Seeing the Great Toad Sage before him, so respectful, Kai marveled even more at the wonders of Kotoamatsukami. Without altering the victim's memories, it directly rewrote their will!
Even in the Great Toad Sage's memory, just minutes ago he had still been fighting Kai, but now the Great Toad Sage felt his past self was utterly unforgivable!
The Great Toad Sage looked at Kai with a face full of remorse, hoping only to earn Kai's forgiveness.
"Mm, go integrate the forces of Mount Myōboku and Ryūchi Cave, then relocate from those two places to live in the ninja world!" Kai ordered.
Not killing the Great Toad Sage was part of Kai's calculations. The ninja world had already been swept by him, and only the Nine-Tails remained to be captured among the Tailed Beasts.
Soon it would be the final step of his plan—gathering all the chakra in the ninja world!
The Great Toad Sage's massive chakra reserves, comparable to the Ten-Tails, would make excellent nourishment. Of course he couldn't simply discard it.
Naturally, the remaining summoning beasts of Ryūchi Cave and Mount Myōboku had also entered Kai's sight. The Great Toad Sage clearly had the power to integrate them, saving Kai considerable time. Why not take advantage?
"Yes, Master Kai!" Seeing that Kai showed no intention of blaming him, the Great Toad Sage couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief and quickly responded.
Then—poof!—he vanished in a puff of smoke from Shikkotsu Forest.
Kai also turned his gaze toward the Slug Sage nearby, and Hinata who was being protected by her.
Ruffling Hinata's hair, Kai looked up at the Slug Sage, somewhat embarrassed. "Sorry, Sage. I've destroyed Shikkotsu Forest to this extent."
The Slug Sage didn't mind at all. Her four antennae twitched, seemingly in high spirits. "It's fine. Shikkotsu Forest can absorb natural energy to gradually recover. Though the process is slow, it will eventually return to normal."
"That's good then." Kai nodded. He wasn't particularly surprised or concerned by the Slug Sage's words.
Places like Shikkotsu Forest, Mount Myōboku, and Ryūchi Cave possessed their own mysteries. Otherwise, they couldn't have given birth to beings like the Great Toad Sage, White Snake Sage, and Slug Sage.
Next, Kai sealed both the Two-Tails Matatabi and Eight-Tails Gyūki into the Gedo Statue. Of the nine closed eyes on the Gedo Statue, eight had now opened—only the final one remained tightly shut!
"The Nine-Tails? Very soon now."
...
Land of Fire, Konoha.
When everyone knows disaster will strike but remains uncertain when it will appear, the fear of waiting is far more torturous than when disaster actually occurs.
Hokage's Office.
The Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi sat with bloodshot eyes, mentally exhausted—clearly having gone days without rest. Looking at Koharu Utatane, Homura Mitokado, and Danzō Shimura beside him, the Third asked:
"Now that Mitarashi Kai has only the Nine-Tails left uncaptured, what should we do?"
The moment the Third finished speaking, Danzō replied with murderous intent: "Just kill the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki directly. That way, the Nine-Tails' revival will take at least several decades."
As for the jinchūriki's life, Danzō completely disregarded it.
"Agreed!"
"Seconded!"
Koharu and Homura exchanged glances and spoke simultaneously.
Hiruzen looked at his old comrades before him, his expression troubled. The Third wasn't unaware that the best solution now was to kill the jinchūriki directly.
But as a village's Kage, ordering the death of his own villagers was something the Third couldn't bring himself to do.
Danzō, watching Hiruzen's conflicted expression, showed a mocking smile. After decades together, how could Danzō not understand exactly what Hiruzen was considering?
After a moment, Danzō spoke: "If that's the case, then let my Root squad execute it!"
Hearing Danzō's words, the Third sighed and turned his gaze toward the window. Not voicing opposition already said plenty.
Seeing the Third's tacit consent, Danzō rose and walked directly out of the Hokage's office.
...
In the forest beside Konoha.
"Really, Minato, your strength is no worse than a jōnin's. That hateful old Third Hokage actually won't approve your jōnin promotion exam!"
Kushina pouted, looking at Minato beside her with indignation.
But Minato just laughed heartily, showing no concern whatsoever. "Don't worry about it, Kushina. This isn't wartime—of course advancing to jōnin won't be that easy. Even if your strength is sufficient, without enough mission experience, promotion definitely isn't allowed."
"Oh really? Minato Namikaze, there's a jōnin promotion mission available right now. Are you willing to execute it?" A cold voice rang out, and Danzō emerged from the depths of the nearby forest.
"Lord Danzō," Minato said respectfully.
In this current period, with the Second Great Ninja War just ended, as the Second Hokage's disciple and a Kage-level powerhouse, Danzō still commanded high respect among Konoha's ninja.
Before Minato could speak, Kushina was already full of excitement, looking at Danzō and asking eagerly: "Scarface old man, tell us quickly—what mission could let Minato advance directly to jōnin?"
Minato also looked toward Danzō, his young face full of anticipation. After all, Minato was only eleven now. The thought of possibly breaking the village's jōnin promotion record naturally made him somewhat excited.
Danzō stared at Minato for a long moment, then slowly spoke: "Kill the Nine-Tails jinchūriki—Uzumaki Kushina!"
Kushina, who had been eager to try just moments before, froze. Minato's face also showed disbelief.
Seeing Minato still hadn't reacted after some time, Danzō frowned and barked: "Minato Namikaze, I order you to execute this mission immediately!"
Minato was Jiraiya's student, making him part of Hiruzen's faction. Danzō, always in competition with the Third, naturally found Minato displeasing. Now with an opportunity, he would naturally make things difficult for Minato.
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
The story isn't over...
🤔 Want to know what happens next to the characters?
🤫 Eager to explore the untold secrets of this world?
✍️ Ready to read more of my wildest stories?
✨patreon.com/DarkGolds