I have a bunch of relatives who want to become Hokage.

Chapter 10 Sage Mode of Ryuchi Cave

The White Snake Immortal's teachings were comprehensive yet concise.

The techniques or moves created by using the spiritual energy and physical energy within the body, as well as the natural energy from the outside world, to generate chakra are called Sage Techniques.

Immortal arts share commonalities, and Ryuchi Cave also has an immortal mode.

In Sage Mode, the strength of ninjutsu, taijutsu, and even genjutsu used will be greatly enhanced. The only difference on the surface between the three secret realms' Sage Technique inheritances is the physiological changes after entering Sage Mode, but there are commonalities among them, such as the significant enhancement of sensory abilities.

Anyone would feel uncomfortable entering Sage Mode for the first time.

To give an example, it's like when Superman in DC first awakened his powers, he just couldn't get into it.

“This is what Clark Kent feels like…” When Uchiha Shingen stood up again, he had already entered Sage Mode.

"Clark Kent? Who?" The White Snake Immortal tried hard to recall, but he didn't know who this person was.

It's not as old as the Great Toad Sage, so it's quite confident in its memory and won't forget those it saw with the crystal ball.

“A saint,” Uchiha Shingen replied. “It’s a bit tragic.”

"Oh..." The White Snake Immortal lost interest upon hearing this. "I don't know anything about sages, I only know how good it is to be an immortal."

Without continuing the topic, Uchiha Shingen drew his kodachi and reflected his image on the blade.

Eyeshadow appeared at the corners of both eyes, similar in shape to Orochimaru's, but not as extensive; it was just an outline.

His skin did not turn pale.

Open your mouth, stick out your tongue, and yes, it's still the same as before.

Good, no disfigurement, and not a sycophant.

Kabuto from the original timeline was probably the only person in the last few decades to have successfully mastered the Ryuchi Cave Sage Mode. However, because he had Orochimaru's cells transplanted into him, he made himself look like a cyborg from the start.

Otherwise, the normal Ryuchi Cave mode wouldn't be like that.

Because once someone exhibits the physiological characteristics of a snake, the White Snake Immortal will consider them a failure and kill them with a single "Awoo".

Uchiha Shingen originally thought that he would have a lot of eyeshadow, pale skin, and a long tongue. If that were the case, he could grow his hair long and pretend to be Orochimaru without needing to use the transformation technique.

That's not good.

"By the way, Sage Mode." Uchiha Shingen suddenly remembered this and asked his question, "Orochimaru also trained in Sage Mode under your tutelage?"

I've never seen him use it even once.

“Aww… Orochimaru.” The White Snake Sage first coiled himself up again and changed his posture before saying, “Because of his physical condition, although he can integrate Sage Techniques into himself, he cannot use Sage Mode. I guess you could say he succeeded.”

"I see." Uchiha Shingen suddenly realized.

No wonder his physique is so amazing; it's probably due to years of using immortal techniques to strengthen his body, combined with his own research, that he was able to achieve immortality.

Imagine this thing casting curses on people in the future—it'll be one bite at a time, plus its skillful skin-shedding technique, it's got the full Ryuchi Cave vibe.

At present, Orochimaru only reveals the Orochimaru-style Substitution Technique to the public.

It would be more accurate to call it a substitution technique; its ability to gather intelligence on enemy ninjutsu during combat is unparalleled.

The saying goes, "What you learn from books is never enough; you must put it into practice to truly understand." Only Orochimaru truly embodied this.

Killing him directly is more effective than talking; he'll know everything after he dies once.

"Did he learn that Orochi Style Substitution Technique from you, Sage?" Uchiha Shingen asked.

"Uchiha Shingen, do you think this is Mount Myōboku?" The White Snake Sage was displeased.

Mount Myoboku is much more famous than Ryuchi Cave, and the White Snake Sage actually had some reservations about it.

Without so many takeout options, life would be boring.

"Very well, I will now tell you about the differences between Ryuchi Cave, Mount Myōboku, and Shikkotsu Forest," said the White Snake Sage.

The three immortals knew each other very well, and of course they wouldn't casually tell outsiders, but it didn't matter if it was a descendant of Longdi Cave.

Just like chakra can undergo nature changes.

Magical arts also have their own "nature".

It can be set into three types: form, spirit, and essence.

Ryuchi Cave Sage Techniques correspond to the physical form of life. Externally, they can make all matter move as if it were alive, such as making stones wriggle and grow like living things. Internally, they can make one's own body have super vitality. Commonly, they can possess some physiological abilities unique to giant snakes. However, Ryuchi Cave Sage Techniques need to be based on the user's original ninjutsu system to be used.

The advantage is that it can integrate Sage Mode into itself, strengthening its physical energy over the years and maximizing its effect. The fatal flaw is that it lacks resistance to genjutsu, having form but no spirit—but for an Uchiha who has trained in Ryuchi Cave Sage Mode, this flaw is not a big deal.

Myoboku Mountain's Sage Arts are diverse and numerous, but their drawback is that they cannot be integrated into the user's own body and can only be used as an on-the-spot blessing. The preparation time is slightly long, but Sage Mode itself has no fatal flaws and is extremely resistant to illusions.

The advantages and disadvantages of these two are exactly the same.

The most mysterious Shikkotsu Forest corresponds to power and quantity, immense and infinite. From this perspective, Hashirama Senju's Sage Mode is probably from Shikkotsu Forest, rather than the fourth force that Shingen Uchiha originally thought.

However, it is certain that Orochimaru developed the Orochi-ryu Substitution Technique himself.

He truly deserves the title of the greatest inventor in the ninja world.

Uchiha Shingen felt a pang of regret; he was genuinely tempted by this substitution technique.

However, life is only truly relatable when it has regrets.

"Now that you mention it, I understand." Uchiha Shingen continued to experience the sensations of activating Sage Mode. "However, I feel like the energy expenditure is quite high."

He must constantly gather chakra to maintain Sage Mode, which in turn consumes the natural energy previously injected by the White Snake Sage.

"This is the last thing I'll teach you: how to obtain natural energy from the land." The White Snake Immortal exhaled a puff of smoke. This year's students learned without any difficulty, which was quite boring, so he could only pass the time by telling stories.

“Once you can draw natural energy from the land yourself, there’s nothing more Ryuchi Cave needs to teach you.” The White Snake Sage paused, seemingly somewhat dissatisfied, “Are you sure there’s nothing else that has changed?”

No other changes at all? I don't believe it. Let me have a bite, but I won't swallow it.

"That's true, I haven't even used my Sharingan yet," Uchiha Shingen remembered.

With the activation of his pupil power, his pupils transformed in an instant.

Uchiha Shingen stared at the reflection on the blade, lost in thought.

On the blade, a pair of Sharingan eyes that had changed color were reflected.

Holy crap, why is my eye color so tacky?

He thought he could escape it, but in the end, his appearance still suffered the wrath of the "immortal mode".

Fortunately, it wasn't the yellowish-brown of the big snakes, but rather the same color as Little Black.

So, should it be called Golden?

Chapter Eleven: My eyes are finally not yellow anymore.

Why does the Sharingan have to be red? And why such an incongruous scarlet?

The Uchiha clan in history may have thought about this question, but now, only outsiders would be interested in it.

A common explanation is that the Uchiha clan was cursed.

When in doubt, just resort to curses.

Those who had a bad relationship with the Uchiha clan preferred to say that the Uchiha clan was inherently evil.

Gradually, everyone overlooked the fact that most members of the Uchiha clan never awaken their Sharingan in their entire lives, and that these people are no different from anyone else. You wouldn't even notice that they are actually Uchiha unless you look at their clothes.

However, ninjas still form a fixed impression of the Uchiha clan because of that small group of Uchiha who have awakened the Sharingan.

The Sharingan users don't care about this at all. Their high sense of pride in their bloodline and lack of ancestral expressive abilities can easily make them appear as "looking down on others" or "what's so great about them" in the eyes of outsiders.

However, one thing is undeniable: the Sharingan's color is definitely related to the Uchiha clan's unique chakra, and Sage Mode chakra is essentially still chakra.

Uchiha Shingen's first Sage Mode was, in principle, achieved using the power of the White Snake Sage.

So it seems quite normal for someone's eyes to be colored.

So Uchiha Shingen quickly stopped caring; he figured he'd only know what the outcome would be after he played the game himself.

That's the final version.

His deduction was correct.

Under the tutelage of the White Snake Sage, Uchiha Shingen spent about a week learning how to draw natural energy from the earth and activate Sage Mode with his own power.

When he entered Sage Mode using the natural energy he had absorbed, his Sharingan did not turn into that monstrous form, but his eyeshadow enlarged, enlarged quite a bit.

But that's not important. What's important is that the Sharingan is finally back to normal. That's how it should be. Otherwise, it would be like having shit in your eyes.

Strictly speaking, not all Sharingan eyes of the Uchiha clan are scarlet. The pupils and tomoe are black, and only the iris is scarlet.

The biggest gain was that Uchiha Shingen had finally grasped the basics of the Sage Techniques that allowed him to imbue objects with form in the Earth Dragon Cave.

Now we know how the Immortal Technique: Inorganic Rebirth came about.

This technique was developed by Orochimaru or Kabuto Yakushi in the future, but it cannot be used without the principles of Sage Mode from the Earth Dragon Cave.

Therefore, it is called "Immortal Technique: Inorganic Rebirth", not "Ninja Technique: Inorganic Rebirth".

Uchiha Shingen then applied this principle to Ice Release.

It solves the problem of insufficient mobility in Ice Release.

Magical arts are truly useful.

It's just the eyeshadow; it's turned into Kankuro's style, a face full of scribbles.

But it's still much better than having a body covered in snakeskin.

Appearance is important. While image may not be the deciding factor in the success of business negotiations, if your appearance is not good, people won't even bother to talk to you.

You can wear heavy makeup to negotiations, and people will at most say you've used too much powder.

But if someone sees your eyes and immediately thinks of poop, they'll vomit.

He, Uchiha Shingen, is best at getting customers to willingly spend more money; his image and demeanor must be perfectly controlled.

Choosing the lesser of two evils is the basic principle of being a ninja.

Having learned what he needed to learn, Uchiha Shingen didn't waste any more time in Ryuchi Cave.

After letting the black snake become familiar with his chakra, Uchiha Shingen bid farewell to the White Snake Sage and left Ryuchi Cave with the Jonin of the Hannya Clan.

The only reason this guy didn't starve to death was because Uchiha Shingen had brought a lot of soldier's rations.