Chapter 176: I Hate Her, So She Must Die

"I am not abandoning Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan; they already possess the power to protect themselves, and I must continue to search for the Child of Prophecy."

Jiraiya roared: "Nagato is not the Child of Prophecy! The Great Toad Sage did not tell me to stop searching, which means he is not!"

Yamanaka Chujiu sneered: "Of course the current Nagato is not, but the one from the past very likely was!"

Jiraiya: "That's impossible! The Great Toad Sage cannot be wrong!"

Yamanaka Chujiu asked: "Oh, then tell me, can the power Nagato displayed through the Pain Deva Path—that might which destroyed the Valley of the End more than three times over—intimidate the Ninja World and forcibly forge an era of peace?"

Jiraiya was silent for a moment: "Yes!"

"That is a terrifying Ninjutsu capable of destroying any ninja village; as long as he is willing, he could force the Ninja World to maintain peace."

Yamanaka Chujiu laughed: "I don't know what the Child of Prophecy in your imagination looks like, but he must first possess power like Nagato's, enough to make everyone in the Ninja World put down their fists and listen to his words, before he can take the first step toward changing the Ninja World."

"If you had taught Nagato well and guided him toward the path of the Child of Prophecy, this pure and kind child could very likely have grown into the Child of Prophecy."

"But you abandoned him and instilled wrong ideas in him, leading him to trust Konoha and the Rain Ninja too much, which resulted in his tragic fate."

"The Child of Prophecy who was to save the Ninja World thus became the Child of Calamity who would destroy it."

Jiraiya's voice tightened, and a flash of pain crossed his eyes: "It's not like that! The Great Toad Sage said it himself, the Child of Prophecy is the Child of Prophecy; he wouldn't fall just because I let go!"

"Yahiko died a miserable death, and Nagato was consumed by hatred; this is a tragedy of the times, not my fault!"

"The times?"

Yamanaka Chujiu sneered: "Ask your own conscience, is the 'irreversible' situation you speak of truly unchangeable?"

"If you had only stood firm for a few more days and provided more practical guidance, Yahiko would not have died due to excessive naivety and trusting the conspiracies of Hanzo and Danzo."

"If Yahiko hadn't died, Nagato wouldn't have turned dark, and Konoha wouldn't have been attacked by the Pain Deva Path!"

"Then the current Ninja World would have two forces dedicated to peace: the Konohagakure managed by me, and the Akatsuki led by Yahiko."

"With Konohagakure's power that tops the Ninja World, Nagato's individual strength that crushes the Ninja World, Yahiko's unmatched charisma, and my mind that calculates everything, how could we not change the Ninja World and create true peace?"

Jiraiya's arms holding Naruto tightened slightly; he resisted with a hoarse voice: "It's not like that, it's not! I left back then to completely end all suffering!"

"Jiraiya!"

Yamanaka Chujiu scolded sternly: "Whether it is peace or the future, it will never be realized out of thin air just because of one person's appearance!"

"Regardless of whether there is a Child of Prophecy, peace must be built bit by bit through countless acts of salvation and arduous work!"

"You abandoned the chance to save Yahiko, let Nagato fall into darkness, and watched as the hope for salvation you cultivated with your own hands turned into a butcher's knife destroying the Ninja World. You abandoned the possibility of saving Orochimaru, cast aside all responsibility, and pinned all your hopes on a Child of Prophecy who might appear at some unknown time!"

"This is escapism! It is fearing the hardships of the present, and fearing the weight of responsibility!"

Yamanaka Chujiu announced proudly: "I am only 14 years old, yet I was able to change Orochimaru and make him a pillar of stability for Konohagakure."

"It was I who stepped onto the battlefield, defeated the enemies coveting Konohagakure, ended the war, and reorganized the order of peace."

"And you, Jiraiya, one of the dignified Konoha Sannin, clearly had the chance to save the Ninja World multiple times, yet you chose to escape every time, using 'long-term righteousness' to whitewash your cowardice and 'prophesied destiny' to cover up your dereliction of duty!"

"You were never chasing any Child of Prophecy."

Yamanaka Chujiu stared at Jiraiya and delivered his verdict word by word: "You are just afraid to face your responsibilities, fearing that your efforts might fail, so you use the destiny entrusted by the Great Toad's prophecy to escape all your debts and faults with a clear conscience."

"Jiraiya, you are a coward!"

Yamanaka Chujiu's words were like an ice Wind Storm, blowing away Jiraiya's half-lifetime of obsession and pride.

The warm, small body of Naruto in his arms, the painful past of Yahiko's death, and the vivid reality of Orochimaru's return from the brink—these three contrasts completely crushed all his rebuttals.

The path of destiny he had upheld for half his life appeared so pale, weak, and vulnerable in the face of tangible responsibility and salvation.

Jiraiya lost his spirit; he obediently accepted Orochimaru's verdict, had his connection to Myoboku Mountain sealed, and stayed in Konohagakure to babysit.

Orochimaru announced: "Uzumaki Naruto's 16th birthday shall be the day your sentence is served, Jiraiya!"

The verdict against Jiraiya was the second-heaviest sentence in the Great Trial of Konoha Rogue Ninjas.

In the end, only one ninja died in the entire Great Trial—Utatane Koharu.

No matter who it was, they felt this result was absurd.

Utatane Koharu had stayed obediently in Konohagakure, did not go to hijack the Fire Daimyo, did not join the Anti-Snake Alliance, and did not collude with foreign ninjas and samurai to attack Konohagakure.

She just stayed quietly in Konohagakure, never stepping out like Sarutobi Hiruzen, and even restrained her own clansmen from causing trouble.

How did Utatane Koharu become the only ninja executed in the Great Trial?

Ignoring his own suspicion, Sarutobi Hiruzen leaned on his cane and stormed into the Hokage Office, loudly questioning Yamanaka Chujiu in front of hundreds of Konoha Ninja.

Yamanaka Chujiu, unhurried, took out documents and showed Sarutobi Hiruzen evidence that Utatane Koharu had secretly directed operations, stolen information on the Fire Daimyo's residence for the Anti-Snake Alliance, and helped the Daimyo and the Anti-Snake Alliance pass information.

Witness testimony, physical evidence, and interrogation records were all complete.

Utatane Koharu was not as innocent as she appeared; she was an important member of the Anti-Snake Alliance.

As one of the core personnel opposing the Fifth Hokage Orochimaru, Utatane Koharu was an indisputable Konoha Rogue Ninja!

A rogue ninja deserves to die!

This is the iron law of the Ninja World!

Sarutobi Hiruzen had nothing to say; his mouth opened and closed, then opened again, but he could not think of a suitable reason to exonerate Utatane Koharu.

Finally, forced into a corner, he could only bite the bullet and ask: "Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Mifune were not sentenced to death, and so many other Konoha Rogue Ninjas were not sentenced to death either, so why was only Koharu sentenced to death?"

Yamanaka Chujiu laughed: "Mifune is a foreigner, let's set him aside for now."

"Sarutobi Hiruzen, how do you know the others weren't sentenced to death?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen was dumbfounded: "But they clearly didn't..."

Yamanaka Chujiu pretended to realize: "Ah, I remember now, that's because I asked Orochimaru to issue a pardon, commuting their death sentences."

Sarutobi Hiruzen froze: "Then Koharu..."

Yamanaka Chujiu sneered: "I hate her, so I didn't ask for a pardon for her."

"That is all."