Choices Determine Fate

A sense of dread washed over him. The waters of this world ran far too deep.

Had something he done triggered this world's corrective mechanism?

When he had left Konoha, the soul residing in the necklace—Senju Hashirama, the reincarnation of Asura—had tried to stop him.

The necklace's purpose was to protect the Child of the World, Uzumaki Naruto, at a critical moment.

Now the Great Toad Sage had sent Jiraiya to stop him.

If he refused to comply, would the Sage of Six Paths, the ultimate villain, come to destroy him?

Did this entire world revolve around the Child of the World?

Senju Nawaki could no longer see the truth of this world clearly.

"Konoha wronged you, and it wronged the Senju Clan. But for the sake of peace in the Ninja World, you must make a sacrifice. When you return to Konoha, I'll do everything I can to ensure your safety and that of the Senju Clan.

"I've accepted the guidance of fate and will lead you down the right path."

Jiraiya saw a flicker of fear in Senju Nawaki's eyes.

He became utterly solemn, lofty and imposing, as if proclaiming a divine decree, and tried to persuade Senju Nawaki.

He had already made the choice for Senju Nawaki.

He was convinced this was the best outcome.

Only by sacrificing Senju Nawaki and the Senju Clan could this world return to its proper course and await the savior who would rescue it.

"Don't make such arrogant claims. Who do you think you are, talking about fate?

"If everything is predetermined, how can you know the outcome? What gives you the right to stand above everyone else?"

A powerful aura erupted from Senju Tojian. He stomped on the ground, sending a crack racing toward Jiraiya.

For an instant, Senju Tojian had been shaken and drawn in by that sophistry, too.

But in the next moment, his own ninja way overwhelmed it.

Everything Jiraiya said came from his own point of view, from the information he knew. It was all in service of what he cared about.

To protect his ninja way, Jiraiya had accepted the Great Toad Sage's guidance and pursued the elusive Child of the World.

That conflicted with Senju Tojian's ninja way: protecting the Senju Clan and Senju Nawaki.

The two men's ninja ways clashed.

In the end, it would be their strength that decided the outcome.

Jiraiya's body swayed. He used the Body Flicker Technique to retreat more than ten meters, avoiding Senju Tojian's attack.

Senju Nawaki snapped out of it, drenched in cold sweat. A dangerous gleam shone in his eyes.

Taking what Jiraiya had said together with what he knew, Senju Nawaki had indeed been intimidated.

But when he thought it through, if everything had already been predetermined, he shouldn't still be alive at this point.

Contradictions tangled together in Senju Nawaki's mind, exploding into a mess as he tried to sort out his thoughts.

In the end, they settled on Senju Nawaki's simple wish, the core of his ninja way: justice as he saw it.

He now understood clearly what this world's so-called fate really meant.

In the early part of Shippuden, everything was under the Sage of Six Paths' control.

The struggle between Indra and Asura was the main theme of this world.

They had reincarnated again and again for hundreds of times, and every time the outcome was the same: Indra lost, and Asura won.

Once was a coincidence. Twice was chance. Three times was a pattern. But what about hundreds of times? That was destiny—deliberately controlled.

There had to be a mastermind behind it all: the immensely powerful Sage of Six Paths!

Asura represented his will. He wanted Asura to win, so Asura would always have the upper hand.

The Sage of Six Paths was powerful enough to influence the entire Ninja World and control it.

What people called fate was nothing more than the powerful imposing their understanding on those who refused to obey them.

A story from Senju Nawaki's past life surfaced in his mind.

[The Snow Goddess Dragon, with injustice in her heart! The wielders of the Dragon Soul Blade and Phoenix Blood Sword were destined to be together. That was their fate.

But behind it all was a clash between two martial arts masters. How was that any different from drugging the goddess dragon and robbing her of her chastity?

The methods were different, but both used overwhelming power to decide someone else's fate.]

The course of this world was controlled by so-called gods.

Through the power of chakra, the Sage of Six Paths imposed his will on the entire world.

Hundreds of times, he had tried to prove his philosophy was the right path through Asura's reincarnations, yet there were always people who refused to submit.

It had nothing to do with right or wrong. It was a clash of beliefs, and whoever wielded greater power would prevail.

At this point, the Sage of Six Paths had greater power, so he held the advantage.

The Sage of Six Paths' actions had inflicted enormous, irreparable damage on this world.

Senju Nawaki couldn't accept another submission, another innocent death. He would fight back.

Senju Nawaki would put his own beliefs into practice.

Boom...

A powerful aura radiated from him. The chakra within his body abruptly changed. Its former presence had been filthy, but now it had grown somewhat pure.

He cleared away the marks left on his chakra and imprinted it with his own mark—his own ninja way.

Senju Tojian and Jiraiya both sensed Senju Nawaki's change.

"He's found his own ninja way!"

They reached the same conclusion.

A ninja who had found his own way would not have his convictions changed easily.

Senju Tojian had once been able to destroy the chakra of Senju Hashirama, who had been residing in the necklace, because he had his own ninja way.

The purpose of a ninja way was to keep a person from being defeated by persuasive talk.

Only with an unwavering ninja way could someone resist its influence.

Jiraiya's words had become nothing but useless talk.

Feeling the changes within himself, Senju Nawaki understood.

"I've broken free of chakra's control! The chakra carries the Sage of Six Paths' mark, like subconscious hypnosis, constantly influencing how others behave.

"Only by awakening my own ninja way can I resist that influence."

A wave of fear washed over him. Until now, he had been nothing more than the Sage of Six Paths' puppet. Only now had he truly escaped his control.

So Beyond Kage meant being unaffected: unaffected by the Sage of Six Paths, unaffected by other people's words. That was Senju Nawaki's understanding.

Combined with the forbidden Impure World Reincarnation technique, this gave Senju Nawaki a new understanding of the ninja way.

If a ninja brought back with Impure World Reincarnation could awaken their own ninja way, they could escape control and return to the Pure Land.

Wasn't that another way of transcending influence?

As long as my strength surpasses the Sage of Six Paths, I won't be affected by the fate he has imposed.

Whoever dares to interfere with my fate, I'll surpass them. I'll control everything that is destined to happen.

If Indra had been stronger than the Sage of Six Paths, would he have kept losing again and again?

No!

Indra would have been the victor.

Senju Nawaki had found his answer and the path ahead.

He would surpass the Sage of Six Paths and keep his fate free from interference.