Chapter 290: The Director of the Garbage Dump
Some things only become clear through comparison.
Shiromo had been misleading Ōtsutsuki Toneri from the start, but the core principles he spoke of were correct.
Especially that line: "Even if we take ten thousand steps back."
It made Toneri understand that even if they truly had the duty to monitor the ninja world, the fact that they had driven themselves to extinction meant they had no qualification to judge or deal with it.
That was the difference between Shiromo's talk-no-jutsu and Naruto's talk-no-jutsu.
When Shiromo spoke, he followed logic. Even if he fabricated a story, it was built on reasoning.
Naruto's talk-no-jutsu, on the other hand, was more like…
Naruto: You're Minato Penguin! You're Minato Penguin! You're Minato Penguin! Who are you, really?
Enemy: I—I am your enemy! I am going to destroy the Shinobi world!
Naruto: Wrong! You're Minato Penguin! You're Minato Penguin! You're Minato Penguin! Who are you?!
Enemy: I... I... I'm Minato Penguin! Goo-goo ga-ga!
Something like that.
Because it had no logic, no reasoning, and whatever was said would be forgotten in the next moment, it was called "Kotoamatsukami-level talk."
The distinction was this: If someone was persuaded by Shiromo, and you let them relive their life and choose again, they would still choose Shiromo.
But those persuaded by Naruto were different.
If Neji had known that the son of the substitute sacrifice would still end up a substitute sacrifice, he would never have been talked down.
The same went for Nagato. If he had known Naruto would never bring peace and prosperity to Amegakure, he would not have been persuaded either.
Even if he had been at death's door at the time, he would not have used Rinne Rebirth. He might as well have died outright.
Or simply used Rinne Rebirth to revive Uchiha Madara instead.
Konan would not have needed to prepare six hundred billion paper bombs to guard against the masked man. Like in the Limited Tsukuyomi world, she could have used those six hundred billion paper bombs to blow up the Five Great Nations first.
If a win-win was impossible, then mutual destruction was better than letting the enemy win alone.
——
"Then what… what should I do now?"
Toneri raised his head in confusion.
At this moment, if Shiromo had simply said, "Then kill yourself," Toneri would have slit his own throat without hesitation.
Likewise, if Shiromo had extended his hand and declared, "The moon shall be the blade guarding against the Ōtsutsuki clan's invasion. Toneri, do you dare to shoulder this responsibility?" Toneri would have immediately agreed.
But Shiromo did neither.
Ōtsutsuki Toneri had already been thoroughly misled. Letting him die now would be a waste.
"Are you interested in becoming an Environmental Ambassador?"
"?"
"The garbage produced by the development of the ninja world will only generate harmful substances if left on this land. That is why, to protect nature, we transfer the waste to the moon."
"At the same time, as Earth's satellite, if the Ōtsutsuki clan were to descend from beyond the stars to invade the ninja world, they would inevitably pass by the moon first."
"Your task is to notify the ninja world the moment they appear, so we can prepare defenses. Do not act on your own. Do not do anything unnecessary."
"Well? Can you do that?"
Shiromo stood calmly on the shore and spoke.
He had no intention of shaking Toneri's hand.
Even after being rinsed in the hot spring, the man still carried a foul odor.
"The Ōtsutsuki clan? Invading the ninja world?"
Toneri remained bewildered.
"Yes. The true Ōtsutsuki clan."
"Think carefully. You are a descendant of Ōtsutsuki Hamura. Half of your blood is mortal, half Ōtsutsuki. Do you wish to fight for the mortals of the ninja world, or serve as a lackey for the future Ōtsutsuki clan?"
"…"
Toneri hesitated. Not because he was unsure about becoming a lackey, but because, "Can the ninja world truly withstand an invasion from the Ōtsutsuki clan? According to what you said, the ninja world is, in the end, merely the product of a branch sent out by the Ōtsutsuki…"
"Completely wrong."
Shiromo cut him off.
"The Tenseigan manifests when Ōtsutsuki chakra combines with a sufficiently pure Byakugan, correct?"
"If it were truly that simple, then before your clan on the moon went extinct, aside from you, the one born without eyes, everyone else should have possessed the Tenseigan."
"One of the conditions must not merely be 'Byakugan', but specifically the Byakugan of the Hyūga clan on Earth, correct?"
"Yes."
"Then have you never considered why? Why does the Ōtsutsuki clan need to seize the power of the ninja world? Why is it that only the Byakugan of the Hyūga on Earth, whose bloodline appears diluted, can awaken the Tenseigan?"
"Because the power of the ninja world is the key."
"The Ōtsutsuki clan will fear us, not because we are gods, but because we are mortals."
"…"
Toneri was deeply shaken.
He had been raised to take pride in the bloodline of the Ōtsutsuki clan.
Yet precisely because of that, when facing the true Ōtsutsuki clan, he could not help but feel inferior.
Now Shiromo was telling him that what was truly precious was not the Ōtsutsuki bloodline, but the power of the ninja world, the power of mortals.
"Here, take this. A gift for you."
Shiromo tossed a card and a ring toward Toneri.
"What is this?"
Toneri accepted the card and ran his fingers across it, confirming the words written on it.
"This is a character from a novel. An old general, with a single name: Zhong."
"You should understand that if the Ōtsutsuki clan arrives, as long as you do not activate the teleportation passage below, they will require time to descend to the ninja world."
"That time will be enough for you to notify us, so the ninja world can prepare."
"I hope you can uphold this word 'loyalty.'"
"As for the ring, it is for communication."
"Oh, right. This old general also has a classic line, I have always been the one shooting others. No one has ever shot me."
"I have always been the one shooting others… Toneri… I understand."
Toneri carefully put away the card and the ring. Taking a deep breath, he dove back down into the water.
"Huh? Why did he just leave?"
Hanabi, who had come along, stared at the spot where the person who had wanted to gouge out her eyes since childhood had vanished, completely baffled.
She had been standing right next to Shiromo.
Didn't he have any thoughts at all?
Come gouge her eyes out!
"He's in a hurry to return and become the director of a garbage dump. Probably going back to renovate the buildings to make them more suitable for waste storage."
As Shiromo said this, he turned to Kakashi.
"When you return, report this place to Tsunade and have people develop it."
The ring he had just given Toneri originally belonged to Zetsu.
The Akatsuki used rings to communicate with one another. Whether the signal would be good all the way on the moon was another question.
As for Zetsu?
White Zetsu had the White Zetsu Network. There was no need for a ring at all.
"That's it?"
Kakashi stared at the rippling water where Toneri had disappeared, utterly confused.
He had thought collecting the garbage was merely a prerequisite, and that the true core mission this time would be a battle against the Ōtsutsuki clan on the moon.
He had never expected…
Throughout the entire process, he had been the one contributing the most effort?
(End of this chapter)