Reaching out, Orochimaru grabbed the Dragon's Cave contract scroll floating before him and slowly unfurled it in his hand.
Lines of crossed-out names met Orochimaru's gaze.
Orochimaru didn't rush to sign his name. His eyes flickered for a moment as he looked up at the White Snake Sage, who was lounging lazily on her throne.
"Great Sage, this junior has a question. May I trouble you to enlighten me?"
The White Snake Sage put down the pipe she was holding and tilted her head slightly, looking at Orochimaru.
"Oh?"
"Orochimaru, such an opportunity is presented before you, yet you remain unmoved. As expected of the contractor I personally chose."
"What is it?"
"I shall decide whether to answer based on my mood!"
Orochimaru closed the scroll and asked with a grave expression:
"The Dragon's Cave, as one of the three great Sage Regions, is already immensely powerful in itself!"
"Why would the White Snake Sage go to such lengths to guide this junior here to sign a contract?"
"You even went to Mount Myōboku to beg for a prophecy, lowering yourself in status?"
The White Snake Sage blinked for a moment, then let out a hearty laugh.
"Haha..."
"Lowering myself?"
"That is quite a fitting description!"
Thinking of the inherent animosity between snakes and toads, an uncontainable smile appeared in the White Snake Sage's eyes.
"Orochimaru, I like you more and more!"
After praising Orochimaru, the White Snake Sage vanished from her throne without any discernible movement. She reappeared instantly before Orochimaru.
Her slightly hunched form was reflected in Orochimaru's eyes, yet it held no hint of disdain. In fact, the moment the White Snake Sage appeared before him, Orochimaru instinctively took two steps back.
The White Snake Sage slightly raised her head and looked at Orochimaru, a faint chuckle escaping her lips. She paced back and forth before him with her pipe.
"Orochimaru, you are excellent!"
This was the third compliment Orochimaru had received since meeting her.
"Though our time together has been brief, I can see it!"
"You are the type of person who will stop at nothing to achieve your goals!"
"This is precisely how the Dragon's Cave survives. I am quite pleased with you!"
The White Snake Sage mused for a moment before continuing:
"You are a clever child, so I shall not beat around the bush!"
"This matter of distributing tokens into the ninja world and guiding ninjas to the Dragon's Cave to sign contracts."
"It is just as you suspect, the Dragon's Cave naturally has its own agenda!"
A look of realization flashed across Orochimaru's face, but greater confusion welled up in his heart.
"Please, Great Sage, enlighten me!"
The White Snake Sage chuckled and lightly tapped Orochimaru's chest with her pipe.
"Orochimaru, I ask you, what is it you seek by coming to the Dragon's Cave?"
Orochimaru pondered for a moment and answered according to his inner thoughts:
"A summoning beast, and the qualification to train Sage Mode."
The White Snake Sage nodded, as if unsurprised, and sighed.
"From the birth of the Dragon's Cave a thousand years ago until now, the demands of humans have largely been the same!"
"You are not the first, nor will you be the last!"
"But you are the first to consider the relationship between these two things!"
After praising him, the White Snake Sage continued:
"When ninjas sign a summoning contract and train in Sage Mode, it is merely a means to become stronger!"
"And the reason the Dragon's Cave guides humans to sign contracts is, naturally, to find a way for snakes to further their own cultivation!"
"Since you have already guessed some of it, I shall not hide anything from you."
"My true form is the first white snake among the dragon veins of the ninja world to gain sentience. After a thousand years of cultivation, my strength has reached a level I myself am unaware of."
"However, I know that to transform into something akin to the dragon veins themselves, capable of altering the flow of the earth's脉动 in the ninja world, I am still far from it."
"The catastrophe a thousand years ago that nearly destroyed the ninja world severed the roots of the dragon veins beneath the Dragon's Cave."
"Relying solely on absorbing natural energy from the earth, my dream of transforming into a dragon may be indefinitely postponed!"
"Therefore..."
"I disseminated the Dragon's Cave contract throughout the ninja world, hoping to, with the aid of humans, one of the origin species of the world, gain inspiration for breaking through my current realm while your contractees are training in Sage Mode."
"Does this explanation satisfy you?"
Orochimaru hadn't expected the White Snake Sage to be so candid and reveal her intentions directly. He was silent for a moment before nodding slightly.
"So that's how it is!"
"Then, Great Sage, have you considered that I, the destined contractor in the prophecy of yourself and the Great Sage of Mount Myōboku, might fundamentally lack the talent for Sage Mode?"
Recalling his future self, who never acquired the power of Dragon's Cave Sage Mode, Orochimaru felt a touch of curiosity.
"When I find the Dragon's Cave in the future, it should be after I defect from Konoha."
"And by then, I will have already developed the Reanimation Jutsu!"
"If I cannot train Sage Mode, could the most fundamental reason be that the body I was using at the time was not my original one?"
As Orochimaru pondered, the White Snake Sage's denial confirmed his suspicion.
"How could that be?"
"When selecting contractors for the Dragon's Cave, I have never misjudged before!"
"Just like you now..."
"Your cellular activity far surpasses any other human I have encountered. Your soul's strength is even rarer in the ninja world."
"Coupled with the Yin-Yang Release chakra within you, the origin of which is unknown, and the sealed origin of void power."
"If you lack the talent for Sage Mode, then the entire ninja world would likely be unable to find another candidate."
Orochimaru nodded slightly upon hearing this, the lingering worries about his destiny being manipulated gradually fading away.
"It is as it should be!"
"Now that I know everything, my fate has diverged entirely from the Orochimaru of the original timeline."
"As for my previous concerns about destiny being manipulated..."
"Hmph!"
"A pawn, when it grows to a certain extent, can even jump off the board and become the player."
After the White Snake Sage's explanation validated some of his internal speculations, Orochimaru composed himself and gave a slight nod of respect.
"Great Sage, since we are now in a mutually beneficial relationship, I believe you will not refuse this junior's request for some additional benefits, correct?"
The White Snake Sage looked at Orochimaru, who was clearly trying to push his luck, a peculiar glint in her eyes.
"You little fellow, you have quite the knack for seizing every opportunity."
"Speak."
"Besides Sage Mode and a summoning beast, what else do you desire?"
Having become a contractor of the Dragon's Cave, Sage Mode and a summoning beast were merely benefits that came with the contractor status. The White Snake Sage knew that since Orochimaru was asking this question, he must have other demands beyond these two powers.
As expected, upon hearing the White Snake Sage's inquiry, Orochimaru respectfully bowed to her and said, word by word:
"This junior is currently penniless and requires a weapon to defend himself!"
"May I ask if the Great Sage can grant this small request of mine?"
The White Snake Sage was momentarily stunned, then burst into laughter.
"Hahaha..."
"Orochimaru, I must say, your disposition truly suits my taste!"
"You grasp every opportunity to gain an advantage. Truly, you are the contractor I personally selected!"
The White Snake Sage paused, took a puff of her pipe, and continued:
"We do possess weapons, of course!"
"However, obtaining them is not so simple!"
A playful smile spread across the White Snake Sage's face as she slowly exhaled a wisp of smoke.
"The Dragon's Cave holds two divine weapons passed down from a thousand years ago. One is with me, and the other resides with a giant serpent."
"Since you have spoken, I shall bestow this divine weapon of mine upon you."
The White Snake Sage's form shifted, transforming before Orochimaru's eyes into a colossal white-scaled serpent that reached towards the heavens. As her tail swayed gently, a golden ring bound around her tail slowly detached itself from her body, transforming into a tachi before Orochimaru.
"This divine weapon is called Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi: Sky Blade!"
"It possesses the ability to connect with its wielder's will, its length can be adjusted at will, and one can telekinetically control this divine sword to attack enemies through mental power."
Orochimaru reached out and grasped the long sword, swinging it a couple of times. A feeling of it being an extension of his arm surged through him.
"A fine sword!"
After playing with it for a while, Orochimaru sheathed the sword at his waist and, with a look of entitlement, asked:
"What about the other one?"
The White Snake Sage was not angered by Orochimaru's greedy demeanor and chuckled, shaking her head.
"The other divine sword..."
"To restrain that violent serpent from rampaging, I have hidden the other divine weapon within the tail of a giant serpent."
"Go and subdue it!"
"It shall be your future summoning beast!"
"Tadatsumi Hime!"
With a soft call from the White Snake Sage, Tadatsumi Hime's graceful figure immediately appeared before Orochimaru. She offered Orochimaru a charming smile and gracefully bowed to the White Snake Sage.
"Great Sage!"
The White Snake Sage did not look back and walked directly towards her throne.
"Mm."
"Take Orochimaru to the dwelling of the thousand serpents. Do not interfere with what happens afterward!"
"Do you understand?"
"Yes!"
Tadatsumi Hime replied coquettishly and then turned her gaze to Orochimaru.
"Lord Orochimaru, if you have completed the contract, please follow me!"
Orochimaru chuckled, unfurled the Dragon's Cave contract scroll once more. He lightly brushed the blade of the Sky Blade with his finger. His skin, enhanced by the Body Reinforcement Secret Technique, was immediately cut, and blood slowly began to flow.
With a finger stained with blood, he wrote with flair on the scroll, and Orochimaru signed his name in the blank space below.
With a hand pressed onto the scroll, now stained red with blood, a blood-red handprint was clearly imprinted.
Like a transaction, the summoning contract between Orochimaru and the snake clan of the Dragon's Cave was thus established.
"Let's go!"
Orochimaru closed the scroll, casually tossed it upwards, and returned it to the dragon's maw that opened above the temple. He nodded to Tadatsumi Hime and took the lead, walking outwards.
"Orochimaru!"
The White Snake Sage suddenly called out to Orochimaru, who was about to leave the temple. After a moment of contemplation, a faint warning flashed in the White Snake Sage's eyes.
"Do not provoke Shinnoga. I have my own plans for it."
Orochimaru's footsteps paused for a brief moment, and he nodded gently.
"Alright."
Casually agreeing, Orochimaru continued towards the habitat of the giant serpents.
"Is this 'raising gu'?"
"The nature of snakes is truly cruel!"