Three medical ninja lifted a stretcher, preparing to carry Guy to the rear. But just as they moved his body, Guy's eyelids fluttered a few times, and he slowly woke up.
"Have I… arrived in the world after death…?"
The newly awakened Guy was clearly still muddled. When Kakashi heard his voice, he rushed to his side in a single bound, overjoyed.
"Guy! You're awake!!"
Seeing Kakashi, Guy's eyes widened instantly. He jerked upright in shock and cried out,
"Kakashi!? Why are you here too?!"
Kakashi froze for a moment, then immediately understood—Guy still thought he was dead. He hurriedly explained,
"What nonsense are you talking about? You're alive. We're still in Konoha!"
"What!?"
Learning from Kakashi that he wasn't dead only made Guy look even more incredulous. He had opened the Gate of Death! His blood should have burned dry—how could he not be dead?
Then Guy suddenly stiffened.
If he wasn't dead… then what about Carl?
After unleashing Night Guy, he had almost completely lost consciousness. He had no way of knowing what happened afterward.
Thinking of this, Guy shoved aside the worried Kakashi in front of him and immediately spotted Carl standing not far ahead.
Seeing that Carl looked perfectly energetic—aside from some torn clothing and slight redness and swelling on his abdomen—Guy's heart sank.
Under the Gate of Death, his all-out strike had only achieved this much? Was this still a human being?!
Carl, meanwhile, was staring at his own palm with a thoughtful expression, not sparing the surrounding ninja a single glance.
Even so, not one of the ninja dared to make a move.
They had all personally witnessed the power of the Gate of Death. The Night Guy that felt like the end of the world to them had been casually taken head-on by this man. That alone made them understand one thing clearly:
Carl was not an opponent they could possibly contend with.
Even the Third Hokage and Danzo remained silent at this moment.
Just then, Carl suddenly clenched his fist.
The next second, surging blood-colored flames erupted from his body, forming a pillar of crimson fire that pierced straight through the clouds.
The phenomenon occurring on Carl's body felt eerily familiar to everyone present—especially to Guy.
Staring at Carl bathed in blood flames, Guy's eyes went wide, his voice trembling.
"The… the Gate of Death… He can use the Eight Gates too!!!"
Both were the Gate of Death, but compared to Carl's overwhelming sea of blood flames, even a fool could see the gap between them.
And look at Carl's calm expression—there wasn't the slightest hint of pain like Guy had shown.
Opening the Gate of Death for Carl was as simple as eating or drinking.
Carl quietly sensed the endless power surging within him and chuckled.
"Not bad. The Eight Gates really suit me."
Carl's blood energy was inherently inexhaustible. He could stand here burning for an entire year without running dry—let alone the fact that he could replenish it at any time from surrounding living beings.
The final gate of the Eight Gates, the Gate of Death, was equivalent to self-destruction for others. But for Carl, it was a perfectly compatible ultimate technique—its consumption negligible, capable of releasing his blood energy to the absolute maximum.
Lily looked at Carl with undisguised amazement. He had only been in this world for a short time, yet his strength had already grown to such an extent. She even felt that if the current Carl were placed back into his battle with Joy Boy back then, Joy Boy would probably be beaten to death within just a few exchanges.
Carl's Tenseigan gleamed brilliantly within the raging blood flames. He merely flicked his sleeve lightly, and the blood flames filling the sky instantly dispersed, turning into wisps of blood energy that swiftly flowed back into his body.
This sight made Guy swallow hard once more.
Blood energy released by the Gate of Death could actually be recalled?
Even more outrageous—Carl had clearly deactivated the Gate of Death, yet there was not the slightest trace of fatigue on him. Even the redness and swelling on his abdomen vanished, and the torn parts of his clothes shimmered with black light. When the light faded, his entire outfit was restored, spotless and pristine.
Carl lifted his head to look at Guy and smiled.
"How does it feel, coming back from the dead?"
Meeting Carl's golden eyes, Guy's body trembled involuntarily. Kakashi, standing behind him, thought Guy was too weak to stand and hurriedly reached out to support his waist.
Carl stepped forward.
All the ninja stepped back in unison.
Some truly feared Carl from the bottom of their hearts, while others weren't exactly afraid—but when facing him, they found their bodies uncontrollably retreating. Their movement was pure instinct.
This was absolute suppression from a higher life-form.
Guy clenched his teeth and stepped forward.
"You saved me… didn't you?"
Carl nodded and spread his hands.
"That's right. As the price for saving your life, I'll be taking your insights on training the Eight Gates."
"What!? Don't tell me you couldn't even use the Eight Gates before this?!"
The Third Hokage suddenly appeared in front of Guy, staring at Carl with a grave expression. In the next second, he did something that left everyone utterly stunned.
As the Third Hokage of Konoha, a figure of immense importance throughout the ninja world, he bowed ninety degrees toward Carl.
"Lord Carl, if anything I did earlier offended you, it was my fault as the Third Hokage alone and has nothing to do with Konoha. Please forgive Konoha. I am willing to take my own life to atone!"
As soon as these words fell, shocked cries erupted across the scene.
"Third Hokage-sama!!"
Danzo stared fixedly at the hunched back of the Third Hokage, his expression incomparably complex.
Again… it's like this again. He's always one step ahead of me… always one step ahead…
Seeing the ninja around them with tears welling in their eyes made Danzo feel even worse. He clenched his teeth, said nothing, and stepped to a position slightly behind the Third Hokage, bowing deeply to Carl as well.
Carl merely raised an eyebrow.
"What value do your lives have to me? As for Konoha—it's just a village. It's not worth my effort to deliberately come here to destroy a place like this."
With that, Carl directly took Lily's hand. In a flash, the two of them vanished from where they stood, leaving behind a group of ninja frozen in place.
...
Inside a courtyard in Konoha, Carl and Lily suddenly appeared in front of Naruto, who was staring blankly at a photograph in his hands.
Seeing Carl, Naruto froze for a moment—then his face lit up with wild joy.
"Carl! You're back!!"
-----------
+90 chapters on p@treon/tambeerg