The "Sage" of Shikkotsu Forest... (Part 1)

"A thousand years ago, I was merely a weak slug."

"I don't know when it began, but I gradually gained 'consciousness,' then faintly sensed a kind of energy."

"By instinctively absorbing and using that power, I eventually came to realize my own existence."

"Then one day, visitors from beyond this world arrived on the continent, completely changing my fate."

Within the dense, hidden forest, colossal trees swayed in the sunlight as if stretching their bodies in the wind. The enormous Katsuyu shared her experiences in a soft, gentle voice.

"You mean creatures from beyond the planet came here?"

Shu Furukawa had just celebrated his eighth birthday before coming to Shikkotsu Forest for the second time. Sitting atop Katsuyu's head, he took the initiative to ask, and she kindly continued her answer.

"Yes. It was something I only came to understand after learning more later on."

Katsuyu slowly wriggled through the forest, taking Shu Furukawa on a tour of where she lived.

"Perhaps a battle took place, or perhaps it was something else. In any case, the visiting creature was injured."

"The scattered flesh and blood eventually became nourishment for evolution. Looking back now, it was not flesh and blood at all, but a kind of energy I could not understand."

Katsuyu was not boasting. She was simply sharing her story. After bringing Shu Furukawa onto the branch of a colossal tree, she suddenly sighed.

"It was this energy that made me what I am today, allowing the weak slug I once was to gradually grow stronger."

"After it transformed my body, I could absorb the energy of nature more efficiently. Later, I also came to know the toad clan."

"The White Snake Sage, as she is now known, also mastered the same ability. Back then, we would exchange insights with one another, until another upheaval occurred on this land."

A trace of sorrow entered Katsuyu's soft voice. She seemed to miss those days deeply, while Shu Furukawa, lost in thought, asked again.

"The upheaval was those enormous tree roots you showed me?"

"So you figured it out, Lord Shu. Gamakichi told us that the monster had become a colossal tree, and Natural Energy was weakening."

"At the time, we had no solution. After an unknown number of years, that giant tree bore fruit, and Natural Energy gradually returned to normal."

"The Rabbit Goddess was one of those visitors from beyond this world. She took the fruit, but the giant tree remained and even transformed into a monster for a time."

"The turmoil was eventually settled, but Natural Energy began to weaken again."

Katsuyu's antennae twitched. When she saw that Shu Furukawa did not look confused, she could not help but breathe a sigh of relief.

"The giant tree did not merely absorb Natural Energy. In truth, it could absorb all forms of energy, including life."

"After another unknown number of years, the Rabbit Goddess had two children. It was then that Gamakichi's proposal led us down different paths."

Shu Furukawa gazed over the forest. The trees here were somewhat different from those in the Land of Fire, and the "essence" energy after [Collection] seemed even more concentrated.

The species of trees were different as well, though Shu Furukawa could not recognize them. Katsuyu's clones wriggled and communicated atop some of the leaves, and the entire environment brimmed with vitality.

"The Great Toad Sage wanted to stop the giant tree from plundering the planet's energy?"

Apparently not expecting Shu Furukawa to understand so well, Katsuyu swayed her body in approval before continuing.

"Yes. Gamakichi feared that one day, the Rabbit Goddess and the monster would drain away all energy. He wanted to take the initiative."

"However, neither the White Snake Sage nor I agreed with that proposal, because we chose different paths in how we used energy."

"To coexist with nature—that has always been the toad clan's philosophy."

"The White Snake Sage wanted to pursue evolution and become a dragon?"

"And I only wanted to survive. Lord Shu, you should understand. We all possess the ability to devour energy. Coexisting with Natural Energy was inherently difficult."

Although he felt she had misunderstood something, Shu Furukawa did not explain. Instead, he nodded in agreement.

Katsuyu seemed delighted by his response. As she slowly wriggled onward, she calmly continued recounting these ancient "secrets."

"In the end, Gamakichi chose to contact those two children. His ability of prophecy came into play, and both the Rabbit Goddess and the monster disappeared."

"However, the tree roots spread across the entire planet remained behind. It took me a long time to identify the main locations of those roots."

"That truly was unimaginable power. If the giant tree had been allowed to continue absorbing energy, perhaps this planet really would have lost all its energy."

"Next came the story of Hagoromo Otsutsuki, known as the Sage of Six Paths. He seemed even more powerful than the Rabbit Goddess, yet he valued peace."

"His descendants seemed to oppose one another because of their beliefs and inheritance. Over countless years, they eventually became the shinobi of today."

"..."

After a moment of silence to let Shu Furukawa digest the information, Katsuyu wriggled off the trunk and returned to the ground, continuing through the forest.

"Only through later learning did I discover that the giant tree was called the 'God Tree,' the monster was called the 'Ten-Tails,' and the goddess was named Kaguya Otsutsuki."

"Although I cannot determine exactly what happened even earlier, the energy that changed me was most likely 'chakra.'"

"As for my Sage Technique, it is not suited for humans unless someone can perfectly produce Sage Chakra within their body. Only then could they resonate with me."

By the end, Katsuyu seemed somewhat embarrassed, because any human capable of perfectly producing Sage Chakra likely would not need her in the first place.

Shu Furukawa jumped down from the enormous Katsuyu's head. Soon, another palm-sized Katsuyu crawled onto his shoulder, occasionally swaying her antennae as she waited for his questions.

"By resonance, do you mean the Strength of a Hundred Seal?"

"You absorb Natural Energy to sustain yourself. Have you ever tried compressing the energy within your body?"

Rather than asking random childish questions, Shu Furukawa's words made Katsuyu quietly breathe another sigh of relief. She then answered cheerfully.

"Yes, Lord Shu. Unlike Lady Tsunade, I can resonate with the Sage Chakra you condense and replenish your Sage Chakra."

"I have tried all sorts of methods. I have already managed to compress Sage Chakra itself."

"But in the end, that only increased its volume."

As if sensing what Shu Furukawa was thinking, a trace of desolation entered Katsuyu's soft voice.

"Lord Shu, Natural Energy cannot grant living beings 'immortality.'"

"The so-called three great sacred lands may all be connected to the original energy. We have all become 'energy-based.' This is more like a curse!"

"All living beings have a day when they come to an end. My only hope is to encounter one of my own kind."

"Even I will die after a few more thousand years... Lord Shu?"

Sensing the violent fluctuation in his emotions, all the Katsuyu around him turned their heads. Shu Furukawa had just wanted to comfort her, but now he could only force out a smile as he frantically complained inwardly.

"Please, by all means, give me a share of this curse!"

"..."