On the Sky Canopy, the scene changed once more.

Indra sat cross-legged in front of the crowd of the Ninshū; although the youth had an immature face, he carried a composure inconsistent with his age.

Pressing his hands together, he quickly formed hand seals, and a ball of flame appeared in his hands, its orange-red glow reflecting on the faces of the surrounding Ninshū people, eliciting gasps of amazement.

Indra didn't mind it, gently extinguishing the flame in his hand, as if he had done a trivial matter.

Asura hurried over to Indra's side, pulling up his right hand from which the flame had just emerged, his eyes filled with curiosity and adoration.

"What did you do, older brother?"

Indra looked at his younger brother, "I discovered that if you want to condense Chakra to unleash power, the shapes formed by your hands matter a great deal. By forming different hand shapes, you can use various powers."

"Really?" Asura's face was filled with pleasant surprise.

Indra nodded, "I named the hand shapes seals, and the phenomenon they unleash a jutsu."

"Seals... and jutsu? That's amazing, older brother," Asura exclaimed.

At this moment, the voice of the Sage of Six Paths also sounded.

"Having inherited the power of my mother Kaguya, I can use jutsu without forming seals, but the people I bestowed Chakra upon cannot do the same. At the tender age of ten, Indra achieved an invention that even I could not accomplish; he is a true genius of Ninshū."

...

"How old?"

"He invented Ninjutsu at ten years old?"

People across various spaces and times of the Shinobi World were simultaneously shocked upon hearing the explanation of the Sage of Six Paths.

As expected of the eldest son of the Sage of Six Paths!

This talent is simply heaven-defying!

Year 52 of Konoha, Uchiha clan compound.

Hearing of Indra's deeds, the Uchiha clansmen present immediately became extremely excited, whispering and discussing among themselves.

Uchiha Tekka slammed his hand heavily on the table: "To be able to invent hand seals and jutsu at the age of ten, this is far stronger than any of our talents! Ancestor Indra is truly the pride of our Uchiha clan!"

Uchiha Inabi also nodded repeatedly: "Indeed, if Indra hadn't invented Ninjutsu, perhaps there wouldn't even be such a concept as a Ninja in the Shinobi World today."

Uchiha Yashiro was even more direct: "I think, compared to the Sage of Six Paths, Ancestor Indra is even more deserving of being called the 'Ancestor of Ninja'! After all, the Sage of Six Paths only created the method of spreading Chakra, whereas Indra is the one who truly created Ninjutsu!"

Of course, quite a few observant people also noticed another remark by the Sage of Six Paths.

Chakra... was it actually bestowed upon the people of the Shinobi World by the Sage of Six Paths?

What kind of spirit is this?

To be able to be so selfless?

...

"The invention of using jutsu through hand seals fundamentally changed people's lives; as long as they persist in training, everyone can learn jutsu."

Accompanied by the voice of the Sage of Six Paths, the screen followed with scenes of the Ninshū people cooking meals with Fire Style Ninjutsu, and plowing and watering fields with Water Style Ninjutsu, thereby improving productivity.

Year 1 of Konoha, high platform outside Konoha.

Seeing this scene, Uchiha Madara frowned deeply, utterly puzzled.

"Since Ninjutsu was originally used to help people live better lives, why is it used in warfare now? From a tool to help with farming and cooking into a weapon of slaughter, is this progress, or retrogression?"

Hashirama slapped his own head, as if he had suddenly figured something out.

"That's right! Ninjutsu could clearly be used in places like these; why didn't we think of it before, yet the predecessors from a thousand years ago knew?"

Uchiha Madara glanced at him and said coldly, "Perhaps it's because historically, there were far too many fellows like Senju Tobirama."

His tone carried a clear sneer, "Treating Ninjutsu as a tool for slaughter and inventing those Forbidden Jutsus made Ninjutsu completely deviate from its original purpose."

Hearing this, Hashirama immediately chuckled awkwardly without stop.

"You can't entirely blame Tobirama either; that's just how the world was. In the Shinobi World of the Warring States Period era, it was either you die or I live, so his intelligence was naturally applied in that direction. Now that the situation has changed, his talent will help the Shinobi World develop even further."

Uchiha Madara let out a cold snort, "Let's hope so; that would be for the best."

...

The voice of the Sage of Six Paths sounded once more.

"But I was a foolish father, failing to realize in time that a dark force eyeing Indra at this very moment was already stirring restlessly."

Beneath a bright moon, Black Zetsu, wrapped all over like a zongzi, stood atop the crown of a tree, coldly gazing down at the land of the Ninshū below.

Year 60 of Konoha, base of the Akatsuki.

Having come to his senses, Black Zetsu was somewhat puzzled.

If the voice on the Sky Canopy was truly that bastard Hagoromo reminiscing, that meant he now definitively knew of his existence!

But why... has he never made a move against him?

And to just let him be, continuously sowing discord between the reincarnations of Indra and Asura, stirring up trouble throughout the Shinobi World?