The illusionary world faded in an instant, and everyone was pulled back to reality by Namikaze Kirito.
By then, the hostility in Jiraiya was already gone.
What remained instead was a heavy, bitter exhaustion.
Only now did he truly understand that doing nothing was not the same as being innocent. The teacher he had once admired so deeply had, without even realizing it, committed one grave sin after another.
Even if it had all been for the village, those sins did not simply disappear.
Was this what it meant to be a politician?
Jiraiya looked at Hiruzen Sarutobi with complicated eyes.
The man he had once believed embodied the Will of Fire was no longer standing there in his eyes.
What remained was only someone who clung desperately to power, just another old politician who refused to let go.
And in the future Kirito had shown them, even at the very end, Kirito still had not killed Hiruzen with his own hands.
Maybe, in some small way, that was the only comfort Jiraiya could find in all of this.
At the very least… the student had not personally cut down his teacher.
"Kirito… my child!"
Kushina rushed forward without hesitation and pulled Namikaze Kirito tightly into her arms.
Only after seeing that future with her own eyes did she truly understand just how much her son had endured.
For parents, dying early and leaving their child behind… what kind of responsibility was that?
It was nothing but the cruelest kind of abandonment.
If she and Minato had still been alive back then, how could Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others have ever dared to treat their son that way?
The more Kushina thought about it, the more her anger flared.
She turned toward Hiruzen again, her eyes burning with hatred so intense that even he felt a chill run through him.
Hiruzen coughed awkwardly, clearly shaken by the look in her eyes.
"Kushina… those were only events from the future," he said, forcing his voice to stay steady. "And everything I did was for the village."
"Besides, none of that has happened yet. If the future truly brings forth someone as outstanding as Kirito, then I would never make such choices."
At those words, Minato and Kushina had yet to respond, but Jiraiya's eyes suddenly flickered.
Right.
Those were events that had not yet come to pass.
The teacher standing here now had not fallen that far yet.
If they stopped him in time, then maybe… just maybe… the village could still have a better future.
But…
Was changing history really the right thing to do?
Wouldn't forcibly interfering with the future bring about consequences no one could predict?
Jiraiya fell into silence, caught in a painful contradiction.
On one hand, he wanted Hiruzen to change. He wanted the village to avoid that dark future.
But on the other hand, if history was meant to unfold as it did, then who could say what kind of chaos would follow if they tried to alter it by force?
Compared to Jiraiya, the young Orochimaru had no such hesitation.
His gaze was fixed on Namikaze Kirito, burning with unsettling excitement.
From the future they had just witnessed, he had seen what his older self would become after following Kirito.
It was not just change.
It was rebirth.
A perfect Mangekyō Sharingan. Power beyond reason. The ability to study the countless secrets of shinobi world.
That was the dream he had pursued his entire life.
And Namikaze Kirito was the one who could make it real.
"Heh…" Orochimaru let out a low chuckle, his golden eyes gleaming. "Leader… how about I kill my future self right here and follow you instead?"
Jiraiya's face changed at once.
He already knew Orochimaru would one day end up following Kirito.
But hearing the younger Orochimaru calmly suggest murdering his future self with his own mouth still sent a chill down his spine.
And yet, when Future Orochimaru heard that proposal, his expression did not change in the slightest.
The two of them were the same person, one from the past and one from the future.
In some ways, it only made sense that their thoughts would overlap so neatly.
Young Orochimaru was not talking nonsense, either.
He was asking for Kirito's permission.
After witnessing Kirito's overwhelming power inside the illusionary world, he had no delusions about resisting him by force.
If he wanted to kill his future self, then Kirito's approval mattered more than anything else.
Kirito glanced at Orochimaru, amusement flickering in his eyes.
"That sounds fine," he said lightly. "If you can really kill your future self, then it only proves he was never all that impressive to begin with. Go ahead."
Future Orochimaru's expression barely shifted.
Now that he possessed so many abilities in a single body, how could he possibly lose to his younger self?
The same mind. The same cunning. The same instincts.
Even if they tried to scheme against him, it would make no difference.
So rather than anger or fear, Future Orochimaru felt only interest.
He was actually curious to see what his younger self thought he could do.
Still, Young Orochimaru did not move recklessly.
He understood perfectly well that, as things stood now, he was no match for his future self.
Even so, Kirito's approval alone was enough to make his blood stir.
Meanwhile, Hiruzen listened to the conversation with growing unease.
His eyes kept shifting, searching for an opening.
He wanted to run.
Jiraiya was the same.
Now that he knew the date of his teacher's death, he found it even harder to accept the idea of Hiruzen dying here and now.
Because if that happened, history really would be changed.
"Then… ahem… I still have matters of state to attend to," Hiruzen said at last, forcing a brittle smile as he tried to retreat. "You all may continue talking here. I promise you, the future will not be allowed to proceed as it did. Please, put your minds at ease."
But before he could take more than a step, Future Orochimaru moved forward and blocked his path.
At the same time, Young Orochimaru stepped in behind him.
One stood before him.
One stood behind him.
Two Orochimarus from two different points in history had, in this moment, made the exact same choice.
Both had chosen to stand with Namikaze Kirito.
"Orochimaru… what is the meaning of this?" Hiruzen asked, unable to keep the alarm out of his voice. "That killing intent… think carefully! If you kill me now, history will be completely thrown into chaos!"
"That's right, Orochimaru," Jiraiya said, stepping forward as well. "Don't do anything rash!"
Whether it was because he feared changing history, or because part of him still wanted to protect Hiruzen, he could not stand by and let Orochimaru make the first move.
"Heh…" Orochimaru only laughed softly. "Didn't you just say you were going to change?"
"That's right," Hiruzen said immediately, putting on a solemn, righteous expression. "Now that I knows some of my choices were wrong, i will naturally change them."
But Orochimaru did not buy a single word.
"In that case," he said calmly, "what you're trying to do is also changing history. How is that any different from me killing you right now?"
"…!"
The words struck Hiruzen speechless.
He froze for a moment.
Because Orochimaru was right.
If he truly intended to change the course of his life and avoid the decisions he would have made, then that too was changing history.
There was no real difference.
Whether it was Orochimaru killing him… or he himself changing the future… either way, history would no longer remain the same.
Hiruzen's face grew paler.
At that moment, he no longer cared about dignity or reason.
He just did not want to die.
His mind raced desperately for a way out, and then, after a moment, his eyes suddenly locked onto Minato.
"Minato!" Hiruzen said quickly, as if grabbing at his final lifeline. "Would you really allow your son to kill me?"
"You know full well that I have done nothing yet."
"And if you kill me now and history changes… then whether your son will even be born in that future is no longer certain."
Minato fell silent, his expression complicated.
He knew Hiruzen's words were not without logic.
But understanding that and accepting it were two very different things.
The man he had always respected… the Third Hokage he had trusted so deeply…
Could that man really have gone on to commit all of those things in the future?
Before Minato could answer, Kushina's temper exploded.
The moment she heard Hiruzen dare use Minato and Kirito like that—dare threaten them with their own family—her fiery red hair practically bristled with rage.
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