Zombie Sage in Naruto

Chapter 223 The toads must all contribute to the Hokage

Orochimaru did know a little about Jigen's plan, but he still had some doubts about something as unheard of as the Divine Tree Man.

Snakes may not believe things they see with their own eyes, let alone hearsay.

"You absolutely cannot destroy Mount Myōboku! Don't think you can do whatever you want. You betrayed the village and became a lackey of the Ōtsutsuki clan. Sooner or later you will regret your choice!"

Jiraiya clasped his hands together, taking the opportunity to absorb natural energy and trying every possible way to buy time.

The vast Mount Myoboku, which should have been peaceful and tranquil, is now engulfed in war, with terrifying roars erupting frequently. With a casual strike, Jigen can flatten large swathes of land and kill countless toads of all sizes.

Even though those toads who charged forward one after another had mastered Sage Chakra and improved their physical abilities and ninjutsu power in every way, they could only cause Jigen a little trouble at most when facing the unprecedentedly powerful enemy, the Otsutsuki.

Yes, it can indeed cause trouble. Ninjutsu mixed with natural energy cannot be directly absorbed by Jigen; he can only dodge or withstand it. Even so, it still severely damaged the defensive forces of Mount Myōboku with overwhelming force.

Just as he raised his hand again, preparing to completely flatten an area teeming with toads, a figure suddenly cut into the battlefield at a speed beyond human vision.

"They've arrived?" Cixian looked indifferently at the numerous kunai that were being thrown at him rapidly. These kunai were not all aimed at him, but were scattered around him.

"Flying Thunder God 2nd Stage!"

Minato Namikaze, having entered Sage Mode, instantly appeared above a kunai and immediately drew his specially made kunai, thrusting it straight at Jigen's back. His movements were clean, swift, and without any unnecessary actions.

Jigen's Byakugan took in everything. Even though the Byakugan wasn't known for its keen insight, the person observing it was no ordinary person.

His body twisted at an incredibly small angle, and a peg instantly extended from his palm, deflecting the water gate's sudden attack with a clang.

"The Yellow Flash of Konoha... Your speed is not bad, and this space-time ability is also very interesting," Jigen said coldly. "But this alone is far from enough."

Minato's expression turned grave. Having missed his first attack, he immediately used a technique from his kunai to teleport away from his original spot. Almost at the same moment he disappeared, several stakes were precisely driven into the spot where he had just been standing.

"Minato, that guy can't absorb Sage Chakra, that's our advantage!" Fukasaku shouted immediately. "Old woman, are you ready? Use that move to create an opportunity for Minato!"

Immortal Technique: Toad's Chant: Fudo Myo-o!

A sharp croaking sound rang out; this was a top-tier illusion technique from the Myoboku lineage. The two immortals didn't expect this move to actually defeat Jigen; they only needed to temporarily restrict Jigen's movements.

Even if it's only for a moment, it can be useful, because the people in this world who are best at seizing opportunities are right here.

"Immortal Technique·Super Large Jade Rasengan!"

Minato's figure flashed in another direction, and a huge, azure energy ball crashed down.

Everyone's eyes shone with anticipation. If this attack could hit, it would be enough to destroy Cixian's body. Even if it couldn't kill Cixian, it would at least leave him severely injured and able to escape.

But it was still no use. Jigen just glanced at him, and the young Biguna was activated. The incredibly powerful Sage Art Rasengan shrank rapidly before hitting Jigen, eventually dissipating into a tiny speck of light.

"It's useless, your techniques are ineffective against me." Jigen said coldly, breaking free from the two toads' sage techniques with exaggerated speed—for the Otsutsuki clan, illusion techniques were probably the most useless means of attack.

Cixian raised his hand and shot out more pegs, accurately piercing the kunai on the ground, covering all possible movement trajectories of Minato.

Minato's figure flashed continuously in the air, using the Flying Thunder God kunai scattered throughout the battlefield to perform teleportation at an extremely high frequency. Each time he appeared, he narrowly avoided attacks. The kunai he occasionally threw, imbued with Sage Chakra, were easily neutralized or shrunk by Jigen.

The battle was completely one-sided. Minato tried his best, but could only restrain and protect himself, and could not effectively damage Jigen at all.

After several rounds of high-speed combat, Minato was forced to flee again, panting as he searched for his next opportunity, his heart heavy with sorrow—the strength of this enemy was unprecedented in his life.

Orochimaru had seen everything clearly. What was happening was exactly as he had expected. Unless Kaede Tsukasa brought his men into the fray, Mount Myōboku simply couldn't stop a monster like Jigen.

In order to achieve a goal, something must always be sacrificed. In Orochimaru's eyes, Mount Myōboku was the price that had to be sacrificed.

"Jiraiya, so many years have passed, and you still haven't changed... Do you have the right to talk to me? Aren't you still acting as these toads' lackeys? The prophecies they made have kept you running around for so many years, and you still believe them without a doubt? Otherwise, you should have brought Nagato back to Konoha Village long ago, and the ninja world might not be like this today."

With Nagato's talent, if he could become a Konoha ninja, under the identity of Jiraiya's disciple, and receive a good, systematic education, and if the Third Hokage used various rhetoric and bonds to bind him together, Nagato would inevitably become a backbone of the Hokage lineage and would eventually become Hokage.

"If Nagato had grown up in Konoha, Kaede Tsukasa might not have had the chance to become the Fourth Hokage. At the very least, he would have had to pay a much higher price. This chain reaction would have changed everyone's fate."

Orochimaru looked at the silent Jiraiya with a hint of pity in his eyes: "You've got one thing wrong. Jigen didn't come to destroy Mount Myōboku, but to capture you."

"what?!"

Jiraiya was greatly surprised, and patterns finally appeared on his face, allowing him to fight in Sage Mode.

"You're spouting nonsense. Are you trying to sway my will with these words?"

Jiraiya originally intended to stop Orochimaru, but seeing that Orochimaru hadn't made a move and that it was Jigen who was wreaking havoc, he immediately rushed towards Jigen.

Even if you know you are no match for them, that is by no means a reason to back down.

"Jiraiya, the four of us must cooperate and not let the enemy disturb the master!" Fukasaku was covered in wounds and was having a very difficult time fighting Jigen. Even with the many toads fighting with all their might and Minato joining in, they could only delay Jigen for a few minutes.

This place, which should have been a paradise, a sacred land full of green mountains, clear waters, lotus leaves and lotus flowers, is now filled with toads that are missing limbs and cannot move.

In Jiraiya's vision, Jigen, with pure taijutsu, was so fast that he left numerous afterimages as he brutally cleansed all the toads within his field of vision. Every instant, a large number of toads were rendered useless.

Even when attacked by sage techniques, Jigen's young Higuna could shrink all sage techniques by tens or even hundreds of times, rendering even the most powerful techniques as insignificant as a breeze. "That old toad?"

Cixian rolled his eyes at the giant, ancient toad, then took a step back and used his space-time eye technique to move his position, easily breaking through the palace's barrier and arriving in front of the giant toad immortal.

Compared to the enormous old toad, Cixian, floating in the air, appeared so tiny, yet this was enough to make the huge and bloated old toad's eyelids twitch and slowly open its eyes, which were actually unable to see anything at all.

Cixian said, "I'm sorry for intruding. Please satisfy my curiosity."

"Outer Heavens Being, your fate is constantly changing, and most of your futures are bleak." The Great Toad Sage, who was prone to amnesia, was clearly awake now.

"I never imagined a creature like you could possess the ability to foresee fate. Instead of worrying about my destiny, why not take a look at the fate of this planet? I'm quite curious about that."

A hint of interest appeared on Jigen's indifferent face. Even among the Otsutsuki clan, prophecy was a rare skill, and his attack on Mount Myōboku was more or less for this ability.

However, it wasn't obtained from the Great Toad Sage, but rather through another method.

The Great Toad Sage said tremblingly, "In most of the future, the fate of this world will not be good. Giant trees will cover the sky, and the energy of the earth will rapidly deplete. However, there is still hope to change this outcome. This is the meaning of hard work. Every choice will cause fate to extend in a different direction. Different choices made by different people will eventually converge at different places."

"I see. You've really gone to a lot of trouble to provide me with information from the future. However, you won't be able to see that future either. I suppose you've already realized that."

Cixian reached out, and a stake appeared in his hand: "Since you understand fate so well, why don't you predict whether you will live or die in the next second?"

He hurled it at the giant toad immortal, piercing through the enormous toad in front of him instantly.

"You're still alive, so you win. How about this time?"

One peg wasn't enough. From his outstretched palm, countless needles shot out, instantly enlarging and turning the giant toad immortal into a sieve. Large amounts of blood and bits of flesh splattered across this sacred place.

Blood kept flowing from the mouth of the giant toad immortal, yet its expression was unusually peaceful. Just as Cixian had said, in this ever-changing fate, it had indeed seen its own death scene.

Knowing that resistance was futile, and that no one could truly stop Jigen after he had fully recovered, even an ancient animal that had lived for over a thousand years was nothing more than a lump of rotten flesh in the face of the overwhelming power of the Otsutsuki.

"I cannot leave your body behind; I cannot allow Kaedeji to obtain your abilities."

Cixian raised his hand again, using his space-time eye technique to devour and transfer all the matter in front of him, until a deep pit was left in the original place.

This ancient being, who witnessed the Kaguya era and the Sage of Six Paths era, and who was involved in the history of ninja development, has now passed away.

Jiraiya, Minato, and the two toad sages rushed in and, seeing the large missing sections of the ground and walls, immediately understood what had happened.

"Master..."

"I can't sense the master's presence anymore, you bastard, what have you done?!"

"This guy actually..."

Jiraiya and the others were horrified!
This is the Great Toad Sage, a true living fossil of the ninja world, possessing the ability to foresee destiny, and has been revered by Jiraiya and others for many years.

Even now, they still believe in the idea that the Child of Prophecy can change the ninja world, and they wholeheartedly want to wait for Nagato to grow up—although Minato actually has some doubts in his heart, and vaguely feels that Nagato may not be the person they are looking for, and that the Child of Prophecy is someone else.

Because Nagato showed absolutely no signs of turning the tide. Not to mention his strength, there was no sign of any new direction for improvement, and he was not strong enough to defeat the powerful enemies threatening the ninja world. In terms of other qualities, he was also unremarkable.

Most importantly, his ideology is also wrong. He wants to obtain super weapons to intimidate the world and fire at any place that doesn't obey him... This is by no means the behavior of the prophesied child. Does he have no regard for love and peace at all?

In this timeline, Minato, who had no son, had never felt the warm, special chakra emanating from Ashura's reincarnation, so he was unable to confirm who the prophesied child was.

Jigen turned around, his gaze finally settling on Jiraiya.

"There's no need to mourn this animal. Come with me, and you will gain far more prophetic abilities than he did. Jiraiya, you will become a key member of the Shell organization."

Jigen reached out his hand, but the only response he received was Jiraiya's Great Flame Bullet.

Swish!
With a single stroke of his peg, Cixian precisely sliced ​​through the fireball, the fierce flames brushing past him. This series of movements seemed to have been rehearsed countless times; his clothes swayed, and his demeanor was elegant.

"Orochimaru slacked off, so I had to do it myself, and the result was the same."

Jigen didn't take these guys seriously at all. Just like when he stormed into Mount Myōboku without any scruples, why would aliens care about the lives of the local animals? They would kill anyone who got in their way, especially the one with the ability to foresee the future. Even though the glimpse of the future he saw seemed blurry, and the Great Toad Sage, the observer, was not very clear-headed and couldn't remember much, he was still the one who deserved to die the most.

To glimpse destiny and foresee the future, Jigen intends to find a suitable person to wield this power—a divine art from a being named Otsutsuki Shibai, who stands at the pinnacle of the Otsutsuki clan.

And it has already entered another dimension, completely separating itself from the real dimension.

“It’s a pity you refused. Then I’ll have to use a more brutal method. Turning you directly into a divine tree person wouldn’t be bad either,” Cixian said.

In an instant, he engaged in battle with Jiraiya and the others, which would be the last fierce battle in this sacred land.

When Nagato received the news and rushed to the scene, he only saw smoke and corpses everywhere.

"It seems to be over. With Jigen's abilities, it wouldn't be difficult for him to break through Mount Myōboku's defenses in an instant."

Kaede Tsukasa appeared shortly after, casually kicking a dead toad into the water, and said, "He did me a favor. It's convenient for me to take over this place and control all the toads that can create Sage Chakra."

(End of this chapter)