It had been quite so ti since Masashi last saw the White Snake Sage—almost three years.
Logically, beings like the Three Great Sages, who were each easily over a millennium old, should perceive ti differently from ordinary people. Yet the three great secret realms seed remarkably grounded in their perception of ti.
From the sages on down, their understanding of ti was surprisingly humanlike.
That said, their naps were impressively long.
The White Snake Sage looked the sa as always, part of its serpentine body coiled on the enormous stone throne. It wasn't smoking today, its eyes were unfocused, and it remained perfectly still, napping.
However, as he approached, the White Snake Sage awoke.
It wasn't a swift awakening. Its massive body stirred slowly, as if to show it recognized the visitor as a friend rather than a foe.
"So, it's you."
Once its eyes regained their sharpness, the Sage spoke, then glanced toward the pipe resting on the throne's armrest.
Stretching its head downward, it clamped its jaws around the pipe's mouthpiece.
Then, it turned its gaze to Masashi.
"You've arrived at the perfect ti. Light it for , will you?"
A trivial task.
Masashi casually perford a fire jutsu, channeling his chakra into a fla that slithered like a snake, diving precisely into the pipe's bowl to ignite the mixture of tobacco and spices within.
"You've grown much stronger," the White Snake Sage comnted contentedly after taking a puff, adjusting its coils on the throne. "Now, what brings you here today?"
"I've co to ask a favor," Masashi replied with a cheerful smile, dispersing his chakra.
"Oh?" the sage asked. "Have you already exhausted the power of Ryūchi Cave?"
"I have no choice." Masashi shrugged. "You've taught so well that I've learned everything Ryūchi Cave has to offer. If I want to improve further, I need to explore other techniques. I figure that if other secret realms can rival Ryūchi Cave, they must have their own unique strengths."
The White Snake Sage exhaled a puff of white smoke, a clear sign of its good mood.
"You've always had a way with words," it chuckled. "I've thought this from the start—you're nothing like Indra."
"That was so long ago," Masashi replied. "How could I still be like him?"
"Most of the other Uchiha mbers still are," the sage noted. "Sotis, when I'm bored, I watch them. They're quite entertaining. Don't believe ? Take a look."
The Sage gestured toward the crystal ball embedded in its hat, revealing a scene inside.
A middle-aged man was seated at a desk, dramatically writing with an exaggerated flourish, his expression one of profound satisfaction and artistic rapture.
The crystal ball zood in, showcasing the man's writing in great detail.
Masashi froze.
Fugaku had managed to embarrass the entire clan in Ryūchi Cave.
Was there any hope left?
Anyone out there—help! This is urgent! Absolutely urgent!
"Isn't it hilarious?" The White Snake Sage chuckled heartily. "I must admit, I find it fascinating. None of the young ones here could write like that, even with their tails. The talent is extraordinary! Why don't you bring him over to train in Sage Mode? I think he'd do well."
"Well…" Masashi struggled to maintain the clan's dignity. Summoning his resolve, he tried to salvage the situation. "You see, true geniuses often have peculiar hobbies that ordinary people can't understand. After all, who writes like that on purpose? Clearly, he's doing it intentionally!"
To lend credibility to his words, he bit the bullet and added, "Such seemingly eccentric behavior is actually a pursuit of individuality and spiritual transcendence. We call it the 'Wind of Liberation.' The Uchiha clan has long endured dual burdens of spirit and lifestyle. In the past, such actions expressed dissatisfaction with reality. Nowadays, they're more about showcasing inner joy, celebrating freedom and individuality."
The White Snake Sage, being a snake rather than a human, pondered deeply on this explanation.
It found Masashi's reasoning quite compelling.
After all, a snake couldn't produce such calligraphy with its tail. For a human to achieve this was indeed extraordinary.
"You Uchiha are truly remarkable," the sage praised. "I've rarely encountered a human with such depth. I'll keep observing him—one day, I'll understand him fully."
"Whatever makes you happy," Masashi replied with a polite smile.
He had done his best. Whatever happened next, it wouldn't be his fault.
"Well then…" The White Snake Sage dismissed the technique, and the crystal ball's image faded. It gazed down at him. "What exactly do you wish to obtain from today?"
"Do you often interact with the other two Great Sages?"
"What do you think?"
The White Snake Sage turned its head toward the left.
Following its gaze, Masashi saw a stone wall. Part of the sage's body was visible, while most of it extended deep into the earth, seemingly immobile for countless years.
"Well, 'interact' is more of a taphor," he clarified. "What I an is, do you occasionally chat with the other two, just to catch up?"
"I've never spoken to the one in the Shikkotsu Forest, and I wouldn't recomnd going there—it's not an environnt humans can tolerate," the sage replied, blowing another puff of smoke.
From the intensity of its exhale, Masashi deduced that the relationship between Ryūchi Cave and the Shikkotsu Forest was poor.
"As for that toad from Mount Myōboku…" the sage's tone softened. "If it's awake, I can ask for you. But whether it agrees is up to it."
"That's more than enough," Masashi said, delighted.
The White Snake Sage was reliable! Ryūchi Cave was a true ally!
Clearly, the White Snake Sage and the Great Toad Sage were on decent terms; otherwise, it wouldn't have made the offer.
Masashi simply wanted to learn Sage Mode.
For Mount Myōboku, training one more person in Sage Mode without a summoning contract wouldn't be a big deal—they likely wouldn't refuse.
For these secret realms, summoning contracts were the real treasure.
anwhile, the Sage Mode techniques that humans valued so highly weren't nearly as important, especially when they didn't involve guarantees of mastery or ongoing support.
And he had no need for frogs sitting on his shoulders—he had Ice Release and Susanoo. He didn't need teammates to buy him ti.
"In that case, I'll return in a while," Masashi said cheerfully, preparing to leave. "Oh, and next ti, I might bring soone along. I hope you'll permit it."
"Oh?" The White Snake Sage's interest was piqued. "Is it the little one who writes? I wouldn't mind. My opinion remains the sa—he's talented and could try learning Sage Mode."
"No, it's another summoner. One of Orochimaru's forr disciples."
"Ah… just that?" The sage sounded disappointed. "Do as you please."
"Understood… I'll take my leave, then."
"Alright, you can go. Just co back in a year."
After bidding farewell to the White Snake Sage, Masashi used the Reverse Summoning Technique on the spot.
He reappeared in his room.
He hadn't spent too much ti in Ryuchi Cave this ti. It was ti to check out the exam venue.
Leaving the inn, he asked a nearby Suna ninja for directions to the exam site and then headed in that direction.
In the original tiline, Konoha had used an open-air stadium for its one-on-one exam matches, which doubled as a gambling attraction... no, as a proper exam setting.
Suna, however, couldn't do the sa due to its environnt. If they held open-air exams here, by the end of one round, everyone would dehydrate due to the hot sun.
So, their exam venue was indoors—a massive convention hall located fairly close to the Kazekage's residence. The security asures were exceptionally tight.
However, the security wasn't for protecting the examinees.
It was for protecting the audience.
Among the attendees were not only residents of Suna but also a group of VIPs. Given the arrangent, it was understandable why Suna had prioritized this. After all, in the original tiline, Konoha had done the sa.
At the entrance, Suna guards stood on duty. Upon seeing him, they quickly opened the door.
After nodding his thanks, Masashi entered, walking through the lobby and ascending the staircase marked with directions to the second floor of the building.
The area he entered was the section reserved for team leaders.
"Masashi-sama!" Kakashi, seated in the second row, waved at him.
Pakura was seated nearby as well.
Masashi walked over.
As he passed by, leaders from smaller ninja villages stood up and bowed to him.
These weren't all allies of Konoha; so were allies of Suna or Iwa. However, they dared not show disrespect to him.
In the Five Great Nations, being a jonin didn't necessarily an holding a high-ranking position within the village. After all, there were only so many spots available. For an ordinary jonin, their role was essentially that of an elite combatant.
But a jonin of Kage-level? That was a different story. Such a person was invariably part of the village leadership, regardless of whether they held a formal position. Their influence was undeniable.
It was out of the question for these small-nation ninja leaders to disregard soone of his stature.
No exaggeration—if Masashi were to take issue with soone, return to Konoha, and tell the Hokage, "I think so-and-so from such-and-such village is hostile to Konoha," the Hokage wouldn't dismiss it as nonsense. Instead, he'd seriously consider it.
And before long, Konoha's ANBU would likely pay that person a special visit.
That was how the infamous Root had operated back in the day—suspecting hostility toward Konoha and "delivering warmth" to anyone they thought posed a threat.
Now, in the eyes of foreign ninjas, Masashi held a similar reputation. Few dared to speak to him with any semblance of ease. Only the likes of Kages or highly capable individuals such as Kitsuchi and i could remain at ease around him.
For many of these team leaders, their first eting with Masashi was during this trip to Suna. Honestly, their initial impressions were positive. Masashi didn't seem bloodthirsty or brutal, as rumors suggested.
That is, until they witnessed his fight with Sasori.
That event reintroduced them to a simple truth about the shinobi world: descriptions like "bloodthirsty and brutal" often weren't ant to unfairly malign soone. Sotis, it was simply because the gap in strength was so vast that people died before realizing it.
Reacquainted with this reality, these team leaders had since rekindled their reverence for the White Ghost.
Masashi greeted them all with a smile before sitting down in his designated seat.
With Kakashi to his left and Pakura to his right, his seat was clearly the main one.
When he first sat down, he had intended to casually stretch out both arms. However, he realized that doing so would place his right hand in an inappropriate position.
Enchanting the armor of Suna's forr hero in front of everyone would not be befitting his current status.
After all, he was here representing Konoha. His conduct had to be impeccable.
So instead, he leaned back with a tactical posture.
"Have any of our people gone up yet?"
"We're already in the second round," Kakashi replied. "The first round eliminated so participants, leaving us with only Anko and Hana."
"Oh? That intense, huh?"
"Yes, quite competitive. Deidara and Kimimaro are the most outstanding perforrs so far. Along with our two, they're clearly the standouts."
"Hmm? No one from Suna?"
"They have one decent puppet user, but their best participants disappeared during the first exam."
That truly was a tragic story.
"Anything else?" Masashi asked, suppressing a chuckle.
"Not much. Compared to those four, the others are significantly less remarkable. As a result, the betting pools are all focused on these four. According to Suna's team leader, they expect to issue five chunin ranks this ti."
Masashi nodded.
As the host, it was impossible for Suna to walk away with no promotions at all.
Joint Chunin Exams among the Great Nations were designed to promote the best of the major villages, with others simply tagging along.
Yet smaller villages eagerly participated because they still gained more than they lost—unless they were particularly unlucky, like A this ti.
Speaking of A...
He glanced at the leader of the A team.
The jonin sat quietly in his seat. When he sensed Masashi's gaze, he bowed slightly.
His etiquette was impeccable, without the overtly subservient deanor of so small villages.
Hanzo had long fallen into decline, focusing solely on maintaining his grip on power. With such a leader, his subordinates were equally uninspired. The once-confident, idealistic A ninjas were now a thing of the past, re mories within their village.
Unless...
"Sothing wrong?" Pakura asked.
She noticed Masashi staring at the A ninjas.
"Nothing," he replied, shifting his gaze to her. "You seem a bit down, though."
"It's nothing... just that things didn't go the way I expected after I returned this ti," Pakura said, shaking her head. "But it won't affect ."
Currently 80 advance /Malphegor
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