The Diverging Timeline

At the Dragon Vein seal.

Shamu brought Sasuke and Itachi here.

The moment Sasuke and Itachi arrived, they saw the enormous sealing array on the ground, as well as the Fourth Hokage's Flying Thunder God Kunai seal.

"Master, where is this? Is the opportunity to grow stronger here?"

The Fourth Hokage's seal was exceedingly stable. With Sasuke's sensory abilities, he still could not determine just how much power lay beneath it.

Shamu pointed at the seal and explained, "What is sealed here is the Dragon Vein. The Dragon Vein is an extremely powerful flow of energy."

"It is a special energy formed by drawing upon the earth veins. It has one particular trait: it gathers the surrounding Natural Energy toward itself."

Sasuke's eyes lit up. "Master, do you mean that with this, I can learn Sage Mode?"

Shamu nodded slightly.

"The Dragon Vein's energy is itself a form of Natural Energy. First, it can be used directly, but its greater use is drawing Natural Energy toward you."

"However, directly storing Dragon Vein energy within your body is somewhat difficult."

"But if Dragon Vein energy passes through your body, your affinity for Natural Energy will also increase."

Sasuke finally relaxed. He at last had a chance to catch up to Naruto on the path of senjutsu.

They had previously learned Sage Mode together, yet Sasuke alone had failed to master it. It had always bothered him deeply.

The immense boost Naruto received from Sage Mode had made Sasuke incredibly envious.

If Naruto did not use the Nine-Tails' power and relied only on Sage Mode, Sasuke would still have a hard time dealing with him and would have to use Susanoo's power.

"Itachi, you have seen Human Sage Art before. Your problem is the same as Sasuke's."

"You absorb Natural Energy too