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Midorima had endured an exceptionally grueling period of time.
The execution of sage techniques required a formidable reserve of chakra as its foundation, which was precisely why, within the entirety of Konohagakure, only Jiraiya and Naruto had been able to master the sage arts.
As for others, even someone of Hatake Kakashi's caliber possessed personal chakra reserves insufficient to support such training.
Thanks to his unique Cell Laboratory, Midorima could stimulate the chakra latent within his own cells, granting him reserves significantly greater than those of his peers and surpassing Kakashi's as well.
However, when compared to Jiraiya, he was undoubtedly at a disadvantage, let alone when measured against Naruto—as the jinchuriki of the Nine-Tails, Naruto's chakra could truly be described as boundless.
Therefore, Midorima also needed to find a way to expand his own chakra capacity. His secret weapon was the Cell Laboratory, coupled with the cells of Jugo.
To state it plainly, the method involved using Jugo's cells to absorb natural energy, and then, through the Cell Laboratory, converting this stream of natural energy into physical and spiritual energy.
This might sound implausible, since natural energy originates from the environment, while physical and spiritual energy are drawn from one's own being.
Yet, the key to the puzzle lay precisely within "Jugo's cells."
Natural energy does indeed come from the natural world.
Jugo could absorb natural energy, and so could Midorima; otherwise, he would be unable to fuse it into sage chakra in the required one-to-one-to-one ratio.
The difference was that Jugo could directly utilize the absorbed natural energy without first merging it with chakra. This indicated his cells possessed some inherent method to transform or harness natural energy.
Furthermore, Orochimaru, by utilizing Jugo's bodily fluids combined with specific cursed seal formulas, had successfully developed the immensely powerful Cursed Seals.
This proved that Jugo's cells held tangible potential for exploitation.
After obtaining Jugo's cells, Midorima had initially been too cautious to experiment, due to his lack of understanding of sage chakra. However, upon genuinely coming into contact with sage chakra, Midorima began to seriously contemplate the use of Jugo's cells.
When those snakes bit him, the pain was very real, but his primary focus remained fixed on figuring out how to leverage Jugo's cells to convert natural energy into chakra.
As he maintained his stillness, external natural energy also surged into his body, beginning to merge with his existing chakra.
For a time, four distinct types of energy coexisted within him: natural energy, the unique energy from Jugo's cells, physical energy, and spiritual energy.
Excess natural energy pushed him toward serpentine transformation—light purple "eyeshadow" appeared around his eyes. Whenever that happened, the Cell Laboratory alerted him, snapping him back to clarity.
This was the reason he always regained his senses just as he teetered on the brink of transformation.
Yet, Midorima was also keenly aware that persisting down this path, even if it eventually led to mastering sage chakra, would still fall far short of his original purpose for coming here.
Fortunately, Orochimaru's extensive research on Jugo's cells provided Midorima with a crucial insight.
If Orochimaru could use Jugo's cells to enhance a subject's chakra reserves, then there must be a definitive link between the cells and chakra amplification.
To uncover this connection, Midorima dedicated an entire month of relentless effort. He finally succeeded in converting the natural energy absorbed by Jugo's cells into chakra—a process nearly identical to his earlier deconstruction of the "Heaven Cursed Seal." Utilizing the Analysis Laboratory, he performed a reverse-engineering process on the energy emitted from within Jugo's cells, then channeled it through the Transformation Chamber to complete the conversion.
Thus, the energy released by Jugo's cells, after being broken down and transformed, erupted in vast quantities. This immense output caused the six encircling serpents to recoil, not daring to approach. Instead, they turned on each other, pairing off into vicious, bloody combat.
For Midorima, this was not the conclusion. On the contrary, it was merely the commencement.
Successfully harnessing Jugo's cells was not his ultimate objective. The next step was to fuse this newly generated chakra with natural energy to form genuine sage chakra.
Midorima became so engrossed he even forgot his hunger, his entire being entering a state of profound, focused tranquility.
In stark contrast, the surrounding giant serpents descended into utter frenzy, locked in mortal combat until only one victor remained—a massive black python.
After devouring its rivals, its body underwent a grotesque expansion, stretching to nearly forty meters in length.
Having secured its dominance, the great black serpent coiled itself around Midorima, resting its massive head gently beside him.
Tagitsuhime maintained her vigil at the cliff's edge for a full day and night. Seeing no movement from Midorima, she began to suspect he might have perished from starvation. Looking up, she was startled to find Midorima standing directly before her.
"You... you..." Tagitsuhime stared at Midorima, her jaw slack with astonishment.
Midorima's upper garments were in tatters, revealing a powerfully built physique, though dried blood caked much of his skin.
"I'll take a short rest. We can resume the intensive training tomorrow," Midorima stated, picking up a skewer of the snake meat Tagitsuhime had prepared and striding purposefully away.
"He... succeeded?" Tagitsuhime muttered to herself, watching his retreating form with deep bewilderment. At that moment, a deafening rustle and thud echoed from behind the cliff.
She whirled around to see the colossal black serpent hauling its immense body up from the chasm and onto the ledge. As it slithered past her, it dipped its head in a slight, acknowledging nod, its tongue flickering out, before following steadily in Midorima's wake.
From that day forth, wherever Midorima went, the great black serpent was sure to be nearby. This constant presence greatly displeased Garaga, leading to a violent clash between the two mighty serpents.
Their battle was cut short before a clear winner could emerge by the furious intervention of the Great White Snake Sage.
"Keep fighting like this, and you'll bring the entire Ryūchi Cave down upon our heads!"
Only then did the two serpents relent, though the black serpent continued its aloof and independent ways, largely ignoring Garaga.
The dynamic between the two serpents puzzled Midorima, but he was no zoologist and had little interest in mediating their relationship. In fact, a rather mercenary thought crossed his mind: it might be most efficient if one serpent consumed the other, presumably resulting in a single, even more colossal entity.
Of course, that was merely a fleeting notion.
The Great White Snake Sage would never permit such an outcome.
Therefore, Midorima decided on a different course of action. He "assigned" the great black serpent to Jugo as well.
After all, wasn't the goal to increase physical and spiritual energy?
One great serpent might not be enough. Why not add another?
Thus, Jugo found himself unwittingly burdened with a double dose of "companionship."
Having achieved mastery over sage chakra, Midorima devoted himself to thoroughly acclimating to this new power.
In truth, even with the advantage granted by Jugo's cells, rapidly overcoming the inherent limitations of sage chakra quantity was unrealistic. Even Naruto, with the near-infinite chakra of the Nine-Tails, had faced depletion of his sage chakra during his battle against Pain.
All of this required time and patience.
However, Midorima possessed one advantage Naruto did not: he was not operating under extreme time pressure. He could afford to spend a great deal of time meticulously researching and refining his control over sage chakra.
Another two months slipped by. Midorima's utilization of sage chakra grew increasingly fluid and precise. Even Tagitsuhime was taken aback by how minimally the transformation affected him. Apart from the persistent light purple markings framing his eyes, Sage Midorima bore little outward difference from his ordinary state.
Still unsatisfied, Midorima continued his deep discussions on sage arts with Tagitsuhime. It was during one such session that Ichikishimahime sought him out.
"Someone is here to see you," Ichikishimahime announced.
"The Great White Snake Sage?" Midorima asked, surprised.
"No. A ninja from the outside world. She says her name is Tayuya."