Naruto: The Savior of the Shinobi World is a Liar?

Puchi...

A faint yet clear sound of fabric tearing echoed through the air.

Crimson blood, warm with life, gushed forth, flowing along the cold, dark blade of the kusarigama, dripping onto the dirt and gradually staining it a dark red.

Thud... Thud...

A drop, another drop, another.

The vivid blood didn't spurt violently; instead, it seeped slowly from Hanzō's heart, silently and stubbornly soaking his chest fabric.

"Why?"

Hanzō's trembling hand gripped the handle of the blade, though not out of fear. He had invested every ounce of strength and will into this single action, the blade having already pierced his chest.

Yet, he found the strength to push deeper was gone.

Nagato had raised his hand at some point, Banshō Ten'in gripping his arm tightly.

A person wishing for death was trying to drive a blade into his own heart, but the very being he wished to die at the hands of was preventing it.

Hyūga Kumo quietly observed this scene, stealing a glance at Tobi hiding in the shadows, subtly shifting his position.

"Do you want to do it yourself?"

Hanzō raised his head, looking into Nagato's cold, impassive eyes, tightly gripping the dark blade. "Your enemy is right in front of you. You don't want revenge?"

Konan stood frozen in place, her face, once cold with hatred, became stilled, her gaze locked onto the kusarigama he had plunged into his chest, watching as the sickle-shaped blade was gradually stained with glaring blood...

"I truly cannot forgive you."

Nagato's voice was akin to rusty gears grinding against each other, the divine detachment and aloofness that belonged to "God" in his Rinnegan cracking slightly.

Beneath that crack lay a furious magma, a nearly overwhelming anger that threatened to consume all reason—emotions that were fundamentally human.

"If I could, I would love nothing more than to kill you right now! Just the thought makes my body tremble and unable to stop!" Nagato's voice, restrained, seemed to pour forth from his clenched jaw.

"Then why don't you act!"

Hanzō's expression was equally grim as iron, questioning, "Don't tell me you still believe in Yahiko's naïve fantasy of 'mutual understanding brings peace'!"

"I willingly entrusted my life and Amegakure to you, knowing you would instill fear in others through the tailed beast weapons you would seize!"

Hanzō regarded Nagato's plan as a feasible path, and even Hyūga Kumo seemed to agree.

Yahiko and Jiraiya were idealists, burdened with guilt for harming others, hoping for mutual understanding between people to extinguish disputes, empty dreams that lacked the strength to change the world.

The former had died in his naïve fantasies, while the latter recognized his powerlessness, entrusting his hope for the future to the elusive child of prophecy.

Hashirama Senju walked the line between idealism and realism, seeking mutual understanding yet not expecting everyone to achieve it, believing each generation must do its part. Thus, he used overwhelming strength to end chaos, establishing a new order, hoping future generations would build upon it.

Although the generations that followed didn't live up to his expectations—his death only precipitated further wars—the situation still improved compared to a world where children were conscripted into battle at an average age of under thirty during the Warring States Period.

Of course, this was true for the larger nations; the small nations that became sacrificed often fared even worse than during the Warring States era.

The five destructive war machines collided; it was only the small countries caught in the crossfire that were crushed and torn apart.

While Naruto, embodying an idealist's thoughts while enacting realist actions, believed that mutual understanding and forgiveness could end the endless hatred between nations.

Yet he had knelt, pleading with the Fourth Raikage not to execute Sasuke, saying haughtily "I don't want the Leaf and the Cloud to slaughter one another because of Sasuke," only to be met with the Raikage's cold retort: "It's not too late to forgive after I kill Sasuke."

Ultimately, peace was enforced through overwhelming strength, yet that world remained unchanged; after Naruto's death, the ninja world would repeat its tragic cycle.

Meanwhile, Hanzō, who had witnessed countless wars and deaths, understood this point. He and the later Uchiha Sasuke were both realists.

They could rationally recognize the ninja world, plagued by years of conflict, was steeped in hatred. There was simply no possibility for mutual understanding and forgiveness among people. Instead, they aimed to utilize overwhelming force to end disputes and establish a new order, to rule over the ninja world.

This was not an end; it was a new beginning.

"As long as you can create this so-called tailed beast weapon, obtaining the power to instantly destroy a nation, those who crave war will be deterred from taking action through fear!"

Hanzō spoke in a grave tone. "While this may not bring true peace, as long as such an arrangement can last across generations, those once filled with hatred will perish, allowing the hope of a new order of peace to emerge!"

Even if it were impossible to establish such a new order, at least a few decades of peace could be achieved.

That alone was sufficient! Even the once immensely powerful Hashirama Senju could only maintain peace for around twenty years due to his naïve underestimation of human desires!

From Hanzō's perspective, if Nagato could accomplish decades of peace, he would be willing to die, entrusting Amegakure to Nagato.

However...

"Tell me!" Hanzō's gaze bore into Nagato, demanding, "What are you hesitating over now?"

"You first tell me," Nagato's voice became more gravelly, a chilling resonance, "Do you regret it?"

"..."

In response, Hanzō momentarily froze, instinctively wetting his cracked lips.

After killing Yahiko and the Akatsuki, every time he gazed at the desolation of Amegakure dwelled only by ghosts, he certainly felt regret. He imagined a scenario where, rather than killing Yahiko, he could have taken him under his wing, teaching him. Perhaps, after his own demise, Amegakure might still hold hope for peace.

At that time, he undeniably had many choices; however, swayed by Danzo's temptations and the fears of death, he opted for the worst path.

Hanzō understood this in his heart, yet, he would not voice it.

He simply wanted to urge Nagato to fully abandon his fantasies about larger nations.

"I have no regrets."

His gaze transcended the distorting air before him, locking onto Nagato's inhuman eyes, unflinching in the face of that fearsome power. He spoke coldly, "I can tell you that even if I were to choose again, I would still kill Yahiko and you all."

"Because a naïve organization like the Akatsuki would only drag Amegakure into the abyss. Yahiko's so-called negotiations would gain no understanding or peace from larger nations; a weakened Amegakure that shows weakness in battle would only become prey for the larger powers!"

"I am here because I believe that you, who possess those eyes, can lead Amegakure to a new future, bringing peace to the Land of Rain—that's all."

With that, Konan's tightly clenched fists began to tremble once more as an inexplicable sense of helplessness and despair washed over her.

For she knew what Hanzō had said was true.

The innocent girl she had once been in that fateful rainstorm had died on that day.

"You truly should die."

Nagato's tone shifted from rage back to a familiar coldness, his chilling intent flooding forth.

Konan's throat constricted as if she sought to emit a single syllable, yet only a suffocating breath escaped.

But in the next instant, they did not hear the sound of a blade piercing flesh.

Clang!

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