Starting as a pirate, he rose to become the strongest Shinigami in Soul Society.

Chapter 400 Sasuke: Aside from me, a true Uchiha, you can all awaken the Mangekyou Sharingan, right?

Within the territory of the land of rivers, in the mountains and forests.

Jiraiya held a map in his hand, studied it for a while, then looked up at the sky and determined his location by observing the stars.

"We're almost there. According to this map, once we cross this mountain, we should be able to reach Ryuchi Cave," Jiraiya said.

"Perverted Sage, you didn't lead us astray, did you?" Naruto asked with some suspicion, carrying a large bag on his back.

"Who do you take me for? I've been wandering the ninja world for years, how could I possibly lead you astray?" Jiraiya glared at Naruto Uzumaki.

After a slight pause, he looked up at the sky again, his gaze becoming serious, and said, "This illusory moon has almost completely become illusory. I really don't know what the Spirit Lord is doing?"

Because the dark power that the illusory moon previously unleashed almost clashed with the gravity of the ninja world, triggering a natural disaster, the current changes in the illusory moon are also attracting great attention from the ninja world.

It's just that no one can easily find Ryuchi Cave.

Now that Jiraiya has a map, he can go there. He also plans to ask the Spirit Lord what he intends to do with the Void Moon.

Naruto Uzumaki gazed at the moon, which emitted a ghostly green light, and after a long while, he asked, "Sasuke is in Ryuchi Cave, right? We'll be able to see him this time, won't we?"

"Yes, not only Sasuke, Orochimaru should be here too," Jiraiya sighed.

Jiraiya's feelings were quite complicated as he was about to see his "best friend" again after so long.

"I wonder if that guy has become even stronger now? I was thinking of trying to see if I could bring him back to the village," Naruto Uzumaki said after a moment of silence.

"It depends. His training in Ryuchi Cave is the same as your training in Mt. Myoboku. The village hasn't considered him a defector. If he doesn't want to leave, there's nothing you can do," Jiraiya shrugged.

Before Naruto could speak again, Jiraiya said, "Let's not rest today. Once we cross this mountain, we'll reach Ryuchi Cave. Let's go straight there. If we're lucky, we'll arrive by dawn."

"Oh, I can't wait either!" Naruto Uzumaki immediately chimed in.

Soon, the master and his apprentice began their ascent over the mountain.

More than two hours later, they successfully crossed the mountain. At this time, the sky was indeed beginning to brighten, and it felt like the sun was about to rise.

"We should have reached the mountain peak of Ryuchi Cave by now. Have you noticed any changes?" Jiraiya asked after comparing the map.

"The natural energy is even more concentrated, and it seems to be constantly flowing in that direction," Naruto Uzumaki said, pointing in a direction after sensing it for a moment.

Jiraiya nodded and said, "Ryuchi Cave is located over there on the map, so it seems I'm right."

Soon, as the sun rose, the two of them descended the hillside and arrived at the desolate, dense forest area of ​​Ryongdi Cave.

Having just emerged from a dense forest, Jiraiya paused, then exclaimed, "Someone's nearby!?"

He had barely finished speaking when a voice came from the dense forest opposite: "Who's over there?"

Considering this was near Ryuchi Cave and he was there to deliver a tailed beast, there shouldn't be any problems. After a moment's thought, Jiraiya said, "Excuse me, I am Jiraiya of Konoha, acting on the orders of the Spirit Lord."

"Lord Jiraiya!?" Another, relatively younger voice came from behind.

Before Jiraiya could even react, Naruto Uzumaki beside him exclaimed excitedly, "Sasuke!?"

Naruto suddenly darted out of the dense forest, and soon after, Sasuke also emerged from the forest.

Naruto Uzumaki carried a large bag on his back, containing his luggage, while Sasuke Uchiha was a bit odd, carrying two people on his back.

Sasuke is only fifteen years old this year, and his body hasn't fully developed yet. He's not very tall either, and the two people he's carrying are both burly men, which makes him look quite strange.

Sasuke's expression showed slight excitement upon seeing Naruto, but he quickly adopted a cool and aloof demeanor, suppressing his excitement as he calmly said, "Who do we have here? It's you, Naruto."

"Sasuke, long time no see!" Naruto Uzumaki greeted him warmly, then asked curiously, "Who are you carrying on your back?"

Just then, Nami emerged from the forest. Clearly, she and Sasuke had finished retrieving the Tailed Beast Jinchuriki and were preparing to return to Ryuchi Cave when they encountered Jiraiya and Naruto on the way.

Jiraiya also came out and saw the two people Sasuke was carrying on his back. He immediately asked in surprise, "The Jinchuriki of Iwagakure?"

"That's right." Sasuke nodded and said, "During this time, I've been on a mission with Lady Nami to capture the Four-Tails and Five-Tails Jinchuriki in Iwagakure."

"Lady Nami?" Jiraiya looked at the woman behind Sasuke and quickly replied, "Nice to meet you, beautiful lady. I am Jiraiya, sent by the Spirit Lord to subdue the tailed beasts of Konoha."

"I know you." Nami nodded and said with a smile, "Bane admires you a lot. Don't be shy, come with us. If you all arrive, the Tailed Beasts will be collected."

Upon hearing this, Jiraiya quickly organized the information in his mind.

In other words, including Naruto Uzumaki, all the tailed beasts scattered in various villages throughout the ninja world have been captured by the Spirit Lord.

The Hidden Stone Village and the Hidden Cloud Village are really tight-lipped. Even though the Jinchuriki of the villages have been kidnapped, they pretend nothing is wrong and don't utter a single word!

But thinking about it carefully, isn't Konoha just the same?

The fact that the Nine-Tails was to be sent to Ryuchi Cave was kept very secret, and the news was not leaked out.

Also, was the original name of the Spirit Lord "Bane"?

Although he had many thoughts in his mind, Jiraiya did not show them. He led Naruto Uzumaki, followed Nami and Sasuke, and continued to advance into the desolate mountains.

Naruto was genuinely excited, chattering incessantly the whole way. Sasuke, who initially maintained a cool demeanor, eventually couldn't hold back any longer and began exchanging ideas with Naruto. The two shared their experiences over the past few days, both appearing somewhat sentimental.

"Don't worry, the Spirit Lord has already extracted several tailed beasts while preserving the Jinchuriki's life. You won't even feel any pain," Sasuke said, trying to comfort Naruto when he saw that Naruto was worried about Kurama.

"That's good." Naruto smiled, seemingly trusting Sasuke completely, then thought to himself, "Actually, it would be good to remove the Nine-Tails from my body. That way, the villagers wouldn't be so afraid of me, right? Everyone would be willing to be my friend, wouldn't they?"

At this stage, because many things have changed, Naruto and Kurama have little communication and no emotional foundation.

If he really had the choice, he would be very willing to hand over the Nine-Tails.

"Sasuke, you've already gotten your revenge. Aren't you going back to the village to take a look?" Naruto suddenly asked.

Sasuke paused slightly, then shook his head and continued walking, saying, "I don't have that plan for now. I saw a much wider world in Ryuchi Cave, and..."

At this point, he turned to look at Naruto Uzumaki, a gentle and sunny smile appearing on his usually aloof face. He said, "The seniors in Ryuchi Cave took good care of me. I already consider them my family. They are all people I cherish, so..."

Not a single mistake, not a single poem, not a single post, not a single piece of content, not a single look!

Naruto Uzumaki actually had a lot more to say, but for some reason, looking at Sasuke Uchiha's gentle and sunny smile, which he had almost never seen before, he couldn't bring himself to say the words of advice he had originally wanted to give.

After regaining his senses, Naruto Uzumaki scratched his head and said, "Really? Then remember to write to us often. Sakura and I miss you a lot. Come back and visit us when you have time."

"Of course." Uchiha Sasuke nodded without hesitation. "If there's an opportunity."

Jiraiya watched this scene with some emotion in his heart. If he and Orochimaru had parted ways like this, perhaps he would have felt much better.

However, just as he was thinking about this, suddenly, the illusory moon in the sky trembled, and a terrifying pressure fell from the sky, sweeping across and seemingly enveloping the entire ninja world.

Nowadays, even though it's daytime and the sun has risen, the waning moon is usually invisible at this time of day.

But when Jiraiya looked up at the sky, he found that the illusory moon had become unusually bright, as if it could rival the blazing sun, emitting a ghostly green halo that made people tremble in their souls, illuminating the entire ninja world!

Just as Jiraiya was still somewhat doubtful, Nami, standing beside him, said with a hint of excitement, "Did it work?"

As if in response to her, the waning moon in the sky began to dissipate rapidly as soon as she finished speaking, quickly disappearing back into the daytime horizon without a trace.

"Nami-san, what was that just now?" Jiraiya couldn't contain his curiosity any longer and asked.

"Well, I can't explain it clearly in a short time. When we get to Ryuchi Cave, you can have Orochimaru talk to you. Aren't you two good friends?" Nami replied with a smile.

Seeing this, Jiraiya didn't press the matter further, but he still felt somewhat conflicted.

Am I good friends with Orochimaru?

After a moment, Jiraiya smiled and said, "That's right."

Soon, they passed through the dense forest. As soon as they emerged from the shade of the trees, Jiraiya saw the cave in the distance and the three large characters "Ryuchi Cave" hanging above it.

"Is this Ryuchi Cave?" Jiraiya sighed, feeling the surging, rich natural energy around him. "The natural energy here feels several times richer than that of Mount Myōboku, another of the three sacred sites."

Actually, the natural energy in Ryuchi Cave wasn't this abundant before. However, after Bane and the others arrived, as Logia-type Devil Fruit users, they could manipulate natural energy just by standing there, which made the natural energy around Ryuchi Cave even more concentrated.

Just as Jiraiya was reflecting on these things, Orochimaru emerged from the cave.

He glanced at Jiraiya and said, "No wonder I could smell the stench of toads from afar; it's you."

Orochimaru Jiraiya's expression darkened as he said, "You're still as rude as ever."

However, Orochimaru completely ignored Jiraiya's words and instead smiled at Nami and Sasuke, saying, "The Spirit Lord has just finished his training and returned from the Pure Land. He is dealing with the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki that Zoro and the others brought back yesterday. Your return is just in time."

Nami asked excitedly, "Won't his soul power affect the mortal world?"

"It has just reached the limit of the mortal world. The changes in the illusory moon just now were the final adjustments," Orochimaru replied.

At this point, Orochimaru looked at Sasuke Uchiha and asked, "Has your Mangekyou Sharingan been awakened?"

Sasuke was taken aback, wondering why Orochimaru had suddenly brought this up.

But he still shook his head calmly and said, "No, what's wrong?"

"The Spirit Lord has successfully mastered the power of the Sharingan, and with his own spiritual power and Haki, he directly awakened the Mangekyou Sharingan." Orochimaru smiled and patted Sasuke's shoulder, helping him take one of the Jinchuriki off his back and holding it in his hand, saying, "You'd better work hard. Haki can indeed awaken the Mangekyou Sharingan. The Spirit Lord has confirmed that this path is viable for you."

After a slight pause, Orochimaru added, "And who knows, maybe soon even Robin will awaken the Mangekyou Sharingan."

Uchiha Sasuke?

No, Spirit Lord is one thing, but what's with Lord Robin?!

So, it seems that everyone except me, a true Uchiha, can freely awaken the Mangekyou Sharingan?

(End of this chapter)