Gate of Life, open!

After dinner.

The children gathered around Nonō as she handed out presents, while Lin Ze leaned against the doorway, silently watching her.

Nonō's smile was as gentle as ever, but a trace of exhaustion hid in her eyes.

"Lin Ze, this is for you." Nonō came over and handed him a small box.

Lin Ze took it and opened it to find an exquisite kunai. Its edge gleamed coldly, and intricate patterns were engraved on its handle.

"This is...?"

"I bought it during the mission. I thought it would suit you." Nonō smiled. "Do you like it?"

"Yes, thank you." Lin Ze tightened his grip on the kunai. After a moment's hesitation, he still asked quietly, "Did the mission... go well?"

Nonō's smile stiffened for an instant before returning to normal. "It went quite well. I'm just a little tired. Fortunately, now that this mission is over, I won't have to go on another for two years."

Lin Ze knew she was lying, but he did not press her.

From what Lin Ze remembered, most of the missions Root assigned Nonō involved espionage, even including assassinating important targets. Although she appeared uninjured this time, the mental strain must have been considerable.

"Big Sis, go get some rest. Wanichirō will do the washing," Lin Ze said.

Nonō paused, then smiled. "All right. I'll leave it to you and Ichirō, then."

Lin Ze returned to his room, lay down on his bed, and thought back over the original plot.

Danzo won't let Nonō go so easily. This mission is only the beginning.

I hope it really is as Nonō said, and she won't need to go on any missions for the next two years! That would give me time to get stronger, too.

At present, with the Eight Gates Released Formation activated, Lin Ze's strength was already solidly at the chunin level. He was confident that, within two years, he could develop the Fish-Fish Fruit, Model: Azure Dragon to the point where he could freely transform any part of his body into a dragon-the second stage of his plan: partial beastification.

As for the Eight Gates Released Formation, thanks to the bodily recovery provided by the Fish-Fish Fruit, Model: Azure Dragon, Lin Ze was also confident that he could open at least the Sixth Gate, the Gate of View, in two years!

That could be considered an exceptionally fast pace. After all, in the original story, Rock Lee began training in the Eight Gates Released Formation at twelve, barely managed to open the fifth gate at thirteen, and fully mastered the Sixth Gate at seventeen.

In other words, Rock Lee had spent nearly four years training the Eight Gates Released Formation before reaching the six-gate stage.

Lin Ze was confident that he could open the Sixth Gate, the Gate of View, within two years-a testament to how well the Fish-Fish Fruit, Model: Azure Dragon suited the Eight Gates Released Formation!

Not to mention that Lin Ze also had his Uzumaki sage body as a foundation. Although he did not know exactly how much Uzumaki blood he possessed, after learning the news from Hiruzen Sarutobi, he had carefully examined his body and ultimately estimated that his bloodline concentration lay somewhere between thirty and fifty percent-in other words, one of his parents or grandparents should have been a pure-blooded member of the Uzumaki Clan.

Of course, this so-called Uzumaki sage body of his was certainly inferior to those of other Uzumaki Clan members. Never mind the top-tier abilities of Karin and her mother, who could restore someone to full health with a single bite-even Naruto's Uzumaki constitution was probably somewhat better than his. Still, Lin Ze felt the gap between them should not be too great.

It was like Hashirama Senju: although they all belonged to the Senju Clan, the others' sage bodies were worlds apart from his.

Lin Ze estimated that, even though he would only be eight in two years, without ninjutsu and with his body not yet fully developed, he could at least attain the strength of a special jōnin or a jōnin. If he activated the Eight Gates Released Formation, he would firmly stand at the jōnin level.

Although he would still be no match for the vast organization that was Root, at least he would be able to help Nonō somewhat, rather than only staying at the Orphanage doing nothing as he did now.

In truth, Lin Ze had been a solitary person at heart in his previous life-not withdrawn, but accustomed to going his own way.

He had grown up in an orphanage, with no blood relatives around him and no friends he could bare his heart to. This had only continued after he entered the workforce. His interactions with colleagues were limited to work, and he rarely spoke to them in private. In everything he did, his first thoughts were always "don't cause trouble" and "don't owe anyone favors." Like a plant growing against the foot of a wall, he quietly confined himself to his own small, safe world.

He often thought that, if he had not entered the Orphanage and met Nonō upon arriving in Konoha, but had instead lived alone in an apartment like Naruto, he would probably have remained the same as in his previous life: polite to everyone, yet always separated from them by an invisible membrane.

But tonight, for once, Lin Ze did no dragon transformation training. He simply lay on his bed with his eyes closed, recalling the year and more he had spent in Konoha. The warm milk Nonō handed him, the fruit Kurenai gave him during training, Might Duy shouting "Youth!" at the top of his lungs, Might Guy waving his fists and saying they would grow stronger together...

Those names and images circled through his mind, growing clearer and clearer.

He realized that he had long since lost the ability to treat these people as "strangers in a story," as he had in his previous life. If he were to watch them walk step by step toward those known, tragic fates, his heart felt as though something were squeezing it, aching with suffocating pressure.

"Is this what they call bonds?"

Two months passed in the blink of an eye.

By the river behind the training ground, early in the morning.

Bare-chested, Lin Ze sat cross-legged on the ground, his body trembling slightly as he breathed in quick gasps.

"Again!" Might Duy stood beside him, his expression serious. "The key to breaking through the Third Gate, the Gate of Life, is the explosive force of your chakra. It has to be like a flood breaking through a dam!"

"Come on, Lin Ze!" Might Guy encouraged him from the side, clenching his fists as though he were the one training in the Eight Gates Released Formation.

"Understood!" Lin Ze answered through gritted teeth.

For the past two months, he had endured this torment almost every day.

After activating the Eight Gates Released Formation for the first time, Lin Ze had actually developed a trace of chakra within his body. Although there was not much, it was enough to perform a few simple Clone Techniques. More importantly, his physical abilities had also improved considerably as a result.

Yet the difficulty of breaking through the Third Gate, the Gate of Life, far exceeded his expectations.

Lin Ze let out a low growl, and the chakra inside him began gathering toward his neck.

Excruciating pain struck instantly, as though someone had driven a red-hot iron spike into his neck. Lin Ze grunted, veins bulging on his forehead, but his hands did not stop moving.

"Hold on!"

"Imagine your chakra is a hammer, and smash that gate open!"

Lin Ze squeezed his eyes shut, controlling his chakra with all his might.

Once, twice, three times...

Every attempt brought agonizing pain, but Lin Ze gritted his teeth and endured it.

This kid... Watching Lin Ze's stubborn back, Might Duy was secretly astonished. He's trembling all over from the pain, yet he won't let out even a single scream.

In the original story, even Rock Lee had passed out from pain while training in the Eight Gates Released Formation, yet Lin Ze's willpower was actually even stronger than Rock Lee's!

"Haaah!"

Suddenly, Lin Ze roared, and the chakra inside him surged toward the Gate of Life's node like floodwater bursting through a dam.

Boom!

A tremendous crash seemed to ring out in his mind. Lin Ze felt his whole body grow light, and his utterly exhausted body instantly filled with strength.

"It worked!" Might Duy shouted excitedly. "The Third Gate, the Gate of Life, is open!"