Chapter 151: The Future Ninja World is Your Stage
The very second Jiraiya's chakra signature faded into the distance, the cold, detached mask Jia had been wearing melted away. A bright, dangerously amiable smile bloomed on her lips. She pivoted, her sights set directly on the temple of the Great Toad Sage.
Before she could take more than a few steps, a massive shadow loomed over her. A toad dropped into her path, effectively blocking the way.
"Honored guest, are you ready to depart?" the amphibian rumbled. "I have received strict orders to escort you out of Mount Myōboku."
It was a hulking, crimson-skinned toad. It dutifully crouched low to the earth, flattening its broad back to offer Jia an easy place to sit. Unlike the elder Fukasaku, whose every glance toward her was laced with barely concealed terror, this creature's wide, unblinking eyes held only simple obedience. It just wanted to do its job and ferry her away.
Jia's smile widened a fraction. It seemed her little warning the other night had worked wonders. Gamamaru had kept his mouth shut, entirely too terrified to leak her true nature to the rest of the amphibian populace.
But there was an old saying: it is far easier to invite a god into your home than to send one away. They were the ones who had forcefully reverse-summoned her here in the first place. Did they honestly expect her to just dust off her hands and leave quietly, pretending she knew nothing?
"Before we go," Jia said, her voice dripping with honeyed innocence, "please take me to see the Great Toad Sage."
"Ah?" The crimson toad blinked, looking thoroughly bewildered. It clearly lacked the sharp instincts and imposing, yakuza-like aura of Gamabunta. "But... the Great Toad Sage didn't tell me to bring you to the temple. He just said out."
Jia tilted her head. Had they specifically picked the most dim-witted toad in the pond just to lower her guard?
Clasping her hands together against her chest, Jia let her eyes widen into a perfect picture of starry-eyed admiration. "Oh, but I admire the Great Toad Sage so very much! It has been my absolute dream since I was a little girl to meet him in person. Please, won't you help me fulfill my lifelong wish?"
She layered on the pleading, bluffing with the practiced ease of a master con artist. The simple-minded toad didn't stand a chance. Completely taken in by her act, it eagerly allowed her to hop aboard. With a few massive leaps, it carried her straight to the very heart of Mount Myōboku, landing right outside the grand temple where the Great Toad Sage resided.
Standing guard near the temple entrance, Fukasaku nearly suffered a heart attack.
When the elder toad saw that the terrifying human had not only failed to leave but was actively being chauffeured back by their most gullible junior, his webbed toes slipped, nearly sending him face-first into the stone path.
'I told you to get rid of her quickly!'Fukasaku screamed internally, his tiny heart hammering against his ribs.'Not only did you fail to kick her out, you brought her straight to the boss! Do you think we've lived too long? Are you trying to hand-deliver us to the reaper?!'
Still, Fukasaku was an ancient amphibian who had weathered decades of war. He hadn't earned the title of Sage for nothing. Swallowing his rising panic, he forced his posture straight and cleared his throat.
"Honored guest... why have you returned here?"
Jia hopped down from her ride, casually jerking her chin toward the towering temple doors. "To see the Great Toad Sage who can predict the future, of course. Be a dear and lead the way."
She didn't even wait for an answer. Before Fukasaku could formulate a polite refusal, Jia was already strolling past him, entirely unbothered by the concept of waiting for a host's permission. She cast a single, sidelong glance at the elder toad—a look so chillingly flat it made Fukasaku feel as though his internal organs had been dunked in ice water. Pinned in place by the gaze of a predator looking at a dead frog, he stood frozen for several agonizing seconds before finally finding the strength to scurry after her.
The interior of the temple was vast and shadowed. Resting upon a massive cushion at the center was the Great Toad Sage, Gamamaru. He was a colossal, ancient toad with wrinkled orange skin and piercing, slit-pupiled yellow eyes. Unlike the warrior toads outside, he wore a thick string of wooden prayer beads around his neck and a strange, flat-topped doctoral cap upon his head. The attire gave him the heavy, suffocating aura of an ancient oracle who had long since seen through the veil of reality—a being full of deep mystery and quiet dread.
Before Jia could even open her mouth to deliver a greeting, the ancient toad beat her to it.
"Hello, honored guest." His voice echoed through the cavernous hall, deep and weary. "It was entirely our fault for the unintentional offense we caused you a few nights ago. I formally apologize to you here and now. Please, let me assure you... Mount Myōboku has absolutely no intention of making an enemy out of you."
Jia raised an eyebrow. This wasn't the senile, sleep-addled oracle she remembered from the original storyline. There was no trailing off mid-sentence, no forgetting names, no sudden snoring. Gamamaru was entirely clear-headed. His yellow eyes were sharp, alert, and brimming with a very deep, very primal wariness.
"Well now," Jia mused, crossing her arms and leaning her weight onto one leg. "It seems you really did see something incredible in the future. Honestly, even I'm starting to get a little curious. What exactly did I do to make you this terrified?"
Gamamaru let out a long, heavy sigh. His weathered voice was thick with utter helplessness.
"You will stir up an unmatched Great War... a conflict that will drag the entire Ninja World into the abyss. Behind every battlefield, behind every drop of blood spilled, your shadow will be there, pulling the strings. The world will fall completely under your control. And... no one will be able to stop you."
Jia lightly touched her cheek, her expression a picture of mock innocence. "Are you absolutely sure that person is me? I'm quite well-behaved, you know."
"Although the vision only showed a figure from behind, and I could not see your face..." Gamamaru's low voice rumbled with absolute certainty. "The prophecy tells me the truth. The World Destroyer... is you."
The ancient toad slowly bowed his massive head.
"Honored guest, the world for the next few decades will be your stage alone. We at Mount Myōboku guarantee this: we will absolutely not interfere with any of your decisions, nor will we ever reveal a single one of your secrets."
Jia stared at him, genuinely surprised. Was this ancient powerhouse really this easy to talk to?
She had already formulated a backup plan with Stelle. The moment negotiations broke down and a fight broke out, Jia was prepared to shatter Mount Myōboku's defensive barrier from the inside. Then, Stelle would lock onto her position, warp in using the Flying Thunder God technique, deploy a secondary containment barrier, and the two of them would mercilessly clean out the entire toad population together.
Yet here was Gamamaru, practically rolling over and exposing his belly to avoid provoking her. Logically speaking, it made zero sense. If he had foreseen someone starting a world-ending war, standard procedure dictated he should have handed out a vague prophecy to his human agents and sent them out to cause trouble for her. He was an ancient schemer, after all. He had plotted against literal gods in the distant past.
"You really won't try to stop me?" Jia asked, narrowing her eyes. "You're just going to sit here and watch it happen?"
Gamamaru sighed again, the sound like wind rustling through dead leaves. "Attempting to stop you would only accelerate the destruction and lead to even more terrifying results. I can only thank you for the small slivers of kindness you have chosen to preserve for this world."
Jia smirked inwardly. His prophecy really was frighteningly accurate.
"Well, at least you're sensible!" Jia chirped brightly.
Without warning, she leaped forward, raising her hand to lightly pat Gamamaru's massive, wrinkled leg. In that split second, chakra flared. She smoothly imprinted a Flying Thunder God Mark directly onto his skin. Along with the jet-black formula, a tiny, almost imperceptible speck of golden light sank deep into the toad's flesh.
To her immense relief, the legendary Great Toad Sage didn't even twitch. He didn't raise a single defense, merely watching her form the hand seals with quiet resignation.
"Just a little insurance trick," Jia said, dusting off her hands with a cheerful grin. "For the sake of your many disciples and descendants living in this lovely pond, I'm sure you won't mind, right?"
"I do not mind," Gamamaru replied smoothly, not a hint of anger in his tone. "So, are you prepared to leave now? I will have Gamahiro see you out."
Now that the two sides had reached this 'friendly' mutual understanding, Gamamaru was practically vibrating with the urge to kick her out. The look in his yellow eyes was akin to a mortal staring at the literal God of Plagues. He just wanted Jia gone—the further away the better, and ideally, banished to a dimension where he would never have to look at her again.
The sheer desperation radiating from the giant toad made Jia laugh aloud. She pointed a thumb at her own chest. "If you rush me out of here right now, what exactly do you plan to tell Jiraiya when he comes looking for me?"
The Great Toad Sage paused, his massive brow furrowing as he thought seriously for a moment. When he spoke, his answer caught her completely off guard.
"When you used your chakra just now, I 'discovered' that ten highly advanced Control Cursed Seals had been placed upon you, deeply hidden within various vital chakra points of your body. I will inform Jiraiya that the master of those seals suddenly activated them, and you were violently compelled to leave against your will."
Jia stared at him, feeling as though she had just discovered a brand-new continent. A slow, delighted grin spread across her face.
"And here I thought you were just going to feed him some vague, mystical prophecy about how I had a 'destined reason' to depart. Gamamaru, you sly old frog. You really know how to play the game, don't you?"
The Great Toad Sage's expression remained deadpan and utterly serious. "Prophecy is not a casual joke to be used for mere excuses. Rest assured, honored guest. I will handle all the aftermath with Jiraiya perfectly. I will not cause you a single ounce of trouble."
"Then I suppose this is goodbye, Gamamaru!" Jia spun on her heel, waving cheerfully over her shoulder as she walked toward the exit. "May we never meet again!"
"I share the exact same sentiment," Gamamaru muttered dryly.
Once Jia finally hopped back onto the waiting crimson toad and bounded away, Fukasaku remained standing rigid at the edge of the sanctuary's barrier. Only after he sensed her terrifying chakra signature completely vanish beyond the borders of Mount Myōboku did the elder toad finally allow himself to breathe. He pulled a handkerchief from his robes, wiped the thick layer of cold sweat from his brow, and hurriedly hopped back into the temple.
"Is the human gone?" the Great Toad Sage asked, his voice echoing in the quiet hall.
"Yes, she has completely departed," Fukasaku confirmed, bowing his head. He hesitated for a moment, his webbed hands wringing together nervously. "Great Toad Sage... is that girl truly as terrifying as you claim? If, by some stroke of terrible luck, we encounter her again in the future, what attitude should we take toward her?"
"You will not encounter her again," Gamamaru stated flatly, his yellow eyes dimming as he stared into the middle distance. "In the fragments of the future I witnessed... she is about to die."
Fukasaku blinked, his tiny brain struggling to process the sudden whiplash. He felt completely incapable of keeping up with his ancestor's train of thought.
"Wait... since she is about to die, how on earth could she possibly become the 'World Destroyer' who plunges the entire ninja world into war?"
"Do not ask questions about things you are better off not knowing," Gamamaru scolded softly. "Ignorance is for your own good."
The Great Toad Sage had struck a binding verbal agreement not to interfere with Jia's path, and he intended to keep it. He absolutely refused to reveal another detail of the apocalyptic images he had witnessed. Mount Myōboku had always remained a extraordinary sanctuary, existing peacefully outside the bloody cycles of the Ninja World. As long as they kept their heads down, refused to act recklessly, and never intervened in that girl's affairs, the toads would survive.
"Regarding Jiraiya," Gamamaru continued, his tone turning deadly serious. "Watch your words carefully around him. Do not let a single detail of this encounter slip. If you do, I will have no choice but to sacrifice you to that girl in exchange for the safety of the rest of Mount Myōboku. Do I make myself clear? Also... ensure you are exceptionally polite to him from now on."
Fukasaku gulped, feeling a fresh wave of sweat break out across his back. "Yes, Lord Gamamaru. I will be incredibly careful."
Bowing deeply to give his solemn guarantee to the Great Toad Sage, Fukasaku secretly made a firm resolution in his heart. He needed to solidify his bond with Jiraiya immediately. That terrifying girl, Jia, had displayed a highly unusual, almost protective attitude toward the white-haired sannin. If Mount Myōboku wanted to guarantee its survival in the dark times ahead, building an unbreakable, favored relationship with Jiraiya wasn't just a good idea—it was an absolute necessity.
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