79: Are you... God?

Returning home, he saw Tsunade seriously guiding Uchiha Mikoto and Whirlpool Kushina in their training.

Joa stepped forward.

"Tsunade, after dinner, let's go shopping together."

Turning to look at Joa, Tsunade was a bit confused.

This was the first time in so many years that Joa had initiative invited her to go shopping.

Had he taken the wrong medicine?

Tsunade didn't know, but women, almost all of them, have a natural interest in shopping, and ninjas are no exception.

Whirlpool Kushina, who was nearby, immediately clamored to go along when she heard about going shopping.

"Okay, let's go together, Jean, you come too."

Under the power of money, the custom-made Heroic Wanderer clothing was delivered home in just one day.

He enthusiastically invited Tsunade, dressed in her Heroic Wanderer outfit, to build blocks and play puzzles with him.

Joa was having a blast with his little life.

However, happy times are always short-lived.

A few days later.

An intelligence report was sent back to Konoha.

Orochimaru's team, responsible for leading people to the Wind Country to investigate intelligence,

Unfortunately fell into a trap set by Sunagakure.

Nawaki Senju was instantly killed by an exploding tag.

Nawaki's body had already been brought back to the Rain Country Konoha outpost by Orochimaru.

After the news reached Konoha, Tsunade didn't even change her clothes, and wearing her Heroic Wanderer outfit, she immediately left Konoha and rushed towards the Rain Country.

Hiruzen Sarutobi did not stop her, but instead sent Jiraiya, who had rushed to the Hokage's office upon hearing the news, to accompany Tsunade to the Rain Country.

To avoid any further accidents.

'Nawaki!'

'It's okay! He'll be fine!'

High in the sky above the clouds.

Joa followed unhurriedly behind Tsunade and Jiraiya.

One day later.

Rain Country.

Konoha outpost.

"Hoo! Ha! Ha!"

Tsunade and Jiraiya, who had traveled quickly without any rest,

Stood at the entrance of the Konoha outpost in the Rain Country.

Tsunade looked at the few Konoha Ninjas at the end of the corridor behind Orochimaru, and the covered body on the ground.

She stood there stunned.

Seeing Tsunade's expression, Orochimaru didn't speak, but silently took out a necklace.

He was also very upset that his disciple had accidentally walked into an exploding tag trap and been killed.

'Life is so fragile.'

'Especially at this time.'

"Because this is war."

It seemed he was comforting Tsunade, and also comforting himself.

Since the beginning of the year, friction between the major nations had become increasingly frequent.

Missions were increasing and becoming more dangerous.

Even Jiraiya had been recalled to the village, and the three of them reformed a team, constantly undertaking dangerous missions.

He recalled how, just over a month ago, Jiraiya was severely injured when they were surrounded by Rock Shinobi in a cave.

And now, his disciple Nawaki Senju had been killed by an exploding tag.

Orochimaru now had a deeper understanding of the fragility of life.

Taking the necklace from Orochimaru's hand,

Tsunade sank to the ground, covering her face, tears streaming down.

In the forest outside the Konoha outpost.

Hashirama Senju watched Tsunade from afar, laughing loudly as he said,

"I didn't expect Little Tsunade to have grown so much in just half a day, hahaha."

Seeing his elder brother's foolishness, Tobirama Senju helplessly spoke up to remind him,

"Big Brother!"

"Your Highness is up there, we should go."

"If Nawaki wakes up and sees Little Tsunade, and insists on seeing her, we'll be exposed."

Hearing this, Hashirama Senju looked down at Nawaki, whom he was holding in his arms, then looked up at Joa above the clouds.

"Indeed, it's time to go."

······

Carrying Nawaki's headless body, Tsunade returned to Konoha in a daze.

She had lost another loved one.

Now, in Konoha, she only had her grandmother and Joa left.

Returning home,

Tsunade threw herself into Joa's arms, crying bitterly and venting the sorrow in her heart.

Her loved ones had died one after another, all because of war.

This made her begin to hate this World.

"Joa, is war truly unavoidable?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because... desire... It's fine if a single weak person is dissatisfied with the status quo, but once the numbers grow and a major trend forms, war will break out."

"And the desire of a strong person..."

At this point, Joa thought of himself.

A strong person like him, in order to become stronger, could easily initiate wars that destroy Planets, destroy Worlds, or even destroy Universes.

In this, countless people would experience the pain of losing loved ones, just like Tsunade.

But so what?

He never considered himself a good person.

Moreover, if he didn't become stronger, would he just wait for someone stronger than him to kill him?

He wouldn't stop until he stood at the peak, stepping on the heads of all existence.

Being born into such a World was Tsunade's misfortune; she had no choice.

She could only adapt.

If not for Joa, her entire life would have been a tragedy.

Not just her, but the lives of most people in the Ninja World were a tragedy.

Just like Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan, who lost all their loved ones due to war.

Konoha Year 37.

The Second Ninja World War fully erupted.

Hanzō the Salamander was unwilling for his country to become a battlefield for several surrounding great ninja villages to vie for profit.

And simultaneously declared war on the Wind Country, the Land of Fire, the Earth Country, and the Iron Country.

It's hard to say what part of him he used to come up with the idea of simultaneously declaring war on several great nations.

Did he really think he could make the Rain Village the Sixth Great Nation all by himself?

It was simply a pipe dream.

And indeed, that was the reality.

His actions brought only sorrow to the Rain Country.

'Dad! Mom!'

Konan, hidden in a storage box in her home,

Watched with her own eyes as Rock Shinobi, after repelling Konoha Ninjas, killed her parents to prevent intelligence leaks.

This scene made the young Konan hate these ninjas who invaded her country.

Uncontrollable anger and hatred made Konan's breathing heavier and heavier.

"Someone else?"

The Rock Shinobi, who had just pierced the hearts of Konan's parents with a kunai, heard a movement and suddenly turned to look at the storage box in the corner.

Seeing the Rock Shinobi who had killed her parents looking in her direction,

Konan covered her mouth in terror, her eyes filled with despair.

The next moment,

The lid of the storage box was forcefully thrown open.

"So there's still a brat!"

Grabbing Konan's hair, the Rock Shinobi lifted her out of the storage box.

The intense pain in her head made Konan scream uncontrollably, desperately prying at the Rock Shinobi's fingers with both hands.

"Ah! It hurts so much!"

"Let go of me! Let go of me!"

"Ko! Konan!"

Hearing their daughter's screams, the dying couple tearfully pleaded with the Rock Shinobi,

"Please! Please!"

"Spare my child!"

With two wet thuds, the pleas abruptly ceased.

Konan's parents' heads were cut off by the Rock Shinobi using a ninja blade he had seized from a Konoha Ninja.

"Heh! A ninja blade? My fists are better."

Watching her parents' heads being cut off with her own eyes, Konan's gaze was hollow; the pain in her heart now far surpassed her physical pain.

'My Lord Hanzō! My Lord god!'

'Anyone! Anyone... anyone come and kill them! Kill them!'

This prayer, filled with despair and hatred, seemed to have successfully reached god.

The next moment,

A faint buzzing sound began.

Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle.

Two scorching red rays of light cut through the rainy night sky, shooting directly into Konan's home.

In just a few breaths,

The two Rock Shinobi who had broken into Konan's home were vertically sliced in half by the scorching red rays.

"Phew! Thankfully, I made it in time."

After the Rock Shinobi died, Konan, who had fallen to the ground with his half-body, stared blankly at the man who had descended from the sky and landed in her home.

"Are you... My Lord god?"