Land of Earth, The Hidden Rock Village.
Roshi was preparing dinner for himself at home, as he did usually.
He had learned to cook from a very young age.
However, it wasn't because Roshi was naturally sensible, but because his parents had died before he could remember, so cooking was a survival skill for him.
In fact, this also had something to do with his identity as a Jinchuriki, because as a Jinchuriki, Roshi was pretty much despised within The Hidden Rock Village.
While it's not like they would poison his food, seeing everyone with their sour faces wasn't appetizing for Roshi either.
Therefore, Roshi generally bought groceries and cooked for himself.
After all, when buying groceries, Roshi could choose them himself without worrying about buying bad produce.
Yet despite his rich experience in cooking, Roshi made quite a few mistakes today, the fish was burnt, and the soup's seasoning was a mess.
"Onoki, is this your choice?" Roshi ate the burnt fish with a complex expression and took a sip of the overly salted vegetable soup.
The Anbu hadn't disappeared, they were just replaced by a new batch.
Looking at it from a darker angle, maybe it was a stronger Anbu, to prevent him from actually escaping.
Roshi let out a deep sigh and began to clear the dishes.
"Should I leave?" Roshi asked the Four-tails in his heart.
Indecision still lingered in Roshi's mind.
He wasn't someone easily indecisive, but this matter was significant, both to him and The Hidden Rock Village.
Roshi was stubborn, not lacking in thinking ability.
If he fled now, it would be a considerable blow to The Hidden Rock Village.
For a Ninja Village, a Jinchuriki isn't just a top-level force.
A Jinchuriki exerts an extraordinary suppressive power over a Ninja Squad.
The Tailed Beast Ball that can easily destroy mountains, a Jinchuriki capable of Complete Tailed Beast Transformation can fire several in succession.
Even the renowned top-level strong fighters in the Ninja World can't do this; the Chakra gap between humans and Tailed Beasts is too vast.
"Though I'm inside you, if you leave, it means I'm leaving too, but my suggestion is that you decide for yourself." The Four-tails replied.
From its own perspective, the Four-tails tended to favor leaving The Hidden Rock Village.
As a Tailed Beast with self-awareness, it naturally refused to be imprisoned by The Hidden Rock for use as a weapon.
But the Four-tails acknowledged Roshi, it didn't want to interfere with Roshi's choice.
Otherwise, if Roshi later felt regret for leaving, it would be awkward for him to have made the decision for him.
"It's because I can't make up my mind that I'm asking you." Roshi said wryly.
If he could make a decisive decision, he wouldn't have consulted the Four-tails.
"You don't need to be like this, there are actually only two options, staying or leaving, stay if you want, and leave if you want." The Four-tails advised.
Roshi fell into deep thought, though the Four-tails' words sounded like nonsense, they pointed out the core issue.
Perhaps he didn't need to think so complicatedly about the impact of leaving on Hidden Rock, or whether he would be wanted or hunted down.
What he really needed to consider was whether he wanted to stay or to leave.
At this moment, a multitude of memories surged through Roshi's mind.
He recalled his younger self working hard in cultivation.
Because of his identity as a Jinchuriki, he was shunned by the Hidden Rock Ninja and residents of the village.
So at the time, Roshi thought if he could control the Tailed Beast's power, perhaps people would treat him as an ordinary person.
Being able to control the Tailed Beast's power meant he wouldn't go berserk, in a sense, he was just a ninja with more Chakra.
However, it turned out that effort didn't necessarily equate to success; the attitude of Hidden Rock and its residents towards him did not change.
Of course, it wasn't entirely unchanged, but after his strength grew, fewer dared to openly show him attitude.
But that wasn't the kind of change Roshi wanted.
Then Roshi thought of the recent war.
Following Iwakura's orders, he used Complete Tailed Beast Transformation to utilize the Tailed Beast Ball and led the Ninja Squad to successfully break through.
Initially, Roshi hadn't intended to be rewarded or anything.
Although he successfully led the squad to break through, this manner of breakthrough, even though he acted on Iwakura's orders, wasn't something one could boast about.
Because along their retreat, it wasn't only the enemy's blood but also that of comrades.
But he truly didn't expect to be surveilled for this, and even after explaining everything, it wasn't lifted.
Roshi sometimes wondered if he had ignored Iwakura's orders in that battle, hadn't gone through Complete Tailed Beast Transformation, hadn't used the Tailed Beast Ball on the Ninja Squad, maybe he could have been posthumously regarded as a war hero.
Instead of breaking through with the squad and being branded as a monster who slaughtered comrades.
The conversations in the office with Onoki, the discussions heard in the streets, the curious glances of others, all these memories surfaced in Roshi's mind.
The confusion on Roshi's face faded; things had reached this point, leaving only one answer.
"I'm leaving." Roshi said resolutely to the Four-tails.
Upon saying this, Roshi seemed to shed a burden of a thousand pounds, feeling much lighter.
Upon careful thought, Roshi realized he didn't need to find a reason to leave, he almost had no reason to stay.
For what could he stay?
For the Anbu that monitored him? For the Hidden Rock Ninja and villagers who didn't regard him as human? Or for Onoki who wanted to cultivate him into an emotionless Tailed Beast weapon?
"Haha, looks like you finally understand thoroughly." The Four-tails laughed with satisfaction.
The Four-tails knew all too well what Roshi had been through, it had been silently watching within Roshi all along.