Konoha: The Absolute Justice of the Uchiha

Chapter 211 The Toad Sage and the Slug Sage

Mei Terumi was caught in a deep dilemma.

Reason told her that she could not easily trust a powerful enemy who had just killed the village's Kage.

Uchiha Izumi's concept of "absolute justice" sounds noble, but who can guarantee that it's not just a fancy disguise to cover up his aggressive ambitions?
What if he was just using this rhetoric to lower the guard of the Hidden Mist Village?

But is it actually harboring malicious intentions to invade Kirigakure?
But she quickly dismissed the thought as soon as it crossed her mind.

The slight unease in my heart dissipated.

the reason is simple.

—If Uchiha Izumi truly harbored ill intentions, he could have simply had Biwa Juzo, who was more familiar with the terrain of Kirigakure, lead the way.

But he didn't; instead, he gave her and Qing the opportunity to "choose".

This in itself is a signal.

Cooperation might offer a glimmer of hope; resistance, on the other hand, would likely lead to an immediate fate similar to that of the Fourth Mizukage.

Although this was largely based on Mei Mei's own interpretation, she couldn't be sure if it was correct.

But she didn't dare take that risk.

'I can't die here yet...'

Terumi Mei thought silently in her mind.

The future of Kirigakure... needs someone to change it. If they die meaninglessly at this person's hands now, all their hopes and efforts will have been in vain.

Under the astonished and even slightly disapproving gaze of Ao beside her, Mei Terumi nodded solemnly, as if she had made up her mind.

She met Uchiha Ikezumi's indifferent gaze and said, "...Okay. I will take you to Kirigakure."

She paused, then added something that even she found unbelievable: "But... Uchiha Izumi, if your actions contradict your words, if you truly intend to harm Kirigakure... I will stop you even if it costs me my life!"

After saying that, even she herself was a little surprised at where this courage came from.

Perhaps, it's precisely because deep down in my heart...

There must be something more important than one's own life or death.

"You can rest assured."

At this moment, Izumi, who was standing behind Uchiha Izumi, spoke up. Her tone was serious: "Senior Izumi has no ambition to invade your Kirigakure, and he is definitely not the kind of person who would actively provoke a war between two countries. His goal has always been to eradicate evil from the ninja world."

Qing looked left and right, her lips moving as if she wanted to say something to dissuade or question him.

But she was met with a stern glare from Mei Terumi, which left no trace of anything.

Qing could only swallow her words back down.

But the worry on his face did not diminish at all.

……

"Cough...cough..."

Meanwhile, in a ravaged woodland several kilometers away from the battlefield.

Zabuza Momochi mustered all his strength and used his still-intact arm to forcefully push away a huge piece of wood that was pressing down on him.

The excruciating, tearing pain coursing through his entire body made every breath feel like a knife cutting into him.

He turned his head with difficulty and looked to the side.

One of the fellow Kirigakure ANBU ninjas was found with half his body pinned down by a boulder, blood gushing from its edge and staining the scorched earth red.

The person had already fallen silent.

Zabuza Momochi slowly exhaled a breath of foul air, tinged with the smell of blood.

With sheer willpower, he struggled and shakily got to his feet.

Every movement aggravates countless bone fractures and internal injuries.

He raised his head and gazed at the desolate, scorched landscape in front of him, which seemed to have been baptized by the wrath of the gods.

The two enormous craters formed by the Tailed Beast Ball explosion resembled scars on the earth.

Further away, there is a massive mountain range collapsing to the left and right.

You can still vaguely see dark red lava flowing slowly in some gullies.

A pungent sulfurous smell wafted in on the wind.

It stimulated his already dizzy brain.

"Who won?...Who lost?"

Two crucial questions uncontrollably surfaced in his exhausted mind.

Blood flowing from the wound on his head blurred his vision on one side, but he still frowned deeply.

Compared to the "minor matter" of narrowly escaping death from such a cataclysmic explosion, he was more concerned about whether the Fourth Mizukage, a figure who was a blood-soaked nightmare for Kirigakure and the Land of Water, had actually been killed by the enemy.
Zabuza Momochi gritted his teeth, enduring the excruciating pain that felt like his whole body was falling apart, and dragged his almost unresponsive leg toward the center of the destroyed area, staggering and inching forward step by step.

At a speed comparable to that of a tortoise, when he finally reached that core scorched earth, exhausted and nearly collapsed...

It was completely dark.

Under the night sky, only the dark red light emanating from the lava ravines barely illuminated this desolate land.

Zabuza Momochi looked exhausted, his face as pale as paper, and he was panting heavily.

It looked like he would collapse at any moment.

He looked around—he didn't see the Fourth Mizukage, Yagura Karatachi, nor the Lava Release monster from Konoha Village.

Only the shocking traces left by the battle remain.

A deathly silence enveloped Zabuza Momochi. This situation had given him the clearest answer.

—Lord Mizukage has been killed!

According to common sense, if the Mizukage wins, he will definitely stay where he is, gather his surviving subordinates, and regroup.

"call……"

A string that had been taut in my heart seemed to snap suddenly.

Zabuza Momochi felt as if all his strength had been drained away, and he fell heavily backward, collapsing onto the still-warm, scorched earth.

My gaze was fixed on the night sky, obscured by dust, where neither star nor moon could be seen.

"Nowadays……"

"That's ridiculous..."

"It's like a dream."

He murmured weakly.

……

In a corner of an inconspicuous little tavern in Konoha Village.

Jiraiya sat sullenly in his chair, downing one cup of sake after another. The aroma of the sake, carrying a hint of intoxication, filled the air, making him appear completely lost and dejected.

The passion and energy they once had in their pursuit of the "Child of Prophecy" were completely gone.

"Tsunade... will absolutely not let me get close to Naruto."

Slightly drunk, he complained helplessly to the two toad sages on the table, his voice slightly slurred: "The old man doesn't seem to fully understand the prophecy of the Great Toad Sage of Mount Myōboku either."

Jiraiya sighed heavily and continued, "In addition, there's the Slug Sage supporting Tsunade behind the scenes, who has clearly stated his opposition to us taking Naruto away... This obstacle is too great."

He rubbed his swollen temples.

"Moreover, after that previous conflict, the Konoha police are now watching me like I'm a thief!"

Jiraiya's face showed a bitter expression: "If I deliberately approach Naruto, those Uchiha ninjas will definitely stop me immediately. If I insist on taking Naruto away... I'm afraid in their eyes I will be an enemy of justice, and at that time, I will be forced to fight them."

He tilted his head back and downed another glass of wine, his voice filled with helplessness: "Sigh... And I absolutely cannot have a physical conflict with my fellow villagers... I'm really out of options."

Fukasaku and Shima looked at each other, both seeing a deep sense of helplessness in each other's frog eyes.

They never imagined that it would be so difficult to bring the prophesied child back to Mount Myōboku for nurturing!
It's countless times more difficult than finding the prophesied child!
The entire village of Konoha, from top to bottom, seemed to be working against Mount Myōboku's plans without anyone noticing.

"Have you made contact with the Great Toad Sage yet?" Jiraiya put down his sake cup and asked with a last glimmer of hope, "Has the Great Toad Sage... given any new instructions or response yet?"

Fukasaku shook his head, his voice low: "Not for now. However... it seems that the Great Lord... has left Mount Myōboku."

"What?" Jiraiya was stunned for a moment, and the effects of the alcohol sobered him up a bit.

In his memory, the great toad sage who had lived for over a thousand years had almost never left the sacred land of Mount Myōboku.

Immortal Shima chimed in, his tone uncertain: "We don't know exactly where the Great Master went; it didn't tell us. But I guess the Great Master probably went to find the Slug Immortal."

Jiraiya suddenly realized something: "It wants to... go and negotiate with the Slug Sage in person?"

Master Shima nodded: "That's probably... the case."

After he finished speaking, a silence fell once again between the man and the two toads.

The three pairs of eyes looked at each other, unsure of what to do next.

……

On the other side is Shikkotsu Forest, one of the three sacred sites that are on par with Mount Myoboku.

Just as Master Shima had guessed, the enormous figure of the Great Toad Master was now appearing on this vibrant yet ancient land.

Opposite it was a giant split form of the Slug Sage, almost the same size as the Great Toad Sage.

The giant toad immortal sat down on the spot with great fanfare.

He pulled out two wine bowls larger than a person and a bottle of special liquor that exuded a mellow aroma from somewhere.

It skillfully filled two bowls with wine.

The wine rippled.

The Great Toad Sage raised his heavy eyelids, stared at the gentle aura of the Slug Sage's split form, grabbed a wine bowl first, and drank half of it down in one gulp.

Then it spoke, its voice old and heavy: "Slug Sage, you should know that my prophecy is not just idle talk. You and I both personally experienced the disaster that nearly destroyed the ninja world thousands of years ago. The world we live in has always been coveted by certain beings."

Its tone carried a profound sense of history: "Everything that Mount Myōboku did was to allow the ninja world to avoid that inevitable doomsday future. The prophesied child, Naruto Uzumaki... he is the only hope to bring about change and liberation of the ninja world at some crucial moment in the future."

"Without his proper guidance, even I cannot foresee what dark abyss the ninja world would eventually slide into."

The Great Toad Sage's gaze turned extremely serious: "Perhaps... the entire ninja world could be destroyed in an instant, it's not impossible."

The slug sage's split form glanced down at the wine bowl in front of it, which seemed somewhat out of place to it, and slowly shook its head, its voice as gentle and calm as ever: "I don't drink alcohol."

Then it responded to the Great Toad Sage: "If Naruto Uzumaki is indeed the 'savior' of prophecy, then his path of growth may not only be through Mount Myōboku."

“I believe that the ideal and power of ‘absolute justice’ also have the potential to cultivate him into a qualified guardian of the ninja world.”

"Since even your prophecy, Great Toad Sage, cannot clearly foresee the specific changes that 'absolute justice' will bring to the ninja world, why not choose to quietly observe?"

The Slug Sage continued slowly, "Perhaps you can see a path to a better future that is completely different from your past prophecies through the practice of 'absolute justice,' who knows?"

The Great Toad Sage remained silent for a long time, his enormous frog face expressionless: "Because the uncertainty of 'absolute justice' is too great. Mount Myōboku... and even the entire ninja world, cannot afford to take this risk."

It emphasized: "Mount Myoboku, through the prophesied child, brought relative peace to the ninja world for over a thousand years. This shows that the path I have chosen is effective."

It paused for a moment and then said, "And 'absolute justice'... is a completely new path, shrouded in mystery, making it impossible for this old man to see the future clearly."

"Slug Immortal, in my memory you are not the type to take risks so easily. Can you tell me the real reason why you insist on this?"

The slug fairy seemed unsurprised by the question, and answered candidly, "You glimpse fragments of the future from your dreams. As for me... I see another possibility from my observations."

The Great Toad Sage paused slightly: "Observe..."

The Slug Sage nodded and continued, "Mount Myōboku doesn't really need to have such a strong prejudice against 'absolute justice.' You haven't even tried to understand it in depth, so how can you be sure that it can't bring a better future to the ninja world than you predicted?"

"That's why I suggested you wait and see. Time is not a scarce resource for beings like you and me. Perhaps we can witness the changes in the ninja world in the time it takes to sleep."

Upon hearing this, the Great Toad Sage took a deep breath.

It slowly rose from its imposing seated position, took a deep look at the slug sage's split form, and finally said, "The risks... remain enormous."

"However, since you, Slug Immortal, insist on this so much... then I can temporarily suppress my impatience and patiently observe."

The slug sage's split form responded gently: "Thank you for understanding."

They watched as the giant toad sage's enormous figure disappeared into the depths of the misty forest.

The split entity seemed to deflate instantly, its entire body drooping.

In a voice only he could hear, he muttered weakly, "I'm just a tiny split being... Can't you please not assign me this important task of negotiating with the sages of Mount Myōboku... I almost thought the atmosphere was getting tense and I was about to be eaten by a toad..."

Just as it landed, the ground beneath its feet seemed to tremble slightly.

A faint but gentle fluctuation of thought came through.

It seems to be responding to something.

Immediately afterwards...

The body of this split entity began to merge rapidly with the "earth" beneath its feet, just as a drop of water merges into the ocean.

next moment--

Rumble, rumble...

The entire ground of the Wet Bone Forest began to tremble violently!

A slug head, so enormous it defies description, slowly rose from the depths of the earth!

Its size is impossible to estimate by sight.

It was as if it were the sacred place itself!
The true form of the Slug Sage gazed silently into the distance.

Speechless.

……

……

(End of this chapter)