Ninja World: I, Kisame Hoshigaki, am no longer human!

Wait, those eyes...

The White Snake Sage's pupils contracted as he noticed the Rinnegan beneath Nagato's bangs. He sensed that it was an extraordinary pair of eyes, and wondered where he had seen it before. But perhaps due to his age, he couldn't recall for a moment.

Just then, Danzo began to grow impatient.

"Orochimaru, can this old woman really teach us Sage Mode?"

He approached Orochimaru, leaning on his cane, pointing at the White Snake Sage with a look of utter disbelief on his face. He had traveled a long and arduous journey, his bones nearly falling apart, all to see this White Snake Sage.

Danzo could not sense any power from the other party and was greatly disappointed.

"How dare you disrespect the White Snake Immortal?"

Seeing Danzo's recklessness, the three snake princesses were so angry that veins popped out on their foreheads, and they all stuck out their tongues, ready to teach Danzo a lesson.

"Hmph, what Dragon Cave? It's nothing but a bunch of snakes and rats pretending to be gods and ghosts. Do you think I'm afraid?"

Danzo's eyes flashed with a cold light, and he was about to make a move at the slightest provocation.

In his view, even if Orochimaru stood by and did nothing, he, Obito Uchiha, and Nagato would be enough to wipe out Ryuchi Cave.

A major battle is about to break out.

"stop."

The White Snake Immortal spoke slowly and stood up from his throne.

The next second, with a "bang", a huge cloud of white smoke enveloped the White Snake Immortal's body.

After the white smoke dissipated, to Danzo's horrified gaze, the old woman had disappeared, replaced by a giant white phosphorescent serpent tens of meters long, which appeared before everyone.

This white phosphorus serpent, with orange hair and yellow eyes, wore a green cat's eye stone on its chest, a red luminous pearl on its head, and two golden rings on its tail. While exuding a huge and majestic aura, it also gave people a sense of elegance and nobility.

Its enormous body coiled around the throne, flicking its tongue, its cold gaze looking down at Orochimaru and the others, making them feel unprecedented pressure.

"What terrifying chakra..."

Nagato looked horrified and murmured. In his eyes, the Sage Chakra within the White Snake Sage's body was as dazzling as the sun in the sky, making it almost impossible for him to open his eyes.

"Looks like this trip wasn't in vain."

Obito's eyes gleamed as he sensed the immense power within the White Snake Sage. In his view, that power was far stronger than Kisame Hoshigaki in his Sagamimosa form, not even on the same level.

"Gurgle..."

Danzo swallowed hard, and out of fear, staggered back several steps.

At this moment, he was filled with remorse. If he could do it all over again, he would never have made such foolish remarks or actions.

Under the oppressive power of the White Snake Sage, Danzo could not muster any thoughts of resistance or escape, and could only await the judgment of fate.

At this moment, the White Snake Sage gazed at Danzo and slowly said:

"Although you have offended me, since you have passed the three tests and come before me, I will bestow upon you the power of immortality. As for whether you can bear this power, that depends on your own destiny."

As soon as it finished speaking, it stirred up a gust of bloody wind and rushed towards Danzo, extending a pair of fangs from its gaping maw and plunging them viciously into the latter's shoulder.

"what!"

Danzo let out a shrill scream, appearing to be in great pain.

"Unlike the other two holy sites, the way to cultivate immortal arts in Longdi Cave is very simple: the White Snake Immortal directly injects natural energy into the cultivator's body."

Orochimaru, who was watching this scene, explained to Obito and Nagato, "If Danzo can withstand this energy, he can obtain Sage Chakra and Sage Mode. But if he can't, tsk tsk... just wait and see."

He kept it a secret.

gurgling, gurgling.

After the White Snake Sage injected a large amount of natural energy into Danzo's body, he retracted his fangs and his massive body once again sat on the throne.

At this moment, everyone's eyes were focused on Danzo, waiting for a result.

172. Danzo, who perished in a snake's belly

Inside the temple in Yongji-dong.

The White Snake Sage used its sharp fangs to be the first to infuse Danzo's body with natural energy.

This simple and direct method of transmission is both high-risk and high-reward for practitioners who come to Longdi Cave for pilgrimage. As long as they can endure it, they can transform into dragons in one day.

Orochimaru in the original work also borrowed the method of the White Snake Sage to create a knock-off version of Sage Art—the Cursed Seal.

At this moment, everyone in the temple stared intently at Danzo, watching the changes in him.

After his initial screams, Danzo gradually seemed to adapt to the natural energy within his body, appearing to be in less pain, and his expression softened.

Clang.

He suddenly threw away his cane, raised his hands, and a look of excitement and ecstasy appeared on his face.

"I can feel it! Such powerful energy! Is this Sage Chakra? Am I about to become a Sage?"

Danzo muttered to himself, his eyes burning, and he straightened his back. In that instant, he seemed to have become twenty years younger, as if he had returned to his prime.

High spirits.

"Hahaha, I've taken the lead and obtained the power of immortal arts!"

Danzo spread his arms and laughed wildly, unleashing a powerful energy that formed a sharp current that swept through the entire temple.

At this moment, he reached the pinnacle of his life.

Seeing this, both Obito and Nagato showed expressions of interest and longing in their eyes.

Even Danzo, that old fellow, could withstand the power of the White Snake Sage and inherit his sage techniques. Their talents and physiques are even stronger, so there's no reason for them to fail.

However, Orochimaru chuckled, arms crossed, looking on with amusement.

"Danzo is celebrating too soon. It's not that simple."

The voice just fell.

Ok?

Danzo suddenly sensed something was wrong, and his laughter abruptly stopped.

Then, to his surprise, he discovered that his hands were covered with dense white snake scales. They spread at an extremely fast speed, soon covering most of his upper body along his arms.

"what happened?"

Danzo panicked a little, and then felt an itch on his face. It turned out that snake scales covered his entire face, leaving only one eye exposed.

The Sage Chakra within him is going out of control!

With a "bang," Danzo fell to the ground, for his legs had disappeared, replaced by a snake's tail.

His single eye's pupil also turned vertically, becoming a snake's eye.

Just as Orochimaru said, Danzo was too happy too soon.

During the cultivation of sage techniques, if one cannot withstand the absorption of natural energy, they will be mutated by it. On Mount Myōboku, this results in frogification, eventually turning into a frog statue; in Shikkotsu Forest, it results in the splitting of more organs and limbs, ultimately transforming into a fleshy monster; and in Ryūchi Cave—

The result is that they lose their minds and become half-human, half-snake monsters.

Moreover, the cultivation of immortal arts at Mount Myōboku and Shikkotsu Forest is at least a gradual process, and there is still a chance to recover when one is about to fail.

Ryuchi Cave is different; once it receives the natural energy infused by the White Snake Sage, there are only two possible outcomes:

It's either instant success or utter destruction.

"Help, help me..."

Danzo rolled and struggled on the ground in agony, letting out screams. At that moment, he seemed to be enduring the cruelest torture in the world, filled with fear and despair, and his voice grew weaker and weaker.

"It seems we've failed."

The White Snake Immortal's voice was indifferent, seemingly unsurprised by the outcome. It flicked its long tongue and instructed the three snake maidens beside it, "This fellow's meat is too tough; my teeth aren't strong enough to chew it, so I'll give it to you."

"whee."

Upon hearing this, the three snake princesses became excited and flicked their tongues, eyeing Danzo not far away.

To Obito and Nagato's astonishment, the three beautiful women instantly transformed, revealing their true forms just like the White Snake Sage.

Whoosh whoosh.

Three large snakes slithered across the ground and charged toward Danzo. They opened their gaping maws and quickly devoured Danzo.

Amidst a desperate scream, Danzo was torn into several pieces and swallowed by the three Snake Princesses.

Soon, Danzo disappeared from their sight, leaving only scraps of clothing and blood on the ground.

Danzo Shimura, the former Hokage's assistant and ambitious leader of Root, thus came to the end of his life, tragically perishing in the belly of a snake.

Witnessing Danzo's death, Obito and the other leaders' expressions changed, and they instinctively felt fear, afraid that the same fate would befall them.

Orochimaru, seeing Danzo dead, couldn't help but shake his head and sigh, a look of regret on his face. He turned to Obito and Nagato and said:

"This is the price of failure. Since ancient times, countless people have come to Ryuchi Cave in pursuit of the power of immortal arts, but very few have been able to return, because they have all become the White Serpent Sage and his subordinates' lunch... or dinner, whatever."

After hearing Orochimaru's words, even the resolute Nagato couldn't help but hesitate.

Obito silently retreated towards the temple entrance. Just moments ago, after careful consideration, he had decided to abandon his Sage Mode training.

For Obito, the most important thing was to survive and complete the Eye of the Moon Plan one day. There was no need to risk his life in a place like this.

However, Yongji-dong is not a public toilet that you can come and go as you please.

"It's your turn."

The White Snake Sage, high above, looked down at Obito and Nagato. When it noticed Obito trying to escape, a cold glint flashed in its snake eyes, and it said mockingly, "Little guy, where are you going?"

Before the words were even finished, its enormous serpentine body left the throne, opened its blood-red maw once more, and aimed its pair of sharp teeth at Obito's shoulder, biting at the latter.

To the White Snake Immortal's surprise, it missed its target this time.

Huh?

To its surprise, it discovered that Obito in front of it had become a phantom without a physical form, so much so that when it took a bite, it only bit into air.

"I want to leave, and even you, the White Snake Immortal, can't stop me."

Obito said proudly, his right eye had somehow transformed into a kaleidoscope pattern, clearly indicating that he had activated Kamui's intangibility ability.