No matter what, Kiyohara would eventually make a trip to Ryūchi Cave.
After all, the Three Great Sage Regions were still the strongest native powers on Earth.
At the very least, they had already existed before Kaguya Otsutsuki and Isshiki Otsutsuki arrived.
Later on, though, most of their kind were probably exterminated by the two of them working together, after which the God Tree was planted.
Then the two of them fell out over how to divide the harvest, and in the end, only Kaguya Otsutsuki remained.
Taking advantage of that, the Great Toad Sage of Mount Myoboku went and influenced the Sage brothers, getting them to fight Kaguya.
There were quite a few beings like the Great Toad Sage, at the very least the sages behind Shikkotsu Forest and Ryuchi Cave were as well.
As for whether there were even more "sages" out there, that was impossible to say.
But no matter what, this was a kind of technique even the Otsutsuki didn't have, so Kiyohara was definitely going to obtain it.
He had already gotten part of it. All that remained was fulfilling the final lingering wish and inheriting it completely.
…
The next day, Kiyohara left Konoha and used the Flying Thunder God Technique to travel to a forest outside the village, where he began practicing the Eight Branches Technique.
Even though the Eight Branches Technique was only a half-finished product, it was already usable.
What still hadn't been perfected was how to reduce the technique's side effects on the human body, and how the body should transform into a serpent.
On the surface, it looked a lot like a Transformation Technique that could become anything.
But the Eight Branches Technique genuinely came with additional effects.
"Go ahead. With my guidance, there shouldn't be too much of a problem."
White Snake Kiyohara said.
He had already been able to take human form in life, so he wasn't unfamiliar with the human body's chakra pathways.
At the moment, he was possessing Kiyohara and instructing him on how to use the chakra.
Very quickly, under White Snake Kiyohara's possession, Kiyohara's body began to change.
He had already transplanted white snake cells and inherited part of White Snake Kiyohara's bloodline, so now, using the Eight Branches Technique felt incredibly smooth.
Orochimaru had needed to remodel and adapt his own body before he could use it.
Kiyohara skipped that entire step, which greatly increased efficiency.
The skin on Kiyohara's back swelled.
One serpent head emerged.
Its scales were pale white, its eyes half-lidded and not yet fully open, but it could already sense the flow of wind and chakra.
Kiyohara could tell that this felt very similar to Curse Mark State Two.
As long as he cut off the chakra, he would return to normal.
At its core, it was simply flesh simulated through chakra.
Then came the second head, the third, the fourth…
Eight serpent necks emerged from his back, and in a burst of white smoke, Kiyohara himself transformed into a massive white serpent.
However, Kiyohara's body looked even larger than Orochimaru's had when he used the Eight Branches Technique.
From the central serpent head, Kiyohara looked down at his current body.
His pupils had turned into pale golden vertical slits.
His hands were covered in fine white scales, and his nails were as sharp as blades.
The Eight Branches form.
Kiyohara raised one of the serpent heads and aimed it at a giant boulder in the forest that would take three people to wrap their arms around.
Almost by instinct, chakra gathered.
The serpent head opened its mouth, and white light began to condense deep in its throat.
Boom!
A pale beam of light burst from its gaping maw.
The giant rock vanished beneath the white beam.
The blast tore through two hundred meters of forest, vaporizing everything in its path—tree trunks, shrubs, soil.
All that remained was a blackened trench, its edges still burning with white flames.
Kiyohara drew the serpent head back and tilted it slightly, observing the destruction.
"The power's decent."
Kiyohara remembered that Orochimaru had used a similar move in Ultimate Ninja Storm, so this was probably one of the technique's accompanying abilities.
It was like how tailed beasts instinctively knew how to use a Tailed Beast Bomb.
Then a thought suddenly struck him. Could this form be used to bear Dragon Vein chakra?
He lowered his gaze to this Eight Branches serpent body.
"Sasuke can use Perfect Susanoo to carry the chakra of all nine tailed beasts."
"So could this body… carry Dragon Vein chakra?"
Kiyohara said.
The advantage would be that his real body wouldn't be directly affected by the chakra.
The more violent the chakra, the more damage it did to the body.
If tailed beasts didn't come with their own regenerative ability, jinchuriki would be injured just from using their power.
When it was only a faint layer of red chakra, there wasn't much problem. But once it turned into the deeper red cloak that covered the whole body, it started burning the skin.
Naruto got burned by it as early as his four-tail state.
White Snake Kiyohara thought over Kiyohara's question for a moment.
"…In theory, yes."
After a pause, he answered.
"The essence of the Eight Branches serpent form is that it's a container, something that converts and releases massive amounts of chakra. Dragon Vein chakra is violent, but as long as your sealing techniques are refined enough, it should be possible."
He paused again.
"But think carefully. Dragon Vein chakra is extremely dangerous. Even tailed beast chakra can't create distortions in space-time, but Dragon Vein chakra can. Once it gets out of control, no one knows what might happen."
"I see…"
Kiyohara rubbed his chin.
"Wouldn't using a shadow clone solve that?"
Kiyohara said.
As long as he kept the test controlled enough that the shadow clone didn't disperse, that should be fine.
Seal Dragon Vein chakra inside the Yin Seal, then when he needed to use a large amount, activate the Eight Branches Technique.
Of course, once Kiyohara's actual body could handle that power freely, there would be no need to rely on the Eight Branches form anymore.
"It demands extremely high chakra control, but if it's you… it might actually work."
White Snake Kiyohara said.
After all, this past version of himself couldn't really be judged by normal standards.
He had never seen anyone as absurdly hard to kill as Kiyohara—someone who had inherited so many futures and still kept going.
After that, White Snake Kiyohara withdrew the possession and let Kiyohara adapt to the form on his own.
After adjusting to it for a while, Kiyohara released the Eight Branches Technique.
Poof.
The pale scales receded, and his body shrank back down.
Kiyohara returned to normal.
"For now, I should finish handling everything from this period first."
Kiyohara thought to himself.
On the way back, he kept using Flying Thunder God repeatedly to travel, eventually making his way to the border of the Land of Wind.
Looking out over the endless expanse of desert, Kiyohara began using Magnet Release to draw up gold dust from deep beneath the earth.
He planned to seal part of the high-purity gold dust inside storage scrolls, while keeping some on hand for regular use.
This consumed a lot of chakra, but fortunately his reserves were enormous, and he could also use soldier pills to replenish what he spent.
As a result, his efficiency was still quite good, and in a short amount of time, he had gathered a large quantity of high-purity gold dust.
…
At noon, inside a gold shop in Konoha.
The moment Kiyohara pushed the door open, the attendant's eyes lit up.
It was the look of someone seeing the God of Wealth personally step through the door.
Because Kiyohara had been selling gold dust there for a long time, he had already become one of their biggest clients.
"Kiyohara-sama!"
The attendant hurried over, his eyes already darting toward the sealing scroll at Kiyohara's waist.
"This way, please. Today we just received gold-leaf sweets made for the daimyo's household, paired with some newly arrived tea. You absolutely must try them."
Kiyohara gave a small nod and took a seat in the VIP room.
Tea and snacks were immediately set out on the table, and the attendant stood respectfully nearby, waiting for instructions.
With enough money, life in Konoha could actually be very good.
The village even had places like theaters and cinemas.
Then Kiyohara took out the gold dust he had gathered.
Golden grains quickly piled into a small mound, gleaming with a heavy luster under the indoor lights.
The attendant swallowed.
"Th-this purity…"
He took a deep breath.
"Kiyohara-sama, this batch of gold dust is worth eight hundred and thirty-six thousand ryo in pure gold."
"I want cash."
"Yes, yes, of course."
The attendant nodded repeatedly.
A little while later, Kiyohara walked out of the shop.
Good. Another eight hundred thousand ryo in hand.
Kiyohara felt like even Rasa wouldn't be able to reproduce this kind of money-making method.
After all, Rasa's chakra reserves didn't give him the same advantage in endurance.
Kiyohara, on the other hand, could let White Snake Kiyohara possess him and help refine chakra, extending his active time.
After that, Kiyohara planned to go buy some ingredients for dinner.
But before he had gone more than a few steps, he spotted someone familiar.
A pale profile, golden slit pupils, and an air of natural coldness in every step.
It was Orochimaru.
And beside him, that girl wearing a fishnet undershirt under a brown coat was looking up at him with pleading eyes.
"Orochimaru-sama…"
Anko Mitarashi's voice was full of careful expectation as her eyes kept drifting toward the dango shop at the corner.
The sign read: Special Three-Color Dango – Seasonal Limited Flavor.
"…Just one skewer, okay?"
Orochimaru glanced down at her.
His fingers moved instinctively toward the purse at his waist.
Then… stopped.
Orochimaru suddenly remembered how much he had been spending lately.
And tomorrow, he still had to go out and do more missions just to make money.
Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to get that next batch of equipment.
"…Next time."
Orochimaru said.
Anko's hope deflated like a punctured balloon.
"Oh…"
She lowered her head.
"All right."
Anko said quietly.
Kiyohara walked up and greeted them.
"Orochimaru-sama. Anko."
Anko looked up at him.
"Kiyohara-kun."
Orochimaru turned his head slightly, his golden slit pupils sweeping across Kiyohara's somewhat travel-worn appearance.
"Back from a mission?"
"Not exactly. I just went to sell something."
Kiyohara shook his head.
Then he turned and walked toward the dango shop.
A moment later, he returned carrying two boxes of dango.
Anko stared blankly at the one he held out to her.
Three-color dango.
"F-for me?"
Her eyes brightened, then she immediately tried to restrain herself and act a little more ladylike, though the corners of her mouth still couldn't help curving upward.
"Yeah."
Kiyohara then held out the other box to Orochimaru.
"Orochimaru-sama should have some too. I just sold some gold dust."
Orochimaru looked down.
The box of dango lay quietly in his palm, the three colors lined up neatly.
He reached out and accepted it.
The moment his fingers touched the wrapping paper, he paused slightly.
"Kiyohara-kun."
He looked up.
"Have your recent missions been going well?"
"They have."
Kiyohara nodded.
"That's good."
Orochimaru said.
By then, Anko had already taken an eager bite of the dango.
The sticky rice pulled into shining strands as she puffed out her cheeks, her eyes curving into crescents while she mumbled unclearly:
"So good… Kiyohara, you're really nice…"
Her eyes sparkled as she looked up at him, then she quickly looked back down again, pretending to focus on the next dumpling.
Orochimaru looked at her, then looked at Kiyohara.
After exchanging a few more polite words, Kiyohara took his leave.
His figure soon disappeared into the crowd at the street corner.
Orochimaru remained standing where he was, the warmth of the box of dango slowly sinking into his palm.
He kept staring in the direction Kiyohara had gone, unmoving for a long time.
Then, unexpectedly, he felt something close to self-mockery.
Both of them were seekers pursuing the truth of ninjutsu. Kiyohara was even still technically his assistant.
Yet Kiyohara could profit from battlefield spoils, profit from gold dust, use money to buy equipment, materials, research time—and casually buy two boxes of dango for other people without a second thought.
And what about him?
He, one of the famous Three Sannin, was currently lying awake at night worrying over the remaining payment on a batch of lab equipment.
He didn't have Magnet Release. He didn't have some bloodline limit that could pull wealth straight out of the earth.
All he had was his laboratory.
Only those endlessly expensive research projects that devoured money without end.
And Danzo Shimura's increasingly unpleasant face, lecturing him about Konoha's greater good every time he asked for more funding.
What an awful world.
Orochimaru was momentarily speechless.
"Let's go."
Orochimaru said at last.
Anko hurriedly swallowed the last bite of her dango and ran after him.
She couldn't help thinking that if only Kiyohara had bought some red bean soup too, it would have been perfect. Three-color dango was best eaten with that combination.
It just seemed like Kiyohara didn't know that.
And Anko felt too embarrassed to ask for anything else.
She decided that next time she completed a mission and got some pay, she would treat Kiyohara to that combination herself.
…
That evening, at Tsunade's house.
As Kiyohara was taking off his shoes, he heard a familiar, slightly lazy voice drifting from the living room.
"You're back?"
He stepped into the room.
Tsunade was sitting cross-legged at the low table.
Her blonde hair was loosely draped over her shoulders, and she was wearing only a sleeveless top with a pale green outer robe.
Several medical journals were spread out across the tea table, and beside them sat a half-finished cup of sake.
She had one leg crossed over the other.
The raised foot glowed with a faint pink luster under the light, its arch beautiful, its toes neat and rounded.
But those golden-brown eyes weren't looking at the journals at all. They were fixed straight on the bulging sealing scrolls at Kiyohara's waist, like a hunting dog locking onto its prey.
She leaned closer.
Her nostrils flared slightly.
"You…"
She looked up, mischief glittering in her eyes.
"Today, you smell particularly rich."
Kiyohara: "..."
"Are you a dog now, Sensei?"
"A gambler."
Tsunade's raised foot swung smugly.
"A gambler can smell money better than a dog can smell bones."
She held out her hand.
Five pale fingers opened toward him and wiggled.
"How much did you cash in today?"
"A few hundred thousand, I guess."
Kiyohara shook his head.
Tsunade's nose really was sharp.
The money he had exchanged today was all newly printed, so it probably still carried a faint ink smell. And somehow, she had still picked up on it.
"Want to play a few rounds with your teacher?"
Tsunade asked.
Kiyohara blinked.
He could just gamble by himself.
But if Tsunade insisted, it wasn't like he had to refuse.
"What are we playing?"
Kiyohara asked.
"How about Old Maid?"
Tsunade said.
Old Maid was a common game in Konoha.
You took a standard deck of fifty-four cards and removed one joker so that fifty-three remained, dealt the hands evenly, and players took turns drawing from each other.
If the card you drew could form a pair with one already in your hand, you discarded the pair immediately.
If not, you kept it.
The one card that couldn't be paired with anything—the lone useless card—was the Old Maid.
Whoever ended the game still holding it lost.
"And the bet?"
She lifted her chin.
She was already waiting for Kiyohara to suggest the stakes while she took out the cards.
Kiyohara looked at Tsunade.
"Hm. Let me think."
He rubbed his chin.
This wasn't even the first time he had played Old Maid with Tsunade.
Sometimes, when Tsunade dragged him into gambling, he would accompany her with games like this.
The thing was, Tsunade almost always lost.
Sometimes, when she lost badly and no longer had any money, she would suggest little punishments instead.
But those punishments had always been pretty simple.
Like sticking strips of paper to the loser's face.
"…How about a hug?"
Kiyohara suggested.
He found himself a little curious what a proper face-to-face hug with Tsunade would feel like.
Just as he was expecting Tsunade to get angry and preparing to turn it into a joke—
she nodded with complete confidence.
"Hurry up already."
Her voice was sharp and decisive. She was already itching to win.
First round.
Tsunade drew a card from Kiyohara's hand.
"Ah!"
She excitedly threw down a pair—the seven of spades and the seven of hearts.
"A good start!"
Kiyohara then drew from her hand.
He formed a pair too.
Discarded.
Second round.
Third round.
Tsunade's hand quickly shrank, and the smile on her face only grew brighter.
"Hmph. Your luck isn't all that great after all, brat."
Fourth round.
Tsunade was down to only two cards.
Kiyohara had three.
He extended his long fingers and reached to draw.
At the same time, he watched Tsunade's micro-expressions.
Old Maid wasn't just about luck. It was also about who could keep their face under control.
The moment Tsunade saw Kiyohara's hand getting dangerously close to the Old Maid, her brows lifted slightly.
Then she hurriedly suppressed the reaction and forced her face still.
So Kiyohara's hand passed right over that card and drew the other one instead.
He slipped the card into his hand.
Silence.
"Well…?"
Tsunade couldn't help leaning forward.
Kiyohara looked up.
Then, very slowly, he spread his hand.
A pair.
Tsunade had no choice but to draw from him now.
But Kiyohara's face gave absolutely nothing away, so Tsunade could only rely entirely on luck.
With no better option, she squeezed her eyes shut and grabbed one at random.
When she opened it, it couldn't form a pair at all.
The Old Maid was in her hand.
"First round."
Kiyohara gathered up the discarded cards.
"Sensei loses."
Tsunade stared at him with wide eyes, speechless for a long moment.
She had lost already?
Tsunade suddenly felt a little relieved that they hadn't bet money.
If they had, wouldn't she have ended up losing everything all over again?
"What are you two playing?"
Shizune, who had been washing vegetables in the kitchen, noticed the game from outside.
So she set the food aside and came over curiously.
One look was enough for her to realize they were playing Old Maid.
And one more look told her Tsunade had lost.
Shizune wasn't surprised at all.
If anything, it would have been strange if Tsunade had won.
Especially if Tsunade had won big.
Because when that happened, it usually meant something bad was about to happen nearby.
"Shizune, want to join?"
Kiyohara asked.
"I'll pass."
Shizune waved her hand.
She still had unfinished work from Konoha Hospital and would have to get back to the paperwork later.
Since Tsunade liked acting as a hands-off boss, a lot of those responsibilities always ended up with Shizune.
"Dinner will be ready soon, by the way."
Shizune reminded them.
Then she went back to the kitchen and continued working.
~~~
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