"Huh? A sign of the Six Paths?"
Black Zetsu paused slightly at the phrase "a sage marked by the Six Paths."
He thought to himself that he had lurked in Mount Myoboku for hundreds of years, soaked in the spiritual energy of a sage land. Calling himself a sage wasn't really that much of a stretch.
Besides, once he passed the assessment, he would be a sage anyway.
When you're out in the world, your identity is something you give yourself.
"Forget it, forget it. I don't really care what you call me.", A faint smile rippled across Black Zetsu in Senju Syura's palm, his tone very casual.
Senju Syura clenched his left hand, which was covered in ink-black color. His body instinctively leaned back slightly, the vigilance in his eyes still not gone.
"Why are you attached to me? What exactly is your purpose for approaching me?" Senju Syura pressed in a low voice.
Black Zetsu let out a light chuckle, the ink-like outline swaying slightly with his voice. "Because you are the one I chose. I appeared this time to help you."
The moment those words came out, alarm bells rang in Senju Syura's mind. He stepped back another half step, his brows knotting tightly.
"There are many members of the Senju clan, and not a few of them are exceptionally talented. Why did you choose me of all people?"
Seeing this, Black Zetsu rolled his eyes silently, his tone carrying blunt disdain, "In the entire Senju clan, there isn't anyone more useless than you. If not you, then who?"
Senju Syura's expression instantly stiffened. His lips pressed into a straight line. Though anger rose in his heart, he had no way to refute it.
Since childhood, he had been unable to refine chakra. He had wasted more than ten years of training, sleeping every day, sleeping after eating and eating after sleeping.
He really was the publicly acknowledged good-for-nothing of the clan. Those words hit right at his most painful weakness.
"You're not some spy sent by another clan, trying to use me, a useless person, to gather intelligence on the Senju clan, are you?"
Even after being struck at his sore spot, Senju Syura didn't lower his guard. He stared intently at the ink face in his palm.
He wasn't just useless. He was also the only son of the clan leader.
Black Zetsu felt a bit speechless. His ink-like chakra rippled slightly as he said helplessly, "Whether I have ill intentions toward you, you should have some sense of it. If it weren't for me saving you just now, you would've already been smashed into a pile of flesh."
"Besides, you might as well try refining chakra. Once you feel it, you'll know whether what I'm saying is true or false."
"Refining chakra?"
Senju Syura froze for a moment, then shook his head with a bitter smile. "Impossible. I've wasted more than ten years. How could I possibly refine it…"
Even so, he couldn't suppress the lingering hope deep in his heart. He slowly closed his eyes and, following the techniques taught by the clan in his childhood, tried to guide the energy within his body.
In just an instant, a warm yet vast power surged out from the cells throughout his body, flowing along his meridians and gradually circulating, finally condensing into a mass of pure chakra.
Senju Syura suddenly opened his eyes, shock surging within them. His lips trembled slightly, "Th-this is… chakra?!"
He could clearly feel the power flowing through his meridians. It was the chakra he had dreamed of for more than ten years.
"This is great! I can finally refine chakra!"
Ecstasy instantly washed away all his vigilance. Senju Syura sprang up from the ground and excitedly did several backflips in the open space, waving his arms and dancing around, completely losing the restraint he had just shown.
Black Zetsu watched his overly excited behavior, the corners of his ink-colored mouth twitching slightly, full of helplessness.
After calming down a bit, Senju Syura suddenly recalled the methods of using chakra taught in the clan. He immediately tried to gather the chakra in his dantian and direct it to his feet.
The next second, he stepped forward.
He ran straight toward the wall of the Senju hall beside him. When his feet touched the wall, they stuck firmly. He stood on the vertical surface as if it were flat ground, showing no sign of slipping.
"It really worked!"
Senju Syura looked down at his feet, his eyes shining with excitement as he muttered to himself, "I heard from people in the clan that sticking chakra to your feet to climb walls takes months of practice to master."
"I just got chakra and I can already do it. Could it be that I'm actually a genius?"
"Hey, hey, hey, don't flatter yourself."
Black Zetsu's voice immediately interrupted his self-admiration. A trace of pride appeared on the ink face.
"This is all because of me. After I attach myself to you, your body will improve in all aspects. Your chakra control and even your future nature transformations will far surpass ordinary people."
Hearing this, Senju Syura immediately lowered his head, curiously examining Black Zetsu in his palm, his eyes full of interest.
Seeing this, Black Zetsu curled his lips into a faint smile, then activated his ink-like chakra. In an instant, he separated from Senju Syura's arm.
Almost at the same moment, the chakra within Senju Syura's body suddenly dissipated, and he reverted to an ordinary person without any chakra.
Without the support of chakra, his foot slipped, and he fell straight off the wall. His backside hit the ground hard, making him grimace in pain.
Before he could even get up, Black Zetsu's ink-like body wrapped around his left hand again. The familiar chakra power instantly returned, filling his meridians once more.
Senju Syura rubbed his backside as he stood up. The way he looked at Black Zetsu completely changed, filled with shock and awe, "You really are a sage?"
"This kind of method is unheard of in the ninja world. Even the Uzumaki clan, who specialize in secret techniques, couldn't control another person's chakra so freely!"
Black Zetsu let out a chuckle, his ink-like brows curving. "I'm not truly a sage yet, but sooner or later, I will be."
Senju Syura scratched the back of his head, unable to understand the deeper meaning behind those words.
But he knew the other party possessed extraordinary abilities. He immediately composed himself and cupped his hands slightly in apology.
"Sage Black Zetsu, I was rash and disrespectful just now. I hope you can forgive me."
"It's nothing." Black Zetsu waved it off, not caring much.
Senju Syura then frowned and looked down at his body, which was mostly covered in ink-black color. Helplessly, he said, "It's just that, Sage Black Zetsu, you're covering most of my body right now."
"If the elders of the clan see this, they'll definitely think I've been possessed by something evil, and there'll be no avoiding an interrogation."
Black Zetsu glanced at Senju Syura's body. More than half of him had already turned black, which was indeed too eye-catching. If other Senju clan members saw it, trouble would be inevitable.
"Mm, you have a point."
Black Zetsu nodded, then quickly activated his chakra to contract. The ink that had spread across most of the body rapidly withdrew, leaving only his left hand covered. The ink face in the palm remained clear, but it was no longer noticeable.
"This looks much better!"
Senju Syura shook his left hand. Seeing that only one hand was black now, he finally let out a breath of relief and showed a relaxed smile.
"Oh right, what do you plan to do next?"
Black Zetsu's voice came from his palm as he asked about his next move.
Senju Syura's eyes lit up, his face full of longing and eagerness. He grinned and said, "Of course I'm going to find my father right away and tell him the good news that I can refine chakra!"
"I'll also ask my father for a few ninjutsu for self-defense. Once I've trained enough, I'll head to the battlefield and serve the Senju clan!"