The White Cursed Seal Manifests: The Ten Battles Plan

Whoosh! Hashirama Senju's Chakra transfer was complete, and the cursed seal on the side of Sasuke's neck had turned pure white.

The White Cursed Seal—Sasuke could no longer sense the "consciousness" residing within it, and he had his own interpretation of this.

The technique known as the cursed seal worked along similar lines to the "Kāma" that the Ōtsutsuki used for reincarnation in the future.

Kāma came in two forms: "Black Kāma" and "White Kāma." The former contained an Ōtsutsuki's consciousness, while the latter served purely to entrust power to someone.

In Boruto's era, Isshiki had placed "Black Kāma" and "White Kāma" on Kawaki and Code, respectively.

Sasuke therefore reached a conclusion. Did Orochimaru develop the White Cursed Seal based on the principles of White Kāma? To entrust Hashirama Senju's power to me in its entirety!

Sasuke immediately tried to release the White Cursed Seal!

White markings spread out from the cursed seal. After covering his left arm, they extended a little farther across his left chest and back.

"Ugh..." He could release it no further, and the left half of his body covered by the Talismans hurt so badly that it had almost gone numb!

"Is Hashirama Senju's Chakra really such a heavy burden on me as I am now? The pain of using Susanoo for the first time back then wasn't even half as bad. And this is only a partial stage one release of the cursed seal. Beyond this, there's no telling..."

Orochimaru said, "Don't use your past experience with the Black Cursed Seal as a reference. The difference between the black and white seals isn't merely their color. The fundamental principles of the technique have changed. The old Black Cursed Seal was always just an external power source, but the White Cursed Seal is a vessel for power, storing what you cannot yet withstand. Sooner or later, that power will become part of you!"

"As you release the White Cursed Seal, your body will gradually absorb Hashirama Senju's power from within it. Both your body's cells and your Chakra will become like Hashirama Senju's."

"So what you need to do now, Sasuke-kun, is maintain your cursed-seal state in everyday life. You should be able to work out the reason yourself."

Sasuke said thoughtfully, "It's like the weighted training that taijutsu practitioners do, right?"

Orochimaru nodded. "Exactly. Adaptation comes before absorption. It will be difficult at first, but once your body has adapted to some extent, the rate of absorption will increase exponentially. However, your body is too young right now, and Hashirama Senju's power is far too immense. You will need at least three years to absorb the White Cursed Seal completely!"

Sasuke's gaze darkened. "Three years... Just obtaining Hashirama Senju's power will take three whole years?"

He had thirty years to overcome the gap of several thousand years between himself and Shi Mei. Even if the first step was always the hardest, three years was far too long!

Orochimaru said, "That's why we must employ some extraordinary measures to speed up the process..."

Sasuke asked, "Extraordinary measures?"

Orochimaru said, "Nothing promotes the growth of power more than combat, especially extremely intense battles. When an overwhelmingly powerful enemy drives you into a desperate situation and pushes your mind and body to their limits, your latent potential is most readily unleashed!"

"That's certainly true..."

Sasuke wholeheartedly agreed.

The reason he and Naruto had surpassed the achievements of Madara and Hashirama at sixteen was not just their innate potential. More importantly, they had fought extremely intense battles against powerful opponents within a very short time!

Orochimaru said, "That's why I have a 'Ten Battles Plan.' If it goes smoothly, it can shorten those three years to one. One year is also the absolute minimum. Any faster would cause irreversible damage to your body and limit what you might achieve in the future..."

Sasuke said, "Let's hear it!"

Orochimaru said, "For the first two months, keep the White Cursed Seal released at all times in your daily life, whether you're walking, standing, sitting, or lying down. That will let you begin adapting to this power and absorb a little of Hashirama Senju's chakra. Then, starting in the third month, you will undergo one 'extremely intense battle' every month. Ten months—well, that happens to match the time a baby spends developing in its mother's womb. After the ten battles, your transformation will be complete!"

Sasuke listened intently, then said after some thought, "I see. So you've already chosen my opponents for the ten battles?"

Orochimaru smiled. "Actually, no~. A fixed set of opponents wouldn't provide a useful benchmark. I'll choose them flexibly based on your growth after each First Battle..."

Sasuke's gaze darkened. "In other words, for the first two months... I won't be able to do anything after all?"

Orochimaru went straight to the heart of the matter. "Sasuke-kun, I understand how urgently you want to grow stronger after your rebirth, but going too far is just as bad as not going far enough. Being too eager for quick results will only have a negative effect. Just wait patiently for two months..."

Sasuke felt the left half of his body, which had gone rigid with pain after activating the cursed seal.

He's right... As I am now, even moving is a problem, let alone fighting. A two-month adjustment period is acceptable. I can use those two months to get my mindset in order, too!

Fortunately... I'm not fighting alone.

"Orochimaru, let's do it your way!"

Whoosh!

Orochimaru left his Shinigami manifestation state and returned to his original appearance, looking somewhat exhausted.

Sasuke asked with concern, "By the way... The Shinigami's power puts quite a burden on you too, doesn't it?"

Orochimaru said, "Of course... Fortunately, unlike the Ten-Tails, the pressure of the Shinigami's power is borne mostly by the mind. Without the protection of my future self, I truly couldn't withstand it~."

"But even so... Five minutes is already my limit for maintaining Shinigami's unsealed state."

By the time the three of them emerged from the underground base, it was already late at night.

Standing in the biting wind, Orochimaru considered their next move. "First, we need to settle down somewhere. The mission we shoulder this time leaves no room for error. We can't use our old hideouts anymore. We must find somewhere that absolutely cannot be discovered to serve as a stable, long-term base."

Sasuke gazed at the cool moonlight in the sky. "I do know a place. It's an island in the waters beyond the shinobi world, near the Land of Water. Its unusual magnetic field causes approaching ships to lose their bearings, so it has never been discovered. It's an isolated phantom island that doesn't exist on any map. I once stumbled upon it using the Rinnegan's space-time ability, then worked out a way to get there..."

"Oh, right. I named it 'Blue Moon Island,' because the moon looks azure blue from there."

Orochimaru nodded. "Good. Let's make Blue Moon Island our base. But before that, there's somewhere else we need to go. After all, there's a 'good eye' we ought to have in our own hands..."

Kabuto Yakushi pushed up his glasses, his gaze darkening. "Lord Orochimaru, could you be referring to 'Ke's' eye?"