Ryūchidō.
This sage region of the shinobi world, famed alongside Mount Myōboku and the Shikkotsu Forest, resembled a shadowy underground shrine—its every corner exuding a sense of eeriness and dread that sent chills down the spine.
Yet it was indeed a subspace tethered to the shinobi world. As for its environment, that depended entirely on the will of its master—the White Snake Sage.
At that moment, the sage coiled regally upon her throne. A large, bright green cat's-eye gem hung before her, and a thick smoking pipe dangled from her mouth as tendrils of smoke curled around her figure.
She stared with her orange-yellow serpent eyes at the towering golden figure before her—a giant who called himself a "Giant God Warrior,"—and silently listened to the other's lengthy speech.
Truth be told, had it been anyone else, she would've long since grown impatient and swallowed them whole.
But she had to take that "old toad's" warning seriously.
"First, from now on, Ryūchidō will be under the direct jurisdiction of Umigakure. It must cooperate with all operations conducted by Umigakure and hand over the 'Summoning Scroll' for custody and use."
"Second, Ryūchidō is responsible for training any shinobi willing to come learn Senjutsu. It is also obligated to assist the World Government in researching Senjutsu, and must annually provide Umigakure with 100 liters of 'White Snake Venom.'"
"Third, the White Snake Sage is required to aid the World Government in 'surveillance intelligence' whenever needed, and must also participate in combat on behalf of the World Government."
Only after Brogy finally finished his speech did the White Snake Sage speak up at last, slowly and deliberately.
The demand for "surveillance intelligence" stemmed from the fact that, under the enhancement of Senjutsu, the White Snake Sage's hearing had reached the point where he could perceive every sound in the shinobi world.
Even in other worlds, such an ability would be considered nothing short of miraculous.
"The 'Summoning Scroll' doesn't matter to me. But you'll have to ask Orochimaru for it."
She had no concern for the fate of the other snakes in Ryūchidō after they were summoned—she sometimes even snacked on a few for fun.
"Training your shinobi in Senjutsu is fine as well, but don't come blaming me when they die from failure. As for handing over 100 liters of snake venom every year—isn't that a bit much? How about fifty?"
Brogy, with his golden axe strapped to his waist and a golden shield slung over his left arm, immediately replied in a cold tone.
"This is an order from Lord Imu. There is no room for negotiation. The amount is set in stone—not a single liter less!"
Not far off, the three snake princesses all turned pale at the bluntness of those words.
They knew all too well the temper of their Sage. This could spell disaster!
But to their surprise, the White Snake Sage's response defied their expectations.
Upon hearing Brogy's words, she simply puffed her pipe and let out a cold chuckle.
"Quite the tyrant, aren't you? In that case, I have two conditions of my own—one for you, and one for the World Government."
Beneath his golden helmet, Brogy raised an eyebrow. "Let's hear it."
Since it wasn't directed at Lord Imu, there was no harm in listening.
"First, I want to spar with you. I'd like to see what kind of power this 'Giant God Warrior' possesses. Second, I demand that the World Government provide Ryūchidō with 10,000 humans each year. Sorry, but we have a taste for them. Considering you lot rule over multiple human worlds, that shouldn't be too hard, right?"
With that, the Withe Snake Sage exhaled a puff of smoke and waited for Brogy's answer.
She believed that neither of her demands was excessive.
The first was simple: this "Giant" gave her a feeling of kinship—of being the same kind. So she wanted to test him through battle, to probe his depths.
As for the second... as she'd just said, what did 10,000 humans a year mean to the World Government?
A mere trifle.
She was mainly curious about how humans from other worlds might taste.
"You eat humans?"
Sure, Brogy was a giant, not a human.
But as an intelligent race that had lived alongside humans on Starfish for many years, eating people had become a universal taboo among all sentient species.
"Of course we do. We're snakes—humans are part of our natural diet," the White Snake Sage said with no trace of shame. "Of course, I'm referring to the weak ones. You can give us humans from other worlds—preferably not from the shinobi world. We're tired of the taste~~"
As she spoke, completely unbothered, the three snake princesses beside her parted their horrific jaws and flicked their tongues, clearly drooling at the thought.
This only made the chill radiating from Brogy grow stronger.
At last, his fiery temper surged to the surface. He grabbed the golden axe at his waist and roared in fury, "Shut the hell up already!!"
He couldn't take it any longer.
This so-called "sage" turned out to be nothing more than a man-eating monster?
Brogy had no idea how Lord Imu or the World Government would respond if he were to report her request.
Maybe… they'd agree?
After all, providing 10,000 ordinary humans a year wasn't exactly a challenge for the World Government.
And from a resource-exchange perspective, trading them for Ryūchidō's cooperation and assets might seem like a good deal.
But Brogy knew one thing: he couldn't accept it. He wouldn't deliver the White Snake Sage's demand.
Because if Lord Imu agreed—if the World Government approved—then wouldn't that make him the bastard who indirectly condemned 10,000 people a year to be eaten?
He was a warrior—he could slaughter enemies on the battlefield.
But handing over humans to be served as food to monsters?
That, he could never do.
"Huh?"
Coiled atop her throne, the White Snake Sage looked at the suddenly furious Brogy in surprise and confusion.
She didn't understand—why was he so enraged?
The murderous intent rolling off of him was palpable, sweeping through Ryūchidō like a storm of pure killing will.
"Today, I'm going to wipe out every last man-eating monster in this place—"
"—and tomorrow, I'll face Lord Imu's judgment myself!!"
Brogy's aura erupted, crimson light coursing wildly across his body.
The force of Haki surged into his golden axe and shield, cloaking them in an ominous black sheen.
He had already made up his mind.
Even if it meant being executed by Lord Imu later—
The mere possibility of sending 10,000 humans a year to this place had to be destroyed at the root.
And the best way to do that… was to wipe Ryūchidō and this damn White Snake Sage off the face of the earth.
"So you're courting death!!"
Seeing that Brogy meant to fight for real, the White Snake Sage stopped holding back.
Her killing instinct surged forth, wild and violent.
Her massive serpentine body expanded in an instant, casting a monstrous shadow over Brogy.
The very next moment—
The golden giant and the white-scaled serpent collided within the dark, damp depths of Ryūchidō, their clash unleashing a storm of earth-shaking howls and roars.
Wherever the axe swung, the air was torn apart with thunderous explosions—until it collided mid-air with the tail of the White Snake Sage, which had lashed toward him with violent force.
[BOOM!!!]
But the outcome was clear in an instant. The enormous body of the White Snake Sage was hurled away by the blast, its massive frame crashing heavily against the stone wall.
Still, despite the rough appearance and the pained cry, the White Snake Sage hadn't sustained serious damage—only the surface scales on its tail showed visible signs of damage.
Its massive body swiftly shrank at a pace visible to the naked eye, and as thick white mist poured forth, the creature vanished from sight.
Brogy, just about to give chase, halted in his tracks.
Peering through the slit of his golden helmet, he scanned the thickening mist around him.
That was when he noticed something peculiar—all the stone walls, structures, even the throne itself were beginning to dissolve into the mist.
Brogy immediately swung his golden axe with full force, stirring up a whirlwind that blew away all the surrounding mist.
But what was revealed beneath the fog stunned him beyond belief.
The Ryūchidō was gone.
In its place stretched a vast, barren, and bone-white plain.
And that whiteness… came from the countless skeletons and bones piled across the land in a horrifying spectacle.
Among the remains were the bones of many large creatures—but the overwhelming majority were unmistakably human. In the distance, they had even formed mountain-like ridges of piled corpses.
Amidst the bone-covered terrain slithered a terrifying horde of snakes, large and small, all surging toward his location like a tidal wave.
This was the true face of the Ryūchidō.
Everything before had merely been an illusion—
And the illusion had been so realistic that Brogy hadn't seen through it at all.
Even now, the stealth abilities the White Snake Sage displayed had completely concealed its presence.
Brogy realized that his Observation Haki couldn't detect the enemy's aura whatsoever.
Faced with this situation, there wasn't much Brogy could do. All he could do was roar furiously as he swung his massive golden axe, slaughtering the endless swarm of serpents charging toward him.
Even the massive pythons over ten meters long couldn't withstand a single blow from him.
Any venom spat at him was blocked by his Armament Haki or deflected off the golden armor he wore.
In the blink of an eye—
The ground was littered with shattered, mangled serpent corpses. Rivers of blood flowed freely, pooling and spreading outward.
The only ones presenting any real threat… were the three snake princesses of the Ryūchidō, hovering silently in the air above.
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