Because...?

Sitting around a table with Megumi now freshly dressed after having taken a shower, with himself on one side and Hashirama and Mito on the other, Megumi began to explain his request.

"So, after meeting the Sage of Six paths and finding out that he has the ability to look into the future, I made sure to confirm a few other things about his abilities."

"...like?" Hasirama took the reluctant lead in between himself and Mito in questioning Megumi.

"What I learned was well, I don't think he can directly see the future anymore, but the toads he has a contract with can. And they most likely also don't see a complete future other than glimpses of the future like a prophecy would let them."

"So what?"

"Well, that brought me to question two things, the first being, why would someone who can see the future want to change it? And the second being what exactly is he doing that is taking him over a thousand years to actually pull off?"

"...well for the first question, he probably just doesn't like something that is happening in the future? For example, maybe he thinks the world shouldn't be run in a particular way or just wants to rule over it himself?"

"Possible. But being able to figure that out a thousand years ago? And to overthrow Benzaiten from her realm and take over it for something as simple as that? That'd have to be an event quite devastating for someone to attempt to do such a thing and to simply rule over the world? Well, he'd definitely need someone to help him run it, so why isn't there anyone there really that actually is in direct contact with him?"

"....well….sometimes, and by sometimes I mean most of the time, people are just…you know…a little dumb….especially after they get their hands on a position of power. Perhaps he just got a little paranoid or something? And he could also be using some jutsus we've got no clue about that he might be using to affect the world in ways we might not understand. After all, we've truly no clue how much power someone can have once they take hold of the fabric of fates." Hashirama explained from his rich experience.

"I'm sure you've met people like that, but the Sage of Six paths is definitely not so simple. From what I heard from Benzaiten-"

"-You spoke to Benzaiten-sama!?" Mito asked all of a sudden.

"Yeah, both Rura and I did. She lives in one of the mountains in the desert. At least only 'for now', she claims."

"Oh…." Mito and Hashirama's mouths hung open, but Megumi just glossed over the fact and continued from where he'd been cut off.

"So, from what I've heard from Benzaiten, the Sage of Six paths was a normal person and only began to seek power once his family died. And even then he became strong enough to kill nearly everyone in the empire that was guilty of killing his family. But he only took her throne after he stopped the killing business. Clearly, he wants something more. Something else? Something for which he had to split the world from its past."

An uneasy silence hung in the air as both Mito and Hashirama felt Megumi's argument was a little empty, but Hashirama extended a graceful rope since Benzaiten had explained so.

"So let's say, he does want something else, alright, then what about your second question? Why exactly would he have to wait a thousand years to actually be able to do something?"

"I don't have any clues, but I have a theory."

Both Mito and Hashirama nodded, giving non-verbal consent for Megumi to go on, so he explained his theory.

"I think he's going to do something with the birth of the new God Tree that will be born in a few more years."

"God tree?" Both Hashirama and Mito squinted their eyes in confusion.

"Yes. According to Rura-"

"-Megi! Who are you talking to about me!" Sakura slid open the paper door and entered into the room beside Megumi, with her hair still a little wet after taking her shower.

She froze as soon as her gaze met Mito, her brain clicking things into place as she suddenly recognized why the house was made out of wood and why they were in the middle of nowhere in a different 'secret home', immediately greeting her, "Good morning Sensei! I didn't expect to see you today!"

Mito just laughed as she pulled Sakura to sit beside Megumi and then continued talking, "It's alright. Don't worry about it. Tell me. How are you feeling now?"

Sakura, embarrassed that Mito had noticed her crying, glared from the corner of her eyes at Megumi for not informing her before, but Mito giggled and lightly slapped her shoulders and spoke in a jolly voice, "It's nice to see you doing better. Megumi was just telling us about Hagoromo and about something called the 'God Tree.' Why don't you tell us instead….You know how he loves to overcomplicate things all the time."

"Hey! I'm still here!" Megumi argued, but everyone just ignored him.

"God tree? Oh…that was something that the Akatsuki an organization composed of rogue ninjas from different nations gave rise to after capturing all the jinchuuriki and extracting their tailed beasts to feed the Husk of the Ten Tails. The husk basically became a tree when it got the chakra of most of the tailed beasts."

"Oh..? And what was it used for?"

"As far as I know, it was being used by Kaguya to trap everyone in a genjutsu by somehow using the moon and her Rinne-Sharingan, a dojutsu that is a combination of the Rinnegan and the Sharingan. The genjutsu was permanent and couldn't be broken by anyone else except the people that controlled the God-Tree."

"Hmm…" Both Hashirama and Mito went into deep thoughts for a few moments and asked Megumi a question a few seconds later, "And what do you think is the relation between Hagoromo and the 'God Tree'?"

"I think the moment the God Tree is used, he might be able to do something that lets him take control of the Fabric of Fates once again before Benzaiten is able to return."

"....." Both Mito and Hashirama thought about it for a while, trying to use their knowledge to fill any technical gaps and figure out if such a plan was viable but both glanced at each other as they shook their heads at the same time.

"I don't think it'd be possible, at least not as easily as you think it to be, Megumi." Hashirama explained.

"Why?"

"Well…for starters, he'd have to capture all the tailed beasts again. But since Sakura here says it has happened once, let's say it happens this time again. But even then it'd be a hell of a task to be able to do something to the Fabric of Fates."

"Why?"

"Because to rein over the Fabric of Fates, there lies a strict test. A test that is the reason why no human has ever really ruled over it. Even Hagoromo who was able to enter it was never able to do much with it." Mito professed and continued with a little deeper explanation, "The thing is, the Fabric of Fates doesn't have any real 'ruler'. The 'ruler' of the Fabric of Fates can only ever be a person who can view the entire world all at once, in its entirety throughout time, or at least that is what my dad, Ashina explained to me in the scrolls he wrote down."

"Oh….I see…" Megumi nodded a little confused, since he intuitively felt he was right, he just didn't know how yet but suddenly his eyes lit up as he rambled on, "By the way Mito-baa san! I met your dad using a seal that was left in some area in the desert that allowed people to connect with pure land!"

Mito's expression froze for a second as pure joy filled it after.

"What!"

"Yep! I met him and a few others too. I saw Toka Senju and Izuna Uchiha also with him too, they were all in pure land they said."

"Really!? Do you remember the seal!?"

"Well…not really...since, although I know the structure and design of the seal, I don't know what tenketsu properties were imprinted into it…but I could take you there sometime if you wanted?" Megumi proposed as Mito smiled and nodded happily, almost tearing up a little when she heard about it. Hashirama just wrapped his hands around her waist as he rubbed her back a little and then continued speaking to Megumi.

"So, what were you saying? What about these speculations of yours?"

"Oh! I wanted you to join the organization I was creating to fight against Hagoromo and the Akatsuki."

"Oh….." Hashirama deflated as he heard Megumi's request as he spoke in a low voice, "You're strong enough anyway. Just go around and beat them up yourself. I'm sure hardly anyone can defend against your sneak attacks."

"Well…..I would….but I'm saving any special moves sets I develop for a finale where no one should be able to counter my moves, so I'm only using the Hirashin outside."

"So…what….that's more than enough anyway…." Hashirama just deflated as he leaned onto Mito like a sandbag, looking completely sapped of energy, much to Megumi and Sakura's confusion.

Mito laughed a little while she explained patiently, "He doesn't want to fight because he's done enough fighting for his lifetime. He's gotten old now. He just wants to die in peace after fulfilling the promise he made to Kaguya, and similarly, I'm only waiting for him. I've got no real interest in fighting anyone. I could help you out in other ways if you wanted, just keep me out of the organization."

"....is there really no way I can ask you for help?" Megumi pleaded as Hashirama just opened a single eyelid and cast a tired glance and spoke after shutting his eyes once again, "Ah….erm….yeah….just find a way for me to get out of here without affecting the Fabric of Fates by reintroducing my line of fate that was supposed to be dead into it again, and I'll think about it."

Megumi then looked at Mito as she too nodded and said, "If you find a way like that for me as well, then perhaps I'll think about it too….after all, I want to see how the world has changed since you've introduced them to your methods."

Megumi smiled as the gears inside his head began to turn.

'I don't care what it is. By hook or by crook. Now I'll take them out. Drag them if I have to, or my name won't be Me-.'

'Shut it, stop talking inside your head as if you're in an anime and are monologing.' Sakura interrupted as it sounded weird that Megumi was speaking about himself in third person, almost resorting to pinching his stomach outside in the real world while they were still in front of Mito and Hashirama.

"Oh! By the way, Mito-baa san! Rura still hasn't activated her Kekkei Genkai! And she keeps pushing it for some random reason or the other!"

"Really? I gave it to her so long ago!? What? Like nearly two or almost three months now?" Mito spoke confused.

"Erm….." Sakura wanted to speak, but suddenly became speechless as the words refused to come out of her mouth.

"Is there something that's bothering you?" Mito asked.

"Well…." Sakura started to say but couldn't bring herself to voice her thoughts properly and tightened up.

Noticing her trouble, Megumi began poking around her stomach and tickling her into a fit of hysterical laughter.

"Why you so worried!!!!?? Just tell it to us already!!?"

"HEHEH~ StoPPP!!~~!! NOO~~!!! STOPPP~!!! HEHEH~-HEHE~~~!!"

"No! I won't stop until you tell it to us!" Megumi said as he pinned Sakura down and began to tickle her even more fiercely, inspite of Mito and Hashirama sitting right in front of them.

Sakura became worried that they were going to shout at her and used force to push him away, or at least tried to until Mito used her sealing chains to pin her into place along with Megumi who was now free to tickle her further.

"ALRighT! aLRigHT!~~ Stop~! I'll tell~~!!!" Sakura gasped, blurting out in between her giggles and deep breaths as Megumi stopped his tickle torture.

"So….?" Mito asked, as even Hashirama had gotten curious about it now since Sakura had been so adamant about keeping her reason hidden.

"I didn't do it because…." Sakura said, as her voice got lower and lower until it was barely even a whisper in the end.

"Because…..?" Everyone asked with a similar tilt to their heads, their bodies and minds equally curious.

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Thank you for reading!

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