Chapter 135: The Misfortune of Fortune

The flames gradually died out, leaving behind scorched earth. Everyone surrounded the monk Bunpuku, their faces filled with sorrow, waiting to hear his final words.

Aburame Tatsuma’s vicious plan had worked. He had destroyed all their supplies and left not even the bodies of his own men behind. Baimu and the others, exhausted from the great battle, were physically on the verge of collapse.

"Master Bunpuku..." Baki gritted his teeth tightly. With Bunpuku’s death at such a moment, the One-Tail would inevitably perish as well, leaving no chance for rescue.

Once the One-Tail resurrected, the Hidden Sand would face a three-to-five-year period of vulnerability without a jinchuriki.

When the beast returned, the village would be forced to organize a massive operation to recapture it within the desert domain of Shukaku. Even without interference from other villages, they would lose many of their elite forces.

Moreover, a impoverished village like the Hidden Sand was inherently a cradle for rogue ninjas; its intelligence agency was like a sieve that even Ebizo, despite his desperate efforts, could not plug. By then, it might well evolve into a war between the Five Great Nations over the One-Tail.

Under normal circumstances, Baki and Pakura might have gambled on whether Bunpuku could seal the Tailed Beast into one of them, but that was now impossible. To accept such a seal in their current weakened state would lead to an immediate, explosive death. There was no other outcome.

Baimu looked at the elderly monk with complex emotions. Two blades remained embedded in the old man’s body; no one dared to pull them out. Leaving them in might keep him alive a little longer, but removing them would certainly mean immediate death.

Baimu had once intended to trick the old monk into leaving the temple, hoping to inherit the Tailed Beast under the guise of necessity when no heir existed. He had never expected to run into a cunning old fox like Aburame Tatsuma, leaving him in his own state of near-death exhaustion.

As for his feelings toward Bunpuku, Baimu had initially thought he would have no burden in causing the death of an old man nearing the end of his life. But after spending over a month with him, he had come to feel the monk’s absolute kindness—a man of great love who held peace in his heart.

A sense of guilt inevitably stirred within him.

The monk should have ended his life peacefully in the temple. Instead, he was now suffering from hunger, thirst, and the agony of blades piercing his flesh in the middle of the desert.

Yet, Bunpuku sat like a serene and compassionate Buddha statue, calmer than anyone around him, as if he viewed the arrival of death with more indifference than passing clouds.

"Baki... waging war against the Leaf is absolutely a mistake. Although my words may carry no weight, I still hope you can persuade the Kazekage to stop the fighting. Peace is the only path to long-term survival; war only brings suffering." Every word from Bunpuku fell upon Baki’s ears like precious pearls.

"...Yes, Master Bunpuku. If I can make it back alive, I will surely persuade the Kazekage." No one knew if Baki was merely comforting the dying monk or if he truly meant it.

"Pakura... you must keep your heart full of warmth. Indifference only pushes people away."

"Tch, old monk... saying such things at a time like this..." Pakura gave a cold snort.

"Kakuzu..." Bunpuku actually had words for Kakuzu as well. After all, Kakuzu had carried him on his back the entire journey, and the monk had recited many sutras for him and shared many life lessons.

"What? Don't expect any funeral money from me; I don't have any," Kakuzu said, clutching his pockets.

"Cough, cough... I want to tell you, while a long life may have caused you to lose all your loved ones, wealth is certainly not the only colorfast memory. Only love can make you feel that you are truly alive," Bunpuku urged.

"Gold is the only thing that never fades... Forget it, you’re annoying. I’ll make you a pure gold coffin... or an urn, fine," Kakuzu said, uncharacteristically generous, as the monk’s sutras had indeed helped him purge some of the malevolent thoughts brought on by his Earth Grudge Fear.

"You’ve got to be kidding me? Did you starve your brain to death?" Baimu looked at Kakuzu in astonishment.

"Don't worry, when you die, I'll make you a pure gold urn too," Kakuzu nodded.

"Then thank you so f***ing much!" Baimu gave him the middle finger.

"Little brother..." Bunpuku had words for Baimu as well.

"Master Bunpuku," Baimu said with a sorrowful and humble expression.

"You are a person who understands love, with a vision far broader than my shallow view. I hope you can accept my final will... to realize a deeper 'Love' and spread it throughout the ninja world," Bunpuku said with a tone of request.

"Are you talking about becoming a jinchuriki?" Baimu was both excited and worried. Under normal circumstances, his Hashirama-cell-enhanced body could definitely withstand the impact of the One-Tail’s chakra, but his body—transformed into a dragon—was at its absolute limit, with every cell on the verge of collapse. He had no idea if he could handle the seal.

"Master Bunpuku!" Baki exclaimed anxiously. Even letting Shukaku dissipate was better than letting the Tailed Beast fall into the hands of an outsider!

"It is not Shukaku... Shukaku already has a better place to go. I am referring to the 'Love' I have realized throughout my life," Bunpuku slowly extended a finger, thin as a withered branch.

"Huh?" Baimu was utterly confused. Aside from being resurrected and captured again, what other destination could Shukaku have?

Bunpuku’s finger slowly traced a character onto Baimu’s palm, stroke by stroke, as if branding it there with blood—so vivid and profound, much like the mark on Gaara’s forehead.

"受" (Submissive)...

"Isn't it supposed to be 'Love'?" Baimu scratched his head. "Did you run out of ink while writing?"

"Your 'Love' is still missing a 'Heart'. If you can realize your own 'Heart', you will be able to complete this character, and it will become a sealing formula to pacify the Tailed Beast." Bunpuku smiled as he looked at Baimu, his gentle gaze seeming to tell him, *I’ve seen through everything you are. Trying to trick my Shukaku? Not a chance!*

"WHAT THE!!!" Baimu jumped up, nearly strangling Bunpuku. If he had the character for "submissive" written on his palm, how could he face anyone in the future?

If his children asked him later: "Daddy, Daddy, why is there a 'submissive' character on your palm?"

Baimu couldn't very well look world-weary and say: "That, my child... a highly respected old monk once told me that I was a heartless little bottom..."

That would be sabotaging his own dignity!!!

"Master Bunpuku... what do you mean by the One-Tail having a better destination?" Baki was more concerned about this.

"I have seen it..." Bunpuku clasped his hands together and closed his eyes.

"Seen what?" Baki was nearly driven to madness by the suspense.

"The monks who came to this barren land to preach in the past..." Bunpuku remained unhurried.

"Monks???" Baimu felt a chill behind his neck. He shrank his shoulders and looked left and right, but there wasn't even a ghost to be seen. He had heard that people could see spirits before they died; could it be that the monk was seeing something living people couldn't?

If only Pakkun were here; dogs could see things humans couldn't.

"It is the will of our ancestors... a method to restore vitality to the desert," the monk said with compassion.

Everyone looked at each other in confusion.

"My life has burned to its end. Let me see you all on your final leg of the journey."

Bunpuku clasped his hands together. The sand around them surged, forming a cloud that lifted everyone into the air, flying rapidly toward the direction of Loulan.

The flame of Bunpuku’s life was like the final flicker of a candle, swaying in the wind, burning through all his conviction, growing weaker and weaker...

Until countless towering buildings appeared on the horizon.

Loulan... it was within reach.

Bunpuku exhausted his very last drop of heart-blood. With a faint smile, his body began to disintegrate into stardust.

And then, he faded into silence.