Chapter 55: The Golden Gate
If anyone were to ask, "Who is Yakushi Kabuto?"
The impression most people held of him was that of Orochimaru's successor, one of the primary masterminds behind the Fourth Shinobi World War, a terrifyingly proficient user of the Edo Tensei: Reanimation Jutsu, and a figure who had truly realized the twisted dreams of those in the shinobi world.
All of that was true.
However, they often forgot one crucial thing: before he bore any of those titles, Yakushi Kabuto was, first and foremost, a spy.
A true, consummate spy.
From a young age, Kabuto possessed an extraordinary intellect. Because the head of his orphanage was threatened by Danzo Shimura, he was forced to join the Root organization. Under Danzo's harsh tutelage, he was forged into a professional shinobi spy.
He gathered intelligence in Kumogakure, Kirigakure, Sunagakure, Iwagakure, and countless other hidden villages across the nations.
For him, assuming the identity of another was a trivial task, performed with effortless grace.
After patiently observing Kalifa for an entire day, Kabuto had completely mastered her every expression and mannerism.
Then, he used the Transformation Jutsu to meet Blueno.
Blueno hadn't realized in the slightest that the figure standing before him was an impostor.
"The moment I stepped into the bar Blueno managed, Lord Orochimaru had already erected the Four Red Yang Formation outside, completely sealing the entire building," Kabuto explained.
"I ordered a drink from Blueno. While he was busy mixing it, I used the Body Flicker Technique to instantly appear behind him, and then I took his head with the Kusanagi Sword."
"Even in the moment of his death, that man wore an expression of utter bewilderment. He couldn't comprehend why 'Kalifa' was killing him."
Hearing this, Yumesaki couldn't help but feel a sense of awe at just how versatile the Transformation Jutsu could be.
In the shinobi world, this technique might not be considered anything special. After all, there were countless methods to see through a transformation in that world.
But in another world, this technique was effectively an attack from a higher dimension.
Without the presence of chakra, it was nearly impossible for anyone to see through the Transformation Jutsu—not even a professionally trained CP9 agent. Blueno's death was the ultimate proof of that.
Because he failed to see through Kabuto's disguise, Blueno hadn't maintained even a shred of vigilance. He was decapitated while simply making a drink.
It was a truly miserable way to go.
Yumesaki pointed toward the Bomb-Bomb Fruit and asked, "Then what about this fruit? What's the story there? If I remember correctly, the user of this Devil Fruit's ability should be a member of Baroque Works."
Specifically, he thought it was Mr. 5.
Tsunade replied casually, "That fruit basically came to us on its own. While we were on our way back, we just happened to run into the user out at sea."
"At the time, the man was fighting a group of pirates. The ship he was on was destroyed by cannon fire, so he jumped onto our ship. He tried to seize our vessel by force and even had the nerve to threaten us."
Yumesaki blinked. "Ah, I see..."
It really had just fallen into their laps.
Just who did that guy think he was, threatening Tsunade's group? It was only natural that he had been beaten to death.
"Alright then."
Having understood the background, Yumesaki let out a sigh. He took the Door-Door Fruit from Tsunade's hand and took a large, firm bite.
An incomprehensible flavor exploded inside Yumesaki's mouth.
He almost gagged and spat out the fruit he had just bitten. In his entire life, he had never tasted anything so foul.
The taste was so revolting it made him physically nauseous.
Some said that the taste of a Devil Fruit was as bad as eating literal trash or worse. Although Yumesaki had never eaten anything of the sort, he was certain this was infinitely worse.
He didn't even dare to chew; he forced himself to swallow the piece whole.
Fortunately, the power of a Devil Fruit only required a single bite; there was no need to finish the whole thing.
Therefore, after swallowing that first bite, Yumesaki immediately tossed the rest of the fruit aside.
He truly didn't want to take a second bite.
"Is it really that bad?" Tsunade asked, watching as Yumesaki's facial features began to contort uncontrollably, as if every part of his face was trying to escape the taste.
Yumesaki pointed at the remaining fruits and choked out, "You can try one yourself."
Tsunade looked at the Slow-Slow Fruit, the Castle-Castle Fruit, and the Bomb-Bomb Fruit, and instinctively shuddered.
"I think I'll pass."
Just looking at Yumesaki's expression was enough to kill any curiosity she had.
Orochimaru asked with a flicker of intrigue, "Lord Yumesaki, how do you feel right now?"
Everyone's gaze turned toward Yumesaki at once, eager to know what changes had occurred to his abilities after consuming the Door-Door Fruit.
Yumesaki's eyes flashed as he patiently sensed the changes within himself.
Theoretically, a person who ate a Devil Fruit wouldn't notice a physical change but would naturally gain mastery over the ability.
However, he was different.
He could clearly feel that as the Devil Fruit was swallowed, a power attempted to modify his body.
But before that power could act, it was absorbed by his body.
Then, Yumesaki vaguely saw a door.
It was a magnificent golden gate—vast, sacred, and ancient.
Yet, this golden gate appeared to have weathered an immense amount of time and seemed to have been violently bombarded by something, leaving it worn and shattered.
There were cracks everywhere across the golden gate, along with jagged, uneven marks.
It gave off an impression of extreme fragility, as if it might crumble at any moment.
The moment he saw this door, Yumesaki knew instantly that this golden gate was the reason he could travel between worlds.
He hadn't been able to see this gate before because it had once collapsed.
The remnants of its power had resided within Yumesaki's body, granting him the ability to cross into other worlds.
And the reason he could see it now was precisely because he had consumed the Door-Door Fruit.
After the power of the Door-Door Fruit was absorbed by the golden gate, the gate was finally able to reform itself.
However, the power of a single Door-Door Fruit was only enough to allow the gate to reshape itself into a basic form.
To restore the golden gate to its original glory, it would need to absorb more power from similar sources.
The Door-Door Fruit from the world of One Piece was one such source.
The Gate of Truth from the world of Fullmetal Alchemist would be another.
Furthermore, the gate connecting Earth to the special region in GATE would also qualify.
Even the Anywhere Door from the world of Doraemon would count.
Essentially, as long as it was a power or concept related to "doors" or "gates," it could be absorbed by this golden gate to repair itself.
Additionally, certain high-level energies could also be used for repairs.
What constituted high-level energy?
The answer was simple: the Power of God.
For example, the Reaper (Shinigami) from the Naruto world that Yumesaki had accidentally swallowed before; that fell into the category of high-level power.
Yumesaki was only able to use the Reaper's power because of the influence of the gate.
"What's wrong? Why did you suddenly go quiet?"
Seeing Yumesaki fall into a trance after eating the Devil Fruit, Tsunade patted his shoulder and asked with a tone of concern.
Yumesaki snapped back to reality and asked, "What did you just say?"
Tsunade rolled her eyes. "I asked what the situation is. Is there any change in your abilities?"
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