Between the Mountain Ranges

Walking mountain paths on a night of torrential rain is something only a madman would do. Yet, Uchiha Zhuang did exactly that, his heart remaining completely calm. When he encountered uneven ground, he leaped over it from the trees; when he met fallen giant trees, he climbed over them; when he faced surging mountain streams, he took a detour. In the lonely, silent mountains, there was only Uchiha Zhuang, carrying the dead Kappa and striving toward his goal. He walked all night, and as dawn approached, the dark clouds finally dissipated amidst the rumbling, reluctant thunder. The sound of the swollen mountain streams still echoed in his ears, accompanied by the chirping of birds and insects. Leaves dripped water from time to time, a soft plop as a droplet landed and vanished into Uchiha Zhuang's thick black hair. Standing on a protruding earthen platform along the mountain road, he gazed at the rising sun in the distance, its rays filling the sky. Though slow, the sun rose with an eternal, steady rhythm, casting its golden vitality over all things. Looking at the mountains shrouded in mist and the brilliant, golden sun, the haze in his heart was ignited and slowly dissipated.

"The golden wheel remains in the vast sky, and the myriad living things cycle through birth and death." A warmth surged in his eyes. He drew his short blade and looked at the two-tomoe Sharingan reflected in the steel; Uchiha Zhuang's heart was at peace. As expected, the claim that hatred is the only way to awaken the Sharingan was merely a poisonous scheme by conspirators. It should be intense emotional fluctuations—whether positive or negative—that resonate with the bloodline and trigger the Sharingan. Ignoring these unpleasant thoughts, Uchiha Zhuang took a deep breath of fresh air. The unique, grassy fragrance of the mountains seemed to cleanse every cell in his body. He left the earthen platform and continued his journey.

He drank stream water when thirsty and ate dry rations and wild fruit when hungry. He did not stop, maintaining a steady pace. Uchiha Zhuang's body remained in a heated state, as if he possessed inexhaustible strength, unwilling to rest for even a moment. After three days and three nights, he finally reached Mount Okura, as indicated by the Almighty System. Gazing at the mist-shrouded mountain, Uchiha Zhuang climbed with difficulty, darting and leaping between steep cliffs and dense forests. Finally, he arrived at a cave near the summit. It was truly a masterpiece of nature; below lay a turbulent river, and above, cliffs that pierced the clouds. The cave was as warm as spring, very comfortable, and not damp at all, but rather dry. Finally, he set down the Kappa's corpse. Strangely enough, during the days of trekking through the mountains, the Kappa had not decayed at all, save for the white, bleached appearance of its severed limbs. Looking at the Kappa's natural expression, which resembled sleep, Uchiha Zhuang said, "All things in nature have life and death. Perhaps your life has ended, but your journey of death continues! May you find peace in both life and death." After speaking, he used a Fire Style jutsu to cremate the Kappa's body into ash, placed it in a bamboo tube, and threw it far into the rugged mountains. Having done all this, Uchiha Zhuang felt increasingly dizzy, then collapsed, his mind going blank as he fell into a deep sleep.

When he woke up, he didn't know how much time had passed; he only knew the mountains were still mountains and the ridges were still ridges. What was slightly different was that the system had sent a notification. Opening it, he saw: "Congratulations to the Transmigrator for completing the Rare-grade mission 'Return to the Mountains,' obtaining 'Breath of the Child of Nature (Gold).'" Then, the system fell silent again. Since the Breath of the Child of Nature was related to nature, it had to be Sage Mode! Uchiha Zhuang understood this in his heart, then carefully sensed it. After a long while, he finally felt an extremely natural and pure aura within himself, like a spring breeze brushing his face. He then channeled this aura to circulate through his body, further sensing nature. In the ninja world, if one cannot master natural energy, one will turn to stone. However, Uchiha Zhuang was a player who had been "corrupted" by novels about immortal cultivation and primordial chaos. Following the methods of the "greats," he operated his dantian, "one qi transforming into three purities"—in layman's terms, it just felt better and better. He continuously moved the natural energy to communicate and merge with his own cells. Finally, feeling that his cells had absorbed enough, Uchiha Zhuang stopped his cultivation and exhaled a breath of turbid air. His physical fitness had improved; this was something he could clearly feel. If he had to face the bandit extermination battle again, Uchiha Zhuang believed he could crush forty or fifty bandits with his physical strength alone. Half of Zabuza's stamina? About one Kakashi's worth of chakra? That was Uchiha Zhuang's tentative analysis. Finally, he used the system to perform a full-body checkup. Uchiha Zhuang didn't feel much, but the system displayed that his physical health had surpassed that of a Chunin in Naruto, and his chakra had reached the Special Jonin level. He was already very satisfied with his physical fitness; after all, he was only five years old. Haha, thinking of his age, Uchiha Zhuang laughed. He used to mock other protagonists for punching planets at age four or five, but he never expected that at five, he would also far exceed ordinary people. He could be considered a "cheater," though a small-time one, just a little "pay-to-win." Thinking of this, Uchiha Zhuang felt a bit nostalgic for his days on Earth. If he hadn't transmigrated, he would probably still be working 996 overtime there, or perhaps even worse with 12-hour shifts. Just thinking about it made him shudder. Hiss, the exploitation of capitalists is truly terrifying!

After resting well in the mountain cave, Uchiha Zhuang took one last look at the magnificent, winding mountain scenery. Then, he ran down the cliffside. Yes, ran. Regarding the use of chakra, Uchiha Zhuang had reached a new level; he could now freely attach chakra to his body to move anywhere. When he was a dozen meters from the large pool at the foot of the mountain, he used a Water Style: Water Prison Jutsu to envelop himself before falling. A massive splash erupted, and Uchiha Zhuang slowly surfaced from the water, swam to the shore, and then, without conserving his stamina, sprinted rapidly toward the town.

Deep in the forest, a pair of green pupils watched the figure in the distance, only disappearing after a long while...

The journey there took several days and nights, but the return took only a day and a night. Uchiha Zhuang moved at full speed, which could be described as lightning-fast; even Tarzan wouldn't dare claim he could outrun Uchiha Zhuang. When he arrived at the small town, it was still morning, and the crowds were bustling as ever. Uchiha Zhuang first found a small hot spring inn to relax properly. After the hot spring, he felt much better, then headed toward the Iron Hearth Izakaya in the town—yes, the Iron Hearth Izakaya was where Uchiha Zhuang had first eaten.

As the door opened and closed, a figure entered. The shopkeeper was busy tidying up and said, "Sumimasen, guest, it's not ready yet. You'll need to wait half an hour before you can taste the food!" "That's fine, just bring me a glass of sparkling juice first." "Eh!" The shopkeeper turned his head to look at the young Uchiha Zhuang, "Whoa~!" His mouth opened wide enough to fit a bull's egg. "Respected Samurai-sama, rumors of your legend have been spreading all over town lately! They say you are a samurai sent by Amaterasu to walk the human world, specifically to slay the demons of this world! You left on that rainy night, and it scared us to death. We were so afraid that Amaterasu would blame us for not hosting you properly. This time, you must please enjoy the warm service of our Baiye Town." Listening to the shopkeeper's endless chatter, who even seemed to be trying to "drive," Uchiha Zhuang immediately dropped the pretense and said seriously, "Uncle, I am in a hurry to go to the next place to slay demons. Please, do not let word get out. I will leave as soon as I finish this meal, otherwise, Amaterasu will blame you." Uchiha Zhuang went with the flow. The shopkeeper shouted "Hai, hai, hai!" several times, startling the chef and apprentices who were organizing ingredients in the back! Afterward, Uchiha Zhuang, in a great mood after enjoying a sumptuous meal, wrote a few calligraphic characters for the shopkeeper: "Golden Wheel Rising Sun." When the shopkeeper saw these Chinese characters, his eyes turned green. This was the long-lost Xia script, the language of the ancient civilization that had ruled the world for thousands of years—an existence even older than the God Tree of chakra. Looking at this young but resolute boy, the shopkeeper's inner desires surged. Uchiha Zhuang even felt an extremely intense emotional fluctuation; this was a characteristic of natural energy, the ability to perceive emotions. The shopkeeper grabbed Uchiha Zhuang's lapels tightly and said eagerly, "Samurai-sama, noble Samurai-sama, I have a daughter of similar age to you, smart and cute. Why don't you marry my daughter right now? I will give you the ten properties under my name, along with several izakayas—please, do not look down on them! What do you think?" Looking at the shopkeeper's eyes, which seemed ready to spit fire, Uchiha Zhuang felt that even the Giant Catfish might not be able to beat him. "Amaterasu will blame..." "I will take full responsibility for Amaterasu's blame; I only ask that the respected Samurai-sama marry my daughter as soon as possible and become a couple." Uchiha Zhuang was done for, trapped by the owner of the izakaya.