Veigar looked up at the sky, sighing inwardly.
"Konoha, huh..."
Then, he shook his head seriously and replied:
"Konoha should still be able to handle this situation for now. If there's a need, the Hokage will summon me back."
"So, Sage Fukasaku!"
"I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you further."
"I plan to continue my training here."
Leaving was out of the question. Veigar absolutely wouldn't depart Mount Myōboku until he had completed the fusion with the last Phenomenal Evil Power fragment.
Even if a command came from Hiruzen, it would be the same.
Meanwhile, in Konoha Village.
Hiruzen was feeling overwhelmed and powerless by the current situation Konoha faced.
Kumogakure was massing troops on the border, and the situation was unpredictable; war could break out at any moment.
The war between Konoha and Iwagakure had entered a heated phase. Jiraiya, as the commander, had repeatedly requested reinforcements, hoping for more troops.
The total number of ninja killed on both sides had already exceeded four thousand.
As for Kirigakure, although the Fourth Mizukage hadn't directly declared war after receiving the four swords that Hiruzen had placed on the negotiating table, he hadn't honored the agreement either. Instead, he continuously dispatched ninja into the Land of Fire, resulting in constant skirmishes and casualties along the border.
A portion of Konoha's forces was tied up by Kirigakure.
This perfectly echoed Veigar's earlier statement: even if the Fourth Mizukage retrieved the swords, he wouldn't stop coveting the Land of Fire.
Finally, there was the Land of Wind, Sunagakure.
What had seemed like an impending surrender turned into a distant hope for Konoha, prolonged indefinitely by Iwagakure's declaration of war on Konoha.
Moreover, recently, the Sunagakure forces led by Chiyo showed no signs of surrendering and were continuously active.
Their posture suggested a strong intent to push towards Kikyo Pass.
Furthermore, the troops she led were even shouting slogans to "kill Veigar."
This was a classic case of being besieged on all sides; it would be utterly shocking if Hiruzen weren't frantic!
Therefore, whenever these moments occurred, Hiruzen would envision Veigar's figure in his mind.
He missed him a bit.
...
Fukasaku, who had spent several months with Veigar and thought he was about to leave, burst into laughter upon hearing Veigar's decision to stay.
"No problem, stay as long as you like."
And so, Veigar, having completed his Sage Mode training, did not leave Mount Myōboku but remained.
To continue training.
Half a month later, Veigar, still on Mount Myōboku, had completely mastered Sage Mode and could easily activate it.
That night, he sat cross-legged in his room, holding a secret jutsu scroll.
This was the jutsu he would train in tomorrow: the Spirit Transformation Jutsu.
Among the rewards for being promoted to Jonin, Veigar had received the Spirit Transformation Jutsu. For his ultimate plan, he absolutely needed to use this jutsu.
The next day, Fukasaku took Veigar deep into the stone forest; this was the training spot he had found for Veigar.
The Spirit Transformation Jutsu, a powerful secret technique that allowed one's soul to leave the body, making it possible to fight from afar and kill invisibly.
The key aspect of this jutsu that Veigar valued was the ability of the soul to leave the body.
Days passed, one by one.
Unbeknownst to him, nearly three years had passed since Veigar arrived at Mount Myōboku, and the three-year period he had agreed upon with Hiruzen was approaching.
Compared to three years ago, the now thirteen-year-old Veigar had grown incredibly handsome; not only did he not grow up "crooked," he became even more attractive, and his height had also reached over 1.7 meters.
Three years ago, Veigar had obtained the Reaper Death Seal from Hiruzen and, at the same time, promised to deliver Samehada into his hands.
"Seventh Gate, Gate of Wonder, Open!"
In an instant, a massive amount of blue chakra steam erupted from Veigar's body.
He was in the same spot where he had trained the Spirit Transformation Jutsu three years ago. At this moment, Veigar had completed all preparations for fusing with the last Phenomenal Evil Power fragment.
Sage Mode, Activate!
After opening the Seventh Gate of the Eight Gates, Veigar didn't stop. He then activated Sage Mode and stood there silently.
Sage Mode + Eight Gates.
It could also be called: Sage Art: Eight Gates Formation.
The damage caused by opening the Seventh Gate of the Eight Gates was mitigated by about half due to Sage Mode's regenerative power.
Veigar was now challenging his limits of endurance while having the Seventh Gate open in Sage Mode.
This wasn't the first time Veigar had done this. Starting easily with the Fifth Gate, and after this period of training, Veigar was able to open the Seventh Gate in such a short time precisely because of Sage Mode's support.
Over these three years, one thing had puzzled Veigar: no matter what, he couldn't break through the eleven-fold enhancement bottleneck of his Body Enhancement Technique, and he couldn't figure out why.
One hour, a full hour.
Veigar's body reached its limit for enduring the Seventh Gate. The moment the blue chakra steam and Sage Mode disappeared, he collapsed weakly onto the ground.
"Heheheh..."
"Finally, I lasted an hour."
Looking at the nearing twilight sky, a look of ecstatic joy appeared on Veigar's face.
This was a goal he had set; once he achieved it, he would begin fusing with the last Phenomenal Evil Power fragment.
Now, it was time.
"Veigar, let's go back and eat!"
Fukasaku came to Veigar's training spot and saw Veigar sprawled on the ground, which was no longer a surprise to him.
For the past year, Veigar had almost daily entered full of vigor and spirit, only to leave dragging a tired body.
Initially, Fukasaku thought something was wrong with Veigar, but after secretly observing Veigar's training, he quietly walked away.
Something wrong?
Nothing at all!
Veigar was simply torturing himself.
"Mm, I've troubled you again."
Veigar grinned, smiling at Fukasaku.
Ultra-Fast Regeneration Technique.
After a while, Veigar, whose mobility had returned, followed Fukasaku away from the training grounds.
After dinner, Veigar called out to Fukasaku and Shima. The single person and two toads sat around the dining table.
Seeing Veigar's preoccupied expression, Shima couldn't help but be the first to ask:
"Veigar, is there something you want to say?"
Three years, not too long, but not too short either. Fukasaku and Shima had grown accustomed to Veigar's presence, living under the same roof.
Veigar merely nodded, then pulled two letters from his ninja pouch and handed them to Fukasaku.
Fukasaku instinctively took them, then looked at the two envelopes, one red and one white, which bore no names, and asked in confusion:
"Veigar, what are these?"
Veigar smiled brightly and said to the two Sages before him:
"Sage Fukasaku, Sage Shima, I have something to ask of you."
"If I die, please open the red envelope!"
"It contains my last will and testament!"
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TN: This fanfic has been fully translated and is available on my Patreon —— patreon(.)com/PrimalDemon [remove the parentheses ( )]