Chapter 102 : Perfect Level Sage Mode
Although Orochimaru was the one who held Shinya’s summoning contract, Shinya had no respect for him whatsoever.
But Shinya spoke calmly. "Don’t compare him to Orochimaru. His power far surpasses Orochimaru’s. The two aren’t even on the same level."
At that, Manda looked toward Shinya and gave a low, amused hiss. "Oh? What makes him so different? You’re saying he’s stronger than Orochimaru? I don’t believe it. Orochimaru is one of the legendary Sannin. Are you seriously telling me he’s been surpassed by some child?"
Shinya gave a chuckle. "You wouldn’t believe me even if I told you. So I don’t see any need to explain."
With that, he turned and slithered off, heading for his lair to rest.
Meanwhile, Riku followed the Three Great Snake Sages—also known as the White Snake Sage’s attendants—deeper into Ryūchi Cave, toward the sacred ground where Sage Mode training was conducted.
The snake sages were visibly curious about Riku. After all, even Shinya had submitted to him.
Shinya, known for his violent and untamable temper, didn’t even show respect to the Three Snake Sages themselves. And yet, toward Riku, he was actually courteous—and had personally brought him in to begin Sage training.
As they walked, one of the snake sages stepped closer to Riku. The atmosphere of Ryūchi Cave was cold, dark, and oppressive—it made most people instinctively uneasy.
Riku didn’t particularly like this kind of environment.
The Three Snake Sages, however, were still silently sizing him up—speculating on what kind of person Riku really was, and what level of power he held. They even briefly considered making things more difficult for him during training.
But that thought was quickly dismissed. Since Shinya had personally brought Riku here and clearly held him in high regard, provoking the boy would likely incur Shinya’s wrath.
Even though the three of them were technically stronger than Shinya, the gap wasn’t wide—and their strengths lay in different areas.
Riku could feel their attention on him the entire time.
But he didn’t care. He wasn’t the least bit worried about them making a move. His power wasn’t something to take lightly. Even if they attacked together, it wasn’t guaranteed that they’d win.
Soon, the Three Snake Sages led Riku into a vast underground chamber—their designated Sage training ground.
It was, predictably, gloomy and damp.
Riku’s lips twitched in annoyance. "Can’t Ryūchi Cave build anything normal? Why is it always dark and moist and miserable?"
His muttered complaint made the lead Snake Sage smile. "We are snakes. Naturally, we prefer different things than you humans."
"We thrive in darkness and humidity."
Riku nodded, not pushing the matter. "Alright, so where do I start?"
The female sage pointed toward a raised altar platform. "Up there. Once you stand in the center, focus on sensing the natural energy around you. Then you must blend your spiritual energy and chakra with the natural energy in precise proportions. Only then can you enter Sage Mode."
Riku gave a short nod, understanding the basic concept.
Step by step, he walked onto the altar. Standing at its center, he took a deep breath. "The natural energy here is... overwhelming."
The Three Snake Sages spread out to surround the altar, positioning themselves in a triangular formation. Their expressions turned solemn.
"Sage Mode training is extremely dangerous," the lead sage warned. "If anything goes wrong, we will devour you. So before we begin... be prepared."
Riku studied the three of them curiously. "Your appearance—it’s not an illusion, is it? I can tell. You’re really in human form. So you can physically transform?"
He found it fascinating. Their transformation wasn’t genjutsu—it was an actual shift in form.
Riku mused to himself that creatures like these weren’t exactly "sages" in the traditional sense. If anything, they were monsters.
The lead sage smiled faintly. "Shinya said you had sharp eyes, and it’s true. Most humans can’t tell. You’re correct—we’ve physically transformed into human forms. We can also shift instantly into our true snake hybrid forms."
As she spoke, her body began to twist and change. Her face grew feral, her tongue elongating into a serpentine split, her skin taking on a scalier hue.
Riku stared, expression deadpan. "Really? You couldn’t let me keep at least one good impression of you?"
He’d originally thought the female sage was quite attractive—especially the contrast of beauty and danger. But now? The mental image was ruined.
The sage reverted to her human-like appearance, still smiling. "If you fail in your training—or if you only succeed halfway—you’ll end up looking like us."
"Since the very beginning, no human has ever fully mastered Sage Mode here in Ryūchi Cave. So be careful."
Riku gave a small smirk. "I’ll do my best."
The three sages resumed their positions, then began to weave hand signs and channel chakra.
"Let’s begin. We’ll help guide natural energy into your body—you must manage your own chakra and spiritual energy balance."
Riku nodded. "Understood."
Unlike the earlier parts of his training—where he could master things instantly—Sage Mode was more complex. But Riku still progressed smoothly.
Natural energy surged into him, flowing through his chakra pathways.
There were no signs of him transforming into a snake.
Only some light facial markings appeared—but nothing serpentine.
Such a phenomenon hadn’t occurred in Ryūchi Cave in over a thousand years.
The Three Snake Sages were stunned.
"He’s actually progressing toward the perfect form of Sage Mode. And he’s just a human? How is this possible?"
They couldn’t believe it. Even though Riku hadn’t succeeded yet, his training was astonishingly smooth.
Word of this spread quickly through the cave—and soon, the White Snake Sage herself arrived in person to confirm it.
What’s more, she personally took up the role of guardian to protect Riku during the process.
Not once in the entire history of Ryūchi Cave had anyone come close to perfecting Sage Mode.
And yet, Riku already showed signs of heading down that path.
At this point, Riku had entered a trance-like state. His body continued absorbing natural energy at an incredible pace, merging it with his chakra and spiritual energy to produce a dense, potent Sage Chakra.
As the White Snake Sage watched over him, she couldn’t help but marvel at what she saw.
"This child’s chakra reserves... they’re monstrous. Easily on par with a Tailed Beast."
Riku’s chakra levels had now reached the threshold where he could rival the chakra of an average tailed beast.
In fact, his reserves had already surpassed Naruto’s pre-War Arc chakra—even when Naruto had half of Kurama’s power.
That was a terrifying volume of chakra.
It exceeded even the legendary Third and Fourth Raikage, both of whom were famed for having chakra reserves comparable to tailed beasts.
And yet, Riku’s was even greater.
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