Naruto: Set a goal, conquer the universe.

Page 43

Chapter 65 The Price of Peeping at the Strong

Inside the sage's palace on Mount Myoboku.

An ancient toad, even larger than Bunta, lay on a massive chair, soft snoring coming from its mouth.

After Shima Sage, Fukasaku Sage, Jiraiya, and Naruto entered the palace, Fukasaku Sage jumped in front of the Toad Sage.

It called out softly, "Grandpa, wake up. Little Jiraiya and Little Naruto are here. They want to learn Sage Mode."

After being called several times, the Great Toad Immortal slowly opened his heavy eyelids, his eyes still shrouded in lingering sleepiness, and asked in a muffled voice.

"Is there something you need, Fukasaku?"

The hermit Fukasaku repeated what he had just said.

"Little Jiraiya, little Naruto?" The toad sage looked down.

"Greetings, Grandpa Great Sage!" Naruto shouted with a strong voice, his face filled with the enthusiasm unique to young men; Jiraiya also put away his usual playful smile and bowed respectfully.

But just as the two finished greeting each other, a soft snoring sound came from above.

Upon closer inspection, the giant toad immortal was asleep again.

Several veins bulged on Shima Senjin's forehead instantly. She jumped to the old man's ear, took a deep breath, and her small mouth suddenly opened into an astonishing arc, so wide that visible sound waves were emanating from the air.

"Wake up!"

The giant toad immortal's eyes snapped open, pupils contracting sharply. His dazed state vanished instantly, and a cold sweat broke out on his back. He quickly exclaimed, "He's awake! He's awake!"

"Really." Shima muttered, stepping aside to stand with Fukasaku on either side of the Great Toad Sage.

"Who are you, young man?" the Great Toad Sage asked Naruto curiously.

"My name is Naruto Uzumaki, and I'm the new contractor, Deba!" Naruto puffed out his chest, his voice brimming with unstoppable energy.

"Oh, so it's Naruto." The Great Toad Sage nodded, his eyes flickering slightly as he looked at Jiraiya: "And who are you?"

"It's me, Great Toad Sage! It's me, Jiraiya! You haven't forgotten me, have you?" Jiraiya put on an exaggeratedly hurt expression, clutching his chest and feigning grievance.

"Hahaha, how could I forget? It was just a joke." The Great Toad Immortal let out a booming laugh, a sly glint in his wrinkled face.

"You have come here for..." it asked seriously, its smile fading.

“Naruto wants to learn Sage Mode,” Fukasaku replied.

"Oh, Sage Mode." The Great Toad Sage stared intently at Naruto, his gaze seemingly able to pierce through flesh and reach the depths of his soul.

After a long pause, he nodded slightly and said, "Alright, Fukasaku, you can teach Naruto. I'm sleepy, you can go now."

As soon as he finished speaking, his eyes closed again, his breathing became heavy, and he seemed to fall asleep again.

Fukasaku jumped onto Naruto's shoulder and said, "Come on, little Naruto, the old man has agreed that you can train in Sage Mode. I will teach you how to do it now."

Naruto looked at the Great Toad Sage's aged face, nodded thoughtfully, turned around and followed Fukasaku Sage outside, with Jiraiya following closely behind.

After watching Naruto and Jiraiya leave, Shima turned to the Great Toad Sage and exclaimed in surprise, "Grandpa, are you alright?"

Suddenly, two lines of crimson tears welled up in the corners of the giant toad immortal's eyes. It slowly opened its eyes, which were filled with fine blood vessels, as if it had been exhausted from staying up countless nights.

"Ah, it's alright." It sighed softly, wiping away the blood and tears with its wrinkled forelimbs, its voice carrying an indescribable heaviness.

"I just saw some things I shouldn't have seen. Luckily, the other person meant no harm; I was only glanced at, which is already a great relief."

"What did you see?" Master Shima asked, his eyes filled with worry.

"Perhaps... it was a god." The Great Toad Sage shook his head, but the image from just now lingered in his mind.

The blond youth standing atop the giant, multicolored Buddha suddenly turned to look at it, a gentle smile spreading across his lips.

That single glance was enough to strike its eyes like lightning, nearly blinding it.

Just one image was enough to make my eyes go blind.

This is the lightest possible price to pay.

This is the price of spying on the strong, even if the other party has no ill intentions.

Shima the Immortal was puzzled but impressed, and ultimately did not ask any further questions.

On the other side, Naruto followed Fukasaku along the misty path outside the palace, scratching his head and saying to Fukasaku on his shoulder, "Grandpa Fukasaku, the Great Toad Sage... I feel like he's a bit..."

He swallowed his words, as if he was carefully choosing his words.

The sage Fukasaku saw through his thoughts and said bluntly, "Are you trying to say he's getting senile?"

"Ah... um." Naruto nodded somewhat embarrassedly; that was indeed what he meant.

“The Great Toad Sage is over a thousand years old; it’s normal for him to be a little confused,” Fukasaku Sage said, waving his hand.

"Over a thousand years old!!!" Naruto's eyes widened in shock, his mouth forming an "O" shape. It was the first time he had ever heard of a creature living for such a long time.

Passing through layers of enormous plants, a waterfall cascades down in front of you, with many stone toad sculptures of various shapes standing on the bank.

Jiraiya stopped and said to Fukasaku, "Then I'll take my leave. I'll leave Naruto in your care."

"Okay, you can go now." Fukasaku gave Jiraiya a disdainful look and waved him away.

Fukasaku Sage doesn't want to see this good-for-nothing, filthy-minded fellow right now.

"Haha..." Jiraiya didn't care at all and said to Naruto, "I'll come and let you know before the Chunin Exams. You should train hard here, Naruto."

"Okay, thank you, Jiraiya-sensei." Naruto saluted Jiraiya and replied energetically.

Jiraiya returned to the ninja world using the Reverse Summoning Jutsu, while Naruto and Fukasaku arrived at the waterfall.

There are many stone toads here.

“Little Naruto, first I want to introduce you to what Sage Mode is.” Fukasaku jumped off Naruto’s shoulder and stood in front of him, saying.

"Please guide me, Grandpa Fukasaku." Naruto's face turned serious.

"The so-called Sage Technique is a special kind of ninjutsu that enhances the power of ninjutsu and taijutsu by absorbing natural energy."

"Its core is to absorb the 'natural energy' that is everywhere in nature and combine it with the ninja's own 'chakra' to form a more powerful 'Sage Chakra'."

"It can be described as a power system that is a level higher than the chakra of ordinary ninjas."

It paused, then looked at Naruto: "Little Naruto, you should know that ordinary chakra = the combination of physical energy and mental energy, right?"

"Yes." Naruto nodded. This was something Kakashi-sensei had taught him from the very beginning.

"Sage Chakra = physical energy + spiritual energy + natural energy, and the three must be kept in a 1:1:1 balance."

"Don't underestimate the power of just having one more natural energy source. Its difficulty is such that most people can't master it in their entire lives. Take Jiraiya for example. He has been practicing Sage Mode for twenty years, but he has only just begun to understand it. He can't even enter Sage Mode on his own."

"Now you know how difficult it is to master Sage Mode, right?" Fukasaku gave Naruto a heads-up to avoid damaging his confidence.

“I understand how difficult it is.” Naruto nodded solemnly, then scratched his head. “But, Grandpa Fukasaku, what exactly is this so-called natural energy? I’ve never heard of such energy before, nor have I sensed it.”

Chapter 66 The End of the Fourth Kazekage's Life

"Natural energy exists in all things in the world, such as plants, mountains, and air. When absorbing it, you need to concentrate your mind and, like a plant, perceive and guide the energy into your body."

“This kind of energy is very difficult to perceive. Even if the natural energy of Mount Myōboku is ten times stronger than that of the outside world, you would still find it difficult to perceive, right?” Fukasaku said.

"Yeah, I just feel the air is a bit fresher, nothing else," Naruto nodded and said.

"Of course it's not that simple, otherwise Jiraiya wouldn't have brought you to Mount Myōboku to train in sage techniques," Fukasaku said, nodding.

"So the first step to learning immortal arts is to make you sense natural energy, and that requires the special product of Mount Myōboku, toad oil!" Fukasaku pointed to the small waterfall next to him.

The water in this small waterfall is golden.

But upon closer inspection, Naruto realized that it wasn't water, but oil.

"This toad oil has the property of 'conducting natural energy.' By applying the toad oil to the body, one can more clearly perceive the flow of natural energy around them through the medium of the oil, thus reducing the difficulty of getting started."

"You'll be considered qualified when you can no longer sense natural energy through toad oil," said the sage Fukasaku.

"I see, then let's begin." Naruto nodded immediately.

The immortal waved his hand and said, "No rush, I haven't even mentioned the dangers of cultivating immortal techniques yet."

"Danger? Danger?" Naruto raised an eyebrow; he hadn't expected that training could be dangerous.

"Hmm." Fukasaku nodded. "Do you see the toad statues around here?"

Naruto looked around at the densely packed toad statues and nodded.

"This is what people who failed to cultivate immortal arts become," said the immortal Fukasaku.

"What?" Naruto's eyes widened. Are there really so many people who practice Sage Mode?

The immortal master seemed to understand his thoughts.

“Mount Myoboku has existed for over a thousand years, so it’s normal for so many people to cultivate immortal arts.”

Naruto nodded in realization. Even if only one person trained in Sage Mode every twenty years, that would still be a considerable number.

"If you fail to master Sage Mode, you'll turn into a stone statue, Naruto. Are you ready?" Fukasaku said to Naruto.

"Ah, I understand now. Let's begin, Grandpa Fukasaku." Naruto looked at Fukasaku with unwavering determination. His will was like a sharp blade, capable of cleaving through any difficulties or obstacles in his path.

The immortal smiled with satisfaction.

On the other side, in the Land of Wind.

The Fourth Kazekage, who had accepted the Third Hokage's invitation to watch the Chunin Exams, was now at the end of his term.

"A grand funeral with gold dust!" Luo Sha knelt on one knee, panting, and slapped his hands on the ground.

Instantly, a torrent of golden sand mixed with Magnet Release chakra surged towards Orochimaru and his companions like a tsunami, attempting to completely engulf them.

He made the most of the desert's home advantage, with golden sand waves reflecting the sharp edge of death under the sunlight.

"Tsk, Magnet Release is still so troublesome." Orochimaru chuckled hoarsely, his figure retreating swiftly like a ghost, leaving a snake clone behind as bait.

The raging sandstorm instantly engulfed the clone, shredding it into mud.

Kabuto Yakushi had already leaped into the air, his hands glowing with the chakra light characteristic of medical ninjutsu: "The human body is 78% water, Kazekage-sama!"

He precisely aimed his chakra scalpel at Rasa's true form, which was faintly visible amidst the sand waves, attempting to disrupt its chakra flow.

Luo Sha was forced to distract himself and manipulate the golden sand to form a shield to block, which slowed down the sand wave's attack.

In the blink of an eye, a white afterimage tore through the golden sand barrier!

Kimimaro, relying on the terrifying hardening of his body through the Shikotsumyaku (Corpse Bone Pulse), broke through the Sand Gold Blockade at a speed far exceeding Rasa's expectations.

"Dance of the Camellia!" he shouted, his arms transforming into two gleaming bone blades, unleashing a continuous barrage of strikes at a speed imperceptible to the naked eye.

"Clang! Clang! Clang!" The golden sand armor was continuously cleaved and peeled off by Kimimaro's bone sword.

Rasa forcibly condensed a new sand gold defense, but the continuous use of large-scale ninjutsu and chakra interference had severely overdrawn his strength, and his breathing was heavy like a bellows.

Faced with Kimimaro's relentless close-range attacks, he could only struggle to hold on, and his wounds continued to multiply.

Orochimaru gave Rasa no chance to catch his breath, quickly forming hand seals on the outside: "Ten Thousand Snakes Formation!"

Countless venomous snakes burst from the ground and coiled around Rasa's lower limbs, further restricting his movements.

Kabuto threw out poisoned senbon again, forcing Rasa into a frantic struggle.

Just as Rasa was pushed to his limit by the triple attack, a cold glint flashed in Kimimaro's eyes.

He abandoned his defense and took the piercing wound from Luo Sha's Golden Sand Spear with his shoulder, using this as a price to rush into an absolute blind spot!

"Pfft!" Luo Sha's movements suddenly froze.

A blood-stained white bone spear pierced through his back and down to his chest, precisely striking his heart.

Kimimaro's voice was as cold as sand: "Your golden sand... is too slow."

Fresh blood dripped down the bone spur.

Rasa stared in disbelief at the weapon embedded in his chest, his life force rapidly draining away as his chakra dissipated.

His vision blurred, and all he could hear was the sound of sand being blown by the wind, as if the land of wind was mourning for him.

"Cough... Protect... the village's... future..." He used his last strength to look in the direction of Sunagakure, the light in his eyes completely extinguished.

The Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, lay dead in the cold sand, his blood staining the golden sand beneath him, marking the end of his life in the ninja world.

"Heh." Orochimaru's hoarse, magnetic voice rang out, "The plan is progressing smoothly."

Dou adjusted his glasses and said, "I didn't expect the Kazekage and his guard to be so weak."