Despite staying up late the night before, Sora Hanyu rose early at dawn.
He had something far more important than sleep, his first day of taijutsu training with Might Duy and Might Guy.
Why train with the Might father and son when he already had Orochimaru as his teacher?
The answer was simple: the Eight Gates Technique.
It was the only known path that allowed a ninja with no bloodline limit to rival even the Six Paths tier of power.
If not for the Eight Gates, Guy, despite his fierce will, would never have come close to kicking Madara to death in the final battle.
Of course, Sora wasn't planning to ignite his life in a blaze of glory to save the shinobi world.
His goal was different.
Could the Door-Door Fruit affect the Eight Gates?
If spatial doors could be manipulated, then weren't the internal Gates of Opening, Rest, Life… even Death just another kind of "door"?
What if I could "open" the Eight Gates using the Door-Door Fruit… bypassing the decades of hellish training Guy had to endure?
And more importantly, what if I could close the Death Gate before my life force fully burns out?
A wild thought. But if it worked…
The possibilities were staggering.
Sora didn't go directly to the training site.
Instead, he made a detour to pick up miso soup and chicken rolls for breakfast, two portions each, one set for himself and one for the Might duo.
"Three parts training, seven parts nutrition," as the saying went.
No matter how hard you trained, it was useless without proper fuel.
In a small wooded grove on the outskirts of the village, Guy and Duy were already mid-training.
Two wooden posts, one tall, one short, stood before them like sparring dummies. Their fists and feet pounded the wood with earthshaking force.
"Ah, Sora! You're here!"
Duy paused mid-strike, sensing his arrival. "Come, join us for the passion of youth!"
"Have you had breakfast yet?" Sora greeted them while lifting the bags in his hands.
"We had rice balls and vegetable broth!" Guy answered, never ceasing his punches.
"Not enough! Come on, let's eat together. You'll need more than that for this level of training."
Eventually, after some coaxing, the two tore through the extra portions like hungry wolves.
Guy leaned back, patting his slightly rounded belly in bliss.
"If I could eat something this good every morning, I'd double my training output!"
Duy chuckled too.
"Sora, you spoil us!"
"Don't worry about it, Uncle Duy," Sora waved it off. "I've got more money than you think."
Duy stood and cracked his knuckles.
"Youth doesn't wait, my boy! Let's begin!"
For a second, Sora swore he saw an ocean of roaring waves form behind Duy's silhouette as he shouted.
"First drill of the day: 3,000 squats!"
"YES, FATHER!"
Guy didn't hesitate, arms extended forward, legs bent, breath steady.
"Wait, 3,000?!"
Sora was stunned. That was… borderline insane!
"If you can't finish 3,000 squats, do 3,000 pushups. If that fails, then jump rope till your legs give out," Duy said it like it was obvious.
Watching Guy squat with focus and determination, Sora realized, this boy's power was built drop by drop, with nothing but sweat and willpower.
This is the price of greatness in a world ruled by bloodlines…
Sora clenched his fists.
"All right! Let's go!"
He dropped into a squat position, roaring his resolve.
"Adjust your breathing. Arms straight. Eyes forward!"
Duy barked out form corrections like a drill sergeant.
Even though this world bred naturally stronger bodies, Sora was still a seven-year-old boy.
By 300 reps, his legs were shaking.
His form crumbled.
"Sora, focus! Straighten your back!" Duy shouted, brows furrowed.
"Y-Yes, Uncle Duy!"
Duy's regimen was nothing short of hellish. The sheer volume was monstrous, and worse, bad form meant the rep didn't count. You had to do it again.
Most people would've quit.
But Sora had grit in his bones.
He clenched his jaw, gritted his teeth, and finished all 3,000.
By then, Guy had already moved on to his second drill:
10,000 punches.
Sora could barely stand, but he planted his feet again, formed a horse stance, and began punching through the pain.
They trained all morning. By noon, Sora's limbs felt like jelly. Even walking was a struggle.
"Food! I need grilled meat! Now!"
He bellowed toward the sky.
But Duy rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.
"Sora, you know my situation. I only get D-rank missions… Not much money. Grilled meat is a luxury. But there's a new Ichiraku Ramen that just opened. It's cheap and tasty."
"No way I'm letting you treat me today," Sora said, pulling out a thick wad of bills.
"We're eating meat! You want ramen? I'll treat you next time!"
Duy paled.
"Sora… is this all you have left? You really shouldn't…"
"I've told you a dozen times, I really am loaded," Sora groaned. "Here, let me prove it."
To put their minds at ease, Sora led the duo to the bookstore where he had sold his manuscript.
"Boss, let's settle my royalties for the past two weeks."
The shopkeeper's face lit up at the sight of his golden goose.
"Sora-kun! You're here! You've sold over 5,000 copies. Here's your cut."
Duy and Guy watched in stunned silence as Sora accepted 50,000 ryō in cold, hard cash.
Sora frowned, eyeing the bills.
"That number's off. I passed at least twenty people on the street reading my book. You sure it was only 5,000? I'd hate to move my business elsewhere."
The storekeeper paled.
"Sorry! Miscounted. Here's another 50,000!"
Sora turned to the shell-shocked father and son duo.
"See? I make plenty of money every month. Don't hold back on my account."
They nodded dumbly.
Duy made a living doing odd jobs, catching stray cats, hauling garbage, and his reward usually ranged from a few hundred to a few thousand ryō.
Sora just pocketed 100,000 in one visit.
For reference:
A B-rank escort mission usually earned 50,000–150,000 ryō. And even then, it was split among the entire squad.
As they made their way to the barbecue restaurant, three kids blocked their path.
One had silver-white hair and a mask covering his face.
The second, dark-haired, wore a pair of goggles.
The third, a brown-haired girl with violet face paint and a cheerful grin.
"Kakashi, Obito, Rin!" Guy shouted in delight.
<150 P.S = 1 Extra Chapter>