Only when she flew closer did Yui finally make out the shape of the mountain range ahead.
The entire mountain range was white, its surface smooth rather than rugged.
On closer inspection, several blue patterns ran across the white mountainside.
"This..." Yui stared at the sight before her, her mouth hanging open.
When she had first glimpsed the shape of the distant mountains, a faint suspicion had already formed in her mind.
Only after seeing the whole thing clearly did Yui dare to be certain.
"Is this... Katsuyu?"
Yui spoke uncertainly.
If this really was Katsuyu, then this place had to be Shikkotsu Forest, which had never appeared in the original story.
"You know me?"
Suddenly, a gentle female voice came from ahead.
Katsuyu was also a little taken aback at the sight of the person before her. A human?
She actually managed to reach this place.
And that Byakugan and forehead protector... is she a Konoha ninja?
Perhaps because she had a natural fondness for Konoha, her voice softened.
Yui looked closely and saw another enormous slug split off from Katsuyu's gigantic body.
This newly separated slug stood just tall enough to be level with Yui as she hovered in the sky.
Looking at the slimy slug, Yui felt a little unnerved.
Suppressing her discomfort, Yui nodded.
"You really are Katsuyu?"
Yui continued to ask.
At that, Katsuyu nodded slightly.
"First, answer my question!" Katsuyu continued. "How do you know me?"
Yui pondered how she should answer.
Was she supposed to tell her outright that she had seen her in an anime?
After a long pause, she finally answered, "I saw a description of you in an ancient scroll."
"So the moment I saw you, it came to mind."
Yui offered her explanation, but inside, she was panicking.
Katsuyu nodded, apparently accepting her explanation.
Only when she saw Katsuyu nod did Yui breathe a sigh of relief.
"How did you get here?" Katsuyu asked curiously.
At that question, Yui smiled helplessly.
"I used the Summoning Technique without having a contract with a summoning beast, and then spatial turbulence swept me here."
"That was utterly reckless," Katsuyu scolded.
Yet there was not a trace of anger in her rebuke.
Perhaps it was because her voice was simply too gentle.
"What's wrong? Can something happen if you do that?" Yui asked.
Katsuyu sighed before explaining, "Time flows differently inside spatial turbulence than it does in the outside world."
"By the way, you seem to be a Konoha ninja. Can you tell me what year of Konoha it was when you entered the spatial turbulence?"
"I've seen people who spent thousands of years inside spatial turbulence."
After hearing Katsuyu's explanation, Yui's expression finally turned serious.
She had never expected it to be so severe.
She immediately thought of Nai Hyuga, whose whereabouts were still unknown.
And Little White Mouse, who was still in Konoha.
Yui answered Katsuyu's question honestly.
"I entered the spatial turbulence in Konoha Year 26," Yui said slowly. "Then I spent about a day inside it."
Hearing that date, Katsuyu let out a sigh.
"Fortunately, you were very lucky. It should be Konoha Year 27 now. Only one year has passed."
Yui could hardly believe that a year had already passed.
Had it really been a year already?
No, she had to get back to Konoha as soon as possible.
"Katsuyu, I need to go back to Konoha," Yui requested of the slug before her.
At Yui's words, however, Katsuyu shook her head.
"You're the second human to reach this place in a thousand years."
"You're very lucky..."
"Don't you want to learn something?"
Yui was a little puzzled. "What do you mean, the second human to reach this place?"
"Only two humans have made it here in a thousand years?"
Katsuyu nodded.
"This is Shikkotsu Forest. As the name suggests, damp bones," Katsuyu said evenly. "I imagine you've already experienced it yourself!"
Yui was briefly confused. Had she experienced it?
Then she remembered her feet and the pain of having them corroded.
Even now, remembering it still felt a little painful.
She finally understood why this place was called Shikkotsu Forest.
"The name Shikkotsu Forest is a little too broad. In fact, only the forest around the outer edge can corrode flesh."
At this point, Katsuyu seemed a little embarrassed.
"Actually, I spat out all the corrosive liquid in those swamps. Haha."
"It's mainly there to keep the toads outside away."
"After all, I can't beat them."
Hearing that explanation, Yui was a little speechless.
No wonder it was so corrosive. She had never imagined it was Katsuyu's spit.
And toads? Didn't that mean Mount Myōboku?
She finally understood why only two people had reached this place in a thousand years.
With all that corrosive liquid, it was no wonder she had not seen even a single mosquito in the forest.
"By the way, who was the other person?" Yui really wanted to know who else had managed to reach this place. Could it be that man?
A figure flashed through Yui's mind.
After all, he was the only one whose Sage Mode had no clearly known origin.
"Hmph... that person." Katsuyu seemed to grow a little angry as soon as he was mentioned.
"Don't bring him up with me."
"Uh!" Seeing Katsuyu's reaction, Yui did not dare to ask any further.
Both of them fell silent.
After a long while, Katsuyu finally spoke again.
"By the way, would you like to learn a power even stronger than chakra?"
"Energy even stronger than chakra?" Something seemed to occur to Yui.
A power stronger than chakra? In the original story, that could only be Senjutsu.
It was just as Yui had thought.
"It's Senjutsu, the art of sages!" Katsuyu said enticingly.
Just as I thought!
Yui thought to herself.
But she was not interested in Senjutsu right now. She needed to return to Konoha and find Nai Hyuga. Otherwise, she would be distracted no matter what she tried to learn.
So she simply refused.
"I'll pass!" Yui shook her head. "I need to go back to Konoha right now. I have something important to do."
Katsuyu was a little surprised by Yui's answer.
"Why?" Katsuyu asked.
This little girl had quite a good disposition. Faced with such a great temptation, she had refused without even hesitating.
She made firm decisions when needed and did not let other matters sway her.
Still, seeing the little girl refuse left Katsuyu feeling somewhat upset.
This was a genius!
A few days earlier, the toads next door had been showing off to her.
They said they had trained a human who could master Sage Mode.
They had even mocked her, saying that no human capable of mastering Senjutsu had appeared here in ten thousand years.
Now that she had finally glimpsed some hope, she could not give up.
Besides, Yui had the Byakugan. If she learned Senjutsu, her future achievements might well rival that man's.
At the very least, she had to try.
Before you continue