Gin's actions stunned the three opponents.
They watched him fall.
The swarming bugs below enveloped him.
It was practically suicide.
"This is fine. I'll knock him out and take him."
The black-haired man said coldly.
The swarm was under his control, so he could ensure it only rendered Gin unconscious.
Though he couldn't understand why the Uchiha made this choice.
The outcome was already decided.
There would be no mistakes this time.
"Don't knock him out so easily. Make him suffer a bit."
The woman gritted her teeth. It was the first time someone had called her an ugly freak. She couldn't let it slide.
"Root shinobi must eradicate emotions."
The orange-haired man coldly denied her request.
In Root, both positive and negative emotions needed to be eliminated.
Danzo believed that a shinobi without any emotions was the best tool.
He used various methods to erase these emotions, though some individuals couldn't be easily changed.
Hearing his command, the woman reluctantly obeyed.
"Understood."
She wasn't the leader, and Root missions required strict adherence to orders.
Otherwise...
Thinking of Root's punishments, she shivered.
Though she knew the consequences, she didn't agree with them.
She didn't join Root to become a puppet. She wanted to unleash her killing intent.
After joining, she regretted it.
But once in, there was no way out.
"Mine, bring him up," the orange-haired man called.
No response.
They both turned to the Aburame, who was trembling.
If his mask were removed, they would see his face covered in sweat.
Something was wrong.
After a while, he spoke.
"My bugs... are dying!"
He felt his kikaichu dying en masse, unable to resist.
"What!?"
They looked down.
The swarming bugs below had a red glow coursing through them.
At first, it was faint, a mere flicker.
But it grew brighter and more noticeable.
More bugs shriveled and fell, as if drained of life.
Soon, a mound of dead bugs piled up.
A hand emerged from the top, glowing with red chakra, slowly clenching into a fist.
Then a surge of red chakra erupted.
"Boom!"
The wind roared, their clothes flapping.
Such power.
The mound of dead bugs was blown away, revealing the figure within.
Gin stood amidst the bugs, his clothes shredded by the insects.
Red chakra enveloped him, his pupils gone.
"Eight Gates Release: Revised! Six Paths of the Thief Sage!"
Gin looked up at the trio.
His white eyes resembled a ghost from hell.
"What is this jutsu?"
Mine's voice was dry. This chakra was astonishing.
It felt like a Jinchuriki.
They didn't know who the village's Jinchuriki was, but it wasn't him.
The next moment.
"What are you looking at?"
Gin's voice came from behind them.
Their pupils contracted as they turned, leaping to another tree, staring at where they had stood.
Gin stood in midair, feet moving as if walking on air.
Six Styles - Moonwalk.
They felt a disorienting split. They had been watching him, but he moved behind them without being seen.
It was as if there were two of him.
Such speed...! "You!"
The woman began to speak.
The next moment.
She vanished, and Gin's hand was pressing her face into a tree.
It felt like a segment of a film was missing.
A strong sense of disconnection.
"Boom!"
The sound followed as a crater formed in the tree, which began to fall.
The woman's mask shattered, revealing a delicate face. Her eyes rolled back as she fainted.
The blow was too much to endure.
"Retreat!!" The orange-haired man ordered.
He abandoned the woman, retreating immediately. Gin's power was overwhelming, needing an elite Jonin to match.
The next moment...
They stopped, cold sweat dripping under their masks.
Gin appeared between them, an arm around each.
"Where are you going? Let me see you off."
Mine's eyes were wide with fear.
Such ghostly speed. What kind of taijutsu was this?
He was just a Genin.
What kind of monster was Uchiha? He couldn't think for long. Gin smashed their heads together, breaking their masks.
Their faces collided with a dull thud, and they fainted.
Gin tossed them towards the woman, the three forming a pile.
Their weak breathing showed they were alive.
Though tempted to kill them, doing so would cause more trouble.
In theory, Danzo and Hiruzen were allies.
As a Genin, he couldn't influence that.
Leaving them alive gave him some leeway.
He would remember this grudge.
Gin landed lightly.
Ignoring the trio, he looked in another direction.
In the twilight, a shadow appeared, and Orochimaru approached.
"Orochimaru." Gin's face was expressionless as he looked at the man.
"Enjoy the show?"
Orochimaru nodded. "Not bad. Though I didn't see you activate the Sharingan, this interesting jutsu was worth it."
He had noticed the attack on Gin immediately and had been watching.
He hadn't intervened, instead hiding and observing.
Gin, in his current state, had detected Orochimaru's presence.
As they moved, Orochimaru followed.
His goal wasn't to test Gin's strength.
He wanted to see if the life-threatening situation would activate Gin's Sharingan.
The Sharingan was essential for an Uchiha's power.
A life-or-death crisis could trigger it. Though he hadn't researched it, Tobirama's notes were clear.
But Gin didn't activate the Sharingan. Instead, Orochimaru saw this amazing jutsu.
Not a total loss.
Gin's smile was malicious.
"Orochimaru, aren't you afraid I'll kill you now?"
His current power was immense. He wasn't sure about Kage-level opponents, but he could handle elite Jonin.
Despite the promise to protect him, Orochimaru had been a spectator.
Right or wrong didn't matter to Gin.
He had no principles.
Orochimaru showed no concern. His smile remained.
"The chakra you absorbed will last only a minute. How will you kill me?"
He licked his lips with a snake-like tongue.
Gin's current power was temporary and short-lived.
He had already analyzed most of it.
"Busted." Gin pursed his lips, and the chakra dissipated.
The red chakra vanished, and he fell to the ground.
Six Paths of the Thief Sage was his eighth jutsu.
Initially, it was to enhance recovery and chakra synthesis.
The principle was complex, possibly an S-rank jutsu. Without instant mastery, it would take ages to learn.
It cycled through six organs and eight chakra pathways.
It could absorb chakra to heal or boost his own.
Because it used the Eight Gates pathways, it allowed limited gate-opening with minimal harm.
But it required ten times the normal chakra.
The Aburame's bugs had limited chakra, but their sheer number surpassed a typical ninja's.
This met the Eight Gates activation requirement.
But it required opening all eight gates at once for the cycle to work, or it would fail.
It drained an elite Jonin's chakra each time.
Though powerful, it was fixed at the sixth gate level.
It wouldn't be fatal, making it worthwhile.
But its power wouldn't improve. Without such a massive chakra source, he couldn't use it.
It was a one-time tool.
"Even if you could maintain it, you might not beat me."
Orochimaru's words made Gin squint.
He scrutinized Orochimaru. His previous state wasn't beatable by an elite Jonin.
Unless he had surpassed that level.
Interesting.
Orochimaru might have reached his future peak.
At his peak, he could challenge Hiruzen.
Who knew what that meant for the future?
(End of Chapter)