As one of the Three Great Sage Sanctuaries, Ryūchi Cave was terrifying when it truly erupted.
Boom—! Boom!!
Almost instantly, violent auras surged skyward from every corner of the sanctuary. When those raging presences converged, the entire Ryūchi Cave seemed to enter a berserk state.
"A human?"
"How did a human get into the inner sanctum?!"
"Manda II… Manda II got blown apart! He's nothing but scraps!"
Within a minute, the upper ranks of Ryūchi Cave arrived first—Tagitsuhime, Ichikishimahime, and Takahime, leading the way.
The moment they saw Manda II's remains—dead beyond any doubt—cold sweat seeped down their foreheads.
Shock rippled through them.
They never would've imagined that Manda II—who had always run wild in Ryūchi Cave, lawless and unstoppable—would be killed so brutally.
He hadn't merely died.
He'd been obliterated.
But then—
Tagitsuhime's green eyes flickered as if she'd noticed something. A hint of horror crept into her voice.
"Wait… that man… could he be the Fifth Hokage from the rumors?"
"The Fifth Hokage?!"
Ichikishimahime and Takahime snapped their gazes over.
At first, they didn't believe it.
Then they saw it clearly—
That unmistakable Hokage cloak.
The identity was obvious.
They had heard of the one called the "God of the Shinobi World"—the Fifth Hokage, Uchiha Ren.
But they never expected him to appear here.
In Ryūchi Cave.
Scrape… scrape… scrape…
The sound of scales grinding against stone echoed in waves.
One after another, massive serpents—hideous, murderous, and enough to make anyone's scalp go numb—slithered into the Hidden Den.
Just like the three leaders, the serpents froze when they saw what was left of Manda II.
"Manda II is dead…!"
"That human killed Manda II!!"
"Even if Manda II didn't get along with us, he was still one of Ryūchi Cave!"
"A human has no right to come here and kill our kind!"
"Eat him! We have to eat him!"
Cold, bloodthirsty voices rose one after another.
Unlike the three high-ranking priestesses, many of these serpents were clearly not very bright. Their hunger was written all over them—some even drooled, saliva stringing between fangs.
These were creatures that had lived in Ryūchi Cave for ages, ignorant of the current state of the shinobi world.
To them, this "human" was already meat on the plate.
Meanwhile…
"So I got sent to Ryūchi Cave."
Uchiha Ren sensed the serpents surrounding him—each packed with natural energy—and instantly understood where the system had dropped him.
Ryūchi Cave.
One of the Three Great Sage Sanctuaries.
He knew it well.
He didn't even glance at the gathered snakes.
Instead, he spoke calmly in his mind:
"System. Sign in at Ryūchi Cave."
One second…
Ten seconds…
Thirty seconds…
After a full minute, the system's crisp notification finally sounded.
Ding… Congratulations, Host. You have been randomly teleported to one of the Three Great Sage Sanctuaries: Ryūchi Cave. Map data has been unlocked and refreshed.
Ding… Congratulations, Host. Sign-in at the system-designated location: Ryūchi Cave — successful.
Ding… Reward acquired: Perfect Sage Mode (no side effects).
Ding… Reward has been stored in system space. The Host may check it at any time.
Once fused and accepted, the Host will master Sage Mode perfectly. Once fused, the Host may enter Sage Mode instantly at will.
Ren's eyes curved slightly.
"Finally."
He'd been waiting for Sage Mode ever since he obtained Hashirama's Sage Body.
Now it had arrived.
Sage Mode didn't need much explanation—
By absorbing natural energy and refining it into senjutsu chakra, the user's ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu all surge dramatically.
If Ren had to name the most unforgettable example…
It was Naruto's Six Paths Sage Mode—an absurd level of power.
He didn't waste time.
"System. Fuse and accept Perfect Sage Mode."
Humm—
A dense, natural-energy current poured into Ren's body.
And then—
In front of countless serpents' stunned eyes, the natural energy of Ryūchi Cave itself began to surge.
Not gently.
Not gradually.
It flooded toward Ren like a stampede.
So much natural energy poured into him that the air twisted into a massive vortex overhead.
Terrifying.
Absolutely terrifying.
Tagitsuhime, Ichikishimahime, Takahime—and every serpent behind them—went rigid, as if their minds had been struck blank.
Their snake brains filled with question marks.
Is he insane?!
A human absorbing natural energy like that—he's trying to blow himself up!
So they didn't attack.
They didn't need to.
In their eyes, this suicidal human would die on his own.
Natural energy wasn't something you "wanted" and simply took.
But—
Time passed.
And Ren didn't explode.
Not even a hint of instability.
Instead, the pressure coming off him only grew heavier… wilder… more terrifying.
His aura sharpened into something that made even cold-blooded monsters feel fear.
Clap!
Moments later—
A crisp sound rang out.
Under the wide, disbelieving stares of the serpents…
A distinct sage marking appeared on Ren's face.
The unmistakable visage—
the face of a Sage.
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