Shimura Danzō Defies Fate

Then, Orochimaru quietly slipped away from there, never making a single sound from start to finish, terrified that Uchiha Yue would discover him and directly catch and kill him. Clearly, he was overthinking it—from beginning to end, Uchiha Yue had never cared about them at all.

At this moment...

"The efficiency of energy absorption is getting higher and higher. I can even absorb sound waves now."

Uchiha Yue lifted his head, and the next moment, a thread of light surged, piercing through the Susanoo and landing in his hand, where he absorbed it.

This ability of his to absorb energy evolved continuously as energy accumulated and as his body and spirit advanced.

At first, Uchiha Yue could only simply absorb light energy and Chakra. His efficiency in absorbing other forms of energy was extremely low—practically nonexistent. Even when absorbing Chakra, he had to kill the person first for it to be fast.

But as he kept killing, devouring, and evolving, his energy absorption efficiency grew stronger and stronger, more and more terrifying, defying all reason. After slaughtering a bunch of Leaf ninja, his energy absorption efficiency received a massive boost, directly unfolding a so-called domain that indiscriminately absorbed all energy within it.

In truth, what domain was that? If one had to describe it, it was like a person taking a deep breath—the range of gas they could inhale while breathing was the truth behind Uchiha Yue's so-called domain.

What domain? This was just him breathing.

Uchiha Yue had a feeling that as he continued to evolve, the energy he could absorb would also increase. Did he see that dead, silent space before him?

It seemed like there was no energy left in that space, but the molecules and atoms that made up those substances still contained an immense amount of energy—a deeper, more profound layer. As he kept evolving, Uchiha Yue would eventually be able to absorb that deeper energy, draining everything before him dry, emptying it out, and completely devouring it.

"Heh, come on, world. We are ultimately one. All things return to my body. I am the one! Hahaha!!! Come on, ants, struggle, resist. If you can really kill me, hahaha!!!!"

Uchiha Yue opened his eyes, grinned, then closed them again, sinking back into slumber—or rather, calculation.

He didn't even have the thought to move. What could be more terrifying than watching yourself approach death day by day, powerless to do anything?

This wasn't some invisible death like running out of lifespan; it was a tangible, materialized death.

Mount Myōboku.

"Ribbit, Konoha!!! Shimura Danzō!!!"

Deep within the temple of Mount Myōboku, the Great Toad Sage opened his eyes, utterly furious. Over the past few days, he had entered dreams multiple times, yet he could not see any trace of that hopeful future. The current scene was just like when Kaguya Ōtsutsuki descended upon this world.

Back then, he too had been unable to foresee that hopeful future—until the birth of the Ōtsutsuki brothers. It was from that moment that the Great Toad Sage saw the future filled with hope.

Originally, not long ago, he had prophesied that the Ninja World would face a great crisis, one that only the Child of Destiny could save. So he had sent Jiraiya to search for the Child of Destiny, hoping to rescue the future of the Ninja World.

But now, the Child of Destiny had not been found, and a new crisis had erupted instead. The Great Toad Sage knew that Uchiha Yue's appearance was definitely not the future crisis he had foreseen, but rather an apocalyptic threat born from a change in fate.

After learning what that fool Shimura Danzō had done, the Great Toad Sage was truly shocked. As the saying goes, "Danzō's clan-killing changed fate's course; how could dung become Hokage?" Indeed, that bastard Shimura Danzō, through his own actions, had altered the fate of the Ninja World, forcing the birth of a monster whose threat, in the Great Toad Sage's eyes, rivaled that of Kaguya Ōtsutsuki's descent.

This should not have existed. In the original fate, this monster's appearance was not meant to be—but it had appeared anyway. Damn that Shimura Danzō!

If only things had followed his plan, finding the Child of Destiny would have saved the world in the future. But now?

To this day, the Great Toad Sage still hadn't figured out how to deal with the monster that was Uchiha Yue. He could only take it one step at a time, letting Jiraiya continue searching for the Child of Destiny. But unfortunately, that Jiraiya wouldn't listen to advice. He had told him not to get close—just take a look and run, take a look and leave—but he wouldn't listen. He insisted on barging in and seeking death, nearly getting himself killed, and almost dragging Fukasaku and Shiken down with him.

The Great Toad Sage was speechless, but he couldn't say much. After all, what happened back then was too great a blow for Jiraiya. He had been wandering the Ninja World, oh no, gathering material, no, searching for the Child of Destiny, and then suddenly he was told, "Your home is gone, your teacher is gone too." Who could stay calm after that?

Moreover, Jiraiya was one of the Legendary Sannin, a strong man in his own right, with his own opinions. And he had successfully used those opinions to turn himself into a cripple.

The Great Toad Sage sighed, his face full of helplessness. Now, he could only wait. Time would give him the answer—just like when Kaguya Ōtsutsuki descended, he saw no hope, only endless despair. But in the end, bitterness gave way to sweetness, and the Ōtsutsuki brothers arrived, setting them on the path of roaring laughter and successfully sealing their birth mother.

Now, he could only pray that in the near future, he would once again find the opportunity to deal with Uchiha Yue, just as he had back then.

"If only Uchiha Yue were a woman, then..."

The Great Toad Sage pondered, then shook his head. He had no intention of personally going out to see the situation. He was old, his bones were weak. What if he caught Uchiha Yue's attention and got beaten to death?

He was practically the hope of the Ninja World right now. If he died, even if an opportunity arose, it might silently vanish because no one could discover it.

So-called fate sometimes needs to be actively guided. Only then can fate develop in the direction one needs. When he first discovered the opportunity of the Ōtsutsuki brothers, the Great Toad Sage had a feeling that he had to act—he couldn't let fate develop naturally. If he hadn't stepped in to guide them back then, the Ninja World today might have been a very different place.

In truth...