In the depths of the ninja world, the three great places of Sage Art training stood: Myōboku Mountain, the Dragon Cave, and the Wet Bone Forest. Here, the rulers were not humans but the summoning beasts mastering Sage techniques.
Myōboku Mountain, hidden away in this vast world, was the home of the toads. At this moment, the enormous toad sage sat slumped atop a high rock, suddenly breaking the silence with a deep murmur.
"Hmm…" He opened his somewhat clouded eyes and muttered, "There's a change… Strange, I can't see clearly."
Nearby, a young toad looked up, ready to notify the other sages. Their esteemed ancestor had a knack for waking from slumber to deliver prophecies, each time revealing crucial information that could shake the very foundations of the ninja world.
But before the little toad could leave, the large toad sage began to puff and stir, his eyes widening suddenly: "This is…!"
Startled by the commotion, the little toad stumbled backward, landing on its back, and hurriedly asked, "Elder, what's happening?"
"Unbelievable, unbelievable!" The great toad sage ignored the little toad's question, lost in his amazement.
Before long, other toads practicing their Sage techniques began to arrive. Among them were the respected duo, Shimizu and Chima. They approached the great toad sage, who was still murmuring to himself, and with curiosity asked, "Elder, what's wrong? Have you completely lost your marbles?"
"Don't you dare call me senile!" The great toad sage finally snapped to attention, regarding the crowd of toads below him. He spoke gravely, "Just now, I saw the future."
"Does it relate to the ninja world? Should we inform Jiraiya?"
"No, it has nothing to do with him."
The great toad sage's previous prophecies had all concerned the prophesied child, so everyone had expected this one to be the same. However, what he said next left the gathered toads in shock.
"I saw a completely new Sage Art being born in Konoha!"
"Naturally infused energy!" Minato Namikaze recognized the pure energy that the Nine-Tails was currently gathering. His mentor, Jiraiya, had once taught him the Sage techniques of Myōboku Mountain. Although he wasn't particularly adept at it, he had learned the basics.
Sage Mode involves blending natural energy with chakra, creating a unique type of Sage Chakra within the body. This Sage Chakra is distinct from ordinary chakra; it cannot be gathered while fighting, and once depleted, one reverts from Sage Mode, exhausting the body in the process.
Sage Chakra can multiply the power of original ninjutsu many times over, even surpassing the limits of what ninjutsu can achieve. Techniques using Sage Chakra are known as Sage Techniques, as referred to by his mentor.
But now, the natural energy coalescing before the Nine-Tails sparked a vague feeling in Minato—though faint, this energy seemed to grow slowly, akin to chakra.
More importantly, Minato glanced at the four-symbol seal and the eight-trigram seal forming a barrier, the symbols on it indicating that the seal remained intact.
The Nine-Tails was still sealed; it didn't even have a physical form. How could it extract natural energy within Naruto's mental landscape?
To Minato, the Nine-Tails was becoming increasingly mysterious.
Though what the Nine-Tails conveyed was beyond belief, Minato was wise enough to recognize that this situation was not fictitious. It was merely a possible future, one that could be altered with present actions, and he was working tirelessly towards that end.
Yet, he couldn't see through the Nine-Tails at this moment. The Nine-Tails had once revealed to him that the Otsutsuki clan had the ability to absorb chakra, and as a being formed from chakra, tailed beasts inherently could not contend with the Otsutsuki.
Thus, he had taken on the responsibility of teaching Naruto, thinking he would rely on Naruto's growth. Yet during this time, the Nine-Tails had not communicated much with Naruto at all. What was it truly up to?
Now, the natural energy the Nine-Tails was gathering led Minato to a bold hypothesis.
However…
"Is my seal on you already pointless, Nine-Tails?" Minato asked, a helpless expression crossing his face.
"Impossible! I am still sealed and cannot gain my freedom." The Nine-Tails immediately retorted, but anyone could hear the nonchalant tone in its voice, as if it were unconcerned about its confinement.
Minato couldn't help but think that the Nine-Tails seemed quite content to remain sealed. He silently scoffed at the thought but was wise enough not to voice it.
The Nine-Tails' good mood came and went swiftly. After revealing the natural energy, it returned to lying still on the ground.
For nearly two years, Minato and the Nine-Tails had maintained this dynamic—brief exchanges followed by a comfortable silence as they each engaged in their respective tasks.
Since learning about the future, Minato's pressure had not eased from his heart. He believed that the Nine-Tails, who had faced the possibility of returning to the past, felt the same way.
After all, based on the information from the Nine-Tails, the future ninja world lacked the combat power to stand against the Otsutsuki clan on its own. Even Naruto and Sasuke, who had received the Sage of Six Paths' gifts, could only barely contend with one of them. If it weren't for the critical weakness mentioned by the Nine-Tails, even sacrificing the Nine-Tails might not be enough to defeat this foe.
For someone as battle-hardened as Minato, hearing this news didn't trigger thoughts of how to tackle the enemy first, but rather—
If the Otsutsuki clan were to attack with more than one person, what then?
Minato, having carved out his reputation as the Yellow Flash of Konoha through the mountains of corpses and rivers of blood, understood well that in the future described by the Nine-Tails, the entire ninja world would be unqualified to engage in a true war against the Otsutsuki clan. Moreover, the Otsutsuki wouldn't always send only two or three members into this world.
One man and one beast were both seeking a way to break the deadlock in their own ways. Whether it was the Nine-Tails or Minato at that moment, they were both entities composed of chakra, which meant they did not need sleep.
However, understanding the principle of balancing work and rest, Minato, as a former Hokage, knew this well. In other words, even if they didn't need to sleep, they still required alternative means of resting.
For instance, when Minato taught the two novices the basics of being a ninja at night, spending time with Naruto allowed him to unwind a little. The Nine-Tails, meanwhile, invested its time into its plans, occasionally taking a moment during the day to observe the world through Naruto's eyes and relax.
Ultimately, they both recognized that the future the Nine-Tails had experienced was filled with despair. They needed to change everything to reach a new future.
And in this understanding, they were in complete accord.
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Note: If you are interested, you can read up to chapter 120+ at patreon.com/Esei01.