As for whether Uchiha Shisui's broken-level genjutsu Kotoamatsukami or the ultimate genjutsu Infinite Tsukuyomi would be effective against someone in the state of the Eight Gates Formation, that was impossible to determine.
After all, the original series never explored that.
Kaede didn't know for sure either.
But he had no intention of letting Kotoamatsukami be used on him, nor would he allow Infinite Tsukuyomi to take hold. As long as he could become immune to most genjutsu, that was already enough for him.
That was why he continued to endure the hardship and push forward in his training of the Eight Gates.
Seven hundred seventy-five.
Seven hundred seventy-six.
Seven hundred seventy-seven…
As the count increased, Kaede's breathing gradually grew heavier. Sweat poured down steadily, and finally, when he hit the 777th push-up, his arms gave out, and he collapsed onto the ground.
He panted for a good thirty seconds before finally sitting back up.
"Too bad I can't use time reversal to erase fatigue."
Kaede shook his head.
Reversing time would return his body to its previous state, using it to remove fatigue would essentially undo all the push-ups he just did. It was frustrating, but that's how it worked.
After resting a few more minutes, Kaede took a sip of water and glanced at the sweat-soaked patch on the ground. He shook his head again.
"Forget it. I'll head outside."
No point letting the entire tent reek of sweat. It'd be a pain to clean up.
outside the tent, Kaede laced his fingers behind his head and started on his squats.
Push-ups, squats, and sit-ups, these three exercises were the fundamentals. They trained arms, legs, and core, and were also the most effective for loosening the Eight Gates within the body.
Two hundred twenty-one.
Two hundred twenty-two.
Two hundred twenty-three…
Kaede continued silently counting in his head.
His squats outside the tent soon caught the attention of a few nearby ninja.
"Hey, what's that guy doing?" someone asked, nudging a companion who was carrying supplies.
Morino Ibiki, holding a crate, followed the gaze of his comrade and spotted Kaede repeatedly doing squats. His expression immediately turned strange.
"Is he… training his taijutsu?"
"Looks like it."
Ibiki's mouth twitched slightly. He couldn't help but mutter, "Why does he look kind of… I don't know, not very smart? That kid's supposed to be Orochimaru-sama's genius student?"
This was the border, after all!
A battle could break out at any moment!
And at a time like this, instead of conserving his strength, the kid was wasting energy training his body. Ibiki almost blurted out, Is this guy brain-dead?, but in the end, he forced himself to phrase it more politely: "not very smart."
After all, Kaede was Orochimaru's student.
"Who knows," his companion shrugged helplessly. "Who trains during a time like this? What was he doing before this?"
Ibiki was starting to get a headache.
If a fight broke out suddenly, they might have to protect Kaede because he'd be too worn out to contribute. Who thought it was a good idea to put a green kid like this in the advance unit?
If they were still back in the village, Ibiki would've questioned Orochimaru directly, but it was too late for that. They were already on the front lines, and there was no sending Kaede back now.
"Forget it. Not our problem," Ibiki said at last, shaking his head as he walked back into the tent.
Since Kaede was Orochimaru's student, even if his behavior seemed idiotic, it was Orochimaru's responsibility to correct it. Whether he was dead weight or not didn't matter, it wasn't their job to fix it.
As time went on...
Kaede moved from squats to sit-ups, then back to push-ups again in a continuous cycle.
He paid no attention to the strange looks from the other ninja. He could feel the heat surging inside his body, the seal on the Fourth Gate of Pain of the Eight Gates technique was loosening more and more!
Even though his muscles were starting to ache, and each motion hurt more than the last, he gritted his teeth and kept going.
The Fourth Gate was right in front of him!
Just a little more… and he could break through!
Kaede's relentless training didn't just draw the attention of nearby ninja, even Orochimaru took notice. From a distance, he watched Kaede's figure with a slight frown, visibly puzzled.
"…Still training taijutsu at a time like this?"
Compared to Ibiki and the others, Orochimaru knew Kaede better. In his view, Kaede wasn't the type to waste effort on something that looked this foolish and pointless.
He had noticed Kaede's weighted gear and how, even during the trip from Konoha to the border, Kaede had always carved out time to train. Orochimaru hadn't interfered then.
To him, maintaining discipline and never slacking off was a mark of excellence.
But this situation was different.
They were now at the Fire Nation border, combat could erupt at any moment. Given Kaede's intelligence, he should be fully aware of that.
If he still chose to train under these conditions, then there could only be one explanation: Kaede was on the verge of a breakthrough.
"The Eight Gates, huh…"
Orochimaru thought for a moment, then shook his head slightly and decided not to stop Kaede.
The odds of battle breaking out immediately were low, and if Kaede really was just one step away from advancing, then the risk might be worth it.
Judging by his current strength, Kaede was already at a jonin-level. If he could push his mastery of the Eight Gates a little further, then even just opening the First Gate might boost him to elite jonin level.
Even if it couldn't last long and had serious side effects, elite jonin-level power was still a huge asset, even on a battlefield filled with high-level ninja.
Orochimaru chose not to interfere.
Even though many of the other ninja found Kaede's behavior baffling, with no objections from Orochimaru, they had no grounds to stop him, at most, they could grumble about it.
They had thought that even if Kaede was a young Chunin, he should at least be more reliable than someone like Might Duy… but now? He seemed just as clueless.
"Six hundred sixty-four…"
"Six hundred sixty-five…"
Kaede's hands were locked behind his head as he silently counted off his sit-ups.
Sweat streamed down his face as he forced himself up again and again. He could feel his core muscles nearing their limit, but he gritted his teeth and pushed on.
Chakra circulated through his body, steadily converging around the location of the Fourth Gate. He could feel the heat building there, the faint sting of progress.
Finally…
As he pulled himself up once more,
Kaede suddenly felt a shift at the spot of the Fourth Gate.
The resistance that had been barely holding on vanished entirely. He could feel it now, if he wanted to, he could open the Fourth Gate!
This feeling was all too familiar.
It meant he had done it.
He'd broken through!
************
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