Chapter 309: Chapter 309: The Will of Stone

Chapter 309: The Will of Stone

Onoki slowly descended before the Hidden Stone Village shinobi; the two god-like giants were their enemies at this moment.

Is this... the end of Hidden Stone Village?

Standing in such a desperate situation and gazing at those giants, even Onoki found it difficult to muster the thought of resistance.

The predicament was like a hungry beast, gnawing at the will of everyone from Hidden Stone Village.

Onoki was almost on the verge of giving up his resistance.

At that moment, Kitsuchi stepped forward and placed his father on his shoulders.

"Old man, are we going to keep fighting?"

Indeed, were they going to keep fighting?

This question tortured Onoki’s heart like the biting of ants.

As the Tsuchikage, he was unwilling to bow his head to the enemy.

But as the Tsuchikage, he had to consider the young people around him.

In a daze, Onoki saw his grandfather, the First Tsuchikage, Ishikawa.

Back then, he was only in his teens, about the same age as the boy and girl before him.

At that time, Onoki was wiping the stone enshrined by Hidden Stone Village.

"The left side is still a bit dirty. Wipe it carefully for me, and remember to use force with every stroke."

Ishikawa slowly floated in front of Onoki.

Onoki didn’t wipe the sweat from his face; instead, he continued wiping the stone and asked his grandfather the question that had been weighing on his mind for a long time.

"Whether this thing is the symbol of the Village or something else, no matter how you look at it, it’s just a worthless rock, right? Carving a Great Stone Face like Hidden Leaf Village’s would be so much more impressive!"

He looked at his grandfather and complained, "Our Lord Tsuchikage sure knows how to save money."

However, Ishikawa did not respond directly to his grandson’s question, nor did he get angry because of the complaint.

As the First Kage, he was already old—very old.

He had suffered many injuries during his journey to emulate Senju Hashirama in unifying the shinobi of the Land of Earth, but in the end, he won and became one of the Five Kage who settled the chaotic era.

"Onoki, I’m the best at reading stones."

Ishikawa turned his head, no longer looking at his grandson.

"With just one look at a stone, I can tell what kind of value it holds. This stone is the symbol of our Village’s unwavering will."

Saying this, Ishikawa raised his right fist.

Onoki stopped wiping; he thought his grandfather was once again using unfunny jokes to fool him as he had in the past.

He just couldn’t understand. Since they were both symbols of their Villages, why was Hidden Stone Village’s symbol so ordinary, cheap, and commonplace!

"Even the symbol is made up of bad jokes. What a far-fetched cheapskate."

Ishikawa frowned upon hearing his grandson’s words.

He reached out and picked up the stone in front of Onoki.

"But, it truly is just an ordinary stone."

Saying this, he casually tossed the stone that symbolized Hidden Stone Village’s unwavering will into the pond below the pedestal.

There were countless stones in the pond; once that stone went in, it was immediately impossible to tell which one Ishikawa had just thrown.

Onoki was furious, but since the other person was his grandfather, he suppressed his anger and looked at the pond.

"You... what are you doing, you old geezer! I can’t even find which one it was anymore!"

To his surprise, Ishikawa produced another stone. That stone was also unremarkable, but it was clearly different from the previous one.

"See? For something like this, no one would notice if you replaced it with a new one."

"Eh?"

The squinty-eyed Ishikawa opened his eyes. Onoki swore that was the most serious he had ever seen his grandfather.

Even today, more than fifty years later, when he recalled that conversation, that look in his eyes remained fresh in his memory.

"The most important thing has never been the symbol, but the will within one’s own heart."

"As for me, as long as I can see a person’s will, I can also know exactly how much that will is worth."

"Onoki, within your will lies a power sufficient to change the world. But if you don’t pay close attention, this rare will might also disappear."

"Disappear..."

Yes, his own will... when did it disappear?

Was it when he faced that man named Uchiha Madara?

Recalling how he had been instantly defeated upon their first encounter, his grandfather’s subsequent words echoed in Onoki’s mind.

"Hitting a wall easily makes a person abandon their will, find excuses for themselves, and replace their missing will with hatred."

"Listen well, Onoki. You must never abandon your will; hold fast to it!"

In his memory, facing the powerful Uchiha Madara, Onoki picked up a stone in front of him, then stood up to face the fear in his heart.

"Do you still wish to dance? But unfortunately, you are far too weak."

The red light of the Sharingan flooded his vision, and the stone slipped from his palm, shattering along with his will at that moment.

"Hey! Old geezer, what are you dazing off for!"

A crisp shout suddenly pulled him back to reality.

It was Kurotsuchi.

She was covered in dust, but her palm held a stone high, her eyes shining like burning stars.

"Look! I brought our Hidden Stone Village symbol!"

That stone was rough and uneven, completely unremarkable on the dim battlefield.

But as Onoki gazed at it, a surge of warmth suddenly welled up in his parched eyes.

It wasn’t sadness; it was something deeper and harder, breaking through the soil once more from the depths of his shattered will.

He took the stone.

It was very light, yet very heavy.

All confusion, fear, and compromise were crushed into powder the moment his palm touched the stone’s surface.

He shed tears, he took flight, and he took the stone and held it high.

He had found his will again!

The Will of Stone! 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

Walk your own path, even if you crash into a wall and end up battered and bloodied! Never give up!

Will requires persistence; the Will of Stone is the will to persist.

When a person possesses persistence and the firm determination to break through any obstacle, they possess the power to change the world!

The Will of Stone isn’t about being born strong; it’s about choosing to get back up every time you fall.

It’s not that one never feels fear, but that even if your knees tremble, you must continue down your chosen path, even if you hit a wall, even if you end up battered and bloodied.

"Shinobi of Hidden Stone Village!"

His voice was like thunder rolling across the mountains.

"Stones can be worn smooth, and they can be crushed!

But we will never give up!

Today, right here, let the enemy witness what is called... the Will of Stone!"

The earth seemed to respond to his cry, vibrating faintly.

In the eyes of all the Hidden Stone Village shinobi, fear receded inch by inch, replaced by a silent, almost stubborn light.

It wasn’t hope, but something harder than hope.

It was the resolve to choose to stand firm even while knowing they might be defeated and killed.

What is the sturdiest thing in the world?

Today, Onoki could provide the answer.

The hardest stone in the world is a person’s will!

The Will of Stone has never disappeared.

It merely slumbers within every seemingly ordinary stone, waiting for a trembling yet firm hand to raise it toward the sky once more.

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