Senju Syura looked at Black Zetsu. In his cloudy eyes, decades of confusion had gathered, and at last he spoke the question buried in his heart.
Black Zetsu looked at the old man lying on the couch, his breath faint like a thread yet still stubborn.
He let out a soft sigh and slowly said, "Sigh, fate… personally, I think it does exist in the unseen. But once it encounters a sufficiently powerful force, fate can be easily changed."
"A sufficiently powerful force? Do you mean strength?"
Senju Syura frowned slightly. His gaze sank into deep thought, his hoarse and dry voice full of confusion.
Black Zetsu simply answered with the most straightforward analogy.
"For example, an ant. In its life, whether it rains, the changes of seasons and climate, whether it can find food to fill its stomach, all of these can be considered its fate."
"But once a powerful force intervenes, all of it can be rewritten. You personally raise the ant in captivity, or casually throw it a piece of food, or even kill it directly. In the ant's eyes, that is an irresistible fate.", Black Zetsu explained.
Hearing this, Senju Syura fell completely into thought.
Black Zetsu's words were plain and clear. In just a few seconds, he suddenly understood, and a relieved smile spread across his wrinkled face.
"Sage, then that means I am an ant. The reason I was able to change my fate is because some powerful force interfered with me, right?"
Senju Syura raised his eyes to look at Black Zetsu and pressed further.
Black Zetsu did not answer. His silence was already an acknowledgment.
"Then who is that person?"
"I have to personally thank him. I really have to kowtow to him."
Curiosity appeared in Senju Syura's eyes. After spending half his life, he had always wanted to know where this unseen protection came from.
If possible, he truly wanted to meet him.
Black Zetsu gently shook his head, his tone firm yet helpless. "This… I really cannot tell you."
"Hahaha...", Instead, Senju Syura laughed.
After decades of being together day and night, he understood Black Zetsu's nature too well. If the other party refused to speak, then there must be a reason that absolutely could not be told.
"Looks like there's still someone above a sage!"
Senju Syura stroked his graying beard and joked.
Black Zetsu did not get angry. He only advised in a deep voice, "There is always someone stronger, and a sky beyond the sky."
"Give up grand narratives and focus on what's in front of you. Sometimes, knowing too much only makes you less happy."
"That makes sense!"
Senju Syura nodded heavily, his thin fingers stroking his beard, completely agreeing.
———
"Year 310 of the Ninja Calendar, Senju Syura passed away at the age of one hundred. Such a long lifespan that even the Uzumaki clan, known for their vitality, could not help but feel respect."
At the mountaintop, the wind carried faint dust as Black Zetsu stood still, turning his head to look from afar at the Senju clan grounds below.
He had accompanied the Senju clan for decades. In the span of his life, it was not very long...
But those years of assisting Senju Syura, from an unknown boy to firmly sitting in the position of clan leader and stabilizing the ninja world's structure, were especially vivid and deeply etched in his heart.
"I really wonder how Fukasaku will record this period of history. When I go back, I must take a look."
Black Zetsu softly sighed, his tone wrapped in a trace of indescribable melancholy.
Black Zetsu did not set off immediately. He simply sat quietly on the mountaintop and continued to gaze in silence for a long time.
His gaze did not only fall on the Senju clan grounds, but also swept across the surrounding mountains and fields, taking in every bit of the human world's scenery.
"Hundreds of years from now, what will this land become?"
Black Zetsu murmured, his voice fading into the wind.
He then slowly stood up, turned, and walked away.
After staying in the human world for so long, witnessing clan conflicts and constant scheming, Black Zetsu felt that the outside world was nothing special, far from interesting.
But deep in his heart, a heavy concern weighed down.
"I just have to go back and remind the sage… the human world is truly a complete mess…"
Back when he compiled history with Fukasaku, his understanding of human suffering only stayed on paper, nothing more than writing cold phrases like "people eating each other" and "the people unable to live."
But after personally governing alongside Senju Syura and deeply observing the many states of the world, he finally saw through the core of this chaotic era and clearly understood just how rotten the foundation of the human world had become.
Even under the rule of the mighty Senju clan, things were already like this. As for ordinary people with no support, their situation would only be even more miserable.
If this kind of chaos were allowed to continue, the human world would sooner or later turn into a true hell. He had to report everything truthfully and make Sage Arisu take it seriously.
Black Zetsu moved, slipping into the ground, and using a summoning technique, returned to the domain of Mount Myoboku.
When he landed, he was at a quiet path at the foot of the mountain. But the scene before his eyes made him freeze on the spot.
The warm yellow glow of streetlights stretched along the mountain path.
Bright silver utility poles wove through the forest like a web. In the distance were railway tracks, and deep within the mountains, high-rise buildings under intense construction could even be seen rising from the ground.
The smell of reinforced concrete mixed with the scent of grass and trees. It was completely different from the simple, serene, and spiritual Mount Myoboku he remembered.
"This… this change is really huge…"
Black Zetsu murmured, his gaze sweeping across the unfamiliar surroundings as his steps unconsciously moved onto the stone path, his heart filled with astonishment.
"I clearly remember Mount Myoboku wasn't like this. But over these years, it's actually changed to this extent."
As Black Zetsu slowly walked forward, a familiar figure suddenly leapt out from the shadows of the trees beside him, calling out loudly with a hearty laugh, "Hey! Black Zetsu, it really is you! You're finally back! We've been waiting so long we could hardly stand it!"
Black Zetsu looked up and recognized the person. A warm smile appeared on his face as he stepped forward and joked, "Ah, it's been many years."
"I've really missed you! Your eyebrows, why have they turned even whiter? Handling all the big and small matters of Mount Myoboku alone, isn't it tiring?"
"It's fine, it's fine. Now that you're back, you can help out too."
Fukasaku Sage waved his hand, his tone full of joy from reunion after a long separation.
Black Zetsu looked around, his gaze landing on those novel facilities, and asked curiously, "But Mount Myoboku has changed too much. Over these years, has Gamamaru come up with some new strange inventions again?"
Fukasaku nodded repeatedly. Then his tone shifted as he quickly urged, "Yes, yes. It's a long story, can't be explained in a short time."
"The Great Sage is waiting in the main hall right now. You should hurry and go pay your respects first."
Hearing this, Black Zetsu's heart tightened. Not daring to delay, he immediately nodded, "Alright, I'll go now."
But just as he finished speaking, Fukasaku suddenly reached out to stop him, a meaningful smile on his face as he said, "Hey, wait! There's also someone you absolutely wouldn't expect, who's waiting to see you."
Black Zetsu raised his eyebrows slightly, his heart full of confusion.
When Black Zetsu left Mount Myoboku, Kaguya had not yet appeared, so naturally he knew nothing about all of this.
He simply assumed it was a new figure that had appeared in Mount Myoboku.
He could only scratch his head and say softly, "Oh? Now I'm a bit curious."