Chapter 16: Doomsday Prophecy
The Great Toad Sage sat silently upon his massive stone throne, his ancient eyes half-closed as if gazing through time itself. The oppressive silence inside the shrine weighed heavily on everyone present. Jiraiya could feel his chest tighten, as though the words that would soon leave the old sage's lips would reshape the fate of the entire shinobi world.
"Jiraiya…" The Great Toad Sage's voice rumbled slowly, hoarse and heavy with age. "Go to Konoha. The disaster begins there. But heed this warning—no matter what you see, you must not act rashly. Do not intervene. Leave at once."
The stillness afterward was suffocating. Then, as if drained by the effort of the prophecy, the Great Toad Sage closed his eyes and fell into slumber once more.
Jiraiya bowed his head, his heart pounding. He knew better than anyone what it meant when the Sage spoke so gravely. Without wasting another moment, he descended from Myoboku Mountain.
---
The moment his sandals touched the earth of the mortal realm, a storm of thoughts tore through his mind.
"Damn it! What in the world has happened? Why Konoha? Why my home village? If the Great Sage said the disaster starts there, then it means something… something irreversible. I can't just stand by!"
His hesitation lasted only a heartbeat before he blurred into motion, his figure vanishing into the treeline as he raced at full speed toward the Land of Fire. His movements were like a streak of shadow, propelled by both dread and determination.
The forests, rivers, and villages passed in a blur. Soon he crossed the border from the Land of Rice into the familiar soil of the Land of Fire. But as he neared Konoha, his path was suddenly blocked—not by enemies, but by his own comrades.
A group of battered Konoha shinobi were fleeing, their uniforms torn, their eyes wide with fear.
"Jiraiya-sama!" one of them shouted in relief. "You're back at last!"
Jiraiya grabbed the nearest ninja by the shoulder. "What's going on? Why are you fleeing? Where's the Hokage?"
The shinobi faltered, unable to answer. Then, from among them, a calm and calculating voice spoke up. Nara Shikaku, strategist of Konoha, stepped forward, his expression grave.
"…Jiraiya. Hokage-sama is dead."
The words struck like a kunai to the chest.
"W–what?!" Jiraiya froze, his breath catching. His sensei… the Third Hokage… dead? It was unthinkable.
With a heavy sigh, Shikaku explained what had transpired in the village—the plot of Shimura Danzo, his attempt to annihilate the Uchiha clan, and the horror that followed. Yes, Danzo had succeeded in unleashing devastation upon the Uchiha, but in doing so he had awoken something far worse—Uchiha Raizen, the last survivor, transformed into a monster beyond human comprehension.
"He destroyed everything," Shikaku finished grimly. "Even the Hokage could not stop him. Konoha… has fallen."
Jiraiya's fists trembled. "Danzo… that fool! Why would he dare provoke the Uchiha? And now because of him, Konoha suffers this fate. Damn it!"
But Shikaku only shook his head. "Danzo is already dead. Raizen killed him along with the rest of Root. This is no longer about Danzo's schemes. This is about survival."
Jiraiya stared at the horizon, his mind replaying the Great Toad Sage's words. Could this be it—the disaster that threatened the entire world? But how could a single man, even one from the Uchiha, bring about something so catastrophic?
"No matter how powerful he is… one shinobi cannot become a natural disaster," Jiraiya muttered, though his voice carried little conviction.
Still, a thought lingered in his heart. Perhaps Raizen hasn't completely abandoned the Will of Fire. Maybe his rage is blinding him. If I can reach him—if I can make him see reason—perhaps he can atone for his sins instead of drowning the world in blood.
"I need to see him myself," Jiraiya said firmly.
Shikaku's eyes widened. "No! That's suicide. You can't approach that monster—no one can. His chakra devours everything around him. Even stepping near him is fatal. What we need now is stability, a new Hokage. If you die recklessly, Konoha will fall further into chaos."
But Jiraiya shook his head. "I won't know unless I try. If there's even the faintest chance I can stop him, I have to take it. For Konoha… for the world."
Seeing that persuasion was useless, Shikaku reluctantly gave the order. A squad of ninja led Jiraiya toward the remains of Konoha—not because they believed in his plan, but because they knew the sight would speak louder than words.
---
When they reached the mountains overlooking Konoha, the group froze in stunned silence.
Before them stretched a world split in two. On their side, the sun still shone, casting its golden light upon the forests and rivers of the Land of Fire. But beyond a certain point, the light abruptly ended.
A vast dome of darkness enveloped the ruins of Konoha. Inside it, the air shimmered with death and decay, a land drained of life itself. The trees withered into husks. The soil cracked and blackened. A heavy gloom pressed against their hearts simply by looking at it.
"This… this is impossible…" one ninja whispered, his voice shaking.
Another took a frightened step back. "That cursed realm… it wasn't this large before. It's expanding!"
Jiraiya clenched his jaw, his heart pounding. "So this is the disaster the Great Toad Sage warned me about… Uchiha Raizen."
Without another word, he leapt down toward the edge of the corrupted domain. His mind was set—whether to persuade or to kill, he had to confront Raizen.
The moment he crossed the boundary, Jiraiya felt it—his chakra, the very lifeblood of a shinobi, was being torn from him, siphoned away like water through a broken dam. He tried to tighten his control, to force it to stay within his body, but it slipped through his grasp as though mocking him.
His eyes widened. "No… this power… it's even worse than I imagined!"
Forcing his legs to move, he staggered back toward the edge and leapt out of the domain, collapsing on one knee. Several Konoha ninjas rushed to steady him.
"Lord Jiraiya! Are you alright?!"
Jiraiya panted heavily, his face pale, sweat dripping down his brow. "I… I'm fine. But his power… it's unlike anything I've ever seen. It doesn't just consume chakra—it strips it away endlessly. If I had gone any deeper, I wouldn't have made it back."
He turned to gaze once more at the spreading darkness. His heart was heavy with dread.
"Uchiha Raizen… what have you become?