"What's so strange about that? Shikkotsu Forest, Ryuchi Cave, and Mount Myoboku—how could I not know about the three Great Sage regions?" Hiruko looked at Tsunade, his eyes full of smug satisfaction.
Tsunade studied him closely, finding this man increasingly enigmatic. "I'm becoming more and more curious about you. Is there anything in this world you don't know?"
"Quite a lot, actually," Hiruko chuckled.
Tsunade then summoned Katsuyu's contract scroll and handed it to Hiruko. After all, he was her man now.
A few minutes later, once preparations were complete, the two of them used a Reverse Summoning Jutsu to transport themselves to a bizarre, alien world.
The air was thick with an eerie yellow-and-white mist. Beneath their feet lay a vast expanse of swamp, where strange creatures darted and slithered through the muck.
The moment they stepped into Shikkotsu Forest, Tsunade frowned, reflexively covering her nose and mouth. The environment was incredibly harsh; the air carried a pungent, stinging odor, and even the standing water seemed saturated with lethal acidic substances.
Tsunade warned him with a solemn expression, "Be careful. Shikkotsu Forest is extremely dangerous. Most people would be dissolved and melted by this environment before they even got close to the Sage Katsuyu's true body."
Even at the outskirts of the forest, they could already feel the terrifying power lurking within.
"My apologies, Lord Hiruko, but this is as far as I can guide you," a man-sized division of Katsuyu said in a calm tone.
Inwardly, however, the slug was far from steady. This seemingly madman actually dared to challenge Sage Mode. It couldn't tell if the man was simply ignorant of the heights of heaven, or if he possessed some unknown trump card.
Hiruko glanced at the Katsuyu division and pondered. While Katsuyu had only one true body, it could split into infinite segments. When Tsunade and the future Sakura performed a combined summoning, they only brought forth a fraction of its total mass, yet even that was dozens of times larger than a Tailed Beast. And that was only about one-tenth of the true body.
Katsuyu's true form is truly terrifying!
"What do you mean by that?" Tsunade asked. "Are you implying that the Sage's true body..."
"I mean that when the entire collective of Katsuyu converges, only then does the true 'Sage Katsuyu' manifest," Hiruko explained seriously. "Katsuyu can be a billion entities or a single unity. When it exists as countless divisions, each one is like a fragment of a person's personality within a dream."
"When someone dreams, the 'self' in the dream is only a partial manifestation of their character. Can a person control themselves in a dream? Sometimes the dream-self acts as if they have a cognitive disorder, even appearing foolish. It's as if their intelligence has dropped significantly, leading them to make unwise decisions. Once they wake up, they feel annoyed at how stupid they were in the dream."
"For Sage Katsuyu, these divisions are like the personality fragments of a dreamer. This brings up a problem," Hiruko paused, his tone growing heavier. "The true body of Sage Katsuyu is a dangerous old monster. Its thoughts are vastly different from those divisions you know."
"What we are about to face is a terrifying existence with unfathomable intelligence and thousands of years of experience. Do you understand? The moment I see the true body, it might attack me simply because the 'current' it isn't the 'real' it—it hasn't even met us on a certain conscious level. To Sage Katsuyu, we are just passersby in its dream; it's only natural if it doesn't remember us upon 'waking'."
Hiruko maintained high vigilance toward these ancient beings, though he was confident in his ability to survive in a crisis.
As Hiruko explained, Tsunade's eyes widened. Although she frequently communicated and collaborated with Katsuyu, she had never truly grasped the slug's danger level. Katsuyu's sweet voice and soft body had long since misled her into thinking the creature was harmless.
At this moment, it dawned on her why only the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, had been able to master its Sage Arts. Her grandfather had even warned her before his death not to attempt the Sage Arts of Shikkotsu Forest. It was precisely because of this hidden danger.
Hiruko surveyed the primordial swamp environment. For Hashirama to have persuaded Sage Katsuyu to teach him back then, he must have overcome immense trials. The extreme toxicity of the forest also explained why almost no one in the Senju clan's later generations could inherit the Sage Arts.
If I can venture deep into Shikkotsu Forest and obtain this legacy... A flicker of heat flashed in Hiruko's eyes. He could complete another evolution, perhaps breaking the boundary between mortal and immortal.
Mastering Sage Arts would cause his chakra reserves to explode, drastically increasing his combat power. In the original story, Hashirama's chakra was roughly equal to the combined reserves of Minato, Naruto, and both halves of the Nine-Tails. And that was his base state. With Sage Mode, he could unleash jutsu like the Sage Art: Wood Release: True Several Thousand Hands to crush Madara's Susanoo-armored Nine-Tails.
In the grand scheme of the shinobi world, Sage Transformation was a mortal's key to resisting Six Paths-level Truth-Seeking Balls. It was a power Hiruko craved. Mastering it would fix his biggest weakness: insufficient offensive output (excluding his toxins, which were too indiscriminate and hard to control).
In the long run, his goal was to collect all space-time secret techniques to counter Kaguya Otsutsuki's dimension-shifting. But first, he needed the Sage Arts.
Each of the three Sage regions had a different focus. Myoboku was tied to the toad clan, offering prophetic guidance. Ryuchi Cave focused on endurance and guile, as seen in the White Snake Sage's style. Shikkotsu Forest, however, was best described as "heavy and unadorned"—it emphasized crushing opponents with absolute power and mass.
To learn it, one needed massive chakra reserves. Even Hashirama's reserves were small compared to the full Sage Katsuyu. Furthermore, Shikkotsu Sage Arts allowed for near-instant entry into Sage Mode. That "clap-and-go" activation was arguably the most practical and powerful version in existence.
As someone with a traditional Chinese mindset, Hiruko loved this direct style—big is strong, big is invincible, big is the Truth!
Tsunade looked at the swamp of white and yellow acid, her brow furrowed. She saw the rotting skeletons of animals everywhere. The corroded matter around them proved the extreme acidity of the environment. Without potent acid resistance, one couldn't even stand here.
Tsunade immediately offered to scout the path. She wove hand signs for Wood Style: Wood Clone Jutsu. From her shoulders, wooden patterns extended and took human shape, dropping to the ground as perfect replicas of herself. The clones dashed toward the center of the swamp.
Hiruko felt a sense of pride. Tsunade's mastery over Wood Style was becoming more refined; she was closing the gap with Hashirama.
However, as the clones went deeper, the sound of "sizzling" corrosion echoed. Their surfaces became pitted and scarred. Their movements slowed as yellow acid steam billowed from their bodies. Within minutes, the clones collapsed into mush, leaving behind barely visible residue.
Hiruko frowned. He had planned to use his own clones, but Tsunade's attempt showed that the danger was far higher than anticipated. Under this level of corrosion, one would be dissolved before even meeting the Sage.
"Don't you dare rush in there. That would be pure arrogance," Tsunade turned around, scolding Hiruko with a stern face. She wouldn't let her man die here. "Don't think that just because you've mastered so many jutsu and become a rare expert, you can just walk through the world unchecked."
Though she sounded like a lecturing elder, her words were full of genuine concern.
Hiruko reflected. He had been getting a bit overconfident lately. He needed a way to overcome the high acidity.
As Tsunade continued her lecture, Hiruko found the solution. In the shinobi world, there was a ninja who specialized in such things: Mei Terumi of the Hidden Mist. If he obtained her Lava Release and Boil Release (Corrosive Style) Kekkei Genkai, acidic mist would be no more harmful to him than regular fog.
He decided on a detour to the Hidden Mist. He needed samples from Mei to study acid resistance. He would then give himself a temporary "buff" to easily withstand the forest.
Hiruko and Tsunade soon arrived in the Land of Water. The mist at the port was like a thin veil, the air smelling of salty sea spray.
"This place is always so damp," Tsunade grumbled, her golden ponytail ruffled by the wind. "I don't understand why anyone would build factories here."
Hiruko smirked. "Because of the unique environment, the medicinal herbs and ores here are precious. If these negotiations succeed, Konoha's industrial level will jump by thirty percent."
That night, Hiruko pulled Tsunade into action right on their small boat, setting up a barrier seal to block out the world. Under the moonlight, Tsunade's skin was impossibly pale.
Hiruko moved first, weaving signs—
"Steel Release: Impervious Armor!"
"Hmph!" Tsunade, pinned down, snorted. "Water Style: Water Severing Wave!"
BOOM!
A high-pressure water blade sliced out like a sword, slamming into Hiruko's Steel Release. The boat rocked violently as the torrent nearly swept the deck clean.
"Child's play!" Hiruko grinned, his arms hardening into dark steel. "Steel Release: Vajra Pestle!"
He tanked the pressure, but Tsunade wasn't done!
"Not over yet!" She wove signs again, chakra exploding—"Water Style: Giant Waterfall Jutsu!"
A massive wave surged from nowhere, swallowing the entire boat like a tsunami.
The next morning, Hiruko crawled out from Tsunade's "ample embrace." After a quick wash, they arrived at the Hidden Mist Village.
The village nestled among mountains and water was now home to a trade route extending to the coast, complete with a newly built pier. To Hiruko's surprise, the person assigned to coordinate with them was Mei Terumi herself. Yagura truly trusted him; wasn't he afraid Hiruko would just kidnap her?
"You must be Lady Tsunade. I've heard many legends about you," Mei said politely, her eyes full of curiosity. It was natural to want to study a living legend. Since Tsunade hadn't attended the last summit, this was their first meeting. Mei was a rare beauty, but even she was slightly eclipsed by Tsunade's legendary physique.
Hiruko casually surveyed the area. The Mist shinobi had clearly embraced the alliance; the roadside architecture showed Konoha's influence. His eyes drifted to the building at the end of the road marked with the character for "Water"—the seat of power.
He had two goals here: obtain the Three-Tails' chakra, and secure Mei Terumi. Or rather, her two Kekkei Genkai. Once he researched how they resisted acidity, his goal for Shikkotsu Forest would be met.
Of the five Kekkei Genkai he planned to master, he actually looked down on the Lava Release (Acid/Corrosive) slightly. While Mei was immune to acid, it made her body "troublesome." Her saliva and secretions could easily corrode others, which made men keep their distance. One wrong move, and a man's "little brother" might end up as a "headless little brother." This was one reason why she remained single even into the Boruto era.
How should he minimize the damage during "deep communication" with Mei? Three ways:
Obtain the same Kekkei Genkai.Evolve his physique to gain inherent resistance.Use a temporary serum.
Hiruko had dealt with Yagura several times and was familiar with him. He walked in casually. Yagura, with his baby face and small stature, sat across from them. Tsunade, also familiar with him, wasn't surprised. In reality, Yagura was in his prime; he just looked incredibly young.
Tsunade, Hiruko, and Yagura—three people who looked like they had found the fountain of youth—sat down together. After the pleasantries, they got down to business.
"I've come to the Land of Water to invest and build factories," Hiruko said seriously.
The negotiation took place in the top-floor meeting room of the Mizukage Tower. Through the floor-to-ceiling windows, the village was a silhouette in the mist.
"Regarding the site, we prefer the southeast coast," Yagura said, spreading a map. "There are existing port facilities and convenient transportation."
Hiruko pretended to look at the map, but his peripheral vision remained locked on Mei Terumi. She was pouring tea with elegant, precise movements.
"This location is ideal," Hiruko agreed. "However!"
🌟 The story is already written… waiting to be unleashed. Claim early access on Patreon: [email protected]/c/wildsparkstudios
🔓 You hold the keys to bonus chapters:💬 10 reviews ignite 1 bonus chapter🔷 100 Power Stones summon another