"Shikkotsu Forest?"
Qingyu's eyes lit up.
"Shikkotsu Forest, one of the Three Great Sage Lands?"
"That's right."
Tsunade nodded and lightly tapped her forehead with a finger.
"I have a summoning contract with Shikkotsu Forest. You should know that I'm taking you there this time to see whether you can form a contract with the Slug clan as well."
Qingyu's heart stirred.
The summoning contract of Shikkotsu Forest was one of Tsunade's signature abilities.
Slugs could not only provide Medical Ninjutsu support over an enormous area, but also spit acid to attack and split into countless smaller bodies to treat allied forces across an entire battlefield at once.
During the Shinobi World War, Tsunade had relied on slugs to save countless ninja.
More importantly—
Shikkotsu Forest had Sage Mode.
Each of the Three Great Sage Lands possessed its own unique Sage Mode training system.
Naruto had learned Mount Myōboku's Sage Mode, and Kabuto had mastered Ryūchi Cave's Sage Mode. Only Shikkotsu Forest's Sage Mode had remained a mystery in the original story; even Tsunade had failed to master it.
But Tsunade's failure did not mean Qingyu would fail.
I'll be the one to reach the top, then.
With the dual talents of the Sharingan and the Senju physique, he might be able to fill this gap.
"Big Sister Tsunade, what are the differences between the Sage Modes of the Three Great Sage Lands?"
Qingyu asked.
Tsunade froze for a moment, not expecting Qingyu to know even about Sage Mode.
But on second thought, this child had grown up buried in the Senju family's piles of scrolls. He was far more studious than she had been, and he had even assisted Orochimaru before. Naturally, he had seen and learned far more than ordinary children.
"Sage Mode is a new power formed by absorbing natural energy and merging it with one's own chakra,"
Tsunade explained.
"But natural energy can kill you if you lose control even slightly. That is why each of the Three Great Sage Lands has an elder watching over practitioners of Senjutsu, to prevent them from going astray."
"Shikkotsu Forest has many split bodies of Lady Katsuyu. She'll help guide you."
Qingyu listened quietly.
This was valuable information. Though he knew the general plot, Tsunade naturally knew far more about such details.
"The Sage Modes of each sacred land have different effects. The Sage Mode Grandpa used..."
Tsunade's voice suddenly paused, and she frowned slightly.
"How should I put it? His Sage Mode was different."
"How was it different?"
Qingyu pressed.
He wanted to know.
Tsunade shook her head.
"He didn't follow the path of any of the Three Great Sage Lands. He figured it out himself, though he did receive guidance from the Katsuyu Sage."
Qingyu thoughtfully rubbed his chin.
Hashirama Senju's Sage Mode truly was a mystery.
Where exactly had he learned it, or had he truly figured it out entirely on his own? The original work had never made it clear.
If it was the former, then Shikkotsu Forest's Sage Mode was worth looking forward to.
If it was the latter... then it was even more worth looking forward to.
Could Hashirama Senju have adapted it after receiving guidance from Shikkotsu Forest, making it more suitable for humans?
After all, Hashirama Senju had been officially stated in the databooks to be able to "enter Sage Mode instantly."
And logically speaking, humans were animals too, so why was there no human Sage Mode?
Was that what cultivating immortality meant?
In any case, if Hashirama Senju's Sage Mode counted as something special, then the Shinobi World possessed four types of Senjutsu in total. As for the Cursed Seal, although its principles and effects were similar to Sage Mode, it was completely different from true Sage Mode.
Because it did not require cultivation at all. You only needed to take drugs—if your body could endure it, you succeeded; if it could not, you failed. Moreover, its bearers seemingly needed conscious training only to make their bodies more adaptable to the Cursed Seal's power.
"Then, Big Sister Tsunade, when are we leaving?"
"No rush. I need to prepare some things first."
Tsunade picked up the bottle again and poured herself a drink.
"You need to improve your physical fitness a little more first. Once you finish this medicinal bath, your stamina will rise quite a bit. We should strike while the iron is hot."
Qingyu nodded, then asked,
"Oh, right, Big Sister Tsunade. The ninja academy will be on break soon. Can you take me out on some missions?"
If he wanted to improve his strength, practical combat experience was indispensable.
"Me?"
Tsunade pointed at herself, then shook her head.
"I don't have time."
Then she seemed to think of something, and her eyes brightened.
"Have Orochimaru take you next time."
As she said that, Tsunade thoughtfully rubbed her chin.
"Lending you to him can offset a little interest, and I can repay a bit of the money I owe Jiraiya. Otherwise, he's always saying something about how returning borrowed money makes it easier to borrow again."
Qingyu:
"..."
A few minutes later.
Qingyu arrived in the backyard and took the hilt of the Sword of the Thunder God from his ninja tool pouch.
He gripped the hilt tightly and slowly poured chakra into it.
With a low hum, a brilliant blue blade of lightning extended from the hilt.
He looked down at the crackling blade and suddenly had an idea.
Since the Sword of the Thunder God's blade was condensed from chakra, could he add another layer of nature transformation to it?
He had used Water Blade Slash on kunai before. The principle was to concentrate Water Release chakra at a single point, driving the water to rotate at high speed and wrap around the blade.
What if he used the same technique on the Sword of the Thunder God?
Qingyu took a deep breath. He held the sword in his left hand and formed hand seals with his right.
One-handed seals required an extremely high level of proficiency and generally reduced a technique's power.
That was why Qingyu formed the seals slowly, taking several times longer than he would with both hands.
Still, Qingyu intended to master this ability.
The reason was simple: one-handed seals were simply too efficient.
If forming seals with one hand did not affect a technique's results, then he could potentially release two ninjutsu simultaneously.
Of course, Qingyu did not yet know whether they would conflict. He had not tried it before.
Then Water Release chakra flowed from his palm and climbed up the hilt onto the lightning blade.
A transparent film of water slowly spread across the chakra blade.
Water and lightning overlapped, producing faint sizzling sounds.
It worked!
Qingyu rejoiced inwardly.
Two chakra natures attached to the same weapon at once consumed far more chakra than using either one alone, but both stability and lethality had risen by an entire level.
He gripped the sword with both hands, aimed at the battered wooden target in the yard, and swung down.
Sshk!
The blade passed through the wooden post with almost no resistance.
The upper half of the post slid down at an angle. The cut was smooth as a mirror, and several scorched marks still remained along the cross-section.
The piercing power of Lightning Style combined with the cutting power of the Water Blade was stronger than either one used alone.
Qingyu retracted the sword into its hilt and looked at the severed end, the corner of his lips lifting slightly.
For others, high chakra consumption was a drawback. But for someone like him, it was practically tailor-made.
Half a month passed in the blink of an eye.
When Tsunade pushed open Qingyu's bedroom door, Qingyu set down his ninjutsu scroll.
"Why didn't you knock?"
Qingyu realized that Tsunade did not care about his privacy at all.
What if he had been changing his pants?
"Pack up. I'm taking you to Shikkotsu Forest today."
Tsunade leaned against the doorframe. Rarely, she had gotten up early.
Without another word, Qingyu jumped down from the bed.
In that case, he forgave Tsunade!
Before you continue