{🥳Joining Patreon keeps me motivated and eager to work diligently, so please support me.🥰 You can access upto 100+ advance chapter through Patreon by using the link: https://patreon.com/Oreski}
Black Zetsu initially logged in like a daily routine, checking the status of his mother. Every time the chat group opened and Kitahara Hitoshi started a livestream, it could catch glimpses of her from afar on the moon.
He had tricked Madara into returning to the moon to witness the sealed Sage of Six Paths as instructed by Kitahara Hitoshi. At first, under the Six Paths: Chibaku Tensei seal, the Sage of Six Paths could still communicate—it was quite surprising.
But that ability didn't last. Soon, the Sage of Six Paths could only show his face through the chat group. That gave Zetsu a sense of relief.
But now—
What?
The Sage of Six Paths—his own unfilial son, Hagoromo—had been deceived by the Great Toad Sage?
He was tricked... by that toad?
The Loyal Dog of Mount MyĹŤboku: This...
The Loyal Dog of Mount MyĹŤboku: That title...
Dragon Returns to the Sea – Jiraiya: I used to hold that title.
The Loyal Dog of Mount MyĹŤboku:
Dragon Returns to the Sea – Jiraiya: And now Black Zetsu says the Great Toad Sage is a fraud.
Dragon Returns to the Sea – Jiraiya: Even now, it's hard for me to accept that.
Dragon Returns to the Sea – Jiraiya: Still, I've decided to return to Konoha and—burn myself out, just like the Third Hokage said. Konoha is a village of fire, always blazing. Where there's fire, there's Hokage. The fire in our hearts—where leaves fly, the fire burns.
Senju Tobirama: Don't mention Sarutobi in front of me.
Senju Tobirama: I think he poisoned the minds of the new generation.
Dragon Returns to the Sea – Jiraiya:!?
Dragon Returns to the Sea – Jiraiya: Uh...
Namikaze Minato: Jiraiya-sensei, Second Hokage doesn't really think well of the Third. Me neither.
Dragon Returns to the Sea – Jiraiya: Understood. Sorry.
Senju Tobirama: Not your fault.
Jiraiya fell silent.
But—
The Loyal Dog of Mount MyĹŤboku: Hagoromo still finds this hard to believe.
The Loyal Dog of Mount MyĹŤboku: You're saying there's something about Toad Maru that deceived me?
Dumb Big Pillar: Toad Maru—as in the Great Toad Sage?
The Loyal Dog of Mount MyĹŤboku: Yes.
The Loyal Dog of Mount MyĹŤboku: I've known Toad Maru for many years.
The Loyal Dog of Mount MyĹŤboku: He's helped me greatly.
The Loyal Dog of Mount MyĹŤboku: I learned Senjutsu under his guidance.
Senju Tobirama: So Mount MyĹŤboku really has a deep history.
Senju Tobirama: If even the Sage of Six Paths was deceived—that's surprising.
Dumb Big Pillar: I agree.
The Loyal Dog of Mount MyĹŤboku: @Kurama, little Nine Tails, any clues?
The Loyal Dog of Mount MyĹŤboku: Toad Maru is my friend. I can't believe he would lie.
Kurama: You and he both don't think he'd deceive you... so why are you asking me?
Kurama: And I never liked Mount MyĹŤboku.
The Loyal Dog of Mount MyĹŤboku: Why?
Kurama: Their Senjutsu is annoying. I was sealed by Minato with it.
Namikaze Minato: …Er.
It wasn't the first time the Sage of Six Paths realized how terrible things had become in the afterlife. The tailed beasts he released, hoping they'd live in peace with humans, were not having a good time.
In recent decades, Hashirama, the inheritor of Asura's chakra, even joined Uchiha Madara, inheritor of Indra's chakra, as a tailed beast host.
So Sage of Six Paths knew he hadn't left a good legacy.
Still—
He stroked his beard.
Was he truly deceived by Toad Maru?
But it didn't add up. If Toad Maru was malicious, why had he treated Hagoromo so kindly? Why teach him Mount MyĹŤboku's Senjutsu? Why help him ascend when Naruto and Sasuke sealed him?
It made no sense.
While the group debated if the Great Toad Sage was a fraud, Tobirama quickly messaged Kitahara Hitoshi with his thoughts.
Tobirama also asked Jiraiya to return to Konoha through the group.
Of course, he didn't say that directly, so he reworded it:
"I'm disappointed in Sarutobi, but his students aren't all bad."
"I hope Konoha can make space for Jiraiya."
Kitahara Hitoshi replied, "And what do you want him to do?"
"Let him work at the Ninja Academy," Tobirama said after thinking it through.
Jiraiya, now vulnerable and disillusioned after realizing he'd been misled by Mount MyĹŤboku for most of his life, might find healing through working with children.
The Academy might help mend his spirit.
Kitahara Hitoshi agreed.
"That's actually the best solution. Staying in Konoha is better than sinking into obscurity."
Kakashi: ???
Namikaze Minato: Huh? Jiraiya-sensei… sink to the bottom of the sea?
Dragon Returns to the Sea – Jiraiya: Is that supposed to be my future?
Dumb Big Pillar: That… sounds poetic. Or tragic.
Jiraiya didn't respond.
He thought of his own title, "Dragon Returns to the Sea"—but maybe it really meant a frog at the bottom of a well returning to the sea.
So…
Is that his fate?
Namikaze Minato: Sensei?
Dragon Returns to the Sea – Jiraiya: It's nothing. I'm okay. Don't worry.
Senju Tobirama: Jiraiya, return to Konoha first. Take it slow.
Dragon Returns to the Sea – Jiraiya: …Okay.
Tobirama could sense something was off with Jiraiya, but as long as he returned to Konoha, there was room to recover—slowly.
So when Jiraiya arrived in the village, he was first taken to the Ninja Academy.
Meanwhile, Kitahara Hitoshi began examining all the scrolls and materials from the Uzumaki clan.
Sasuke and Naruto had dug up the entire village to get them, so organizing the information would take time.
But they had inherited his teachings.
Want knowledge of the Uzumaki?
Fine—move the whole village here.
The Uzumaki were powerful descendants of the Sage of Six Paths, with unique chakra-rich bodies. As Tobirama said, his sister-in-law, Uzumaki Mito, had terrifying chakra.
The Nine Tails couldn't defeat his brother—but couldn't resist Mito either.
Her sealing techniques suppressed the Nine Tails completely.
This checked out. Back when Mito was Jinchūriki, the Nine Tails never stirred.
So even villagers knew little about it.
Until the late Minato's wife—Uzumaki Kushina.
"Wait a second!"
As Tobirama recounted the history of Jinchūriki, Kitahara Hitoshi suddenly noticed something important.
"The first Jinchūriki was Uzumaki Mito. Then the second Jinchūriki was Uzumaki Tsunami?"
"Yes," Tobirama confirmed.
Tobirama often heard Minato mention himself and his wife, Tsunami, in the small group. Among them, Tsunami was recognized as the second Nine Tails Jinchūriki of Konoha. During childbirth, she was attacked by the masked man, resulting in the Nine Tails' seal being broken.
And so began the Nine Tails Rebellion.
"No Uzumaki Kushina?" Kitahara Hitoshi asked.
Tobirama fell silent. "I asked... um..."
"Wait a minute. I'll check the information," Tobirama said, realizing he may have said something wrong. He quickly went online.
Fifth Mizukage Terumi Mei: Kushina sounds like a girl's name. I can't pretend I didn't hear that.
Cowardly as a Mouse Onoki: Are there really that many Uzumaki? Kushina and Tsunami again. Their names do sound similar.
Senju Tobirama: The pronunciation is close, but the writing is different. Kushina and Tsunami use different characters.
Senju Tobirama: Right, Minato? You should know.
Namikaze Minato: It's not the same. The name Kushina... I don't remember, but it feels familiar.
Namikaze Minato: I think I knew someone like that, but I don't know anymore.
People found that response strange.
Otakako Black Zetsu: Could something have gone wrong, altering the plot?
As soon as Black Zetsu said this, the group fell silent and started reflecting.
This kind of thing had happened before—when Shiren appeared. Kitahara Hitoshi's reaction back then was one of surprise, which made others in the group believe he either knew the future or came from it. His shock suggested Shiren's appearance was a bug in the timeline.
In other words, the existence of this small group and their actions might be causing butterfly effects, altering the future unpredictably. Maybe because of something they did, someone who should have existed disappeared. Could Uzumaki Kushina have been erased from existence due to their interference?
That thought weighed heavily. It meant someone's entire existence had been overwritten.
Senju Tobirama: Let's calm down. Has anything strange happened recently?
Tobirama's record: My older brother's resurrection?
Tobirama's record: Sasuke gaining power?
Namikaze Minato: My Mingbao awakening?
Dragon Returns to the Sea Jiraiya: Or maybe my return to Konoha?
Big Pillar Hanhan: Or the Sage of Six Paths joining the group?
The Loyal Dog of Mount MyĹŤboku:
Sage of Six Paths was silent. Other ninjas were still searching, but Hashirama had directly pointed fingers at him. The Sage couldn't shoulder that blame.
Hashirama, who inherited Ashura's chakra and kindness, shouldn't have jumped to accusing his ancestor. The Sage didn't believe Ashura was responsible.
Sage of Six Paths insisted he wasn't the reason everything bad happened.
Otakako Black Zetsu had only thrown the question out casually, but now it had become a real conclusion. Whether it was the resurrection of the pawn Madara or the current sealing of the Sage of Six Paths, something was definitely disrupting the normal course of events. The butterfly effect was real.
Scary?
No.
Not for the obedient Black Zetsu. As long as Kaguya is unsealed, as long as she escapes the fate of being sealed again, it doesn't matter who is sacrificed or fooled. It's all worth it.
"Achoo—"
The little white ninja rabbit on Kitahara Hitoshi's desk sneezed, catching his attention.
ĹŚtsutsuki bodies are immortal, but Kaguya had lost most of her power and could only live on as a pitiful rabbit-like ninja. Last night, she had curled up on the quilt.
Kitahara Hitoshi thought she was soft and fluffy—the kind of creature you just want to cover up gently. It seemed he'd need to make sure she stayed warm at night.
{ Enjoying the chapters? Please Support me on Patreon and unlock 100+ advanced chapters, with 3 new chapters released every two days!
The fanfic is also available for one-time purchase on Patreon – unlock lifetime access to the full collection, no membership needed! Don't miss out –support and own it forever!
patreon.com/Oreski}