Two Days Later – Konoha Village, Nighttime, at Link's Home
"Phew~"
Exiting from the Eight Gates mode, Link exhaled with some difficulty.
[My physical stats have improved, so using the Shadow Clone Jutsu now consumes more chakra, and cutting out the beast-chakra for creating shadows also consumes more…]
He looked at the five new shadows he had just produced, pondering how he could gather some more Tailed Beast chakra.
The Two-Tails and Eight-Tails were in Kumogakure; the Five-Tails in Iwagakure; Seven-Tails in Takigakure; Four-Tails, Six-Tails, and Nine-Tails were scattered around; the Three-Tails was waiting to be revived.
In summary, Shukaku in Gaara was the easiest target to reach. But so far—maybe due to Konoha's sealing or who knows—Gaara had never leaked even the tiniest bit of Tailed Beast chakra. Even when he resolved his emotional issues, Shukaku stayed quiet.
At present, just by opening the second gate, Link consumed nearly an entire block of Tailed Beast chakra on splitting. Trying to open the third gate meant he couldn't create any permanent shadows at all.
Even the first gate of the Eight Gates provided a significant boost, resulting in extremely strong shadows upon creation. A single "Eight Gates" shadow could fight a bunch of ordinary shadows. The problem: Tailed Beast chakra was limited, and producing them also got slower and more taxing on the body with every attempt. There was no problem regarding injuries (due to his healing methods), but turning food into body energy took too long.
Need something easily absorbed, like a nutrient solution—or maybe I should slip into Orochimaru's labs to scavenge?
Link quietly reconsidered his plans. With fewer than ten Tailed Beast chakra blocks left, he decided not to make more "Eight Gates" shadows. Tomorrow, he'd depart as the Hokage's guard en route to the Three-Nation Summit in the Land of Rivers, and if he kept straining himself, by then he'd have to be carried out by his own shadows.
Having hit a wall with S-rank ninjutsu, he wouldn't spend time on them in the short term; better to focus on developing the abilities he already had, step by step toward his goals.
1. Shadows: This is his standard fighting force—like a normal ninja's taijutsu. They're an extension of his limbs. The path to improvement is simple: open more gates, gain more Tailed Beast chakra. Even if the shadows can't cast ninjutsu, a swarm of "Eight Gates" suicide soldiers isn't something an average enemy can ignore. At least they'll no longer be just cannon fodder.
Wanting to open more gates demands training the body so it can withstand them. Given the pain intensifies with each additional gate, he'll also need more anesthetics on hand.
2. Summoning Technique / Summoning: Rashōmon: This yields a personal tank army. Uchiha Fugaku + Baki + Zabuza can probably handle many of the Akatsuki's members. As he recruits more souls, this only grows stronger—obvious enough.
Because of the strange summoning requirements, he figured he should look for Tsunade, the "big fish." Best case: secure the First Hokage's necklace or something akin to recognition, to possibly summon the First Hokage. Then, before the final battle, he'd have nothing to fear. Not even if Uchiha Madara showed up.
3. Stand-Style Substitution Jutsu: Currently, Link can open the Eight Gates each morning, produce a Stand Summon lasting up to eight hours, and spend the day adapting his fighting style to whichever Stand appears. For some reason, it gave him a weird déjà vu, reminiscent of "Martin's Morning."
The Stand is his trump card. He'll only use it if summoning and shadows all fail. Each Stand needs familiarity and a tailored combat plan. That alone is a big workload.
4. Derived Five-Element Seals from Orochimaru: Because they're linked to Chakra Scalpel, Mystical Palm Jutsu, etc., he's somewhat interested. In truth, he still had no clue how Orochimaru leveraged the Five-Element Seal, suspecting it must be bizarre. Trying to develop it from scratch would be time-consuming. Best to keep needling Orochimaru for data—venturing into snake pits, grabbing intel until he cracks the secret.
All these development paths hinge on Stand Jutsu: Hermit Purple. Its intel-gathering method was ridiculously powerful—letting him locate Jinchūriki, Tsunade, or Orochimaru's base. His plans all depended on acquiring intelligence seemingly out of thin air.
Truly, old chap, your Stand is too damn convenient.
Of course, if he randomly drew some other interesting Stand, there might be an even simpler way to get what he wanted.
If I'm going to capture tailed beasts, Sasuke will be key. So training Sasuke can't stop. I also need to keep up my Wind Release practice; build the Land of Waves base; do Konoha missions; maintain relationships…
Plus, experiments on corporealizing the Earth Dragon or certain Stands must continue.
"Thud!" Link tossed the Tailed Beast chakra block back into its box, then got up to wash and prep for bed. So much to do—he wished he could split himself in two.
Just thinking about it, he had a ton of tasks lined up.
Still, for tonight, he'd just get some rest.
…
Next Day, Morning – Konoha's Main Gate
"Lord Third, please be careful on your journey," said Nara Shikaku, standing at the head of a small gathering. "Kakashi, Link, we're counting on you both."
The Third Hokage merely smiled and waved at the assembled ninja and civilians who'd come to see him off, then set out on foot.
Hatake Kakashi slouched lazily behind him. Link gave his teacher a reassuring nod before hurrying to catch up.
Being the village's top leader—and strongest fighter—meant his trip needn't be like a VIP's on Earth, requiring huge security measures. After a few minutes of travel, they sensed several presences tailing them, watching from the shadows.
Taking on a Kage was a rare chance. Some came out of hatred, some for bounty, or small villages wanting to weaken rivals. All sorts of enemies might attempt an assassination.
This was precisely when a Hokage's guards would shine.
Link and Kakashi exchanged looks. Kakashi nodded slightly, and Link signaled back. Shadows underfoot split off, a dozen of them slipping into the nearby underbrush.
Moments later, the would-be bandits stalking them died quietly in the dark.
They had no idea who they were messing with—and shadows proved an overwhelming counter.
~~~
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