Saruto | The Celestial War (Part 2)

Chapter 36: In the Presence of Gods

"saruto," a feminine voice called out to me, "can you hear me, my child?"

As I looked out to the stars, I felt as though infinity realities were at my fingertips. I felt every living thing's chakra. I felt their hearts, souls, emotions. My mind. It was so clear. All I could think about was what I could do with all this power.

"you must focus, my child, for he is coming," the voice said.

I snapped myself back, I began to instinctively listen to her words and look towards the stars. I felt the power of Jougan. He was coming.

As the presence in my mind became more and more known, I felt myself at ease.

Suddenly, a looming figure began to reveal himself out of the stars. It's god-like presence stood before me as it looked down on me.

As I looked up to him, I flew up to his eye level and stared him down in a cold gaze. His eyes. The Jougan. My father's power.

Suddenly, he lifted his hand up to grab at me. His large grasp, reaching out to me. As he seemed to have me in his grasp, I waved my hand which sent his hand flying away with great force. I felt glass shatter around me. I did not know my strength, it was like I had shattered a dimensional barrier with the force of my hand. Then looking at my hand and back to Jougan, I noticed that the force dissipated his hand into dust. I watched coldly as he observed his hand dusting away.

"a little more gentle, sweetheart," the woman comforted me.

Nodded in a stone cold silence, I flew close to Jougan who looked at me with disgust. I squinted as he raised his remaining hand at me and crushed the air. Suddenly, I felt the gravity around me begin to cave in. As I raised my hand on either side of me. I struggled to keep them from crushing me.

"AHHHhHhHh!" I screamed and I used all my strength.

As the force kept pushing closer and closer, I felt my power trying to spike, but I was still partly in juvenile state. My power was not under my control completely.

Suddenly, Jougan began to raise his other arm revealing it had started to form back. As he brought it up to my other side, he began to close his hands in on me. I was going to be crushed. I, I...

Then I felt it. Some other presence within me. Something that was dormant.

"BOY," Jougan said to me, "YOU NOT ONLY HAVE SAGE'S POWER BUT ALSO MINE. YOU INHERITED MY WILL OF THE OTSUTSUKI. GIVE IT ALL TO ME. YOUR POWER!"

As my teeth gritted, I closed my eyes and calmed myself. Remember. Your family, your friends, your village, this world. This world and all its people. I was fighting for them. Suddenly my mind became clear. I imagined that power that I had. Looking up to him, I narrowed my eyes as a bright blinding glow began to radiate off me.

"ARGHH!" He said as his hands began to burn and dust away.

Releasing his barrier grip on me he moved his hands away to see them start to dust away. Assembling them back together, he reached back in towards me. But it was immediately dusted away once he touched my cosmic barrier. It was like a second skin that burned anything that got too close instantly.

"WHAT IS THIS!" he screamed as he looked at his crumbling hands and arms.

What was this? What would I call it? Then I remember my life and the people in it. What the previous generations before me had left behind. Smiling, I looked back at him.

"Cosmic Will of Fire," I answered as I walked on air in front of me.

As I got closer and closer to him, his legs, chest and face began to dust away. It's like I had an invisible barrier of fire around me that protected me.

"YOU CAN'T BEGIN TO WIELD THAT POWER! IT BELONGS TO A GOD! IT BELONGS TO ME!!"

Thinking about his words, I looked back on my life.

"You will leave this world," I commanded with my words shattering the air around me.

Its powerful voice radiating.

As he clenched his arm, he began to throw a burst of gravitational forces at me. But as it got to the barrier, it dissipated into nothing.

"YOU ARE JUST A MERE MORTAL! I AM GOD!"

As I felt emotions of content flood through me, I felt a dormant power begin to reveal itself to me. I was like a bright cluster of twinkling stars. As I reached out to them, I began to voice. It wasn't chaotic or alarming, it was peaceful. Before I got too close, I pulled away hesitantly. What if...

Suddenly, a feminine white glowing hand grazed down my arms and towards my fingertips. It was guiding me towards the stars. I listened to it. As I reached for the stars once more, I touched it feeling a recognized presence. It couldn't be... It was a love that I had now. But how?

As I came back to reality and watched Jougan begin to activate his Jougan, I felt a will come over me. It wasn't just my own will but someone else's as well. It was multiple people.

Raising my hands, gravity followed along with it. Taking a deep breath, I look at my family. They all gave me looks of longing. As my eyes drifted to my mother, she exchanged a nod of reassurance. She trusted me. Then turning back to Jougan, my teeth gritted and then I slammed my arms down in the wind which ignited a bright light from my skin.

"Purgatory."