Sunagakure.
Outside the village built in the middle of the desert, the winds and sand still howled without pause. Only the interior remained calm, protected from the elements by a barrier.
A red-haired boy sat idly, tinkering with various puppet components in his hands.
Even now, the thin, frail-looking child had yet to hear any news of when his parents might return. His grandmother, overwhelmed with responsibilities, had no time to look after a boy not even ten years old.
And that gave Uchiha Kaien the perfect opportunity.
As Sasori of the Red Sand finished assembling a new puppet, Kaien's phantom beast—already lying in wait—sprang into action. The moment the puppet's final piece was inserted, its eyes opened, flashing with a vivid glimmer of life.
Phantom beasts didn't just extract information from living beings—they could gather data from inanimate objects as well. In fact, the process was even easier.
Right in front of Sasori's wide-eyed stare, Uchiha Kaien began to take form—at first a wooden puppet, then transforming into a lifelike humanoid figure. Her appearance bore a striking resemblance—nearly identical—to Rin Nohara.
"Hello, my name's Rin. I'm the puppet you created~"
With a soft, sweet voice and a gentle smile, Kaien made his dramatic entrance through the puppet. It should be shocking enough, right?
"I'll be with you from now on… always."
[Spirit of Nature] quietly activated, amplifying the puppet's affinity to the maximum.
Sasori had already begun learning the art of puppetry, but even so, the idea that a puppet could come to life felt far-fetched. And yet… he was utterly at a loss.
This Rin—this puppet—had suddenly appeared and claimed she'd stay by his side.
And that alone made Sasori's heart waver.
He needed companionship. Desperately. More than anything.
There were no parents to hold him. His grandmother had simply handed him a pile of puppet parts before disappearing again. Rather than stay in that lonely silence, wasn't it better to believe in chakra? To believe that a puppet could truly come alive?
As long as someone stayed by his side—anyone—it didn't matter if they were fake. Even if it was just a puppet. Even if it was just a lie…
"I know your name, Sasori. I was created for you."
Kaien extended a slender, pale hand and held Sasori's. His gaze was filled with sincerity.
"The life this puppet now holds… was born from your hands."
"Rin…"
Sasori called out to him—no, to her—his eyes full of longing and wonder.
"Mhm."
"Rin…"
"I'm right here…"
For a lonely child, suddenly having a companion—someone who promised to grow up alongside him—would consume all his attention. He'd forget time itself and focus only on the present.
[Affection from Sasori of the Red Sand +3]
...
"In that case, Manda, I'll be counting on your cooperation for this experiment."
In Orochimaru's underground laboratory, a massive, violet-scaled serpent was quietly enduring a series of inspections and scans.
Thankfully, the lab had been built far beneath the surface, and Orochimaru had spared no expense creating a cavernous space large enough to accommodate Manda's immense size.
"…Very well."
Manda responded in a low grumble.
The giant snake was clearly irritated. It had planned to reject this brat's summoning outright—but for some reason, it couldn't. It had no opportunity to resist. It had been summoned before it could even react.
It wanted to lash out, but didn't dare. The memory of their last encounter was still fresh. This brat was even more sinister than Orochimaru himself—especially those wicked Sharingan eyes!
Manda resolved to play along for now. Once it returned to the Ryūchi Cave, it would beg the White Snake Sage to place a seal on its body to permanently block this kid's summoning!
Orochimaru soon connected several instruments to Manda's body, clearly excited.
He had studied normal-sized snakes before, but this was his first time working with a giant serpent from Ryūchi Cave.
As one of the Ryūchi Cave's legendary snakes, Manda possessed senjutsu chakra within its body. Not much—but enough.
"Senjutsu chakra… truly fascinating."
Orochimaru couldn't help but marvel. This kind of chakra was denser and far more refined than regular chakra. No wonder Jiraiya—even with his incomplete Sage Mode—had been able to resist part of Hanzo's poison.
Back during the battle of the Three Legendary Sannin, only Jiraiya lacked any knowledge of poison. Tsunade was a medical expert. Orochimaru, a poison master. They'd assumed Jiraiya would be the first to fall.
Yet, thanks to Tsunade's treatments, Jiraiya had kept up the entire time.
Now, Orochimaru finally understood. He was beginning to consider pursuing Sage Mode himself.
The only problem was Ryūchi Cave's Sage Mode was… brutal. Unlike the structured training at Mount Myōboku, this one was reckless and dangerous.
Anyone with enough fate could learn it—all it took was for the White Snake Sage to inject senjutsu chakra directly into the subject. If they survived, they qualified.
It was simple. Crude. And the lowest possible entry bar.
But Orochimaru wouldn't rush in blindly and gamble his life. No, he would prepare thoroughly.
That made Manda's cooperation absolutely essential.
Thankfully, the snake was oddly obedient this time—even refraining from demanding any sacrifices.
'Natural energy… I can feel it!'
As Orochimaru extracted senjutsu chakra from Manda using a specialized container, Uchiha Kaien suddenly sensed the density of natural energy in the air increase dramatically.
"Orochimaru-sensei, may I examine some of that senjutsu chakra?"
Kaien wanted to test something—to push the limits of [Spirit of Nature].
"Of course."
Orochimaru handed him the test tube.
Kaien wasted no time. The moment he had it, he opened the container and summoned a burst of ice to freeze the senjutsu chakra along with his own hand, locking it in place before it could disperse.
[Summoning – Phantom Beast] activated. Kaien began absorbing the informational essence and simulating the flow and storage patterns of senjutsu chakra.
Before Orochimaru's astonished eyes, Kaien's face changed.
Purple markings appeared beneath his eyes, soft and dreamlike. When paired with the crimson hue of his Sharingan, it gave him an otherworldly and mysterious allure.
"So this is… Sage Mode?"
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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