The Man-Eating Tree's Seed

"Is this the Heavenheart Stone the immortal spoke of?"

Long Ye reached into his robes and pulled out the Star Core he always carried with him.

This thing is key to activating his chakra; his rapid progress in the [Mysterious Peacock Method] is mainly due to this thing.

Upon seeing the Star Core, the Toad Sage looked surprised and kept muttering to himself:

"Strange! How strange..."

"Immortal, could this not be the Heavenheart Stone?"

Seeing his expression, Long Ye's face changed, and she asked.

The Toad Sage came to his senses:

"Coincidences do exist in this world. This item is indeed the Heavenheart Stone. Give me this stone and the Thunder God Sword, and I will return them to you within three days."

"Alright! Then I'll trouble you, Immortal!"

Long Ye handed the sword, along with the Star Core, to Toad Elder, who had stood aside without uttering a word throughout.

He knew perfectly well that given the status and position of the Great Toad Sage, it was impossible for him to covet what he had.

"You can go ahead now! Spend a couple of days exploring Mount Myoboku. Once I've accomplished my mission, I'll naturally send someone to find you."

The other party told him to leave, Long Ye had no choice but to go.

"Then, this disciple will take his leave!"

Long Ye left the temple.

"Master, have you noticed anything amiss?"

Only after Long Ye left did Toad Elder respectfully ask the question.

"That's really wrong!"

The Toad Sage patted the armrest of his chair, a thoughtful expression on his face, and said, "The person I saw a few years ago wasn't this kid."

"What!"

Toad Elder was greatly alarmed.

To someone unfamiliar with the situation, these words might seem insignificant, but to someone who was well aware of the patriarch's abilities, they were like a bolt from the blue.

This means that the patriarch's prophecy has gone astray.

Such a thing had never happened in the previous hundreds of years.

"The future... seems to have changed. The events in Snake Cypress Valley were within my expectations. And the one who resolved this crisis was indeed an outsider, but the person I saw back then wasn't this one!"

"But... judging from the current situation, it seems it might be him, because he carries the Thunder God Sword and even possesses the incredibly rare Heavenheart Stone. This is simply too strange."

Toad Elder was completely astonished.

If the patriarch's prophecy had failed and were to spread, it would have caused a tremendous upheaval.

"Master, what did you see in him?"

The Toad Sage slowly shook his head. "I saw nothing, only a fog. This has only happened once before..."

"Who is it?" the elder asked hurriedly.

"Hagoromo Otsutsuki!" The Toad Sage's voice was solemn.

"Six... Sage of Six Paths?" The elder swallowed hard.

"Regardless, let's see if he can succeed! The matter of Snake Cypress Valley has indeed reached a point of urgency."

The Toad Sage spoke as if to himself.

For the next three days, Long Ye spent her time wandering around Mount Myoboku.

During this time, he and the Toad he had saved went out to restaurants a few times and had a few drinks together, gradually becoming acquainted.

Taking this opportunity, Long Ye learned a lot about the secret realm from him, including some secrets.

The green Toad's name was Copper Hammer. According to him, the reason he went to Snake Cypress Valley was not to seek thrills, but to find a great opportunity.

Snake Cypress Valley is indeed extremely dangerous; ninety-nine out of a hundred who go there never return. However, the Toad Clan continues to secretly venture there.

All of this is mainly because behind great danger lies a great opportunity.

According to it, there exists a mysterious seed in the Snake Cypress Valley. As for its specific origin, the most common view is that it comes from the man-eating tree, the Nine-Headed Snake Cypress.

This seed contains a massive amount of Senjutsu Chakra; after consumption, it will be slowly digested and eventually become part of one's own power.

This is only one of its uses.

It also has a second function.

He can significantly activate the activity of cells in the body, and eventually evolve to the point where he can control them on his own.

This means that one can freely control the size changes of their body, which is truly miraculous.

That day!

During their drinking session, Long Ye deliberately brought up this issue.

"The seed you speak of is so wondrous; has anyone on Mount Myoboku ever obtained it?"

The Toad Copper Hammer, quite drunk, nodded repeatedly upon hearing this:

"How can anyone know how wondrous this thing is if no one has ever possessed it?"

"Let me tell you, the leader I took you to see that day received it. Since then, his body has contained a massive amount of Senjutsu Chakra, and his strength has more than doubled..."

"Not only that, but after consuming this stuff, your body will grow rapidly. Your strength, speed, and all aspects of your physical attributes will increase several times, even ten times. Doesn't that sound tempting?"

Long Ye nodded repeatedly, "No wonder you risked your life in Snake Cypress Valley..."

"What a pity... how hateful..."

The Toad said, bowing its head and stamping its feet.

"I failed to find it, and I even lost my best friend in the process. If I had known it would turn out like this, I wouldn't have gone to Snake Cypress Valley in the first place. The price was too high."

Seeing its pained expression, Long Ye sighed inwardly.

The creature sitting before me, though it is a Toad, would be almost indistinguishable from a toad if stripped of its skin. A sentient being must possess emotions.

Back when he was buried alive and his fate was unknown, the grief felt by Obito and Shisui was remarkably similar to that of Toad Copper Hammer now.

"Seeds of a man-eating tree?"

He muttered to himself in the Long Ye, his heart filled with barely concealed longing.

He suddenly realized that if he consumed this substance, his cell activity would be enhanced, and his physical condition might undergo a dramatic transformation.

Because his body had been modified with "Hashirama Cells," he possessed the Wood Release Kekkei Genkai, but he was unable to Awakening the "Unmatched Strength" of the Senju Clan from his memories.

If such a seed were available, it might allow the Hashirama Cells in his body to undergo a transformation, potentially elevating both his Wood Release and his physical constitution to a new level.

Seemingly sensing his thoughts, Toad Copper Hammer poured cold water on his enthusiasm:

"Don't get any ideas. Even if you were given that stuff, you couldn't eat it."

"Why?" Long Ye was taken aback.

"It's very simple, because of your physical constitution. With your human bodies, you simply can't digest the Senjutsu Chakra within the seed. In the end, you'll be killed by this power."

The Toad and Long Ye had been getting along very well these past few days, neither wanting to see the other die.

Long Ye smiled but said nothing.

He thought to himself: My body is not an ordinary person's body. After being modified by Hashirama Cells, it has long surpassed the limits of human physical fitness.

Just as the two finished talking, a yellowish-brown Toad, about the size of a pot lid, wearing goggles on its head, came to the tavern and hopped toward them.