"'A contract'… Hahahaha…"
Hearing Kiyohara say that, Garaga laughed as if he'd just heard something ridiculous.
His remaining right eye narrowed, Kiyohara's reflection shining in that slit pupil.
"Do you know where the last human who said that to me is now?"
He swept his tail across the pile of bones around him.
"Right here."
The bones clattered loudly.
Ever since he'd been betrayed by a human, Garaga had stopped trusting humans altogether, and his temper had grown even more volatile and unpredictable.
Seeing that, Kiyohara decided there was no point wasting more words.
Dark green sage chakra spread across his body like a long coat draped over him.
A phantom serpent shape formed behind him, winding and coiling in the air.
The single horn on his forehead pierced through his skin, milky white from base to tip, slightly curved at the end.
Green markings spread around his eyes, and his pupils narrowed into vertical slits.
Ryuchi Cave Sage Mode.
Garaga's right eye suddenly contracted.
He could feel a powerful mass of sage chakra inside this human.
"So you know sage arts. And what of it?"
Garaga opened his huge maw at once.
For giant snakes, the threshold for cultivating Ryuchi Cave Sage Arts was extremely low compared to humans.
At its core, this kind of beastly sage art had never been meant for humans in the first place.
The next second, Garaga's enormous body shot forward like a cannonball, his crimson scales dragging a red blur through the dim cavern.
His fangs gleamed coldly as he lunged straight at Kiyohara.
A foul gust of wind hit him head-on.
"Too slow."
Kiyohara shook his head.
The dynamic vision of the three-tomoe Sharingan was already powerful to begin with, and now with his vastly enhanced perception, Garaga's movements looked like deliberate slow motion.
Just as those fangs were about to touch him, Kiyohara vanished.
Garaga bit down on empty air, his fangs crashing together hard enough to make the surrounding air tremble and whine.
That alone showed how terrifying Garaga's bite force was. Even steel or mountain rock could be crushed apart by it.
"What?"
Garaga's lone eye darted around, searching for Kiyohara.
Then he found him.
Kiyohara was standing atop a huge boulder on the left side of the cave, a full fifty meters away from where he'd been before.
He raised his right hand, fingers slightly spread, while dark green sage chakra and black lightning chakra surged together in his palm.
Sage Art: Lightning Release — Black Panther.
Crackle!
Black lightning exploded from his palm.
It was completely different from the usual bright blue of normal Lightning Release. This was pure black, with dark green arcs of electricity running over its surface.
The lightning twisted and expanded in midair.
Then a huge shape formed from within the black electricity.
It was a panther.
A gigantic panther made entirely of black lightning, over ten meters long, wrapped in dark green electrical arcs.
Garaga's eye widened.
He could feel the danger coming off that thunder beast.
It was power strong enough to kill him.
"ROAR!"
Garaga bellowed, the sound exploding through the cave and shaking loose rubble from above.
He refused to believe that some random jutsu Kiyohara threw out so casually could actually threaten his life.
Garaga threw his mouth open, and deep in his throat, a murky liquid began to gather.
Petrification fluid.
The next instant, it burst out like a flood, pouring toward Kiyohara in a wave.
The attack covered a massive area, swallowing nearly a third of the cave.
Crackle!
In the very next moment, the lightning panther collided with the petrification fluid.
Its body was made entirely of lightning, with no true physical form at all.
The petrification fluid passed straight through it, sliding through those writhing black arcs without resistance and splashing against the rock wall behind, leaving wide patches of gray-white stone.
And in the same instant it passed through the fluid, the panther had already reached Garaga.
Its jaws opened wide and bit down on his neck.
Szzzt!
Black lightning poured into him from the point of impact.
Garaga let out a scream that shook the entire cave.
The corrosive nature of the black lightning was further enhanced by the destructive force unique to sage chakra.
His scales began to split. Blood sprayed from the cracks, but the lightning's heat vaporized it into red mist before it could even fall.
Garaga thrashed wildly, trying to throw off the panther.
But the panther's jaws were locked tight, black lightning pouring into him nonstop, chewing through flesh and bone from the inside out.
"Hiss—!"
The focus in Garaga's lone eye began to fade.
Everything in his vision blurred.
But he could still see that human.
Kiyohara stood where he was, dark green flames flowing around his body.
Then he raised his right hand.
Above his palm, an enormous sphere of blue chakra began to form.
It swelled visibly, growing from the size of a fist to the size of a head, then to the size of a millstone.
Kiyohara kept pouring chakra into it.
The Rasengan kept growing.
The giant sphere, now over two meters across, rotated above his hand, shrieking as it spun.
That was the sound of the air being ripped apart by high-speed rotating chakra.
Sage Art: Massive Rasengan.
Garaga's lone eye reflected that enormous ball of light.
He opened his mouth, trying to say something.
But the black panther's corrosion had already robbed him of the ability to speak.
Kiyohara vanished from where he stood.
The next instant, he was above Garaga's head.
The Massive Rasengan came crashing down.
Boom!
A pillar of light tore through the cave, punched through the ceiling, and shot into the darkness above Ryuchi Cave.
The shockwave exploded outward from Garaga's skull, blasting countless rocks into the air. The sections of cave wall already petrified shattered and peeled away under the impact.
Garaga didn't even manage a final hiss.
His giant serpent body convulsed violently a few times, then went limp.
That massive crimson form dropped like a puppet with its strings cut and smashed into the cave floor, crushing the bones scattered there.
The dust slowly settled.
Kiyohara landed beside Garaga's corpse, the dark green flames around his body fading away.
He looked down at the dead serpent.
The lone eye had gone completely dull.
Dark blood seeped out between the fangs and snaked across the stone floor in thin rivulets.
He was dead.
Kiyohara flicked the blood from his hand and turned around.
Garaga actually hadn't been weak at all. If anything, thanks to his extreme temper, he was probably even stronger than Manda, the snake Orochimaru had contracted with.
But in Kiyohara's hands, killing him had been no harder than crushing a chick.
One random jutsu was enough to heavily wound him, and the next one finished him off.
At the cave entrance, the three snake princesses stood watching.
All three looked stunned at how easily Kiyohara had killed Garaga.
In their minds, Kiyohara should've had to go back and forth with Garaga for several rounds before putting him down.
Instead, it had ended in a single exchange?
From their perspective, Kiyohara had blurred forward, unleashed one jutsu, mortally wounded Garaga, then followed it up immediately with another. Just like that, Garaga, who had tormented the entire serpent population around here, was dead.
"…You…"
Tagorihime parted her lips.
"You killed Garaga…?"
Kiyohara turned his head to look at her.
A few drops of Garaga's blood were still splashed across his face, making his black eyes—now that Sage Mode had faded—look even colder.
"I went a little too hard by accident."
He paused, then spread his hands in mock innocence.
"So what now?"
The three snake princesses looked at each other.
By accident?
Who accidentally beat a murderous monster from Ryuchi Cave into that?
But staring at Garaga's lifeless body, none of them really knew what to say.
Garaga had harmed his own kind for years. The serpent clans of Ryuchi Cave had long since grown bitter toward him.
Now that he was dead…
It wasn't really a bad thing.
"Well…"
Ichikishimahime lowered her arms and cleared her throat.
"It's fine. Garaga… well, if he's dead, he's dead. We'll arrange a different snake for you."
As she said it, she looked toward Tagorihime.
Tagorihime nodded.
"There are plenty of strong snakes in Ryuchi Cave. Ones with much better tempers than Garaga."
Kiyohara's gaze swept across all three of them.
A moment later, he spoke.
"Can I sign a contract with one of you instead?"
All three snake princesses froze.
"With us?"
Tagorihime arched a brow.
"You want to form a summoning contract with us?"
"Yeah."
Kiyohara nodded.
"Now that Garaga's dead, I'm not interested in anything weak."
He paused.
"You three should be enough."
The three snake princesses exchanged another look.
Over the centuries, many snakes had signed contracts with humans—but not a single one of those humans had ever signed a contract with one of the three snake princesses.
They were the upper echelon of Ryuchi Cave, second only to the White Snake Sage herself.
Ordinary humans weren't even qualified to think about contracting with them.
But the human standing before them…
The one who had killed Garaga and successfully cultivated Ryuchi Cave Sage Arts…
And, more than anything, the one whose talent they all understood all too well…
"I'll do it."
Tagitsuhime was the first to speak.
Tagorihime and Ichikishimahime both snapped their heads toward her, surprise in their eyes.
"Tagitsuhime, you—"
Tagorihime clearly wanted to say something.
Weren't they supposed to be sisters for life?
And yet Tagitsuhime had jumped in first!
She and Ichikishimahime hadn't even had the chance to speak yet!
"Sorry. Looks like this chance is mine."
Seeing that Kiyohara had no objections, Tagitsuhime smiled and walked toward him with a deliberate, mature sway to her steps.
Then she extended her right hand.
It was pale, with long fingers and neatly trimmed nails.
"Then let's make the contract."
She paused, her voice softening slightly.
"But remember this—I'm not some wild snake like Garaga. I won't let you order me around however you want."
Kiyohara took her hand.
"Of course."
He smiled.
But summons were basically there to do chores, weren't they?
There was a saying for that, after all.
When there's work, the secretary works. When there isn't work… you work the secretary.
If you adjusted your summon enough, maybe it wasn't impossible to treat them that way too.
Kiyohara really wouldn't mind becoming that kind of rough-and-ready hero in the ninja world.
…
Far away, back in the temple hall, the White Snake Sage's pipe shifted slightly.
The smoke paused at her lips for a moment before slowly drifting out again.
She had heard everything clearly.
Garaga was dead.
That snake who had slaughtered his own kind had died at that little brat's hands.
"He did it cleanly."
She muttered to herself, her golden slit pupils turned toward the deeper cave passages.
She still didn't understand why Kiyohara had insisted on killing Garaga.
But dead was dead.
Garaga had piled up grudges in Ryuchi Cave for years. If not for the fact that he was still one of Ryuchi Cave's own snakes, she would've dealt with him herself long ago.
Now, with Kiyohara doing it for her, she was spared the trouble.
She withdrew her gaze, held the pipe between her lips, and slowly closed her eyes again.
Orochimaru stood at the side of the hall, his golden slit pupils fixed on the cave entrance.
Behind him, Anko Mitarashi squatted by a pillar, bored out of her mind as she counted pebbles on the ground.
Tsunade leaned against another stone pillar with her arms crossed.
Her brows were faintly furrowed, her eyes fixed on the tunnel leading into the depths.
What was taking that brat so long?
…
Elsewhere, Tagitsuhime took out a summoning scroll, bit her finger, and began the summoning contract ritual.
"All right."
She let go and took a step back.
"When you need me, use blood as the medium for the summoning. I'll answer."
"Thanks."
Kiyohara looked up.
The three snake princesses were all looking at him now.
Each expression was different.
"Let's go."
Tagitsuhime turned away.
"The White Snake Sage is still waiting."
…
On the way back, White Snake Kiyohara's voice suddenly rang out in Kiyohara's mind.
"You handled Garaga much more easily than I ever could."
His spirit emerged from the urn, now far more transparent than before.
That coiled snake-like shape was already slowly fading apart.
"My past self, you fulfilled my lingering wish."
Kiyohara's steps paused for an instant.
Then he felt countless points of light pour out of White Snake Kiyohara's spirit and merge into his body.
The sensation…
First, it was his blood.
It rushed through his veins as if something new had been added to it.
That something flowed through his entire body and merged into every cell.
Then came his skin.
It became a shade paler than before.
Then his bones.
And finally, his perception.
His sensory ability shot upward wildly.
He could hear water droplets falling deep within the tunnel. He could smell the faint serpent scent clinging to the three snake princesses. He could feel the chakra flow of Orochimaru, Tsunade, and Anko back in the hall.
Ryuchi Cave Sage Mode inside him became even more complete.
His affinity with natural energy became clearer than ever before.
The last thing that entered him was spiritual energy.
A vast mass of Yin Release chakra exploded in his mind, but instead of striking his consciousness, it was steadily absorbed.
Kiyohara's mental world expanded once more.
He could feel it clearly—his spiritual energy had risen by another huge leap.
His Sharingan began to surface on its own.
Kiyohara had a feeling that his Sharingan's next evolution would happen very soon.
"Congratulations."
White Snake Kiyohara's voice was growing faint.
"Live on, my past self."
"Go farther than I ever could."
With those final words, White Snake Kiyohara's spirit completely dissolved, becoming one last spray of light before merging into Kiyohara's body.
Kiyohara paused briefly, then continued walking.
The tunnel ahead of him looked even clearer than before.
And he could feel it—
his lifespan…
had grown longer.
It was an instinctive certainty.
He couldn't tell whether it had stretched by decades or by centuries.
But it had definitely lengthened.
"What's wrong?"
Tagitsuhime suddenly looked back.
Her eyes fell on Kiyohara, and her brows drew together slightly.
Since a moment ago, she had started feeling that Kiyohara had become even more familiar somehow.
That sense of familiarity was now stronger than before.
Almost as if… he were one of her own kind.
"Nothing."
Kiyohara shook his head and kept walking.
As he did, he continued quietly feeling out the changes.
The white snake bloodline felt less like simple serpentification and more like a symbol of Ryuchi Cave Sage Arts.
Because he himself hadn't developed any extra snake-like traits beyond what he already had—just like with the toad bloodline.
It made Kiyohara feel as though what he had inherited was the deeper essence behind it.
And with those two bloodlines now combined, he could faintly sense some kind of change happening in his blood.
His body was already full of many bloodline limits, making its internal state complex enough as it was. Now, it had only become more complicated.
The blood of all living things?
Kiyohara wondered inwardly.
In theory, he should be able to inherit the bloodlines of everything, eventually becoming something that encompassed all things.
But that would be absurdly complicated.
And the way the snake and toad bloodlines sat inside him—it almost felt like their deeper essence was undergoing some sort of chemical reaction, slowly nurturing something.
As for what exactly that something was, Kiyohara had no idea yet.
…
When they returned to the temple, the White Snake Sage was still coiled upon her enormous throne with the pipe in her mouth.
Her orange-gold slit pupils settled on Kiyohara and narrowed slightly.
"You've returned."
"Yes."
Kiyohara stepped to the center of the hall and bowed slightly.
"Thank you, White Snake Sage."
The White Snake Sage gave a small nod.
"I'll summon you again in a few days."
She said.
"I understand."
Kiyohara nodded.
…
On the way out of Ryuchi Cave, the fog gradually thinned.
Anko, walking at the back, kept glancing over her shoulder at the temple fading into the mist, curiosity written in her eyes.
"Orochimaru-sama, Ryuchi Cave is amazing."
She said quietly.
"Those snake princesses… were they really turned from snakes?"
"Mm."
Orochimaru only gave a short answer and didn't elaborate.
His mind was still on Kiyohara.
As they were leaving, he had sensed it.
The aura around Kiyohara had changed again.
The feeling was like a snake that had just shed its skin, becoming even stronger.
Tsunade walked at Kiyohara's side.
She gave him a sidelong glance, then suddenly reached out and patted him on the shoulder.
"You didn't lose any arms or legs, right?"
"No."
Kiyohara smiled.
"Don't worry, Sensei."
"Hmph."
Tsunade withdrew her hand and folded her arms.
"Who said I was worried about you?"
…
Several days later, the group returned to the Kumogakure front-line camp.
The atmosphere in the camp was wrong.
The shinobi were moving more quickly than usual, and every face seemed weighed down with tension.
They had barely entered when someone came to meet them.
"Tsunade-sama, Captain Kiyohara, the Hokage is urgently summoning you."
It was a Nara shinobi—Nara Shiosui.
His brows were tightly drawn, and there was clear fatigue under his eyes.
"Iwagakure has made a move."
Inside the command tent, the atmosphere was even heavier than outside.
A dozen or so jonin sat on either side, some familiar, others not.
"We've received word from the Land of Earth."
Nara Shikaku stood before a map, pointing to new red markings on it.
"Iwagakure suddenly increased troop numbers along the Land of Grass line and launched five large-scale assaults in three days."
He paused.
"At this point, they've already broken through Konoha's first line of defense."
The tent fell silent.
"Iwagakure is… making its final struggle."
Shikaku said.
"Their supply lines were already near collapse, and their shinobi losses have been severe. This offensive looks like a last gamble more than anything else."
"If we can hold out, Iwagakure will most likely sue for peace on its own."
Shikaku's gaze finally came to rest on Kiyohara.
"Kiyohara-kun, you've carried out missions in the Land of Grass before. You know that area best."
"So this time, the reinforcements for the Iwagakure front will be under your command. Tsunade-sama can accompany you as well."
Tsunade raised a brow.
"We're heading out again?"
"Yes."
Shikaku nodded.
"The war is almost over."
That was his reasoning.
Even if Iwagakure poured out everything it had left, it still couldn't inflict much more damage on Konoha at this point.
Kiyohara looked at the map, those red points and the arrows stretching from the Land of Earth's border deep into the Land of Grass.
A final struggle, huh…
Kiyohara rubbed his chin.
The Land of Earth had loved swarm tactics in the early stages—enough to throw ten thousand shinobi at the Third Raikage.
And now it had become the most short-handed of the Five Great Nations.
~~~
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