Naruto: Traveling Through Time Starting with Seizing the Dragon Vein

He knew that Orochimaru had defected and that Konoha had been in turmoil recently, but he never imagined that the highest power core of the five great nations, the pinnacle of power in the ninja world, had been infiltrated and even controlled to such an extent by this Uchiha youth in front of him without him even realizing it!

"What...what exactly is your purpose?"

Jiraiya clenched his fists, gritting his teeth as he roared, "Manipulating the Five Great Nations like this, do you want to be the dictator of this world?! Like Madara Uchiha, ruling the ninja world by force?!"

"To rule the ninja world?"

Upon hearing Jiraiya's question, Uchiha Tsuki felt as if he had heard a dull joke.

He shook his head, a hint of pity in his eyes as he looked at Jiraiya.

"Jiraiya, your vision is too narrow. What is there in this small ninja world, these few barren lands, that I would go to such lengths to rule?"

Yue turned her gaze back to the Great Toad Sage.

"Gamamaru, you have lived for over a thousand years, and once guided Hagoromo and Hamura Otsutsuki, sealing away Kaguya, the goddess of the rabbit. You should know better than anyone what is hidden beyond this starry sky."

Gamamaru shuddered, his old eyes slowly widening: "You even know this..."

“I not only know Kaguya, but I also know that one day in the future, her kindred people will descend upon this planet to reap the fruits of their labor.”

Yue's voice turned cold: "But in my eyes, those so-called 'gods,' those aliens who plunder chakra in the stars, are nothing more than slightly stronger, lower-level creatures. They can be killed, deconstructed, and defeated."

"They... are still not my real target."

The entire hall was deathly silent.

Gamamaru was dumbfounded.

He doesn't even respect the gods beyond the stars? Then what exactly does he want?

"I will resist..."

Uchiha Yue slowly raised his head, his dark eyes looking through the dome of the main hall of Mount Myōboku, as if piercing through the infinite heights of this world.

"It is 'He' who ordained this tragic fate."

"It is that 'being' that treats all living beings as worthless weeds, and uses so-called 'fate' and 'corrective power' to manipulate the entire world as if it were a script!"

"As for who it is..."

Yue narrowed her eyes slightly and stopped talking. "I cannot say His name, or even describe His form in too much, because in that position, merely being 'mentioned' could attract 'attention.' We do not yet have the means to face that kind of gaze."

"But you only need to know one thing: as long as 'His' script continues to run, the ninja world will always be a stage for people to amuse themselves. Whether it's the Otsutsuki or the ninjas, they are all just puppets on strings."

Yue stood up and opened her arms.

Susanoo was not activated, and that suffocating gravitational pull was not released.

He abandoned all military intimidation and presented an extremely grand and unprecedented vision to this thousand-year-old toad sage and to the entire Mount Myōboku.

"Gamamaru, Mount Myōboku has been high and mighty for far too long."

"For a thousand years, you have sat in this beautiful fairyland, watching ninjas slaughter each other for survival and people bleed for hatred. Occasionally you would cast out a so-called 'prophecy' and let those chosen ones follow the predetermined path to maintain this distorted 'balance'."

"But that kind of detached observation cannot save the real world."

The moon stretched out a hand very solemnly toward the toad-shaped object in the center of the pool.

"I am standing here today to invite you."

Uchiha Tsuki's voice was irresistibly captivating at that moment.

"Step down from that illusory pedestal. Stop being a prophet who only observes from the sidelines."

"Gamamaru, Fukasaku, Shima, and Jiraiya... would you like to join the ranks of 'all living beings'?"

"Join us, in this muddy mortal world, and with our own hands, declare war on that lofty 'fate'! Reclaim the power that belongs to all of us... to write our own future!"

Inside the main hall, the water rippled.

Jiraiya was stunned, while Fukasaku and Shima were speechless with shock.

The Great Toad Immortal, sitting on the futon, had a faint, long-lost glimmer in his old, turbid eyes, which had been clouded for a thousand years. It was as if he had seen the Feathered Brothers step forward with a burning light back then.

Inside the main hall, apart from the occasional crisp sound of water droplets falling into the pool, there was not a single other noise.

Jiraiya's mouth was slightly open, and his brain was almost completely shut down.

He originally thought he was facing a madman who wanted to overthrow Konoha and dominate the ninja world. He was even prepared to fight to the death and send the information back to Konoha.

But now?

Fighting against alien gods? Rebelling against "He" who determined destiny? Even fearing an existence whose name is too taboo to mention?

This is completely beyond the comprehension limits of a ninja!

It's like someone suddenly telling an ant fighting in a swamp that we're going to overturn the whole sky!

Fukasaku and Shima exchanged a glance. In the eyes of the two old toads, besides shock, there was a deep worry and solemnity.

"Ugh……"

After a long while, a deep, ancient sigh, as if it had encompassed a thousand years, echoed throughout the main hall of Mount Myoboku.

Chapter 144 Parallel Connection of Mount Myōboku

"I've lived too long... so long that even this flesh and blood body is almost as cold as the stones of Mount Myōboku."

Gamamaru's voice carried a hint of weary relief, "For a thousand years, I have followed that so-called 'guidance,' watching Hagoromo seal my mother, watching the descendants of Ashura and Indra kill each other, watching this ninja world endlessly cycle in blood and fire..."

"In my humble opinion, that is the inevitable course of this world."

Gamamaru reopened his eyes, his gaze now clearer.

"But if all that suffering is just a script for some being... then wouldn't my thousand years of observation and prophecy have become a pathetic act of aiding and abetting evil?"

"Master!" Fukasaku the Sage exclaimed in surprise, having vaguely guessed Gamamaru's decision.

Gamamaru ignored Fukasaku's exclamation and looked at Uchiha Tsuki, slowly lowering its huge head that had been proud for thousands of years.

“Young man of the Uchiha clan… your madness surpasses my understanding. But it is precisely this madness that has allowed my decaying heart to feel a long-lost warmth.”

"However, young man of the Uchiha clan, I cannot gamble the fate of the entire Mount Myōboku with you based solely on your shocking words."

"If what you say is true, and we are fighting against that indescribable being, then the toads of Mount Myōboku will not even be qualified to be cannon fodder once they go to the front line."

Uchiha Tsuki noticed Gamamaru's concerns.

"Great Toad Immortal, you are overthinking it. I never expected to send a toad to the front lines to carry a sword."

"What I need from Mount Myōboku is simply your deep connection with 'natural energy' and your millennia-old cultivation methods and profound magical heritage."

Yue opened her arms and made a promise that Gamamaru could not refuse: "You do not need to leave Mount Myōboku, or even disclose your position to the outside world. I only need you to participate in my 'Heaven's Will Project' and share the natural energy of your Mount Myōboku training with us."

"Sit securely in the rear, preserve your people, and you'll be able to personally participate in the great cause of overthrowing fate and burying that high and mighty person. Great Toad Sage, what do you think of this deal?"

A long, deathly silence fell over the main hall once again.

Fukasaku and Shima held their breath, knowing that the Great Lord's next decision would completely change the thousand-year-old status of Mount Myōboku.

After a long while, a smile suddenly appeared on Gamamaru's old face, which was covered with deep wrinkles.

“I approved this deal.”

"Great Toad Sage, you have made the wisest choice."

Uchiha Yue withdrew his hand, a genuine smile playing on his lips. He bowed slightly, offering equal respect to this wise man who had lived for a thousand years.

“From today onwards, Mount Myoboku is officially incorporated into the ‘Divine Will Project’. Subsequently, I will send people to coordinate the establishment of natural energy systems.”

The moon's voice regained its composure.

"No problem, I will give the order." Gamamaru nodded.

"Wait...wait! Sir! How could you...how could you just agree to that?!"

At this moment, Jiraiya, who had been standing next to Fukasaku and had been in a daze, finally came to his senses.

He was so anxious he was jumping up and down, his white hair whipping wildly behind his head, his face filled with disbelief: "This is a rogue ninja! What he just said was like the ramblings of a mentally ill person! What about defying fate, what about the Otsutsuki... How could you entrust Mount Myōboku to him? What about Konoha? What about the Child of Prophecy?!"

"Little Jiraiya..."

Gamamaru looked at his grand-disciple, who was full of enthusiasm but also deeply entangled in a mystery, and a trace of kindness flashed in his eyes.

"Don't you understand? That so-called 'Child of Prophecy,' that 'destiny' that must endure endless pain and despair before finally bringing about change to the ninja world... is itself an extremely cruel curse."

"If there were a chance to free that child from that cruel fate, and for everyone to use their own hands to fight for a world that doesn't need a 'savior' to sacrifice..."

Gamamaru sighed, "Shouldn't we give it a try?"

“But…” Jiraiya opened his mouth, only to find that he couldn’t refute it.

He thought of Orochimaru's defection, Minato's tragic death, and his comrades who had died in the war.

If all of this was just part of a "script," if this tragedy was orchestrated from the very beginning by some unseen hand...

Jiraiya clutched his head in anguish, feeling as if his worldview was being torn apart like never before.

Uchiha Yue ignored Jiraiya's dilemma.

He knew that for someone who had the "Will of Fire," "prophecy," and "destiny" etched into their very bones, accepting this truth would take an extremely long time.

But it doesn't matter, he has plenty of time to wait.

"Jiraiya, you still have a long way to go. You can choose to continue being the Toad Sage and search for that elusive prophetic child in your heart."

As the moon turned away, the black trench coat fluttered in the breeze of Mount Myoboku.

He turned his head and gave Jiraiya one last look, his tone tinged with a hint of mockery:

"Or... when you've figured things out someday, you can come to Loulan to find me."

“After all, besides saving the world, I have a very complete ‘cultural publishing and film and television distribution administration’…” Yue paused, her smile widening, “For a ‘masterpiece’ like ‘Intimate Paradise,’ if it’s promoted across all channels in the Land of Wind and the Land of Thunder, the royalties… would be quite considerable.”

"Cough...you...don't try to tempt me with this kind of thing!" Jiraiya's face flushed red, and he shouted defiantly, but his shifty eyes betrayed his inner turmoil.

Seeing Jiraiya's defiant yet stubborn expression, the previously tense atmosphere in the hall suddenly relaxed.

Fukasaku and Shima, the two sages, couldn't help but shake their heads. On the wrinkled face of the Great Toad Sage Gamamaru, a vivid and human smile, unseen for a thousand years, appeared.

After the laughter subsided, the smile on Uchiha Yue's face gradually faded.

"Furthermore, I am unaware of the relationship between your Holy Land and the other two Holy Lands."

The moon gazes at the giant toad immortal in the center of the pool: