Upon hearing the Katsuyu Sage's voice, Shinsei was overjoyed and hurriedly asked.
" Katsuyu Sage, can you really help me get rid of the will inside?"
"It should be fine, right? We can give it a try, but we need to sign a contract first."
The Katsuyu Sage opened its mouth and spat out a scroll that was half the height of a person.
The scroll landed in front of Shinsei, and when unfolded, it revealed a silvery contract paper covered with densely packed ancient characters.
Shinsei glanced down and could roughly recognize several magical structures similar to those in later contracts.
He bit his fingertip and signed his name at the end of the contract.
The silver light on the contract paper suddenly shone brightly, then slowly receded, rolled back into a scroll, and shrunk back into the Katsuyu Sage's mouth.
She closed her eyes briefly, as if processing something, then opened them again a moment later.
"Alright. From now on, you are my contractor."
"So what do we do now?"
"You open that seal first. Then open your eyes. I'll take care of the rest."
Shinsei nodded, took out the black sphere that sealed Takemikazuchi-no-Kami's power from the scroll, and Hand Seals with one hand.
The sealing runes peeled away layer by layer, revealing the constantly pulsating Natural Energy within.
When Natural Energy is exposed to air, it immediately begins to expand, emitting a piercing crackling sound.
Shinsei's Mangekyō Sharingan activated instantly, blue patterns swirling in his pupils as he locked onto the bolt of lightning.
The Katsuyu Sage's body suddenly shrank, and a half-human-sized clone split off from her body.
The clone, like a lump of gray mud, climbed up from Shinsei's feet, enveloping his body and leaving only his eyes visible.
The cool, smooth touch gave Shinsei an inexplicable sense of security.
The surface of the clone glowed faintly, like a living armor.
Shinsei no longer hesitated.
He closed his eyes, then opened them again.
He aimed his Mangekyō Sharingan at the bolt of lightning and activated his eye power.
The lightning seemed to be drawn in by something, and began to rush towards his eyes.
First a wisp, then a beam, and finally the entire mass of lightning was stretched into a thin ribbon of light that disappeared into his pupils.
The absorption began, and the feeling was the same as when I absorbed Kagutsuchi-no-Mikoto.
It felt hot, full, and every cell in my body was swelling.
Shinsei was almost completely immersed in this pleasure.
But just as the lightning was about to completely engulf him, he suddenly sensed something was wrong.
Deep within that ball of lightning, there lay something extremely faint, something that did not belong to lightning.
Like an extremely thin thread, it blended into the lightning. Silently, it followed the flow of Chakra, drilling into the depths of his consciousness.
That wisp was very light, as light as a feather. But it carried a thought.
The thought was gentle and natural, like a voice that already existed in one's own heart.
" Omoikane-no-Kami wasn't actually that bad. He just wanted Takamagahara to live. When the Ōtsutsuki came, he should have helped him first."
Shinsei's consciousness jolted suddenly.
This is the will of the Omoikane-no-Kami.
The Katsuyu Sage was right; it was indeed hidden within Takemikazuchi-no-Kami's abilities.
Moreover, it was more concealed than he had imagined. If he hadn't just been reminded by the Katsuyu Sage, and if he hadn't already cleared it once before, this thought might very well have been taken as his own by Shinsei.
But now, it has been exposed.
Shinsei's consciousness clenched his fist in the soul space.
Just as he was about to pull out the thread, the Katsuyu Sage's soul suddenly rushed in from outside.
It was a grayish-white light, like a soft cloud, that completely enveloped the thread.
Shinsei's soul and the Katsuyu Sage's soul locked eyes for a moment in the space of consciousness.
The Katsuyu Sage didn't speak, but simply wrapped the silk thread around itself with its body.
The will of Omoikane-no-Kami instantly entangled the Katsuyu Sage's clone.
Shinsei felt a sudden relaxation in his consciousness.
He opened his eyes.
The Katsuyu clones on its body began to fall off, like a layer of old skin being peeled off, sliding from its shoulders to the ground.
The Katsuyu fairy in its true form looked down at the pile of detached gray mud.
The Katsuyu Sage's clone shook its tentacles and kept shouting.
"I'm going to find Omoikane-no-Kami; I'm going to help him. I'm going to fight against the Ōtsutsuki Clan!"
Shinsei felt a chill run down his spine when he saw the clone's performance.
It has to be said that even the Katsuyu's clone couldn't withstand Kotoamatsukami's disgusting ability.
The Katsuyu Sage's tone was somewhat unnatural. She said it with a hint of anger.
"The ability to change other people's will is really annoying."
Shinsei remained silent. He knew that the Katsuyu Sage was a Daoist who hated fighting more than anything else in his life.
If possible, the Katsuyu Sage would never leave Shikkotsu Forest in his entire life.
However, the consciousness of Omoikane-no-Kami wanted her to go out and fight against the Ōtsutsuki Clan, which seriously violated the wishes of the Katsuyu Sage.
No wonder she was angry.
The Katsuyu Sage opened its mouth and spat out a mouthful of clear acid.
The acid splashed onto the clone, immediately emitting a hissing white smoke.
The clone was instantly corroded into a puddle of clear water, leaving not a trace.
"Alright." The Katsuyu Sage's tone was relaxed, with a hint of pleasure. "The power of Takemikazuchi-no-Kami is now yours."
Shinsei looked down at his hands.
He slowly opened his five fingers.
Tiny sparks of lightning flickered between the five fingers.
Unlike when he absorbed Kagutsuchi-no-Mikoto before, this time the lightning was no longer violent, nor did it burn his skin.
They flowed gently in his palm, as if they had found their home.
He tried to activate his Lightning Release Chakra.
This feels so natural.
In the past, when Lightning Release Chakra flowed through his meridians, it always brought more or less a stinging and numb sensation.
But now, the stinging pain is gone.
Lightning Release Chakra flowed through his body like water, without resistance or burns.
His nervous system seemed to have been reforged, and he now considered Lightning Release Chakra as part of himself.
Shinsei knew that this was Takemikazuchi-no-Kami's ability—immunity to lightning.
With this ability, most lightning strikes will no longer cause any harm to Shinsei.
This ability, however, plays an extremely important role for Shinsei.
He let go and tried again. This time, he tried to inject Lightning Release Chakra into his nerves to replace the original bioelectrical signals.
It was more than twice as fast as he had expected.
What used to take several breaths to complete now happens almost instantly.
Before he could even feel it, his body had already reacted.
"How are you feeling?" the Katsuyu Sage asked.
"Very good." Shinsei smiled. "Even better than I expected."
Kaguya stood up from the stone platform and walked to his side.
She reached out and touched the lingering lightning on his fingertips, and her fingers recoiled slightly.
Shinsei looked down at her.
She didn't speak, but looked into his eyes. Her eyes held both worry and reassurance.
Shinsei knew what she was afraid of: he was afraid that if he absorbed this power, he would be influenced by Omoikane-no-Kami again.
But when she saw Shinsei like this, she knew everything was alright.
Takemikazuchi-no-Kami's abilities also have another variation.
That is Shinsei's unparalleled control over Lightning Release Chakra.
With a thought, the raging Lightning Release Chakra could be manipulated at will, according to Shinsei's wishes.
No need for clones to exert additional control over Lightning Release Chakra.
Lightning Release Chakra can then change into any shape, just as Shinsei imagined.
Such an ability is a waste of talent and a misuse of Takemikazuchi-no-Kami.
Now that Shinsei is in charge, he is confident that he can take this ability to an unprecedented level.
After familiarizing himself with his new abilities, the Katsuyu Sage took his leave.
Her large size meant she always needed more energy, and after staying here for a while, she felt a bit hungry again.
Of course, that's also possible; the Katsuyu Sage might just be greedy.
Shinsei started a fire in the cave. Kaguya leaned against the stone platform, watching him bustle about.
The Katsuyu Sage's clone coiled at the cave entrance, occasionally extending its tentacles to probe the wind direction.
Shinsei prepared a meal for three people—or, to be precise, two people and a Katsuyu.
They each ate their own food.
The Katsuyu Sage still scoffed at the roasted meat, but she still took a bite.
She threw up again. Kaguya laughed heartily.
In the days that followed, Shinsei and Kaguya settled down in Shikkotsu Forest.
Life was regular; Shinsei went out hunting every morning.
The forest surrounding Shikkotsu Forest is vast and teeming with wildlife.
He didn't need to exert too much effort to hunt enough meat for Kaguya to eat.
Sometimes it's a wild rabbit, sometimes a pheasant, and if you're lucky, you might even catch fish from the stream.
Every time he returned, Kaguya would be waiting for him at the cave entrance.
The two little ones in her belly were growing very fast, Shinsei could feel their energy growing stronger every day.
But he dared not let his guard down.
Every time Kaguya said her stomach was a little uncomfortable, he would get extremely worried.
While taking care of Kaguya, Shinsei continued to research his Ninjutsu, and the Descent of the Thunder God.
Replacing the nerve signals in the body with Lightning Release Chakra is a delicate and massive undertaking.
Even though Shinsei already possessed the ability to control lightning, it only accelerated the process.
This does not mean that he mastered this Ninjutsu overnight.
This is Shinsei's ultimate Ninjutsu, and of course it's not that simple.
Fortunately, the road ahead is now clear, and all that is needed is time to refine and perfect Shinsei's Ninjutsu.
Time seemed to slow down.
Kaguya's belly grew bigger every day.
The imagined Ōtsutsuki Clan never arrived.
But Shinsei dared not let his guard down and could only pray that the Ōtsutsuki Clan would arrive later.