye was far too aggressive, far beyond the limits of an ordinary Rinnegan.

Even at the standard Rinnegan stage, Riku had already awakened the Nine Tomoe—a level usually maxing out at Six Tomoe.

This put his ocular power just beneath the Rinne Sharingan.

But it wasn’t just raw strength. Riku’s Rinnegan also possessed an aggression that no other Rinnegan user had ever displayed. So even though Urashiki’s golden Rinnegan had six tomoe and boasted immense power, he was still powerless against Riku’s Nine Tomoe version.

Urashiki, still trapped in Riku’s dimensional cage, attempted to open a portal through space-time. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t do it.

Looking into Riku’s cold, composed eyes, he truly felt fear.

“Riku, if you dare to kill me, the Ōtsutsuki Clan will avenge me. You’d better think this through carefully!”

But Riku remained calm. Tsunade and Sakura stood at his sides, both watching him silently. If he chose to strike, they would back him without hesitation.

Riku looked Urashiki in the eye and said coolly, “If I feared your clan’s retaliation, I wouldn’t have made a move today.”

With that, he pressed his palms together.

His chakra surged, thick with Sage Art energy.

Combined with the devastating force of his Nine Tomoe Rinnegan…

“Sage Art: Time-Space Burst.”

Riku’s chakra output exploded, creating a storm of turbulent rifts inside the dimensional cage laced with golden runes.

These were not just fluctuations—they were the most destructive forms of space-time distortion, capable of erasing existence itself in seconds.

Urashiki had never imagined that Riku had command of a technique on this level.

This wasn’t just ninjutsu—it transcended even his own space-time abilities, like Yomotsu Hirasaka, despite being a bloodline technique.

But this… this was something far more lethal.

Time-Space Burst was a jutsu capable of annihilating even members of the Ōtsutsuki clan.

The moment the burst flooded the cage, it was swallowed in pure blackness—like a black hole.

Within seconds, light returned to the space.

Tsunade and Sakura stared at the now-empty cage in disbelief.

The terrifying Urashiki, who had been just moments away from overwhelming them all, had been completely erased by Riku’s technique.

He hadn’t even been able to resist.

Just how strong had Riku become, to accomplish something like this?

He had once only contended with Kage-level opponents—showing strength a few tiers above—but now, he had effortlessly suppressed a celestial-level threat like Urashiki.

And this was a man wielding a Six Tomoe Golden Rinnegan, a dojutsu of nearly unparalleled power.

If it hadn’t been for Boruto’s interference in another timeline, Urashiki wouldn’t have fallen so easily there either.

After Urashiki’s death, Riku released the space-time cage.

The technique had consumed a massive amount of chakra—nearly one-tenth of his total reserves.

And that was saying something.

Riku’s chakra reserves were currently five times that of a fully-powered Nine-Tails Jinchūriki.

In Sage Mode, they swelled to nearly eight times that level.

Even for him, expending one-tenth in one jutsu was significant.

But the payoff was worth it—Urashiki hadn’t even been able to budge the time-space prison.

This jutsu was a nightmare for anyone who relied on space-time ninjutsu.

With the cage and the outer time-space barrier now gone, both Tsunade and Sakura could see the weariness in Riku’s face.

Almost in sync, both reached out to support him.

Riku smiled faintly and said, “I’m not that weak. Not yet.”

Tsunade’s face remained composed, but Sakura’s cheeks reddened slightly.

She had started to realize something—Tsunade had always been unusually close to Riku.

It finally made sense. The way Tsunade brought him everywhere… the fact that he lived with the Senju Clan…

Sakura had always found it strange, but she hadn’t given it much thought until now.

And now, remembering how she’d behaved in front of Riku before… it felt mortifying.

After confirming Urashiki’s elimination, Riku finally let out a breath of relief.

He had feared that more members of the Ōtsutsuki Clan might appear, but it turned out Urashiki was acting alone.

Still, anyone from that clan was a walking catastrophe—most of them wielded Byakugan, Rinnegan, or worse.

Riku made his way to Jiraiya, pulling the black rod from his body.

He did the same for Sasuke, removing the chakra-sealing stake.

Everyone nearby—Jiraiya, Sasuke, Shinrai, Tsukiko, and Boruto—had witnessed the entire battle unfold.

They hadn’t expected Riku to possess such terrifying strength.

Boruto was especially stunned—Riku’s power now felt far beyond his father’s.

The fight with Urashiki had been a one-sided slaughter.

Urashiki hadn’t even landed a hit.

The four of them—Sasuke, Boruto, Shinrai, and Tsukiko—approached.

Riku didn’t call out Sasuke’s name, but both knew the other recognized them.

There was no need for words.

Shinrai and Tsukiko gazed at Riku and Tsunade with soft, vulnerable expressions.

This was the first time in twelve years they had seen their parents.

They wanted nothing more than to run into their arms and cry—but their sense of control held them back.

Just seeing them again was more than they could ask for.

Tsunade, too, knew exactly who they were—her and Riku’s children.

Her eyes were filled with warmth.

Riku, meanwhile, regarded them more cautiously. To him, they felt like mirror copies of himself and Tsunade—familiar, but distant.

After all, Senju Hashirama wouldn’t suddenly feel paternal toward Yamato.

Sasuke broke the silence. “Mission complete. Time to return.”

Riku nodded. “The appearance of Urashiki Ōtsutsuki brought significant danger to the Shinobi World. We were lucky to take him down here. If he had escaped… the consequences would have been catastrophic.”

Sasuke agreed with a silent nod.

Riku didn’t say much else.

After a few words, Sasuke departed with Boruto, Shinrai, and Tsukiko.