During the Second Shinobi World War, the villages of Konoha, Sunagakure, and Iwagakure all attacked the Land of Rain.
Feeling guilty about this, Jiraiya decided to stay in the Land of Rain. He wanted to help three orphaned children.
He taught them for three years.
After those three years, Jiraiya went back to Konoha.
"Minato, it's been a while, and you've grown into a fine young man..."
Jiraiya picked up his teacup and took a sip, settling in at Namikaze Minato's home.
"You haven't changed a bit, Jiraiya-sensei," Namikaze Minato said, smiling and seeming truly happy to see him.
After some friendly greetings, Jiraiya noticed a photo on a nearby shelf.
It was a group picture.
It showed him as a Jonin, leading a team of three Genin.
"Where are the other two youngsters...?" he asked.
In the photo, a boy and a girl, who looked about the same age, stood on either side of Namikaze Minato.
Jiraiya stood behind them.
Namikaze Minato looked very young in the photo, still just a child.
"They... died in battle..." Namikaze Minato said, his voice becoming serious.
"I see..."
Jiraiya took a deep breath. A sad mood filled the room.
The quiet was broken by the sound of footsteps coming closer.
"Minato-sensei..."
Kakashi, looking annoyed, rushed in. He wanted Minato-sensei to give him special training to fix his weaknesses.
But he wasn't expecting a visitor.
"Who is this...?" he wondered.
He didn't recognize the face, someone he'd never met before.
Namikaze Minato spoke, "Kakashi, let me introduce you. This is my mentor... Lord Jiraiya."
"..."
Kakashi was shocked for a moment, and then became excited.
"Lord Jiraiya!"
One of the legendary Sannin, standing right in front of him!
"This kid, he looks a bit like..." Jiraiya rubbed his chin, a familiar face coming to mind.
"Kakashi is Senior Sakumo's son. He's currently under my command," Namikaze Minato explained.
"Haha..." Jiraiya chuckled. "Minato, impressive..."
Senior Sakumo's son was now his student?
It seemed he'd come a long way in the past few years.
When Namikaze Minato mentioned that he had saved Kushina, had been allowed to study the Book of Seals, and had even learned the S-rank Flying Thunder God Technique, Jiraiya was astonished.
"The Second Hokage's technique... truly... amazing..."
Jiraiya's surprise was justified.
Even the Third Hokage, Sarutobi, hadn't learned the Flying Thunder God Technique.
This kind of talent was proof that Minato was ready to become Hokage.
"No wonder..."
Jiraiya shook his head.
Before returning to the village, he'd heard about his student's nickname, the Golden Flash.
He had thought it was just about speed, but he didn't realize... it was the Flying Thunder God Technique.
"In that case, Minato, there's no time to waste. You should go to Mount Myōboku to learn Sage Techniques..."
He had already mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique.
Now, he needed to learn Sage Techniques.
That way, he would be strong enough to compete with Sakumo-sensei for the Hokage position.
Jiraiya knew that Minato's biggest dream was to become Hokage, and he fully supported his student.
The war was over, and the next Hokage could be chosen soon.
So... Minato needed to step up his training.
"Leave Kakashi to me," Jiraiya offered.
While Minato was at Mount Myōboku, he would take responsibility for teaching Kakashi.
"Awesome~!" Kakashi's eyes widened, filled with excitement.
Being trained by the legendary Sannin would make him incredibly strong, right?
The lack of confidence he'd felt after Sarutobi Ryo's scolding disappeared completely.
Kakashi felt like becoming Hokage was now within reach.
Minato-sensei will be the Fourth Hokage, so I'll be the Fifth Hokage... he thought.
Soon, Jiraiya gave Minato a scroll with the Mount Myōboku Summoning Technique and left with Kakashi.
Namikaze Minato unrolled the scroll and took a deep breath. "Then, it's time to go to Mount Myōboku..."
----
Not long after.
Using Reverse Summoning, Namikaze Minato was brought to Mount Myōboku by Fukasaku and Shima. He looked around in amazement.
Mount Myōboku, along with Shikkotsu Forest and Ryūchi Cave, were known as the "Three Great Sage Locations."
Anyone with the potential could learn Sage Techniques in these places.
"Jiraiya-sensei said it took him a month to learn Sage Techniques..." Minato mused.
"Well, little Minato, with your talent, a week should be enough..."
Fukasaku and Shima nodded, confident in Namikaze Minato's skills.
"But before that, come with us. Great Elder wants to see you..."
Fukasaku and Shima began to lead the way.
Great Elder was the title given to the leader of Mount Myōboku... the ancient Sage, the Great Toad Sage.
It was said that the Great Toad Sage had lived since the time of the Sage of Six Paths.
He was over 1000 years old.
His immense Chakra allowed him to see into the Future.
Namikaze Minato had heard stories about the Great Toad Sage's prophecies, like the one about the "child of prophecy" that Jiraiya-sensei often mentioned.
Soon, Namikaze Minato arrived at the palace.
There, he met the enormous Great Toad Sage.
"Great Elder, we've brought little Minato," Fukasaku announced.
Shima expected the Great Elder to act a little strange before getting down to business. But the Great Toad Sage's words were a surprise.
"The child of prophecy... you've come..."
Fukasaku and Shima were shocked.
The child of prophecy was supposed to bring peace to the Ninja World.
Was little Jiraiya's student that person?
The Great Toad Sage had never clearly stated who the real child of prophecy was.
Little Jiraiya had been searching everywhere for them.
Now that the Great Toad Sage had said it so clearly, was the Ninja World about to face terrible times?
Having lived for 800 years, Fukasaku and Shima had seen many changes in the Ninja World, countless events passing by.
Their faces became serious.
The Great Toad Sage slowly opened his eyes. "Namikaze Minato, your mission has arrived... I see struggle, death, new life... the Ninja World will face violent chaos..."
The Great Toad Sage spoke to himself, and Namikaze Minato could only listen with wide-eyed.
"Everything started not long ago."
Not long ago?
Namikaze Minato immediately thought of the destruction of Soragakure.
"That's right. From the moment Soragakure was destroyed, many things changed..."
The Great Toad Sage looked up at the sky, watching the white clouds drift.
"The Future, which was once clear, has become blurry and broken... I can only see pieces of images... Even I cannot accurately predict all the things to come..."
The original path had been broken.
Many things could change.
"Great Elder, can the Future... be changed?" Namikaze Minato asked, looking doubtful.
The Great Toad Sage had originally prophesied the child of destiny.
But now he was saying that the Future was unclear.
The Great Toad Sage nodded. "Yes, destiny is determined by oneself. When extremely good or extremely evil power appears, the prophecy will not go as planned..."
Destiny could not control those who were extremely good or extremely evil.
And it was because of them that many things would be rewritten.
Great Toad Sage continued, "In the new Future I see, you will fight against that power..."
"That power... does it want to destroy the Ninja World?" Namikaze Minato asked, standing up anxiously.
"It is destruction."
The Great Toad Sage's answer made Namikaze Minato, Fukasaku, and Shima's hearts sink.
"But it is also new life."
The three were taken aback.
Great Toad Sage explained, "The cycle of death and new life, that is how all things in the world exist..."
"Great Elder, I don't understand."
Namikaze Minato was confused.
If he was the child of prophecy, what was he supposed to do?
Great Toad Sage said, "Namikaze Minato, if you desire a new world, you can avoid fighting that power... but if you want to protect the old world... then, battle is your destiny. You are the child of prophecy."
"The choice... is mine?"
Namikaze Minato looked lost.
"If I don't fight, does that mean a new child of destiny will appear?"
"That's right," The Great Toad Sage nodded. "The era will choose a destined person. If you do nothing and let everything happen, someone else will fight that power, creating a new child of destiny."
Hearing these words, Namikaze Minato fell into deep thought.
Shima couldn't help but ask, "Great Elder, according to your prophecy, that power will destroy the old world and create a new world. Is this good or bad?"
"Good and bad... it all depends on your point of view."
The Great Toad Sage's voice was full of wisdom.
"People eat animals. To animals, people are evil. But people think it's natural to eat animals. Good and evil... are defined by perspective..."
Shima frowned, "Can't you explain it in a way that little Minato can understand better!"
"..."
The Great Toad Sage was silent.
Then, he spoke again.
"Alright, Namikaze Minato, I will show you the original, intended Future. After that, you can decide what to do."
The Great Toad Sage's eyes suddenly widened.
His immense Chakra pulled Namikaze Minato into the Future he had seen.
"This is the original path..."
Nouns, characters, and events flashed quickly before Namikaze Minato's eyes, like a movie playing.
Seeing these visions was like living through his future life.
The original Future... Fourth Hokage... married to Kushina... having a child... Uzumaki Naruto...
The current Future... broken and unclear images... the destruction of the old world... the path changing...
"Ugh!"
Namikaze Minato felt dizzy, the massive amount of information overwhelming him.
Thankfully, the pain didn't last long.
When the Great Toad Sage stopped, Namikaze Minato immediately knelt on one knee, gasping for air.
The Great Toad Sage closed his eyes.
No matter how Shima asked, he didn't speak again.
The two different Futures flashed through Namikaze Minato's mind, and his expression became very serious...