Chapter 138 - Improving the Eight Gates (Part 2)
When Orochimaru heard Kazane's voice, he turned around and walked toward him, waving for the ANBU to leave.
He moved to his desk, that familiar eerie smile tugging at his lips.
"Kazane, take a guess—why do you think I called you here today?"
From the moment he stepped into the office, Kazane had noticed something was… off.
Orochimaru wasn't buried in paperwork like usual, nor was he issuing missions. And his tone—this odd, playful tone—wasn't like him at all.
Normally, Orochimaru would get straight to the point. If it were something urgent, he'd tell Kazane the moment he walked in. He'd never play guessing games.
Still, with Kazane's current mastery of Observation Haki, it was impossible anyone could impersonate Orochimaru without being discovered.
And then—a terrifying possibility popped into his mind. The thought refused to leave, sending a chill down his spine.
He looked at Orochimaru, a hint of dread in his voice.
"You're not planning to make me handle all that work… are you?"
Kazane gestured at the mountain of documents and mission scrolls piled high on the desk, unwilling to believe it, though his instincts screamed it was true.
Why else would Orochimaru, in the middle of the busiest time of day, not be doing a single bit of paperwork… and call him over?
But Orochimaru didn't answer right away.
He just stared at Kazane, still smiling that strange smile.
Kazane's reaction amused him.
Ever since he'd met Kazane, the boy had always seemed like the type who'd face the end of the world without blinking.
Yet here he was—visibly flustered by some scrolls and paperwork.
To Orochimaru, that pile of documents was just trash.
He was sick of this life.
Every day it was trivial matters: someone's chicken went missing, someone else's cat ran away, two people got into a street fight and the Uchiha locked them up.
The most absurd thing?
Someone sent a file asking what kind of fertilizer the Hokage thought should be used in Konoha's farms.
Before becoming Hokage, Orochimaru never imagined that the village leader had to deal with stuff like this.
Today, he'd finally come up with a flawless solution.
But he needed Kazane's opinion first.
That eerie grin only deepened, making Kazane's hair stand on end.
It was becoming clear. If Orochimaru really brought this up… Kazane was ready to run.
He'd escape to Jiraiya, who had left the village two days ago to "spread his art."
He'd lay low there until Orochimaru cooled off.
(Also, Kazane had no money, so it was smart to leech off a bestselling author with fat stacks of silver.)
"You really think I'd make you handle all this?" Orochimaru finally broke the tension, laughing. "The village would be in chaos within two days."
Seeing Kazane's growing panic, he decided not to tease him further.
Phew!
Kazane exhaled deeply in relief.
But then, another possibility struck him. His brows furrowed.
"Wait… Orochimaru-sensei, are you thinking of letting Sarutobi Hiruzen handle this stuff?"
"That's exactly right," Orochimaru said with a nod.
"Who better to deal with it than Sensei?"
"He's managed these affairs for over twenty years. This is second nature to him."
"Besides, the village is already in our hands. There's no need to worry about Sensei stirring up trouble."
Orochimaru had expected Kazane to catch on. He'd been laying it on pretty thick.
Still, he knew he had to consider Kazane's feelings, especially since Sarutobi and Danzo had once schemed against him during the Third Great Ninja War and the Hokage elections.
But Kazane wasn't surprised at all.
Ever since Sarutobi had surrendered and aligned himself with their side, he'd been obedient.
And leaving a genius like Orochimaru stuck in an office pushing paper all day?
That was a real waste of talent.
Letting Sarutobi return to managing village affairs made perfect sense.
He was familiar with the job and could free Orochimaru up for more important work.
Besides, Kazane had never doubted Sarutobi's love for Konoha.
If anything, he'd protect the village even more fiercely than anyone else.
He only held basic administrative duties now—things like handling missions and general requests.
As for the past? The schemes Sarutobi and Danzo had plotted during the Rain Country conflict and the Hokage elections?
Kazane had long since let those go.
Danzo—the true mastermind—was already dead.
And the truth was, Sarutobi's actions had actually helped Kazane.
Because of them, Kazane had been forced into the harshest situations. But in the Land of Mist, he tamed over 3,000 ninja. In the Cloud Village conflict, he brought nearly 10,000 under his command.
All those challenges had forged him into who he was now.
In a way, Kazane owed his strength to Sarutobi and Danzo's "grooming."
With that in mind, he smiled and said:
"Sure. Let him take over the paperwork. But since you'll be free, Orochimaru-sensei, maybe you could help us improve the Eight Gates…"
Kazane was desperate for help. He'd had high hopes for Tsunade—but all she'd done was drag him and Might Duy into daily beatings disguised as research.
Sure, Tsunade often gave him unexpected perks during training…
But Kazane's priority was growth.
In the latter stages of the Naruto world, power levels spiraled out of control.
Right now, Kazane was stuck in a bottleneck.
His path forward had nearly run out.
In swordsmanship, he was just one step away from becoming a Great Swordsman.
His Armament Haki was stable. He was confident he'd reach the Ryūō (Flowing Sakura) level in five years.
As for Observation Haki—though he couldn't see the future yet, he could already fight and live comfortably without using his eyes.
At present, Kazane could disregard almost all top-tier ninja in the world.
But he was still a step behind true legends—like Hashirama Senju and Uchiha Madara.
And even if he did reach their level, it wouldn't be enough for what lay ahead.
Even with Great Swordsman mastery, Flowing Sakura Haki, and future-sensing Observation, he still wouldn't be able to stop Truth-Seeking Orbs.
Because that wasn't a matter of strength—it was a flaw in the world's mechanics.
As far as Kazane knew, only another Truth-Seeking Orb or Sage Jutsu could counter them.
But Sage Jutsu?
That was a dead end for Kazane.
His current strength wasn't due to natural talent. It came from relentless, grueling effort—day after day, year after year.
Before the system awakened and taught him swordsmanship, he couldn't even use the basic Clone Technique.
So learning Sage Jutsu was way beyond him.
Even now, his chakra reserves weren't even one-third of 12-year-old Kakashi's.
If he ever did activate Sage Mode, he'd probably be the fastest person in history to exit it.
Imagine:
Kazane activates Sage Mode in battle. Before the markings even finish appearing on his face… His chakra's already drained and Sage Mode is over.
So, in the face of this dilemma, Kazane had only one answer:
Overwhelm everything with raw power.
If he could eliminate the enemy before they even reacted, then it wouldn't matter how strong they were.
Picture this—
During the Fourth Great Ninja War, when Madara becomes the Ten-Tails' Jinchūriki, standing triumphantly above the elite of the ninja world…
Suddenly, Kazane appears.
Madara, savoring his newfound godlike power, starts to monologue—
Only to be interrupted.
Kazane opens the final Eighth Gate: The Gate of Death.
Before Madara can react, he's cut down in a single blow.
To Kazane, that was the only realistic method to fight against Six Paths-level threats.
But opening the final gate came at a steep cost—even for him.
Even if his bones and muscles could endure the explosive force…
The Eight Gates Formation worked by evaporating blood and burning life force to gain temporary strength.
No matter how tough Kazane's body was, once his blood was gone and his heart exploded, he'd die like anyone else.
Still—Kazane believed in Might Duy.
If Duy could develop and pass down the original Eight Gates, then Orochimaru—with his mastery of forbidden jutsu and anatomy—could absolutely improve upon it.
After all, Orochimaru had even created Living Corpse Reincarnation, a jutsu that robbed death itself.
If anyone in the ninja world was fated to achieve immortality one day…
Kazane believed it would be Orochimaru.