Chapter 492: The Raikage Compromises
"Naruto? What are you doing in Kumogakure? If this were the old days, we would've already detained you."
The Raikage spoke bluntly the moment he saw Naruto appear, showing him no courtesy at all.
"But things are different now, right? I'm friends with uncle Bee, and uncle Raikage and Bee are brothers, so that makes us friends too. That's the benefit of mutual understanding."
Naruto said it with a cheeky grin.
That ridiculous equivalence logic left the Raikage completely speechless.
By that reasoning, indirect connections alone would make everyone in the ninja world "friends."
And…
"What does this have to do with understanding?"
The Raikage frowned.
"This is a concession made by the major ninja villages in the face of a common enemy. Don't be so naive!"
"No…"
"Naruto, stop talking for now. Don't forget our mission."
Kakashi cut off Naruto's rebuttal.
He understood Naruto's personality—and his "talk no jutsu."
In the original story, Naruto once said he wasn't good at arguing, and that wasn't modesty.
Being good at "talk no jutsu" didn't mean being good at logical debate.
Naruto couldn't understand the Raikage's reasoning, and the Raikage had a short temper. If this continued, they might end up fighting.
And then their relationship would break down again.
Kakashi felt like he was exhausting himself just managing this operation.
"Raikage-sama, what you said is correct. The current peace in the ninja world does indeed stem from the threat of the Ōtsutsuki clan. However, this has also created a platform for ninjas from all villages to understand each other."
"Just like Naruto and Killer B, are their relationship fake just because they share a common enemy?"
Kakashi's argument was clearly on a higher level than Naruto's shouting.
He first acknowledged the Raikage's point, then countered it from within that framework.
"…So what exactly are you here for? Just say it."
After a brief silence, the Raikage changed the topic.
That was effectively an implicit acceptance of Kakashi's reasoning.
"As Raikage-sama said, we now face a common enemy. Therefore, to deal with it, we must work together."
"So Naruto has decided to contribute the secret technique of his Sage Mode cultivation and share it with everyone in the ninja world."
Kakashi finally sighed in relief and got to the point.
"What? Sage Mode?"
The Raikage was shocked.
The reputation of Sage Mode was thunderous.
Among those capable of using senjutsu, the most famous and almost universally recognized, was the legendary Six Paths Sage.
As for Senju Hashirama's Sage Mode, very few in the ninja world actually knew about it.
After all, aside from Uchiha Madara, who could even force Senju Hashirama to use Sage Mode?
Most of the time, just using the Wooden Giant was already more than enough.
As for Jiraiya, even fewer people knew about his abilities.
But now, the Six Paths Sage was no longer just a figure of legend in distant stories—he had effectively "walked into" everyday life in the ninja world.
According to the Limited Tsukuyomi series novels, the Six Paths Sage was interpreted in various strange ways, even being described as some "Six-Tails-bearing immortal" and similar nonsense.
In those interpretations, "Six Paths" had all sorts of bizarre explanations, while "Sage" was said to represent him betraying his original beloved, Gamamaru.
"That's right, Raikage-sama. This is the secret manual. Kumogakure is only our first stop. We will be visiting other ninja villages as well."
"However, Raikage-sama, the contents of this manual are… shocking. But they are absolutely genuine. I hope you will not doubt our sincerity."
Kakashi spoke in a very official tone, giving off the impression that he was the next Hokage.
"Shocking? Hmph. What kind of scenes have I not seen? You think I'd be startled by a mere training method?"
The Raikage scoffed and opened the scroll immediately.
"What the hell!"
Halfway through reading, the Raikage suddenly cursed loudly, snapping the scroll shut and glaring angrily at Kakashi.
Kakashi simply spread his hands.
Seeing this gesture, the Raikage's anger quickly subsided, and he regained his composure.
Indeed, Kakashi had warned him in advance.
But…
"Raikage-sama, keep reading. We've already summarized the principles—you can analyze whether it's real or not."
Kakashi pointed at the scroll, calm and unbothered.
"…."
The Raikage hesitated, then opened it again and continued reading.
It said that the principle of this method was entering a "Sage Mode state."
In this state, a person could empty their mind and eliminate distractions.
This was the hardest requirement for entering Sage Mode.
Normally, when training at Mount Myōboku, one would need to sit on a stone slab balanced atop a sharp stone spike, constantly training to maintain equilibrium and mental focus before even having a chance to reach this state.
But Naruto had discovered a shortcut: a series of hand movements similar to forming seals, allowing one to achieve the same state and greatly reducing the difficulty of Sage Mode.
"This…"
The Raikage was completely confused now.
The reason he had been persuaded by Kakashi earlier was because, despite his rough appearance, he was actually a very logical and reasonable person.
He accepted Kakashi's argument because it made sense.
And now, the contents of this "secret manual" also seemed logically consistent.
The Raikage didn't know the true method of Sage Mode cultivation, but the explanation here made it hard for him not to believe it.
"Have any of your people in Konoha learned it? I mean, anyone other than Naruto?"
The Raikage closed the scroll again and stared at Kakashi.
He still had some doubts.
He suspected this might be a setup to embarrass him.
Logically, that kind of thing made sense too.
But he still found it hard to believe that the noble Sage Mode could be accessed through such a shameless method.
It was like…
Like that early "Buff Man Paradise" magazine story describing Lei Ai—turning a cold, high-and-mighty goddess into something completely… absurd.
"Of course", Kakashi replied seriously.
"The first in Konoha to learn it was Inuzuka Clan's Inuzuka Kiba. After merging with his ninken, he developed a new branch of Naruto's shortcut."
"Actually, you could even say it isn't entirely new. Jiraiya-sama has used a similar approach before."
"That is, using summoned beasts to assist in controlling natural energy."
"It not only makes control easier, but also increases the amount of senjutsu chakra that can be refined in the end."
"I guessed you would doubt this, Raikage-sama. Not just you, the other Kage will doubt it too. That's why Konohamaru and I quickly mastered Sage Mode using this method."
"If Raikage-sama doesn't have a summoned beast, he can still use the original shortcut. It's just slightly slower."
Kakashi finished speaking very seriously.
And he also predicted exactly what would happen next.
As expected, after a moment of silence, the Raikage dismissed those around him and ordered the Kumogakure ANBU to leave.
"If you want me to trust you… then show me."
The Raikage said.
(End of this chapter)