Did Hagoromo have some kind of grudge with Manda?
Honestly, he didn't have any particular memory of it. He'd fought too many giant beasts over the years—after a certain point, they all blurred together.
If there really was a conflict, then the most likely explanation was that at some point he'd casually cut Manda once without thinking too much about it.
Hagoromo hadn't suffered any loss, so he naturally didn't care.
But Manda—being the victim—remembered it perfectly clearly.
After all, even his father had never beaten him that hard.
Getting cut open like a forced cesarean section wasn't something you just forgot.
So when the two encountered each other somewhere within Ryūchi Cave, hatred wasn't the only thing in Manda's eyes.
There was resentment.
"I've come here on business," Hagoromo said casually.
"I don't have time to deal with you. If you're smart… well, if I were you, I'd turn around and leave."
"To be honest—this time, I'm actually a little hungry."
His tone was indifferent.
Manda simply wasn't worth serious attention.
Regardless of strength, summoned beasts weren't humans. Did they really have that many schemes and calculations?
Hagoromo truly hadn't eaten all day. Hunger was natural. And sometimes, compared to popping soldier pills, self-sufficiency was a better option.
Now here came Snake Express, delivering fresh chilled meat straight to his doorstep.
Wasn't that basically forcing him to accept the package?
Still, Manda was Orochimaru's summon. Killing it without warning felt… slightly inappropriate.
So Hagoromo gave a token warning.
After all, imagine Orochimaru trying to summon Manda in the future—
And absolutely nothing shows up.
That awkward silence alone would be priceless. Orochimaru's pale face would probably twitch on its own.
"Brat," Manda hissed,
"I remember your chakra perfectly. I don't know why you're in Ryūchi Cave, but my luck is good today."
"I'm going to chew you up… and then swallow you."
Chew?
Why not swallow him whole?
That, too, was a tragic story—but more importantly… could snakes even chew?
"So it's going to be like this," Hagoromo sighed.
This time, he was genuinely helpless.
He wanted to coexist peacefully. The other side refused.
Leaving Orochimaru aside for now, Hagoromo had business with the White Snake Sage. Was it really appropriate to kill her subordinate right now?
Appropriate or not—
He'd deal with it first.
"Snake Uncle above, thick earth below," Hagoromo muttered,
"this one's really not on me."
He reached behind him. With the rasp of steel sliding free, he drew his long blade, flipped his wrist, and leveled it straight at Manda.
At the same time, Manda's massive head smashed downward toward him—
The same move as always.
But it couldn't be helped. No hands, no feet—limited attack patterns.
And then—
There was no "then."
Against Hagoromo's background music, Manda surviving even two seconds would've been generous. This was someone who traded blows with tailed beasts. If killing Manda required a second strike, that would've been embarrassing.
When Manda's head slammed into the ground, something astonishing happened.
At the moment of impact, the recoil force sent his own head flying off.
True decapitation.
The massive body writhed violently, thrashing and convulsing—mere nerve reflexes after the loss of its central nervous system. Blood sprayed freely, like it cost nothing.
Half a minute later, what remained of Manda finally went still.
The facts proved something simple:
You don't always have to strike a snake's vital point.
Like most living things, if you cut off the head, it dies.
The smooth, circular cut around Manda's neck was the result of Hagoromo's casual, almost careless strike.
Draw blade.
Slash.
Sheathe blade.
Step back to avoid blood splatter.
A few simple motions—
And Manda was undeniably dead.
Which tasted better—Manda or a Sea King?
A question worth researching. But looking at the corpse soaking in a pool of dark-red blood, and the severed head staring blankly from a distance, Hagoromo decided to just eat a soldier pill instead.
Snake meat was troublesome. Rumor had it that parasites were common, and most people had an instinctive aversion to eating long, cylindrical creatures.
Manda was the strongest summon in this area of Ryūchi Cave. Seeing him killed instantly, the other hidden snakes made an extremely correct decision—
They fled.
Lingering for even one extra second was tempting fate.
After killing Manda, Hagoromo didn't leave immediately. Instead, he sat down cross-legged nearby.
He needed to replenish natural energy to sustain Sage Mode for an extended period. In a hidden realm like this, the density of natural energy far exceeded the outside world.
It wasn't that he enjoyed sitting next to a corpse—
But Manda's lingering aura acted as a deterrent. Nothing would dare approach, ensuring he wouldn't be disturbed.
"Alright," Hagoromo said, refreshed after absorbing natural energy,
"next, I'll use Sage Mode's sensory perception to locate the White Snake Sage."
He re-entered Sage Mode.
"But before that…"
He walked back to Manda's body, drew his blade again, and sliced off a thick ring of snake meat—like cutting a massive donut—lifting it with the sword's tip.
When visiting a Sage, it was polite to bring a gift.
Even if it was locally sourced fresh meat, surely she wouldn't mind.
After all—it's the thought that counts.
Ryūchi Cave was labyrinthine and endlessly winding. Even with Sage Mode's broad perception, Hagoromo wandered for a long time, replenishing energy several times, without finding the White Snake Sage.
Just as he began wondering if killing Manda too hastily had been a mistake—maybe that snake knew something—
He sensed something unusual.
There were traces of artificial construction.
Carrying the snake meat like a giant lantern, Hagoromo walked toward it.
The first thing he saw was a colossal statue standing upright—neither snake nor dragon. In its mouth was a cylindrical scroll engraved with three characters:
Ryūchi Cave.
Below the statue stood a massive stone platform.
And atop that platform—
Coiled the upper body of an enormous white snake.
White scales, encircled at intervals by yellow ring-like ornaments. Black horns crowned its head, along with a spherical adornment.
As a snake—
It even had hair.
This creature was several times larger than Manda. The portion coiled on the platform was only a fraction of its body; most of it hung below, out of sight.
Everything matched the descriptions Hagoromo had read in the secret scrolls.
This had to be the White Snake Sage.
The moment he entered the chamber, a pair of cold, vertical pupils locked onto him.
"Uh…" Hagoromo said awkwardly,
"gift. Want some?"
Interacting with a creature like this was… a bit disorienting.
But feeding snakes other snakes wasn't taboo. Serpents didn't shy away from cannibalism.
The slow writhing, layered swallowing—one snake consuming another of equal size from head to tail—was a spectacle of nature. Legend had it that watching it up close could cure OCD…
Though it might also induce neurosis.
The White Snake Sage didn't even glance at the piece of Manda.
Instead, her oppressive voice echoed through the chamber.
"You can use senjutsu, child. Why have you come before me?"
"Your answer will determine your fate."
Pure final-boss energy.
Oddly enough, that made things easier for Hagoromo. He liked dealing with villains.
"As expected—you are the White Snake Sage," he said calmly.
"I came here for one simple reason."
"I have a question."
"A question?" the White Snake Sage replied coldly.
"Unfortunately, I have no obligation to answer you."
She knew the shinobi world intimately, but had no duty to explain anything. Her massive body shifted slightly—clearly preparing to strike.
"That's true," Hagoromo agreed.
"You have no obligation."
"But when two beings meet, and one seeks something from the other—like now—then things depend on relative strength."
"If our power were equal, you could stay silent. There would be no consequences."
"If you were stronger than me, I'd probably die—which is exactly what you're considering."
"But if I am stronger than you…"
"Then what I want to know—you must answer."
Lightning flared around Hagoromo's body as Sage Mode surged, illuminating the dark chamber with crackling brilliance.
The White Snake Sage might have lived for a thousand years—
But longevity didn't automatically equal superiority.
Even tailed beasts had existed for ages.
And could she really be that much stronger than them?
Hagoromo's stance was crystal clear.
He didn't want unnecessary talk.
He would get the information he wanted.
And if she chose silence—
He'd kill her.
At this point, it was genuinely difficult to tell—
Which of them was the real charming villain.
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