"A temple? Out here in the middle of the forest?"
Raizen frowned as the mist cleared.
The structure stood half-swallowed by moss, its golden roof dulled by age, prayer flags torn and flapping like dying breaths. Once, it might've been magnificent — but now it looked more like a forgotten shrine clinging to life.
He walked up the cracked stone steps, each one whispering under his sandals. There was no sign of visitors — no monks, no smoke from incense, nothing.
The silence was heavy.
Inside, the scent of old wood and rain filled the air. A massive Buddha statue loomed ahead, its face half-shattered, shadows cutting across its features.
Beneath it sat an old monk, cross-legged on a futon, eyes closed.
For a moment, Raizen thought he was dead.
Then—
"Why has the visitor come here?"
The monk's voice rasped through the hall — dry, deep, unsettlingly calm.
He didn't even turn his head, but Raizen could feel the man's attention lock on him.
A chill ran down his spine.
Raizen forced a smile. "Uh, just passing through. Saw a temple and figured I'd take a look. You know, sightseeing."
"Lying is a poor habit for one touched by heaven."
The monk chuckled softly and finally turned his head. His eyes were sharp despite his frail body — like someone who saw through more than skin and chakra.
Raizen blinked. "And how exactly did you figure that out, old man?"
"Because I can sense it — natural energy, flowing through you. The power of the Sage. No ordinary traveler carries that."
"Before you arrived, I'd never once felt such power near the Temple of Fire… which means you didn't just 'pass by.' You appeared."
Raizen's eyes widened. "Wait—did you just say Temple of Fire?"
"Indeed," the monk said, folding his hands together. "I am its abbot — Kongmyō."
"...Temple of Fire, huh?" Raizen muttered. "Didn't think I'd stumble into that place."
In the future he remembered, this temple was legendary — home to monks who could fight on par with jonin. But this place… was a ruin.
Still, one thing caught his attention.
"Abbot Kongmyō, you said you can sense Sage Chakra?"
"The Temple of Fire guards its own form of natural energy. To feel yours is not surprising."
"But what is surprising," the abbot continued, eyeing him curiously, "is how a boy your age has already mastered it."
Raizen hesitated. For a moment, he considered lying again — but the monk's gaze didn't waver.
So he told him everything: Mount Myōboku, the training, the toads, the months of near-death meditation.
When Raizen finished, the abbot nodded slowly.
"Ah… the Toad Sages of Myōboku. Yes, they too walk the path of the natural world. That explains the balance within your chakra."
Raizen looked around the empty temple. "If you can sense nature so clearly, why's this place so empty?"
The old monk's smile faded.
"Once, the Temple of Fire was filled with disciples. But war burns everything, even faith. They left… one by one."
Raizen frowned. "So you're the only one left?"
"Yes. This temple stands, but only in name."
He hesitated, then asked, "What about the Guardian Twelve Ninja? Aren't they supposed to—"
"Guardian what?"
Raizen froze. "...Right. Never mind."
Wrong timeline, he thought grimly. No guardian monks, no Nine-Tails sealed here… just ruins and an old man.
The abbot broke the silence.
"If fate led you here, then stay for a while. The Temple's Sage Art may yet resonate with your own."
Raizen tilted his head. "You mean—exchange techniques?"
"Exchange," the abbot repeated with a faint smile. "Learning flows both ways."
Raizen smirked. "Heh. Sounds like a deal."
That night, he stayed in one of the half-collapsed guest rooms. The wind whistled through broken panels, carrying the scent of ashes and old incense.
For the first time in months, Raizen didn't dream of war. Only stillness.
The Next Morning
Raizen met the abbot in the courtyard, eager. "You said your temple's Sage Art has one technique, right?"
The monk nodded. "Yes. It is the sacred art of this temple — Rai-ei: Senju Massacre."
Raizen raised a brow. "That name's… intense."
"It must be. It can only be used once in a lifetime," the abbot said quietly. "A thousand strikes of divine light — the essence of the Temple's power. To use it is to burn one's life in prayer."
Raizen felt a chill crawl down his back. Sounds like a cross between Susanoo and a suicide bomb.
"Then how about a demonstration?" he said, grinning. "Show me what the 'Fire Temple's immortal power' looks like."
The abbot smiled faintly. "Very well."
They stepped outside into the forest clearing.
The air trembled.
Kongmyō pressed his palms together, murmuring ancient mantras under his breath. His chakra shifted — radiant and heavy, unlike anything Raizen had felt before.
Golden light burst from his body, rising behind him in the shape of a colossal Buddha.
The earth shook as the statue grew larger, towering over the temple itself.
Its countless arms unfolded like rays of the sun, each one humming with sacred energy.
"Rai-ei: Senju Massacre!"
The giant Buddha opened its eyes — burning gold — and the world lit up.
Raizen shielded his face, teeth gritted. The pressure alone was enough to shatter the stone floor beneath his feet.
That's… insane. Ten meters? No — it's bigger than that. Easily the size of a complete Susanoo.
For the first time, Raizen didn't try to joke. He simply smiled — a sharp, dangerous smile.
"Guess I'll have to match you, old man."
The toad clone he'd left back at Mount Myōboku suddenly burst into smoke. In that instant, his body flooded with raw natural energy.
Crimson markings flared around his eyes, and his aura shifted from human to something else entirely.
Sage Mode — awakened.
...
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