The Path We Pursue

Tsukimiyo returned, dawdling along.

His gait was very deliberate; he covered his chest with one hand, his shoulders were slightly slumped, and his steps were small and slow, each step feeling like he was walking on cotton, swaying unsteadily.

The black aura on the Tengu Mask had faded considerably, the hem of his clothes was scratched, and one of the pom-poms on his chest was askew, making him look quite disheveled.

But everyone knows what he just did.

The speed at which it rushed out, the deafening roar that shattered half the sky, and the forest that is now burning fiercely—everyone saw it clearly.

But seeing his frail appearance now, the crowd, though finding it absurd, remained silent, and no one uttered a sound.

Tsukimiyo walked up to Izuna, grabbed Izuna's arm that he had quickly helped her up, stopped, and gasped for breath.

"Izuna..." Her voice was so weak it seemed to float away.

Izuna was heartbroken. She quickly pulled the necklace out of her collar, cradled the red crystal in her palm, and handed it to him, saying, "Go inside and rest, rest, rest."

Tsukimiyo nodded, her figure transforming into a streak of silver light and disappearing into the crystal.

The red bead swayed, then quieted down, leaving only a faint warmth resting on Izuna's palm.

Izuna tucked the necklace into her collar and carefully pressed it against her chest.

Ban stood a few steps away, watching the whole scene unfold.

He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but then felt that whatever he said wouldn't be quite right.

He had Tsukimiyo emerge from that bead with his own eyes.

The speed with which that guy charged out, the power of that strike—it hardly seemed like someone so weak he had to walk while clutching his chest.

But before that, Tsukimiyo had indeed appeared weak in front of them, so it's understandable that she hasn't recovered yet.

Ban crossed his arms, his brows furrowed, and didn't let go for a long time.

He always felt that his younger brother had been taken advantage of, but he couldn't quite put his finger on why.

He glanced at Izuna.

Izuna was looking down at the bead on his chest, muttering things like, "I'll find you some tonics to help you recover," completely oblivious to anything amiss.

Ban inexplicably felt a sour taste in his mouth.

What right does that guy have to make Izuna worry so much?

Forget about Mokushō, that guy was at most a partner to Izuna, but this guy!

Ban stared at the necklace.

This guy! He claims to be our Big Brother, but his words and actions are incredibly strange! He's scheming at every turn!

Is Brother Nan really that kind of person?

Tobirama gazed expressionlessly at the flames spreading in the distance, forming hand seals and summoning Water Release rush towards them.

After calming her racing heart, Izuna looked up at the crowd.

"How does it feel to have the Evil God vanquished?"

Crowd. "..."

What's the matter?

While you did indeed rid the people of a scourge, the way you did so was far too dramatic.

Having just witnessed this series of absurd handling methods, they simply couldn't bring themselves to kowtow and worship immediately.

Just then, the Jurōjin, leaning on his cane, slowly walked out from the front of the crowd, bent down, and knelt down in deep worship.

"Thank you Lord Izuna, for saving our Land of Hot Water."

The people behind him then readily complied and knelt down one after another.

First a few bold ones, then a whole group, and finally even the local nobles who had just been plotting to offer their last bit of power to the Evil God knelt down.

The sound of knees hitting gravel was continuous and rustling.

Izuna looked down at the people kneeling on the ground and paused for a moment. "Why are you kneeling?"

The Jurōjin's voice choked with emotion. "Thank you Lord Izuna, for ridding us of this scourge."

The people behind him shouted in unison, "Thank you, Lord Izuna."

"If you're going to eliminate a menace, then eliminate a menace. Why are you kneeling?" Izuna went over to help him up. "Get up, get up. Don't your knees hurt? The ground is covered in pebbles."

Despite his thin frame, the Jurōjin, Ke Shou, possessed remarkable strength Izuna tried to pull him carefully but couldn't budge him, and none of the others behind him straightened up either.

Izuna repeated himself twice, and seeing that they were still kneeling, he sighed, "Alright, I'll accept this bow, but remember to get up after you're done kneeling, there's still a lot to do."

Upon hearing this, the Jurōjin finally stood up. "I understand, Lord Izuna. With the Evil God gone, we will naturally take proper care of the followers."

Izuna nodded. "Good luck. You guys need to put yourselves into this. This is all I can do as an outsider."

The believers became agitated.

The Jurōjin waved his hand, and Hiroyama and his gang of Yakuza surrounded them from both sides, pinning down the arms of those who tried to run away.

Izuna ignored those people.

Just like he said, it was ultimately a matter for the Land of Hot Water, and it wasn't appropriate for an outsider like him to interfere.

He walked to the side and glanced at Tobirama, who was putting Tobirama the fire.

The water from the Water Release condensed in mid-air and then surged out continuously, pouring onto the scorched forest and sending up plumes of white smoke.

The fire had been mostly suppressed by Tobirama's powerful Water Release; the few remaining spots that were still smoldering were extinguished with a hiss when doused with water.

Looking at the charred forest, Izuna asked the same question, "Mokushō, does this really need Transcendence?"

Mokushō nodded, standing beside Izuna. "Transcendence him to the afterlife is definitely necessary. It's possible he might be resurrected someday. After all, he has followers; faith can reshape his body."

"It uses the same mechanism as yours?"

"Yeah," Mokushō stroked his chin, "Logically speaking, gods with faith, whether good or evil, should be quite difficult to deal with... How come this guy is so incompetent?"

Izuna remained silent for a moment, then lowered his head and said, "Is it possible that you are all too strong?"

Mokushō countered, "Is it possible that they are too weak?"

"This isn't the Onmyōji world," Izuna tilted her head to look at him. "That's a case of 'dimensional reduction'."

That's why they're weak.

Hashirama stood to the side, stroking his chin, and asked, "Then how powerful must your gods be for you to feel such a formidable enemy?"

Mokushō pointed at Izuna: "He's just like our gods."

Hashirama considered what Izuna had done so far and nodded seriously. "Yes... that certainly requires us to be on high alert."

Izuna: "Hey."

Ban stood a few steps away, his tone curt. "Don't use my brother as an example."

Mokushō spread his hands. "You only have Izuna as a valid case here. How can I describe it clearly without using him as an example?"

Tobirama walked over after seeing that there was no open flame, and frowned when he heard their conversation.

"If your gods are all this powerful," he said, "How many times can your world withstand something like this?"

Mokushō tilted his head. "The world has its own rules. Was that guy only willing to stay underground? Izuna cleaved the underground before he finally came out."

Tobirama narrowed his eyes. "Could it be that his Strength will decrease if he leaves that area?"

"That's true." Mokushō nodded. "Gods and ghosts are things from the other side. To come to this world, they must possess someone or sign Contract with someone from this side. Forcibly appearing in this world can only last for a short time, and they can't use overly powerful abilities."

Tobirama listening, Tobirama glanced at the still-dark forest and became even more puzzled. "Then why are you using such powerful magic?"

"Oh." Mokushō waved his hand. "The 'overly powerful force' I was referring to was the destruction of the world."

Everyone: "?"

As if oblivious to their expressions, Mokushō continued, "This Evil God... while its influence is wide-ranging, it only uses low-level methods like affecting the mind. It seems its attacks are only directed at the army; even if Izuna hadn't forced it out, it would have been quite easy to handle."

Everyone: "..."

You call this easy to handle?!

Since it's described as an attack against an army, it's definitely not a case of one person fighting against a hundred, but rather one fighting against ten thousand. Keep in mind that even some Jonin can't do this; it's something only a Kage Level can accomplish!

What's going on in your world?!

Izuna stroked his chin. Mokushō's phrasing was actually quite convincing. These words... "against the army," "against the boundary," "the other shore," "this shore"—why did they sound so familiar? Could it be based on the Fate/stay night universe?

Ignoring the complicated looks from the crowd, Mokushō said, "Izuna, let's go and Transcendence that Evil God now."

Izuna snapped out of her thoughts and looked at him suspiciously, "Is this a proper Transcendence the soul to the afterlife?"

"Of course!" Mokushō answered decisively, "And it's very simple; you'll learn it in no time."

"Then how do we do it?"

Mokushō didn't answer directly, but turned and walked towards the Main Hall: "Follow me."

Izuna followed him back to the dilapidated Main Hall of Bishamonten.

The hall was even more chaotic than before. Incense burners were overturned, offerings were scattered all over the floor, and the floorboards in the middle had been turned upside down, revealing the eerie basement below.

Mokushō jumped down, and Izuna followed him into the underground chamber.

Mokushō looked at Izuna: "Take out your Light Blade."

Izuna's eyes turned red, Mangekyō Sharingan appeared, and he raised his hand, a blue light blade forming in his palm.

"Then what?"

Before he could finish speaking, a semi-transparent panel popped up in front of him.

[Quest: Purify the remnant soul of the Evil God.]

[Method: Using Light Blade as a conduit, infuse it with Spirit Power, chant purification mantras, and banish the Evil God.]

Izuna read aloud the words on the panel: "Toyouke-ihara-no-Nakatsukuni, the noisy and bewitching Evil Spirits, I am the Onmyōji Izuna, in my name, I will purify them!"

Izuna saw a halo appear on his sword, and he understood immediately, then waved his hand at the blood-stained table.

Pure white Runes appeared in mid-air, and the next second they pierced the platform. The next second, the faint gray-black aura that permeated the area vanished with a roar.

The believers who were still arguing in front of the temple of Bishamonten suddenly paused. They blinked, as if a feeling of something disappearing rose in their hearts, but the next second they ignored the unease and continued what they had been doing.

Izuna blinked, looked at the Light Blade in his hand, and then looked at Mokushō: "Is that all?"

Mokushō stroked his chin. "For now, yes. You've destroyed this country, so the transformation won't happen for now, but..."

Mokushō looked at the Jurōjin who was suppressing the protesters. "If this country continues to exploit the common people, this situation will happen again."

Madara frowned. "Didn't they say that after the Transcendence, that guy wouldn't come back to life?"

"As long as there are people in this world who suffer and who have desires, this kind of thing will happen."

Mokushō watched the black smoke slowly rising from the crowd in his field of vision. "Although it's not so obvious in your world, you must have had similar experiences, right? Inexplicably losing things, inexplicably having certain thoughts, inexplicably becoming obsessed, inexplicably being possessed. Inexplicably, some unavoidable bad things happen, and sometimes just the right opportunity appears to make things happen."

Ban was silent for a moment.

"Are you saying these are all paranormal events?"

"These are all caused by people's longings," Mokushō said. "Conforming longings bring success, while conflicting longings prevent people from achieving their desires. In this case, the more powerful person will get what they want."

Izuna, listening from the side, frowned and said, "You've got too many plot points out of this."

"There's no way around it, it's part of the basic setup; we have to explain it." Mokushō shrugged.

"So in the end, won't the Evil God still appear?" Izuna asked.

"It will be a little slower. Because you've already proven that the position of 'Evil God' is a false existence, no one will believe in Evil Gods anymore," Mokushō said. "But..."

"But such things will always happen," Izuna added.

"After all, there are legitimate branches like the Magatsuhi no Kami that exist," Mokushō sighed. "We can only do our best and leave the rest to fate."

Ban's brow remained furrowed. "Isn't there a way to solve this once and for all?"

"Yes," Mokushō said. "If we kill all humans, no more Magatsuhi no Kami will be born."

Ban's face darkened: "How could you—"

"Or," Mokushō chuckled, "To turn everyone into Yōkai."

A chill ran down Madara's spine as he recalled Izuna's appearance when she first grew wings, "Absolutely not!"

Mokushō shrugged. "That'll do."

Ban opened his mouth.

He thought of Infinite Tsukuyomi.

But that spell would rob humanity of its future, nailing everyone to a dream, making them dream for a lifetime. What's the essential difference between that and killing everyone and turning them into Yōkai?

He shut his mouth.

"There is no such thing as perfect peace in this world," Mokushō said, his tone more serious than before. "All we Onmyōji can do is maintain this balance and prevent true calamity from befalling the world."

Ban felt somewhat frustrated.

He listened to everything Mokushō said, but he didn't want to agree with it.

There is no such thing as perfect peace; all we can do is maintain a balance. He didn't like hearing that.

What Madara Uchiha wanted in his life was never "maintaining balance".

But he also knew that as long as there are people, there will be conflict, and as long as there is conflict, there will be war.

This world is never short of ambitious people. People will always plunder and harm others because of what they want, as evidenced by thousands of years of war history.

Even someone as powerful as himself could not prevent the emergence of the dark side within humanity.

This is resentment...

Hashirama had been silent the whole time, but suddenly he spoke.

Even so, we should strive to pursue peace as much as possible.

Ban looked up at him.

"I founded Konoha to pursue the impossible." Hashirama said this without smiling; he stood there, his expression resolute and solemn.

His dark, bright eyes were fixed on Ban, and he spoke slowly and deliberately.

"Ban, we may never see the day when true peace arrives, nor can we stop all bad things from happening."

"But we can work together to build Konoha, a symbol of peace, and show this brief period of peace to the world, inspiring people to yearn for us and for peace from the bottom of their hearts."

Madara stared at him for two seconds.

"Even a brief peace is fine, even if it's just for our generation, as long as someone has witnessed this, they will remember it," Hashirama said. "This world has never lacked those who seek the light."

He paused for a moment.

"We are Ninjas, we never know when we might die."

"If there's any way to guarantee our survival, it's to be completely honest with the enemy, to have no secrets from each other, and to become sworn brothers."

Hashirama looked at Madara: "Back then, you said this was impossible and hoped to find a way to make it happen."

"Aren't we still on this path of pursuit?"