The Sage of Six Paths said helplessly,
"There's no other way. Naruto Uzumaki has turned out like this, and I can't place all my hopes on Sasuke Uchiha being able to correct him. So I must prepare a second option."
Yōsuke recommended,
"I think my disciple, Itachi Uchiha, would be a good choice. He longs for peace, and he's also Sasuke's older brother. If someone were to become a savior, he's certainly qualified."
The Sage of Six Paths shook his head.
"The two saviors are not brothers by blood, but by soul. Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha carry the chakra of Asura and Indra within their bodies—this is the bond that transcends blood relations.
"And if Naruto Uzumaki is to be replaced as the savior, then the new savior must be someone not of this world who can inherit Asura's chakra."
Yōsuke's expression grew conflicted.
"Is there really no other way?"
"Yōsuke, although I don't wish to accuse you of anything, all of these changes began because of you. Even if you want to stay out of this, you're already deeply entangled."
Hearing this, Yōsuke scratched his head awkwardly. At this point, he had no choice but to accept it.
"Alright, I accept it. If I'm to become the savior, what do I need to do?"
The Sage of Six Paths said solemnly,
"The Five Great Ninja Villages must end their war as soon as possible. This war should never have happened. Internal conflict only weakens the world. We must preserve as much of the ninja world's strength as possible."
"So… I need to stop the war. I understand. I'll do my best."
The Sage warned him,
"Yōsuke, Naruto Uzumaki is thirteen years old now. At most, you have three years. If his personality hasn't changed within those three years, then you must take his place—inherit Asura's chakra, and become the new Child of Destiny."
Yōsuke nodded.
"I understand. During this time, I'll do everything I can to stop the war and change Naruto's personality."
"I look forward to hearing good news from you, Yōsuke."
The Sage of Six Paths' figure gradually faded away, and Yōsuke returned to the ninja world.
The moment he came back, Yōsuke realized that Hakuji and Pakura were standing face to face, staring at each other.
Yōsuke asked curiously,
"Huh? Hakuji, why are you here?"
Hakuji couldn't help complaining,
"That's what I should be asking! I followed your aura here, Yōsuke-sama, but you weren't here at all—only your presence lingered. I even started wondering if my sensory abilities were malfunctioning!"
"Alright, alright. Hakuji, this is someone I met on the way. Umm… she should count as a companion. Her name is Pakura," Yōsuke said as he introduced her.
Hakuji said doubtfully,
"Oh? I thought she was a new member you'd recruited, Yōsuke-sama."
"No, no. Pakura doesn't know where she's going right now, so she's traveling with me to the Land of Lightning—just to clear her head a bit. By the way, Hakuji, what's the situation on your side?" Yōsuke asked, waving his hand.
Hakuji glanced at Pakura, and Pakura wisely stepped aside.
After she left, Hakuji's expression turned serious.
"The Akatsuki have already begun their operations. My partner, Hidan, has infiltrated Kumogakure and is causing chaos. Two other Akatsuki members are searching for tailed beasts. There are six Akatsuki members active here in total."
"How strong are they?" Yōsuke asked.
"Every one of them is extremely strong. Some even feel about as powerful as I am."
Yōsuke was surprised.
"They're that strong? What about the Akatsuki leader?"
"The leader is called Pain. I haven't seen him fight, but the pressure he gives off is far greater than mine. And Pain isn't even alive—he's just a corpse. The real leader must be controlling him from behind the scenes."
Yōsuke frowned and pondered for a moment.
"I understand now. Hakuji, I have some news—neither entirely bad nor good. Do you want to hear it?"
"Hm? Just say it, Yōsuke-sama."
"Let's start with the bad news. I might have to become this world's savior."
Hakuji's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Huh?! The savior of this world? Yōsuke-sama, are you joking? We came to this world to hunt the Priest Master—how did you suddenly end up becoming a savior?!"
Yōsuke said awkwardly,
"I don't have a choice. The world's guardian, the Sage of Six Paths, just pulled me into a different dimension. Because I did some things here, I accidentally caused this world's savior to fall into darkness—so now I have to step in."
After a moment of stunned silence, Hakuji suddenly burst into laughter.
"Hahaha! Yōsuke-sama, only you could pull something like this off!"
Yōsuke's face darkened.
"Stop laughing. I haven't even told you the good news yet."
"Sorry, Yōsuke-sama—I really couldn't help it. Go on," Hakuji said, struggling to suppress his laughter.
"The good news is that there are still three years. If we can correct the original savior's personality within those three years, then I won't have to become the savior."
Hakuji was laughing so hard that tears were nearly streaming down his face.
"Honestly, I think it'd be great for Yōsuke-sama to officially be a savior for once."
"Quit enjoying my misery. Before becoming a savior, there's something far more important we need to do!"
As soon as Yōsuke finished speaking, Gyutaro—who had arrived in the Land of Lightning—appeared beside him with Suigetsu Hōzuki.
Gyutaro looked at the laughing Koma in confusion.
"Hakuji, what's so funny?"
Hakuji told Gyutaro about Yōsuke becoming a savior, and Gyutaro promptly joined in mocking him.
In the end, both Hakuji and Gyutaro received a large bump on their heads, putting an end to their laughter.
Yōsuke looked at Suigetsu, who was standing beside Gyutaro and watching them curiously, and asked,
"Gyutaro, is this a new member who's joined us?"
"Yeah. His name's Suigetsu Hōzuki. His ability is pretty interesting—he can turn any part of his body into water, making him immune to physical attacks. But his weakness is pretty obvious too: Lightning Release."
Suigetsu immediately jumped in anger.
"Hey! Who tells someone's weaknesses the moment they meet?!"
Gyutaro scratched his cheek in confusion.
"Is that not allowed? But Yōsuke-sama and Hakuji are both stronger than me, and you're much weaker than I am. So it shouldn't matter, right?"
Suigetsu had no way to refute that and turned bright red with frustration.
Looking at Suigetsu—who was about the same age as Karin—Yōsuke sighed internally.
"This shouldn't count as a kid anymore… right? Yeah, this counts as a teenager."
Hakuji asked,
"Yōsuke-sama, you said there was something very important we needed to do. What is it?"
Yōsuke said seriously,
"Stop the war between the Five Great Nations and restore peace."
After hearing this, Suigetsu immediately felt like he'd boarded a pirate ship. Including himself, there were only four of them—yet they were seriously discussing stopping a war between the Five Great Nations.
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