Hokage's Office.
Tsunade held the latest report from Iwagakure in her hands, and the more she read, the angrier she became.
"That brat Shinju—what the hell is he doing selling them planes? And now this mess?! (′д｀σ)σ"
Shizune, standing beside her, immediately spoke up in Shinju's defense.
"Tsunade-sama, I don't think little junior would do anything suspicious like that. This concerns the village's honor, after all."
Tsunade considered it and found the point reasonable, but she still pointed toward the door.
"Go get that kid Shinju for me. I'll ask him myself."
Shizune replied, a bit guilty.
"He already left."
Tsunade blinked. "Huh? Where did he go? (‧_‧?)"
Shizune shook her head. "I don't know either. The anbu came this morning to report it while you were out. He said he saw Shinju summon a huge snake outside the village… and then he disappeared."
Tsunade frowned. "A snake…?"
Thinking back to what Shinju had discussed with her yesterday about Kabuto, a suspicion crossed her mind.
"Don't tell me that kid went to Ryūchi Cave?! (꒪⌓꒪)"
"He already learned Sage Mode from Mount Myōboku—why would he go there?! If something happens to him..."
Seeing Tsunade's anxious expression, Shizune tried to comfort her.
"Tsunade-sama, please don't worry. I'm sure he knows what he's doing..."
...
Ryūchi Cave.
Inside the Illusionary Cavern.
Ichikishimahime, the petite goddess who looked like a fifteen or sixteen-year-old girl, was crying as she picked up shards of crystal from the ground.
"Ugh, this is so unfair! I was supposed to be the one watching him crawl around picking these up! (*꒦ິ⌓꒦ີ)"
As she spoke, she stuffed a triangular crystal into a groove on the stone door.
Shinju stood beside her, one hand still extended, maintaining the form of the vine jutsu.
Seeing that she still had time to complain, he said impatiently,
"Hurry up. If you make me late to meet the White Snake Sage, I'll have these vines tie you up for life!"
Ichikishimahime: (｡•́︿•̀｡)
She hadn't expected the red-haired boy's vines to be this sinister—they actually sealed her ability to use senjutsu!
Now the one who was supposed to oversee the trial had completely lost her authority over him!
Ten minutes later, Ichikishimahime finally placed the last crystal into the groove.
The stone door let out a series of deep clicks—"kak, kak, kak"—and slowly began to open.
Though Shinju had come here to learn senjutsu, he still showed proper respect toward the goddess in charge of his trial.
Once the door opened, he released the tearful Ichikishimahime from the vines.
"You better not get cocky, boy! The next trial will make you suffer for sure!"
Ichikishimahime glared at him furiously.
"You might end up dying in her mouth, you know! (｀･∧･´)"
Shinju narrowed his eyes. "Still not tied up enough, huh? ╰_╯"
As soon as he lifted his hand, Ichikishimahime flinched, shrinking her neck in fear—then vanished on the spot!
The moment she disappeared, the massive cave behind Shinju also faded away.
A few seconds later, another goddess appeared, dressed similarly to Tagorihime and Ichikishimahime.
"So soon?" Shinju asked, a bit surprised. "What's the next trial? Where do we go?"
The goddess looked calm.
"My name is Tagitsuhime. The trial I give you will test your heart."
"If you fail, I'll eat you alive! (•̀⌄•́)"
As soon as she finished, Tagitsuhime's tall, floating body vanished from sight.
"Whoosh!"
Shinju's brow furrowed—he suddenly sensed a fierce gust of wind from behind!
He didn't have time to think and instinctively swung his fist back!
BAM!!
The powerful punch landed squarely on Tagitsuhime's face as she tried to ambush him!
"Ugh—ah!"
Tagitsuhime screamed and was sent flying!
Shinju looked at his fist, then down at her crumpled form on the ground, his face full of confusion.
"Weren't you supposed to test my heart? Why did you attack me? (￢‸￢)?"
Tagitsuhime lay there on the ground, near tears. (´ཀ`」 ∠)_
Having trained under Tsunade's Yin Seal and Strength of a Hundred Technique, Shinju's body was absurdly strong!
That one reflexive punch had knocked out half of Tagitsuhime's teeth!
Sure, they would grow back—but damn, it hurt!
She clutched her bleeding gums, hissing in pain.
"I only needed to bite your neck to activate my sage illusion—that's the real trial…"
Shinju's expression turned apologetic.
"Oh, I see. Sorry about that—it was just reflex. Uh… want to try biting again? (||๐_๐)"
Tagitsuhime covered her swollen face and looked at him warily.
"Forget it. You've already passed. I'll just take you to see the White Snake Sage. ꒦ິ^꒦ິ"
As her words fell, the dense mist around them began to fade.
A massive stone monument appeared before Shinju, with three bold characters carved into it: "Ryūchi Cave."
Tagitsuhime gestured toward it.
"Beyond this monument lies the true domain of Ryūchi Cave."
Shinju nodded and followed her forward.
Various snakes, large and small, slithered past their feet—the place truly was a den of serpents.
Along the way, Shinju noticed Tagitsuhime's left cheek swelling even more.
"Uh… want me to heal that for you?" he offered.
Tagitsuhime's eyes filled with suspicion.
"No, no, no—I practice senjutsu. I heal fast enough!"
Another ten minutes later, she led him to a massive temple.
Its main doors were shut tight, and carvings of dragons decorated the lintels and roof.
It was clear that the snakes of Ryūchi Cave revered dragons as divine beings.
Suddenly, a hoarse voice—impossible to tell male or female—echoed from within.
"Come in."
As the words faded, the temple doors rumbled open with a deep "whummm—."
Finally, Shinju stood before the one who stood equal to the Great Toad Sage of Mount Myōboku and the Slug Sage of Shikkotsu Forest—the White Snake Sage of Ryūchi Cave!
True to her name, she was a massive white-scaled serpent coiled upon the grand dais at the temple's center.
Unlike the old, half-senile Toad Sage, the White Snake Sage had long orange hair, sharp eyes, a violet ribbon tied around her head, and a huge pipe clamped between her fangs—she radiated an overwhelming presence.
Beneath her seat stood Tagorihime, her face black-and-blue, and Ichikishimahime, looking pitiful and teary-eyed.
When they saw Tagitsuhime arrive in even worse shape than them, both couldn't help but snicker.
Tagorihime: "Heh heh heh… Tagitsuhime got beaten up worse than me. ( ˝ᗢ̈˝ )"
Ichikishimahime: "Her face is so swollen, I bet she's missing a few teeth! (σ≧︎▽︎≦︎)σ"
Tagitsuhime's expression instantly darkened.
"Silence!"
The White Snake Sage's voice thundered, making all three goddesses bow deeply at once.
"Forgive us, Sage!"
Then, the White Snake Sage turned her eerie, slit-pupiled eyes on Shinju, scanning him from head to toe.
Finally, she spoke.
"So you're Shinju. Hmph… at least you're easier on the eyes than that brat who came last time."
----------------
Pls Drop some Power Stones
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