Cherreads

Chapter 453 - Chapter 453: Youth Never Fades

"A little trick?"

"You mean…"

Seeing Code's shocked expression, Mirai smiled faintly.

"You really thought I'd just let someone like Amado leave Konoha freely?"

"The moment I found out that the limiter on your body could only be removed by Amado, I already figured you'd go looking for him."

"And thanks to your naivety, it was all too easy for me to get my hands on a second Ten Tails."

Hearing that, Code nearly coughed up blood.

He never imagined that every move he made had been predicted from the start.

His face twisting, Code gritted out, "Weren't you worried I'd just kill Amado? Someone like him should be pretty useful to you too, right?"

At that, Mirai simply shook his head with a smile.

"Code, reviving the dead is hardly a challenge for me."

A crushing sense of defeat rose in Code's chest. He'd always had confidence in his strength, yet this time… he'd lost so completely.

"Damn it!!!"

Code clenched his fists, his expression filled with frustration and unwillingness to accept defeat.

Seeing this, Mirai said coldly, "You don't need to look like that. I've been fighting in wars since I was a teenager—dozens of battles, countless life-and-death encounters. And you? You're nothing more than a puppet raised to be a puppet. Losing to me was inevitable."

"Alright. Enough small talk. I'll be taking the Ten Tails inside you now."

Mirai stepped in front of Code and placed a hand on the top of his head.

In the next instant, an overwhelming force ripped the Ten Tails out of Code's body.

Boom!

Code's lifeless body collapsed to the ground, and Uchiha Mirai quietly folded his hands behind his back.

At this point, all the core members of Kara had been dealt with. Only a few small fry remained. Once they were cleared out, the entire organization would be no more.

After a brief moment of thought, Mirai brought the Ten Tails to Orochimaru's research facility.

The once violent Ten Tails was now as docile as a cat in his presence.

Seeing the creature, Orochimaru and the others couldn't hide their shock.

"Mirai-kun, is this…?"

Mirai smiled. "A new Ten Tails I acquired from Kara. From now on, it's yours to study. See if you can replicate it."

Orochimaru and the others immediately nodded, excitement written all over their faces.

If they really could replicate the Ten Tails, combined with Mirai's Yachihoko ability, the shinobi world could truly rise to power once more.

With their tasks assigned, Mirai returned to the Hokage Tower.

Under his orders, the operation to wipe out the remnants of Kara proceeded smoothly across the Divine Nation.

The handling of those enemies was simple: kill them outright.

Uchiha Mirai had no interest in trying to redeem the brainwashed members of Kara.

According to intelligence, most of them were lazy dreamers who wanted something for nothing. Even though the Divine Nation already had a solid welfare system, they remained dissatisfied.

What started as a desire for food and survival eventually twisted into demands for luxury. In the end, they dreamed of lying in bed and being handed the finest resources the shinobi world had to offer.

For parasites like that, Mirai had no intention of showing mercy.

...

Six months passed in the blink of an eye.

Mirai strolled through the streets of Konoha.

As he passed by a curry shop, he suddenly stopped in his tracks.

In front of him stood three men wearing bright green bodysuits and bowl haircuts.

"Mirai! Long time no see!"

Might Guy shouted at the top of his lungs.

Expressionless, Mirai quietly took two steps back, dodging Guy's outstretched arms.

Even someone like him had no interest in embracing a sweat-drenched man.

Ignoring Guy's disappointed look, Mirai turned to the now-white-haired Might Duy and smiled.

"Duy-san, how's your health lately?"

Might Duy chuckled. "Still hanging in there. I even did a handstand lap around the village today—oof!"

Mirai raised an eyebrow. "What happened?"

Lee quickly explained, "Duy-san pulled his back."

Mirai stepped forward immediately and examined Duy. What he found shocked him—his body was a mess.

Might Duy didn't have any special physique. Years of intense training and fighting had left him riddled with internal injuries. And after all this time, those injuries had built up to the point where his body was a flickering candle in the wind.

"Hahaha… Can't pretend I'm young anymore. Back in the day, this would've been nothing for me."

Hearing someone like Might Duy—who always preached "youth" and "passion"—admit he couldn't fight aging, Mirai was momentarily stunned.

He had been in this world for so long now…

Maybe it really was time to slow down and savor life for a bit.

Uchiha Mirai channeled a gentle stream of Yang chakra into Might Duy, healing all the hidden injuries in his body.

"Mirai, what are you doing?!"

Feeling the sudden change in his body, Might Duy's mouth fell open in shock.

He felt lighter—completely different, like the weight of years had been lifted off him.

Mirai smiled. "Just healing your injuries. That's all."

To most people, aging, illness, and death were inevitable. He had no intention of defying that natural law.

But something like chronic injuries? That, he could fix without a second thought.

He frowned slightly. "Duy-san, you can't push yourself like before. If anything comes up, have Guy talk to me."

Might Duy looked a little emotional.

"Mirai, I was just remembering the way I used to run beneath the setting sun. That… was the youth I once had."

"In the end, youth can't beat time."

"You're wrong, Duy-san," Mirai said solemnly, sensing the older man's sadness.

"True youth isn't about pushing through endlessly. It's about a spirit that's passed down—generation after generation. A fire that never goes out."

As his words faded into the air, Might Duy, Might Guy, and Rock Lee all froze where they stood.

They repeated his words under their breath, as if savoring them.

"True youth… is a fire passed down through generations…"

After a long moment, the three of them suddenly burst into bright, joyful smiles.

Yes!

People couldn't fight time, and youth inevitably faded.

But if their will could be passed on—wasn't that another form of continuation?

In that instant, the three of them truly understood what it meant to inherit a legacy.

"Waaaah!"

"Guy!"

"Father!"

"Sensei!"

"Lee!"

Watching the trio cry and hug each other in the middle of the street, Mirai hurried into the curry shop next to him.

Sometimes he really did envy guys like that…

They had no idea what it meant to die of embarrassment.

----------------

Pls Drop some Power Stones

Fanfic is finished on Patreon (476 chapters in total.) 

Patreon(.)com/Jixo (for only $4.50, read this entire fanfic)

More Chapters