[Check Out My P@treon For +20 Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!! For $5][www.p@treon.com/zaelum] [Thank You For Your Support!]
Everything went smoothly, and Kyomu formed a contract with the Ryuuchi's Cave.
However, whether he could gain recognition, and be able to summon a stronger snake, required Kyomu to personally visit the Ryuuchi's Cave.
But obviously, Kyomu didn't want to go yet. Just as Kyomu was about to leave Orochimaru's camp, he suddenly felt a faintly cold smirk behind him.
His heart jolted; Kyomu hadn't even reacted yet when a summoning jutsu appeared beneath his feet.
Thunk.~
His body abruptly turned into a cloud of smoke and dissipated on the spot, and the summoning jutsu that had just appeared vanished right after.
This was the reverse summoning jutsu from the Ryuuchi's Cave, one of the privileges of the three major summoning beast sanctuaries.
Not only could they refuse the summoning of contract shinobi, unilaterally release of the summoning, but they could also summon the contracted shinobi to their presence at any time, anywhere, as they pleased.
"Heh." Orochimaru stuck out his tongue to lick his lips. "Kyomu-kun, I forgot to tell you something. The White Snake Sage of the Ryuuchi's Cave isn't as gentle as the other two sages.
If your strength isn't enough, or if they don't like you, you might not come back."
With a smirk, Orochimaru rolled up the huge summoning scroll and swallowed it whole.
"If you gain the White Snake Sage's approval, then I think you're truly qualified to have a face-to-face conversation with me." Orochimaru wiped his mouth. "You need to show me your worth and prove that you're the wind we're waiting for.
Otherwise... hehe."
With a cold smirk, Orochimaru no longer paid attention to Kyomu, who had been reverse summoned, and turned to deal with the military affairs at hand.
After witnessing the fragility of life during the Second Great War following the death of Nawaki, Orochimaru had completely changed.
While researching how life could persist indefinitely, he was also constantly searching for people who could prove another meaning of life, the "wind" he often spoke of, capable of stirring up waves.
And Kyomu was the first subject Orochimaru was testing.
---
"I got reverse summoned?, but why did I appear in mid-air? The height from the ground must be at least a kilometer?!"
Kyomu cursed inwardly, but he wasn't panicked.
He knew Orochimaru was difficult to deal with, and he knew the White Snake Sage of the Ryuuchi's Cave had a very bad temperament. But without a reliance, how could he face the tiger?
His passive skills this month were his confidence, and Yoei was his ace in the hand!
Kyomu had always acted steadily.
Clang.~
Yoei instantly unsheathed, and Kyomu slashed down fiercely beneath him.
The blade's chakra wrapped in a burst of air rushed downwards, but the resulting reaction force slowed Kyomu's descent.
However, one slash was obviously not enough, but Kyomu wasn't in a hurry. His mindset was as calm as an old dog's.
What's the rush? There's still over eight hundred meters to the ground. One slash for every hundred meters of descent is more than enough to support a stable landing.
As for whether the terrain of the Ryuuchi's Cave would be damaged, Kyomu couldn't care less.
Swish, another slash, and Kyomu's descending speed was once again significantly reduced. The whistling wind around his ears quieted down a lot.
Below, not far from where Kyomu was falling, stood three beauties, each one exquisite, and dressed in extremely classical attire, belonging to the style of ancient beauties.
All three wore golden crown ornaments on their heads, giving them a mysterious and solemn aura. Their differently colored hair and unique earrings indicated their distinctly different personalities.
"This contractee has quite the quality."
The one in the center, who looked like a flower, couldn't help but extend her forked red tongue to lick her lips. "I really want to taste his flesh and chakra. I wonder what it tastes like."
"Ichikishimahime, you ate the last one. This one should be mine."
The mature beauty standing to the left spoke, looking towards the other elegant beauty standing to her right.
"Hey, Tagorihime, what do you think?"
"I don't care." Tagorihime's voice was soft and gentle, but the next moment, her expression immediately changed, "But you definitely can't beat me, right, Tagitsuhime? Haha, hahaha..."
While Tagorihime's laughed, her dignified beautiful face suddenly transformed into a half-human, half-snake appearance, the sudden change of expression could give someone a heart attack.
"It's hard to say." Ichikishimahime, the little Lolita, shook her head. "Let's just wait. It's such a long time, and it's so boring. We should find some amusement for ourselves."
Tagorihime floated off the ground, gracefully swaying with the wind as she returned to her own abode.
Ichikishimahime remained in place; she still had to take Kyomu, who had been reverse summoned, to meet the White Snake Sage.
Boom!~
Three seconds later, continuous flashes of blades struck the earth, and Kyomu's body, rapidly descending, used the reaction force to hover three meters above the ground.
Sheathing his blade, Kyomu executed a very elegant somersault landing. Not only was his posture graceful, but his landing was also very stable.
However, after landing, Kyomu remained vigilant, looking around at the sudden appearance of the thin mist.
His right shoulder was suddenly tapped.
Kyomu quickly turned his head in the opposite direction, not subconsciously adhering to conventions but following the position where his shoulder was tapped.
Locking gazes, Kyomu found himself staring into the face of the beautiful Ichikishimahime
Ichikishimahime first froze, then instantly changed her expression. The delicate face immediately turned into a terrifying half-human, half-snake appearance, showing her expertise in frightening people.
However, Kyomu's eyes remained unchanged. His sixth sense clearly told him that the lolita in front of him didn't harbor any malice; all she had was a mischievous interest.
"Boring."
Seeing Kyomu's calmness, Ichikishimahime's mood dropped slightly.
Returning to her original appearance, Ichikishimahime circled around Kyomu, scrutinizing him from head to toe.
"Why didn't you turn right when you were tapped just now?" She asked curiously.
"When I was a kid playing with others, I also liked to tap the right shoulder and dodge to the left." Kyomu smiled. "I stopped playing that trick five years ago. It's boring."
Ichikishimahime glared at Kyomu; she knew what Kyomu was implying.
"If it weren't for the White Snake Sage's orders, I would have pulled you into my trial and played with you." Ichikishimahime made another intimidating snake face. "I bet you'd be delicious!"
"But I think frog meat tastes better than human flesh."
Kyomu showed no fear towards Ichikishimahime, not just because of her intimidating appearance but more importantly, her personality.
From her initial actions, Kyomu understood that Ichikishimahime was someone who hadn't seen much of the world and was very playful.
"Have you eaten frog meat?"
Ichikishimahime suddenly became interested. The white phosphorus giant snakes in the Dragon Earth Cave have always been mortal enemies with the toads of Myobokuzan.
Compared to eating humans, Ichikishimahime prefers to catch a few toads from Myobokuzan to feast on.
However, things are different now. Since the incident a thousand years ago, she hasn't hunted Myobokuzan toads again.
Of course, when encountering someone who has eaten toads, she's interested in asking about it.
Ichikishimahime opened up, and Kyomu's path suddenly widened because of it.
"So that's how you roast them, huh? I used to swallow them whole."
"Swallowing them whole might be rustic, but toads have many parasites in their bodies, unclean," Kyomu tactfully appealed to her interests.
"Exactly!" Ichikishimahime agreed with Kyomu's statement, "Toads are the dirtiest, so they need to be cleaned before eating."
"If you like, I can roast some for you, and I have a hundred ways to cook toads," Kyomu looked around, "Do we have any here? I'll cook some for you."
"We don't," Ichikishimahime shook her head.
But the next moment, she put away her greedy expression and became serious again.
Although she wanted to chat with Kyomu about the hundred ways to eat toads, the situation didn't allow it; she had other things to attend to.
"You, calm down a bit," staring at Kyomu, "Come with me, the White Snake Sage wants to see you."
"Is this Dragon Earth Cave?" Kyomu followed, "I thought you were the White Snake Sage just now, after all, you have an extraordinary aura."
Ichikishimahime felt pleased, but she still warned Kyomu with a glance, "Remember, I am Ichikishimahime , one of the three elders of Dragon Earth Cave, a subordinate of the White Snake Sage. Don't get confused."
"I remember," Kyomu nodded, following Ichikishimahime, without any further communication.
In no time, Ichikishimahime led Kyomu to a cave, pointing her hand, "This is the residence of the White Snake Sage. Hurry in, don't keep her waiting."
Kyomu nodded, but as soon as he took the first step, he was unexpectedly kicked by Ichikishimahime without warning.
Staggering, accompanied by Ichikishimahime's playful laughter behind him, Kyomu rushed into the residence of the White Snake Sage.
Just as he steadied himself, he looked up and saw a white giant snake on the throne, the size of ten thousand snakes.
Opening its lazy snake eyes, the White Snake Sage spat out snake words, "Your name is Aragami Kyomu?"
"Yes, White Snake Sage."
The snake eyes turned slightly, and the White Snake Sage had already scrutinized Kyomu up and down, "Not bad, you have some talent, stronger than Orochimaru."
Kyomu felt pleased, knowing what the White Snake Sage meant.
But as if seeing through people's hearts, the White Snake Sage continued, "But don't be too happy too soon. Just having the qualification is not enough; whether you can survive in the future depends on your performance."
"White Snake Sage, I don't understand."
"Not understanding is fine. You just need to know that we in Dragon Earth Cave don't keep idlers," the White Snake Sage's voice turned cold, "Except for Orochimaru as a special case, no one who fails the assessment has survived."
Kyomu was about to sneer inwardly, but he quickly cut off his thoughts.
And what Kyomu just thought of was Sasuke in the future. He didn't practice the techniques of Dragon Earth Cave, but he still lived well in the end, didn't he?
But thinking about it carefully, it was understandable. With Sasuke's identity, the White Snake Sage didn't dare to act rashly, but she wouldn't care too much either.
"Rest assured, White Snake Sage, I will work hard," Kyomu hurriedly said.
"It depends on your performance," the White Snake Sage closed her eyes, "I'll give you a chance. Behind my residence is the Forest of Ten Thousand Snakes. Whether you can win their favor depends on your ability.
And remember, on the day you come of age, remember to come to me voluntarily. If you're late, you won't have to live anymore."
With a sudden flick of her tail, Kyomu was knocked out of the residence like a ball, rolling on the ground like a gourd for four or five laps before the force on his body dissipated, and he crawled up from the ground with both hands and feet.
The attitude was quite nasty, but there was a lot of information in the words.
It was obvious that Dragon Earth Cave was also looking for a suitable human to inherit their techniques, but after thousands of years, there were still no suitable candidates.
This was mainly due to the cold and ruthless nature of snakes, which led to their bad reputation among humans despite being one of the three great sanctuaries.
After all, who dares to make a contract with the Giant Snakes, which would eat the contractor at any moment?
"Hehe, what did the White Snake Sage say to you, little Kyomu?" Ichikishimahime floated over, smiling.
"She asked me to come back for a test when I come of age."
"That's great," Ichikishimahime's smile widened on her face, "I can't eat toads, but tasting you isn't that bad.
And I've decided to use the charcoal-grilled method you mentioned, with... um, what was it?"
"Cumin and chili powder," Kyomu didn't back down at all, "With my unique sauce, the taste will definitely be great."
Sizzle.
Ichikishimahime licked her tongue, clearly salivating.
"Ichikishimahime, before you eat me, would you like to go out and see the world with me?"
"Do you look down on me?" Ichikishimahime narrowed her eyes, "Mind your words! I've been alive for thousands of years, dare you say I haven't seen the world?!"
"It's not that kind of world, but the hundred ways to eat toads."
"Aren't you afraid of offending Myobokuzan?" Ichikishimahime's eyes lit up, unable to resist licking her lips, "I still remember the taste when I first ate Myobokuzan toads a thousand years ago."
Turning her head, Ichikishimahime looked at Kyomu very seriously, "And you don't want to try to communicate with me to assist you in battle?"
"I do have such a thought," Kyomu nodded frankly, "I can't find anything appealing among the snakes in the Forest of Ten Thousand Snakes, only you, Ichikishimahime, barely suit my taste."
"Haha, hahaha!" Ichikishimahime laughed heartily, then her expression suddenly turned cold, "Do you think you can impress me? In my eyes, you're just a two-legged walking food, no different from a toad!"
"But before you eat me, I'll let you taste the hundred ways to eat toads," Kyomu remained calm, "At least before you eat me, you won't be so bored."
Ichikishimahime's expression softened slightly, but there was a hint of playfulness in her eyes, "Little Kyomu, if you want to communicate with me, it's okay, but the snakes in the Forest of Ten Thousand Snakes, you have to help me teach them a lesson."
"That's no problem," Kyomu was full of confidence; he wasn't afraid of anyone now.
Of course, maybe not next month.
"And every time you call me out, you must offer some uniquely flavored toads. Unless you meet my requirements, the flavor cannot be repeated."
"That's also no problem," Kyomu readily agreed, already celebrating in his heart.
Successfully lured a Dragon Earth Cave elder!
(End of Chapter)