[The Pure Land.]
The aged figure slowly opened his eyes.
[The purple Rinnegan is revealed.]
It glanced around, somewhat bewildered.
"Asura...Asura isn't here either."
"Has he been reincarnated again?"
The Sage of Six Paths shook his head.
"It seems this time the battle will be decided once and for all."
"Even the soul itself has joined the fray."
["Hopefully it won't last too long, and the damage to the ninja world won't be too great."]
[While speaking.]
The Sage of Six Paths slowly closed his eyes again.
Now is not the time to wake up.
[...]
[at the same time. ]
[Somewhere in the Land of Fire, in the Ninja World.]
Inside a dilapidated temple.
Jiraiya frowned.
[He slowly walked out from there.]
"Things have developed into something far more serious than I imagined."
"Why did it turn out like this...?"
But soon, Jiraiya became confused.
The Child of Prophecy is a savior who can change the world.
[But...]
Looking at the ruins within the Land of Fire.
[And those numb eyes.]
Jiraiya fell silent.
[Great lords, feudal lords, powerful figures...]
They were all incredibly wealthy, with bloated heads and big ears.
[The ordinary people below.]
Their faces were all sallow.
[The image involuntarily surfaced in Jiraiya's mind.]
[When he left Konoha, the Land of Whirlpools.]
Along that road.
The smiles on people's faces.
[Confident and radiant.]
More importantly, they possessed a faith that even Jiraiya found difficult to comprehend.
[It presents a thriving and prosperous appearance.]
That is indeed the case.
He had been searching for Orochimaru for many years.
[I was immediately captivated by Naruto in the very short time we met.]
He tried his best, but still couldn't win her back.
Naruto didn't even say a word.
Orochimaru then returned to Konoha on his own initiative.
So many things have happened.
This caused a huge shock to Jiraiya's worldview.
[at the same time. ,]
He gradually came to understand what the children had said earlier.
[The Child of Prophecy?]
[Savior?]
Or is he some kind of chosen one?
Are these things even worthy of being placed on His Majesty's head?
[Besides His Majesty the King, who dares to call himself that?]
[The feeling of the left and right hemispheres of the brain battling each other.]
However, the meaning being expressed is also very clear.
[Click—]
The dilapidated house collapsed.
Jiraiya was startled, then, regaining his senses, he was about to rush to the rescue.
[Approaching closer.]
But then it was discovered.
The people around seemed completely oblivious to what was happening.
["Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey!"]
"What the hell?!"
"Something we can't even afford to pay taxes on!"
"So what if he's dead!"
["unlucky!"]
Several voices reached his ears.
Jiraiya stood there, stunned.
These people.
[They are 'dogs' kept by the powerful and wealthy, and the daimyo of the Land of Fire.]
[They specialize in doing these kinds of things.]
Originally, things were fairly normal.
Now, it's become money to buy one's life.
Jiraiya stood there, stunned.
[BOOM—!!!]
It got dark sometime during the day.
[Splash—]
[No symptoms were observed.]
[Heavy rain falls. ]
The crowd did not scatter in panic.
Instead, they work numbly.
[I walked numbly toward my destination.]
Heaven and hell... are separated by a fine line!
Jiraiya raised his head, letting the heavy rain wash over his face.
[Once upon a time, this was the most prosperous place in the Land of Fire.]
[Now. ]
[On the other side, in the Land of Whirlpools, in Konoha.]
That is the most prosperous place.
The two are separated by only a fine line.
This place has become hell.
[Can. ]
Jiraiya's subconscious was telling him that he was romanticizing the former Land of Fire.
[Changes?]
He experienced it all firsthand.
[Since the Third Hokage took office.]
[Originally, it was a confident nation, arguably the most self-reliant in the entire ninja world.]
Gradually, it turned into...
They are still trapped within the Land of Fire.
[Even if a random civilian from another country were to appear, a group of people would rush up to him...]
["sorrow."]
The Land of Fire is inherently the strongest!
[It's only because of the existence of the Third Hokage that we've fallen behind for so long!]
Suddenly.
Jiraiya's entire body trembled.
[Suddenly snapping back to reality.]
But he couldn't deny that those thoughts had just crossed his mind.
How powerful the Land of Fire was back then.
[They crushed the entire ninja world.]
Ultimately, however, they succumbed to a difference in their philosophies.
[Internal strife begins.]
[...]
Jiraiya sat in the heavy rain, lost in thought.
[for a long time. ]
He suddenly laughed.
The Land of Whirlpools is the correct answer.
[He slowly rose to his feet.]
The rain has stopped.
Jiraiya plans to begin traveling through these small countries and the existing territory of the Land of Fire.
Rescue these people.
["perhaps."]
"That's the real reason they let me out."
"To atone for my sins...?"
"Perhaps, it might lessen the severity of the crime."
Jiraiya took out a storage scroll from his ninja tool pouch.
He can no longer break the habit of writing.
Although it has been suspended for a long time.
But from now on.
His pen will no longer be used to harm people.
Instead, it is.
I need to write an autobiography.
[Start writing from here.]
Write down your thoughts and observations.
Let this history be remembered.
In the Land of Whirlpools, he saw everything he had seen in Konoha when he was young.
Moreover, this is just the beginning.
Everything will get better.
[A meeting of the five daimyo?]
[The Ninja Alliance has been formed?]
This time, Jiraiya's perspective has changed.
["I see."]
Jiraiya shook his head.
"Making changes now may already be too late."
["but..."]
Jiraiya glanced in the direction of the Daimyo's residence in the Land of Fire.
[but. ]
[The moment the Allied Shinobi Forces appeared.]
The ending seems predetermined.
[Bang!]
Just then.
A sudden explosion occurred beside Jiraiya.
A puff of white smoke appeared.
Jiraiya was taken aback.
Then, watching the white smoke slowly dissipate.
I felt a little strange.
"What happened?"
[call out--]
The white smoke dissipated.
Jiraiya encountered the communication frog of Mount Myōboku.
Its face was filled with anxiety.
Jiraiya was even more puzzled.
It's been a long time since I've had a spiritual connection with someone like this.
[This usually indicates that something significant is happening at Mount Myōboku.]
What major event could possibly occur at Mount Myōboku?
Could it be... a new prophecy?!
Jiraiya's eyes lit up; it must be a prophecy about Naruto!
At this time.
The communication frog has spoken.
"Lord Jiraiya!"
"All the exits from Mount Myōboku to the ninja world have stopped working."
"We can't reach you, Fukasaku-sama and Shima-sama..."
"Please prepare yourself, Lord Fukasaku will be communicating with you soon!"