Ryūchi Cave.
"Hey, Manda, why are you running when you see me??"
"Believe it or not, I'll have Jinlin deal with you?"
Gekko Chizan stood at the outer edge of Ryūchi Cave, stepping on Jinlin's head as he looked at the purple giant snake in front of him.
The latter trembled as it stopped, revealing a large face full of flattery.
"Chizan-kun, what brings you to Ryūchi Cave?"
"If you had told me earlier, I could've gone to pick you up."
Manda was cowardly—truly cowardly. After all, the person before him was the top figure of Ryūchi Cave. Not only had he gained the favor of the three Snake Princesses, he also commanded the four great snakes including Jinlin.
He was no match at all—no, he couldn't even be called an opponent. If he ever went up against him, it'd be a miracle if his snake gallbladder didn't get ripped out.
Gekko Chizan rolled his eyes at Manda. This snake might not have much else, but he was full of tricks.
"Cut the crap, Manda. Recently, I've been studying natural energy. Jinlin and the others have already cooperated."
"Now it's your turn. Tell me—when you absorb natural energy into your body, what kind of energy does it transform into to assist you?"
Although Gekko Chizan was preparing to return to his old line of work, there were still questions that needed asking.
For the snakes of Ryūchi Cave, when natural energy entered their bodies, it didn't just enlarge their size—it also enhanced a specific ability.
Jinlin's physical strength, Urokohane's flight ability, Yamoryū's soundwave ability, and Kurohebi's poison ability.
It could be said that every snake had found the ability they wanted.
So now, his gaze fell on Manda. This snake… didn't seem to have any particularly outstanding ability.
Hearing this, Manda froze. His massive snake head lifted slightly as if thinking for a moment.
Then he spoke:
"My control over natural energy definitely isn't as good as Jinlin and the others."
"I concentrate all the natural energy on the surface of my body—it's a kind of transformation."
"To put it simply… I use it to save my life!"
Gekko Chizan stared wide-eyed at Manda, making the latter feel embarrassed.
This guy Manda… really was like that. Not good at anything else, but top-tier when it came to escaping...
So this was also the main reason he couldn't beat Jinlin and the four sisters—he didn't even want to fight. The moment a fight started, he'd shed his skin and run.
Come to think of it, he was a bit similar to him.
"Hmph, what a shameless snake."
"You've got no real skills. The moment you can't win, you just run. The shed skins you leave behind pile up one after another."
Jinlin looked down on Manda's approach with disdain. After all, she advocated brute force. And what about Manda? Every time, he'd run the moment the fight started.
The key point was—this guy ran incredibly fast. It was infuriating.
"Hehe, you can't say it like that. Doesn't Ryūchi Cave already have you four?"
"He here just chose a path that suits him."
Manda was clearly very satisfied with his choice. Running when you can't win wasn't anything shameful.
At this, Gekko Chizan suddenly felt a bit sympathetic toward Manda. In Ryūchi Cave, there were Jinlin and the others. Outside Ryūchi Cave, even when bullying weaker opponents, he might occasionally run into terrifying existences.
Like the time he encountered Nagato—he was lucky not to end up as snake soup.
"Alright, you can go now."
"Really?"
"Yeah. Hurry up and leave. Otherwise, whether Jinlin beats you or not—I won't guarantee anything."
Hearing that he was being let go, Manda didn't hesitate at all. He went full throttle and disappeared in a flash.
"Hey, Chizan, why did you even bother looking for Manda?"
"Nothing much. I'm just interested in how each of you uses natural energy."
Gekko Chizan already had a vague idea forming in his mind—if natural energy was converted into a single aspect, it would directly cap one's upper limit.
For example, Manda and Jinlin.
Although they had trained for many years and possessed vast natural energy within their bodies, they couldn't advance any further. That was the drawback.
On the other hand, the three Snake Princesses transformed natural energy into diverse applications, allowing them to break free from their snake forms and move toward becoming sages.
Mount Myōboku was the same.
"Let's go back, Jinlin. I'm going to meet the White Snake Sage."
Jinlin was slightly stunned. She hadn't expected that Gekko Chizan's visit to Ryūchi Cave was actually to meet the White Snake Sage.
That wasn't someone you could meet just because you wanted to.
"Chizan..."
"I know. I've brought enough bargaining chips. I'll definitely be able to meet her. Just take me there."
Gekko Chizan naturally understood how difficult it was to meet the White Snake Sage.
After all, this wasn't decades later—the White Snake Sage wasn't so kind as to help him.
But he had indeed brought sufficient bargaining chips.
Deep within Ryūchi Cave.
"Hey, Chizan, it's been a long time since you came."
"What, you missed me that much without me around?"
Jinlin left after bringing Gekko Chizan to the deepest part, and the one who greeted him became Tagitsuhime.
Ever since the last battle with the Akatsuki, Tagitsuhime had been injured and had been recuperating in Ryūchi Cave. She hadn't seen Gekko Chizan for a long time.
Now that he had come all the way to the depths, she thought he came for her.
"Tagitsuhime, long time no see."
"Although I did miss you, this time I didn't come to Ryūchi Cave to see you—I came to see the White Snake Sage."
Tagitsuhime: ...
"You Gekko Chizan! I risked my life for you!"
"I fought a great battle and got seriously injured! You didn't come to see me, fine—but now you actually! Actually!"
Tagitsuhime was furious, so angry that she could barely speak clearly.
She never expected Gekko Chizan to treat her like this!
Gekko Chizan laughed when he saw this.
He immediately took out a scroll from his arms and opened it without hesitation.
The next second, five baskets of snakeberries appeared in front of Tagitsuhime.
"Here, for you. How could I not care about you?"
"I really do have something important to discuss with the White Snake Sage."
The moment the snakeberries appeared, Tagitsuhime completely lost it. She pounced on the baskets, grabbing them left and right and stuffing them into her mouth.
"Hmph, that's more like it. But why do you want to meet the White Snake Sage?"
"Isn't your Sage Mode already complete?"
"And you can use it independently. What else don't you understand?"
Tagitsuhime didn't quite understand why Gekko Chizan wanted to meet the White Snake Sage.
Even as one of the Snake Princesses, she had to admit—the White Snake Sage was not easy to get along with.
"How should I put it..."
"I want to become a second Sage of Six Paths—no, to become a different kind of sage, one unlike the Sage of Six Paths."
"Do you understand?"
Hearing his words, Tagitsuhime was truly shocked this time.
Become another sage?