Meanwhile, in the Land of Grass, mythology was unfolding before the world.
Uchiha Kei’s Divine Domain was like a projector, displaying an epic myth to the entire world.
But for Uchiha Kei, who was inside the domain, this was no time to think about what consequences the gods’ descent through that crack might have on the world.
The immediate priority was still dealing with the indestructible Evil Buddha.
From outside the small domain came the prayers of the Uchiha.
Their faith had caused the gates of the Kingdom of Heaven within the domain to open slightly.
Unfortunately, even though this was an independent small world created by Uchiha Kei, completely tearing it open was no simple matter.
The gates of the Kingdom of Heaven opened only a narrow crack before abruptly stopping.
Then, a group of auspicious beasts suddenly drifted out through that crack.
Daikokuten, Hyakuzoku, Nadame-ushi, Reigame, Inoshishi-no-Kami, Kaiko Myōjin, Sōzen-sama, ōkuchi-no-Makami, Akame, Kai-jō Heian, Rokuroku, Ryūja-sama, Futai Daimyōjin, Inaba, Gama Daimyōjin, and Hanzeki Daimyōjin.
All of them were auspicious beasts associated with the Kunitsukami.
Within the mythological system of the earthly deities, they occupied important positions as divine beasts and sacred messengers.
They were divine emissaries who protected the land and prayed for peace, abundant harvests, prosperous fisheries and commerce, healing, marriage, and countless other blessings.
ōkuninushi was the leader of the Kunitsukami.
The Kunitsukami were the earthly deities who had been driven out of Takamagahara by the Amatsukami and subsequently ruled Ashihara no Nakatsukuni.
Their mythology began with the Shark and the Hare.
During their growth, they encountered the Wild Boar, Shell, and Mouse.
During their rule, there was the Frog.
And when they came to be worshiped, the Sea Serpent emerged as well.
Many of the Kunitsukami’s accomplishments could not have been achieved without the help of animals.
From another perspective, this reflected the relationship between humanity and nature during the formation of agricultural civilization.
The active presence of these animal deities in myth and legend also represented the will of the Kunitsukami as a whole.
At this moment, the divine beasts gathered together and transformed into a magnificent divine palanquin.
They welcomed the arrival of their supreme deity and chanted in unison:
"Bring forth five hundred pounds and create the realm of Heaven and Earth!"
As the words fell, auspicious radiance erupted.
Within that radiance, the image of a purified Ashihara once again appeared.
A gigantic ōkuninushi, nearly a thousand meters tall, emerged from within.
He wore white ceremonial robes embroidered with golden borders, a crown upon his head, and magnificent hunting attire beneath his regalia.
Riding upon the divine palanquin, the great Kunitsukami deity descended.
The sight seemed to awaken some instinctive reverence within Uchiha Kei.
He almost felt an urge to kneel.
Had Kei not been someone who toyed with divine power without ever feeling genuine awe toward gods—and whose own worshiped deity was ultimately himself—he might not have been able to control his knees.
Outside the domain, however, everyone other than the Uchiha was unable to resist.
The red-eyed clansmen, civilians, commoners, and even animals all instinctively fell to their knees.
The deity certainly knew how to make an entrance.
ōkuninushi was the great deity who ruled Izumo in the mythology of the Kunitsukami.
The name "ōkuninushi" itself came from his status as a nation-builder.
Before that, he had been more commonly known as ōnamuchi-no-Mikoto.
By lineage, he was the son-in-law of Susanoo.
His wife was Susanoo’s daughter, Suseri-hime.
Another of his wives was Yagami-hime, daughter of the ruler of Inaba.
He was essentially a god who reached the pinnacle of life by marrying well.
He was a divine sovereign associated with agriculture, civilization, and thunder.
Yet his arrival did not seem particularly friendly toward Uchiha Kei.
Facing the imposing presence of this second-generation deity, Kei immediately understood.
This was yet another being who intended to leave behind his own mythology in this world.
"Damn it! I hate son-in-laws!"
Kei’s language immediately became foul.
He made as though to retrieve the Divine Sword hanging high in the heavens.
ōnamuchi-no-Mikoto wanted to subjugate Uchiha Kei.
But Kei despised this sort of god who had apparently won everything through connections and marriage.
Because ōkuninushi had two wives.
And Uchiha Kei’s wife had run away.
"Damn you, Kunitsukami!
"You eat my food, use my power, and now you want me to call you Father?
"You’re asking for a beating!"
Did they really think Uchiha Kei was someone they could bully?
In this world, he was the one who wrote mythology.
He had gained the recognition of this world.
Their very appearance was possible only because he had loosened the spatial structure of the world.
Yet they dared swagger around in front of the one who had created the stage upon which their mythology existed.
They were practically asking to die.
"A Kunitsukami who loses its worship shall become a yokai!"
Kei summoned the Divine Sword while reciting this law aloud.
He possessed the recognition of this world.
He was the first person to supplement this world’s mythological system.
Therefore, he possessed the final authority to interpret that mythology.
As long as something conformed to the logic of mythology, it could exist according to the laws Kei proclaimed.
He could not simply fabricate anything he wanted.
But if a setting was compatible with mythology and beneficial to Uchiha Kei, the one who wrote the rules could always find a way to justify it.
As Uchiha Kei’s words became law, this principle was engraved into the world’s rules.
The gradual completion of those rules represented the process by which the world itself was ascending to a higher level.
It was something the world’s will welcomed.
This particular rule was obviously disadvantageous to the Kunitsukami.
But there was nothing they could do about it.
If the Kunitsukami wanted to establish themselves in this world from now on, they would have to abide by its laws.
ōkuninushi understood that his grand entrance had already gone wrong.
Seeing the situation, he no longer insisted on forcing Uchiha Kei to submit.
Or rather, he no longer had time to do so.
He was also afraid that if he continued pressing Kei, he would be the one who suffered.
He did not have much time left.
Within the remaining time, he had to inscribe his own mythology into this small world.
The more traces of a god’s mythology existed across different worlds, the longer that god could continue to exist.
That was the true pursuit of a god.
Protecting humanity and favoring humanity were merely methods of preserving one’s mythology.
Some Kunitsukami even frightened and threatened humans in order to ensure the continuation of their legends.
It was not a matter of human morality or whether something was good or evil.
It was simply a survival strategy adopted by gods seeking to preserve their divine lineage.
Making humans revere them, fear them, or feel gratitude toward them were all equally acceptable.
There was no difference.
As long as divine might endured, the god would endure.
ōkuninushi raised his hand.
A longbow appeared within it.
The wooden bow was engraved with black characters, while the arrowhead glowed with an azure light.
"That looks like the Todan Arrow!
"It must be a divine weapon!"
As ōkuninushi moved, Uchiha Kei suddenly understood the concept of divine weapons.
If the previous battle between Susanoo and the Eight-Tails-like serpent at Nanga had introduced the concept of mythology into this world, then ōkuninushi’s descent had introduced the concept of divine weapons into the Naruto world.
From now on, mythological weapons recognized by yokai like those at Nanga would become far more powerful.
Perhaps one would no longer even need the Sharingan to control the power of fear.
"What exactly is this second-generation god trying to accomplish?"
Uchiha Kei was confused.
No one gave others benefits without a reason.
ōkuninushi had abandoned the idea of forcing Kei to submit.
He had even used the concept of a "divine weapon" to bribe Kei.
As a result, the power of Kei’s Divine Sword—Ame-no-Tokotachi—and his Three-Pool Blade had become significantly stronger.
That was barely enough to convince Kei not to retrieve Ame-no-Tokotachi and disperse the Divine Domain that allowed ōkuninushi to descend.
Kei wanted to see what this earthly deity, exiled by Takamagahara, intended to do.
At that moment, a hymn rang through the heavens.
"Great ōkuninushi, having obtained a divine weapon from Takamagahara, shall bring blessings to the world!
"He shall rule the world!"
As the divine beasts began their hymn of praise, ōkuninushi raised the Todan Bow.
The tip of the Todan Arrow erupted with brilliant light.
It looked like a grand and moving scene from an epic mythology.
Yet Uchiha Kei found it laughable.
"A god who praises himself.
"How embarrassing."
Kei did not think much of ōkuninushi’s performance.
But although ōkuninushi’s theatrics were embarrassing, the power behind them was genuine.
Sensing danger, the Evil Buddha began screaming repeatedly.
"Ahhh~~!"
Countless hoarse and shrill chants emerged from that eternal darkness.
It was as though countless fallen beings were using mad flutes and thunderous drums to create sounds filled with infinite darkness and terror.
The Evil Buddha knelt there, laughing wildly, seemingly waiting for everything to descend into madness and corruption under its control.
Then an indescribable terror wrapped itself around the supreme deity who governed the world under Heaven.
It merged with his spirit and slowly began eroding his will, attempting to transform him into another fallen being.
"Leave the stage, Evil God!"
ōkuninushi drew his bow and released the arrow.
The Todan Arrow shot toward the Evil Buddha and struck it precisely, plunging into its body.
Two enormous female figures, each nearly a hundred meters tall, automatically manifested along the shaft of the Todan Arrow.
They both grasped the arrow.
Then they gently twisted it.
As everyone watched the female figures holding the Todan Arrow, dressed in the simple clothing of peasant women from the Heian period, two names instinctively surfaced in their minds.
Yagami-hime.
Suseri-hime.
"He even brought his wives along while showing off.
"At least he’s got some sense."
Uchiha Kei reluctantly developed the faintest trace of goodwill toward this deity for knowing when to compromise.
Yagami-hime and Suseri-hime were both wives of ōkuninushi.
One represented the White Hare of Inaba.
The other represented resentment and grievance.
The entire story bore similarities to the legends of Hou Yi shooting down the suns and Chang’e flying to the moon.
However, Yagami-hime’s departure for the moon was not because of an elixir of immortality.
It was because she feared the jealousy of the principal wife.
Although Yagami-hime had arrived first, Suseri-hime’s father was Susanoo.
Yagami-hime’s father, meanwhile, was merely the ruler of a minor divine land.
But now, within the mythology being performed by ōkuninushi, the two wives seemed perfectly harmonious.
They even worked together to twist the shaft of the Todan Arrow, helping ōkuninushi disperse the Evil God.
Time, space, energy, matter—
Even the terrifying Evil God itself—
All of them were stirred into primordial chaos beneath the twisting force of the two women.
Unfortunately, it still wasn’t enough.
For all the impressive theatrics of ōkuninushi’s arrival, he was still inferior to Susanoo.
When Susanoo descended into mythology, he directly unfolded his story within the outer world.
ōkuninushi, the leader of these relatively minor earthly gods, still needed to borrow Uchiha Kei’s Divine Domain.
That alone was enough to reveal the difference in their stature.
The Evil Buddha had survived the Future Buddha’s World-Purification Mantra without suffering the slightest injury.
How could it possibly be that simple?
Although the Evil Buddha was screaming in agony and appeared to be undergoing refinement, the situation was clearly not that straightforward.
"Ahhh~~! Ahhh~~! Ahhh~~! Ahhh~~! Ahhh~~~!"
The Evil God screamed once again.
Everyone who heard the sound simultaneously felt as though an enormous iron hammer had smashed into their bodies.
Their flesh seemed to tear apart.
Bright-red liquid flowed from their eyes, mouths, nostrils, and ears.
In a daze, they once again saw an enormous Buddhist realm.
A colossal Buddha statue rose high into the heavens, silently gazing down upon everyone.
The arrow had destroyed the Evil God’s outer layer.
Its hideous tentacles and membranes peeled away.
A Buddha statue that seemed to have been forged from black iron appeared before the world.
"Could it actually be a true Buddha?"
The Uchiha watching from outside saw this scene.
They remembered how the Evil Buddha had become even stronger after being refined by the Future Buddha’s World-Purification Mantra.
Their expressions immediately changed.
The next moment, the enormous Todan Arrow extended into the Buddhist realm.
A drop of water dripped from the arrowhead.
The droplet was impossibly transparent.
Within it was an island no larger than a grain of sand.
It looked as though the mighty ōkuninushi had used supreme divine power to seal an entire island within a single droplet.
The droplet fell.
It struck the Buddhist realm.
BOOM!
The Buddhist realm seemed to be crushed downward by some immense force.
It collapsed inch by inch.
An enormous island suddenly appeared where the Buddhist realm had been.
The Evil Buddha’s realm itself remained unharmed.
But the corruption within it had been purified.
Having accomplished this, ōkuninushi slowly lowered his bow.
He departed aboard the divine palanquin with the illusory figures of his two wives.
He left behind a Buddha whose true form had been revealed.
A Buddha tempered through countless trials.
A native Buddha who had nearly recovered his complete form.
A Buddha who had once been recognized by this world.
And ōkuninushi, who appeared to have solved everything while in reality making everything worse, turned and departed.
Before leaving, he glanced at Uchiha Kei.
His eyes were filled with unmistakable mockery.
It was as though he were saying:
"Those who are greedy beyond measure and show no reverence toward the gods shall ultimately be abandoned by the gods."
That attitude infuriated Uchiha Kei.
"Damn it!
"If you don’t have the ability, just admit that you don’t have the ability!
"Why pretend that I couldn’t deal with it and that you’re merely punishing someone who blasphemed against the gods?"
Kei understood.
Although ōkuninushi had departed with an air of confidence, he was actually running away.
He had made an enormous show of power, but ultimately he was merely the leader of a group of yokai.
Compared with a true deity, he lacked sufficient divine authority.
It was fortunate that ōkuninushi had escaped quickly.
Otherwise, after making such a grand display, helping Kei’s enemy, and then claiming that everything had been done to punish Kei, Uchiha Kei might have joined forces with the Evil Buddha to beat him down.
Did ōkuninushi really think Uchiha Kei was ignorant?
That idiot had descended through a divine realm, used divine beasts to create an elaborate spectacle, then fled after a dozen flashy moves.
Not only had he failed to destroy the Evil Buddha—
He had actually purified it.
He had allowed the Evil Buddha to completely escape the contamination accumulated from years of emotional corruption.
He had restored it to its original nature.
The moment he realized things had gone wrong, he had run away first.
Uchiha Kei put away the Divine Sword.
Then he pointed toward the direction in which ōkuninushi had disappeared and cursed:
"Don’t let me see you Kunitsukami again.
"If I see you once, I’ll beat you once!"
The moment his words fell—
A terrifying phenomenon appeared in the heavens.
The Buddha’s body began to expand.
A tiny purple point appeared in the sky.
Then that purple point began reproducing itself infinitely.
One purple point after another occupied the stars of the heavens.
It was as though some mischievous child had taken a paintbrush and begun covering the blank canvas of the sky with purple dots until the entire canvas was filled.
But upon closer inspection—
Those weren’t purple dots at all.
They were purple Buddhas.
The Buddha who was the source of this world’s primordial nature had descended.
The Buddha of this world’s origin had arrived.
◇ BONUS & SUPPORT
◇ 1 bonus Chapter for every 10 reviews — drop a comment!
◇ 1 bonus Chapter for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ Read 70+ Chapters ahead on P@treon → patreon.com/Sagamaster789