Chapter 391: Ideological Rift
"Gamamaru... it is I..."
The semi-transparent figure possessed deep purple eyes with a third eye-like mark etched upon his forehead. Horns sprouted from his temples, and he sat in a meditative pose with a black shakujo staff resting horizontally across his knees.
At this sight, even the Great Toad Sage widened his ancient, clouded eyes.
"Oh my... this is truly a sight I never expected to behold... Hagoromo... it has been a long time."
The figure was none other than the Sage of Six Paths himself.
Hagoromo's expression remained perpetually solemn as he spoke in a low, resonant voice. "Prophecy is not the same as foresight—that was something you taught me long ago. Still, you are truly a miracle, Gamamaru, to have endured in the living world for this long..."
Even for the Sage of Six Paths, who could preserve his consciousness in a special state to influence the ninja world from beyond, death was still death. Hagoromo's physical shell had succumbed to old age centuries ago. What remained was merely a massive aggregation of chakra and soul.
Even Hagoromo could not help but marvel at the longevity of a being like Gamamaru, a true favorite of Natural Energy.
The Great Toad Sage was now fully awake, sitting upright in his massive frame. "So, Hagoromo, to return to the living world through such methods... what is your purpose?"
"Wait a moment... Gamamaru."
Hagoromo did not answer immediately. Instead, he reached out and made a hooking motion over the heads of the unconscious "Jiraiya" and "Dan Kato."
Two orbs of light, resembling chakra but far more intricate, drifted from their brows like wisps of white flame. Hagoromo caught them at his fingertips and pressed them into his own temples.
These were the memories of his sons from the past few years.
Several years ago, sensing that the changes in the ninja world had exceeded his calculations and were becoming increasingly unpredictable, the Sage of Six Paths had sent the souls of his two sons back from the Pure Land into the living world.
He gave them a singular task: Observe the transformation of this era. When the time was right, he would extract their experiences.
The younger son, Ashura, honest and "dull," had taken his father's command literally. He had walked across every mountain and sea, measuring the continent with his own feet and seeing the world through his own eyes. For years, he had wandered every corner, witnessing the myriad states of human life and the commoners of this millennium.
The elder son, Indra, being the more perceptive of the two, understood his father's true intent. He chose to settle at the epicenter of the world's upheaval—the heart of the revolution, Cloud City (Kumoto).
For years, he had embedded himself in that massive metropolis, witnessing the most cutting-edge technology, the most prosperous markets, and the most forward-thinking philosophies. He had even registered as an official shinobi of the Cloud-Thunder Federation, gaining a bit of fame by revealing a fraction of his prowess.
The two brothers had chosen entirely different paths, dictated by their inherent natures.
But when their two sets of memories merged, they provided a complete, panoramic view of the current ninja world. It wasn't just the rapid daily changes of Cloud City, but also the lives of the millions of commoners spread across the vast continent.
Hagoromo closed his eyes in contemplation, his divine power allowing him to process years of memories in seconds.
However, it was clear that both sons had developed profound insights and personal convictions over those years. As Hagoromo delved into the contents, he, too, fell into a deep silence.
Ashura believed the changes were overall positive. The Federation was helping the populace improve their quality of life, using ninjutsu to build roads and bridges and to plant crops. However, he was deeply troubled by the Federation's policy of open-access ninja training.
Since the unification, the Federation accepted almost every child capable of mastering chakra. Regardless of how poor their family was, the state provided subsidies for them to attend the Ninja Academy. It had become a form of mandatory education.
This had triggered a population explosion of shinobi. It was foreseeable that in the future, the ratio of ninja to ordinary people would increase continuously.
No matter how optimistic one was, there would always be those who could not become ninja—perhaps even the majority. Ashura feared that centuries from now, when the number of ninja reached its peak and resources hit their limit, the divide would become dangerous.
Would ninja still treat those without "talent" as equals?
A social hierarchy might emerge: a high-level race possessing chakra and a low-level race without it.
If one person in a hundred is a superhuman, that person is a hero.
If ten in a hundred are superhumans, they are leaders.
If fifty in a hundred are superhumans... they become two different species.
Thus, Ashura felt that the world did not need so many ninja, especially in an era of peace.
Indra's view was the exact opposite.
Living in Cloud City, he had seen how the elite planned the future of the entire world. He had witnessed the rapid progress of civilization under the leadership of shinobi.
Chakra was such a miraculous force; using it solely for combat was a tragic waste. Even Indra, the man who invented the very concept of "ninjutsu," now found himself in absolute agreement with the Consul's philosophy.
Reshaping the world, taming nature, and evolving the race—that was the true purpose of chakra.
With the power of chakra, humanity could continuously climb toward the peak of existence. Indra believed the entire world should pursue chakra. Those humans who could not master it were merely "unfortunates" left behind by evolution.
Indra pitied them, but he believed they could offer nothing to the progress of the world. They should not be the focus of the state; they should be left to fend for themselves.
The Federation spent massive amounts of energy building roads for mountain villages of only a few dozen people, trying to teach illiterate peasants how to farm with jutsu, and trying to liberate the minds of house slaves brainwashed by the old nobility.
The Federation wanted to ensure no one was left behind. Indra believed this was impossible.
He argued that the more ninja there were, the better. Those who were "weeded out" by the system should not receive excessive attention. It was natural selection—an unavoidable necessity. The state should guarantee their basic right to exist, but the shinobi should keep their eyes fixed firmly on the horizon, advancing without looking back.
Hagoromo spent a long time sifting through these two distinct philosophies, their years of sensory data, and even the original memories of the two vessels (Jiraiya and Dan Kato).
Gamamaru did not rush him, waiting patiently in the silence of the hall.
After absorbing everything, the Sage of Six Paths turned to the Great Toad Sage. "Gamamaru... do you remember the prophecy you told me a thousand years ago?"
"Which one? I told you quite a few things back in those days..."
"You said... 'A blue-eyed youth, laughing as he calls the names of the nine beasts, and the ninja world shall welcome a long-awaited peace...'"
(Note: "Hagoromo-sama" and "Gamamaru-sama" would be the appropriate honorifics for the sons to use, while the two legends address each other as peers.)