Chapter 96: Returning as a Sage
"Kabuto, I never expected you to master Sage Mode so quickly. Among humans, you must truly be considered a genius."
A gentle, mature voice echoed through the misty expanse of the Shikkotsu Forest.
It belonged to none other than the Slug Sage. Unlike the youthful and childlike tone of the smaller slugs Kabuto and Tsunade often summoned, the true voice of the Slug Sage was that of a composed, refined woman.
At this moment, Kabuto stood atop her massive body—no different than a lone person standing atop a mountain.
Due to entering Sage Mode, Kabuto's face bore deep brown eye-shadow markings and facial lines—one of the clearest signs of successful sage transformation.
What made Kabuto's achievement even more impressive was that he had not relied on the Slug Sage to help him gather and balance natural energy. He had done it all on his own—a feat that even Jiraiya had not accomplished. His control surpassed Jiraiya's by far.
Moved by the praise, Kabuto responded with humble gratitude:
"This is all thanks to your patient guidance, Slug Sage."
Then he asked, curious, "Has anyone else ever trained under you in Sage Arts? Was one of them Lady Tsunade?"
The Slug Sage's voice answered from above:
"There have been three humans who trained in Sage Arts with me. Aside from you, there was Tsunade… and her grandfather, Hashirama."
"Unfortunately, Tsunade was never able to complete the training and did not achieve sage transformation."
Kabuto felt a pang of regret for Tsunade. But at the same time, his heart swelled with a quiet confidence.
After all, in just a month, he had completed a form of training that even the legendary Tsunade could not.
Emboldened, he asked again, a bit more eagerly:
"Then how long did Lord Hashirama take to enter Sage Mode?"
The Slug Sage responded, "About the same as you. Both of you were very fast. If I recall correctly… he took around half an hour."
Kabuto froze.
At first, he had been pleased to hear that the First Hokage had taken a similar amount of time. But now—half an hour?
He had taken a month.
The discrepancy was staggering. Yet, ever insightful, Kabuto quickly understood the perspective.
To an ancient being like the Slug Sage, who had lived beyond countable lifespans, a month and half an hour might truly feel no different.
"As expected of the First Hokage… I'm still far from that level," Kabuto murmured in admiration.
"To be able to balance natural energy so effortlessly…"
The Slug Sage added with a soft explanation:
"Hashirama was unlike you. He didn't even need to train."
"His chakra was so vast that no amount of natural energy could overwhelm it. He didn't have to worry, as you did, about failing to balance nature energy and chakra. For others, a misstep in that balance leads to disaster—being consumed by nature and turned into lifeless wood."
With that, she explained why Hashirama's path into Sage Mode had been so natural, so effortless.
Kabuto, in awe, clenched his fists—not in frustration, but in renewed determination.
He wasn't born with godlike chakra.
But he would become someone who could stand at the same height. One step at a time.
Kabuto couldn't help but marvel at the overwhelming power of the First Hokage. At the same time, his thoughts drifted to the Dual Polarity Curse Seal he had previously developed alongside his former teacher.
After respectfully bidding farewell to the Slug Sage, Kabuto made his way back to Konoha, brimming with excitement. Unbeknownst to him, during his brief absence, war had erupted—Konoha was now engaged in battles with both Kumogakure and Kirigakure. The village was once again in a state of war.
"I should check in on Lord Fourth first," Kabuto thought to himself. "His recovery stalled while I was away. But with the healing sage arts I just mastered, his treatment should now be twice as effective."
Meanwhile, in a small grove at the outskirts of the Hidden Leaf, two young boys were engaged in a showdown—each determined to settle the score once and for all.
Those boys were none other than Naruto and Sasuke.
Perhaps the lingering chakra of Indra and Asura truly did draw them together, because despite their constant arguments and scuffles, Naruto and Sasuke had already recognized each other as worthy rivals.
Though they bickered often, anyone could tell they shared a strong bond.
Their "referee" today was none other than Yota, the boy currently living at Yusuke's house and blessed with a weather-manipulating kekkei genkai—along with a few hidden ANBU operatives watching from the shadows to protect Naruto, the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki.
Yota had originally been closer with Naruto—and had even roughed Sasuke up once—but kids moved on quickly. Before long, even Sasuke and Yota had become good friends.
So, when Naruto and Sasuke planned this duel, they asked their mutual friend Yota to serve as the judge.
"Sasuke, we may be friends, but I won't go easy on you today!" Naruto said boldly, arms crossed, shouting with confidence.
Sasuke stood there with hands in his pockets, a smirk tugging at his lips.
"Hmph. Do you even know who the strongest person in Konoha is right now?"
Naruto burst into laughter. "Everyone knows that! It's the Third Hokage, of course! And one day I'll be Hokage too!"
"Short-sighted." Sasuke replied coolly. "The Hokage is strong, yes—but that doesn't make him the strongest. I'll tell you right now, the true number one in Konoha... is an Uchiha."
Sasuke would never forget that night—when Obito attacked, and Yusuke returned like a god of fire descending from the heavens. Just the sight of him had sent Obito fleeing in panic.
And within the Uchiha clan, tales of Yusuke's overwhelming power during the annihilation of Root still echoed. To Sasuke and many others, Uchiha Yusuke, their clan head, was already the undisputed strongest shinobi in the village.
Seeing Sasuke's proud expression and calm tone, Naruto's face grew serious. A bead of cold sweat slid down his forehead.
He swallowed. "…Wait… don't tell me… it's you?"
The moment those words left Naruto's mouth, Yota—who had been watching from a nearby tree—fell off and landed headfirst, a massive bump swelling on his head. Even the ANBU hidden nearby were left speechless, sweatdropping in unison.
Lifting his chin with pride, Sasuke scoffed, "I will be Konoha's strongest one day. But right now, the title belongs to our Uchiha clan leader—Lord Yusuke!"
Naruto scratched his head and muttered, "Then what's that got to do with you? The way you were talking, I thought you meant yourself."
Sasuke, realizing he may have oversold it, flushed slightly. "Enough talk! Let's settle this with our fists!"
Twenty minutes later—
"This round goes to Naruto!"
Yota raised Naruto's bruised and battered hand high in the air, officially declaring him the victor.
"Hahaha! Sasuke, I won this time!" Naruto laughed triumphantly over Sasuke's beaten form lying on the ground.
Sasuke's left cheek was swollen, his eyes spinning, unable to get up.
He was still dazed from the fight. He had dominated the battle from start to almost-finish, giving Naruto a solid thrashing—until exhaustion hit him, and Naruto landed one lucky punch.
And that was all it took. The rest was a blur.
"You damn bastard… how are you this hard to knock out?" Sasuke groaned in frustration.
Whatever else could be said, when it came to sheer durability—Sasuke had to admit, Naruto had him beat.