Naruto: From Fake to Real, Deceiving the Ninja World.

His body had become so thin that it was horrifying; his lifeless, pale skin clung to his jagged bones, as if some invisible force had drained all his flesh and blood.

His ribs were clearly visible and protruded, his collarbone was deeply sunken as if carved by a knife, and his arms were as thin as withered branches in winter, as if they would break at the slightest touch.

Even his legs were crippled by Hanzo's explosive tag trap, and he had basically lost the ability to walk. He could only move by being confined in that simple device.

Her dry, red hair cascaded down like withered vines, making her face look like a skull covered with a thin membrane, and her eye sockets beneath the red hair were sunken into two dark holes.

However, deep within those eye sockets lay a pair of "immortal eyes," gleaming with an eerie light in the dim light.

Samsara Eye.

These legendary "eyes of the immortals" are embedded in this withered body, as if the power of a god has been forcibly stuffed into a container on the verge of collapse.

"Hanzo, you've finally come, but..."

Nagato's Rinnegan slowly turned to look at the figure beside Hanzo, but even with those eyes, he couldn't see through the face hidden in the shadows.

However, Nagato sensed a familiar aura emanating from the other person.

The pain deep in his soul had not yet dissipated, and the fear was still vivid in his memory, causing his body to tremble slightly involuntarily.

"Hello, Mr. Nagato."

Hinata Kumokawa stepped forward, his tone humble yet smiling: "You may call me 'Kage'. I suppose you have already met my lord. Please allow me to convey my lord's apologies to you."

Upon hearing this, Hanzo subconsciously looked at his palm, and Konan was also stunned for a moment, but quickly reacted, her face showing anger.

"Oh it's you!"

Since it wasn't Madara and Zetsu who caused Nagato's suffering, it could only be Hanzo and the person in front of him.

"No, no, Miss Konan, it is my master, not me." Hinata Kumokawa's tone remained gentle as he calmly corrected Konan's statement.

"Who is that person?" Nagato suddenly asked.

“It is my lord,” Hinata Kumokawa said with a smile.

"..."

Nagato felt his head start to throb again, but he knew this guy clearly didn't want to talk, so he simply said coldly, "So you're here to die?"

As he spoke, the ripples in his pupils slowly spread out, and a powerful aura emanated from his body once again.

He was prepared to fight to the death, and hatred also surfaced in Xiao Nan's eyes.

But at that moment, Hanzo suddenly nodded and said briefly and forcefully, "Yes."

"..."

Nagato's chakra seemed to pause for a moment, but he quickly realized that Hanzo was responding to the sarcasm he had just casually uttered.

"I'm here to die."

Hanzo's voice was deep and clear as he pointed the scythe in his hand at his heart, confirming Nagato's guess.

Looking at Hanzo at this moment, Hyuga Kumokawa inexplicably saw a scene from the original story where Hashirama Senju, in order to avenge Tobirama's death at Izuna's hands, stabbed himself with a kunai in front of Madara Uchiha. He couldn't help but smile to himself.

How much of the former Hashirama, now Hanzo, is real, and how much is fake?

Hinata Kumokawa didn't know, Nagato and the other two didn't know, and perhaps even Hanzo himself didn't know.

Hyuga Kumokawa had already told Hanzo what those eyes meant, and also told him about Nagato's plan to create tailed beast weapons to bring peace through fear.

Hanzo knew better than anyone the limits of an ordinary ninja.

On his way here, he saw so many things that he had previously overlooked.

He looked towards the town and saw that the once prosperous and bustling stone houses, teeming with craftsmen, were now dilapidated and in ruins.

He looked towards the riverbank and saw that the place that had once been full of life and joy had been completely submerged by the river that brought prosperity.

He saw that the once bustling port, which used to handle ships, was now a ruin ravaged by war, and that the few remaining wheat fields had fallen to the ground.

He was even recognized by some civilians, but they told him that the civilians he had saved had starved to death on the roadside three years ago.

Yes, they didn't die in the war, but starved to death.

Hanzo dared not stop, and could only keep walking and walking, almost in a desperate escape, until he entered the cave and saw those eyes.

The eye of God that controls life and death.

Hanzo knew that the current state of the Land of Rain was already the limit of what he could do.

However, Nagato, who possesses those eyes, has more possibilities and can do more things.

So, he wanted to give it a try.

“I already know everything from ‘Shadow’.”

Hanzo did not attempt to defend himself against his mistakes. He met the gaze of those Rinnegan eyes and said, word by word, "It was my mistake to collude with Danzo to kill Yahiko, and it was also my order to eliminate the Akatsuki."

He admitted it so thoroughly, so calmly, without any embellishment or excuses.

Immediately, Hanzo paused, as if remembering something, and gave a self-deprecating laugh.

“I once encountered a samurai who, while all his companions fled for their lives, knew he was no match for me, yet still drew his sword and charged at me.”

“I defeated him, but his spirit of facing death moved me, so I told him that a person’s end is not death, but when he loses his faith. I said I would declare him a hero to the world.”

"But ironically, faced with the loss of life, the vanishing power, the ever-present threat and the fear of death... I succumbed."

"In the daily grind, one becomes weak and cowardly, losing one's former beliefs and ideals, turning into the coward one hates and despises the most."

The samurai Hanzo mentioned was none other than Mifune, the current general of the Land of Iron, who was once a young man.

Therefore, Hanzo did not actually kill Mifune in the end. Instead, out of courage and appreciation, he spared Mifune. At that time, Hanzo truly deserved the title of a strongman.

There was no need to tell Nagato these things; Hanzo didn't want Nagato to mistakenly believe that he wanted Nagato to forgive him as he had once forgiven Mifune.

A mistake is a mistake. He is now the same Hanzo he once was, and he doesn't need excuses. He can face the fear of death with equanimity.

“I am not saying this to ask for your forgiveness. I understand that all your pain is caused by my own hands.”

Hanzo's tone and expression were utterly calm: "After I die, you may leave my body to rot in the wilderness, or erase my reputation and let my name be spurned by countless people, it doesn't matter."

"Do whatever you want, as long as it makes sense to you."

"I have only one request."

Looking at the still silent Nagato and the absent-minded Konan, he slowly lowered his tall figure.

“I have already handed over the will to a trustworthy person, so you can rightfully take over Amegakure.”

Hanzo said softly, "After my death, please lead Amegakure and this suffering nation toward the future that Yahiko once described to you."

"I can no longer do it, but you, with those eyes, can definitely do it."

Yes, the reason for my current attitude may be partly due to the mistakes I made in the past, but more so for the country I care about.

"..."

Time seemed to stand still, plunging into a deathly silence.

Looking at Hanzo, who had almost humbled himself to the point of being buried in the earth, the ripples in Nagato Rinne's eyes froze.

He had envisioned countless ways Hanzo would react when faced with the reckoning.

Stubborn resistance, sophistry, denial, begging for forgiveness, utterly despicable...

However, he never expected to see this scene unfold before his eyes.

This was not the Hanzo he knew at any time, not the proud and powerful Hanzo of the past, who would not have bowed down, nor the old and cowardly Hanzo of the past, who would not have faced death.

At this moment, Hanzo is simply an old man who is willing to pay the price for his past mistakes and face death with equanimity.

Konan stared intently at Hanzo, her eyes bloodshot, as she recalled that stormy night once again.

He recalled Yahiko's resolute lunge at Nagato's raised kunai, and also the faint sound of the kunai tearing at his heart.

Thinking back to the terror and collapse I felt then, to that heart-wrenching, desperate scream, to Nagato now, consumed by hatred…

"what is this?"

Konan's trembling voice broke the deathly silence, her heart filled with indescribable bewilderment. Looking at Hanzo, she said in an almost hoarse voice, "Then go die!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Hanzo moved.

His movements were swift, with a calm and relieved air.

He gripped the kusarigama in his hand, a weapon that represented his former power and pride, a murder weapon that had claimed countless lives.

At that moment, he poured all his strength into his own hand and stabbed himself in the chest in an almost embracing manner.

puff...

Chapter 77 Idealists and Realists

puff...

A faint but clear sound, like tearing fabric, rang out.

Crimson blood, warm with life, gushed out, flowing slowly down the cold, black scythe, dripping onto the soil and spreading out in a dark red pattern.

Snap... Snap...

One drop, one drop, and another drop.

The scarlet blood did not spurt violently, but rather slowly and silently seeped from his heart, soaking through the fabric that stained his chest.

"why?"

Hanzo's hand holding the scythe trembled, but not from fear. All his strength and will were poured into this movement, and the tip of the blade had already penetrated his chest.

However, it was impossible to continue stabbing.

Nagato raised his hand at him without him noticing, and Wanxiang Tianyin grabbed his arm.

The person who wants to die is trying to continue stabbing himself in the heart, but the person who should want him dead the most is stopping him.

Hinata Kumokawa silently watched this scene, only glancing at Tobi hiding in the corner out of the corner of his eye, before shifting his position slightly.

"Do you want to do it yourself?"

Hanzo raised his head to look into those cold eyes, gripped the black scythe handle tightly, and said in a deep voice, "Your enemy is right in front of you. Don't you want revenge?"

Konan stood frozen in place, her face, which had been cold with hatred, frozen in place. She stared intently at the scythe that Hanzo had pierced through his own chest, watching the crescent-shaped blade gradually become stained with glaring blood...

"I still can't forgive you."

Nagato's voice was like the grinding of rusty gears, and a tiny crack appeared in the transcendent and indifferent aura of a "god" that had been frozen in his Rinnegan eyes.

Beneath the crevice lies blazing magma, an anger and denial that almost burns away all reason—emotions belonging to humankind.

"If I could, I would kill you with my own hands right now. The thought of it makes my body tremble and I can't stop!" Nagato's suppressed voice seemed to be squeezed out from between his clenched teeth.

"Then why haven't you made a move yet!"

Hanzo's expression was equally grim as he questioned, "Don't tell me you still believe in Yahiko's naive fantasy that 'mutual understanding can bring peace'!"

"I am willing to entrust my life and Amegakure to you because I know that you will bring peace to other countries by stealing tailed beasts and developing forbidden techniques, thus instilling fear in them!"

In Hanzo's view, Nagato's plan was a realistic and feasible path, and even Hyuga Kumokawa, who was standing by, thought so.

Both Yahiko and Jiraiya are idealists who feel guilty about hurting others and hope that people can understand each other and naturally eliminate conflicts. Both of them have great dreams but lack the power to achieve them.

The former has died in his naive fantasy, and the latter understands that he is powerless and can only place his hopes on the elusive prophetic child.

Hashirama Senju was somewhere between an idealist and a realist. He hoped that everyone would understand each other, but he didn't expect that everyone could do it. He believed that each generation should do its own thing, so he used overwhelming power to end the chaos and establish a new order for future generations.

Although his descendants were not as promising as he had hoped, and continued to wage wars after his death, it was still better than the Warring States period when almost all children had to go to war at the age of five or six, with an average age of less than thirty.

Of course, this applies to large countries, but small countries that became victims suffered even more than during the Warring States period.

When those five war machines collided, only the small country caught in the middle was crushed and its flesh and blood pulverized.

Naruto, with idealistic thoughts but realistic actions, believed that mutual understanding and forgiveness between people could end the endless hatred between countries.

However, he knelt on the ground and begged the Fourth Raikage not to execute Sasuke, who had kidnapped Killer Bee. He spoke arrogantly in a pleading tone, saying that he did not want Kumogakure and Konoha to fight each other because of Sasuke. In the end, he was speechless when the Fourth Raikage retorted, "It's not too late for you to forgive me after I kill Sasuke."

Later, peace was only achieved through overwhelming power, but the world remained unchanged, and the ninja world would repeat the same mistakes after Naruto's death.

Having witnessed countless wars and deaths, Hanzo naturally understood this; he and later Sasuke Uchiha were both realists.

They were rationally aware that the ninja world, after several wars, was filled with hatred, and that it was impossible for people to understand and forgive each other. Therefore, they directly used overwhelming power to end the conflict, establish a new order, and rule the entire ninja world.

This is not the end, but a new beginning.