A surge of blue-white lightning exploded in the air. Saitama locked eyes with Manda, his right hand still held in a throwing pose.
Zzzap!
[Chidori Light Sword] pierced through the tip of Manda's tail, pinning it to the ground beneath Manda's stunned expression.
"Roar!! Damn it!"
Manda let out an enraged roar, its eyes filling with bloodshot veins.
"Hey, do you get what spot you're in now?"
Manda wanted to fight back, but felt completely drained of strength.
The current coursing through it carried a paralyzing effect, greatly slowing its movements.
Crackle! Another wave of electricity flashed across.
Seeing that Manda had gone silent yet still glared with rising hostility in its eyes, Saitama stepped onto its body and immediately unleashed [Chidori Current] from beneath his foot.
"Tch..." Manda gritted its teeth, swallowing its fury instead of raging pointlessly.
The electric shocks left it unable to fight back, so it chose to feign weakness for now.
"Hey, I'm talking to you, Manda!"
Saitama lightly tapped his right foot against Manda's hard scales, his tone teasing.
"What do you want?!" Manda's voice remained strong, though faint traces of fear crept within.
This young human he'd never seen before exuded an aura of overwhelming superiority, but as a sacred Boss Summon, it had its own pride — it wouldn't be easily subdued.
Moreover, as one of the most wicked-natured summons, it calculated its moves carefully. For now, playing weak would buy it better opportunities to strike back later.
"As a Boss Summon, naturally I expect you to fulfill your obligations! Of course, rewards won't be lacking for you, provided you carry out my orders flawlessly."
Saitama slowly approached Manda's slightly raised head while observing its "submissive" posture.
Deep down, he knew clearly that this attitude Manda displayed stemmed purely from submission to his power.
At the moment he showed even the slightest sign of weakness, this vicious snake would definitely turn on him without hesitation.
But would that day ever come? If he really sunk so low that even Manda could defy him, he'd drop dead from shame on the spot.
Thus, regardless of Manda's reason for bowing temporarily, as long as it achieved the desired result, that sufficed.
"No problem!" Manda dropped its eyes, stealing a glance up at Saitama standing on its head.
"There's nothing else, right? Then can I go now?"
Manda had already grasped the situation — Saitama was undeniably powerful, so there was no point in fighting further.
"Don't rush just yet!"
Saitama sat cross-legged, his right hand rubbing against the scales.
Although Manda's skin looked smooth, it proved extremely tough — feeling almost metallic.
"My name is Saitama Uchiha. You can just call me Saitama from now on — that's me introducing myself!"
Saitama continued chatting casually without minding Manda's strange reaction.
Indeed, Manda's expression grew very peculiar — for it had never encountered a human who actually introduced himself like this.
Even back in the day, it took Orochimaru quite some time for both parties to gradually get familiar with each other, and their relationship had always been somewhat transactional, each seeking personal gain.
But Saitama's self-introduction just now felt unusually formal, more like how two friends might introduce themselves upon first meeting.
"I'm Manda. You already know that, so I won't bother introducing myself further!"
Manda hesitated. Saitama stayed quiet for so long it almost seemed like he was waiting for something, so Manda decided to reply, mirroring Saitama's tone exactly.
"Well then, thanks. First time we've summoned each other—don't be offended."
Saitama patted Manda lightly on the head, speaking in a relaxed manner.
He still hoped his relationship with Manda could remain amicable—at least not falling apart at critical moments.
"You go back first. I'll follow you to Ryuchi Cave and have a look around." Saitama got straight to the point without bothering with politeness.
Upon hearing these words, Manda's serpent eyes flickered with murky gleams.
It didn't speak immediately, appearing lost in thought.
"Ryuchi Cave rarely welcomes outsiders. Even ninja who've signed the Summoning Contract with us are no exception."
Inside, Manda was secretly calculating—if Saitama arrived at its territory, wouldn't he be entirely at its mercy?
Though thinking this, its outward response came differently.
"I want to meet the White Snake Sage." Saitama stood up and stretched lazily, speaking indifferently.
"Oh…you also want to try, just like Orochimaru did..."
Manda knew plenty about what had happened—the last intruder to Ryuchi Cave was Orochimaru, who went straight to seek out the White Snake Sage.
Back then, Manda understood Orochimaru's purpose—to learn the sage techniques of Ryuchi Cave—but apparently failed. In the end, he barely survived after paying an enormous price.
Manda also recalled that all those who attempted to learn the Sage Art at Ryuchi Cave but failed were gifted by the White Snake Sage to the elder snakes as food.
"Yeah, I want to try my luck and see if I can actually master the Sage Art!"
Saitama licked his lips, his eyes briefly revealing a deep, unfathomable glint.
Manda said nothing, choosing silence for a moment instead.
"Do whatever you want. It doesn't concern me anyway, no matter what happens in the end!"
After quite a pause, Manda's body seemed fully recovering from the lingering numbness caused by Saitama's Chidori Current, finally answering.
The next period passed with casual chats between them, waiting for Manda's full recovery.
...
"I'll return first. Use Reverse Summoning later. I'll wait for you over there."
Manda lowered itself, its purple scaled armor shimmering with cold metallic blue light, its huge eyes glaring down at Saitama.
"Fine." Saitama nodded slightly.
Poof! The moment the words left its mouth, Manda turned into a wisp of white smoke and vanished from this space.
Saitama waited nearly a minute after Manda disappeared, and only then began making hand seals in place.
There was a [Flying Thunder God] mark on top of Manda's head, but since Ryuchi Cave lay some distance away from where he currently stood, immediate teleportation wasn't possible yet.
Crouching halfway, Saitama placed his right palm on the ground. A wave of black cursed seal energy radiated outward in circles, centered at his palm.
Moments later, space trembled faintly. Just like Manda, Saitama transformed into a swirl of white mist and vanished from the scene.
A sudden feeling of weightlessness overtook Saitama's body, but having long mastered the [Flying Thunder God], he was already very familiar with this sensation.
When he first started learning the [Flying Thunder God], he experienced exactly this kind of disoriented state.
Before Saitama could even attempt to control his body and stabilize himself, the space around him twisted again, and he was back in a tangible environment.
Boom! Landing in a half-crouch, Saitama braced himself with one hand against the ground. Before him stretched an entirely pitch-black setting.
It was a cave—vast, open, and pitch-black.
Countless stalactites hung from the cave's ceiling, water dripping steadily off their sharp tips, dripping down with soft plinks, collecting into small pools below.
Manda was nowhere to be seen. Saitama narrowed his eyes, sensing the jutsu he'd planted earlier, then vanished on the spot.
Ryuchi Cave was huge, and after performing a Reverse Summoning, it was perfectly normal for his landing point to be random.
That's why the [Flying Thunder God] jutsu Saitama had set on Manda was so important!
The surroundings shifted in an instant. His vision blurred briefly before changing into a yellowish scene. In the blink of an eye, Saitama stood atop Manda's head.
"Huuuh!"
Manda exhaled deeply, its warm, moist breath carried moisture that splashed against the ground.
Coiling its massive, elongated body, it took several loops before it fully curled inward.
"Your ninja technique's pretty handy!"
Manda still had decent insight. It had previously suspected Saitama knew some Space-Time Ninjutsu, but now it was confirmed.
Still, it couldn't figure out what specific type of Space-Time Ninjutsu Saitama wielded.
From beginning to end, Manda hadn't detected how Saitama executed his techniques.
He knew full well Saitama had marked him with a technique, but couldn't locate the Flying Thunder God tag left behind.
"I'll take you to meet the Sage; though we might need to wait a bit."
This place seemed to be Manda's personal lair, which explained why no other snakes were active nearby—it was unusually quiet.
Yet, through Saitama's sensing ability, beyond this cave existed various chakra fluctuations, both strong and weak, scattered outside.
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