At dawn, two figures clashed furiously in the Small Woods. Powerful gusts swept countless dead leaves off the ground. In the end, the fight ended with a faint cry of pain.
"Kai, you need to keep working hard, or Houka will leave you further and further behind." Might Duy folded his arms and watched Guy with a serious expression.
"Got it, Father!" Guy stood up, grimacing. His face was bruised and swollen, and even his thick eyebrows were badly crooked.
Might Duy looked at Houka with envy in his eyes. During the past six months of training, he'd realized that Houka was practically born to be a Taijutsu ninja!
No matter how crazy, intense, or brutal the training was that day, Houka could sleep it off and wake up fully recovered, with his stamina back at its peak. Then he'd plunge right back into his punishing routine. After six months of this, Houka's progress had only accelerated. When it came to Taijutsu, he could definitely match a Hyuga House Chunin!
Guy, meanwhile, had given everything he had to catch up, but the more he tried, the further behind he fell. An ordinary person would have lost confidence long ago, but Guy alone could keep at it, unwavering and persistent!
"Son, youth never admits defeat. Gah-bah-tay!" Tears glimmered in Might Duy's eyes.
"Father, I'll definitely become an excellent ninja. I won't let you down!"
The father and son hugged each other and wept. Beside them, Houka leaned against a tree, frowning in thought.
A moment later, Might Duy waved Guy off to do his "warm-up training," then walked over to Houka.
"Houka, something seems to be on your mind." Might Duy smiled. "That's not the sort of expression a seven-year-old should have."
Seven years old?
Houka froze, then nodded. Right—six months had passed, and it was now Year 40 of Konoha.
"Are you worried about things with your clan?" Might Duy had also heard about Uchiha Yeshing, and tried to reassure him. "The Uchiha Clan already locked him up, didn't they? He won't come after you again."
Houka sighed. Uchiha Yeshing was just a pawn. The real problem was the person moving him.
But he couldn't say that out loud, not even to Might Duy.
"Uncle Duy, I'm fine. I'll get back in shape as soon as I can." Houka took a deep breath and pulled himself together.
Might Duy nodded, then hesitated, as if wrestling with something.
"What is it, Uncle Duy?" Houka asked, puzzled.
"Ah, it's nothing. Go do your warm-up training."
Might Duy watched Houka walk away, wavering inwardly. Should I teach Houka the forbidden technique, the Eight Inner Gates?
Houka's special physique was practically tailor-made for the Eight Inner Gates. That was exactly why Might Duy was so conflicted.
The reason was that the forbidden technique, the Eight Inner Gates, varied from person to person—and the further you went, the more terrifying it became!
The Eight Inner Gates worked by opening the eight gates—the Gate of Opening, Gate of Healing, Gate of Life, Gate of Pain, Gate of Limit, Gate of View, Gate of Wonder, and Gate of Death—to progressively accelerate the flow of Chakra. Once all eight gates were open, one could release all the Chakra in one's body in an instant and gain terrifying strength. Speed and power alike would reach unimaginable levels!
Opening all eight gates was known as the Formation of the Eight Inner Gates!
In the original story, two people had used the Formation of the Eight Inner Gates. The first was Might Duy. Using the technique, he fought the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist and killed four of them, but he also died after exhausting all his Chakra.
The second was Guy. When he opened all eight gates, he nearly beat Six Paths Madara to death!!!
Did that mean the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist were as strong as Six Paths Madara?
Obviously not. Madara could probably take down the Seven Ninja Swordsmen in a minute!
They had both used the Formation of the Eight Inner Gates, but their results were worlds apart. The reason for the difference was Chakra.
Opening all eight gates released all of the user's Chakra in an instant. Might Duy was a Genin—how much Chakra could he have? At most, he had a Chunin's reserves. That was why opening all eight gates had only let him kill four of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen. Guy, however, was an Elite Jonin, and his Chakra reserves were definitely far greater than Might Duy's. Once he unleashed it all, he could briefly overpower Six Paths Madara!
As Might Duy saw it, whether Guy would ever have a Jonin's level of Chakra was still uncertain. But Houka had far too much talent, and he was also a member of the Uchiha Clan. As long as he was willing to work hard, becoming a Jonin was a sure thing. By then, he'd have the Formation of the Eight Inner Gates and the Kekkei Genkai, the Sharingan...
Might Duy couldn't even imagine how terrifying Houka would be then.
That was too scary. It'd scare poor Duy to death.
Maybe he should wait a little longer.
Might Duy sighed silently.
In the Hokage Building, morning sunlight streamed through the window of Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi's office, spreading across his desk and bringing a gentle warmth.
Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi was working, occasionally taking a puff from his pipe and savoring it.
Suddenly.
Bam!
"Old man, why'd you call me over so early?"
Tsunade barged in after kicking the door open, her face full of annoyance. Her blond hair was tousled. Although it was winter, she was still dressed lightly, arms folded across her chest, pushing out a generous expanse of snowy-white cleavage that gleamed in the sunlight.
Hiruzen Sarutobi said angrily, "Tsunade, you're getting more and more outrageous. This is the Hokage's office!"
Tsunade sat right on top of his desk without the slightest courtesy and snorted. "Old man, get to the point!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled wryly and shook his head, then asked, "Tsunade, do you remember a child named Uchiha Houka?"
"Who?" Tsunade tilted her head and thought for a moment, then nodded. "Oh, that ambitious little brat."
Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded. "You mentioned him to me six months ago. Heh."
"What, did the kid get into trouble?" Tsunade asked casually. She'd been a little interested in Houka at the time, but as time passed, she'd forgotten all about him. If Hiruzen Sarutobi hadn't brought him up today, she'd have nearly forgotten him altogether.
"This child is no ordinary boy." Hiruzen Sarutobi told Tsunade that Houka had used a Shadow Clone to attend school and filled her in on the duel that had taken place afterward.
"He actually used a Shadow Clone to fight a Chunin for a while?" Tsunade raised her bold brows and scoffed. "That kid really is ambitious. He's already grown this much without me noticing!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi's eye twitched. "I looked into him. He's resolute and even-tempered, and he's been working hard to train in Taijutsu with Might Duy. He reminds me of my old friend, Kagami."
Kagami Uchiha and Hiruzen Sarutobi had both been students of Second Hokage Tobirama Senju, and they'd been very close.
Tsunade, meanwhile, had been brought up by Hiruzen Sarutobi himself. She knew what he was up to before he'd even started.
"Old man, you want to recruit him? Don't forget he's a member of the Uchiha Clan!" Tsunade narrowed her eyes.
Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled. "He's also a ninja of Konoha, isn't he?"
"Suit yourself... Wait, you're not asking me to recruit the kid, are you?!" Tsunade glared at him.
"Uh, it's just a try. After all, you've met him before. Tsunade, for the sake of an old man like me, I'm counting on you for this." Hiruzen Sarutobi coughed desperately. "Cough, cough, cough!"
"That's so fake, old man!" Tsunade called him out at once.
Hiruzen Sarutobi flushed red with embarrassment and anger.
"Fine, fine, I'll go. But don't get your hopes up." Tsunade waved her hand and vanished with the Body Flicker Technique.
Before you continue