Chapter 79 — "Flirting with the Sage While on a Date? Uchiha Yujiro, Even Madara Would Call You the Strongest!"
Shikkotsu Forest. Ryūchi Cave. Mount Myōboku.
The three legendary holy lands of the ninja world—renowned because of the Three Great Sannin—each stood as a symbol of a different philosophy.
But despite their shared prestige, they couldn't have been more different.
Mount Myōboku, the home of the Toad Sages, was the most sanctimonious of the trio—
full of rituals, wisdom, and self-proclaimed enlightenment.
It liked to act as though it were the moral compass of the entire world, the "Righteous Sect" among the Sage Lands.
Ryūchi Cave, on the other hand, was the total opposite—
brutal, straightforward, and unapologetically carnivorous.
The snakes there didn't care about cosmic balance or spiritual growth; they just wanted to eat people.
Lots of people.
And then there was Shikkotsu Forest—the laziest of them all.
The Slugs were neutral.
Supremely neutral.
They didn't take sides, didn't care for war or politics, and mostly spent their days lying around, doing absolutely nothing.
If the modern concept of "lying flat and waiting for death" ever needed a mascot, the Slugs of Shikkotsu Forest would be its perfect ambassadors.
So when Yujiro proposed his latest "business plan"—a licensing deal to mass-produce Shikkotsu-brand beauty products using "slug secretions"—
the Great Slug Sage barely batted an eye.
The ancient creature simply looked at Tsunade, sighed contentedly, and said in its slow, echoing voice:
"It's good to see you've found your path again, child. If it helps you, then take what you need.
Use our name however you wish… so long as it's not for evil."
And just like that, Yujiro got the exclusive right to the Shikkotsu Forest trademark—
no contracts, no paperwork, no lawyers, just a verbal nod from a thousand-year-old mollusk.
For centuries, Shikkotsu Forest had maintained a close alliance with the Senju Clan.
Back in the Warring States era, when the Senju and Uchiha clans were locked in endless bloodshed,
the slugs had fought alongside the Senju—
hurling themselves at Sharingan users with suicidal enthusiasm.
Legend even said that Hashirama Senju, the First Hokage, had trained within Shikkotsu Forest itself,
mastering perfect Sage Mode there—
which explained his absurd, godlike chakra reserves.
Whether that legend was true or not didn't matter—
for Yujiro, the mere idea of it made his heart race.
"Perfect Sage Mode…"
"That's the real deal."
He had seen its power firsthand.
During the battle between the Sannin and Pain, Yujiro had witnessed how Jiraiya-sensei's entire presence transformed once he entered Sage Mode.
Before entering it, Jiraiya had been "merely" a high-level Kage-tier ninja.
But the moment he activated it—
"Bam. Boom. Holy crap."
The man became a walking artillery unit.
Sage Art: Super Big Ball Rasengan.
Sage Art: Goemon.
The sheer destructive force of those jutsu was awe-inspiring.
Sure, in terms of precision, his own Lightning-Fire Dual Blade (Stacked Box Style) outperformed them easily.
But in area-of-effect devastation?
Yujiro had to admit—he couldn't compete.
"Sage Arts… Natural Energy… man, it's incredible.
If only there were a version of Sage Mode with no prep time, no hand signs, and no limits."
As they left Shikkotsu Forest behind, Yujiro spoke the words wistfully, almost like a poet.
Tsunade tilted her head, curious.
"Then why not ask the Great Slug Sage to teach you Sage Mode?"
Yujiro rubbed his chin.
"Mm… well, let's just say my ambitions are a little bigger than that."
"Bigger?" she raised a brow. "Don't tell me—you're aiming for Grandpa's power?
You realize perfect Sage Mode isn't something you can just train into, right? You need freakish talent."
Yujiro smiled, eyes flashing with confidence.
"And I happen to think my talent's freakish enough.
Why shouldn't I try?"
Tsunade stared at him for a long time, speechless.
The man had dragged her across countries for business deals,
flirted with divine creatures for licensing rights,
and now he was talking about surpassing the God of Shinobi himself—
with a straight face.
For a moment, she didn't know whether to laugh, slap him, or… something else entirely.
Still, one undeniable truth hovered in her mind as she watched him walk ahead, the sunset painting his back in gold:
He really might do it.
Even Madara, wherever he was watching from the Pure Land, would've probably sighed and muttered—
"Tch. This brat Yujiro… even I must call him the strongest."
When Yujiro boldly declared that he had "a cheat," Tsunade could only stare at him, speechless.
She wanted to say, "If you really have one, then why haven't you sensed a single drop of natural energy yet?"
Perfect Sage Mode—true, natural Sage Mode—didn't rely on the mediation of Mount Myōboku, Ryūchi Cave, or Shikkotsu Forest.
Those who could achieve it simply felt the flow of nature through their bodies.
It wasn't something you learned.
It was something you were born for.
As everyone in the shinobi world had said a thousand times before—
the terrifying thing wasn't Wood Release itself.
It was Hashirama Senju, the man who wielded it.
Yujiro just smiled.
"Doesn't matter. I've got a plug-in."
"You're doing that weird nonsense-talk again," Tsunade sighed. "Sometimes I really can't tell if you're a genius or just insane."
She shook her head, half-exasperated, half-fond.
He was impossible.
Wild, reckless, and absolutely unpredictable—
but that was exactly what made him so damn charming.
"So," Yujiro said cheerfully, "where to next? Mount Myōboku or Ryūchi Cave?"
"Does it matter?" Tsunade replied with a helpless shrug. "Honestly, you make it sound like we're running a sales route. Maybe we should try going somewhere that isn't full of giant monsters."
Her tone was light, but her thoughts weren't.
What she really wanted was to spend time with him somewhere peaceful—
somewhere with hot springs, soft lights, and no ambushes.
You know, an actual honeymoon, she thought bitterly. Not… this.
But Yujiro, of course, pretended not to notice.
"Alright then, Ryūchi Cave it is!" he announced decisively.
Tsunade blinked.
"You didn't even—"
Too late. He was already walking.
In truth, Mount Myōboku's toad oil and Shikkotsu's slug mucin were just flashy gimmicks.
The real treasure lay in Ryūchi Cave's snake venom—a natural compound with staggering potency.
Properly refined, it could heal, kill, or empower—depending on dosage and technique.
And more importantly, it was the key ingredient in one of the most profitable products of Uchiha Pharmaceuticals:
Ryūchi Cave Vitality Tonic — the one and only genuine snake-based stamina booster.
As Yujiro himself liked to brag,
"If it's not from Ryūchi Cave, it's just powdered lizard skin!"
Normally, he procured the ingredients through Orochimaru's connections.
But since the snake sage was now busy building a new laboratory (and possibly creating his next moral crisis),
Yujiro had no choice but to make the trip himself.
Tsunade frowned when she heard that.
"You'd better be careful. Mount Myōboku would be fine, but Ryūchi Cave… that's a different story.
As the current Shikkotsu Forest contractor, I'm basically a natural enemy to those snakes.
If I go with you, we'll be fighting before we even get through the door."
Yujiro chuckled.
"Then maybe I'll just—wait, what's that sound?"
The two exchanged a sharp glance.
In an instant, their casual air vanished—replaced by quiet focus.
The Ryūchi Cave and Mount Myōboku existed in hidden pocket dimensions, folded away from the real world.
But Shikkotsu Forest, though mystical, still existed in a tangible location:
the northern marshlands of the Land of Fire.
It was a treacherous place—vast wetlands covered in mist and decay,
dense forests growing out of bog water, and countless islands scattered like broken mirrors across the surface.
For ordinary people, it was uninhabitable.
Even for shinobi, moving through it was slow and dangerous.
So if there was a fight happening here…
there was only one possible explanation.
Ninjas.
And judging from the location, it could only be Kumogakure—though Kirigakure or Iwagakure weren't impossible either.
Either way, it meant one thing:
someone was trespassing on Fire Country's soil.
Yujiro narrowed his eyes.
Tsunade's brow furrowed.
Then, without a word, they nodded to each other.
Both of them were action-first types.
Once the plan was set, they launched forward—swift as lightning.
Yujiro might not be the Yellow Flash, but his short-range speed was monstrous.
Even while carrying Tsunade, he tore across the marshlands like a thunderclap—
easily hitting 580 kilometers per hour on foot.
Within moments, they reached the source of the disturbance.
The sounds grew louder: the crackle of jutsu, the splash of mud, the clash of chakra.
A fierce battle was underway.
Yujiro's eyes lit up.
"If it's Konoha shinobi fighting enemy forces, that's perfect!
We can save the day and boost morale again!"
But when they broke through the treeline, what they saw made both of them freeze.
Yujiro blinked. Then his grin widened.
"Oh-ho… this looks interesting."
Tsunade's face darkened instantly.
"No. No, it doesn't."
Because the battle wasn't between Konoha and invaders—
…it was between two beautiful women.