"What happened, my lord?"
Fukasaku Sage walked in from outside and saw the Great Toad Sage sitting silently in front of a crystal ball.
This behavior usually indicated a prophetic vision.
The Great Toad Sage, with his orange skin and a '油' cat's eye stone on his neck, sighed deeply.
He had just dreamed of three statues: a toad, a slug, and a white snake.
In the dream, the white snake statue suddenly shattered, and the toad statue developed a crack.
Then, he woke up.
The Great Toad Sage rarely dreamed, but when he did, it was always prophetic.
Usually, his prophetic dreams were fragmented, making it difficult for him to grasp the details.
But this dream was exceptionally clear, something he had never experienced before.
The fiery-tempered Shima Sage also walked into the room and said:
"My lord, if something is wrong, please tell us."
"Your silence makes it hard for Fukasaku and me to handle."
Hearing Shima's complaint, the Great Toad Sage touched his head and spoke:
"The White Snake Sage of Ryuchi Cave is probably dead."
The clarity of this dream left no doubt in his mind about its meaning.
Upon hearing this, Fukasaku and Shima were taken aback, staring at the Great Toad Sage in disbelief.
The Great Toad Sage, White Snake Sage, and Great Katsuyu Sage were the leaders of the three great Sage regions, possessing immense power.
Even the Sage of Six Paths couldn't easily defeat them.
And now, after the Sage of Six Paths' death, the White Snake Sage had suddenly died.
Could it be that someone in the current ninja world had surpassed the Sage of Six Paths?
If true, it was terrifying...
Shima Sage looked at the Great Toad Sage and said:
"The White Snake Sage is dead?"
"My lord, this isn't a joke to make lightly."
As someone who had lived for over 800 years, Shima knew very well how powerful the White Snake Sage was.
So much so that she couldn't believe the Great Toad Sage's words, thinking he might be joking as usual after waking up.
Fukasaku Sage also looked at the Great Toad Sage and said:
"My lord, the White Snake Sage's Sage energy was vast and formidable, almost on par with the Sage of Six Paths. Are you sure she has truly been killed?"
The Great Toad Sage put on his hat and took a swig from a nearby sake bottle.
Recalling the crack in the toad statue in his dream, the Great Toad Sage said:
"Perhaps in the near future, I will die as well."
Even though he had lived long enough, knowing his imminent death was still a shock.
Hearing this, Fukasaku and Shima were stunned, staring at him in shock.
A cold sweat broke out on Fukasaku's forehead as he said:
"My lord, you are the strongest among the three Sages. No one in the current ninja world can defeat you."
"Please, don't make such jokes."
At this moment, Fukasaku desperately hoped the Great Toad Sage was just joking.
Despite his wrinkled appearance and seemingly fragile state, Fukasaku and Shima knew this was a ruse to conserve energy and extend his life. Rejuvenating himself was a mere blink of an eye, making natural death unlikely.
Since natural death was out of the question, the only remaining possibility was being killed.
However, Mount Myoboku's position as the foremost Sage region was all due to the Great Toad Sage's immense power.
If the Great Toad Sage died, even Fukasaku and Shima might struggle to defend Mount Myoboku.
Thus, they couldn't believe such a thing.
Seeing their expressions, the Great Toad Sage explained:
"In my dream, the statue representing the White Snake shattered, and the toad statue developed a crack."
"Afterwards, I tried to find the White Snake Sage using the Telescope Technique but couldn't locate her."
"This suggests that the White Snake Sage indeed encountered something fatal."
Hearing this, Fukasaku and Shima were horrified, cold sweat trickling down their faces again.
The Great Toad Sage's Telescope Technique was extremely powerful.
It allowed him to locate anyone at any time, as long as he knew their chakra type, regardless of the distance.
However, now he couldn't find the White Snake Sage.
Combined with the dream, this indicated the White Snake Sage was likely dead.
'Could someone in the ninja world now have power far surpassing the Sage of Six Paths, capable of killing the White Snake Sage...'
'If true, has that person already targeted the Great Toad Sage...'
Fukasaku and Shima thought in horror.
The Great Toad Sage continued:
"I also tried to locate the Great Katsuyu Sage using the Telescope Technique but couldn't find her either."
"So, it's possible someone has targeted our three Sage regions."
Shima Sage asked in astonishment, "My lord, has the Great Katsuyu Sage also been attacked?"
"I'm not sure."
The Great Toad Sage shook his head and said:
"Find Jiraiya and have him investigate what's happening in the ninja world."
"From now on, seal off Mount Myoboku's barrier. No one is allowed to leave!"
Hearing this, Fukasaku and Shima were shocked and asked:
"What if Jiraiya needs our help?"
Mount Myoboku's barrier was personally set by the Great Toad Sage. Once sealed, not even space-time ninjutsu could penetrate it.
As a result, Jiraiya wouldn't be able to summon any toads for help or access Sage Mode.
The Great Toad Sage replied calmly:
"From now on, you two will stay by Jiraiya's side, closely monitoring everything happening in the ninja world."
Fukasaku and Shima exchanged glances and nodded simultaneously:
"Understood."
...
The next morning.
Land of Fire, Fire Source City.
At seven o'clock, Shishou woke up on time.
The long years of attending the ninja academy had ingrained this habit in him.
Just as Shishou was about to get up, he realized his left hand was being held by Kushina, while Mikoto and Hyuga Rimei were on either side.
Recalling the previous night's madness, Shishou shook his head and slowly got out of bed.
He washed up, took a bath, and returned to Konoha to go to school.
As a good student, he never had the habit of being late.
**********
This fanfiction is complete on my Pa treon. If you want to read it, you can find it at patreo n.com Betek.