Mayuri Kurotsuchi Card Game, starting from Naruto

Chapter 98 Prophecy and Change

A light drizzle fell from the sky, and everywhere you looked was a vibrant green, brimming with life. Towering trees stretched as far as the eye could see, their canopies blocking out the sun.

One after another, giant toad-shaped stone statues are hidden among the giant trees.

The air is filled with abundant and active natural energy, and here, ninjas can clearly sense its presence.

This is Mount Myōboku, one of the three sacred sites for summoning beasts, the homeland of the toad clan.

Since the beginning of the ninja world's history, the three sacred sites of summoning beasts have always held a very important place in the legends of the ninja world.

In historical records passed down orally, their existence is even older than that of tailed beasts and ninjas.

In every era of the ninja world, powerful ninjas have forged contracts with the three sacred lands of summoning beasts. They assist their summoners in battle, and the summoners occasionally work for the three sacred lands as well.

The most outstanding and qualified among those who sign the spirit communication contract can request to learn immortal arts from the immortals of their respective holy land.

However, the process of learning Sage Arts is fraught with great risks. The toads that have turned into stone statues here, and the stone statues of ninjas at their feet, are all failures who tried to learn Sage Arts from Mount Myōboku but failed and were assimilated into stone statues by the power of nature.

"You've finally arrived, Jiraiya."

With a loud bang, white mist rose up, and a white-haired ninja landed in a daze, only to hear a voice that sounded very familiar to him.

"Fukaku, the boss?"

Wearing a Konoha Jonin uniform, a Konoha headband, and two distinct red lines on his face, Jiraiya lowered his gaze and looked at a green toad with a small white mustache in front of him.

"Sorry to call you over at this hour. It seems there's been another war going on over there, right?" Toad, addressed as Fukasaku, apologized to Jiraiya.

"Yes, I'm currently handling some urgent matters in the Land of Rain, so I can't be away for too long." Jiraiya scratched the back of his head and laughed.

"I have no choice. The Lord has a new prophecy that he wants to tell you," Fukasaku explained to Jiraiya as he led the way.

It was incredibly fast, often leaping forward a great distance with a single bound. Jiraiya followed closely behind.

"A new prophecy? Is it about the Child of Prophecy?" Jiraiya subconsciously thought of the Child of Prophecy who could end the war and bring peace to the ninja world.

It seems that only this prophecy is related to him! Because according to the prophecy of that Great Toad Sage, the person who will quell the Ninja World War and bring peace to the Ninja World in the future will become his disciple!

Currently, among his disciples, Yahiko, Nagato, and Minato Namikaze are the three most likely to be the prophesied children who will quell the war and bring peace.

Located in the Land of Rain, he needs to use this time to learn more about Yahiko and Nagato's philosophies.

"No, it has nothing to do with the Child of Prophecy! But I don't know the specifics either." Fukasaku shook his head: "The old master is already senile, and he doesn't have much time to be lucid each day."

"Jiraiya, I think sometimes you don't need to put so much pressure on yourself. Some of those mystical prophecies from the old man always come true."

As they talked, the two entered a magnificent hall.

Inside the main hall, a gigantic, seemingly ancient toad lay sprawled on a massive, soft chair. It was so large that a hat perched atop its head, almost touching the ceiling. A necklace bearing the character for "oil" hung from its chest. Jiraiya stood beneath it, looking like a tiny insect.

With a powerful leap from its hind legs, the small toad leaped onto the armrest of the Great Toad Sage's chair in a few swift movements. On the other side of the chair stood a toad of the same size, with part of its head being purple.

"Master, Jiraiya has arrived!" Fukasaku shouted loudly to the giant toad, who was half-asleep and in a daze.

The giant toad seemed not to hear, still immersed in its peculiar state of drowsiness.

"Great Toad Sage, I'm here!" Jiraiya shouted from below. At the same time, he didn't forget to greet Shima Sage, who had fashionable purple hair, standing to the side.

"You old fool, Jiraiya is here too!" Seeing that the Great Toad Sage still seemed not to have heard, Shima Sage raised his eyebrows and his voice rang out loudly in the hall, clearly using the power of nature.

"Oh? Oh! Sorry, I almost fell asleep." The giant toad sage opened his eyes as if startled awake, looked around blankly, and muttered something without changing his posture.

"Little Jiraiya is here! Master, what prophecy do you have? Tell me quickly! I still need to cook after you finish. Little Jiraiya, stay and try my new menu today!" Shima continued to shout loudly, glancing at Jiraiya below as he said the last sentence.

Although the aged and decrepit Toad Sage now appeared senile, Jiraiya showed no disrespect whatsoever. This was because, aside from the child of prophecy, all the prophecies the sage had made of him had come true.

This made him completely believe in the immortal's prophecy, without any doubt. He also held the great toad immortal who made the prophecy in the highest esteem.

"Oh, there's a new prophecy, and Jiraiya... what's your name again?"

The Great Toad Sage's sudden amnesia halfway through his speech left Jiraiya and the two great sages, Fukasaku and Shima, looking helpless.

"This is Jiraiya! The contractor of Mount Myōboku! You prophesied some things for him, Master!" Fukasaku explained to the Great Toad Sage with a helpless expression.

The Great Toad Sage seems to always enjoy playing tricks on them with amnesia and dementia, to the point that they now know whether the other is genuinely demented or just pretending.

"I remember now! It's Jiraiya!" The Great Toad Sage exclaimed. "I called you here because I need your help with something."

"Is there anything about the Child of Prophecy?" Jiraiya stepped forward and asked. In his mind, it seemed that only the Child of Prophecy was worthy of the Great Toad Sage's urgent summons from the outside world.

"No, it has nothing to do with the Child of Prophecy." The Great Toad Sage shook his head. "It's a new dream that I find rather peculiar and quite strange."

"Strange and bizarre?" Jiraiya was taken aback; he couldn't quite understand what the Great Toad Sage was saying.

"Speak clearly if you're going to say it! How can little Jiraiya understand what you're saying?" Shima said disdainfully.

"The brutality of war will breed immense darkness, and the Pure Land will no longer be the only refuge for souls."

Restless souls will yearn to return to the real world in another form. They will bring new power to the ninja world, but also upheaval and countless deaths.

The Great Toad Sage spoke weakly, and its open eyelids slowly closed again as it spoke. When the last word fell, it seemed to be returning to that half-asleep, half-awake state.

"What do you mean by that shock and death?" Jiraiya shouted.

"This will be a revolution and death that will affect the entire ninja world; no one can escape it. You must be prepared!" The Great Toad Sage's voice began to weaken.

"Then what should I do? Who is responsible for all of this in the future? Is it good or bad for the future of the ninja world? Great Toad Sage, what do you want me to do?"

Jiraiya always felt a natural sense of responsibility towards prophecies and missions that carried a sense of purpose. After hearing the Great Toad Sage's prophecy, he felt that the other party would definitely assign him some tasks. He needed to consider the other party's answers before deciding how to proceed.

"I don't know," the Great Toad Sage said weakly.

ha?

Not only Jiraiya, but also the two great sages Fukasaku and Shima were stunned, clearly not expecting to receive such an uncertain answer from the Great Toad Sage.

"I can't be sure whether its appearance is good or bad for this world, but its appearance will definitely shake the foundation of the ninja world and the ninjas."

I merely saw some images and then relayed them to you in the form of a prophecy. However, you could seek out a powerful medical ninja; he might be the source of everything.

After the Great Toad Sage finished speaking, he made a soft snoring sound, and his belly began to rise and fall rhythmically. He had clearly re-entered a dream.

A powerful medical ninja?

Jiraiya was taken aback. The first person that came to mind was a beautiful woman with a ponytail, a broad mind, a penchant for gambling, and bad luck, with creditors all over the ninja world.

Tsunade, one of the legendary Sannin of Konoha, the princess of the Senju clan, and the universally acknowledged medical genius of the ninja world!

Could it be that Tsunade is researching and creating some monster that could shake the ninja world? Wouldn't it be more believable if Orochimaru were involved?

Jiraiya wanted to ask something more, but the Great Toad Sage had already fallen into a dream and no longer responded to any questions from the outside world.

"Now that you've heard the prophecy, Jiraiya, you've come all this way, so let's have a simple meal together." Shima jumped off the armrest of the chair, and together with Fukasaku, they leaped a few times and landed on Jiraiya's left and right shoulders respectively, extending an invitation.

"No, no, no, I have urgent business!" Jiraiya's thoughtful expression vanished instantly upon hearing Shima's invitation, replaced by a bluish tinge. He shook his head so fast it left afterimages, and spoke with a very serious and solemn tone.

"That's a pity, I've prepared a new grand feast menu!" Shima-sensei said with great regret.

"Next time, next time for sure!" Jiraiya waved his hands repeatedly.

"Don't take the old master's prophecy too seriously. What's meant to happen will happen," Fukasaku comforted Jiraiya.

"I know!" Jiraiya nodded, but he did not give up his desire to investigate.

Jiraiya planned to contact and inquire about Tsunade and other famous medical ninjas after returning to the ninja world.

He was already seriously considering in his mind who the ninja with superb medical ninjutsu was.

Tsunade.

A wandering priestess.

There was also Shennong, who healed ordinary people and ninjas without seeking wealth.

As one of the three legendary ninjas skilled at gathering intelligence, these three were the only ones who left a lasting impression on him.

Tsunade is most familiar with and understands her partners and teammates.

Secondly, there is the wandering shrine maiden. As a renowned female medical expert in the ninja world, she is one of the few who can rival Tsunade in some aspects. She has been missing from the ninja world for a long time, and there seems to be some secret behind her.

As for Shennong, it's simply that his deeds were too prominent during the war. And he seems to have appeared in the Land of Rain recently.

Jiraiya had heard his name mentioned by the people of the Land of Rain.

If the other party is indeed Shennong, then it wouldn't be difficult for Jiraiya to go back and investigate, follow the clues, and make contact.

Of the three targets, Shennong seems to be the only one that I can contact and find in a short period of time.

……

"Gather information about Shennong?" Yahiko looked at his teacher, somewhat bewildered.

"Don't you know Shennong?" Jiraiya frowned slightly when he saw Yahiko's blank expression.

As someone representing Konoha to secretly liaise with the Akatsuki, Jiraiya was well aware of his sensitive identity and knew he couldn't easily expose himself to the gaze of Amegakure. Otherwise, it might provoke Hanzo into doing something rash.

He plans to stay in the Akatsuki organization for a while, partly to handle the cooperation between Konoha and the Akatsuki, and partly to observe his three disciples and the Akatsuki organization they founded.

"Shennong?" A deep voice sounded behind Yahiko. Kakuzu, dressed in the Akatsuki's black robe, raised his head from the Akatsuki's ledger.

"You know him?" Jiraiya's gaze shifted to Kakuzu. Jiraiya had sparred briefly with this rogue ninja from Takigakure who carried the scroll of the Rokunobi and claimed to be managing finances on behalf of the Technology Development Department. With both sides holding back, they acknowledged each other's strength.

After confirming that the other party had no malicious intent and that they simply managed the finances diligently and were quite adept at it, Jiraiya felt relieved.

"I've heard of him. He's a highly respected doctor who practices medicine for free everywhere. I once brushed past him, but since he didn't have any reward money, I didn't attack him." Kakuzu thought seriously for a moment before giving his answer.

"Is he in the Land of Rain? Does the teacher want to find him?" Upon hearing this, Yahiko's goodwill towards Shennong increased significantly, and he even considered having him join the Akatsuki organization.

After all, the Akatsuki organization currently has virtually no medical ninjas. If this person were to join, they could also provide guidance to Konan on medical ninjutsu.

……

The rain poured down.

Shennong, whom Jiraiya and the others were talking about, was now looking at a monstrous body with a shocked yet greedy expression.

It was a monster that looked like a demon, with long limbs, black and hard skin, and two ram-like horns on its head that were curved, obscuring its face.

The monster's face was covered by a cracked, pale white bone mask.

(End of this chapter)