"Naruto: My Ninja Skills"Chapter 218: The Heavenly Realm
"Lord Yūshin, are we really just letting those two Tailed Beasts leave like this?"
Watching the massive forms of Matatabi and Gyūki gradually disappear into the distance, Hagūgen Aoi asked with slight hesitation.
Although she didn't particularly value her biological father Tobirama's strength, her personality was actually quite similar to his—always seeking to resolve problems perfectly and definitively.
"Because killing them serves no purpose whatsoever. Tailed Beasts have a complete resurrection mechanism anyway. As for capturing these two Tailed Beasts, that would easily provoke conflict with Kumogakure... Konoha having one jinchūriki is sufficient. More isn't necessarily better. Unless you want to become jinchūriki yourselves?"
Yūshin had already devised his method for handling the Tailed Beasts, but such matters didn't require explanation to others.
Become a jinchūriki? Hagūgen Aoi decisively shook her head. Jiraiya didn't particularly understand what being a jinchūriki meant, so he appeared confused.
"I understand, Lord Yūshin. Kumogakure's objective was to have us help eliminate their jinchūriki problem. Now that you've released the Tailed Beasts, whatever consequences arise are their own doing."
"Exactly. The Shinobi World structure left by the First Hokage, while not perfect, has developed operational inertia through years of adjustments. Since that's the case, we shouldn't casually disrupt this inertia."
"But Lord Yūshin, those two Tailed Beasts seemed very familiar with you, and you promised they'd eventually be granted freedom. What's that about?"
"They mistook me for someone else, so I took advantage and deceived them. Without saying something pleasant, how would they willingly depart?"
Yūshin was indeed lying, but exactly whom he was deceiving remained unclear.
Hagūgen Aoi considered this carefully. Tailed Beasts couldn't be killed or captured, so releasing them seemed the optimal solution... She was only operating on the first level, so she could only comprehend that much.
"In any case, this matter is resolved. Whatever schemes Kumogakure attempts next will be unrelated to Konoha... They lack the resources for conspiracies anyway. Tailed Beasts aren't easy to capture."
In this era, Tailed Beasts lived rather miserably—with nowhere else to go, being controlled by ninja villages was their only path.
Just as Yūshin prepared to withdraw, Jiraiya unexpectedly spoke, and when he did, his perspective reached slightly higher than Hagūgen Aoi's.
Or rather, he was thinking more deeply and extensively.
"Lord Yūshin, even with the strength you just demonstrated, is there no way to eliminate war from the Shinobi World?"
Yūshin halted his steps. Jiraiya's question had some essence of seeing through phenomena to underlying truth. Thinking about it, Jiraiya asking such a question wasn't strange—his entire life was one of attempting to resist fate while ultimately accepting its guidance.
"Achieving peace through the deterrence of the strong? That's quite difficult, because the strong ultimately must die... After the First Hokage's death, the First Great Ninja War immediately erupted. What I could accomplish certainly wouldn't surpass the First's achievements."
Yūshin wasn't being self-deprecating, nor comparing his strength to Hashirama's—he was stating that Hashirama clearly valued maintaining the Shinobi World's balance far more than Yūshin did.
"Your question, rather than discussing war, is more about discussing human society... More simply put, war is a certain external manifestation of human nature. Using force to resolve war is treating symptoms rather than root causes. Theoretically, only by resolving humanity could one resolve war."
"Me alone achieving world peace? Honestly, that overestimates me far too much."
Yūshin, having lived a somewhat complete human life, appeared rather detached—he lacked the resolve to shoulder the entire world's fate.
Using force to achieve peace was actually Nagato's approach—this was his rationale for leading Akatsuki and collecting Tailed Beasts... In fact, even if his victory hadn't been stolen, such objectives would be extremely difficult to realize.
Forcing all humanity to live perpetually in fear would trigger various problems—the results wouldn't necessarily be much better than ongoing warfare.
For someone with Yūshin's extended lifespan, viewing war from a broader spatiotemporal perspective, it could be seen as humanity's developmental pressure-release valve—after periods of development, pressure and contradictions must be vented. This had become natural law.
Yūshin's words were sound, but for children like Aoi and Jiraiya, they were somewhat difficult to comprehend.
"In summary, rather than contemplating how to completely resolve war, it's better to consider how to enhance strength and protect one's interests during warfare... The former question is too abstract; the latter is far more practical."
Yūshin sighed. The Shinobi World was too small—even attempting nuclear deterrence was impossible. Moreover, even with nuclear deterrence, global warfare never truly ceased.
"War will always erupt, so we must improve our strength and strive to eliminate enemies during war... Is this what you mean, Lord Yūshin?" Hagūgen Aoi asked.
Yūshin blinked. Is that what I meant?
"Your understanding is slightly skewed, but generally correct... Wake up our people, inform them of the battle results, then have them withdraw."
"Yes, Lord Yūshin."
After completing their tasks, both returned to Yūshin's side... They were simply accustomed to taking their time rather than rushing back to Konoha with the main force.
"Hmm, are we forgetting something?"
Before departing, Yūshin conducted a final check, sensing he'd overlooked something.
Jiraiya quietly interjected: "Lord Yūshin, the Third Hokage..."
"Right, Sarutobi is still severely injured... Store your respective spoils in scrolls—don't be too conspicuous. Keep the items for submission visible."
Of the five "Six Paths Ninja Tools," submitting two represented a forty percent ratio—Yūshin was being quite conscientious.
With Yūshin's reminder, Jiraiya stopped contemplating grand narratives and efficiently secured his possessions... Thinking broadly was one thing, immediate benefits another—both could coexist.
Yūshin led both into the alternate dimension, where they again encountered the continuously bleeding Third Hokage.
With the battle concluded, Yūshin could finally attend to Sarutobi's treatment.
"Lord Yūshin, I'm truly ashamed... I didn't anticipate the enemy's strength, allowing the situation to spiral beyond control."
Sarutobi Hiruzen genuinely felt embarrassed—he'd executed this mission so poorly.
"Normal reaction—don't be discouraged... Even bringing the Second Hokage here, he probably couldn't have defeated these two. They're not only jinchūriki but possess Six Paths bloodline—consider them two Kage-level powerhouses. While the process had minor complications, the outcome was favorable." Yūshin spoke half-dismissively, half-consolingly.
Hagūgen Aoi nodded vigorously beside them. Against this version of Kinkaku and Ginkaku, if the Second Hokage couldn't win, he could run—and he was the fastest runner...
With his biological daughter Aoi's endorsement, Yūshin wasn't slandering the Second but describing objective facts.
"Before returning to Konoha, coordinate your accounts. No need to elaborate on battle details—just describe the results: the jinchūriki are dead, two Tailed Beasts escaped. Regardless of their destination, they didn't enter the Land of Fire. Konoha's strategic objectives were perfectly achieved."
Sarutobi Hiruzen understood Yūshin's meaning and appeared surprised:
"Lord Yūshin, your contribution..."
"At my age, how many years remain? What use are accolades? Your competent performance matters more than anything."
As everyone knows, the more robust an elderly person's health, the more they enjoy claiming limited time remaining. Those truly approaching their end rarely voice such sentiments... Death remains fearsome.
The Third Hokage felt both grateful and guilty, but couldn't refuse Yūshin's proposal. His first major battle as Hokage ending in defeat? He simply couldn't explain such results to Konoha.
Yūshin offered Sarutobi additional encouragement before having him depart the alternate dimension with the Six Paths Ninja Tools—Konoha's retreating remnants still required the Hokage to manage the aftermath.
People are indeed fickle. If Yūshin had initially demanded participation in this mission, the Hokage and his faction would have been displeased—what's the meaning of this, old-timer not trusting young people's capabilities?
After the opposition bungled the mission and Yūshin cleaned up the mess while concealing his involvement and crediting the Hokage, gratitude flowed abundantly.
After dismissing the Third Hokage, Yūshin concluded this episode and prepared to resume researching his Sage Arts.
"You two, this matter ends here. Don't speak carelessly about inappropriate topics... I'll return you to Konoha now."
Topics like the Third Hokage's defeat, Yūshin's Space-Time Ninjutsu, Gundam battling Tailed Beasts, and everything Hagūgen Aoi and Jiraiya had experienced—none could be discussed externally.
Yūshin's affairs, if revealed, wouldn't have serious consequences, but carelessly discussing the Hokage's matters could be fatal.
However, after gaining such insights—particularly witnessing Yūshin's strength—how could Hagūgen Aoi possibly return obediently to Konoha?
"Lord Yūshin, could I study ninjutsu with you... When the Third fought the enemy, he seemed somewhat fragile. I feel ninja require physical resilience."
Jiraiya had thought their miraculous journey was ending, but upon hearing Aoi's words, he said nothing—simply positioning himself silently behind her.
Study ninjutsu with me? Are you treating my alternate dimension as a Hyperbolic Time Chamber?
Yūshin was somewhat speechless. I have legitimate work to accomplish.
Caring for the Third Hokage was childcare; caring for Aoi and Jiraiya remained childcare. Yūshin was managing both senior and junior kindergarten classes simultaneously.
However... Hyperbolic Time Chamber?
"You want to become more resilient? I happen to know a suitable training location... But this method is typically used for training extraterrestrials—uncertain whether it's applicable to ninja."
"Ex-extraterrestrials?" Aoi looked completely bewildered.
"Follow me."
So-called education, translated, means hardship. Children who haven't experienced hardship have incomplete childhoods; youth who haven't endured trials have incomplete adolescence.
Yūshin activated his Byakugan, opening a Space-Time Portal connecting to the "Heavenly Realm"... For non-Ōtsutsuki ninja, accessing the "Heavenly Realm" was extremely difficult, but coincidentally, Yūshin was a standard God Tree-Man plus Ōtsutsuki.
Yūshin stepped first through the Space-Time Portal, immediately feeling dizzy with his knees nearly buckling.
This was Kaguya's super-gravity space.
Aoi and Jiraiya cheerfully followed Yūshin here, then were instantly flattened against the ground by irresistible gravity.
Crack, crack—whose bones just shattered?
Within a minute, both were nearly compressed into pancakes.
Well, Yūshin realized he'd been somewhat presumptuous. Methods for training extraterrestrials were indeed unsuitable for training ninja.
Super-gravity space? Torture chamber.
However, this seemed like an excellent battlefield—adapting to the environment in advance might prove beneficial... Yūshin thought while moving his feet, then transported both back to his alternate dimension.
After healing them, Aoi lay motionless for quite a while before finally exhaling deeply, feeling alive again.
"Whew, what was that place? I felt nearly compressed flat."
"Felt? We were actually compressed flat."
Jiraiya was covered in cold sweat. Though his injuries had completely healed, the sensation of bone fractures continued reverberating through his neural pathways.
"My mistake—I was somewhat presumptuous. With your physical condition and chakra intensity, you cannot adapt to such environments... Extraterrestrial training ends here."
Yūshin had indeed miscalculated. Training young people shouldn't involve such methods—this was equivalent to operating a steamroller over them repeatedly.
But this response displeased Hagūgen Aoi. She struggled upright, somewhat stubbornly addressing Yūshin:
"Lord Yūshin, I want to attempt this once more... I didn't have time to mobilize chakra earlier, so I couldn't persevere. If I prepare properly, the result will definitely differ."
Yūshin: "..."
What's this—bone fracture addiction?
Humans indeed possess genes for environmental adaptation and resistance, but that requires gradual progression. The super-gravity space's gravity couldn't be adjusted, providing no adaptation process whatsoever.
"Very well, I'll give you another opportunity tomorrow. You can't be repeatedly compressed into pancakes within a single day, right?"
The following day, both again challenged the extraterrestrial training method, but results were identical to the first attempt—no changes whatsoever... In such gravitational environments, ordinary ninja simply cannot mobilize chakra.
Yet both remained defiant—their bones weren't as hard as their stubbornness.
After three repeated challenges, Yūshin finally understood... These two youngsters were challenging the super-gravity space falsely—their true objective was freeloading his Yin-Yang Release therapeutic effects!
Bone fracture and crushing enthusiasts? NO, NO—clearly bone fracture and crushing recovery enthusiasts.
Even if the super-gravity space provided no training benefits, extracting some high-quality chakra from Yūshin was worthwhile.
Yūshin felt somewhat unable to keep pace with young people's thinking—each was incredibly cunning.
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