All across the training ground, sharp gasps could be heard one after another.
Did that mean the Sage of Six Paths looked exactly like Shinichi Higashino?
A reincarnation of the Sage of Six Paths?
That was a little too… but on second thought, it somehow did not seem strange at all.
So he was the reincarnation of the Sage of Six Paths, no wonder…
'Yeah, right!'
Mei Terumi's eyes widened even more, and her voice involuntarily rose several pitches.
"Shinichi-sama, are you saying... That you are the reincarnation of the Sage of Six Paths?"
Even her manner of speech unconsciously became more respectful.
"No."
Shinichi shook his head and calmly explained, "What I mean is that I did not see the Sage of Six Paths' actual appearance, but rather, I saw him deep within my heart."
The expressions on everyone's faces shifted from shock to confusion, as if they completely failed to understand the difference between the two.
Seeing the puzzled looks on the faces of the people below the stage, Shinichi continued, "According to legend, before the Sage of Six Paths founded Ninja Creed, he was a monk who traveled the world in search of a path to save it."
"In Buddhism, it is said that minds resonate with one another, that the heart transmits itself directly to another heart, that one becomes a Buddha upon seeing one's true nature, that by understanding the mind and seeing one's nature, one may behold the Tathagata."
"It is also said that the mind, the Buddha, and all living beings are fundamentally no different, and that if one sees all appearances as non-appearances, then one sees the Tathagata!"
"The Sage of Six Paths originally spread chakra and established Ninja Creed with the intention of using chakra as a bond to connect people's hearts, to convey understanding, to ensure that no one remained alone, and to allow conflicts to fade away through mutual resonance."
"This was the supreme truth he comprehended as a monk. The connection between people does not lie in words, nor in forms, but in the heart. The Buddhist scriptures say that a single flower contains an entire world and a single leaf is a Tathagata, and they also say that one should give rise to the mind without attaching it anywhere."
The Sage of Six Paths: "..."
'Still going! He's still going!'
For a moment, the Sage of Six Paths even began to wonder whether this kid had actually witnessed his travels through the world firsthand back then, which would explain how he understood his inner journey so thoroughly.
Meanwhile, Shinichi continued speaking.
"When I comprehended the Ancestor's true intention and understood what it meant to connect hearts and transmit understanding from heart to heart, at that moment, though I did not see his form or hear his voice, my heart and thoughts became perfectly connected with his."
"Following that original aspiration, I searched for him and found him deep within my heart. That is what I mean when I say I have seen him, not with these eyes, but with this heart."
He paused, looked at Mei Terumi, and added, "Buddhism also teaches that all sentient beings possess the wisdom and virtues of the Tathagata, but cannot realize them because of delusion and attachment. The Sage of Six Paths has no form, yet the Sage of Six Paths is all phenomena."
"If one seeks me through form or searches for me through sound, that person follows an erroneous path and cannot see the Tathagata. In other words, the Sage of Six Paths will not appear to people with a fixed appearance. Whoever seeks the Sage of Six Paths through outward form will not see the Sage of Six Paths. Only those who resonate with the Sage of Six Paths through their original heart can truly see the Sage of Six Paths."
The Sage of Six Paths: "..."
'That actually makes a lot of sense, and why didn't I think of that back then…'
"The Sage will appear in the form of each student who has truly comprehended the essence of Ninja Creed. Therefore, the Sage of Six Paths I saw within my heart looked exactly like me. That is not because I am him, but because, at that moment, I understood him."
"And in the future, if you, too, come to understand the Sage of Six Paths' true intention, then the Sage of Six Paths you see deep within your heart will bear the appearance of Mei Terumi."
Does he know my name?
Mei Terumi was briefly stunned, and for some reason, a faint sense of joy suddenly welled up within her, like little fish leaping across the surface of the sea.
But the boy on the stage was no longer looking at her. Instead, he turned his gaze toward the larger crowd below.
"It may also take your appearance, your appearance, or perhaps his appearance!"
Shinichi raised his hand and pointed toward one mist prisoner after another as he calmly said, "But regardless of what form it manifests as, its essence is always the same original heart. Therefore, the Sage of Six Paths has no form and thus can become all phenomena! The Sage of Six Paths is all phenomena, and therefore has no form!
...
Within the Pure Land, the Sage of Six Paths finally could not hold back and raised a hand to cover his forehead.
When Shinichi Higashino said these things, his face did not change, and his heart did not race. He spoke with confidence, logic, and convincing arguments.
For a moment, even he, the very founder of the Ninja Creed, could not find any words with which to refute him.
There was even an instant when an absurd thought emerged in his mind.
If one day he were to return to the Shinobi World, and the image he presented to the world differed even slightly from the Sage of Six Paths described by this boy, wouldn't people point at him and shout on the spot, "Bold demon! How dare you impersonate the Ancestor! Reveal your true form at once!"
The moment this thought surfaced, the Sage of Six Paths' mood became extraordinarily complicated.
In his view, this boy who had borrowed his name and would one day lead change throughout the Shinobi World possessed good intentions and noble aspirations, but the boy had forcibly attributed far too many ideas to him, the so-called founder of the Ninja Creed.
The good ones, he attributed.
The less good ones... Or rather, those that seemed excessively radical from the Sage's perspective, he attributed as well.
Some of them had indeed been his intentions, while others were things he had never once considered.
At this rate, he could not help but suspect that who the Sage of Six Paths actually was no longer mattered. Whoever Shinichi Higashino said was the Sage of Six Paths would become the Sage of Six Paths.
At that moment, however, Shinichi knew nothing of the Sage of Six Paths's complicated thoughts. He was not even sure whether the Sage of Six Paths was secretly observing this place.
After all, neither his Fortune Sight nor Misfortune Sight talents had given any reaction; he merely swept his gaze slowly across the silent Kirigakure prisoners below.
Shinichi knew perfectly well how much of a charlatan he sounded just now, but he also knew that if he wanted to drive reform and rewrite institutions, especially in the beginning, before attracting excessive opposition and resistance, then he had to reform by invoking ancient authority.
He had to take his ideals and beliefs and gradually stuff them into the greatest banner available: The name of the Sage of Six Paths, the founder of the Ninja Creed.