Jiraiya figured maybe he hadn't explained himself clearly enough just now.
He carefully went over the Great Toad Sage's prophecy for Sarutobi Hiruzen again.
After all, it wasn't much of a secret anymore—at least quite a few people on Uchiha Chizumi's side knew about it.
And that was also Jiraiya's polite excuse for turning Hiruzen down.
He had no desire to be Hokage, nor did he want to compete with Tsunade.
Of course, Jiraiya still hoped his teacher, Sarutobi Hiruzen, would understand his stance; otherwise he wouldn't have bothered to explain it all over again.
Hiruzen's frown could practically crush a mosquito.
He hadn't expected that this was what Jiraiya had been busy with outside the village all these years.
He'd thought Jiraiya was tracking Orochimaru, not that he was also searching for some "Child of Prophecy"—and, in the process, deciding that the child was Uzumaki Naruto.
Hiruzen could tell Jiraiya desperately wanted his understanding.
But just as he couldn't accept Chizumi and Tsunade's ideology,
he couldn't accept Jiraiya's either.
Pinning the shinobi world's future transformation on a Child of Prophecy some giant toad talked about—wasn't that a bit childish?
"Jiraiya… are you saying the only way the shinobi world gets better is to pin our hopes on this Child of Prophecy?" Hiruzen asked, hesitant and noncommittal. "Are you saying everyone else's efforts for peace amount to nothing?"
Jiraiya sighed and nodded. "Harsh as it sounds, that's the reality: they don't work. If they did, the Great Toad Sage wouldn't have said only by finding the Child of Prophecy can the shinobi world truly change."
"Old man… the only thing we can do is raise the Child of Prophecy right and make him a true savior. When the shinobi world is on the brink, only the Child of Prophecy can save it."
Hiruzen: "…"
For a moment Hiruzen felt dazed, wondering if his student had fallen for something he shouldn't have.
Plenty of people in the shinobi world invoke this or that god to hoodwink others, brainwashing ordinary folks into fanatics.
And Jiraiya right now looked a little too much like one of those duped believers.
Hiruzen opened his mouth, then didn't know what to say.
He had thought that if Jiraiya just nodded, he could fully back him as Konoha's Fifth Hokage. Then he really could retire and relax these old bones.
But now… making Jiraiya the Fifth would be irresponsible to the village!
A man who placed every hope on a Child of Prophecy had no real sense of duty.
Someone like that wouldn't devote himself to the village's work.
If Jiraiya became the Fifth Hokage, he might well use the village's resources to raise this so-called Child of Prophecy.
Hmm…
Hiruzen admitted Naruto was a very gifted child, and investing heavily in him wasn't wrong.
But the bigger problem—
what about everyone else?
Had Jiraiya thought about the rest of the village?
He probably had nothing in his head but his Child of Prophecy—
that supposed savior who could bring a brand-new transformation to the shinobi world.
"…" After a long ten-plus seconds of silence, seeing the faintly expectant look on Jiraiya's face as he sought his understanding, Hiruzen sighed inwardly and said, "Forget it. Pretend I said nothing."
With that, Hiruzen turned and left,
leaving Jiraiya rooted to the spot.
Only when Hiruzen's back had receded into the distance did Jiraiya mutter in bewilderment, "What's with the old man? He was just talking so much about the Hokage, and when it's my turn to speak… he listened for a second, then turned around and left?"
Fukasaku said, "Jiraiya boy… this Third Hokage doesn't accept our approach. His thinking is probably similar to Uchiha Chizumi's and Tsunade's—he believes the Child of Prophecy the old grandpa spoke of can't truly transform the shinobi world."
Jiraiya froze for a beat.
Shima tried to comfort him from the other side: "It's precisely others' lack of understanding that highlights your greatness, Jiraiya boy. They only fuss over the shinobi world's internal squabbles, so it falls to those of us outside that strife to think about its future."
Jiraiya: "…"
He was an adult, after all; he could tell the two sages of Mount Myōboku were forcing the pep talk.
He felt lost again.
Uchiha Chizumi didn't understand him because Chizumi believed only "absolute justice" could change the shinobi world.
Tsunade didn't understand him either—he could chalk that up to her being in the same camp as Chizumi.
But the problem is… wasn't the old man on the opposite side from Chizumi and Tsunade? Isn't the "enemy of my enemy" supposed to be my friend?
Shouldn't the old man understand and approve of him?
How did it end up like this?
Has almost no one in the shinobi world any faith left in the Great Toad Sage's prophecy?
…
"Nagato has ordered most of Akatsuki's core to head to the Land of Water and hunt Uchiha Chizumi."
Uchiha Obito toyed with a kunai, face blank. "We're sure we're not getting involved?"
"No."
Black Zetsu shook his head, eyes filled with deep dread, and said slowly, "If Uchiha Chizumi spots us, he'll likely fight to the death to kill us. He knows too many of our secrets. In his mind we're definitely on his must-kill list—very possibly at the very top."
"We can afford to be a little careless with others in the shinobi world, even with the tailed beasts. But with Uchiha Chizumi, we must be cautious and give him no opening—especially no chance to chase us down."
"…Tch." Obito was annoyed; it made him feel like a rat in a gutter,
as if he were being hounded by Chizumi, too scared to show his face and only able to pull dirty tricks from the shadows.
But the cruel reality in front of him forced Obito to admit it:
if he really crossed Chizumi, he wouldn't be a match. Chizumi knew his abilities inside out; targeting him would be too easy.
Next time he ran into Uchiha Chizumi head-on, he, Uchiha Obito, might not get away.
Then Black Zetsu continued, "What we should be worrying about is… can Nagato and the others pull off the hunt?"
Obito frowned. "His Six Paths puppets should all be heading to the Land of Water, and the worst of Akatsuki is at least jōnin-level anywhere else. How can they not bring down Uchiha Chizumi? Don't forget—Konoha's Root has defected to their side this time."
Black Zetsu said slowly, "If Chizumi were that easy to kill, he wouldn't still be alive. Obito, we also need to leverage Kirigakure's strength."
"Only by gathering the Hidden Mist, Akatsuki, and Konoha's Root do we have a shot at successfully hunting Uchiha Chizumi."
Obito knit his brows.
Black Zetsu went on, "Didn't you want revenge on the Hidden Mist? Isn't this the perfect chance? Let the Mist wear Chizumi down first and stall until Akatsuki arrives."
That convinced Obito.
"…Fine."
…
The next day.
Land of Water.
Leading the way, Jūzō Biwa brought Uchiha Chizumi and the others into a town in the Land of Water.
The sight before them was desolate, to say the least.
Trash lay uncollected in the streets; vendors were scarce on either side; beggars hunched in shadowy corners, all skin and bone.
Now and then a more normal-looking passerby hurried through without lingering.
Dark, long-dried blood stained the gaps between the paving stones.
"This is worlds apart from the Land of Fire… With seaborne trade this developed, shouldn't the Land of Water be doing fine economically? I remember this town's coastal too—there should be a port… so why is it so ruined?" Izumi looked around and voiced her confusion.
Jūzō Biwa took a deep breath, his expression complicated. "This town… used to be controlled by a kekkei genkai shinobi clan and a noble house of the Land of Water."
"But when the Blood Mist policy escalated, Kirigakure purged the kekkei genkai clan here—wiped them out, dozens dead."
"The nobles fled in fear. With no shinobi protection, bandits ravaged the town again and again, and over time it ended up like this."
Izumi blurted, shocked, "After the Hidden Mist exterminated the kekkei genkai clan here, they didn't send shinobi to take over?"
Jūzō shook his head. "No. There are many towns like this now. Their suffering was caused by the Hidden Mist, but the Mist never took over afterward."
"But when some kind-hearted rogue shinobi try to organize and save civilians, the Mist wipes them out under the pretext that they're trying to overthrow the regime."
"The entire Land of Water has remained under the crushing weight of this brutal Blood Mist policy to this day."
He glanced at nearby townsfolk. "Over time, many here have gone numb."
"Outside of those with real money, power, and status, ordinary people are just scraping by."
Jūzō gave a bitter smile. "Of course, not every town is this extreme. Some places are still bustling, relatively normal. If everywhere looked like this… the Land of Water would have collapsed."
"Usually the worst devastation is where kekkei genkai users were active; the Mist's ongoing purges sparked wave after wave of civil strife, leading many to think bloodline shinobi mean war, disaster, and bad omens."
"That worsened conflicts in places like this and made ordinary people steer clear, leaving already-broken towns even more abandoned."
Spelling it all out left Jūzō even heavier.
Then Uchiha Chizumi spoke. "This is a justice-vacuum—ten times worse than the Land of Fire."
Suddenly, a clatter drew Izumi's attention.
Heavy-hearted, she turned to look back, and at a glance her pupils tightened.
"Chizumi-senpai!"
"Human traffickers behind us!"
Not far behind,
three burly men were driving five children along. One held one end of an iron chain; the other end was shackled to the children.
"Move it! We fed you two buns an hour ago—don't tell me you don't have the strength to walk!"
One of the men barked brazenly.
Izumi could clearly see the blank, weakened look on each child's face. They were all skin and bones—obviously malnourished.
Their clothes were filthy and full of holes.
With the weather turning chilly, dressed like that they'd catch cold for sure.
Given how frail they were, a cold could be fatal.
"Chizumi-senpai…"
Just as Izumi was about to speak, Uchiha Chizumi said, "Rookie. Handle it."
Izumi's expression sharpened.
"Yes, sir!"
Without hesitation she gripped her ninja blade and charged over, cutting the men off. She drew in one smooth motion, the long sword angled down, tip to the ground.
"Stop!"
Face like frost, she said coldly, "These kids aren't going with you willingly, are they? Why are they chained?"
"Hey!" squinted the chain-holder, a nasty glint in his rough face. "Who the hell are you? Don't go around slandering people!"
"Their parents sold 'em to us! We paid good money for each brat. The chains are to keep them from running!"
"If they bolt, we take a huge loss, don't we?"
Izumi was taken aback. "…Their parents sold them to you?"
Another man even pulled out several sheets covered in writing, each stamped with different handprints.
He grinned, unabashed. "We've got purchase contracts. You look like some out-of-town rogue shinobi, right? In the Land of Water, best not to meddle. We have our own national conditions. Be smart and step aside."
Izumi drew a long breath.
A few months ago, she might have obediently stepped aside.
But now… her pretty face went cold. "The Land of Water is rotten to the core."