Today we stand here, asking ourselves the same question every shinobi has probably asked himself at one point in his life.
What is a shinobi? Why do we kill others as a way of living, mindlessly staining the ground scarlet?
My friend asked me this today too, after our small truce of peace marking the stop of centuries of conflict between our clans. So I answered him today, and we decided to carve this out for life here as a sign for the future generations to remember the horrors we went through and the time when we stopped to think of the past that lay behind us.
A shinobi is one who endures no matter the obstacles, that is what we could say in a sentence.
Why do we kill then? Why destroy life?
To protect life, life must be taken. That is the very law of nature. The cycle goes on and on, but what differentiates us from animals is that we have the sense, the sense to feel others pain and bask in it to share his sufferings.
That is what me and my friend dreamed of years ago, a place where everyone will understand each other's sufferings and pain, and grieve together. A place where children will grow up peacefully, shielded from the violence outside the confines of that peaceful wall covering them.
We dreamed of a village. A village where children, adults and the elderly would come together and form bonds. Where children won't be thrust out to kill before they know how to hold a brush and could enjoy the taste of sake before they die.
And today the two of us are content that this dream has come true. For today, this place marks the beginning of the peace we dreamed of achieving one day and shake hands to form a village where everyone can be happy.
Today, here with a shake of our hands we unite the two great clans of the Senju and of the Uchiha to form Konohagakure no sato.
-Hashirama Senju & Madara Uchiha, Year 1197 Warring Clans Era.-
Kajirama's eyes widened and he re-read the whole thing again before brushing the inscription with his palm.
"The Shodaime and an Uchiha founded the idea of villages..?" He whispered to himself, realizing what the Shodai Hokage and this 'Madara Uchiha' had gone out to achieve together. No one had come to this place since then if he could guess right, and it was seemingly forgotten.
He read the thing again and again, not getting enough of the beautiful words inscribed on the tree. The handwriting was mixed with two individuals' writting, one of Hashirama Senju and the other of Madara Uchiha.
The year was the last year of the warring clans before shinobi villages rose up from everywhere to achieve what the two formidable clan leaders had once sought to achieve and had it in their palms at that time, seemingly bringing an end to the clan wars and halting the mindless bloodshed then and there.
Kajirama stayed there for who knows how long, as his gaze fully focused on the inscription on the wood.
...
Mount Myōboku[Land of Toads]
[Ten minutes ago]
The toads have been one of the summoning contracts of Konohagakure No Sato for around three decades now. They are said to be among the mightiest summons including the Slugs and the Snakes. Mount Myoboku is the place, where the toad clan resides. Among the toads, there was one extremely old toad who was known by their summoner and the other toads as the Grand Toad Elder. He was the size of a battle toad, almost half the size of the hokage monument. But in his old age, he couldn't move around much. Hence, he sat in his seat almost all the time.
He felt the sudden change in wind and instantly had a small smile on his aged wrinkled face. He now knew, the prophecy he prophesized about a very long time back to his friend had begun, however, that smiled stiffen when his eye sight suddenly blurred with numerous visions. He immediately called upon the nearby toads to ask them to inform Gama to summon Jiraiya as soon as possible.
...
[Present]
Jiraiya was walking alongside Fukasaku and Shima towards the throne area where Gamamaru rests. Fukasaku could not tell whether the Sannin was happy or was seriously thinking about something. Because Fukasaku noticed Jiraiya's face has a frown on it, but from time to time there was a smile on his face, like he was remembering some fond memories he shared with someone he cared for.
Soon the trio came before an elderly looking toad resting on the throne. Jiraiya showed his respect to the great elder toad by bowing his head.
The Great Toad Sage, Gamamaru was the oldest of the toads and one of the largest, with brown wrinkled skin and squinting eyes, wearing only a professor's hat and a necklace with the symbol for oil. He was currently sitting on his throne which doubles as a shallow pool with the kanji for sage, has a small set of stairs in front of it with a pillar on each side, Fukasaku standing on top of the right pillar, and his wife Shima on the other, a light green toad with purple hair and a grey cloak like her husband.
"So, you have come at last, how nice... but uhh...who are you again?" Gamamaru tried to remember Jiraiya, who was down on one knee in front of him.
"Lord Elder, this is Jiraiya, the human summoner." Fukasaku explained to him patiently.
"Ah yes, it's all coming back to me now, my my you sure have grown." Gamamaru stated.
"You're the one who summoned him in the first place, you great senile geezer." Shima retorted.
"Ma, you mustn't refer to him as such. Have some respect, would ya!" Fukasaku argued with his wife.
"Now now, let's not fight. Spouses must do their best to get along... Oh and by the way, who are you again?" Gamamaru asked Jiraiya.
All this while, Jiraiya who was standing beside Fukasaku, sighed upon hearing this conversation again, for most probably the thousandth time. Jiraiya bowed to him once again and spoke respectfully as he got on one knee. "Gamamaru-sama why is it that you have summoned me? Fukasaku-sensei told me it is something important regarding the Child of Prophecy."
"Ah, Jiraiya boy… you're here." Replied the elder toad in a sagely tone, as if just realizing.
"Yes Gamamaru-sama." The Sannin confirmed.
"Jiraiya boy, I already told you about the prophecy when you first came before me, about the future student of yours that will become a ninja, who will bring a great change to the world of Shinobi. I got another glimpse of the future with a vision, and I summoned to inform you that there has been a change with the prophecy lately..." The Elder Toad stated to the now shocked Jiraiya. Even Fukasaku and Shima seemed to be ignorant of this.
Shima retorted on behalf of Jiraiya's place. "What do you mean you senile old geezer! Explain!"
Fukasaku loudly bellowed towards his wife. "Ma! Lower your voice in front of him."
Jiraya was shocked, what happened that made the prophecy change? Was the prophecy on her period or something? Eventually, he shook that thought off lest he might be smitten. "Please tell me what you have seen of Gamamaru-sama." Jiraiya asked and started listening carefully.
"I saw... Two children in my vision, one of these younglings will bring upon something that was long since forgotten. Whatever they will bring upon will either cause the destruction of the Shinobi world or the salvation of it. " Answered Gamamaru.
'I think I've already found that one of the two 'children' of prophecy.' Thought Jiraiya remembering his one time student who happens to carry a Dojutsu that has been long since forgotten.
"Anything else you may have forgotten to tell Jiraiya, old geezer!?" Shima interjected. Which made the Great Elder Toad hum in silence before continuing:
"In my vision, I saw a world of those with a light in themselves, overshadowed by a darkness that seeks to extinguish all of the light. However, there were two shinobis, one whose light is that of a sun and the other whose brilliance of that like the moon, these two will one day face against the overshadowed darkness in a battle that will determine the fate of this world. One containing power gained from a being on par with a god, and the other containing the power on the utmost limitations of a shinobi, they shall save the world from total genocide and confront the overshadowed darkness possessing malice and hatred that shall cause said genocide." Gamamaru explained his vision to Jiraiya, who was trying to figure out what it all means.
"Anything else have you seen Gamamaru-sama?" The Toad Sage - Jiraya asked.
When no reply came, the Sannin looked closely and he could hear that Gamamaru had fallen asleep on the throne snoring peacefully. Seeing this, both Jiraiya and Fukasaku fell face first into the ground in a comical way.
Jiraiya was the first to recover and stand up. "I guess if that's all, I should be going Fukasaku-sensei" He said to Fukasaku.
"Alright, Jiraiya boy. You may return." Replied Fukasaku with a sweat drop on the back of his head at seeing the great elder toad's antics.
With that Jiraiya got ready to return to Konoha.
So the prophecy has been retold? This was Jiraiya's thought when he was going to Shima so she could send him back to the village. 'Is my son... One of these two? Hmm...'
*Just a short chapter, heh nothing important.*