Konoha: Starting with Sage Mode

His willingness to accept the scroll from Orochimaru undoubtedly indicates his interest in Orochimaru's ninjutsu.

Kirito was certainly interested in Orochimaru's ninjutsu. He had mastered quite a few ninjutsu, but compared to the Third Hokage, he was nothing. As the Third Hokage's most favored disciple, Orochimaru must have inherited a great many ninjutsu from him.

Furthermore, Orochimaru is now someone who wants to master all the ninjutsu in the world. He must have collected and organized many ninjutsu from other parts of Konoha, and some of these ninjutsu may be very useful to him.

Furthermore, Orochimaru is skilled at developing new ninjutsu. Although the new ninjutsu he develops are generally quite extreme, their functions are still quite good, and they can be studied and referenced to some extent.

Finally, Orochimaru may have already mastered some of Konoha's forbidden techniques.

Kirito currently has no chance to learn many forbidden techniques from the Book of Seals. Even if he wanted to, the Third Hokage might not be willing to let him learn them. As for the reason why he wouldn't be allowed to learn them, it's too simple. The excuse is that he's worried about something happening to him, the Jinchūriki.

"Don't be shy, take a look. All the ninjutsu inside are yours if you wish."

Orochimaru smiled as he saw Kirito accept the scroll.

What he said at this moment was sincere and without any falsehood, because he had already discovered for certain that Kirito's cursed seal technique was a kind of Sage Art. As long as he mastered this cursed seal technique, he would most likely be able to obtain the key to unlock the door to Sage Art.

Compared to sage techniques, the ninjutsu of mere mortals is nothing at all.

He was genuinely glad that Kirito was still interested in ninjutsu used by ordinary people; otherwise, he really had no leverage to get Kirito to teach him the Kirito-style cursed seal technique.

"Since Lord Orochimaru is so generous, I naturally cannot be stingy. However, Lord Orochimaru should know very well how valuable the Cursed Seal Technique I developed is. I cannot really give it to you. How about this, we sign a contract? I can teach you my Cursed Seal Technique, but you cannot teach it to anyone else. Similarly, I will not teach the ninjutsu on this scroll to anyone else."

After hearing Orochimaru's words, Kirito thought for a moment and then proposed a condition.

Kirito-style cursed seal techniques can be given to Orochimaru, but this cursed seal technique is an important means for him to win over other Konoha ninjas, and he absolutely cannot allow Orochimaru to use it to hinder him.

"no problem."

Orochimaru was already satisfied with obtaining Kirito's cursed seal technique, and readily agreed to Kirito's request. However, he then faced a dilemma and asked, "How should we sign a contract?"

"Please follow me, Lord Orochimaru."

Kirito confidently stated how to seal the scroll in his hand and put it into his possession.

Soon, the two entered a room.

As soon as Kirito brought Orochimaru in, he clapped his hands together, and a powerful surge of chakra erupted from his body. A large number of sealing techniques were quickly released from his body and then rapidly spread across the floor and walls of the room.

In no time, a sealing barrier with powerful shielding capabilities was successfully completed.

Orochimaru already knew that Kirito's sealing techniques were extremely advanced, and he had personally witnessed Kirito using sealing techniques several times. However, upon seeing it again, he still couldn't help but marvel at it and deeply felt that his own sealing techniques were far inferior to Kirito's.

"In terms of sealing techniques, he should be the strongest in the ninja world right now."

Orochimaru secretly guessed.

"That way, we won't have to worry about the secret of our contract being leaked. Lord Orochimaru, please sign this contract."

After Kirito completed the sealing barrier, he took out a scroll from his person and said to Orochimaru with a smile.

After saying that, he opened the scroll and poured a stream of chakra and some sealing techniques into it.

Suddenly, a terrifying aura, warning strangers to stay away, emanated from the newly opened scroll, and a phantom figure quickly appeared above their heads.

"grim Reaper!"

When Orochimaru saw the appearance of this illusory figure, he immediately burst out in shock.

"It seems Lord Orochimaru has recognized Him. That's right, it is the Grim Reaper. We will sign a contract under His watchful gaze. If any of us break the contract, His soul will be taken away."

Kirito said seriously.

The Death God's Contract is a contract sealing technique he developed by drawing inspiration from the Reaper Death Seal.

"This is indeed a very good contract."

Orochimaru exclaimed in admiration, then looked solemnly at the illusory Grim Reaper before him.

He had discovered that this Grim Reaper was not an illusion, but some kind of terrifying existence. Just looking at him gave him a strong sense of danger, and it was not hard to imagine what the consequences would be if he really broke the contract.

If my soul were truly taken by this monster, I would surely suffer a fate worse than death.

In an instant, Orochimaru's little scheme completely vanished.

"I'll go first."

Kirito spoke, then bit his index finger and pressed a fingerprint onto the scroll.

The next moment, he clearly felt a cold gaze fall on him, piercing straight into his soul.

Orochimaru noticed that the Shinigami's eyes had moved, and he became even more wary of the Shinigami. For a moment, he didn't want to sign the contract anymore, but since Kirito had signed the contract first, he naturally couldn't back down. He also bit his index finger and pressed a guide on the scroll.

Then, Orochimaru suffered the same fate as Kirito, his soul being stared at by the Grim Reaper.

Orochimaru's soul strength is far inferior to Kirito's, who has mastered the Spirit Transformation Technique. When Kirito was stared at by the Grim Reaper, he only felt a little uncomfortable, while Orochimaru felt as if his soul was being attacked, and his entire soul was stinging.

Fortunately, this deep, soul-piercing pain was only momentary, which put Orochimaru at ease.

Both of them pressed their fingerprints onto the scroll with their blood, and the scroll immediately burst into flames. Under the scorching white flames, it quickly turned to ashes, and the phantom of the Grim Reaper disappeared as well.

"The contract is complete, Lord Orochimaru. This is the cursed seal technique you desired. Please take a look."

Upon seeing this, Kirito smiled and then handed a scroll to Orochimaru.

Orochimaru quickly took the scroll and opened it to take a look.

His expression quickly became interesting, and he looked at Kirito with a complicated expression.

With his ninjutsu skills, he could naturally see the core of the cursed seal technique that Kirito had given him. The formula of the cursed seal technique was secondary; the key was the Sage's blood and Sage Chakra recorded on the scroll.

But where do the blood of the immortals and the chakra of the immortal arts come from?

He didn't have either of those two things, so the curse seal technique he obtained at great cost was completely unusable.

I've really been tricked.

"Kirito, have you already..."

Orochimaru hesitated.

“That’s right, just as you thought, I am already a sage, I have sage blood and sage chakra.”

Before Orochimaru could finish speaking, Kirito gave an affirmative answer.

There's really nothing left to hide. The cursed seal technique he gave has already pointed directly to the truth, and he's no longer afraid of being captured and dissected.

Anyone who dares to force him to hand over the blood of the immortals will be beaten to death by him.

"That's really impressive."

Orochimaru received the answer directly from Kirito and sighed, feeling a sense of melancholy rising within him.

Sure enough, the world is never short of geniuses. The power he had been searching for had already been obtained by someone much younger than him.

Orochimaru was never one to wallow in self-pity; he quickly adjusted his emotions and rallied.

Although Kirito obtained the power of Sage Mode earlier than him, he firmly believed that he would also obtain it in the future. Temporary comparisons are nothing; one should have a long-term perspective.

"Kirito, could you give me some of your blood for research?"

Orochimaru said shamelessly.

The key to unlocking the gates of immortal arts was right before his eyes. With no way to force him, he had no choice but to swallow his pride and beg this junior once again.

"I'm sorry, Lord Orochimaru, I can't give you my blood. How about this, I'll personally place the cursed seal on you. I promise I won't tamper with it."

Kirito shook his head in refusal, then said with a smile.

He could never give his blood to Orochimaru. Who knows what Orochimaru would do after getting his blood? Orochimaru is someone who will be able to create clones in the future, and he doesn't want to see many copies of himself in the future.

Upon hearing this, Orochimaru immediately shook his head and said, "Let's forget about it."

How could he possibly agree to have a cursed mark planted on him? Even if Kirito promised not to tamper with it, he still wouldn't agree.

He was absolutely unwilling to entrust his life and fortune to someone else.

Moreover, he wasn't close to Kirito, and they were political adversaries; he didn't trust Kirito.

"Then there's nothing I can do."

Kirito, seeing Orochimaru's refusal, said indifferently.

He then lifted the seal on the room and prepared to leave.

"Wait, if blood won't do, could you give me some of your Sage Chakra?"

When Orochimaru saw that Kirito was about to leave, he immediately changed his request.

Upon hearing this request, Kirito thought for a moment and then agreed. He used a cursed seal technique that Orochimaru could not currently achieve to obtain Orochimaru's collection of ninjutsu, thus subtly tricking Orochimaru. He wouldn't give Orochimaru his blood, but he could at least give him some of his own Sage Chakra.

A short while later, Kirito left the room.

Orochimaru remained in the room, staring intently at a test tube emitting a pale golden light, his eyes brimming with unprecedented excitement.

Meanwhile, on a sand dune not far from Kirito's oasis, Uchiha Madara had his eyes closed, his face turned towards the Konoha military camp in the oasis ahead.

"I can feel it. It's the unique chakra fluctuation of the Mangekyou Sharingan. So, that little girl named Uchiha Chizuru has really awakened the Mangekyou Sharingan. She's quite a good junior."

A dozen seconds later, Madara Uchiha suddenly opened his eyes and sighed softly.

Then, Black Zetsu from Madara's sleeve spoke up: "But Kirito Tohsaka is here too. I didn't expect him to come back here. Lord Madara, what should we do now? With this guy here, we can't take Chizuru Uchiha away."

"It's alright. Even if this kid is here, he can't stop me from getting another pair of Mangekyou Sharingan. I already have a good group of subordinates, so I don't even need to take action myself anymore."

Madara Uchiha said nonchalantly, displaying great confidence.

The next moment, he clapped his hands together, then mobilized the chakra within his body and used the Impure World Reincarnation technique without any seals.

One after another, coffins appeared behind him.

As the coffin lid fell, one by one, people with cracked faces staggered out of the coffin.

Chapter 264: Three Shadows Attack

"Sizzle sizzle~"

Three people emerged from the coffin. Shortly after they came out, wisps of smoke emanated from their bodies, and their originally ashen skin quickly returned to a healthy state, although the cracks on their skin did not disappear.

"Where am I? Which bastard resurrected me this time?"

"And who are you? You wouldn't happen to be one of those despicable Konoha ninja's henchmen named Danzo, would you?"

"Uchiha Madara, you actually mastered the Impure World Reincarnation Technique, that damned ninjutsu, using the dead to fight. I never thought you'd stoop so low."

……