At Mount Myōboku, the sacred land of the toads, the Great Toad Sage had recently awakened from his slumber. His enormous body moved slowly as he rose, and his eyes gradually adjusted to the light after spending so long immersed in darkness.
Ever since that incident, he had been forced to retreat into hibernation on a regular basis because of the changes that had overtaken him. Yet the other toads living in Mount Myōboku, those who served their great sage, knew nothing of the true reason behind this recurring need for sleep . a habit he had never possessed before a certain point in time.
After using his prophecy technique at the request of the Sage of Six Paths to peer into the existence standing at the head of the Ryukoga Family, and suffering the catastrophic consequences of that prophecy, he had sustained genuine damage. His body had undergone a terrifying mutation, to the point that a third blue eye had permanently appeared in the center of his forehead . the lingering mark left by that being.
The damage was neither temporary nor did it fade with time as he had once hoped. Instead, he found himself compelled to enter periods of hibernation at regular intervals. If he resisted, he would gradually descend into a state bordering on madness. He would begin hearing scattered voices whose source he could not identify, while fragmented and distorted images flashed before his eyes so rapidly that he could neither comprehend nor organize them.
As these episodes became increasingly frequent, and with the growing certainty that he would eventually lose his sanity if nothing changed, he discovered that hibernation was the only effective solution. Whenever he entered that deep sleep, the voices would fall silent, the visions would disappear, and a measure of peace would return, allowing him to gather the fragments of his mind once more.
Today, after awakening from his latest period of slumber, news reached him of the turmoil unfolding throughout the outside world. A gigantic black beast had appeared, bringing ruin to vast regions of the continent, devouring people by the countless thousands while destroying everything that stood in its path.
The Great Toad Sage knew exactly what that monster was and understood its true origin. He knew that, in his youth, his old friend and disciple, Hagoromo, had taken that box out of the dimension of the Pure Land. He himself had witnessed part of Hagoromo's life and some of the choices he had made.
The ancient sage muttered quietly,
"Hagoromo... your actions have caused far too much turmoil."
He understood the entire incident and saw the full picture clearly. After Hagoromo's sons had gone their separate ways and descended into conflict, bringing about destruction and division, and after their father had physically died and departed for the dimension of the Pure Land, part of the village Hagoromo had originally established upon the philosophy of Ninshū remained behind.
That village inherited everything Hagoromo had left behind .his tools and his knowledge, and many priceless relics whose existence was unknown to most people. Among those inheritances was the box itself, one of the most dangerous objects Hagoromo had ever brought out of the dimension of the Pure Land.
It seemed that, after the passing of many years and generations, the descendants who inherited the village had forgotten the philosophy of Ninshū. From everything he had learned, they now appeared to be the very ones responsible for unleashing the demon that had been sealed inside the box.
The Great Toad Sage remained seated in heavy silence after absorbing everything he had learned. Anxiety was evident within him as he contemplated the dangerous upheaval spreading across the world and the possibility that it might one day threaten the future of their own sacred land.
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