Guided by the overwhelming resonance of power, Jiraiya delved deeper into the great cavern that housed the colossal handprint. The air hummed with an energy that felt ancient as rock and vibrant as life itself. Bioluminescent mushrooms cast an ethereal light over the walls carved with stories of Titans and men, their carvings taking on a strange vitality in the pulsing light.
In the center of the cavern, above the stone altar, Father Mountain's imprint glowed with an inner intensity, as if the rock were alive with latent power. Jiraiya approached, his young body vibrating in tune with the energy, his adult mind filled with wonder and a hint of apprehension. He had faced gods and monsters in his previous life, but the presence he felt here was of a different scale, a fundamental force of nature incarnate.
He paused at the edge of the altar, looking down at the immense imprint. The energy was so strong he could feel it pressing against his skin, entering his own native energy channels. He focused his own energy, trying to respond to the resonance of the place, a form of greeting in the silent language of primordial power.
The cavern responded. The hum in the air intensified, the mushroom lights flickered in an accelerated rhythm. The rock itself seemed to sigh. And then, from the heart of the altar, from the depths of the footprint, the energy pulsed in a new way, concentrating and rising.
The rock in the center of the altar began to move, not as if it were rolling, but as if a part of the mountain itself were rising. Dust and small stones fell as a gigantic form slowly emerged from the solid stone. It was Father Mountain.
This wasn't the dark-furred, fiercely vital ape Jiraiya had seen in legends or in his descendants. This being was titanic, its skin more like tree bark or ancient rock, covered in moss and lichen that seemed to have grown over it for ages. Its movements were slow, deliberate, as if awakening were a long and painful process. Its eyes, two golden orbs beneath a massive forehead, opened slowly, emitting a soft but penetrating light that illuminated the cavern.
The presence emanating from him was one of immense wisdom, an ancient calm that could only come from having lived countless centuries. There was no aggression in his gaze as it settled upon Jiraiya's small form, only a deep, appraising curiosity. The "voice" that echoed in Jiraiya's mind wasn't audible, but a direct transmission of thought and intent, a communication through energy itself.
[Father Mountain: The Wanderer... you have arrived. The call of the Nexus... has resonated.]
The mention of the "Nexus" confirmed the connection. This being knew the entity that had brought him here.
[Jiraiya: You... are Father Mountain. The ancestor. The entity... sent me. It said... Relocation. Purpose. Agent.]
Communication was slow, a fusion of concepts and feelings rather than structured words. Father Mountain conveyed images: the island, thrumming with life and energy; the threats emanating from the "Great Darkness Below" (the Hollow Earth), creatures like the Skullcrawlers, but also older, more malevolent shadows; the imbalance caused by the absence or lethargy of the island's protectors; the tribal prophecy about one who would come from outside to restore balance.
[Father Mountain: The imbalance grows. The Darkness... stirs. My strength wanes with the ages. The connection... weakens.]
He conveyed the sensation of the island's energy flowing through him, but with an obstruction, a weakness stemming from his ancestral battle and his long slumber. He needed a conduit, an agent on the surface who could reconnect the island's energy in a new way, who could act where he no longer could.
[Father Mountain: Your body... native to this land. Your spirit... from outside. A convergence. A bridge. The energy of your world... and mine. They can merge. Grow.]
He understood. His "relocation" hadn't been random. His native body from this world was compatible with its wild energy. His shinobi spirit and knowledge, forged in a different but complementary energy system, gave him the unique ability to understand and manipulate this energy in a way no pure native could. The cosmic entity had seen the potential. Father Mountain saw the need.
The idea of the "pact" was formed in Father Mountain's transmission. It wasn't a contract in the human sense, but an energetic symbiosis, a union of purpose. Jiraiya would act as his "agent" on the surface world, a protector of the island and its balance against the threats of Hollow Earth. Father Mountain would grant him a deep connection to the island's core energy, access to a level of power that far surpassed anything he could achieve on his own.
The magnitude of the proposal was overwhelming. A pact with a Titan. To become the protector of an entire world. It was the kind of mission he'd longed for in his previous life, the chance to use his power for something greater than himself, something that could redeem the perceived failures of his past.
A small, unwelcome, perverted spark crossed his mind. A "union of energies"? Was... was this a form of "perverted research" on a cosmic scale? The idea of merging his being with such an immense, primordial force triggered a strange, immense sense of... scale, which his twisted mind momentarily processed through a completely inappropriate filter. He mentally blushed, grateful that Father Mountain probably didn't "read" that kind of thinking. Focus, Jiraiya!
[Jiraiya: I accept. I will be your agent. I will fight for this world. For the island.]
The resolve was firm. He had lost his world, his friends, his purpose. Here, everything was offered to him again, on an epic scale.
Father Mountain bowed his immense head. The energy emanating from him intensified dramatically, filling the cavern with a golden and amber glow. Jiraiya felt a surge of power hit him, not with destructive force, but like a torrent of life energy pouring into him. His native energy channels burst open, widening, allowing the vast energy of Father Mountain and the island to flow through him.
It was an indescribable sensation. It was as if the earth itself were embracing him, pouring its strength into his being. He felt a connection to the roots of the mountain, to the currents of energy that ran through the planet, to the latent heat of the Hollow Earth. His own energy, a fusion of his shinobi essence and the vitality of his native body, intertwined with the ancient and powerful energy of Father Mountain.
His body glowed with an amber and green aura, the air around him crackling. It wasn't the Hermit Mode he knew, but it was something similar, something infinitely larger and connected to this world. He felt his physical strength increase exponentially, his senses sharpen to unimaginable extremes, wild energy responding to his will with an ease he could only dream of before. This was "Titan Mode," the Hermit Mode of Skull Island, a power forged in a pact with an ancient being.
Father Mountain seemed to shrink slightly, his glow diminishing, as if he had transferred an essential part of his strength or connection to Jiraiya. His golden gaze was still profound, but now there was a tinge of exhaustion.
[Father Mountain: Now... you are the conduit. My strength... in the world. Protect the balance. The Darkness... is coming.]
The transmission faded, and the ancient Titan began to retreat back into the rock, returning to its slumber. The resonance of its power remained, but now it was inextricably linked to Jiraiya.
Standing alone in the vast cavern, the air still humming with residual energy, Jiraiya felt the immense power flowing through him. It was intoxicating, terrifying, and full of potential. He was no longer just Jiraiya, the reincarnated Sannin. He was Jiraiya, the Agent of the Nexus, the Wanderer of Skull Island, the bearer of the pact with Father Mountain. He had a purpose, a clear mission, and the power necessary to begin fulfilling it. The Darkness was stirring, and he would be ready.
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