Intense heatwaves and violent tremors emanated from the depths of Ryūchi Cave. Nine-Tails, who had been gleefully chasing two god-princesses with his Void Blade, tensed up, wondering if something had happened to Orochimaru during his battle with the White Snake Sage.
With a sweep of his powerful senses, the general situation within the temple in the depths of the cave was revealed.
"This fellow is so fast!"
Nine-Tails relaxed upon seeing the White Snake, who was devouring the White-Scaled Great Snake (?), but a strong sense of dissatisfaction soon arose.
"It seems I can't play with you little girls any longer. Witness my true power!"
Nine-Tails roared, his Void Blade slashing through the air around him, forming a chaotic net of blades that forced back the two god-princesses, who had been using their invisibility to hide not far to his left.
The two god-princesses reappeared at a distance, panting, their backs against the cage walls constructed by Nine-Tails' tail and natural energy. They looked at the dark orb rapidly forming in Nine-Tails' mouth with terror, the premonition of death lingering in their hearts.
Violent Yin and Yang energies were forcibly compressed by Nine-Tails. The surging natural energy around them, drawn by the immense suction force generated by the Beast Bomb's formation, rushed over to join the fray.
Nine-Tails welcomed this natural energy, as Orochimaru had mentioned that Sage Mode's power could decompose Yin-Yang Release. To maximize the power of his Beast Bomb in Ryūchi Cave, Nine-Tails roughly encased the Yin-Yang Release-formed Beast Bomb with a thick shell of natural energy.
The Beast Bomb gradually solidified, and destructive power fluctuations began to surge within the cage created by Nine-Tails. The two god-princesses could no longer endure the life-threatening pressure and fell to their knees before Nine-Tails with a thud.
"My lord, we are willing to surrender!"
Seeing her two elder sisters prostrate themselves so humbly, the Tsurugi-hime, who had been pinned under Nine-Tails' tail, lost all strength to struggle. Her snake head drooped limply to the ground, sincerely expressing her intention to submit to the powerful fox.
A flicker of mockery flashed in Nine-Tails' eyes.
Indeed, in the face of death, even creatures as inherently cunning and deceitful as snakes could not escape the common lot.
Nine-Tails' enormous head lowered from the cave ceiling, his gaze sharp as he looked down at the two prostrate god-princesses. As for the one under his foot, he ignored it.
The one sliced in half by a sword was not even worthy of a glance from Nine-Tails.
As Nine-Tails' mouth, holding the Beast Bomb, drew closer, the bodies of the two god-princesses on the ground trembled like sieves. The longer one lived, the more one wished not to die.
"My lord, spare us!"
Nine-Tails let out a contemptuous grunt from his throat and abruptly snapped his large mouth shut.
"Crack!"
A muffled sound came from Nine-Tails' mouth. The almost world-destroying Beast Bomb was shattered with a single bite. The surging Yin-Yang Release and natural energy reverberated within Nine-Tails' mouth. Wisps of energy leaked out from the gaps between his fangs, immediately whipping up a terrifying energy storm within the cage.
The two god-princesses screamed in terror, their bodies pressed flat against the ground. They dug their fingers deep into the earth, thus avoiding being swept away and torn apart by the storm.
Thanks to Nine-Tails' firm grip on her body, Tsurugi-hime remained unmoved by the energy storm's pull. However, her severed lower body was not so fortunate. It was immediately swept up by the storm and lifted off the ground, crashing around chaotically. It was impossible to discern its original shape.
The storm raged for a while before finally gradually subsiding.
Nine-Tails returned to his normal fox size and stood calmly atop the head of the giant red snake.
"Submission?"
"With the cunning nature of snakes, it is difficult for me to believe your sincerity!"
Seeing that Nine-Tails had retracted his powers, the three god-princesses felt a wave of relief. Disregarding their former dignity as one of the four great powers of Ryūchi Cave, they busied themselves pledging their loyalty to Nine-Tails in order to save their lives.
As for the White Snake Sage?
If Orochimaru's summoning beast was already this powerful, could the White Snake Sage possibly survive Orochimaru's direct intervention?
They couldn't worry about that now; survival was the priority!
"My lord, we sisters are willing to open our souls and have your master, Lord Orochimaru, plant an eternal contract seal of no betrayal upon us!"
"Please, my lord, spare us sisters, considering we are all summoning beasts!"
This flattery, which missed the mark entirely, greatly angered Nine-Tails.
So, after all his efforts, even crushing the Beast Bomb to avoid causing too much damage, the surrender he obtained would ultimately benefit that scoundrel Orochimaru?
"This is infuriating!"
Nine-Tails grumbled to himself for a while, secretly vowing that he would definitely learn the human method of hand seals.
"Once I learn the Summoning Jutsu, I will demand these three little snakes back from Orochimaru."
"Even if they're not used for fighting, they could at least help me roast meat or something, right?"
Having made up his mind, Nine-Tails curled his lips, cursed Orochimaru again, and then turned his gaze to the three god-princesses below.
"Hmm..."
"It's not impossible to live, but what are your strengths?"
Nine-Tails pondered for a moment and added,
"I'm talking about skills other than fighting!"
"With your meager strength, I wouldn't be interested!"
The three god-princesses' hearts rejoiced. They frantically searched their minds for their own advantages. After thinking for a long time, just as Nine-Tails was growing impatient, the god-princess Tianxin weakly raised her hand and tentatively asked,
"My lord, I can make food more delicious with illusions..."
"Would that count as a strength?"
Nine-Tails' eyes lit up. Now he would have his main course! Suppressing his joy, he nodded arrogantly.
"Hmm!"
"Not bad, you've barely passed!"
"Go stand aside!"
The god-princess Tianxin was overjoyed and happily moved to the side.
"My lord, I..."
"I can convert chakra into edible crystals, and I can also make different attributes of chakra into different colors and flavors."
"What do you think..."
Seeing that such an unrefined skill could save her life, the god-princess Ichikishima was delighted. She modified her ability to absorb chakra and spoke.
Nine-Tails stroked his chin and nodded thoughtfully.
"After the main course, having some snacks would be quite fitting!"
"Excellent, you've passed too!"
Ichikishima joyfully stood up from the ground and quickly ran to her sister's side, as if afraid Nine-Tails would change his mind.
"And you?"
Nine-Tails tapped the half-snake body under his foot twice and asked expectantly.
Tsurugi-hime panicked.
This powerful fox was clearly interested in food, but she couldn't do anything like that!
With a heart full of despair, she lay on the ground, her forked tongue weakly flicking in and out. Tsurugi-hime replied listlessly,
"I..."
"I can only say nice words, and also do back rubs and massages..."
Nine-Tails was stunned for a moment. A decadent image suddenly appeared in his mind.
He was lying on the Hokage Rock in Konoha, with the head of that scoundrel Hashirama below. To his left, a beautiful snake-woman was offering food, and to his right, another beautiful snake-woman was feeding him snacks. Behind him, someone was obsequiously offering compliments and diligently massaging his head.
Orochimaru would be watching from the side, drooling with envy.
"Ha..."
"Can't think about it, can't think about it!"
Nine-Tails quickly shook his head, trying to banish those degenerate images from his mind. He leaped off the half-snake body.
"Hmm..."
"Never mind. Although you have no other outstanding merits, I've already accepted two, so there's no harm in accepting you as well."
"Get up!"
Tsurugi-hime's eyes widened in immense joy. Seeing the casual expression on Nine-Tails' face, she scrambled up from the ground and finally transformed into her human form.
"Thank you, my lord, thank you!"
Nine-Tails waved his paw indifferently, his expression calm but his heart filled with pleasure as he walked deeper into Ryūchi Cave.
"Follow me!"
"I'll take you to meet the new master of Ryūchi Cave!"