Kakashi managed to roll over, changing from lying on his back to lying facedown on the ground. Seeing Obito's horrific state, he clenched his right fist in grief and rage and slammed it against the ground.
But venting his helpless fury only made his injuries worse. His fist was left bloody and mangled, and a sharp pain in his chest made him spit out another large mouthful of blood.
Uesugi Shinji slowly opened his hand. Obito's body had become a complete ice sculpture, standing rigidly on the ground.
Uesugi Shinji hadn't brought any containers specifically designed to preserve human organs. Besides, research into Kekkei Genkai often required a ninja's body as a vessel. To be safe, he had frozen Obito's corpse solid for now instead of immediately removing both of his eyes.
There were still a few small fry left to deal with, so Uesugi Shinji was ready to wrap things up. He glanced at Kakashi and Guy, who had both lost their ability to fight, then turned to Shiranui Genma and Ebisu, the only ones still standing nearby.
The moment Uesugi Shinji fixed his gaze on them, both men felt a chill run through them, as though despair had closed in. Images of their own deaths flashed through their minds.
They wanted to run, but their legs felt trapped in a swamp, unable to move. They couldn't even call for help.
Uesugi Shinji wasn't using genjutsu. He was simply projecting an aura of bloodlust, which could have an overwhelming effect on ninjas who had never experienced killing. Naruto, for example, had been so terrified when he first encountered Zabuza's men that he couldn't move. Sasuke and Sakura, too, had nearly given up during the Chunin Ninja Exams after being overwhelmed by Orochimaru's killing intent.
Just as Shiranui Genma and Ebisu thought they were about to die, a violent surge of chakra erupted nearby, drawing almost everyone's attention across the battlefield.
Uesugi Shinji was also drawn to the extraordinary chakra surge. He looked toward where it had come from and saw a figure hurtling toward him at incredible speed.
"Kisame?!"
Uesugi Shinji's heart lurched. He immediately brought his hands together and completed a simple Water Release Ninjutsu. A mass of water rose up and formed a curved barrier in front of him.
With a splash, Kisame crashed hard into the half-arched wall of water, the tremendous impact sending water spraying everywhere.
Fortunately, the water caught Kisame's body, absorbing the force of the impact and bringing him to a steady stop.
"Shinji, I really have you to thank for that. Otherwise, this guy—he's coming!"
Kisame turned and saw that it was his captain, Uesugi Shinji, who had caught him with the water. He had barely begun speaking when he noticed the enemy who had punched him flying was already closing in. He immediately warned Uesugi Shinji.
Uesugi Shinji had spotted the newcomer, too. The man was surrounded by a violent current of chakra, with chakra seeming to pour from every pore. The skin visible beneath his green jumpsuit was red as blood, and his hair and eyebrows stood on end from the chakra surging around him.
The sudden arrival was Guy's father, Might Duy. The reason he could unleash such immense chakra was that he had activated one of Konoha's most powerful forbidden techniques: the Eight Inner Gates!
The Eight Inner Gates was a secret technique that let taijutsu specialists increase their combat strength by opening the body's chakra gates. The "eight gates" were the eight points in a ninja's body that restricted the flow of chakra. These points controlled the amount of chakra coursing through the body, acting like valves—which was why they were called gates.
The eight gates were, in order: 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. Each gate a ninja opened greatly increased the chakra flowing through their pathways, making them much stronger in battle.
Once all eight gates were open, a ninja's strength would rise, for a short time, to an unimaginable level!
But this power came at a price. The gates existed to protect the ninja's body, preventing their fragile flesh from collapsing under the strain of an overwhelming surge of chakra.
Opening the first three gates placed a considerable strain on the body, but with care, it wouldn't cause lasting damage.
If a ninja opened the last five gates in pursuit of power, however, their chakra pathways, muscle tissue, and other parts of their body would inevitably be damaged. The more gates they opened, the worse the aftereffects.
The eighth gate, the Gate of Death, was aptly named. Any ninja who opened it was certain to die. It was essentially a technique that took the opponent down along with the user!
Might Duy had already opened the Seventh Gate, the Gate of Wonder. The chakra swirling around him had reached a level that rivaled what the Five Kage of the Shinobi World could maintain.
Nearly every ninja nearby looked stunned. The Kirigakure ninja hadn't expected Konoha to have such a formidable fighter hidden among their ranks.
The Konoha ninja were even more dumbfounded. They couldn't believe that the man who had punched the Kirigakure "Tail-less Tailed Beast" flying and unleashed such astonishing chakra was Might Duy, the eternal Genin!
Before you continue