"…No way…"
Forced back a dozen meters by the chakra surge that erupted from Kaede, Mei Terumi stared at the scene before her in disbelief.
Even from this distance, she could clearly sense how vast and terrifying Kaede's chakra had been. And yet, he was able to completely compress and contain it!
At this moment,
A faint golden aura still shimmered around Kaede's body.
The overwhelming and terrifying chakra from before had completely vanished, replaced by a profound and inscrutable stillness, one she could no longer accurately sense.
Especially unsettling were the few black orbs floating behind Kaede. Mei Terumi instinctively felt a pang of unease just looking at them. She could sense how much massive chakra was condensed within each of those orbs.
"He actually stabilized it…"
She couldn't help but murmur to herself.
Then,
Her expression changed even more dramatically as she witnessed something truly shocking: Kaede raised his hand, and one of the black orbs descended into his palm, then melted and elongated into a black sword.
"So I've finally stepped into the level of the Six Paths…"
Kaede looked at the blade in his hand, murmuring softly. It was forged entirely from Truth-Seeking Orbs.
With the power he possessed before, even the Kusanagi Sword had begun to struggle under the strain of his attacks. If he hadn't used time reversal multiple times to repair it, the sword would've long since been destroyed.
While the Kusanagi Sword was a divine weapon, it still didn't reach the level of Six Paths power and was nowhere near comparable to a Truth-Seeking Orb. Without the infusion of Sage chakra, even mere contact with one of those orbs would mean destruction.
"This is the power of the Six Paths."
Kaede gently pressed his hands together. The pitch-black sword melted once more and returned to its orb form.
Watching this, Mei Terumi was already somewhat stunned.
As a wielder of a Kekkei Genkai, she was very sensitive to chakra types. The way the black sphere in Kaede's hand could morph at will told her everything, she instantly realized it contained at least four or more chakra nature transformations!
Power that combined three chakra natures was already called Kekkei Tota, a feat achieved only by the Second and Third Tsuchikage. But four or more…
She couldn't even begin to imagine.
Buzz!
After playing around with the Truth-Seeking Orbs for a moment, Kaede focused inward. Then, with a flick of his will, the chakra in his body surged wildly, breaking through the third gate of the Eight Gates technique.
As the Third Gate opened, a silver glow shimmered briefly from his chest. However, before the chakra could even explode outward, it was swiftly assimilated by the power of the Six Paths.
Boom! Boom! Boom!!
The fourth, fifth, and sixth gates,
One after another, under Kaede's control, the next three gates burst open. A torrent of chakra surged through his body, but it was again quickly absorbed and merged into the Six Paths power.
"Just as I expected…"
"Even the chakra from the Eight Gates can be fused into Six Paths Mode."
Kaede clenched his fist, muttering to himself.
The power of the Eight Gates didn't vanish. Like the Nine-Tails' chakra, Sage chakra, and the Tenseigan's ocular power, it merged seamlessly into his Six Paths Mode.
At this moment, the faint golden coat of the Six Paths that wrapped around him turned even paler in color, and a new pattern appeared, markings representing the Eight Gates technique.
"My physical speed increased again… but there's not much change in chakra."
Kaede examined the changes in his body.
The Sixth Gate, by itself, wasn't particularly powerful. The reason he had previously used it to reach beyond Kage-level strength was due to his time acceleration abilities.
In pure chakra terms, the Sixth Gate barely matched someone like Sarutobi Hiruzen, nowhere near enough to form even a single complete Truth-Seeking Orb.
"The Sixth Gate is too weak."
"Only by opening the Eighth Gate, Gate of Death, can the Eight Gates' power match the level of the Six Paths. That form should be immune to being absorbed by the Six Paths Mode."
Kaede exhaled lightly.
The Eight Gates technique wasn't useless in Six Paths Mode, it's just that the power of the first six gates was too small to influence it significantly.
Only the Eighth Gate brought true transformation.
That much was obvious: after opening the Third Gate, he had barely felt a difference, but upon opening the Sixth, the Six Paths cloak displayed new markings, clearly indicating a qualitative change only happened at the highest gate.
"If I could open the Gate of Death…"
"The Six Paths Eight Gates Formation, huh?"
Kaede couldn't be sure what exact changes would occur if he activated the Eighth Gate while in Six Paths Mode. But one thing was certain, at that point, his power would transcend everything.
Even without Six Paths Mode, just time acceleration combined with the Eighth Gate would put him far above Madara in his Six Paths form.
"Let's go. Time to head to Kirigakure."
Kaede turned to look at Mei Terumi, then floated into the air. With a casual wave of his hand through the air, she was pulled off the ground and began hovering beside him.
He obviously wasn't planning to walk.
The Land of Water was crawling with Hidden Mist shinobi. If he traveled on foot with Mei Terumi in tow, there was a constant risk of exposure. And if Obito or Nagato caught wind of it, they'd definitely flee ahead of time.
Whoosh!
With Mei Terumi in tow, Kaede soared skyward, breaking through the clouds until he reached an altitude high enough to overlook a large portion of the Land of Water.
At this height, the cold and thin air made it difficult for Mei Terumi to maintain even the most basic chakra shield for warmth.
Seeing this, Kaede reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder, channeling a wisp of Six Paths Sage chakra into her body.
"Mm…"
The warm energy rushed into her, instantly dispelling the chill and easing her breathing. Her previously stiff body finally relaxed.
With one hand on her shoulder, Kaede looked down toward the Land of Water and said, "Point me toward Kirigakure."
Everything Kaede did was far beyond Mei Terumi's expectations.
She had originally been debating whether to leave behind a coded signal for Kirigakure while escorting him through the Land of Water. But now, she realized there was no need to hesitate.
Not only were flying shinobi extremely rare, but even among those who could fly, few could ascend to this altitude, where even she, a Kage-level shinobi, couldn't survive without external help.
"That way…"
Mei Terumi pointed in a direction.
Kaede looked over, then activated the Tenseigan's power. It enveloped both their bodies and, in a flash, they sped off toward the distant Hidden Mist Village.
==========
You can find much more on my Patreon: Patreon.com/Veltoria
There are currently 5 active fanfictions on Patreon, with over 794+ advanced chapters available across them!
From Naruto Onwards, I Control Time — Up to Chapter 337
Haikyuu!!: Rise of Sengoku — Up to Chapter 279
Danmachi: Is It Wrong To Aspire to Be An Adventurer? — Up to Chapter 97
Legend of Hogwarts (Harry Potter x League of Legends) — Up to Chapter 270
I Am Luffy: Partner System Online (One Piece) — Up to Chapter 252
Playing Genshin Impact in Danmachi (Danmachi x Genshin Impact) — Up to Chapter 182
Kuroko no Basket: The Phantom Ace — Up to Chapter 130
Yukigaoka: Project Ace — Up to Chapter 105
Naruto: Starting from the Duel — Up to Chapter 95