Tsubasa stepped into the Shikkotsu Forest once again. The first time he came, everything here felt unfamiliar and confusing to him, but now, entering again, his eyes were filled with determination for his Mirai cultivation.
Upon seeing the enormous, mountain-like Katsuyu Sage beneath his feet, he immediately bowed deeply, his back bent like a shrimp, his forehead almost touching the ground, and said, "I apologize for disturbing you, Katsuyu Sage."
Tsubasa didn't expect the Katsuyu Sage to answer him. Just as he was about to leave, a gentle voice, like a spring breeze, rang out with a hint of embarrassment. "Um, Lord Tsubasa, I went into your house out of curiosity, and, well, I might have broken some things. I saw last time that you liked the stone on my bed, so how about I replace it with some stones?"
Tsubasa was completely stunned, his eyes wide and his mouth slightly agape, looking just like a frightened deer. After a long while, he finally came to his senses and quickly waved his hands, saying, " Katsuyu Sage, you're too kind. From now on, you can just call me Tsubasa. I'm only able to cultivate here thanks to your help. It's just a house; I can easily build another one. You can come and see anytime you want. I can even show you the house's functions and facilities, and I can even cook some human food for you!"
The Katsuyu Sage's voice was full of surprise, as if she had discovered a new continent. "Really? You don't blame me, that's wonderful! Is the food delicious? How does it compare to wasabi salmon? Is it even better than fruit?"
Tsubasa patted his chest confidently and said, "It depends on your preference. You'll know once you try it. My cooking uses exclusive secret recipes, which don't even exist in the Shinobi World. I'm sure you've never tasted anything like it."
The Katsuyu Sage gently swayed its body, as if shaking its head. "I've never actually tasted any of your human cuisine. A long, long time ago, someone fed me human food made with wasabi salmon. It was awful, but he ate it with great relish."
"How is that possible?" Tsubasa jumped up in shock, his eyes filled with disbelief. "You are Lord Hashirama's contracted summoning beast. Hasn't he ever let you eat other human delicacies? Real human food doesn't contain wasabi."
The Katsuyu Sage's voice carried a hint of reminiscence. "Ever since I made a contract with the human Asura, I've gone through dozens of contractors. Every time they summoned me, it was for fighting or healing; they never gave me anything to eat."
Tsubasa scratched his head, looking puzzled, and asked, "Didn't you ask them for it?"
The Katsuyu Sage seemed a little embarrassed, and lowered his voice. "No, the contract scroll says that if you need my help, you can summon me to come and help, and you will never disturb my rest otherwise."
Tsubasa finally understood: the Katsuyu Sage was quiet and had no desires, while the Senju Clan was too straightforward, only asking the Katsuyu Sage for help when needed, and never really exchanging feelings with him. It seems that Tsunade had a slightly better relationship with the Katsuyu Sage.
Tsubasa pressed further, "Doesn't Lord Hashirama ever give you anything in return when he summons you?"
The Katsuyu Sage said slowly, " Lord Hashirama rarely communicates with me, and he has never given me any benefits. I don't lack anything!"
Tsubasa suddenly realized that after learning the Senjutsu, his master's strength would be invincible, and he truly wouldn't need any summoned beasts. The Katsuyu Sage was practically a freeloader. He bowed respectfully and said, " Katsuyu Sage, I now invite you to my home as a guest. I will prepare human delicacies for you."
Upon hearing this, the Katsuyu Sage was so overjoyed that his entire body swayed, and his mountain-like form moved rapidly, creating a gust of wind. Tsubasa, startled, hurriedly waved his hand and shouted, "Stop! Katsuyu Sage, do you want to go in your true form? I'm afraid my house can't hold it all."
The Katsuyu Sage, as gentle as a girl next door, said softly, "So you're just inviting one of my skins over as a guest?"
Tsubasa blushed with embarrassment, scratched the back of his head, and said, "It does seem a bit awkward."
The Katsuyu Sage said gently, "It's alright. My main purpose in going there is to see how you build your house; I won't go inside."
Tsubasa breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Then there's no problem, let's go." Lying on the Katsuyu Sage, Tsubasa felt like an ant riding on the back of a whale; the contrast was too great.
A short while later, they arrived at Tsubasa's house in the Shikkotsu Forest. Tsubasa stared speechlessly at the torn roof, his mouth agape, before finally managing to say, " Katsuyu Sage, how come the roof has been torn off?!"
The Katsuyu Sage was a little embarrassed, her voice tinged with grievance. "I was just curious! I couldn't resist secretly taking a look, but I didn't expect I couldn't put it back together. I was so anxious. The house was breaking down faster and faster, and then it ended up like this."
Tsubasa was both amused and exasperated by the scene. He thought to himself that it was really tough on this Katsuyu Sage who didn't even have hands. It was so curious and probably wanted to come and see for a long time, but it was too shy to do so. Now that he had left, it couldn't control its curiosity anymore and wanted to sneak a peek and leave, but it messed things up.
Tsubasa jumped down, his hands rapidly Hand Seals, unleashing various Ninjutsu. His hands moved like butterflies, shooting out beams of light. With each Ninjutsu, another villa quickly appeared before him. Then he created Shadow Clone to draw runes and decorate, the Shadow Clone running around like busy little bees.
The Katsuyu Sage watched all this with envy in his eyes and said gently, "I'd like to learn your house-building Ninjutsu, is that alright?"
Tsubasa smiled and nodded, revealing a set of bright white teeth. "Of course." He then began explaining the Hand Seals and Chakra output pathways. As he spoke, he suddenly remembered something and said, "But your form is different from ours. Can you transform into human form?"
The Katsuyu Sage looked itself up and down, as if examining a strange object. It saw it had no hands, making it impossible to Hand Seals, and then looked at its body, which seemed to lack the meridians of a human. A sense of loss washed over it, and its voice lowered. "No, how do I transform? I don't know!"
Tsubasa stroked his chin, pondering, and said, " The White Snake Sage of Ryūchi Cave seems to have three snake spirits under his command who have taken human form. Your strength is greater than theirs, so why can't you take human form?"
The Katsuyu Sage's voice was filled with helplessness and longing. "I don't know! I haven't learned it. I wish I could transform into a human."
Tsubasa patted his chest and said confidently, "When I become strong enough, I'll go to Ryūchi Cave and ask them, and I'll help you get it back."
The Katsuyu Sage trembled slightly with joy and exclaimed excitedly, "Thank you, Tsubasa!"
Tsubasa laughed and said, "Alright, send a few Katsuyu out and come inside with me! I'll cook you some human food and show you what human life and happiness are like."
The Katsuyu Sage immediately created a Katsuyu about the size of a human to follow Tsubasa into the villa. Tsubasa created several Shadow Clone to prepare food, while he personally accompanied the Katsuyu on a tour of the entire villa. The Katsuyu, which had lived for thousands of years, was like Granny Liu visiting the Grand View Garden, finding everything novel and fascinating, its eyes sparkling with curiosity. It wanted to reach out its tentacles to touch and examine everything it saw.
The Katsuyu's favorite spot in the villa was the bedroom that Tsubasa had specially decorated for it. The bedroom was lush and vibrant with greenery. Water streams flowed among the plants, making a clear, melodious sound. The bed was made of soft turf, looking incredibly comfortable. There was also a shower room where the Katsuyu could bathe. As soon as it saw the shower room, the Katsuyu happily ran inside and happily bathed for two hours, looking like it was enjoying a grand party. Finally, it quietly and comfortably fell asleep on the turf bed.
Tsubasa had no choice but to go outside and tell the Katsuyu Sage about it. The Katsuyu Sage, of course, knew about it; she and her clone shared a field of vision. She created another clone and entered, then Tsubasa fed it human food. The Katsuyu Sage clone ate with great satisfaction, recalling the time its ancestor from the Senju Clan fed it. It had a particularly unpleasant taste, one it still couldn't forget—utterly awful. That Senju ancestor loved wasabi salmon, and naturally, what it fed the Katsuyu Sage was its own favorite dish—wasabi salmon sashimi. The poor Katsuyu Sage tasted its most hated flavor, wasabi, for the first time and never wanted to eat human food again.
Ever since Tsubasa interacted with the Living Katsuyu Sage Katsuyu Sage, the two have become inseparable friends. Tsubasa takes a clone of the Katsuyu Sage with him wherever he goes. When Tsubasa gathers herbs, the Katsuyu Sage obediently sits on his shoulder like a little pendant; when he makes medicine, it watches curiously from the side, occasionally sniffing at the ingredients; when he cooks, Tsubasa even shares a small portion with it. There's always a Katsuyu enjoying itself in the Katsuyu Sage's room. Every few days, Tsubasa also uses water-based Ninjutsu to bathe the Katsuyu Sage's main body, and each time it bathes, the Katsuyu Sage squints its eyes comfortably and makes pleasant sounds.
The Katsuyu Sage felt happier and more joyful than ever in its thousands of years of life. It wanted to spend its whole life with Tsubasa, but unfortunately, Tsubasa was human. The simple-minded creature also desperately longed to become human. It hoped that when Tsubasa became powerful, he would help it obtain the Transformation Senjutsu from Ryūchi Cave. For the first time, this desireless creature had a wish: to become human and live a happy and joyful life with Tsubasa forever.