Far from Konoha—
"Obito, new intel has come in."
Zetsu followed closely behind Obito, speaking in a low tone.
"Biwa Jūzō was taken into the Police Force, and Uchiha Keizumi also entered the Police Force headquarters. The two of them most likely made contact inside."
"And half an hour later, Biwa Jūzō walked out of the Uchiha Police Force building safe and sound. Perhaps… he and Uchiha Keizumi struck some kind of intel deal."
Zetsu paused, then added, "He may already have information about you—and about me."
At that thought, even Zetsu felt a flicker of doubt.
If Uchiha Keizumi could know Obito's secrets so clearly, then… could he also know the secrets of Black Zetsu?
No. Impossible!
Even Uchiha Madara himself had never seen through his true secret.
How could a mere junior like Uchiha Keizumi possibly compare to Madara, that peerless 'tool'?
"Hmph!" Obito's cold snort broke Zetsu's thoughts. His voice was low and grim.
"If he knows what he shouldn't, then all the more reason he cannot be allowed to leave alive."
"Obito, he might pass the intel through the ring, or through a summoning beast to Konan," Zetsu added. "Even if you kill him, it may already be too late."
Uchiha Obito: "…"
"Shut up!!!"
He'd had enough of this creature always undermining him.
He turned back with a cold glare.
"You're nothing more than a will born of Madara. Before his death, he left you to assist me. Whatever I say I'll do, you'll follow along. I have my own thoughts, my own plans. I don't need your meddling commentary."
"Ah, that's true enough," Zetsu replied vaguely, his tone neither agreeing nor denying, before falling silent and yielding to Obito's words.
—If only Madara had lived a little longer, there would have been no need for you.
That thought…
Zetsu did not voice aloud.
…
Mount Myōboku.
Deep within the mist-shrouded peaks, with a puff of white smoke, a figure appeared with a resounding "bang." It was Jiraiya, once more requesting the toads of Mount Myōboku to perform the Reverse Summoning Technique.
His brow was heavy with unshakable weight. After a moment's hesitation, he walked straight toward the ancient stone hall worn down by time.
Inside, the flicker of candles lit the immense, timeworn figure seated upon the stone dais—an orange-red body, eyes half-lidded, giving the impression of a drunken slumber.
"Who goes there?"
The formal question made Jiraiya's lips twitch faintly. The Great Toad Sage was at it again—clearly recognizing him, yet still asking.
"It's little Jiraiya…" Before Jiraiya could answer, the Great Toad Sage's voice drifted from the dais, muffled as though through a curtain of water.
"Once again you come with your troubles. This time… is it about that child, Uchiha Keizumi?"
Jiraiya drew in a sharp breath, his clenched fist turning his knuckles white. His somber expression carried a trace of bitterness as he spoke.
"Great Toad Sage… from Uchiha Keizumi's mouth, I learned that Nagato is not dead."
"And that child I once believed to be the Child of Prophecy… today, he's become someone I can hardly recognize. He founded Akatsuki, shouting 'let the world know pain.'"
"Nagato wants to use mankind's fear of pain…"
Jiraiya recounted every bit of the intel he had heard earlier from Uchiha Keizumi to the Great Toad Sage without omission.
At that moment, Fukasaku and Shima, the two sages of Mount Myōboku, silently leapt to Jiraiya's left and right sides.
They gazed at him, their expressions weighted, yet for a time neither knew what to say.
Jiraiya lifted his head, guilt pressing heavy on his face, and asked a question he had never before posed to the Great Toad Sage: "Great Toad Sage… finding the Child of Prophecy—can it really bring peace to the shinobi world?"
"As Keizumi said, my actions don't seem to have brought any positive impact on peace. On the contrary, through my own negligence, I ended up leading Nagato astray, into what he is now."
"Am I… truly fit to guide the Child of Prophecy?"
Jiraiya was deeply ashamed, filled with self-blame, believing all of this was closely tied to him—after all, he had been Nagato and Konan's sensei.
At last, the Great Toad Sage's clouded eyes stirred, and his aged, rasping voice rumbled without emotion: "Little Jiraiya."
"As I once told you—the Child of Prophecy will bring the shinobi world unprecedented peace or destruction. But whether it becomes peace or destruction can only be decided by the Child of Prophecy himself."
Jiraiya froze.
"So… Nagato chose destruction?"
He bit down on his lip, his guilt weighing heavier still.
"Little Jiraiya, you once told me—that child called Uchiha Keizumi said the true Child of Prophecy is right at his side. That means Nagato is not the Child of Prophecy."
"You merely planted the wrong seed, and the sprout it grew bent beneath the storm's weight, twisting its path."
The Great Toad Sage's voice was faint, almost wistful.
"He was never the Child of Prophecy… yet by a twist of fate, he bore trials meant only for the true one. He failed those true trials, so straying from the path was inevitable."
"Since you've realized he strayed from the right path, what you must do is not wallow in guilt, but find the true Child of Prophecy. Let the Child of Prophecy make the correct choice. Let him see whether the future chosen by the Child of Prophecy is better than the one he chose for himself."
The Great Toad Sage coughed twice, his throat rasping dryly.
"It's been a long time since I've spoken this much… my throat feels sore."
To find the true Child of Prophecy—through the transformation that the child's choice would bring to the shinobi world—would make Nagato realize the mistake he had made.
Huff!
Jiraiya exhaled heavily, sweeping away the guilt and confusion from his face in that moment.
"Great Toad Sage, I will definitely find the true bringer of change! Since he's in Konoha… since he's right there, close to Keizumi… then I'll find him soon!"
Jiraiya spoke with firm conviction as he prepared to take his leave.
"Wait."
The single word from the Great Toad Sage froze him mid-step.
The sage slowly turned his gaze toward Fukasaku and Shima, speaking in a solemn tone: "You two should accompany little Jiraiya to Konoha… go meet that child named Uchiha Keizumi. Measure him for yourselves—see if those eyes of his can truly pierce further into the future than even what I glimpsed in my dreams."
"And while you're there, help little Jiraiya discern who, in all of vast Konoha, is truly the savior of the shinobi world's future."
Fukasaku and Shima were both startled.
Jiraiya had never told them about Uchiha Keizumi's rumored prophetic ability. This was their first time hearing that someone might possess a gift similar to the Great Toad Sage's!
For a thousand years, across the entire shinobi world, never had anyone else borne a power akin to the Great Toad Sage's prophecy. And now, such a person had appeared—one from Konoha, and even more troubling, from the Uchiha clan.
Fukasaku and Shima exchanged a glance, then nodded in unison.
"Yes, Great Sage."
...
Having returned once more to Konohagakure, Jiraiya now had two toads perched upon his shoulders. Of course, this wasn't because he had entered Sage Mode.
"It's been so long since I came to Konoha… what a flood of memories," sighed the green-skinned toad with white beard, white eyebrows, and white hair—Sage Fukasaku.
"Old man, if I remember right, you've only ever come to Konoha twice. How could a place you've only visited twice make you that sentimental?"
The one speaking was also a green-skinned toad, with purple hair and lips naturally tinged with purple—Sage Shima.
"Toads…"
"They spoke!"
Just then, a sudden voice drew the attention of Jiraiya and the two toads. "Tsunade-sama, those two toads—they talked! Toads can talk! Hic~"
"Tsunade?" Jiraiya blinked, then turned his head—only to see Tsunade supporting a flushed, swaying Shizune, who reeked of alcohol.
Tsunade herself looked somewhat tipsy, though not nearly as bad as Shizune. Her eyes merely carried a hazy, unfocused gleam.
Well now…
What a coincidence.
But why was Tsunade's disciple drunk out of her mind?
From what Jiraiya remembered, Shizune never cared much for drinking.
Tsunade hadn't expected to run into Jiraiya here either. She shot a quick glance at the two toads on his shoulders, then casually offered an explanation in response to the puzzlement on his face.
"I was in a foul mood today, so I went to the tavern to drink myself into oblivion. But this girl, afraid I'd get drunk, grabbed the flask from me and downed it all herself in one gulp."
"That was over fifty percent strong liquor. Even I have to sip that stuff slowly, bit by bit. She, a little rookie who can't handle alcohol, drank it all at once—and ended up like this."
Jiraiya suddenly understood.
Then he heard Tsunade frown slightly, curiosity in her voice. "These are the toads from Mount Myōboku, right? They look a little familiar… Who exactly are they?"
"Fukasaku-sama."
"Shima-sama."
Jiraiya introduced them: "You've seen them before. They're elder sages of Mount Myōboku, second only to the Great Toad Sage, Gamamaru. They've lived for over eight hundred years."
Tsunade froze for a moment, rifling through her memories. Yes, she seemed to recall something. Then, abruptly, she asked: "So what brings them to Konoha?"
"Well…" Jiraiya wasn't sure if he should say.
"The purpose is to meet Uchiha Keizumi," Fukasaku answered with a faint smile, speaking frankly to Tsunade. "The Great Sage said—there's a ninja in Konoha named Uchiha Keizumi who possesses eyes that can foresee the future. We're only here on the Great Sage's command, to see if it's true."
Tsunade pursed her lips. "The Great Sage?"
"That's the Great Toad Sage," Jiraiya quickly added.
"Ohh!"
Tsunade suddenly understood. "So it's that toad who tricked you until you didn't know which way was north, the one who let Keizumi put you in your place!"
Jiraiya: "…"
At once, cold sweat ran down Jiraiya's back. He hastily darted his gaze left toward Fukasaku, then right toward Shima, terrified that Tsunade's blasphemous remark would stir the two sages' ire.
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