With confirmation that Black Zetsu had obtained Indra's blood, Naruto decided to activate his contingency plan.
That contingency was the method Naruto had mentioned before Orochimaru's departure: obtaining Indra's blood through another route!
When Naruto had sought wisdom in Ryūchi Cave and learned from the White Snake Sage how Indra's blood had ended up on the cliff, he had already formed a plan.
A thousand years ago, Indra had slain the Nine-Headed Sage Snake, a sage snake of Ryūchi Cave who had once rivaled the White Snake Sage.
Indra had been wounded in that battle, leaving his blood on the cliff!
Naruto said, "That's why I believe a sample of Indra's blood exists in the Nine-Headed Snake Sage's fangs."
Orochimaru said, "That's a reasonable deduction, but the Nine-Headed Snake Sage died a thousand years ago. Where would we find his fangs?"
Naruto said, "The Realm of Reincarnation."
Orochimaru's slit pupils shifted. "The place where you signed contracts with your Rinnegan summons, Naruto-kun?"
Naruto's gaze grew distant. "Over the long ages, powerful summons that die all fall into the Realm of Reincarnation. Even someone at Manda's level could get in, let alone the Nine-Headed Snake Sage."
Orochimaru lowered his eyelids. "That only establishes a possibility. If you dared to use the readily available blood on the cliff as bait, Naruto-kun, you must have been absolutely certain. What gave you that certainty?"
Naruto said thoughtfully, "When I encountered Manda in the Realm of Reincarnation, he showed tremendous fear of a certain monster in its depths..."
"Out of curiosity, Konan and I went deeper to investigate. Sure enough, we encountered a powerful monster, and I sensed sage power in it that shared the same origin as mine..."
Orochimaru's eyes shifted. "You mean that monster was the Nine-Headed Sage Snake, Naruto-kun?"
Naruto shook his