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In the vast and limitless expanse of mist and snow, endless ice shards swirled in the wind and collided in a violent maelstrom. Subzero temperatures chilled one's bones to a freezing cold temperature as if it would turn even one's very soul into nothing but ice.
Here was the Ice dimension. It was a bleak and hopeless land of endless, blinding white tundra. From one year to the next, there was nothing but desolate snow, and bitter cold.
Within these bleak fields of ice, the wind picked up, and dozens of ice shards whistled through the air, revolving and condensing in a vast eddy.
The two people standing and facing each other didn't seem affected by the cold as they were both spiritual bodies.
As the stare-down continued, Shun finally reached his limit and said, "Look, lady, I know you're confused, and so am I. So how about this, I ask one question, you answer, you ask one, and I answer. Hmm?"
"Why do you have to ask first?" Kaguya asked in an ice-cold voice.
"Huh, why not? We were both staring at each other without talking and I broke the ice first so I get that right" Shun said in a matter-of-fact tone while folding his hands.
Kaguya stared at him for a good while before nodding her head. Shun let out a sigh of relief as he was getting nervous at the deep star he was getting from Kaguya.
"Good, first of all, What's your name and where is this place?" Shun asked.
"That's two questions," Kaguya said in a deep voice.
"Oh, right, sorry about that. Alright then, what's your name?" Shun asked as he scratched his cheeks in slight embarrassment at his own blunder.
"Kaguya Otsütsüki" She replied.
"Hmm? Otsutsuki? That's weird. I know a family that has the same name, are you their sister Ier chance? No? Alright then, nice to meet you Kaguya-san. Your turn" Shun said.
"Hn, Who are you?" She asked.
"You have to be more specific right there," Shun replied.
"Hmm, you're right. Where are you from?" She asked
"Earth," Shun replied shortly.
"That's impossible, your chakra doesn't feel like earth'"
"Oh, so that's what you're confused about. No wonder you looked at me weirdly when I came here. But to answer that, you have to answer my question" Shun said.
"Hmm, ask rhen"
"Where is this place?" Shun asked.
Not that he doesn't know where this is, but on a more specific level.
'I know that this is one of her dimensions, but how the hell does it even exist now?' Shun thought.
"Can I not answer that?" She asked.
Shun shrugged and said, "Sure, but I can also decide to not answer your question"
Kaguya glared at him for a good while before saying, "Fair enough. This is my dimension"
Shun faked surprise with a gasp and said, "What? Dimension? How is that possible? Are you sure you're not lying to me?"
"I wouldn't lower myself to that level," She said, her voice even colder than before. "And I believe itsy turn to ask the questions"
Shun noticed and immediately apologized and said, "Sorry about that, I didn't mean to call you a liar. And go ahead, ask away"
"How did you get here? From what I can see, you're here with your consciousness, and that should be impossible for most people" She asked.
"That's a long story but I will just say that I found some weird branches and thought to check them out. Things led to other things and here I am"
"That doesn't make any sense. And you didn't answer my question. I asked how did you get here?" She asked impatiently with a little anger in her voice.
"Woah there, miss. Let's be calm here alright?" Shun said and mumbled, 'geez, this lady can't even take a little joke'
"Look, let's be honest, if we continue this question and answer, we won't get anywhere. How about this, I tell you my story and you tell me yours, no lies. Simple right?" Shun asked.
Kaguya didn't answer and kept looking at him with a glare. Shun didn't,t have his abilities here, so he couldn't feel her emotions so he was lost on what to do.
"How about this? I talk, you listen, and If you have any questions, I answer. And then we do it again, this time with you talking. We're both grown-ups here so let's act like it. Hmm?" Shun asked again.
Kaguta nodded after a moment of thought. Shun sighed at her deep distrust which was unnecessary the way he saw it.
"Hmm, where should I start? First of all, since this is your dimension can you create something for us to sit on? No? Alright, forget it."
"The name Shun, I'm still working on the clan name so don't mind it. I am from earth, you know, the big blue ball of green and ocean of water. Currently, I should be the 3rd strongest human on earth, and Ummmm... What else. Meh, nothing else. That's all. Any questions?" Shun asked after a brief introduction.
"You're not lying and that is weird as what you say is unbelievable. If you're the 3rd strongest, then who are the 1st and 2nd?" Kaguya asked with a weird light in her eyes which was weird as her eyes were pupilless.
"Hmm, it's a man called Hagoromo and Hamura. What? Do you own them by chance?" Shun asked feigning ignorance.
"I have some impression of them." She replied as her voice turned cold again.
"Ok? Any other questions? If not then it's your turn"
"Yes I do have a question, how did you become this strong?" She asked.
"Hmm? That's a weird question lady. It's simple, I trained hard" Shun replied with a smile.
"Train? That is impossible, the amount of chakra and quality I felt is not something you get by training."
"Oh? And how would you know that?" Shun asked seriously curious.
"Cause you barely have the same amount of chakra I had when I came here, at least that's what I felt when your chakra came here" Kaguya replied unconsciously.
Shun was shocked internally but on the surface, he appeared calm and confused.
'I don't know whether to take that as an insult or compliment considering that I know what she talking about. Her coming here means coming to earth, and if that is correct then I'm really weak, huh' Shun thought internally.
"Oh? Right, I forgot to ask, how did you get here?" Shun asked with a confused expression. "And looking at you, you don't appear to have a physical body which means this is your spiritual body or you're dead, which I don't think you are, so, care to explain?"
Silence descended upon them as Shun asked that question. Kaguya didn't answer and from the cold air she was emanating, Shun also didn't say anything.
The silence continued for a long while before the air around her disappeared and she said. ''Sigh. I should believe you for now as even if I don't, I don't have a way of knowing if you're saying the truth or not."
"I am Kaguya Otsutsuki and I once had a family, a husband, and later, two children. A lot happened and my children rebelled against me and sealed me here. You may have heard about me, after all, our fight destroyed a part of the continent, after all, sigh" Kaguya said as she looked a bit melancholic.
"That's.... sad. I don't know what to say." Shun said.
"Don't say anything then," Isguya replied snappily.
Shun raised his hand in surrender. During the course of their discussion, they had already sat on the I've cold floor with their knees folded.
"Are you not scared?" She asked.
"Hehe," Shun chuckled and said, "Why should I be scared? You know, growing up, we were told of the story of the hero and how he defeated the Tailed monster and saved humanity."
"I'm not someone who believes random stories from any random person's mouth so when I grew up, I asked the heroes involved and I heard their story. It was good and all, but I still hoped to meet that monster and ask it, Why?"
"Why did it happen that way? Wasn't there any other way? Sigh, do you know that the population of the world has reduced a lot since that battle? I trained to become strong for that reason and if what you say is true and you're that monster, then I'd like to ask, What happened?"
Shun asked looking into her eyes with all seriousness. Isguya likewise looked into his eyes without flinching a single bit. Maybe it was the air of the strong but none of them backed down from the challenge.
"Hmph, I am not obligated to answer to a mere human. If what you say is true and you grew on earth then what you have belongs to me. Don't get conceited human" Kaguya said with an air of authority around her that even Shun flinched from the pressure for a bit but didn't back down.
Although Shun knew who he was facing, he was confident in his strength be it now or in centuries to come that he wouldn't lose out to her.
The deadlock continued for a while and as there was nothing to use to calculate the passage of time in here, no one knew how long had passed.
Shun knew that although Kaguya may have been kind once, she had been betrayed and doesn't bear much feelings for humans as it is. Plus, she was an Otsutsuki, and arrogance flows In their blood.
Seeing that this was getting them nowhere Shun decided to back down and break the tense atmosphere by saying, "Did anyone ever tell you how beautiful you are with that cold look?"
Stupid, yes, but that was the only thing that came to mind at that moment.
Kaguya's aura fluctuated for a split second before converging once more but this time, a little less than before. Shun didn't mind though and continued. "How about this, as this place is so bleak and boring how about I leave you something to keep you busy, and maybe next time I visit, you'd be more open to talking, hmm?"
Kaguya didn't reply and maintained her cold exterior but Shun didn't mind it one bit. He didn't know how long had passed. If there are something cultivation novels ever taught him, it's that when it comes to things that deal with the spiritual body and consciousness, time flows differently.
Using his little spiritual energy he conjured a couple of Japanese mangas and dropped them on the ice.
His spiritual body began fading as he created more and with time, he became transparent before he stopped and said, "Why don't you use these to keep yourself busy, when I have time, I'll come around. Maybe with these books, you'd talk more"
And with that, he disappeared.
Back In Shun's dimension, Shun suddenly gasped as he removed his palms from the God tree branches, his eyes showed how disoriented he was for a while before he went back to normal.
"Wow, that was weird and awesome. I can't believe she's that beautiful though." Shun said to himself.
"What's with that 'Did anyone ever tell you how beautiful you are with that cold look?' That's so cringed I could die from it. Damn., but maybe with these I could learn more about this world on a grander scale."
Back in the Ice dimension.
Kaguya sat quietly while staring at the place Shun once sat. It's been almost 50 years since she talked to anyone and the first person to come around got chased away by her.
An unknown feeling slowly crept into her heart as she thought, 'Regret? Sadness? What's this? Hmph, I don't regret anything I am their God'
As she thought this, she crushed that emotion that wanted to creep into her heart and mind.
Looking to see where the stack of books lay, she said, "And what's this??" Picking one up she flipped through it and mumbled, "A weak boy who inherited a superpower? And this, souls and reapers? Ridiculous, hmm? Hunters huh? Hmm, lemme indulge him for now"
And with that, the sound of pages flipping echoed around the dimension.