Mount Myōboku—one of the three legendary Sage Regions.
Atop a narrow stone peak, Jiraiya sat cross-legged on a flat slab of rock, his eyes closed as he quietly drew in the natural energy surrounding him.
He had been training in senjutsu for many years.
Back when he was still a genin, Jiraiya had attempted to use the Summoning Jutsu without first forming a contract. The failed technique had unexpectedly reverse-summoned him all the way to Mount Myōboku.
It was there that the Great Toad Sage had spoken of a prophecy concerning him. From that day onward, Jiraiya began learning senjutsu under Fukasaku's guidance.
However, even after years of training, his progress remained painfully slow.
He could hardly claim to have mastered senjutsu. Even now, after spending several years practicing it, he was still unable to enter Sage Mode freely during battle.
Jiraiya had been born with enormous chakra reserves, and his physique—rated at ten—made him naturally suited to senjutsu training.
What held him back was his control over senjutsu chakra.
While sitting perfectly still, Jiraiya could maintain the delicate balance between his own chakra and natural energy without much difficulty. But the moment he began moving—especially during an intense battle—that balance would quickly collapse.
That was why he had chosen to spend this entire year training at Mount Myōboku.
His goal was to overcome that weakness and ensure that he could maintain Sage Mode even while fighting.
Although he rarely spoke about it, Jiraiya had begun to feel an increasing sense of urgency.
Tsunade, Kizaru, and Orochimaru were all advancing rapidly in their respective fields, steadily carving out reputations of their own.
Jiraiya did not want to be left behind.
He wanted to become strong enough to contribute to the village—and to stand beside his companions without holding any of them back.
"Jiraiya! Jiraiya!"
"Hm?"
The shout from below broke his concentration.
Jiraiya opened his eyes, unfolded his legs, and leapt from the stone slab.
He landed on a lower ledge, where Gamabunta was waiting for him. The young toad had already grown considerably larger than before, though he had yet to reach the massive size he would possess as an adult.
"The Great Toad Sage wants to see you," Gamabunta said. "He has another prophecy."
Jiraiya's eyes immediately lit up.
"Another prophecy? Seriously? What did he see, Bunta?"
"Quit asking me. Just come along."
Without giving him another chance to speak, Gamabunta turned away. Jiraiya climbed onto his back, and the toad began bounding across the towering stone peaks toward the palace of the Great Toad Sage.
The palace was vast and dimly lit.
At its deepest point sat the Great Toad Sage, Gamamaru, resting inside a large basin-shaped seat filled with water.
The front of the basin had been painted with a rectangular patch of red. At its center was the kanji for "sage."
On raised platforms to either side stood two elderly toads, each roughly the size of a human infant.
They were Gamabunta's parents, Fukasaku and Shima.
The two Great Sage Toads were Gamamaru's most trusted attendants and handled nearly all of Mount Myōboku's daily affairs.
"Oh! He's here! He's finally here!"
The Great Toad Sage stirred in his seat as Jiraiya entered the palace.
Jiraiya stepped forward and stopped before him.
Gamamaru stared down at him for several seconds. The old toad had been speaking energetically only a moment earlier, but he suddenly fell silent.
Then he tilted his head.
"Who are you?"
Jiraiya's expression went blank.
He had already grown accustomed to the Great Toad Sage's occasional lapses in memory and opened his mouth to introduce himself.
Before he could speak, Fukasaku leaned forward from the platform.
"Gamamaru-sama, that's Jiraiya," he reminded him quietly. "Jiraiya."
"Oh, yes! Jiraiya!"
The Great Toad Sage's eyes widened with recognition.
"You've grown again!"
"Jiraiya," Fukasaku said, his tone becoming serious. "Gamamaru-sama has a new prophecy to tell you."
"Right."
Jiraiya lowered himself into a crouch and looked up expectantly.
The Great Toad Sage slowly opened his eyes wider and focused on him.
His mouth parted.
However, before a single word came out, he once again fell silent.
After several seconds, he asked, "Who are you?"
Jiraiya's head dropped.
A heavy sigh escaped him.
"Honestly, the old man's memory is getting worse by the day," Shima complained from the opposite platform.
"Ma, you shouldn't speak about Gamamaru-sama that way," Fukasaku hurriedly scolded her.
He turned back toward the Great Toad Sage.
"Gamamaru-sama, this is Jiraiya. You summoned him because you wanted to tell him about your new prophecy."
"Oh!"
Gamamaru finally seemed to remember.
He lowered his gaze toward Jiraiya and began recounting the strange dream he had recently experienced.
"Jiraiya... I saw a giant made of light."
The relaxed atmosphere inside the palace immediately vanished.
"The giant devoured natural energy. He shattered trees, brought destruction... and ended the age of shinobi."
As the Great Toad Sage spoke, Jiraiya's initial surprise gradually turned into solemn concern.
Fukasaku and Shima also wore grave expressions.
"Amid that destruction, upon the ruins of the shinobi world, the giant established a single, unified nation."
Gamamaru's voice remained slow and distant, as though he were still gazing into the dream.
"It was a strange nation, unlike anything I had ever seen... but it was peaceful."
The Great Toad Sage stopped speaking.
For a moment, only silence filled the dark palace.
Jiraiya waited, but Gamamaru showed no sign of continuing.
"What kind of nation was it?" Jiraiya asked, rising slightly. "Was there anything else after that?"
"I don't know."
The Great Toad Sage sounded uncertain.
"I also saw a glowing doorway. Beyond that doorway was an enormous ocean."
"A doorway?"
Jiraiya frowned.
"Where was it?"
"Konoha."
"Konoha?"
Jiraiya shot to his feet.
"Why would there be a glowing doorway in Konoha? And how could an ocean be on the other side of it?"
"Jiraiya, calm yourself," Fukasaku warned when he saw Jiraiya becoming increasingly agitated.
Jiraiya froze.
After a brief silence, he lowered his head.
"Sorry."
"The dream was unclear," Gamamaru continued. "Even I could not see everything. I only know that the world will experience an enormous change in the future."
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"A change greater than any that came before it."
Even the Great Toad Sage himself seemed unsure of the prophecy.
If the future he had witnessed truly came to pass, then it meant that his previous visions—including the fate he had once foreseen for Jiraiya—had already begun to change.
"Will that change be good or bad?" Jiraiya asked.
The prophecy spoke of destruction and the end of the shinobi age.
Yet it also spoke of unity and peace.
Jiraiya could not decide whether the future he had heard about was something to fear or something to welcome.
"Perhaps it will be good," Gamamaru answered meaningfully.
Jiraiya's expression shifted again.
"Why do you think that?"
The Great Toad Sage did not answer.
He merely shook his head.
Jiraiya hesitated before asking, "Then what should I do?"
"Find the giant and bring him to Mount Myōboku," Gamamaru replied. "I wish to meet him."
"How am I supposed to find a giant made of light?"
Jiraiya scratched his head, utterly confused.
"You will find him."
The Great Toad Sage's voice became more certain.
"In the future, you will stand at his side."
Jiraiya slowly lowered his hand.
"Remember my words. When you encounter the giant, bring him here to meet me."
Gamamaru placed particular emphasis on the final part of his request.
Jiraiya nodded seriously.
"I understand. When I find him, I'll bring him to Mount Myōboku."
"You may leave now. I wish to rest."
"Yes."
Jiraiya turned and walked out of the palace.
Fukasaku watched him until his figure completely disappeared beyond the entrance. A deep look of concern appeared on the elderly toad's face.
He turned back toward the Great Toad Sage.
"Gamamaru-sama... that prophecy—"
"I saw them," Gamamaru interrupted calmly.
Fukasaku fell silent.
"I saw Jiraiya. I also saw the shinobi of Konoha."
The Great Toad Sage lowered his head and looked toward Fukasaku.
"They were all beside the giant. They fought at his side."
Fukasaku's expression grew even more troubled.
Gamamaru had deliberately concealed that part of the prophecy from Jiraiya.
"Gamamaru-sama... what should we do when that time comes?"
"I do not know."
Fukasaku and Shima both stared at him.
It was the first time either of them had heard the Great Toad Sage admit that he could offer no guidance.
"Let us wait until Jiraiya brings the giant here," Gamamaru said after a long silence. "I must first meet this mysterious being."
A faint trace of unease crossed the ancient toad's face.
It vanished almost immediately, but neither Fukasaku nor Shima failed to notice it.
The couple exchanged a glance.
Neither continued questioning him.
They could clearly see the uncertainty in Gamamaru's eyes—and the worry he was trying to conceal.
Something would happen in the future that would reshape the entire world.
This time, even the Great Toad Sage did not know which path was the correct one.
The three Sages inside the palace were not the only ones troubled by the future.
Jiraiya walked through Mount Myōboku with the prophecy repeating endlessly inside his mind.
Destruction and rebirth.
War and unity.
A mysterious Giant of Light.
A radiant doorway standing within Konoha, with an immense ocean waiting on the other side.
The new prophecy had completely disrupted every plan Jiraiya had made for his future.
"Perhaps it will be good," he muttered.
But why?
What had the Great Toad Sage seen that made him say that?
Then there was the Giant of Light.
Gamamaru had said that Jiraiya would meet the giant someday and stand beside him.
Was he supposed to begin searching for him?
"A Giant of Light..."
Jiraiya placed both hands on his head.
He did know one shinobi who used Light Release.
That shinobi was Kizaru, one of his fellow students.
Could Kizaru be the Giant of Light?
Kizaru was certainly tall by shinobi standards, but no matter how Jiraiya looked at it, calling him a giant was going much too far.
"Argh!"
Jiraiya cried out in frustration, threw his arms apart, and collapsed onto the ground.
He remained there, staring helplessly at the sky.
After spending a long time turning the prophecy over in his mind and reaching absolutely no conclusion, Jiraiya suddenly sat up.
"No. I need help."
He possessed a painfully accurate understanding of the limits of his own intellect.
There was no point continuing to think about something he could not solve alone.
He needed an outside opinion.
Once he decided to return to Konoha, Jiraiya found Gamabunta and asked him to inform Fukasaku and Shima that he was leaving.
Afterward, he departed Mount Myōboku.
Back in Konoha, Kizaru had just received some good news inside the Ninja Academy's administrative office.
Several stubborn members of prominent shinobi clans had originally opposed placing their children in the newly established scientific research and medical classes.
However, after Danzō paid them a cordial personal visit, each of those clan members had reconsidered.
All of them had now signed the class-placement forms.
"Ooh... as expected of my uncle."
Kizaru looked through the forms, a pleased smile slowly spreading across his face.
"He certainly knows how to communicate with people."
Nara Shikaku was slumped over the table across from him.
Although the academy was currently on break, Kizaru had somehow managed to drag him there almost every single day.
Shikaku's lips twitched when he heard the praise directed at Danzō.
Good at communicating?
Perhaps if threats and physical intimidation counted as communication.
"Hey," Shikaku said wearily. "Why did you call me here today?"
Kizaru raised his head and looked at him with an innocent smile.
"Hm? There wasn't any particular reason."
Shikaku stared at him.
"I was simply worried that you might become lonely and bored at home, so I invited you here to keep me company."
"You really are awful."
Shikaku looked completely speechless.
"I'm going home."
He pushed himself away from the table and stood.
"Ooh... but you're already here."
Kizaru leaned back comfortably in his chair.
"You might as well stay a little longer."
"Tch."
Shikaku clicked his tongue in annoyance.
Despite his complaints, he sat back down.
Kizaru placed the signed forms aside and turned his attention toward him again.
"That young Uchiha wants to work at the academy," he said. "What position do you think would suit him?"
Shikaku glanced at Kizaru and began thinking.
After a moment, he answered, "How about assistant principal?"
Kizaru's eyes narrowed slightly.
"And what would you be doing?"
He had immediately seen through Shikaku's intentions.
The boy was clearly trying to hand his own responsibilities to someone else.
"Me?"
Shikaku pointed at himself, wearing an expression of complete innocence.
"I'll be studying, of course. I'm still a student."
Kizaru continued staring at him.
Shikaku stared back without the slightest trace of shame.
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