Chapter 156: Destiny
"Those who believe in miracles are as great as the miracles themselves. Haha, I believe in miracles too."
Hiruzen Sarutobi stood outside the classroom. Hearing Tonbo Tobitake's words, a gratified smile appeared on his face.
Miracles, eh?
He walked away with a smile. Tonbo's abilities, as always, made people feel at ease.
"Those who believe in miracles are as great as the miracles themselves..."
Rock Lee muttered the words incessantly. Although the story Sensei told was just a tale, this single sentence made him feel as though his heart was overflowing with power—a vigorous, forward-surging power.
Perhaps he truly could do as Sensei said and believe in miracles. No, he needed to believe in the kind of miracle achieved through hard work, not just a fantasy. His resolve to become an excellent ninja despite being unable to use ninjutsu grew a little firmer.
"Those who believe in miracles are as great as the miracles themselves."
Neji Hyuga froze upon hearing this. What a desirable power; even he could feel the vibrant energy within those words. However, if one believed in miracles, the Hyuga's "Caged Bird" would simply imprison that miracle as well.
Miracles were great, but miracles didn't exist in this world. Sensei's story was, in the end, just a story. He looked at the others in the class and saw that they, like Lee, had expressions filled with the light of hope.
This sentence could indeed touch the heart and grant strength. But it did not include him.
Tonbo Tobitake was very satisfied with their expressions. Back in the day, when he first heard this line at the same age, his blood had boiled too.
"Haha, although that was just a story, among the people I know, there really is someone who became an excellent ninja relying solely on taijutsu."
He added one last layer to reinforce the power of his previous words. The students froze again.
There really is one?
"That's right. He is known as Konoha's Noble Blue Beast. Through sheer hard work, he became an excellent Jonin. He is a very reliable man in Konoha—ranked only slightly below myself," Tonbo said.
"Is it true, Sensei?" Rock Lee raised his hand and shouted. This was too important to him.
"Yes. Though he's quite busy because he's so outstanding, you might run into him while walking around town. He has a bowl cut, wears a green spandex suit, and is a man who loves intense training," Tonbo described.
Guy was indeed busy. One only had to look at the original story to see his excellence; whenever a critical moment arrived, he was usually away on a mission. Unlike Kakashi, who usually ended up in the hospital during critical moments.
In reality, Guy was even busier—busier than Tonbo, the Head of the Analysis Division. Since becoming a Jonin, Guy performed one or two S-rank missions nearly every year, along with various A-rank missions. He had so many assignments his hands were practically numb.
"Bowl cut, spandex, loves training..." Rock Lee muttered. He etched it into his memory. His heart pounded—there really was someone in Konoha who became a Jonin through taijutsu. A Jonin was definitely an excellent ninja; he had learned that much.
Neji Hyuga watched Tonbo with his Byakugan, but he didn't see a single micro-expression that suggested a lie. It seemed Tonbo was telling the truth; such a person did exist. But Tonbo only mentioned one person. That was fewer than the members of the Hyuga Head House. Miracles were still statistically impossible.
"Ahem. However, while he became an excellent ninja through taijutsu, his theoretical grades back in school were also above average. Meaning, you can have a bias toward Taijutsu in terms of skills, but you absolutely cannot slack on your studies. That is one of the reasons he became an excellent ninja."
Guy's theoretical grades in school had actually been similar to Tonbo's. People who didn't know him were easily fooled by his outward appearance.
"Konoha's Blue Beast... what a fierce title."
"Is he someone like the Sannin or Captain Tonbo?"
"Probably someone like the Copy Ninja Kakashi."
The classroom was abuzz with discussion. This was completely outside their current knowledge base. Hearing both a story and a legend made them very excited. This class was much more interesting than those taught by other teachers.
"Um, Sensei, it's my turn to ask! I want to become a powerful kunoichi like Lady Tsunade. How do I do that?" A girl with two hair buns asked curiously after hearing Tonbo's answer to Lee. Her goal was to become a powerful woman like Tsunade. If Sensei had a better direction, that would be great.
The other girls looked at Tonbo expectantly. Lady Tsunade was their idol. Whenever they played ninja games, they all fought to be Tsunade. Captain Tonbo's words were credible; if there was a way, it would be wonderful.
"Good question. It's the same as what I told Student Rock Lee: as long as you believe in miracles and work hard for them, forget Tsunade—it won't even be a problem for you to surpass the First Hokage."
Tonbo exaggerated wildly. In terms of lifespan, it was certainly possible. Hashirama only lived to a certain age; if you didn't have his chakra, you could easily outlive him. Having built up his credibility, Tonbo decided to keep bragging. He was just giving the kids a goal to aim for; there was no harm in it.
"We'll work hard! We'll become powerful kunoichi like Lady Tsunade!"
"Captain Tonbo, don't lie to us!"
"By the way, why are you called Captain Tonbo? Is it because you became a Captain?"
Tenten sat back down, satisfied with the answer. Tonbo was feeling very pleased with himself.
"Sensei," Neji Hyuga interjected. Although he felt Sensei was just trying to boost everyone's confidence, he couldn't hold back. "What do you think destiny is? Can destiny be changed?"
Tonbo looked at him. "Why ask something so metaphysical? Is it because of that thing on your forehead?"
He knew that if he just gave a simple answer, Neji wouldn't be swayed one bit. He wasn't Naruto; he didn't have "Talk-no-Jutsu," nor did he have Naruto's burgeoning power that yearned for sunlight even while living in darkness. He couldn't infect others with emotion—especially someone as smart as Neji.
Even with psychology, he couldn't "solve" Neji because the established facts of Neji's life wouldn't change. He just wanted to lighten Naruto's burden for the future.
Neji's gaze changed instantly. His face became contorted with hidden rage as he stared deathly at Tonbo.
"Don't look at me like that. I know about your clan's affairs," Tonbo said calmly. "Back to your question: what is destiny? So-called 'destiny' is the objective limitation that cannot be surpassed even after objective effort. You must do your best as a human to 'know' destiny, but destiny is not entirely predetermined."
Tonbo did believe in fate to some extent—otherwise, he wouldn't be here. The Great Toad Sage's prophecies were also a form of destiny.
"There is another saying: Destiny is nothing more than the boring excuse of a loser, the self-mockery of a coward. Our future can only be decided by our own will and our own efforts."
The meaning was clear: whichever definition you chose, you could still decide things for yourself.
Support me on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/MistaQuartz
On Patreon, you can explore Extra Chapters in advance!