"Fixing flaws?" Jiraiya thought. What flaws could there possibly have been in the ancient era?
Back then, people could use chakra to understand each other's thoughts. Communication was seamless.
What could have been better than that?
"Humans are greedy," the Great Toad Sage sighed, continuing his tale of the ancient world. "There will always be those who use the power of chakra to serve their own selfish desires. Even among the followers of Ninshū, some were bound to commit terrible acts..."
Jiraiya had to admit, that was a fair point. Even he, a devoted admirer of that era, couldn't deny it. But he didn't think it was that big of a deal.
At least it was better than the current ninja world, right?
A small flaw should be easy to correct, right?
A thought suddenly struck Jiraiya. "Wait... was Emiya Shirou the one who wanted to correct those flaws?"
"It was more than that," the Sage replied. "In the ancient era, Emiya Shirou once prophesied that these small flaws, combined with the existence of chakra, could one day plunge the world into war."
The Great Toad Sage opened its eyes again, its voice suddenly taking on an ethereal, almost unsettling tone. "Little Jiraiya, let me ask you: whose ideal do you think is greater? Yours, or Emiya Shirou's?"
"Lord Emiya, of course!" Jiraiya slapped his forehead. "What kind of stupid question is that?"
How could anyone in their right mind compare themselves to Emiya Shirou? The man was a legend so great that even the Sage of Six Paths had respected him.
Fukasaku, who stood beside the Great Toad Sage, quickly chimed in. "That's a bit insulting to Little Jiraiya, don't you think? How can you even compare him to someone like Emiya Shirou?"
Jiraiya's eye twitched.
Thanks for the support, I guess.
"Even Little Jiraiya wants to change the ninja world," the Great Toad Sage continued, its voice trembling as it recalled the disasters of the past. "Emiya Shirou couldn't tolerate even the slightest flaw in the ancient era. Now, he has returned to a world that has become exactly what he predicted. What do you think he's planning now?"
"He must want to change it..." Jiraiya started, but then he paused. A strange question popped into his head. "Wait a minute. If Lord Emiya saw all this coming back then, why didn't he stop it?"
Why wouldn't he have prevented it from happening?
Knowing Emiya Shirou's character, it seemed impossible that he would just sit back and watch the world slide into chaos. Was leaving behind the art of medical ninjutsu the only thing he did?
"Was medical ninjutsu his solution?" Jiraiya wondered aloud, thinking he'd figured it out. "Was he trying to guide people to use chakra for healing instead?"
The Great Toad Sage looked down at Jiraiya like he was a naive child. The Sage, after all, had witnessed that ancient disaster firsthand.
"Was I wrong?" Jiraiya asked, taking an embarrassed step back.
"That was his original intention, yes," the Sage admitted. "But there was another reason. In the ancient era, someone once promised Emiya Shirou that people would one day be able to truly understand one another."
"Wow, that's..." Jiraiya couldn't help but laugh.
He shared that dream of a world where everyone understood each other, but he knew how incredibly difficult, almost naive, it was.
To think that even someone like Emiya Shirou once believed in such a simple, idealistic dream... it made Jiraiya feel a strange sense of connection to the man.
"But," the Great Toad Sage cut in, shattering Jiraiya's daydream, "as you can see, Little Jiraiya, the generations that followed failed to achieve that."
"It's a real shame," Jiraiya said, his face falling.
In the end, only a handful of people held onto such naive ideals.
"So," the Sage pressed, "what do you think Emiya Shirou is thinking now?"
It then reminded Jiraiya of Emiya's first resurrection. "Konoha's First Hokage, Senju Hashirama, ended the Warring States period. That probably gave Emiya Shirou hope for the ninja world. It's why he stepped in to end what you call the First Great Ninja War."
"Yeah, what a shame," Jiraiya repeated, his expression turning grim as he thought of the Second and Third Great Ninja Wars that followed. "Even the peace Lord Emiya fought for... we couldn't maintain it."
"Little Jiraiya," the Great Toad Sage sighed, its tone turning into a grave warning. "If Emiya Shirou decides this world is doomed to endless war, he might just try to bring about peace... his own way."
"His own way...?" Jiraiya's face changed completely as the meaning of those words sank in. "What does that mean? Are you saying Lord Emiya would..."
"And his way," the Sage's voice grew heavy, "is not something this world would want."
It closed its eyes, the memory of the war that nearly destroyed Ninshū flashing in its mind. The horror of that conflict was second only to the battle between Kaguya Otsutsuki and her sons.
"Little Jiraiya, you are running out of time." The Sage brought up the prophecy again, its voice deadly serious. "You must show Emiya Shirou that there is still hope for stability in the ninja world. You cannot let him decide to change the world himself."
"His current power may be limited, but an Emiya Shirou with the Rinnegan is still capable of causing a terrifying disaster."
The first time Emiya was resurrected, Mount Myoboku had no summoner to call upon for help. Luckily, he hadn't done anything.
But now, the Great Toad Sage could no longer ignore the threat. As one of the few who had witnessed Emiya's extreme methods, it had to warn Jiraiya of the crisis the world might be facing.
"Wait," Jiraiya said nervously, "what exactly would he do?"
He couldn't imagine a man like that—a medical ninja who had saved so many—posing a threat to the world.
"I cannot say," the Sage sighed, the image of the man who both destroyed and saved Ninshū still vivid in its mind. "Even I cannot be sure of the extent of his power now."
It could only repeat one thing. "Little Jiraiya, you have one mission: find the true Child of Prophecy, guide him down the right path, and show Emiya Shirou that this world is still full of hope."
"I understand," Jiraiya said with a helpless shake of his head. "But you could at least give me a little more information!"
"Perhaps..." A faint snore escaped the Great Toad Sage's lips as if it were drifting off to sleep. "You could tell Emiya Shirou about my prophecy..."
Jiraiya's eyes lit up.
Of course!
If the Sage wanted Emiya to see hope, then telling him about the prophecy was the perfect solution. Maybe he would even help find the Child of Prophecy.
But would he believe me? Jiraiya wondered.
If Emiya and the Sage knew each other, he must be aware of its ability to see the future. He should, in theory, believe in the prophecy.
And... if Shirou really is a threat, I need to find a way to test his power. I can't be caught unprepared.
Jiraiya knew Emiya Shirou had to be a good person at heart, but he also knew that good people were sometimes capable of very extreme things.
Back in Konoha Village, Emiya Shirou stood quietly in a hospital ward, watching Tsunade treat a patient. Suddenly, he furrowed his brow as he looked at a new request that had just appeared in his vision.
[SSSS-Rank Mission: Guide Jiraiya to find the true Children of Prophecy (Uzumaki Naruto and Nagato)]