Chương 182: Minato Namikaze: Maybe I Learned a Fake Sage Art

"It started the night Naruto was born."

"Naruto's birth?" Minato pondered for a moment.

"Could it be connected to the Nine-Tails?" Dongye zhen shook his head.

"No idea. That night, I just slept absurdly well—better than ever before. Then the next morning, I looked in the mirror and realized this mark on my forehead had become permanent." Minato studied the silver star-ring pattern.

"It looks strangely familiar. Similar to Lord Hashirama's Sage Mode markings… though yours lacks the eye patterns."

"Hashirama? The First Hokage?" Dongye zhen blinked.

"Could he do something like this too?" The world only knew Senju Hashirama as a monster among monsters—the God of Shinobi. Almost nobody knew what his Sage Mode looked like. Truth be told, Hashirama rarely needed Sage Mode at all. In his normal state alone, he could crush nearly everyone in existence aside from Uchiha Madara. The surviving records in Konoha had been left behind by Tobirama Senju. The village elders and Tsunade had read them. Jiraiya and Orochimaru likely had as well.

As the Fourth Hokage, Minato naturally had access too.

"The forehead pattern resembles his somewhat," Minato explained, "but Lord Hashirama couldn't maintain Sage Mode constantly like you can. The color was different as well. More importantly… the records never clarified whether his Sage Mode originated from Shikkotsu Forest." He paused.

"Did you ever meet Lady Tsunade when you were younger?"

"Nope. The first time I met her was at your house. You know that already."

"Then that makes even less sense." Minato frowned.

"Who taught you this method? And how could they fail to warn you how dangerous natural energy is?"

"Nobody taught me." Minato froze.

"I've always been able to do it. I just didn't know until today that the comfortable air I sensed was natural energy."

"You've always been able to?"

"Yeah. The first time I extracted chakra, when I was four years old, I noticed strange currents in the air while trying to sleep. They felt… comfortable. And whenever I wanted, they would flow into my body on their own." At that moment, Minato genuinely felt discriminated against. Natural energy was notoriously violent and impossible to tame. Every practitioner risked death during training. Yet for Dongye zhen, it practically threw itself into his arms. What kind of unfair treatment was this?

Had natural energy never seen a handsome guy before? Because he, Minato Namikaze, was pretty handsome himself. For the first time in his life, he began wondering if the Sage Art he'd trained so hard to master might actually be counterfeit. At the same time, another long-standing question in his mind suddenly clicked into place. And if his theory proved correct… Then this discovery would have profound implications for humanity itself. Excitement flickered across Minato's face.

"Do you realize something, Zhen? Right now, there are only two people in the entire shinobi world capable of using Sage Mode."

"Huh? What about Lord Jiraiya?" Minato looked oddly embarrassed. Speaking ill of his teacher behind his back clearly bothered him, but honesty won out in the end.

"Well… Jiraiya-sensei's Sage Mode isn't exactly stable yet. Strictly speaking, he hasn't fully mastered it." The old pervert strutted around calling himself the Toad Sage all day long, but even over a decade later, using senjutsu still required him to sit still and painstakingly gather natural energy. His current state was even worse. If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

"Oh. Then I guess it really is just the two of us." Dongye zhen tilted his head.

"So, Minato-senpai… you've got some kind of theory?"

"Yes." Minato's expression turned serious.

"I want to confirm a suspicion I've had for some time. But doing so means prying into the secrets of your jutsu. That violates shinobi etiquette—and the principles I've always lived by."

"That's fine. Though honestly, I don't know much about this stuff myself." Dongye zhen was genuinely curious now. What could Minato possibly have deduced that would make him willing to bend his own ninja code?

"I only mastered Sage Mode recently myself," Minato began.

"From what I understand, the prerequisite for learning Mount Myoboku's Sage Arts is possessing a sufficiently large chakra reserve.

"Afterward, while training at Mount Myoboku, one uses toad oil to help absorb natural energy into the body. The natural energy is then mixed in perfect balance with physical and spiritual energy, forming senjutsu chakra. Only then does one enter Sage Mode.

"But the process is extremely dangerous. One mistake means failure. And failure means death. The body mutates into stone… becoming something frog-like."

"Yeah, that definitely sounds dangerous." Dongye zhen nodded solemnly.

"Good thing you succeeded, Minato-senpai. Otherwise Naruto might visit Mount Myoboku one day and start wondering whether his father was ever human."

"Ahaha… fortunately, luck was on my side." Minato laughed awkwardly.

"Though I still wonder how your Sage Mode differs from mine."

"I never even had the concept of Sage Mode. Ever since I discovered those strange energies as a kid, I've simply absorbed them naturally. It gradually became what it is now."

"And there's no danger?"

"Not for me. If it ever feels uncomfortable, I can stop whenever I want."

"Is that so…" Minato lowered his gaze, piecing together the puzzle in his head.

"Then perhaps… your Sage Mode is the true form. The safest and most suitable version for humans." So that's it. I really did learn a fake Sage Mode. Unfortunately for him, Dongye zhen immediately shattered the fantasy.

"It's not safe at all, Minato-senpai. It's only harmless for me personally." Minato's eyes sharpened.

"And for others?"

"At first, I wanted to share the method with my teammates. But to be cautious, I experimented on animals first." His tone remained calm.

"Later, during the war, I tested it on enemy shinobi too."

"And?"

"They all died. Every single one." Minato fell silent for a long moment before sighing.

"So natural energy truly allows no shortcuts…" Then he looked up again.

"Still, your existence proves my theory. Zhen… you really are special."

"And what exactly is this theory of yours?" Minato lifted his head toward the starlit sky.

"There are three great sage regions in the shinobi world. Mount Myoboku of the toads. Shikkotsu Forest of the slugs. Ryuchi Cave of the snakes.

"They're all animals.

"And failure in Mount Myoboku's Sage training turns one into a stone toad. I suspect the other two regions function similarly." His voice grew quieter.

"That's when I began wondering… if these are all systems of Sage Arts unique to those species, then what about us?" He looked directly at Dongye zhen.

"What about humanity?" Dongye zhen's eyes widened slightly. He truly hadn't expected Minato—a native of this world—to think this deeply. No wonder Jiraiya once called him the perfect shinobi. Jiraiya himself probably never considered such questions. Or perhaps he had, but simply didn't care, too obsessed with chasing the Great Toad Sage's prophecy child.

"So you believe my Sage Mode… is humanity's own Sage Art system?"

"Yes." Minato nodded slowly.

"At first, it was merely speculation. But now, I'm becoming more convinced by the minute."

"Trusting your instincts?"

"Not just instincts." Minato's gaze drifted skyward again.

"At Mount Myoboku, there exists the Great Toad Sage—a being said to have lived for over a thousand years. He stands at the apex of all toads and is the very origin of Mount Myoboku's Sage Arts.

"Likewise, Ryuchi Cave has the White Snake Sage. And Shikkotsu Forest has the Slug Sage.

"I've never seen the latter two myself. But I have met the Great Toad Sage more than once." His eyes narrowed slightly.

"And the aura around you… resembles his." A pause.

"But at the same time, it's completely different."

"Even so," Dongye zhen pointed out, "nobody else can learn my version."

"Zhen…" Minato chuckled softly.

"How old are you? And how old are the three sages?" He shook his head.

"You simply haven't had enough time yet."

"As long as you continue living, I have a feeling…" His voice carried quiet certainty.

"One day, you'll become exactly the existence I imagine." Dongye zhen suddenly felt that his life had become extraordinarily valuable. If the underground black market ever put a bounty on his head, thirty-five million ryo definitely wouldn't match his status anymore. The unit would have to be changed to billions.

"Guess I'd better stay alive, then."

"You absolutely should." Minato smiled.

"With your sensory abilities, I doubt anyone can approach us unnoticed. Still, keep tonight's conversation secret. I'll do the same."

"Don't worry. So far, you're the only one who's realized I can use Sage Mode. Even when I fought the Four-Tails alongside Lord Jiraiya, he didn't notice anything unusual."

"Ahahaha…" Minato rubbed the back of his head.

"Well, sensei's never been particularly perceptive when it comes to senjutsu." Dongye zhen raised one final question.

"Minato-senpai, you're contracted with Mount Myoboku… but it doesn't sound like you fully stand on their side."

"I'm human." Minato answered without hesitation.

"Of course I think from humanity's perspective. Isn't that natural?

"Mount Myoboku and Shikkotsu Forest are relatively harmless—especially the Slug Sage. It rarely interferes in human affairs.

"But Ryuchi Cave is different." His expression darkened slightly.

"If you'd seen giant snakes from Ryuchi Cave devouring humans the way I have… you'd understand."

"To them, humanity will always be prey. Never equals."