A believer in Ninshu

The Fire Temple had been built a hundred years ago, and its buildings carried a deep sense of history. Kazemori Masaki and the others followed the abbot as he introduced the temple to them.

Although ninja regarded Ninshu as their origin, they had long since forgotten its teachings. They had inherited only its Secret Techniques and had no interest in its philosophy.

The abbot of the Fire Temple understood this, so he did not burden his guests with too much Ninshu philosophy. He kept his explanations just long enough to avoid boring them while giving them some understanding of the temple's history. Of course, he also told them which places they should not enter.

Now that Kazemori Masaki had come to the Fire Temple, he naturally could not pass up this opportunity to learn about Ninshu's secret scriptures. So, after the abbot finished his brief introduction to the temple, he asked, "Abbot, could you explain the teachings of Ninshu to me?"

The abbot was rather surprised. He had not expected any of these young people to take an interest in Ninshu's teachings. It was truly remarkable. Still, since Masaki was willing to listen, he was happy to share his faith with him.

The others showed little interest. After all, ninja were not believers. If their Secret Techniques had not originated in Ninshu, they would have preferred to have nothing to do with it. Even so, Satomi, Kagami Uchiha, and Hyuga Qi wanted to listen alongside Kazemori Masaki. The Senju Clan had always treated the Fire Temple with respect, and Satomi was no stranger to it. She was willing to join her husband in listening to its Righteousness.

Hyuga Qi had much the same reason. The Hyuga Clan had deep ties to the Fire Temple. As a clan that still observed ancient customs, they were not as averse to Ninshu as other ninja were. On the contrary, of all the Ninja Clans, the Hyuga Clan was probably the most willing to maintain ties with Ninshu.

Kagami Uchiha's reason, however, had nothing to do with ties between his clan and the temple. The Fire Temple might not have truly inherited Ninshu, but at least it had not strayed from its principles. The ideals it preached still centered on goodness, so the battle-loving Uchiha Clan naturally held no reverence for it.

He was willing to listen because Kazemori Masaki was interested. He did not think Masaki was someone who wasted his efforts, so there had to be something worth hearing in the Fire Temple's Righteousness.

After the four expressed their wish to hear Ninshu's teachings, Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others prepared to return to their rooms and wait. They truly had little interest in the subject.

The abbot nodded with a smile. "Please follow me."

He led the four toward a room, intending to give them a proper introduction to his faith. Konoha Ninja Village had already become an important force within the Land of Fire. Although the Fire Temple shared few significant interests with it, having people in Konoha Ninja Village who were willing to befriend the temple was naturally a good thing.

On the way, they encountered two young women approaching them, one walking ahead and the other following behind. The young woman in front wore plain clothing, but it could not conceal her noble bearing. Her complexion was fair and clear, and she was evidently of distinguished birth. When she saw the abbot leading them, she bowed. "Master Abbot."

The abbot returned her bow, but his way of addressing the young woman gave all four a slight jolt: he called her "Your Highness."

They had known that the young woman was no ordinary person, but they had not expected her to be a princess. Judging by her age, she was likely a daughter of the late Daimyo, making her the younger sister of the New Daimyo.

The young woman looked over Kazemori Masaki and the others, recognizing their identities from their forehead protectors. The abbot then introduced them. She, too, was surprised to learn that they wanted to hear Ninshu's teachings. Seemingly having other matters to attend to, she told them that Ninshu's teachings were profound and deserved careful study, then left.

Once the young woman had gone, Kazemori Masaki and the others breathed a sigh of relief. They were curious about why a princess would be at the Fire Temple. Could she be a believer as well?

As they walked, the abbot told them about the princess. Her name was Qianji, and she was the late Daimyo's third daughter, whom he had dearly loved. After his passing, Princess Qianji had come to the Fire Temple to pray that he might find happiness in the Pure Land.

Ninshu's Righteousness described a place called the Pure Land. It was said that people went there after death. In that world, souls revisited the happiest memories of their lives. Once their hearts had found redemption, they would be reincarnated, returning to this world as pure new lives.

Satomi, Hyuga Qi, and Kagami Uchiha were skeptical. If such a world truly existed, there would be no need to fear what happened after death. But did it really exist?

Kazemori Masaki was certain that the Pure Land existed. In the past, no living person had been able to prove its existence, but in this era, both the Uzumaki Clan's Reaper Death Seal and the Impure World Reincarnation created by Tobirama had provided that proof.

Rather than dwelling on the Pure Land, however, Kazemori Masaki inferred from the abbot's words that Princess Qianji was a believer in the Fire Temple—or, more precisely, in Ninshu.

As he realized this, a flash of inspiration crossed his mind. It passed too quickly for him to grasp, but he vaguely felt that the princess's faith could be useful somehow.

The abbot brought them into the room and invited them to sit. Unable to recover the inspiration that had just flashed through his mind, Kazemori Masaki set it aside for the time being and turned his attention to the abbot's teachings.

The Fire Temple closely resembled temples in the other world, but there were differences. The most obvious was that its doctrine remained intimately connected to Ninshu. After Ninshu disappeared, its secret scriptures had been scattered across the continent. With so much information missing, no one could grasp the full picture of Ninshu, but what remained was still enough to reveal a world of myth.

Naturally, the Fire Temple venerated the Sage of Six Paths and the believers who had followed him. Just as the Sage of Six Paths' two sons shared their names with mythological figures from the other world, the Fire Temple's Righteousness often mentioned names that sounded familiar to Kazemori Masaki.

For instance, Kazemori Masaki heard several names that belonged to mythological figures in the other world and were also the names of the Mangekyō Sharingan's ocular techniques in this one.

Just as they held great stature in the other world, the bearers of these names had also played pivotal roles in Ninshu and were important figures in its worldview. Perhaps that was precisely why their names had become the names of the Mangekyō Sharingan's powers. As descendants of a god's son, its wielders naturally had the right to use them.

Although Ninshu fell apart long ago, everything about it still invisibly influences every aspect of this world, Kazemori Masaki thought. Even the Sage's descendants who have forgotten their ancestor.

Although the abbot's account gave Kazemori Masaki no information about sage arts, one story contained a short passage in which the Sage of Six Paths spoke about sages. This stirred his excitement. Ninshu's secret scriptures might truly contain records of secret sage art techniques.

Seeing that it was growing late, the abbot stopped and told them they could come to him again if they wished to hear more. Kazemori Masaki and the others took their leave and returned to their rooms to rest. Along the way, they discussed Ninshu's teachings, privately marveling at the distinctive appeal of these ideas and theories.

Hashirama and Tobirama had been invited by the Daimyo to stay the night, so they did not return to the Fire Temple and instead stayed in accommodations he had arranged. Thus, only Kazemori Masaki's group and the three captains were lodging at the temple. Once the funeral was over, they would return to Konoha Ninja Village.

I'll get straight to work on the second update, though I won't be able to finish it today.

(End of chapter)