"Yecheng wins. Form the Seal of Reconciliation."
Iruka stepped forward, his eyes filled with amazement.
"Sasuke, you did very well too. Don't be discouraged. This wasn't your fault."
With his solid grounding in the basics, Iruka could see at a glance how exquisite Yecheng's move had been.
That incredibly precise chakra control, nature transformation, and shape transformation were simply beyond what a Ninja Academy student could master!
No, even many jonin might not be able to do it!
No wonder Lady Tsunade had taken Yecheng as her student and valued him so highly.
With that talent and ability, it would practically be a loss to the world if he didn't become a medical ninja!
What Iruka said was true, but unfortunately, it was no comfort at all.
Sasuke still looked as though he was about to shatter.
Naruto stood beside him, flustered. Although he and Sasuke had always been at odds, seeing his rival like this made him feel bad too, and he wanted to comfort him.
But Naruto apparently hadn't awakened his Talk Style Kekkei Genkai yet. All he could do was flail around and act silly, telling Sasuke not to take it too hard.
Then he said things like "Yecheng is different from us," which only made it worse.
Seeing Sasuke like this, Yecheng thought, I'd better not crush my Sunny Sasuke out of existence. Who knows how much fun I'd miss out on later!
He immediately stepped forward to comfort him.
"Sasuke, your Sharingan hasn't awakened yet. This is nowhere near your limit."
Yecheng patted his shoulder.
"I heard there's a saying in the other villages: if you encounter an Uchiha alone on the battlefield, turn around and run. It takes at least two people to fight one Uchiha!"
"Once your Sharingan awakens, let's spar again," Yecheng said earnestly.
As for how Sasuke would awaken it... don't ask!
Just say whether it awakened or not!
At Yecheng's words, light finally returned to Sasuke's eyes.
That's right!
I'm a member of the Uchiha Clan!
Once my Sharingan awakens, my strength will receive a massive boost!
Then, no matter how strong Yecheng is, he'll never escape these eyes' perception!
Hmph, Yecheng, when that happens, go ahead and curse your fate for not being an Uchiha!
At that moment, Sasuke regained his confidence.
Seeing this, Yecheng nodded inwardly.
Now that's more like it.
Uchiha Sasuke needs to be this confident!
Otherwise, beating him up just doesn't feel right.
Konoha Hospital.
After escaping a group of enthusiastic young women at the hospital, Yecheng arrived at Tsunade's office.
"Teacher, Shizune, I'm here."
Yecheng greeted them.
"Yecheng, you're here." Shizune walked over with a grin and stroked his head.
For some reason, Yecheng's head always felt so nice to stroke.
Yecheng glanced at her without saying anything more.
Inside his mind, Shizune was having a miserable time!
Unfortunately, this body was far too young, and his tool for the deed hadn't fully developed either.
"Mm."
Tsunade was still bent over her desk, writing plans. "Drink your medicine first."
"Yes."
Once the medicinal decoction reached his stomach, Yecheng immediately felt warm and comfortable all over.
There was also some movement in the bones inside his body, as though they, too, had received considerable nourishment from these decoctions.
It seemed the day his Kekkei Genkai awakened shouldn't be far off.
"Today, you'll keep reading and studying the basics."
Tsunade outlined the day's study plan. "But before that, Shizune-"
"Yes!"
Shizune stepped forward, bit her finger, and drew it across her palm.
"Summoning Technique!"
Poof!
White smoke burst out, and a blue-and-white slug the size of a kitten appeared on the desk.
"Lady Shizune, did you call for me?"
"Yes, Lady Katsuyu. He is Lady Tsunade's new student. He's exceptionally talented and has already mastered the Mystical Palm Technique..."
Smiling, Shizune introduced Yecheng to her.
"...Please prepare a contract for Yecheng."
"Yes. Lord Yecheng, please sign your name on the scroll and leave an imprint with your chakra."
The Katsuyu Sage was polite to everyone, spoke respectfully, and had a sweet voice.
So cute.
Yecheng reached out and did as instructed, leaving his mark on the scroll.
With that, he became the newest successor of Shikkotsu Forest, one of the Three Great Sage Lands.
"Lady Katsuyu, I look forward to working with you."
"As do I, Lord Yecheng. I look forward to working with you."
Poof!
Shizune dismissed the Summoning Technique, and Yecheng then summoned a portion of the Katsuyu Sage's true body himself.
She crawled onto Yecheng's shoulder and began familiarizing herself with his chakra and life signature.
Tsunade explained, "Unlike the other two Sage Lands, Shikkotsu Forest is home only to the Katsuyu Sage.
"So every contract holder needs to spend some time adjusting to the Katsuyu Sage. Only after becoming familiar with each other's signatures can they cooperate more seamlessly."
Yecheng nodded inwardly. He could already feel the Katsuyu on his shoulder working with and adapting to his chakra, adjusting the nature of her own chakra.
Once the two were completely in sync, she could help him project his chakra over a wide area to provide long-distance healing.
In the original story, after Pain invaded Konoha and inflicted enormous casualties, Tsunade had used this move to treat the wounded throughout the village.
Its showing had been downright outrageous.
A thought stirred in Yecheng's mind, and a vague conjecture took shape.
In the original story, both of the other two Sage Lands had demonstrated Sage Mode, and the consequences of failing the training had also been given.
If someone failed at practicing Senjutsu on Mount Myōboku, their body would turn into a toad and petrify. Unless stopped in time, they would ultimately become a stone statue.
As for Ryūchi Cave's Sage Mode, if the training failed, the practitioner would turn into a snake and be eaten by the White Snake Sage. Death was still inescapable.
Although Shikkotsu Forest's Sage Mode had never been mentioned, fans in his previous life had discussed it extensively.
Their conclusion was that the Sage Mode used by the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, had very likely come from Shikkotsu Forest!
And the price of failing to train in Shikkotsu Forest's Sage Mode was assimilation by the Katsuyu Sage, ultimately becoming part of her enormous body!
That would reasonably explain why the great Katsuyu Sage was the only being in Shikkotsu Forest, and why no one knew just how enormous her body was!
Yecheng wasn't too worried about that, though.
When it comes to practicing Senjutsu, with the Six Eyes, I'm invincible!
The greatest hurdle in practicing Senjutsu was absorbing natural energy while remaining in a state of extreme stillness, simultaneously adjusting the ratio of one's spiritual and physical energies to achieve balance with natural energy, blending them into senjutsu chakra, and then using Senjutsu.
None of that is a problem!
Chakra control precise down to the atomic level-the Six Eyes really do bring endless surprises!
Yecheng suppressed his excitement and began reading.
He didn't bring up Senjutsu training himself. After all, it would be unreasonable for someone from an ordinary orphan's background to know about Senjutsu.
He could only wait until the time was right for the other party to bring it up.
As long as I master Shikkotsu Forest's Sage Mode, my strength can leap straight to Kage Level!
While he was envisioning the future, someone suddenly knocked on the office door.
"Lady Tsunade, orders from Lord Hokage. The Raikage has come to visit and requests to see you!"
Tsunade froze for a moment.
What is the Raikage doing here?
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