"Seriously..."
Looking down at Kakuzu's utterly shattered body, his chakra completely gone, Kaede shook his head. He glanced at himself, only a few scraps of cloth remained, barely covering his vital areas.
He crouched beside Kakuzu's corpse, searching quickly and soon found a thick stack of bills. Quite a lot of money.
Whoosh!
Kaede dispersed his chakra, deactivated the Eight Gates technique, and appeared in front of the ramen shop owner he had previously moved out of harm's way.
"Sorry for dragging you into this."
"Here's some compensation."
He handed over the money taken from Kakuzu to the owner and gave him a faint smile. "Well then, goodbye."
Whoosh!
In the next instant, Kaede vanished.
Only the ramen shop owner remained, staring blankly at the spot where Kaede had just been. After a long while, he slowly came back to his senses.
Realizing he had narrowly avoided getting caught up in a battle between two ninja, he swallowed nervously and murmured, "That young man... he's a ninja after all..."
...
After leaving the town, Kaede quickly headed towards the Land of Fire.
Along the way, passing through another small town, he encountered Root operatives under Danzo's command. Upon seeing Kaede, they briefed him on the latest status and location of the Konoha camp.
Two days later.
Kaede returned to the Konoha camp.
It was clear the camp was much smaller than a few months ago. Few young Genin were visible, and the total number of troops barely reached three thousand.
This wasn't because most had been sent off to fight, many had actually returned to Konoha. The war had dragged on for so long that resources across the villages were severely depleted, and the ninja world was thrown into chaos. Now was a brief period of recovery.
"You're back, Kaede."
Seeing Kaede walk in, Orochimaru smiled. "When the news came back that you'd taken out Hanzō, I was shocked for quite a while. I never expected you to have reached such strength."
Kaede smiled faintly. "It's just that I've had more time to train than others."
Orochimaru's eyes swept over Kaede with understanding. He could tell Kaede's body had developed far faster than the actual time elapsed. Now, Kaede appears to be about sixteen years old.
He guessed Kaede had used a time-type kekkei genkai to accelerate his growth. This technique could indeed grant immense power in a short time, but at the cost of aging faster and shortening lifespan.
"By the way, your bounty in the underground world has apparently reached thirty million ryō. With that kind of value, you should be careful, plenty of troublesome ninjas will be after you."
Orochimaru grinned and shrugged. "They say some of those bounty hunters in the underground world even survived battles against the First Hokage."
"Hm..."
Kaede sighed. "I ran into one of those guys."
Orochimaru looked surprised. "That's unfortunate. Are you okay? Did you take him out?"
"Yes."
Kaede nodded, walked over to the table, and took a sip of tea.
Orochimaru was somewhat stunned. "You defeated Hanzō of the Salamander, and even a ninja who survived the First Hokage's battles? Kaede, are you really at the level of the First Hokage now?"
Eleven years old... no, sixteen years old and already at the First Hokage's level, that would be unbelievable. But Kaede had a time-type kekkei genkai after all!
Kaede shook his head. "No, I'm still far from that. The First Hokage ended the wars on his own, keeping the ninja world peaceful for decades."
Compared to the First Hokage, he still had a long way to go.
Even Uchiha Madara with his Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan was beyond him.
Right now, a full-powered Heaven Flash from Kaede might barely chip a mountaintop, while Madara, with a fully realized Susanoo, could casually deliver such a blow with a single strike.
Kaede's strongest attack at full power was equivalent to an average attack from others, this gap was huge.
If he faced Madara or Hashirama Senju now, all he could do was rely on speed to escape. Fighting would likely end with him sealed, if not killed.
After thinking for a moment, Kaede looked at Orochimaru. "By the way, Sensei, I heard the Ryūchi Cave holds a unique Sage Technique that surpasses ninjutsu..."
"Sage Technique..."
Orochimaru tilted his head, pondering. "Interested in Sage Techniques, huh? But training requires going to the Ryūchi Cave and gaining the White Snake Sage's approval. I can tell you where the Ryūchi Cave is, but whether you get accepted is another matter."
"Just tell me the location."
Kaede nodded slightly.
After some thought, Orochimaru produced a scroll and handed it to Kaede. "This scroll contains the location of the Ryūchi Cave and the special way to enter."
"Thanks, Sensei."
Kaede took the scroll. A flash of electricity sparked around it, cleansing it before he sat down.
"The war seems to have calmed down. Has the Third Hokage decided who will be the Fourth yet?"
"Oyakata-sama's stance isn't clear."
Orochimaru smiled slyly. "He still prefers Minato, but Danzo is on my side now... If you back me, even if Oyakata-sama chooses Minato, it might not be finalized."
"I'm definitely on your side."
Kaede chuckled softly, unfurled the scroll, and raised an eyebrow.
The Ryūchi Cave lay near the Land of Water, starting from here, he would have to cross most of the Land of Fire, passing through Konoha village on the way.
He was debating whether to first obtain the training method for the Three Great Sage Techniques and start developing his Sage Body, or to advance the Eight Gates to the Sixth Gate sooner.
Thanks to his training in Lightning Release, he could feel the seal on the Sixth Gate loosening, especially when channeling lightning chakra.
At this rate, under five times normal speed training, he could break through the Sixth Gate in a few months.
Unlocking the Sixth Gate would truly elevate him to a super-Jōnin level. Though he'd still lag behind Madara and Hashirama, the gap wouldn't be as large.
But training Sage Techniques would help him overcome his weak sensory abilities, so he wouldn't struggle to locate opponents like when fighting Hanzō.
After some consideration, Kaede decided to return to Konoha first.
Since he had to pass through Konoha on the way to the Ryūchi Cave anyway, it was a good chance to repair the White Fang sword and give it to Kakashi. He might also try to get a higher-level weight-bearing set to ease training the Eight Gates.
As for the war front, now that the situation was stable, he wasn't eager to get involved. Improving his own strength was far more practical than chasing battles everywhere.
After all,
Although he seemed nearly invincible now, Madara was still alive. With all the trouble Kaede had caused in the ninja world, it was impossible to avoid drawing Madara's attention.
If Madara suddenly targeted him, it would be a serious problem.
No one knew how much power Madara still had.
Even if Madara couldn't threaten him now, and the Third Great Ninja War battlefield posed no danger, Kaede would continue to train for the possibility of a future Fourth Great Ninja War.
He was cautious.
So, he must prepare perfectly, ready for anything that might come.
==========
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