Shikkotsu Forest.
One of the Three Great Sage Lands, and home to the slugs.
Tsunade had mentioned this before, but they hadn't settled on a time.
Now, it seemed the time had finally come.
"Remember, be respectful to Lady Katsuyu when we get there."
Qingyuan nodded.
What people called a slug was actually named Katsuyu.
Qingyuan didn't know whether all the slugs in Shikkotsu Forest shared that name.
They all split off from a single original body, making them essentially clones.
Whether they had independent minds, though, he couldn't say.
Tsunade formed Hand Seals with one hand and slapped her palm against the ground.
The black markings of the Summoning Technique spread across the earth. A cloud of white smoke appeared and then cleared, revealing a tiny slug, no bigger than a palm, on the ground.
"Lady Tsunade."
The little slug lifted her head, her feelers swaying gently.
"Please take us to Shikkotsu Forest, Lady Katsuyu."
Tsunade crouched and held out a finger for the slug to crawl onto.
Watching Tsunade talk with the slug, Qingyu couldn't help feeling that something was a little odd.
Katsuyu was simply too good-natured. Though she was a Sage who had lived for a thousand years, she used polite honorifics with everyone.
The little slug nodded, then suddenly vanished.
The next moment, Tsunade grabbed Qingyu.
Before he could say anything, he and Tsunade disappeared from where they stood.
Reverse Summoning Jutsu!
Qingyu's vision blurred. The wooden floor beneath his feet suddenly became damp, soft earth.
He looked up and took in the scene before him.
It was a world utterly unlike the one outside.
Enormous ancient trees reached into the sky. Their trunks were so thick that a dozen people would have needed to join hands to encircle them, while their canopies blotted out the sun, letting through only a few faint rays of light.
The air was filled with the damp scent of plants and trees. Every breath Qingyu took felt like drinking in the mist.
A thick layer of moss carpeted the ground, soft beneath his feet.
Slugs were everywhere: on tree trunks, between rocks, beneath the moss.
Some were only as big as a fist, while others stood half as tall as a person, slowly crawling through the shadows.
And in the depths of the forest, a colossal creature rested in silence.
It was an enormous slug.
Pale blue markings patterned her milky-white skin.
Qingyu had to crane his neck to make out her full form.
"Lady Katsuyu."
Tsunade stepped forward, her tone more respectful than usual.
"This is Qingyu, the clansman I told you about."
The Katsuyu Sage slowly opened her eyes.
Her feelers shifted slightly, directing her "gaze" toward Qingyu.
"So this is Lady Tsunade's clansman..."
The Katsuyu Sage's voice was unusually soft and squishy.
Tsunade took a scroll from her robes and unrolled it before the Katsuyu Sage.
It was covered in names, each one written in blood and turned dark brown with the passage of time.
"Dip your finger in blood and write your name."
Tsunade held the scroll out to Qingyu.
Qingyu bit his thumb, and a bright red bead of blood welled at his fingertip. Just as he was about to write, three lines of text appeared in the corner of his eye.
[Detecting a collectible trait: Natural Energy Affinity]
[C-rank Trait: Natural Energy Affinity]
[Effect: Increases affinity with Natural Energy by 60%.]
Qingyu's finger paused.
A C-rank trait.
So far, he had very few of them.
And now, simply by entering Shikkotsu Forest and standing before the Katsuyu Sage, he had gained a C-rank trait.
In that moment, he suddenly felt as though the world around him had changed.
The dampness in the air, which had once seemed like nothing more than physical moisture, now possessed an indescribable quality.
It was as if something was flowing toward him from the mist, gently brushing his skin.
He couldn't explain what it was, but he could faintly sense its presence.
Natural Energy?
Qingyu set his thoughts aside, pressed his thumb to the scroll, and wrote his name.
"Oh?"
The Katsuyu Sage let out a soft sound.
Her feelers rose and circled above Qingyu's head for a moment, as if confirming something.
"This child..."
A hint of surprise entered the Katsuyu Sage's voice.
"He can sense Natural Energy."
Tsunade had been leaning against a tree with her arms crossed. At those words, she sprang upright.
"!"
When she first entered Shikkotsu Forest, she hadn't sensed anything at all.
Back then, the Katsuyu Sage had said that she had excellent potential, but even so, Tsunade hadn't been able to sense Natural Energy right away.
"Tsunade, this clansman of yours is no ordinary child."
The Katsuyu Sage spoke slowly, turning the tips of her feelers toward Qingyu again.
"His chakra pathways are naturally broader than most people's, and his body is unusual as well. The Senju and Uchiha bloodlines within him have merged smoothly, without rejecting each other. Instead, they've formed a... hmm, a very interesting balance."
Qingyu looked up and met the Sage's enormous eyes.
"Thank you for the praise, Lady Katsuyu."
Qingyu neither let the praise go to his head nor pretended to be so modest that he seemed insincere.
Having won the grand prize in the bloodline lottery at birth, Qingyu had long since grown accustomed to his dual heritage.
If he had been born when Hashirama and Madara were both in Konoha, during the honeymoon period between the Senju and Uchiha, he could surely have become a bridge between the two clans and earned Hashirama Senju's attention.
Unfortunately, the Uchiha had a terrible reputation now, and the Senju Clan had already fallen into decline.
The Katsuyu Sage seemed delighted to see Qingyu.
"It's been a long time since I met a human who could sense Natural Energy directly."
Katsuyu spoke, then turned to Tsunade.
"When Qingyu is a little older, you can bring him back."
The Katsuyu Sage continued, "Then we can let him try training in Shikkotsu Forest's Sage Mode."
Qingyu immediately grew excited.
Sage Mode.
It was the ultimate trump card.
To defeat Six Paths-level opponents, Senjutsu was essential.
And the fact that the Katsuyu Sage had brought it up herself suggested that Shikkotsu Forest really did have a complete Sage Mode tradition.
More importantly, compared with the brutal trials at Ryūchi Cave, where the White Snake Sage ate anyone who failed, Qingyu felt Shikkotsu Forest's training would be much gentler.
"I will, Lady Katsuyu."
Tsunade nodded, then changed the subject.
"By the way, I heard Minato is training in Senjutsu at Mount Myōboku?"
"I see..."
The Katsuyu Sage's feelers swayed slightly.
She had been summoned before and had met Minato Namikaze, so she knew he was a gifted ninja.
But the Katsuyu Sage thought of Qingyu.
Perhaps Shikkotsu Forest would have a successor of its own?
At the mention of Minato Namikaze, Qingyu's thoughts stirred.
"Lord Minato?"
"Mm, you'll probably meet him before long."
Tsunade answered casually.
"Minato is out on a mission. He'll return to the village once it's over, and I'll introduce you then."
With that, she patted Qingyu on the shoulder.
The enormous snow-capped mountains swayed before Qingyu's eyes.
"Don't just stand there. Finish the contract."
Qingyu focused on the scroll again.
He pressed his thumb down to draw blood and wrote the final character.
The instant the contract was complete, he felt an elusive connection form between himself and the Katsuyu Sage.
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