White Snake Sage

Unexpectedly discovering the entrance to Ryūchi Cave, Sosuke's first reaction was to find a way to sign the contract.

The exchange cost in points was too high; if possible, learning Sage Mode manually suited him far better.

With the mindset of a student seeking knowledge, Sosuke actively triggered Ryūchi Cave's alarm, quickly drawing out the Great White Snake before him.

Tagorihime, by the time Naruto became Hokage, had officially risen to become a high-ranking manager of Ryūchi Cave.

Back then, she stored immensely powerful Sage Chakra within her body, and with her formidable Ryūchi Cave senjutsu, she could unleash combat power close to the terrifying level of a pseudo-Kage.

But for now, Hime's strength wasn't that fearsome yet—at best, she was on the same level as Manda or Gamabunta later on.

Her only unique trait was that she could transform into human form at will; when they first met, what appeared before Sosuke was a beautiful, barefoot young girl.

Staring at him silently for a long time, the Great White Snake slowly lowered its head, and thick white smoke began to billow around its body.

Before long, the terrifying white snake vanished, replaced by a stunning girl with pale skin.

She wore a golden crown on her head, her green hair falling to her waist, her delicate bare feet forming a sharp contrast against the grass—Sosuke couldn't help but sneak a few glances.

Her golden vertical pupils stared through the smoke at the youth, and she occasionally flicked a long forked tongue from her mouth.

After a long pause, she coldly spat out a few words: "You pass."

This meant Sosuke was qualified to sign a contract with Ryūchi Cave, saving him tens of thousands of points in assets.

If not for Hime's cold demeanor, the youth would have stepped forward to give her a warm hug.

"Sosuke!"

Just then, the Ponytail Princess finally arrived, late.

The scene around her, like a typhoon had swept through, made her click her tongue in amazement, and the icy Hime across from her sparked great interest.

When she heard the other party came from a legendary sacred land, Mito immediately couldn't help raising her little hand: "Um, Sister Hime, can I sign a contract with you too?"

Glancing at the adorable Mito, Hime's attitude was noticeably different: "To sign a contract, you need to pass Ryūchi Cave's trial, but I can waive that step for you."

"Ah? That's great, thank you, Sister Hime."

Sosuke was slightly surprised on the side, not understanding why Mito received such preferential treatment.

Was Ryūchi Cave practicing gender discrimination too?!

Thinking it over, from the White Snake Sage on down, it seemed all the high-ranking members of Ryūchi Cave were uniformly female.

Sosuke, worrying about his prospects, didn't yet know that Mito had just subdued the entire village's riot in an instant.

The power of the Adamantine Sealing Chains made even Hime unable to look away; much of her earlier silence was spent observing Mito's battle.

Without counting the boost from the Cursed Seal, Mito's chakra far surpassed Sosuke's own—if he could pass the trial, the girl before her naturally had no issues either.

Hime was in charge of the assessment; if she said it was fine, no one could object.

"Come to think of it, Ryūchi Cave hasn't welcomed a contractor in a long time." Hime sighed slightly, about to spit out the Contract Scroll, when she suddenly seemed to sense something and stood still.

"Alright, alright, I understand."

After a brief exchange with an unknown presence, she turned to face the boy and girl before her.

"Let's go. The White Snake Sage wants to see you two in person."

With that, she led the way ahead without looking back, not worried at all that they might choose to back out.

Ryūchi Cave's power was irresistible, and besides, who could refuse an invitation from the White Snake Sage?

"White Snake Sage?" Mito was a bit puzzled, feeling like too many things today were too surreal.

She almost instinctively turned her head, seeking her companion's opinion.

"Let's go." Sosuke didn't hesitate much.

Compared to the lazy Great Toad Sage, the White Snake Sage was indeed more aggressive—perhaps it had to do with the nature of snakes.

But after thinking it over, he didn't think they had done anything particularly offensive.

Kabuto Yakushi and Orochimaru had both returned safely from Ryūchi Cave; having passed the trial, he had no reason to run into danger.

Tens of thousands of points—if he missed this, he'd have to go find another sacred land.

Heaven knew how long it would take him to get results.

Weighing the gains and risks, Sosuke decided to go see the White Snake Sage in person.

Even if she really turned hostile, with the power of the Flying Thunder God Technique, he might still have a chance to escape Ryūchi Cave.

Glancing at the Ponytail Princess with her flushed cheeks, Sosuke leaned in and whispered, "Stay sharp later, and don't leave my side for anything."

"Oh, got it." Mito was unusually obedient at the moment, though the youth didn't notice at all.

Soon, the two followed behind Hime into the cave.

The dark, damp environment made the pair, accustomed to light, feel somewhat uncomfortable—especially the prying gazes in the darkness, which put Mito, with her keen perception, on high alert.

"Don't worry." As if sensing her wariness, Hime said without turning back, "Stay close to me; those little ones don't dare make a move."

Meaning, if she fell behind, the giant snakes lurking in the dark would rush out and swallow her whole?

Mito swallowed her saliva, a bit regretful of her rash decision.

Compared to the dangers lurking in the darkness, those mutated villagers were as harmless as great white rabbits.

"Sigh, I should have just stayed in the village."

As for Sosuke, aside from his discomfort with the dark, he had no particular opinions on other matters.

Ryūchi Cave was home to many great serpents, their population far outnumbering the sparse inhabitants of Mount Myōboku—though, of course, they couldn't compare to the Great Slug Sage of Shikkotsu Forest.

Even with a full exertion of Kage-level chakra, one could only summon a very small portion of her body. In fact, the entire Shikkotsu Forest was built upon her form.

Thanks to her terrifying ability to split, the number of slugs theoretically had no upper limit. If a contractor wished, they could even summon finger-sized miniature slugs.

The Three Great Sage Regions each had their strengths and weaknesses, and the inheritance of Sage Techniques differed as well. Comparatively, Ryūchi Cave was the most aggressive of the three.

He just wondered why the Great White Snake Sage wanted to see him personally, out of the blue.

"It can't be that she wants me as her live-in son-in-law," Sosuke chuckled inwardly, deciding to play it by ear when the time came.

By the way, the White Snake Sage was ancient; she surely knew many hidden secrets of the Ninja World.

He had been searching for a suitable weapon for a while—maybe he could get some concrete information from her.

After about thirty minutes of walking, the three of them passed through the cave and arrived outside an eerie temple.

This was the White Snake Sage's dwelling—a space completely independent from the Ninja World.