Naruto: Starting with Tsunade

Chapter 493 The Sage of Six Paths

Shikulin Forest.

Tsunade opened her eyes, and a beautiful white peony-like flower grew from her head. Immediately afterwards, a huge amount of chakra flowed through her body, taking root in the ground. These roots grew larger and larger, growing out of the cracked ground, twisting wildly, and in the blink of an eye, they transformed everything around them into a lush, towering forest.

Immortal Technique: Descent of the Tree Realm.

Standing nearby, Hashirama laughed heartily and praised, "Tsuna, your Sage Mode is getting more and more proficient."

Tsunade spread her arms wide, her smile bright: "This is all thanks to you, Grandpa."

Hashirama glanced at the flower blooming on Tsunade's head: "I'm just giving you some appropriate guidance; it's Aokiji who will truly help you."

At first, Tsunade couldn't get the hang of Sage Mode no matter what she tried, and complained to Aokiji about how difficult it was.

Aokiji, recalling Jiraiya's Sage Mode which seemed to use two toads as support, suggested that Tsunade should try to copy it by placing two slugs on her shoulders.

This inspired Tsunade, leading to the scene we see today.

When entering Sage Mode, the flower literally opens its head for a meeting. It absorbs the surrounding natural energy and then combines it with its own physical and spiritual energy to create Sage Chakra.

If the flower on your head withers, it signifies the end of the magic mode.

Hashirama handed the water bottle to Tsunade, who was tired from training. Tsunade took it and drank a few sips to replenish her fluids.

At this moment, as if sensing something, they looked to the side and saw that space was distorted, forming a vortex shape.

This was a sign that a certain eye technique was about to be activated, and Tsunade subconsciously thought of someone.

Obito?

But unexpectedly, a young man with white hair and red eyes appeared.

It was Aokiji. For the past few days, Aokiji had been lying in the room, preparing new eyes.

As Aokiji's wife, Tsunade was naturally well aware of his condition, so upon seeing him, she immediately connected the dots, her eyes filled with a mixture of surprise and joy: "Your Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan was successful?"

"Of course, otherwise I wouldn't have met you, would I?"

Aokiji had a smile on his face and was carrying a basket containing something that looked like a dung beetle rolling a dung ball.

Actually, these are soldier's ration pills, which have the effect of quickly restoring chakra.

Tsunade, with her hands behind her back, strode forward, examining Aokiji's new eyes. They still had the same snowflake pattern as before, and she couldn't help but wonder, "Why are your eyes different from Sasuke's?"

Sasuke's Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan has a six-pointed star with Itachi's windmill eye pattern embedded inside. Why is there no change in Aokiji's eye pattern?

"This is my perfect Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan..."

Aokiji offered this explanation, reassuring himself, and took a step forward, using his newly acquired ability to blur his body, leaving only his head intact.

His body completely surpassed Tsunade's; because he was significantly taller than Tsunade, his head fit perfectly on top of hers.

To outsiders, this scene was incredibly funny, making Hashirama burst into laughter.

Tsunade frowned, fuming, and said, "That's enough, nothing..."

Aokiji stopped abruptly, leaving Tsunade's body: "Tsunade, do you remember what I got last time?"

Having obtained Indra's chakra from Sasuke, Aokiji immediately followed his advice and entered Naruto's mental space, where he met Ashura.

Perhaps because Ashura was kind by nature, Aokiji persuaded Ashura to transfer some of his chakra into Tsunade's body with almost no effort.

Tsunade nodded slightly and said with a smile, "I'm actually a little nervous about suddenly having to meet that legendary Sage of Six Paths."

"Just think of him as our ancestor," Aokiji suggested. "Let's go somewhere else; this technique requires more concentration."

◎

Inside the Divine Might Space.

Inside her private residence, Tsunade gazed out the window and murmured, "Whether it's day or night outside, this place is always the same, shrouded in a gray haze."

As they were talking, a large, warm hand landed on her shoulder, and a magnetic voice comforted her, saying, "Don't worry, after this is over, we can move out."

Tsunade looked back and met Aokiji's determined gaze. Tsunade hummed in agreement and drew the curtains.

Aokiji and Tsunade got into bed together, crossed their legs, and sat facing each other, palm to palm, a posture with a martial arts feel to it.

Aokiji reminded him, "Are you ready?"

Tsunade nodded.

The two gathered their chakra at the same time and used the technique together. At this moment, not only did their chakras merge together, but the chakras of Indra and Ashura also merged together.

◎

In the pale yellow space, an old man sat cross-legged in the void, wearing an ancient white robe. Several black spheres floated beneath him, forming a circle that occasionally rippled on the water below.

Ding……

The moment the sound, as faint as a mosquito's buzz, dissipated like ripples, the old man, moved by what he felt, slowly opened his eyelids, revealing a pair of wavy eyes.

A man and a woman, holding hands, came into view.

It was Tsunade and Aokiji.

At this moment, Tsunade stared at the old man before her, her eyes filled with curiosity.

He had a long beard, brown hair, a pair of horns on his forehead, and, more importantly, the Rinnegan, a symbol of his identity.

Tsunade leaned close to Aokiji's ear, whispering in a voice only loud enough for her husband to hear, "Is he the Sage of Six Paths? He looks so strange..."

The Sage of Six Paths replied, "Yes, Hashirama's granddaughter..."

This little trick naturally didn't escape the other party's ears. Tsunade had known for a long time that she did this mainly to create a more harmonious opening and to test the Sage of Six Paths' temper.

"You know me?"

Judging from his tone of voice, Tsunade realized that the Sage of Six Paths in front of her might be easier to talk to than she had imagined.

The Sage of Six Paths nodded.

Although he is dead, he is still observing the entire ninja world.

The entities possessed by the two sons were naturally the focus of observation.

As Hashirama's granddaughter, the Sage of Six Paths would at least glance at her a few times.

Following up on this topic, Aokiji continued, "So, you already know about Madara's current situation?"

"Yes, Madara has now become the Ten-Tails Jinchuriki."

The Sage of Six Paths narrowed his eyes and saw phantom images formed by the chakra of Indra and Ashura on the two individuals.

"You shouldn't be the ones possessed by Indra and Ashura, so how do you possess their chakra?"

Aokiji succinctly stated that it was Indra who instructed him to do so.

The Sage of Six Paths lingered his gaze on the two for a moment: "One is Madara's disciple, and the other is Hashirama's granddaughter. The feud between Indra and Ashura has actually come to an end with you two. I must say, fate is truly wondrous. Moreover..."

Aokiji remained silent, waiting for the big shot to continue.

The Sage of Six Paths glanced at Aokiji, a hint of curiosity in his eyes: "I sensed many powers within you, including Indra, that demon Mouryou, and my mother's chakra..."

Tsunade was taken aback: "Mom?"

The Sage of Six Paths explained his background, which naturally included information about Kaguya Otsutsuki.

Aokiji remained silent, unsure whether to tell the truth. Since the Sage of Six Paths was observing Madara Uchiha, did that also mean that he was talking to Madara Uchiha?

Knowing that lying would likely leave a bad impression, Aokiji decided to tell the truth after much deliberation: "I think I possess Kaguya's chakra because I used my eye technique to absorb a guy named Black Zetsu."

The Sage of Six Paths closed his eyes slightly, vaguely recognizing the name.

(End of this chapter)