Upon hearing Mito's loud warning, Gekkō Hoshiyomi snapped back to consciousness. Gritting his teeth, he refocused and began mobilizing his chakra again.
Under his control, the brief surge of chakra that erupted from his body was immediately redirected. Concentrating it at his core, Hoshiyomi drove it outward toward the cursed seals spread across his body.
These cursed marks had originally sealed off the chakra pathways throughout his body. But now, with this forceful push, there was a real sign that the seals might actually be breaking apart.
Mito and the others could clearly see the cursed marks on Hoshiyomi's abdomen dimming significantly. Torifu, witnessing this from the side, shouted excitedly:
"There we go! Break through that damned thing!"
Hoshiyomi could also feel it—like an invisible chain being yanked apart. A sharp pain shot through his lower abdomen, and then, just as suddenly, the tearing sensation vanished.
The first step was a success.
The relief in his core invigorated him, and with a snarl, he roared:
"Get the hell out of my body!"
As soon as the words left his mouth, his chakra surged again. The pale green chakra within him began storming through his chakra network like a conquering army.
One cursed seal after another was violently forced open. The chakra of the Two-Tails that had been fueling the seals was shattered, attempting to flee and regroup elsewhere in his body.
But Hoshiyomi didn't give them the chance. The moment the Two-Tails' chakra tried to escape, it was devoured by his massive surge of pale green chakra.
After a series of powerful internal clashes, the ghostly blue flames were completely extinguished and transformed into pure, mindless chakra, which Hoshiyomi then forced back into his core.
At this point, Terrifying Death Limit seemed to realize the danger. The cursed seals stopped spreading along Hoshiyomi's chakra pathways and instead, guided by the remnants of the Two-Tails' chakra, began gathering again—consolidating their strength.
They were preparing for a prolonged battle, clearly betting that Hoshiyomi wouldn't be able to maintain the Sixth Gate much longer.
On the sidelines, Sarutobi Hiruzen frowned grimly.
"Not good. Just like we feared—the cursed seals and the Two-Tails' chakra are now working together."
But Torifu tried to reassure him:
"It should still be manageable. Hoshiyomi is breaking through Terrifying Death Limit from the core outward. Even if they regroup, they'll be confined to his limbs.
As long as they can't damage his chakra network or internal organs, they're not a threat. Worst case, we just reseal the cursed seals in his arms and legs and try again once he's healed. I refuse to believe that thing can keep going forever."
Hearing this, Hiruzen relaxed slightly, though he still warned:
"If we can finish this in one go, we should. Who knows what kind of changes might happen if we drag it out too long?"
Still locked in battle with the cursed seals, Hoshiyomi suddenly snapped back to reality upon hearing their conversation.
That's right—without realizing it, he'd already been in the Sixth Gate for around five minutes.
That was already a long time. He could feel his pale green chakra growing dim.
If he didn't completely purge the Terrifying Death Limit in the next two minutes, they really might have to knock him out and reseal his limbs for another round.
And Hoshiyomi did not want to go through that again. The pain was something he didn't want to endure a second time.
But… what could he do? He didn't have any new strategies to deal with these cursed seals.
Then, almost out of instinct, Hoshiyomi glanced at his Sword Heart System. Scanning his skill list, something caught his eye—he froze.
Some of his chakra-based skills, which had previously been unavailable, were now showing as usable again.
Among them was the skill he had unlocked upon reaching 250 points in Intermediate Swordsmanship:
"Nature Transformation!"
According to the skill description, this allowed him to temporarily convert all of his chakra into a single elemental type.
If he could convert his pale green chakra into a specific elemental nature… could that speed up the cleansing of the cursed seals?
Immediately, Wind Release came to mind.
In the original series, the Rasenshuriken's destructive power was described as forming countless microscopic chakra needles that tore apart a target's cells and chakra pathways.
If wind chakra could damage cells and internal pathways, then surely it could destroy cursed seals as well.
He had to bet on it.
Worst case, Torifu could knock him out and reseal him—they'd try again.
With that in mind, Hoshiyomi activated Nature Transformation.
In an instant, under the system's control, all the chakra in his body transformed into wind-nature chakra. The pale green aura around him sharpened visibly.
Razor-sharp wind blades burst from around his body, striking the defensive barriers surrounding the training field and sending shimmering ripples through them.
"…What is this?" Hiruzen blinked—then broke into a smile of astonishment.
"Impressive, Hoshiyomi."
Torifu tilted his head. "What's he doing?"
Hiruzen explained, "He just converted all of his chakra into Wind Release. He's trying to use wind's properties to accelerate the breakdown of the cursed seals."
Hearing this, even Mito's eyes lit up with admiration. This child really was clever. She had already been preparing to seal his limbs again and take a slower approach, yet he had found his own way through.
And he was right. Just as Hiruzen had thought, the switch to Wind Release worked.
The sharp, rapid nature of wind chakra cut through Terrifying Death Limit like a blade through dry leaves.
As for the remnants of the Two-Tails' chakra still lingering within him—while it's true that wind can fuel fire, the sheer volume of Wind Release chakra was so overwhelming that Two-Tails's residual chakra barely stood a chance.
With the wind chakra clearing the way, the pace of the purge accelerated. The cursed seals on his legs were destroyed in no time.
All that remained were the cursed marks clinging to his hands.
Staring at the final traces, Hoshiyomi suddenly made an unexpected move—he drew the Mikazuki Munechika from his waist.
Under the puzzled gazes of the three onlookers, he began channeling pressure through his chakra, forcing the cursed marks on his hands to retreat, little by little.
Since Mikazuki Munechika was also a chakra blade, it carried Hoshiyomi's chakra as well.
Under the immense pressure of his overwhelming Wind Release chakra, the cursed marks infused with the Two-Tails' chakra instinctively flowed toward the path of least resistance—the blade.
Incredibly, every last trace was drawn onto the blade itself.
Seeing this, Hoshiyomi's eyes lit up with joy. He quickly turned to Mito and shouted:
"Grandma Mito! Can you help me seal these cursed marks into the Mikazuki Munechika?"