The Eight Gates, as Akira Uchiha sees it, are divided into two parts.
One part consists of the first to seventh gates, which continually increase chakra levels—the higher the gate opened, the greater the chakra boost. However, the burden on the body also increases, though these gates can be closed.
The other part is the eighth gate.
Consider Might Guy in the original series: when he first opened the seventh gate, he defeated Kisame.
But does that mean he had to open the seventh gate just to beat Kisame?
And when he opened the seventh gate again to face Uchiha Madara, how did Madara react?
"Blue steam? Looks like I've been underestimated."
This shows that even with the seventh gate open, in Madara's eyes, it wasn't much. His casual attitude was similar to when he faced the Five Kage.
So, with the seventh gate open, Might Guy was still just at a Kage-level.
But what about the eighth gate?
Even Madara in his Six Paths form was overwhelmed!
When Guy entered the Night Guy mode, he almost killed Six Paths Madara with a single kick.
Compare the combat power: in his normal form, Madara toyed with the Five Kage with ease; Might Guy opening the seventh gate was about on par with a Kage-level opponent.
But in the eighth gate, Guy could dominate Madara even in his Six Paths form!
The difference in power between the seventh and eighth gates is evident.
Similarly, Akira Uchiha has opened both the seventh and eighth gates and experienced their power firsthand.
That's why he says the eighth gate, the Gate of Death, is an incredibly overpowered ability.
When Jiraiya said that with the seventh gate open, Akira's strength could be described as around 80,000 on the Kage-level scale of 10,000 to 100,000, Akira agreed.
But with the eighth gate open?
That's easily 1,000,000 or more!
No wonder it's a life-threatening technique—none of its moves are simple!
After discussing the scale of 10,000 to 100,000 representing Kage-level strength, Akira and Jiraiya went on to assess the relative strength of various Kage-level shinobi in the ninja world.
They talked about the Raikage, the perfect Jinchuriki of the Eight-Tails, Killer Bee, the Kazekage, Uchiha Itachi, and others.
As they chatted, the days passed quickly.
Finally, Akira and Jiraiya arrived in the Land of Rice Fields.
After a brief investigation, they found the location of the Hidden Sound Village.
At this point, the Hidden Sound Village was still a newly established small ninja village, not well-known in the ninja world. Orochimaru only had a handful of followers under his command—hardly a force to be reckoned with.
To call it a ninja village might be an exaggeration; a more accurate description would be a small ninja training center.
Since Orochimaru had no strong Jonin under his command, only a few children recruited from across the ninja world, the Hidden Sound Village was essentially a ninja training center at this stage.
To truly strengthen the Hidden Sound Village, Orochimaru would have to wait for these children to grow up.
But for Orochimaru, who had mastered the Reanimation Jutsu and essentially had an infinite lifespan, he could afford to wait.
"Are you sure Orochimaru is here?" Jiraiya asked as they arrived at the Hidden Sound Village, which looked more like a small orphanage than a proper ninja village.
Knowing Orochimaru as well as he did, Jiraiya found it odd that someone like him would be involved in gathering orphans.
Akira Uchiha chuckled, "Orochimaru wouldn't normally care about taking in orphans, but if they have potential, it's much easier to ensure their loyalty to him."
Jiraiya thought about it and nodded in agreement. "That makes sense," he said, realizing that looking at the situation from another angle could lead to different conclusions.
With their considerable abilities, Akira and Jiraiya easily infiltrated the still-developing Hidden Sound Village. Before long, they found Orochimaru, who was observing the children's training with a smile, offering occasional advice.
After receiving the children's admiration, Orochimaru turned and began walking towards what appeared to be an underground lab.
"These kids aren't ordinary—many of them possess Kekkei Genkai," Jiraiya noted as he watched the training.
"Of course. If Orochimaru picked them, they wouldn't be ordinary," Akira replied, not surprised at all.
Seeing Orochimaru leave, Akira and Jiraiya followed closely behind. Eventually, they caught up with him in a dark, damp corridor, where Orochimaru suddenly stopped.
He turned to find both Jiraiya and Akira standing there. His pupils contracted upon seeing the two. While he might not have been overly concerned about Jiraiya, Akira Uchiha was another matter entirely—someone Orochimaru was highly cautious of.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have fled the moment he saw the power of Kotoamatsukami in Shisui Uchiha's crow.
"So, the two of you have come—what an unexpected visit!" Orochimaru greeted them with a smile, though his eyes betrayed his wariness. As he spoke, the ground beneath him rippled like water.
He was preparing to escape as soon as they met.
In all the years Jiraiya had known Orochimaru, he had never seen him like this—so ready to flee without even attempting to fight.
But Jiraiya's reaction was swift. As Orochimaru prepared to escape, Jiraiya quickly formed hand signs and slammed his hands onto the ground. The ground, which had just been rippling like water, instantly solidified into rock.
"Fine, fine. This isn't the place for a conversation. Why don't we go somewhere to sit and talk?" Orochimaru said, knowing his escape plan had been foiled. Realizing further attempts to flee would be futile, he surrendered to the situation and suggested they go somewhere else to talk.
Inside a stone chamber, the three sat down.
"Orochimaru, your living conditions aren't exactly great, are they?" Jiraiya remarked, looking around the damp and dark room. He couldn't understand why someone would choose to live underground like this.
"It can't be helped. Snakes, after all, prefer such environments," Akira thought to himself. He knew that in the original series, Orochimaru's true form was that of a giant white snake. Who knows if Orochimaru had already taken on that form by now?
"First of all, let me congratulate you two. You've really boosted Konoha's reputation—now the other three ninja villages don't dare to covet Konoha anymore!" Orochimaru began, ignoring Jiraiya's comment and instead offering his congratulations.
With that, Orochimaru's gaze turned to Akira. "Especially you, Akira. Severing the leg of the Third Tsuchikage has shaken the entire ninja world! I still remember our first meeting barely six months ago. To see how much you've grown in such a short time—it's truly astonishing!"
"Thank you for the compliment," Akira replied politely. As the saying goes, it's hard to strike someone who's smiling at you, and with Orochimaru praising him like this, Akira couldn't help but respond courteously.
"It seems your abilities extend beyond just predicting danger," Orochimaru continued, turning the conversation to Akira's abilities. Orochimaru had known about Akira's supposed ability to foresee danger. But now, it seemed Akira had used that ability to locate him here at the Hidden Sound Village.
Akira smiled, neither confirming nor denying Orochimaru's guess.
Seeing Akira's reaction, Orochimaru realized he was probably right. After a brief pause, he asked, "So, what brings you to the Hidden Sound Village, Akira?"
"Konoha is in need of capable people right now, so I've come to ask you to return to Konoha," Akira said bluntly, revealing the purpose of his visit.
Hearing this, Jiraiya stared intently at Orochimaru. Over the years, he had tried countless times to convince Orochimaru to return to Konoha, but to no avail. Could this really be the moment where Orochimaru would finally agree?
"And if I refuse?" Orochimaru asked after a moment of silence.
"I'm not asking for your permission—I'm informing you," Akira replied, his voice firm. As he spoke, he formed hand signs, and the crow with Shisui Uchiha's Mangekyō Sharingan appeared, perched on his shoulder.
"Alright, I'll agree," Orochimaru said immediately. Seeing the crow with the Mangekyō Sharingan, Orochimaru knew he had no choice. Better to agree willingly than to be controlled by Kotoamatsukami.
After all, he had already betrayed the Akatsuki. Hiding in the Hidden Sound Village wasn't much safer than returning to Konoha. At least in Konoha, he could seek protection.
Moreover, the main reason he left Konoha was his disappointment in the old and corrupt leadership and his loss of the Fourth Hokage position to Minato Namikaze. Now, those reasons were irrelevant. The corrupt leadership was gone, and the matter of the Hokage position was long behind him.
Given these changes, Orochimaru thought to himself that returning to Konoha might not be such a bad idea.
In this moment, Orochimaru's mindset was reminiscent of the 'Itachi Paradox'—making a difficult choice that seemed counterintuitive, yet ultimately served a greater purpose, even if it wasn't immediately clear to others.
Of course, if it ever became necessary, Orochimaru could always betray Konoha again. But if he were controlled by Kotoamatsukami, he would lose that option.
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Note: If you are interested, you can read up to chapter 181 at patreon.com/Emik01.