The two of them had triggered at the same time?
A slight stir passed through Shinichi's heart. This was the first time he had ever encountered both activating simultaneously.
Normally, either an Auspicious Sign would bring an inexplicably positive premonition, or an Ominous Sign would warn him of danger in advance. Having both sensations surge into his mind at once was unprecedented.
In other words, something was brewing behind the scenes that represented both an enormous opportunity and an equally enormous danger to him.
Judging from the intensity of the feeling, the positive side was significant enough to alter the course of his life—or, more precisely, bring about a qualitative transformation in either his strength or the scope of his future.
As for the negative side, it posed a genuine and substantial threat to his life.
With Shinichi's current strength, he could not yet be considered among the absolute peak figures of the era, such as the Third Raikage or the Third Hokage.
But if Isshin and his other trump cards were taken into account, then unless he found himself surrounded by an army or simultaneously besieged by multiple top-tier experts, he believed there was virtually no situation left in the shinobi world capable of truly threatening his life.
At least, not openly.
That only left the old schemers lurking in the shadows.
Who could it be?
Several possible names flashed rapidly through Shinichi's mind.
His first instinct was to immediately activate the active divination abilities of Seeking Fortune or Avoiding Misfortune to obtain clearer guidance.
But after a moment's thought, he suppressed the impulse.
Based on the feeling he had received, whatever this was remained quite a long way from actually happening.
Activating the ability now, while he lacked any clues whatsoever, would only force the Entry into an extended cooldown period.
If some sudden crisis emerged during that time, he would lose the constant fortune-and-disaster warnings that normally protected him. The loss would outweigh the gain.
It would be better to wait until he gathered more clues, until his strength improved further, and until the weight of this matter within the trajectory of his life became relatively less significant before activating it.
By then, the cooldown period would naturally be shorter as well.
After all, the passive benefits of increased luck and avoided misfortune remained tremendously valuable to him.
No need to rush.
With that thought, Shinichi closed his status panel with a mental command and continued walking forward as though nothing had happened.
...
The Moon. A mysterious and unknowable place.
Hamura slowly withdrew his gaze.
Should he do it?
He pondered for a moment.
Then a profound glow emerged within his pure white eyes as he activated his prophetic ability.
The next instant, countless fragments of light and shadow flooded into his consciousness like shattered mirrors.
"Secret Art: Peerless Hundred-Strikes Barrage!"
A crisp young girl's shout, brimming with vitality and youthful energy, echoed through the visions.
Within the scene, a girl wielding a long staff stood bathed in blazing firelight.
Spinning through the air, she swept her staff outward. Crimson flames wrapped around it as it tore through her surroundings, blasting away an entire ring of shadow-like enemies. Trails of fire painted brilliant arcs across the sky, blooming like a flower of scarlet flame.
"Hahahaha! What was that? They were all small fry!"
After knocking down the last enemy around her, the girl casually rested her staff on her shoulder and burst into a carefree laugh, her eyes curving into crescents.
Her smile was bright and pure, like the rising morning sun scattering away the dawn mist, carrying a straightforward warmth that was impossible not to be infected by.
Dazzling. Warm.
Just like her name.
Like a true little sun.
Suddenly, the girl's laughter stopped.
Her eyes lit up as though she had spotted a familiar figure.
In an instant, her smile became even brighter. She immediately put away her staff and ran toward that direction with light, cheerful steps, like a young beast bounding freely across a field.
The vision ended there.
Hamura's eyes gradually regained their clarity.
For a long time, he remained silent as he gazed at the fading remnants of light and shadow.
"As expected of the one who will guide the world's future transformation..." he murmured softly.
Yet even through the connection of bloodline, although he could glimpse a fragment of the future belonging to the girl named Ōtsutsuki Rei, he still could not see even the slightest fragment of Higashino Shinichi's future.
That young man was like an abyss hidden within endless fog.
Even the power of his prophecy could not touch the faintest outline of the boy's future.
Perhaps that alone was already a sign of something far greater.
Perhaps... even Elder Brother would be unable to do it.
The thought crossed Hamura's mind.
In the next moment, he made his decision.
Then so be it.
Hamura closed his eyes, as though falling into slumber.
He had decided to intervene and protect the child who had come into existence unexpectedly because of his previous interference.
As for the future—the grievances and entanglements between the Ōtsutsuki Main Family and Branch Family, and the ultimate fate awaiting Rei and Toneri, those siblings who seemed born to stand on opposite sides of a divide...
That would be left for them to decide themselves.
Hamura's figure gradually faded, merging into the eternal silence that surrounded him.
...
Just as Hamura made that decision—
Late that same night, in the Land of Demons.
The Land of Demons was an ancient nation where divine and royal authority were united as one. There were no shinobi and no Daimyō. The entire country was ruled by the Miko.
Legend held that the Miko lineage possessed powerful Fūinjutsu and prophetic abilities, passed down from generation to generation for countless ages.
The nation's origins had long been lost to history. Though it was not officially recognized by the shinobi world as a neutral state the way the Land of Iron was, for centuries before the establishment of the hidden villages, the wars between shinobi had always, with remarkable tacit understanding, avoided this land.
At that moment, in the capital of the Land of Demons, within the Miko Palace.
The current Miko, Miroku, lay asleep upon her bed.
Yet she appeared trapped within a nightmare.
Her brows were tightly furrowed. Fine beads of sweat covered her forehead. Her breathing alternated between rapid and faint.
The sky was oppressively dark.
Layer upon layer of black clouds filled the heavens, hanging so low it seemed they might collapse from the sky at any moment.
An endless gloom and baleful aura permeated heaven and earth.
Even the wind carried the scent of decay and dampness.
"Where is this?"
Miroku's consciousness gradually cleared from its haze.
She looked around and discovered that she was no longer inside the familiar palace. Instead, she found herself standing in a desolate wasteland filled with fetid swamps, rotting mud, and poisonous miasma.
"The Land of Swamps?"
Miroku quickly recognized the place.
Before she could even consider why she had appeared here—
"ROOOAAARRR!!!"
A terrifying roar, as though it had emerged from the depths of a nightmare, suddenly exploded in the distance!
Accompanying that utterly vile howl, an immense chakra surged skyward with explosive force, vast as an abyss and oppressive as a hellscape!
The chakra was black as ink, mixed with ominous shades of dark purple. It churned and boiled as though alive, violently stirring the clouds overhead into countless massive black-and-violet chakra vortices.
It was like the end of the world.
"Mōryō?!"
Miroku's pupils contracted sharply as she stared toward the source of the disturbance.
The frenzied black-and-purple chakra vortices rapidly condensed, reorganized, and took shape.
Moments later, an enormous purple shadow with eight heads and eight tails appeared within her sight, like a demonic monster holding up heaven and earth itself.
Its colossal body radiated darkness, evil, decay, and chilling malice. Those oppressive energies spread in every direction, like a thousand-year glacier pressing down upon one's chest, making it difficult even to breathe.
Mōryō! It had broken free of its seal?!
A wave of terror surged through Miroku.
She immediately realized that she was inside a prophetic dream, witnessing a future fragment in which Mōryō escaped its imprisonment.
Her prophecies had never been wrong.
Especially when they involved Mōryō.
The monster that had been entangled with the Miko lineage for a thousand years.
She had assumed that after breaking free, Mōryō's first act would be to turn its malicious gaze toward her.
After all, while Mōryō did not possess prophetic abilities as powerful as those of the Miko, its connection to the Miko lineage ran extraordinarily deep.
It could even be said that the two were opposite sides of the same coin.
When she saw the future Mōryō through prophecy, the future Mōryō could likewise sense her existence in the past.
Yet to Miroku's complete astonishment, the colossal creature, now fully reformed, did not look at her at all.
Its eight crimson snake eyes, each as large as lanterns, were fixed upon the sky with a mixture of shock and fury.
The arrogant, violent, and overbearing demon that had always considered itself invincible was now roaring like a defeated cur: "You can't kill me!! You can't kill me!! Not even the Sage of Six Paths could do it!! Neither can you!!!"
What?!
Miroku's heart trembled violently.
Following Mōryō's gaze, she looked up at the sky.
There, a figure stood suspended in the air.
Its bearing was transcendent, like that of a celestial being.
Clad in robes whiter than snow, with a tall and upright figure, it seemed like a God descended from ancient myth.
Miroku strained with all her might to see its face.
Yet no matter what she did, she could not make out its features.
It was as though its face was concealed beneath some higher, more mysterious power.
A power mortals could neither gaze upon nor comprehend.
Yet there were two objects upon its person that Miroku recognized perfectly.
The Demon-Slaying Bow.
The Demon-Slaying Sword.
These two sacred relics were the very treasures that the Miko lineage had worshipped within their sanctuary for over a thousand years.
However, as generations passed, the bodies of the Miko had grown increasingly frail. No one remained capable of truly wielding their power.
Eventually, they had been placed high within the shrine and preserved merely as symbolic heirlooms.
How could they be in this person's possession?!
And who... exactly was he?!
Countless questions flooded Miroku's mind as she stared uncertainly at that celestial figure.
Faced with Miroku's shock and Mōryō's desperate barking, the heavenly figure offered no response.
It merely raised its right hand unhurriedly.
A small axe appeared in its palm.
At first glance, it seemed entirely ordinary.
Ancient in design.
Without any elaborate decorations.
But in the very next instant—
The axe suddenly expanded!
Growing larger with the wind, it transformed into a colossal battle axe over a thousand meters long, as though an ancient mountain had been suspended upside down across the heavens!
Its terrifying pressure descended like a tangible mountain falling from the heavens themselves!
It felt as though a single swing could split heaven and earth apart and recreate the world anew!
The giant axe hung high above the sky, its shadow covering the land below.
Even the seemingly invincible eight-headed demon appeared diminished beneath its presence.
For the first time, Mōryō's expression changed.
"No! No!! NO NO NO!!!"
The same Mōryō that had just been boasting that even the Sage of Six Paths could not destroy it now spoke with unprecedented fear and trembling.
Its eight monstrous heads writhed frantically as it babbled desperate pleas for mercy.
"Honored One! Honored One!! Spare me! Spare my life!! I can... I can serve you!! I know many secrets of this world!! I—"
Honored One?
Miroku's heart shook violently.
Faced with Mōryō's humble begging, the figure gave no answer.
It simply raised the colossal axe that seemed capable of cleaving apart creation itself.
Then—
The axe fell.
A force vast enough to split heaven and earth poured forth in an instant!
Where the blade passed, even space itself seemed to warp and tear apart, crying out under a burden it could not bear!
Before the axe had fully descended, the earth below had already begun to tremble and fracture violently.
BOOM!
The tremendous impact erupted like two continental plates colliding and grinding against one another with catastrophic force!
The ground within several kilometers groaned with horrifying cracks before collapsing hundreds of meters downward!
Molten magma burst from the ruptured crust, transforming the entire region into a boiling sea of lava!
The earth shattered piece by piece.
Massive chunks of rock and soil were hurled into the sky by the overwhelming compression and impact, only to be pulverized into dust by the raging shockwaves.
The formerly pitch-black heavens were illuminated by countless blazing sparks.
Light pierced through the darkness and fog, shining down upon the shattered land as though divine punishment itself had descended.
"Miroku, return."
Just as that world-destroying scene filled Miroku's vision, and she widened her eyes in a desperate attempt to see the final outcome—
A calm and gentle voice suddenly sounded beside her ear, as though it had crossed the boundaries of time and space.
He—
Could actually see me?!
Miroku's heart trembled.
Instinctively, she wanted to ask something.
But in the very next instant, the world spun around her.
Her vision shattered abruptly, breaking apart into countless streams of light that scattered in every direction.
"Haaah!!!"
Miroku jolted upright in bed, gasping for breath.
Cold sweat streamed down her cheeks, soaking a large patch of her inner robe.
Within the tranquil Miko Palace, the lamplight flickered softly. Outside, the night breeze drifted through the corridors, carrying the fragrance of grass and flowers.
Everything appeared perfectly normal.
But Miroku's heart could no longer find peace.
She sat motionless on the bed, her gaze unfocused.
Who exactly was that person?
Why were the Demon-Slaying Sword and Demon-Slaying Bow in his possession?
And this "Honored One"...
Was that his name, or some sort of title?
Sitting on the edge of the bed, Miroku stared into the silent night beyond the window for a long time without moving.
The images from the prophetic dream replayed endlessly in her mind.
That figure whose face she could not see, yet who seemed like a celestial being.
That giant axe capable of splitting heaven and earth apart.
And Mōryō's nearly hysterical pleas for mercy.
The prophetic dreams of the Miko lineage had never once been wrong.
Which meant that at some point in the future, Mōryō truly would break free from its seal...
Only to be crushed, suppressed, or perhaps even completely slain by the being known as the "Honored One" with overwhelming and absolute dominance.
"Guards!"
After a long while, Miroku took a deep breath and slowly calmed herself before speaking.
The captain of the guard, Shusui, quickly entered with several guards and dropped to one knee.
"Your Highness!"
"Shusui..."
Miroku remained silent for a moment before continuing.
"Take some men and investigate whether there is anyone within the Land of Demons known as the Honored One."
She paused briefly.
"It may also be a title rather than an actual name. If you find nothing within the Land of Demons, secretly dispatch people to make inquiries in other countries."
"Remember. Keep a low profile. This matter must remain absolutely confidential."
After a moment's hesitation, she added: "If you uncover any clues or identify the individual in question, treat them with the utmost courtesy. Under no circumstances are they to be offended. Understood?"
"Yes, Your Highness!"
Shusui respectfully accepted the order before rising and leading the guards out of the sleeping chamber.
As he stepped outside, the night breeze brushed against his face.
While walking, he quietly mulled over the command he had just received.
Honored One?
What a strange name.
Shusui couldn't make sense of it.
With that thought, Shusui began making preparations for the investigation Miroku had ordered.
...
Meanwhile, while Miroku secretly dispatched people to search for the whereabouts of the "Honored One," the war machine of the shinobi world continued to roar forward without the slightest sign of slowing down.
On the northern front, Iwagakure used the Land of the Moon as a staging ground to launch a large-scale invasion of the Land of Lightning.
The operation achieved impressive results during its initial stages and even managed to tear open Kumogakure's border defenses for a time.
However, Kumogakure's counterattack arrived with astonishing speed and ferocity.
It was as though they intended to vent every ounce of humiliation and frustration they had accumulated from their previous encounters with Konohagakure directly onto Iwagakure.
The Third Raikage personally took command at the front lines, charging into battle alongside his son, Yotsuki A.
The morale of Kumogakure's shinobi soared to unprecedented heights.
Iwagakure's seemingly unstoppable offensive was forcibly halted, and before long both sides became locked in a fierce war of attrition and stalemate.
Meanwhile, in the southwestern and southeastern regions of the shinobi world, Konohagakure simultaneously fought on two fronts, directly resisting the massive offensives launched by Sunagakure and Kirigakure.
Both enemies had come prepared with overwhelming momentum and substantial military strength.
Yet Konohagakure displayed astonishing resilience and organizational capability.
Not only were its defensive lines as immovable as bedrock, but it repeatedly seized openings in its enemies' formations to launch highly effective counterattacks, steadily stabilizing the front lines.
Once again, it demonstrated to the entire shinobi world why Konohagakure stood at the head of the Five Great Shinobi Villages.
Its foundation and strength ran so deep that they inspired genuine fear.
Even while simultaneously facing the full-scale assaults of two major shinobi villages and remaining vigilant against potential threats from the northwest and northeast, Konohagakure stood firm like a towering mountain amid a raging storm.
As the war continued, a new and unusual item gradually began spreading outward from Konoha's battlefronts and into the awareness of the wider shinobi world.
Medical Scrolls!