"Shadow Clone Jutsu, Release!"
With a hand sign, a surge of natural energy pierced through space from afar, instantly flowing into Makiya's body.
Shikkotsu Forest, outside the small hut by the central lake.
Makiya, shirtless and sitting cross-legged facing the lake, meditated quietly with his eyes closed. Even as fallen leaves landed on his head, he remained undisturbed. His breathing was incredibly slow, as if he had merged with nature itself.
A small blue-and-white-striped Katsuyu crawled out from behind him and onto his back, nibbling on the leaves that fell on his head. Her two tentacles twitched, curiously sniffing Makiya's upper body.
Suddenly, the Makiya beneath her exploded into a cloud of white smoke. The natural energy accumulated over time followed the characteristics of the Shadow Clone, crossing time and space to return to Makiya's original body.
The little Katsuyu was startled. Upon realizing what happened, she murmured to herself, "Has Makiya-sama... encountered a powerful enemy?"
She knew how powerful Makiya was. To force him to consume a Shadow Clone for Sage Mode proved that his opponent was formidable.
"Makiya-sama's enemies are quite pitiful." The small Katsuyu turned back. In the vast Shikkotsu Forest, numerous wooden platforms had been built, and on each platform sat a Makiya cross-legged, quietly absorbing natural energy.
Inside the sealed cavern, Makiya pressed his palms together. Strange chakra fluctuations spread out, and eerie black markings appeared around his eyes, extending down to his cheeks.
"Sage Mode!"
This was a state that allowed the practitioner to utilize natural energy, which greatly enhanced physical vitality, recovery speed, and raw stats, while also expanding the reach and perception of taijutsu.
By mixing natural energy with chakra to form Sage Chakra, one's ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu would receive a massive power boost.
If the user's physique was highly compatible with a specific region's Sage Mode, they could gain unique abilities, such as Kabuto Yakushi's White Rage Technique or Inorganic Reanimation.
Sage Mode was undoubtedly one of the most powerful techniques in the ninja world, but its difficulty was immense. Even a genius like Minato had been stuck for a long time and still couldn't maintain the state for very long.
Makiya, whom Katsuyu called a genius, also couldn't directly absorb natural energy during battle to enter Sage Mode. He had to follow Naruto's method, preparing a large number of natural energy "batteries" to use as needed.
In Makiya's memory, the only shinobi who could enter Sage Mode instantly on their own was Hashirama. Everyone else had to rely on some sort of trick.
Maintaining Shadow Clones for long periods consumed a lot of energy and caused physical fatigue. Based on his analysis using cultivation methods from the Liao Zhai world, Makiya could guess the general reason.
The Sage Modes from the Three Great Sage Regions weren't entirely suited for the human body. Mount Myoboku's version caused Jiraiya and Naruto to develop toad-like features. When Makiya entered his version, not only did markings appear around his eyes, but his skin became moist. Ryuchi Cave's version was even more extreme—Kabuto Yakushi even grew horns.
Hashirama's Sage Mode was also different from Shikkotsu Forest's; he had likely modified it himself. For some reason, it wasn't passed down to Tsunade. Makiya made a mental note to ask Tsunade about it when he had the chance.
Relying on knowledge from multiple worlds, Makiya was currently working on modifying his own Sage Mode. However, it was still in the early experimental stages.
"Hmm?" Moryo frowned, noticing that the Makiya before him seemed to have changed into a different person. The aura he exuded was completely different. "Strange ninja, you can actually use natural energy."
Makiya's aura made Moryo uneasy. He glanced sideways. Miroku had already unfolded a massive sealing formation around herself. If he didn't interrupt her now, he didn't know how many years he'd have to wait for the next chance to break free.
Energy surged. At the stump where Makiya had severed his head, a massive dragon head regrew. Moryo opened his maw again, gathering purple-black energy within.
"Sage Art: Rising Sun Blade!"
A scorching sea of fire erupted from Makiya's mouth. Unlike the golden flames from before, white light began to spread through the golden inferno once Sage Chakra was added, eventually taking over.
The sea of fire churned. Every surge dyed the flames a pure white. Gradually, a massive white blade emerged from the fire like a sword of divine judgment, releasing rolling waves of heat.
Several of Makiya's Shadow Clones remained, each controlling a pure white Rising Sun Blade. The dangerous fluctuations grew in Moryo's eyes.
With the arrow notched, it had to fly. The dragon's maw spat out a concentrated torrent of purple-black energy, clashing against the white Rising Sun Blades.
The air instantly grew heavy. For a second, the world seemed to lose all sound. A single point of white light brewed at the center of the collision, then gradually expanded.
Boom!
The silence was followed by a colossal explosion. A destructive shockwave spread through the mountain, reigniting the cooling magma. The earth surged, and the thick mountain peak was blown open as energy vented toward the sky.
Like a volcanic eruption, the ground shook, and the clouds vanished. Massive amounts of lava shot into the sky, raining down like a brilliant display of fireworks.
Heatwaves rolled and dust filled the air. Tens of thousands of tons of earth and rock were tossed by the shockwave, only to fall back down, cratering the forest.
Once everything settled, the original sealed cavern was gone. Only the core area remained standing amidst the lava, protected by the combined efforts of Miroku and Makiya, creating a stark contrast with the deep pits of magma surrounding it.
Moryo's dragon heads were mostly gone. The only remaining one was riddled with holes, looking as if it might collapse at any moment.
Makiya's Shadow Clones popped one by one. The accumulated natural energy was spent, the black markings vanished, and he exited Sage Mode.
The natural energy in one Shadow Clone was only enough for one ultimate move, but it didn't matter. Makiya had plenty of chakra and clones, and there were many more batteries back in Shikkotsu Forest.
"Miroku, how are you doing?" Makiya landed in front of her.
The Priestess's appearance had changed drastically. Her robes had vanished under a mysterious power, replaced by a form-fitting outfit. White and purple patterns traced mysterious designs over the suit, making it look as if she was about to pilot a Gundam.
It really looked like a pilot suit.
A bright white halo appeared above Miroku's head. As the sealing formation unfolded, Makiya rubbed his chin and blinked, wondering if he was seeing things.
'It doesn't look like a seal; it looks more like an unsealing,' Makiya muttered.
He was no novice when it came to sealing arts. The techniques he'd learned from Minato and Kushina had long since been mastered, and the Uchiha clan also had its own unique seals. Many things in the ninja world were interconnected, and sealing arts were no exception.
"Yes, Shinobi-sama," Miroku said. Her physical stats seemed to have improved significantly in this state; even though Makiya spoke quietly, she still heard him.
The halo above her head grew brighter, reflecting light like Nick Fury standing under a lamp—it was blindingly bright.
Miroku looked at Makiya, her humanity gradually fading, replaced by a divine indifference. "The Priestess and Moryo are two sides of the same coin. To seal Moryo, one must first merge with it, then use absolute calm to discard all emotions and stray thoughts to complete the self-seal."
Makiya's mouth twitched. "Why does it have to be so complicated?"
Miroku slowly closed her eyes. "In ancient times, the power of the first Priestess was too great. To prevent the world from being destroyed by her own hands, she chose to split her body and spirit in two. The subsequent Priestesses have followed this decree to this day."
"I don't get your way of thinking." Makiya scratched his head. "So, what happens after the seal? Can you handle it?"
The previous battle had consumed much of Moryo's energy. Miroku should be able to gain the upper hand during the merger.
"I can. I'm sorry to have troubled you, Shinobi-sama," Miroku nodded. Though they hadn't spent much time together, Makiya's strength was deeply engraved in her heart. He had come all this way just to help, a kindness she could never repay.
As the light intensified, countless purple-black strands of energy shot into the air and merged into Miroku. The sealing ground returned to peace.
Miroku was completely enveloped in a blinding white-purple orb of light, looking like an energy being about to emerge from a cocoon.
Seeing that things were settled, Makiya brushed the dust off the casket that had held Moryo and sat down. He pulled out a sealing scroll and sealed a small clump of the purple-black energy inside.
This was his goal for the trip. Natural energy was strange; having more research samples meant more possibilities. One day, he would develop a Sage Mode meant for humans.
Just when Makiya thought it was over, an old voice erupted from the orb: "Hahaha, Miroku! You actually have such thoughts!"
"What? How?" Miroku's voice followed, sounding panicked.
"A Priestess who is supposed to be free of worldly desires has actually fallen for a mortal! That is your greatest weakness!" Moryo laughed triumphantly. "Have you forgotten my origin? My demonic energy amplifies your emotions. Even the smallest stray thought becomes a terrifying desire that consumes the heart. Miroku, your heart is in turmoil!"
The orb writhed, and Miroku was spat out, crashing into a pile of rubble.
In Makiya's perception, Moryo's aura rose even higher, becoming more than twice as strong as when they first met.
Boom!
Purple-black energy skyrocketed, and a hundred-meter-tall dragon appeared in the ninja world!
A revitalized Moryo felt that today was truly his lucky day. For a Priestess who followed such strict rules to make such a ridiculous mistake... it was only right that he consume her power and become a true god!
Moryo was about to let out a roar when he looked up. He found a black giant a head taller than himself, holding a long sword and looking down at him.
*Moryo: "???"*
*Where did this giant come from?*