After Ichikishimahime finished speaking, Ryou stroked his chin.
The era of the Five Great Nations parallels the modern age; a spirit of intellectual inquiry swept across the land, with new and old ideas clashing and merging, and countless theories and techniques being innovated in rapid succession.
It was an era of information explosion.
The Warring States period was like the age of ancient samurai, yet by the time the transition to the era of the Five Great Nations occurred, electricity was already in use!
Wireless headphones, televisions, computers, and high-power appliances were all available, yet warfare still relied on Shinobi clashing with cold weapons.
This was because the will of the "Creator God," Kishimoto, dictated that while technology could exist, things like firearms, airplanes, and steel warships were strictly off-limits.
Since the world's combat revolved around Shinobi ninjutsu, any weapon capable of replacing a Shinobi in battle was largely excluded.
Consequently, research and development of firearms in the secular world was virtually non-existent; however, aside from weapon-related knowledge, other fields of knowledge mirrored reality—roughly equivalent to the level of the 1980s or 90s.
Ichikishimahime loved puzzles, and she loved the sense of satisfaction that came from solving them even more.
Whenever she encountered a problem that stumped her, she would find a way to uncover the answer.
After living for so long, even a pig could learn to fly—let alone a snake deity who derived such satisfaction from solving riddles.
Ryou even felt that Ichikishimahime's intellect was being held back by the world's rules.
If she could break through Kishimoto's "no-firearms" law, her intellect might well allow her to engineer an atomic bomb.
In that case, Ryou would truly have to kneel and beg the Great Deity for mercy.
Alas, this was a world of Shinobi, where ninjutsu reigned supreme.
If Ichikishimahime wanted to truly soar, this era wouldn't cut it; she would have to wait for the development of "Scientific Shinobi Tools" in the Boruto era.
Once the Creator God changed, even Gatling guns appeared.
Ichikishimahime interrupted Ryou's reverie: "My Lord, surely you believe now that I wasn't trying to mess with you on purpose?"
Ryou's expression turned cold; he performed a hand seal to subdue her, and Ichikishimahime instantly collapsed to the ground just as she had before. "Don't try to fool me; I saw the crystals on the ground and the grooves in the stone door the moment I walked in."
"The test you're giving me is a puzzle, not advanced calculus."
Suppressing the turbulent emotions churning within her, Ichikishimahime struggled to admit: "...My Lord, I was wrong; I changed the trial on the fly."
"I knew you wouldn't be able to solve it. I wanted to devour your cultivation base... I... I just wanted to advance so badly!"
Sensing the immense chakra and the purity of Ryou's physical body, Tagorihime had altered the nature of the trial.
She had added lust to the mix of gluttony.
Ichikishimahime felt the same way; devouring Ryou's chakra and physical form could allow her to ascend into a dragon—a temptation even the White Snake Sage would likely find irresistible.
That was why she had deliberately set such difficult problems for Ryou.
Still, she had shown some restraint; these questions weren't the hardest ones found in human knowledge systems.
Ryou pressed down on Ichikishimahime's head. "You want to advance, right?"
Ichikishimahime hurriedly shook her head. "No, I don't! I don't!"
"You don't? Hmph! Like it or not, you're getting it!"
Ryou was about to have some fun with the snake...
Ichikishimahime was the cutest of the three Snake Princesses. Although their snake-human transformations could be hideous, compared to Tagorihime and Tagitsuhime...
Ichikishimahime's transformed state had a certain unique charm to its ferocity.
The transformations of Tagorihime and Tagitsuhime were truly terrifying; while they looked elegant and ethereal before fully transforming, once they turned into snake-humans, they looked exactly like Orochimaru.
It was like seeing Orochimaru's mother come out to play.
It was no wonder the Snake Sage of Ryūchi Cave was considered Orochimaru's ancestor—they were cut from the same cloth.
Ichikishimahime watched in fear; Sages possessed a certain character, and dignity was something they still valued.
Just as Ichikishimahime was praying for the White Snake Sage to intervene, a commotion arose outside.
"Orochimaru, the trial grounds of Ichikishimahime are just ahead—Uchiha Ryou is inside!"
Manda had betrayed everyone yet again. It had been tormented mercilessly by Ryou, yet the more it suffered, the deeper its hatred for him grew.
Unable to defeat Ryou, Manda buried this hatred deep within, biding its time for any chance to exact revenge.
It harbored no fear of the spore Ryou had implanted to control it; it could simply turn to the White Snake Sage, who could easily break the control using Senjutsu.
As a snake, Manda's philosophy was simple: it might not repay a kindness, but it would always settle a score.
Meanwhile, on Orochimaru's side, the group consisted of Tagorihime, Tobirama, Kagami, and Dan.
Believing Orochimaru's side held the better odds of victory, Manda immediately betrayed Ryou.
Inside Ichikishimahime's cave.
Candy warned Ryou, "Orochimaru and the others are attacking! We need to move on to the third trial!"
Ryou was busy helping someone "make progress"; having Orochimaru's group show up shouting for a fight right then was a total nuisance.
"Candy, go out and stall them for a moment—I'll be done in a flash!"
Candy swiped at Ryou with a paw. "You total idiot!"
Immediately, Candy grabbed Ryou by the shoulders and activated the Mayfly Jutsu, diving underground.
As they submerged, Ryou grabbed Ichikishimahime by the neck, taking her—and the Snake Sage Cup—along with them.
Outside.
Guided by Manda, the group—Orochimaru, Tobirama, and the others—quickly approached Ichikishimahime's trial cave.
Driven by intense resentment toward Ryou, Manda slammed its head violently against the cave entrance, creating a thunderous crash that shook the surrounding area.
Orochimaru cursed, "Manda! If you kill Ryou, what am I supposed to eat?"
Manda ignored him.
Tagorihime used her sensory abilities and said, "They just left. Ichikishimahime has been abducted by Uchiha Ryou!"
Upon hearing this, Orochimaru wailed, "Oh, my Sage ancestor..."
Since Ichikishimahime was his ancestor, the thought of Ryou abducting her implied he intended to defile his own forebear. Although Orochimaru held ethics in contempt, he would still fly into a panic if his ancestor were being desecrated.
"Quick, let's give chase and rescue my ancestor!"
"Aaaargh—"
Suddenly, Manda let out a piercing, blood-curdling shriek.
The giant serpent thrashed and writhed wildly, its massive tail smashing rocks to pieces; it was as if something inside its body was rampaging, tearing apart its internal organs.
Orochimaru grew anxious. "What is it? What's happening to Manda?"
Tobirama, unconcerned with the fate of a snake-demon from Ryūchi Cave, remarked casually, "Who knows? Maybe it's about to give birth—better go deliver the baby!"
"Bullshit. Manda is a male snake."
Manda screamed for help: "Orochimaru, quick—save me!"
"It's Uchiha Ryou; he planted a spore inside me, and it's devouring my organs."
Orochimaru cursed furiously, "Those evil Uchihas! First they abducted my ancestor, and now they want to kill my snake—why are the Uchiha so wicked?!"
"Lord Second, you're right; the Uchiha are nothing but a bunch of bad seeds!"