Based on his understanding of Shimura Danzo, Jiraiya knew the man wasn't someone who would recklessly do something like that. Still, he wasn't worried about the old man's safety. As Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen was subjected to daily examinations. Every single day, Anbu checked his physical condition, confirmed that his chakra flow wasn't disturbed, and made sure he hadn't been targeted by genjutsu.
That rule had been established long ago.
Thinking it through, the fact that Danzo was holding such a powerful trump card yet hadn't played it was likely directly related to this. After all, if he tampered with the old man's will, it would be discovered very quickly. That wouldn't benefit his plans in the slightest.
Slowly, without even realizing it himself, Jiraiya had begun to accept Kaede Kitahara's assessment. When it came to Shimura Danzo's character, it really was abysmally low.
"Susanoo… that skeleton avatar technique, right?" Jiraiya rubbed his chin, muttering to himself. "He said Uchiha Madara's Susanoo was absurdly large. Just how big could it possibly be?"
He couldn't imagine it. In fact, he didn't even have a concrete concept of how large Susanoo could become. People simply couldn't picture things they'd never seen before.
During the era when Jiraiya was active, there were Mangekyo Sharingan users both before and after his time. Uchiha Kagami and Uchiha Fugaku. Unfortunately, Jiraiya's own prime years fell right between theirs. So while he had heard rumors that the Uchiha Clan possessed the Mangekyo Sharingan, it was nothing more than hearsay.
Given his status, and the fact that he wasn't Hokage, there was no way he could access Konoha's most secret archives on the Uchiha Clan.
But the Sharingan was said to be the eye that reflected the heart. That was why the Mangekyo Sharingan existed. Did that mean that under different states of mind, each person awakened a different Mangekyo ability?
"The Uchiha Clan really is fascinating," Jiraiya murmured.
He recalled the kaleidoscope telescope he used to toy with in the past, and vaguely understood the meaning behind it.
"Shisui's Kotoamatsukami…"
Uchiha Itachi had already stopped crying. Others might not know, but he did. Because the other eye of Shisui's Mangekyo Sharingan was in his possession.
He hadn't used it all these years for the exact reason Kaede Kitahara had mentioned. The cooldown was far too long. That meant it had to be reserved for a truly critical moment.
Now, he had already decided how to use it.
He would use it on Sasuke.
If Sasuke ever truly walked down a path of no return, then this Mangekyo eye would be able to pull him back. It would plant within him the belief of loyalty to Konoha, of protecting the village.
At the same time, Itachi caught another crucial piece of information. When Kaede Kitahara mentioned Uchiha Madara's Susanoo, he also brought up that Indra might have once reached that level.
What did that mean?
Did that mean Indra was also an Uchiha?
So Indra was some kind of special lineage within the Uchiha Clan?
If that was the case, then what about Asura? Did that mean Asura belonged to the Uzumaki Clan?
No. More likely, he belonged to the Senju Clan. After all, it had been mentioned before that the previous incarnation of Indra was Uchiha Madara, while Senju Hashirama was likely the previous incarnation of Asura.
But then Itachi remembered something else. According to legend, the Senju Clan and the Uzumaki Clan were closely related, practically cousins. Which meant they once shared a common ancestor.
So what exactly was the relationship between the Senju Clan and the Uchiha Clan?
[But today's events caused way too much of a butterfly effect. Kakashi actually used Hatake Kenjutsu. Can you believe that? Ever since he got the Sharingan, he completely changed his fighting style. Who would've thought he'd start using a sword again? Does that even make sense?
And then there's Rokusho Aoi. Was he even supposed to appear during the Land of Waves mission? What is all this? The butterfly effect is getting so strong that I'm starting to wonder if I've ended up in a timeline outside the main one. And honestly, that's the optimistic guess.
What if… I mean, what if this is all just a dream? What if everything here is fake, a world unfolding from my own dream, and my real body is actually hanging on the God Tree right now, dreaming? If that's the case, then I'm completely screwed.
Please don't let it be like that.]
The God Tree—an existence tied to the ultimate genjutsu said to swallow the entire world—was exactly what Kaede Kitahara feared most.
There was no doubt about it. Between the lines of Kaede Kitahara's diary, there was a kind of fear that had never been there before.
In Itachi's eyes, when Kaede Kitahara wrote his diary in the past, he was always cautious, but his confidence was obvious. Very few things were truly beyond his control.
That confidence came from his ability to foresee the future. Although Itachi didn't know how Kaede Kitahara was able to see fragments of the future, or even glimpses of the past, there was no question that he could see far more than any of them.
Being hung from the so-called God Tree, with his real body trapped there, was clearly Kaede Kitahara's worst nightmare. The scenario he feared the most.
Itachi recalled that when Amaterasu had been mentioned before, Kaede Kitahara had said that using it on a God Tree clone didn't really show how powerful it was.
If that was the case, didn't that mean Sasuke had fought that God Tree at some point in the future?
Itachi didn't know what the God Tree actually was. But judging from how wary Kaede Kitahara was, it had to be an unimaginably terrifying existence.
And from Kaede Kitahara's behavior, it seemed almost certain that a massive future war was unavoidable. Combined with Kaede Kitahara's constant mentions of aliens, Itachi's mind had already started conjuring images of alien tree-like beings invading the ninja world.
"God Tree clone? Real body hanging on the God Tree, dreaming? What the hell is that?" Jiraiya was just as shaken. Multiple timelines, main timelines… the sheer amount of information hit him all at once, and he couldn't process it immediately.
"Butterfly effect…" Uchiha Sasuke wiped away his tears, then gave a faint smile. Kaede Kitahara might not know exactly what the butterfly effect was, but Sasuke felt like he understood it now.
Things had clearly slipped out of Kaede Kitahara's control.
They were probably no longer following the original course of history. And that meant the future wasn't fixed. There were countless possibilities.
For example, his Mangekyo Sharingan.
If Kaede Kitahara thought that Amaterasu combined with Flame Control was only average, and if the Sharingan truly reflected the heart, then was it possible for him to awaken an ocular ability far stronger than Amaterasu?
Like Kamui.
That eye technique Kaede Kitahara praised so highly. Was it possible for Sasuke to awaken something like that?
But power born from the Sharingan was never something one could choose—only something one paid for.
For a moment, his thoughts were in complete chaos.
The fierce battle he had just gone through today made him realize how limited his own strength was. Facing someone roughly his own age, he still couldn't win.
And that was with the Sharingan active. He still couldn't keep up with the opponent's speed. The sense of frustration weighed heavily on him.
A kekkei genkai like the Sharingan wasn't omnipotent. There were still many things it simply couldn't do.
In the end, it all came down to one thing.
He was far too weak.
If he had Kaede Kitahara's level of strength, then even in that situation, he wouldn't have been so helpless.
After waiting a bit longer, the diary stopped updating. It was clear that Kaede Kitahara wasn't in the mood to continue writing today. Only then did Sasuke put the diary away and prepare to sleep.
At the same time, after closing the diary, Kaede Kitahara took a moment to steady his emotions.
Because the most terrifying possibility had just crossed his mind.
What if this wasn't the beginning of the story at all?
What if this wasn't the Land of Waves mission era?
What if the Fourth Great Ninja War had already happened, and he, as nothing more than a disposable ninja, was already hanging from the God Tree, trapped within the space of the Infinite Tsukuyomi, dreaming?
He wasn't uncovering the truth—he was spiraling under the weight of terrifying possibilities.
If that nightmare were real, then somewhere outside this false peace, Uchiha Madara and the others might already be locked in a world-shaking battle against Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naruto.
If that were truly the case, then his current struggles would be completely meaningless. All he could do was pray that Sasuke and Naruto would win. Otherwise, the diary, the system, and any hope of rising would all vanish into nothing.
Still, that was only the most horrifying speculation.
And if it really was true, then he had no other choice but to accept it.
Pushing those thoughts aside, he prepared to start today's draw.
"Draw!"
A translucent roulette wheel appeared before him. Moments later, when Kaede Kitahara called out for it to stop, the pointer finally came to a halt.
"Crow Clone Technique."
As Kaede Kitahara absorbed the information related to the Crow Clone Technique, an enormous amount of knowledge flooded his mind.
"I'm really starting to look like a proper Uchiha," Kaede Kitahara said with a bitter smile.
This draw had given him the Crow Clone Technique, a special clone technique developed by Uchiha Itachi. By injecting chakra into crows or other birds, the user could form clones that possessed the abilities of the original. The chakra consumption was far lower than that of the Shadow Clone Technique, significantly reduced by comparison.
Kaede Kitahara had always thought it was simply called the Crow Clone. Only now did he learn its official name was the Crow Clone Technique. It was just that crows were usually used as the medium.
It could launch physical attacks and genjutsu attacks alike. A dual-layered form of suppression.
Within the Uchiha Clan's beast-handling system, there were roughly two schools. The Ninja Cat school and the Ninja Crow school.
Most Uchiha favored the Ninja Cat school to assist in combat. Only two were exceptions. Uchiha Itachi and Uchiha Shisui.
Both were Ninja Crow users.
And both had mastered it to an astonishing degree.
Now that he had learned it as well, Kaede Kitahara felt even more like a true Uchiha.
Although this draw hadn't given him any overwhelmingly powerful ninjutsu or kekkei genkai, obtaining the Crow Clone Technique was still a solid gain.
He didn't ask for more. There was plenty of time ahead.
"Ninjutsu, Shadow Clone!"
Kaede Kitahara formed seals and shouted.
"You go find Gato and take care of him."