Drawing on their previous experience, the two quickly grasped the unique movement method of Mount Myōboku after being struck by the staff a few times.
After that, they headed to Ryūchi Cave. Although the Toad Sage had informed the White Snake Sage of their arrival, only a female serpent greeted them at the entrance, and she insisted on putting them through some kind of trial.
This displeased Madara greatly.
"What does that loach mean? Doesn't he know we're in a hurry?"
"What loach?" The other party looked confused, her brow furrowed slightly.
"Hmph! Don't think that just because you've lived a long time you can look down on everyone. Take us to see him now!"
"No can do. It's the rule. You have to undergo the trials."
"You're asking for it!" Madara immediately activated his Mangekyō Sharingan.
"Madara! We came here to learn. Let's hear them out first." Seeing the man beside him about to explode, Hashirama quickly spoke up to stop him.
"Tch." Madara crossed his arms, still glaring coldly at the other party.
"My name is Tamagami no Hime. Please, follow me."
Hashirama and Madara followed her inside.
Soon, they saw a magnificent, luxurious pavilion with a plaque hanging at the entrance—Ryūchi Cave.
"Please, come in." She invited them with a beaming smile. Beneath her pretty face, Hashirama noticed her smile was too perfect, even a bit fake.
He didn't think much of it, though, and followed her into the main hall. It was resplendent, the bright light stinging his eyes so much he could barely keep them open.
Once his eyes adjusted, he saw a dining table set up in the center of the hall.
The wide table was laden with a feast so sumptuous that Hashirama had never seen such an abundance of delicious food in either of his lives.
Perhaps only the legendary "Manhan Quanyou" could compare.
Just as he was thinking this, his feet seemed to move on their own, and he found himself reaching for a suckling pig without thinking.
"Let me show you all how to eat a whole pig in three bites!" A classic scene suddenly popped into Hashirama's mind, and it was this distraction that allowed him to immediately realize something was wrong.
"There's something off about this food. It's too perfect, like it's deliberately tempting me. Madara, don't eat it!"
When Hashirama turned around, he saw Madara watching him with an amused look.
He instantly understood: Madara had figured it out long ago and had just been waiting to see how he would react.
"Your reaction was too slow, Hashirama. You've been slacking lately."
"I just wanted to see what this trial was all about." Hashirama felt his face flush, his lame excuse something even he didn't believe.
"What a pity. You've passed the selection trial. There are two more trials waiting inside. I won't see you out."
As Tamagami no Hime's voice echoed, the surroundings warped. The magnificent building and the tempting feast all vanished, revealing the cave's original form.
Having said her piece, she drifted into the air and gradually disappeared.
"Simple. If they're all like this, there's no need to start a conflict."
Madara warned him, "This serpent reeks of blood. There's no telling how many people she's killed. This place is different from the other two. I say we just kill her and be done with it to avoid future trouble."
"Hmm… You're right. Let's find an excuse to make an issue of it and see how that White Snake Sage reacts." As Hashirama spoke, he thought to himself, The Toad Sage warned us that Ryūchi Cave's path is devouring creatures to evolve, tempting prey with deception to ignite their will to survive, only consuming them after the game is finished. It seems that's exactly the case. These serpents really do need to be put in their place. Besides, the Sage Mode style here doesn't suit us anyway; we're just using it for reference.
"Over here." A cute voice came from ahead, and a small figure appeared before them, snapping Hashirama out of his thoughts.
"Nice to meet you. I am Ichikishima no Hime." The young girl covered her face as she sized them up, then led them into a stone room.
Clang! The stone door suddenly shut.
"Hee hee. For the second trial, you need to find the matching crystal stones to fill the holes in the stone wall. If you fail…" She paused, and her cute face instantly transformed into a monstrous serpent's visage, her eyes gleaming with greed.
"Hmph!" Madara let out a heavy snort, releasing a powerful aura. "You dare threaten me? Knowing full well about the future, that old loach still sets up these time-wasting trials. He's clearly toying with us!"
As he finished speaking, Madara activated his Susanoo once more.
Ichikishima no Hime revealed her true form. "Since you're here, you must follow the rules. Those who disobey will be eaten immediately!" With that, she charged toward them.
Her hair transformed into several long serpents, attacking from multiple directions!
The large energy skeleton behind Madara raised a hand and slashed, severing the snake-hair. This generated a powerful wind pressure that shook the cave. The severed snake-hair twitched on the ground a few times before vanishing.
"How dare you! Is that how strong you are? How about this?"
Senpō: Jirai!
A massive swarm of serpents surged from the surroundings, attacking them. Lightning struck down from the cave ceiling, clinging to the swarm and creating a wide-area lightning strike.
"Child's play!" Madara still hadn't moved a step, his arms crossed. He raised a finger, and an energy armor covered the skeleton's body, successfully advancing it to the second stage.
"Don't let your guard down." Hashirama steeled himself, forcing his memory, and slowly completed the hand seals with some difficulty: Tora → Mi → Tatsu → Ne → Shi → I.
Mokuton: Hōbi no Jutsu!
A giant wooden shield, shaped like a fanged demonic face, enveloped both him and Madara.
"Doing unnecessary things." Madara, sensing something was off as well, merely made this comment without any further action.
Boom! The lightning struck the shield solidly, creating a deafening roar and kicking up a cloud of smoke.
Ichikishima no Hime's snake eyes widened as she vaguely made out a circular shape within. When the smoke cleared, she could see it clearly.
The shield was covered in cracks, trails of blue smoke wafting from the black scorch marks.
Although battered and broken, it had still managed to hold!
Crash, crash, crash! The shield folded back in layers from the center, revealing the two men inside, completely unharmed.
Her expression changed, and her heart began to pound nervously.
"Not bad. It actually almost broke through Hashirama's technique. You should be proud of yourself, little snake."
In truth, Jirai wasn't just a powerful attack; it also carried fluctuations that disrupted natural energy. The two had been forced to regulate their natural energy balance inside the shield.
"How dare you… I've lived for a thousand years! I'm no little snake! Take this!"
Just as the two braced themselves for defense, who would have thought she would turn around… and run out?
She shouted loudly, "Sage, save me!"
"Hmph!" Enraged, Madara manipulated Susanoo to slash the stone door and wall apart in one strike, pursuing her.
Hashirama felt a bit dazed until a sharp pain in his leg snapped him back to reality. He looked down to see two small serpents biting his ankle.
This pushed aside his lingering fear of snakes, replaced by anger. "You want my life? Then go to hell!"
He yanked the serpents off, leaving a few drops of blood, and stamped his foot hard. The ground around Hashirama instantly collapsed, forming a five-meter-wide crater.
The surrounding swarm of serpents was obliterated in an instant.
He checked his wound again and saw it had stopped bleeding and no longer hurt.
He reminded himself silently: I used to be afraid of even one snake, but now one stomp can wipe out a whole swarm. That feels pretty good… Hashirama, you're not a college student anymore. You're the God of Shinobi—Senju Hashirama! There are much more dangerous fights ahead. If you don't get used to it now, once Tobirama and Madara figure it out, you're definitely ending up on an examination table.
Slap, slap, slap! He smacked his numb cheeks a few times, readjusted his mindset, grabbed a shed snakeskin and clenched it in his fist, roaring, "I am Senju Hashirama!"
He then chased down the tunnel.
It wasn't long before he saw Uchiha Madara being attacked by three serpent demons.
His Susanoo had already advanced to the third stage. What was originally just a torso now had complete lower body and legs, its head nearly scraping the cave ceiling, estimated to be around thirty meters tall!
Its entire body was clad in armor, its form closer to a complete humanoid. It had horn-like structures on its head, its eyes bearing the Mangekyō pattern, and it now wielded a sword of chakra.
"Hashirama, stay out of this. I'm just having some fun with them!"
Now, the area around Madara's eyes was covered in black markings forming a distinct pattern—he had clearly activated Sage Mode!
Senpō: Katon—Gōka Mekkyaku!!!
"Enough!" An unfamiliar old woman's angry shout came from ahead.
The cave seemed to come alive. The three serpent demons immediately merged into the ground and vanished, while countless stone pillars rose up, intercepting the immense flames.
Though the pillars shattered like paper, their sheer numbers managed to somehow hold back the Senpō-enhanced flames?!
Madara grinned fiercely. "Good. Since you've made your move, let me test the power of a so-called Sage!"
"Stop! I have no intention of going to war with you." An old woman's voice echoed from ahead.
"Begging for mercy now? Too late."
Ding! At that moment, Hashirama received a notification.
[Uchiha Madara's strength has significantly increased due to trusting the host's guidance in Sage Arts, altering the world line. Bond value increased by 3%.]
[Special reward: Bloodline Activated.]
Hashirama immediately felt a certain energy activating within him.