In the garden of the Shadow Mansion.
"Daddy, Brother Sasuke asked me for guidance on Sage Arts. Do you think I should teach him?"
Nanaise's question made Ryun pause noticeably.
"He asked you for guidance on Sage Arts? So you didn't agree directly?"
Ryun thought that given Nanaise's personality, it was very likely she wouldn't refuse Sasuke's request for guidance. Why would she come ask him whether she should teach him?
"No, I didn't... I said I needed to ask you first. After all, you're the one who taught me the Sage Arts. I definitely had to ask for your opinion..."
If it were when she was little, Nanaise would have taught him without a second thought. But now that she had grown up, she would think things through before acting...
"Haha..."
Ryun suddenly laughed out loud.
He remembered back when he was in the Ninja Academy as a child, using shuriken throwing techniques to trick the redhead into teaching him her clan's secret sealing techniques. That big dummy Kushina had agreed almost without thinking...
He always felt his daughter's personality was like the redhead's. Yet, faced with a handsome guy's coaxing, his own daughter could stay clear-headed and think of his feelings first. It showed his years of doting on her weren't in vain.
Hearing this inexplicable laugh, Nanaise grew puzzled. "Daddy, what are you laughing about?"
"Nothing... I was just a bit surprised. After all, I heard from your mother... that you do have some fondness for that guy Sasuke."
"It's just that I feel like Daddy doesn't really like Brother Sasuke... If I taught him Sage Arts without your permission, I was afraid you'd be upset..."
The conversation between father and daughter was very straightforward, with no beating around the bush.
"When did I ever say I dislike Sasuke?" Ryun asked with an amused smile.
"You never said it. I just sensed it..." Nanaise shot him a glance and said casually.
"Then your senses might be wrong... That guy, aside from being a bit arrogant, really doesn't have any qualities that make me dislike him..."
Ryun genuinely didn't dislike that kid. After all, Uchiha Sasuke was one of the few youths in the entire ninja world with a normal, healthy worldview.
Sasuke was usually cold and liked to put on airs, but he never dared act aloof in front of Ryun's family. The one time he tried to show off his newfound Six Paths power in front of his uncle, he was thoroughly taught a lesson.
It was normal for him to hold a grudge against Ryun over his brother's death. If he could let it go, Ryun certainly wouldn't hold Sasuke's defiance against him either.
"Really? But why do I sometimes feel... the way you look at him... isn't very friendly?" It was a guarded look. Nanaise didn't know why her father had that look...
"Nonsense. Don't make things up..." Ryun flatly denied it.
"Alright... So, can I teach him Sage Arts or not?" Nanaise gave a helpless smile and brought the topic back to the beginning.
"I'll teach him... Go and call everyone from the Akatsuki, including Sasuke, Guy, Minato, Orochimaru, and the others..." Ryun planned to teach them the Sage Arts.
Not long after, everyone gathered in the Shadow Mansion garden as instructed. Ryun enveloped them all and used a space-time ninjutsu to bring them directly to Mount Myōboku.
Everyone was very surprised and curious upon arriving at the Mount Myōboku sacred land. However, upon hearing Ryun's purpose for bringing them here, they all grew excited.
"Quiet down, everyone. Next, I will teach you the methods of Immortal Cultivation. Listen well and learn carefully. This is a true path that can allow you to transcend the ordinary. As long as you are willing to diligently cultivate the Sage Arts, moving mountains, filling seas, roaming the heavens and earth, achieving immortality... these will no longer be just dreams!"
Ryun's words thoroughly ignited everyone's enthusiasm. A cultivation method from the world's number one War God. They never imagined their leader would be willing to selflessly teach such a heaven-defying skill.
"Ryun, the Sage Arts you speak of, could they be the kind of permanent Sage Mode that doesn't require activation?" Minato suddenly raised his hand and asked.
"Of course not Sage Mode. My Sage Arts can transform all the chakra within your bodies into Sage spiritual power. This spiritual power exists permanently. If you can learn and master it, you can become true immortals in the real sense!"
"Those who previously learned Sage Mode will not be hindered from continuing to cultivate my Sage Arts."
Ryun explained proactively. People like Minato and Orochimaru, who already knew Sage Mode, could learn Ryun's Immortal Cultivation methods with twice the result for half the effort because they understood natural energy. Ryun only needed to explain many concepts briefly for them to grasp them.
"The first step of Immortal Cultivation requires you to focus all your heart and mind to sense the formless, intangible natural energy existing between heaven and earth. This natural energy feels like a special gas drifting around you. What you must do is absorb this gas into your body and refine it. I call the first stage of Immortal Cultivation 'Qi Refinement'!"
Within Ryun's designated territory on Mount Myōboku, everyone sat cross-legged on the ground, listening to his teachings with rapt attention.
As he lightly waved his hand, the natural energy surrounding everyone instantly grew denser.
Ryun's teachings were extremely detailed and thorough. He broke down the complex Sage Arts step by step and laid them out before everyone. In that moment, even Orochimaru and Minato, who had already mastered Sage Mode, could gain new insights from this explanation.
In the distance, Fukasaku, the leader of Mount Myōboku, quietly watched this scene but did not cross the boundary to disturb the humans' cultivation.
As time passed, ten days went by in the blink of an eye. Orochimaru, this pseudo-sage who had mastered Sage Mode, was the first to completely refine his own chakra into Sage spiritual power, advancing directly into the late stage of Qi Refinement.
Following Orochimaru, Minato also completed the power transformation not long after, similarly becoming a late stage Qi Refinement cultivator. Both were filled with powerful Sage spiritual power. They felt themselves to be several times stronger than when they had previously activated Sage Mode!
Seeing the two dramatically increase their strength in just over ten days, everyone marveled at the power of the Sage Arts. People like Sasuke and Deidara were especially thrilled and cultivated with even more dedication and diligence.
"You have not yet reached the peak of the Qi Refinement stage, so you still need to continue working hard..." Half a month later, Ryun reappeared at Mount Myōboku and gave some affirmation of their achievements.
He had his own matters to attend to, so he wouldn't stay at Mount Myōboku all the time to supervise everyone's cultivation.
On ordinary days, if these people had questions they didn't understand, they could ask Orochimaru or Minato first. The two could basically answer in Ryun's stead.
In half a month, most people could only sense natural energy. Absorbing it into their bodies was not that simple. These people would probably have to stay at Mount Myōboku for a very long time!
Of course, Ryun's arrival not only allowed him to answer everyone's cultivation questions, but also to take away those who were unwilling to cultivate, or whose talent for cultivation was insufficient.
Among the Akatsuki members, Kakuzu was the first to give up. His existence was very special. The Jiongu gave him five hearts and a long lifespan, but it hindered his perception of natural energy. So in the end, he could only reluctantly choose to give up.
Ryun expressed understanding about this. After leaving, he took Kakuzu away from Mount Myōboku as well.
As soon as Kakuzu returned to the Village of Heaven, he headed straight for the national treasury. These past half month, he had practically been going crazy thinking about money...
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