Ryūchi Cave.
In a temple deep within the Hidden Village.
The White Snake Sage lay on her bed, a pipe dangling from her mouth.
She took slow, intermittent puffs.
She slowly exhaled a cloud of white smoke.
"I wonder if that brat has started training in Senjutsu yet."
"Probably not. Otherwise, he'd already be dead."
The White Snake Sage murmured to herself.
After finding Orochimaru, a human skilled in research, she had once tried to pass Senjutsu on to him.
Unfortunately, Orochimaru's soul lacked the talent for it, and he couldn't practice Senjutsu. His body was also too weak to withstand her infusion of Senjutsu.
After Orochimaru recommended Uchiha Ao,
and she had observed him for a while,
she finally decided to give this descendant of the Old Man Six Paths a chance.
"Is the Sage there?"
Suddenly, a voice called from outside the hall.
Uchiha Ao's voice came from beyond the door.
"What is it?"
The White Snake Sage's voice rang out from inside the hall.
She instinctively coiled up, trying to appear more imposing.
"Sage, I have a few questions I'd like to ask you about that Snake Script document."
Ao spoke earnestly.
"Come in..."
The doors to the hall opened by themselves.
The interior came into view.
Ao stepped inside and glanced around. The surroundings were simple, with almost no decorations; snake patterns were carved into the walls.
Several unfamiliar stone statues stood in the darkness.
The White Snake Sage lay on an enormous bed, her snow-white body fully exposed before him.
The scales on her body shimmered faintly.
Without the white mist that had shrouded her during their first meeting, she seemed less mysterious and more tangible.
"You understood it?"
The White Snake Sage's eyelids lifted slightly, revealing a pale-yellow, vertical pupil.
The scales on her body rustled softly, as though she were hiding something, and a strange creaking sound followed.
"Yes, Sage. I'm confused. The document describes a method of training with Natural Energy."
"I don't understand. Can someone train while in a soul state?"
Ao spread his hands and asked curiously.
"As I understand it, a soul in that state has no physical meridians. How could it store Natural Energy? Is there some connection between the soul and Natural Energy?"
That was his biggest question.
The soul belonged to the realm of the occult, and his past experience was of no use in understanding it.
He knew almost nothing about the subject.
Although his first research project under Orochimaru had concerned the soul—Living Corpse Reincarnation—his understanding of souls remained superficial.
"Natural Energy is a power without any attributes. Together with spiritual energy and physical energy, it forms the three fundamental forces of the world."
"If you must distinguish between different kinds of Natural Energy..."
"Perhaps you could do so based on where it comes from."
"Do you understand what I mean?"
The White Snake Sage paused, tapped her pipe, and blew a smoke ring. Her expression turned playful.
"Its source? Does Natural Energy come from... the power produced when all things die?"
Ao ventured a guess, based on certain substances he believed dissipated during the process of death.
"No. Your understanding is too narrow."
The White Snake Sage bit down on her pipe and shook her head.
"Natural Energy is the primordial energy produced by the world's atmosphere, geology, and cycles of life. Mountains, rivers, and all things emit Natural Energy simply by existing. Everything is part of nature."
"Natural Energy represents the vitality of the entire world."
"Even a wisp of wind produces Natural Energy."
"Without Natural Energy, the world itself would collapse completely."
I see!
Ao nodded in sudden understanding, then raised another question.
"Sage, do you know about Impure World Reincarnation?"
A trace of confusion crossed the White Snake Sage's eyes, but she said nothing.
The technique had never appeared in this era.
She knew nothing about it.
"It's a forbidden technique created by the Second. It can summon the dead back from a place called the Pure Land to fight in the living world."
Ao briefly explained how Impure World Reincarnation worked, then asked his question.
"What I want to know is why the bodies of the dead summoned by this technique can't be destroyed and have infinite Chakra. How is such an extraordinary state achieved?"
Those were the two most important abilities of Impure World Reincarnation.
He couldn't figure out how Senju Tobirama had created such a forbidden technique.
Even with the Scroll of Seals in hand, he couldn't unravel its secrets.
"The Pure Land..."
When the White Snake Sage heard that name, she looked dazed for a moment. Then a murderous glint appeared in her eyes.
"It's the greatest enemy of Ryūchi Cave..."
"It holds an unfathomable amount of Natural Energy. That technique you mentioned probably uses some kind of contract to draw on the Pure Land's Natural Energy. With the entire Pure Land backing it, it's easy to obtain an infinite supply of Chakra."
"The so-called immortal body is even simpler."
"As long as Chakra exists, it can take the form of a 'clone' and create a body to house the soul, allowing it to exist in the living world."
"Before the Pure Land came into being, countless members of the Ninjutsu Sect existed in this form."
"And the Natural Energy produced by their attachment to the living world is one of the sources of Ryūchi Cave's power."
This was the first time Ao had felt the White Snake Sage's terrifying, violent spiritual power.
Having heard some of the Ninjutsu Sect's secrets, his pupils contracted.
He was completely stunned.
Could this be one of the reasons the Ninjutsu Sect had fallen apart?
In a world without the Pure Land, the ninjas who had learned to refine Chakra were unwilling to die when their lifespans ran out. As long as their Chakra wasn't depleted, their souls and wills could exist indefinitely...
If so, the number of ninjas would only keep growing.
Eventually, like parasites, they would drain all the Natural Energy from the world.
It was somewhat like another God Tree.
No wonder!
The Old Man Six Paths had given up his near-eternal life and chosen to die, creating another world for the dead.
"A thousand years ago, there was no such thing as the Pure Land. When any living thing died, the spiritual power that formed its soul dissipated, becoming the first Natural Energy. New life was then born from it."
"Natural Energy was far more abundant then than it is now."
"After the Pure Land came into being, souls could no longer remain fully in the living world. The wild, evil, bloodthirsty Natural Energy that once belonged to Ryūchi Cave became much scarcer."
"That's why the snake clan now keeps its doors shut and dares not walk in the living world..."
The White Snake Sage spoke viciously.
She blamed the decline of Ryūchi Cave entirely on the Sage of Six Paths.
"If one day you reach the same level as the Six Paths, I hope you'll destroy the Pure Land and create a fairer world for souls."
When she finished,
the White Snake Sage turned her gaze on him, her eyes full of hope.
She seemed to hope that this descendant of the Sage of Six Paths could surpass his ancestor and change the current state of the Ninja World.
"Why do you think the Pure Land is unfair? I know about the Sage of Six Paths. The legend says he was our Uchiha ancestor, so asking me to fight my own ancestor seems a bit much... What can you offer me in return?"
Ao retorted. His position was clear: the Six Paths was his own ancestor, so she'd have to pay extra.
He didn't really understand the White Snake Sage's grudge.
The Pure Land didn't seem to affect the Sacred Lands. The Sage of Six Paths had even had a good relationship with Mount Myoboku and Shikkotsu Forest, with close ties to them.
He alone seemed to have had no connection with Ryūchi Cave.
Had the Sage of Six Paths slighted Ryūchi Cave?
Was that why the White Snake Old Hag held such a grudge?
"Because the Pure Land... after gathering the souls of evil people, it keeps them imprisoned in that world and forbids them from reincarnating. It claims this is to wear down their malice, but in truth, it's holding back the Natural Energy that belongs to Ryūchi Cave."
"That's why I created Soul Body Separation, hoping to compete with the Pure Land for those souls."
"Unfortunately, my power is limited. I can't stand against the Old Man Six Paths."
"If you agree to do this, I'll give you my full support in learning to draw Natural Energy from souls."
The White Snake Sage sighed. A hint of despondency crossed her eyes, and she looked like a mistreated young wife, inviting sympathy.
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