"You've come..."
The Great Toad Sage's voice was ancient and distant, like an echo from a bygone age.
Xuandou stood before the throne and bowed slightly, his tone respectful but not servile:
"You summoned me, Great Toad Sage. What guidance do you have for me?"
The Great Toad Sage coughed, a gurgling sound rising in his throat as his whiskers trembled slightly.
Then he slowly spoke.
"Many, many years ago... I saw a prophecy."
"The Shinobi World would face a great catastrophe, and a Child of Prophecy would appear to lead it toward peace."
He spoke very slowly.
"I thought it was a destined fate. I thought everything would follow that course."
"But over a decade ago, every prophecy I had seen about the Shinobi World was overturned."
"Those once-certain futures shattered one after another, breaking into countless fragments that could never be pieced together again."
A trace of bewilderment flashed through his eyes.
"The catastrophe was averted, the Child of Prophecy's mission vanished, and the fate of the Shinobi World I had believed inevitable... changed."
"At first, I thought everything would be fine."
"Since the prophecies had been overturned, it meant the Shinobi World was heading in a better direction."
He paused, then continued:
"However, some time ago, when I used my prophetic ability again, I saw something even more terrifying."
Xuandou's pupils contracted slightly.
The Great Toad Sage's golden eyes suddenly lit up like two bright lamps.
His voice grew urgent, with a hint of trembling:
"I saw a future, one bleaker and more hopeless than any prophecy before it."
"The sky over the Shinobi World was torn apart, and many white figures descended from above. They possessed world-destroying power. With a wave of their hands, mountains and rivers shattered, and the earth cracked."
"Ninjas were crushed like