same period.
The depths of Ryūchi Cave.
The grotto here is very humid, and water drops occasionally drip from the stalactites.
Pat. Pat. Pat.
As we walked deeper into the cave, it became darker and darker, until finally, we were completely plunged into darkness.
At this time, in a slightly larger grotto, Kabuto was standing on the edge holding a torch.
There are traces everywhere on the surrounding stone walls.
There were burnt black spots caused by Lightning Release, and there were also cracks cut open by Kusanagi Sword. Farther away, several thick stone pillars were broken on the ground, and the sections were as flat as if they had been cut open by something.
In the center of the grotto, Sasuke slowly opened his eyes.
He knelt on the ground with one knee, supporting the stone surface with one hand, and holding Kusanagi Sword in the other hand.
Kabuto didn't get too close.
Over the past six months, he has developed this habit.
Sasuke When practicing, it is best not to stand too close.
At this time, the Cursed Seal lines on Sasuke's body were receding little by little.
At the beginning, those lines would cover half of his body like living creatures, and even black marks would appear on his face.
But now, those lines have faded.
So faint that it's almost invisible.
Kabuto pushed up his glasses and inserted the torch into the gap in the wall next to him.
Then he took out a small scroll, lowered his head and wrote a few words on it:
Cursed Seal of Heaven, continues to weaken.
As he wrote this, his pen stopped for a moment.
In fact, it can no longer be called weakened.
From the beginning, Cursed Seal inside Sasuke has been being swallowed.
On that day, White Snake Sage injected Natural Energy from Ryūchi Cave into Sasuke's body for the first time.
Kabuto still remembers it clearly to this day.
When White Snake Sage bit into Sasuke's shoulder, Cursed Seal of Heaven on Sasuke's body immediately went berserk. Black lines climbed from his shoulders to his neck, and then spread down his arms. Sasuke quickly entered the Cursed Seal Level 2 stage, and big black hand wings grew out from behind him.
But the next moment, the purer Natural Energy hit him instantly.
Cursed Seal started to fall apart immediately.
Just like a low-quality imitation finally encountered a real genuine product, the power of Cursed Seal couldn't bear it at all, and was quickly swallowed up bit by bit by Senjutsu Chakra of Ryūchi Cave.
However, Sasuke also benefits from Cursed Seal of Heaven, and Cursed Seal itself is a copy of Orochimaru based on Natural Energy.
Sasuke's body had withstood Cursed Seal's transformation in advance, so after the real Ryūchi Cave Senjutsu entered his body, he adapted much faster than ordinary people.
But this adaptation is not so gentle.
During that time, Sasuke fainted almost every day.
Several times, his breathing even stopped for a long time.
Kabuto retracted his thoughts and looked up at the center of the grotto.
Sasuke has stood up.
This time he has completely absorbed Senjutsu Chakra, and he is not in coma or going berserk.
At this moment, the sound of scales rubbing against the stone wall came from deep within the grotto.
Swish...
A huge white snake slowly raised its head from the shadows.
Its body was coiled on the stone platform, and its huge body took up almost half of the cave. The white scales glowed coldly in the dim light, and the snake's eyes drooped down and fell on Sasuke.
Those snake eyes stared at Sasuke for a long time.
Then it slowly spit out the letter.
"It seems you succeeded."
Its voice echoed in the grotto, and there was no hint of joy or anger.
"Ryūchi Cave It's been a long time since anyone has made it this far alive."
A chill ran down my back.
Of course he knew this sentence was not a joke.
Ryūchi Cave has never been a gentle place of cultivation. Those who cannot bear Natural Energy may not even be able to leave their bodies behind.
Sasuke has no changes on his face.
White Snake Sage lowered his head, and the huge snake head slowly approached Sasuke, completely covering his body.
"Show me."
Sasuke said nothing.
He just slowly put Kusanagi Sword back into the sheath and closed his eyes.
The grotto suddenly became quiet.
Kabuto's eyes moved slightly and he looked around.
The gravel on the ground was trembling slightly, and the water droplets on the stone wall seemed to be pulled by something, slowly sliding down the cracks.
Sasuke stood there, breathing slower and slower.
On the shoulder, the trace of Cursed Seal of Heaven, which had faded to the point of being almost invisible, resurfaced again.
As soon as that bit of black appeared, it was completely swallowed up by the Senjutsu Chakra that surged in the body.
This time, Cursed Seal did not go berserk again.
The next moment.
Sasuke opened his eyes suddenly.
The scarlet Sharingan was still turning slowly, but its pupils were thinner than usual.
At the same time, a thin layer of white scales appeared on the edge of his eyelids.
The scale pattern extends back from the end of the eye and is connected with the lavender pattern until it reaches the temple.
Several fine black and purple lines also appeared on the neck, spreading down along the collarbone and stopping quickly.
His face hasn't changed much.
But the whole feeling about him is completely different.
At this time.
White Snake Sage's tail suddenly moved.
Bang!
A broken stone pillar nearby was whipped out by its tail, and hit Sasuke with a dull sound of breaking wind.
Sasuke stood motionless.
He didn't raise his hand until the stone pillar was about to hit him.
Zheng!
Kusanagi Sword unsheathed.
The sword light flashed past.
The stone pillar exploded from the middle, and the section was evenly divided to both sides, hitting Sasuke behind him.
Rubble rolled all over the floor.
Sasuke stood on the same spot without taking even a step back.
White Snake Sage's snake eyes narrowed slightly.
The next moment, its huge body suddenly moved.
The white snake tail pulled out from the shadow, bypassed the direction of the scattered gravel, and smashed directly behind Sasuke.
Kabuto's pupils shrank.
"Sasuke-kun!"
As soon as the words left his mouth, he stopped.
Sasuke seems to have noticed it a long time ago.
I saw his body tilted slightly to one side, the snake's tail brushing against the corners of his clothes, and then hitting the ground with a bang.
The whole grotto shook.
White Snake Sage retracted its tail and coiled it back on the stone platform.
Sasuke also retracts Kusanagi Sword into the sheath.
Click.
The white scales at the corners of his eyes began to slowly fade, and the fine black and purple lines on his neck also disappeared little by little.
Sasuke shook his arm and waved his hand.
He felt some numbness in his fingertips.
But the moment he entered Sage Mode, he was indeed able to perceive further and more clearly than before.
Whether it was the trajectory of the flying stone pillar or the vibration of the snake's tail sweeping from behind, it was all too clear to be true.
But this power cannot last long.
The longer he uses it, the more obvious the tingling sensation in his meridians becomes.
White Snake Sage looked down at him.
"It's not quite Sage Mode."
Sasuke raised his eyes.
White Snake Sage vomited.
"Not enough."
Sasuke did not answer the call.
Kabuto slowly lowered his head and looked at the scroll in his hand.
The line that originally read "Cursed Seal of Heaven continues to weaken" was crossed out by him in silence.
Then re-write:
Cursed Seal of Heaven reacts and disappears.
Natural Energy adaptability, stability.
The Cursed Seal system has undergone irreversible changes.
After writing this, Kabuto paused for a moment.
In the distance, Sasuke has closed his eyes again and started to adjust his breathing.
Kabuto knows very well that what Lord Orochimaru wants is a container that is excellent enough.
But now, this container is becoming more and more unpredictable.
Kabuto looked up at Sasuke, was silent for a while, and then added another sentence at the end of the scroll.
Sasuke-kun's body has deviated from what was originally expected.