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NBB Chapter 67: Sage Mode for Dummies
🕑 Added 2025-06-12 22:25:50 +0000 UTC"All right, enough with the depressing stuff."
Jiraiya gave his cheeks a couple of slaps to wake himself up and continued.
"You’d better be mentally prepared. I know you’re not exactly fond of toads, but what I’m about to teach you is deeply tied to Mount Myōboku, so…"
"Let’s cut to the point, Jiraiya-sama—what exactly are you planning to teach me?"
Gen interrupted Jiraiya’s 'sales pitch' without hesitation, getting straight to the point.
"I think I at least deserve to know what it is, right?"
"You really are a little brat, huh."
Jiraiya pursed his lips, then finally sighed and gave in.
"I'm going to teach you a technique called Sage Mode. This jutsu has extremely strict requirements—if you don’t have enough chakra, you can easily be overwhelmed by natural energy."
"Natural energy, also known as senjutsu chakra, is everywhere—but actually absorbing it is incredibly difficult. You need special tools or aids to do it properly."
"Back when I was training, I relied on the oil of Mount Myōboku’s toads. And even then, just having that oil doesn’t mean you can master the training. You also need a very specific state of mind.”
Jiraiya paused here and looked at Gen’s face, which was full of curiosity and hunger for knowledge. Satisfied, he nodded.
"You have to learn to remain completely still. Only by staying still and quietly attuning yourself to nature can you truly feel and train with natural chakra."
"It’s a tough and painful process, but remember: only those with unshakable willpower can become true sages!"
"I see…"
Gen nodded with a look of feigned confusion, pretending to mull it over seriously.
Jiraiya nodded again, pleased. He’d already seen the extent of Gen’s talent—anything he taught this kid, the kid would pick up quickly.
'But Sage Mode is different, brat.'
Jiraiya chuckled to himself and then continued at a relaxed pace.
"Want me to show you what it looks like? Once you feel its power for yourself—"
"Jiraiya-sama, you said natural energy is everywhere, right?"
Before Jiraiya could finish his sentence, Gen suddenly looked up, his expression curious.
"That’s right. It’s everywhere, but actually tapping into it—"
Jiraiya nodded reflexively, but Gen cut in again.
"If that’s the case, then… are these what you’re talking about?"
"These?"
Jiraiya’s eyes widened—and in that instant, Gen raised his hand.
It was as if he could actually sense the natural energy. In a flash, an overwhelming surge of power burst out from within him!
“Wha—?!”
Jiraiya nearly lost his footing and was almost thrown back by the sheer force—but he quickly stabilized and turned toward Gen in alarm.
'This is bad! This kid… he’s unbelievably reckless!'
He could already guess what was happening—and that only made him more worried. As someone who had trained in Sage Mode himself, Jiraiya knew just how dangerous the process truly was!
But then, as he looked more closely… he froze.
A trace of red pigmentation had appeared around Gen’s eyes. Slowly, he opened them—his once-black irises were now white, resembling those of the Hyūga clan.
The overwhelming energy around him began to calm, and his presence became saturated with pure, natural chakra.
In that moment—even Jiraiya understood exactly what had just happened.
"That’s… Sage Mode?!"
...
It was already afternoon, and Hiruzen, having eaten a proper meal, was preparing to get back to work.
“Kakashi’s resting at the hospital, Guy is staying to look after him, and Jiraiya’s gone to fetch Kitagawa Gen. Things are finally a bit quieter.”
Seated in his chair, Hiruzen suddenly found his thoughts drifting.
“That boy, Gen… can he really master Sage Mode?”
To be honest, he wasn’t entirely sure. But considering that the kid had even managed to learn the Flying Thunder God Technique, maybe—just maybe—he might surprise them again!
“Well, back to work.”
With his pipe dangling from his lips, Hiruzen turned his gaze to the table stacked with documents—and instantly fell silent.
Then he glanced at the cloth-covered towel nearby and rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
“It’s still early... Taking a short break shouldn’t be a problem, right?”
Besides, this was also a form of observing the current state of Konoha—technically part of his duties!
“Old man!”
Just as he reached out his hand, Jiraiya’s sudden shout startled him so much that he instantly pulled it back.
Looking up—just as he expected—Jiraiya had already burst in through the window, a look of urgency on his face.
“What happened? Did something go wrong?”
Hiruzen tried to maintain his composure, lowering his voice.
“Rushing in like that—what kind of example are you setting?”
“That brat Gen—he’s done it!”
“Huh? Done what?”
“Sage Mode! That kid has already learned Sage Mode!”
Seeing how excited Jiraiya was, Hiruzen found his hand trembling even more.
How long had it been? How did he learn it so quickly?
“You’re not joking, are you?”
Hiruzen, ever the seasoned Hokage who had weathered countless storms, calmed himself down and asked seriously. “Didn’t you say Sage Mode was extremely difficult? Then how did he—?”
“You might not believe it, but that kid seems to have a natural affinity for sensing chakra.”
Jiraiya, his mouth dry, still answered with solemn sincerity.
“I gave him a basic explanation of Sage Mode, and he told me he thought he could already feel natural energy."
"Before I could stop him, he was already drawing in senjutsu chakra—and he managed to stabilize it perfectly!”
“Is that so...”
Hiruzen was visibly stunned by the explanation.
But then he recalled how both Jiraiya and Kakashi had said that Kitagawa Gen had extraordinary chakra control.
That alone had allowed him to learn new techniques at an incredible pace.
“Exceptional chakra control... able to perceive natural energy...”
Pipe still in mouth, Hiruzen nodded slowly. Though still surprised and thrilled, he was beginning to settle down.
As Hokage, he had access to vast amounts of information. Naturally, he knew of others who had been gifted by nature with sensitivity to natural energy.
However, not everyone who encountered natural energy could harness it properly—some were overwhelmed by it, becoming wild and beast-like, losing all reason.
Even in the fragments of information Orochimaru had left behind after defecting from Konoha, there were vague mentions of such cases.
“I understand. How well has he mastered it now?”
“He’s doing well, but it’s still early—he’s just started learning, so there are many uncertainties.”
Jiraiya gave an honest reply after a brief pause.
“Then make sure to train him properly. Help him gain full mastery over this power.”
Hiruzen’s expression grew stern as he clapped his hands. An Anbu operative appeared before them.
“I’ve already ordered someone to retrieve the First Hokage’s notes. When you train him, pass those along too. You must raise him well. Understood?”
“Got it.”
Jiraiya nodded firmly. Even without Hiruzen’s instructions, he would’ve done it anyway.
“This really is great news...”
A smile finally formed on Hiruzen’s face. He truly felt that Konoha was thriving and full of promise.
But before he could enjoy the moment too long, Jiraiya’s next words caught him off guard.
“Old man, didn’t you not give me any of those materials back in the day? Playing favorites, are we?”
"Cough cough cough!"
“You trained directly with Mount Myōboku! What use would you have for those dusty old notes?!”
"Hey, you still owe me something—how about we take a look at that crystal ball together?"
"You! Get! Out of here right now!"
...
"Sage Art: Great Dragon Fire Technique!"
By the pond on the edge of Konoha’s forest, Kitagawa Gen raised a single hand in what seemed to be a completed seal. In the next instant, a massive crimson fire dragon roared forth.
Its colossal body swept over the entire pond, and everywhere it passed, thick clouds of steam surged into the air!
[Boom—!]
The fire dragon smashed into the opposite bank, igniting a blazing inferno. The flames spread rapidly, as though intent on devouring the entire forest on that side. But Gen, unfazed, calmly began forming hand seals again.
"Sage Art: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!"
With his chakra surging, a water dragon just as powerful as the previous fire one rapidly formed from the pond.
Howling through the air, the water dragon collided with the burning trees on the far side and extinguished the raging flames in an instant!
All that remained was a thick, drifting mist, blanketing nearly the entire forest.
"Jiraiya-sensei, how did I do?"
After finishing, Gen finally turned to look at Jiraiya. The latter’s mouth twitched slightly before he gave a slow nod.
"Very good... really good."
To be honest, Jiraiya had grown a little numb to it. He’d seen this kind of performance several times over the past month and a half.
Time had passed in the blink of an eye. Unknowingly, a month and a half had gone by.
As soon as Hiruzen heard about Gen’s situation, he had immediately ordered the materials to be gathered and rushed over.
Gen studied them diligently—and then his progress exploded, much to Jiraiya’s growing headache.
He had read those same materials himself, yet found them of little help.
'Now this is a real genius...'
Jiraiya was feeling a bit disheartened. He watched Gen’s Sage Mode in silence, then couldn’t help but ask, "How long can you maintain the form now?"
"I'm not really sure. Maybe around ten minutes?" Gen tilted his head slightly and gave a rough estimate—though truthfully, if he wanted to, he could hold it for much longer.
"That's not bad."
Jiraiya nodded. That should be enough to finish most fights.
"Jiraiya-sama, staying in Konoha doesn’t seem all that beneficial to me anymore."
As Jiraiya pondered, Gen suddenly spoke up.
"I think I need more real combat experience. Why don’t we head out for a bit?"
"Go out, huh?"
Jiraiya had vaguely been thinking the same thing. Failing to track down Orochimaru last time had left him feeling regretful for quite a while.
Watching Gen improve by leaps and bounds every day in Konoha—sure, it was satisfying, but also a bit crushing.
He himself still needed the aid of the two Great Toad Sages to enter Sage Mode, while Gen could slip into it smoothly and effortlessly. The gap was... significant.
He felt like he really did need a change of pace—and maybe they could pick up new intel on Orochimaru, or even on that organization.
Besides, Gen truly did need more real-world training.
"That’s worth considering. I’ll check in with the old man, see if there’s any relevant intel right now."
"You keep training. I’ll go have a word with him."
"No problem."
