"…Yes."
Ren hesitated for only a brief moment before making his choice.
The instant he confirmed it, a new line of text burst across the galgame interface in blazing, flame-like letters:
[Eight Gates: Yo, big brother! Are you here to burn with the fire of youth too? Looking at that little body of yours… you don't seem like the type who can handle me. Come on—run a hundred laps around the training ground first and let me see what you're made of! (She wipes her nose with her thumb and flashes a dazzling grin.)]
Then came the options:
A:
(Eyes blazing, blood boiling) "OHHHH! This is youth! Please let me join! No matter how exhausted I get, I'll endure it to the very end!"
B:
"Instead of running, why don't we first talk about the philosophy of life? That powerful figure of yours is truly charming. Let me feel that scorching heat too!"
C:
"Wait a second! Wouldn't that kind of training destroy the body before anything else? I want to observe first before deciding."
Ren's lips twitched.
As expected of an encounter triggered by the Might father and son. Even the personified Eight Gates was overflowing with "youth" and looked just a little mentally unstable. Worse, every option looked dangerous in its own special way.
Still, after a short moment of thought, Ren chose what seemed to be the least suicidal answer.
A.
A new response appeared immediately.
[Eight Gates: Oh? Not only did you not run away, you're actually stepping toward me? Brave, big brother! (She grins, showing a sharp little fang.) But slogans alone aren't enough. Prove yourself with action. Are you ready?]
At the same time, back in the real world—
Might Duy released the Eight Gates state.
The violent chakra around his body receded like a falling tide, and the pressure in the air rapidly dissipated. Breathing a little heavily, Duy straightened up and said:
"That is the method for opening the first three gates."
"Ren, remember this well—the body is the vessel, and willpower is the key. Only when both are forged together can someone break through their limits."
He lifted a hand.
"Now then, do you want to try—"
"Wait a moment, Uncle Duy."
Before Duy could finish speaking, Ren abruptly jumped down from the tree root and broke into a full sprint around the open training ground.
"…Huh?"
Duy froze.
"Hey! Ren! My youthful explanation isn't finished yet!"
But before he could say anything else, another figure shot forward after Ren.
It was Might Guy, yelling at the top of his lungs as he gave chase.
"Damn it! Ren, you actually started extra training in secret again?! Wait for me! Youth is not allowed to bloom alone!"
For several seconds, Duy could only stand there staring blankly at the two boys circling the field like maniacs.
Then—
Something in him ignited.
His expression exploded with emotion, and he raised both arms toward the sky.
"OOOOHHHHH!!"
"This is the resonance of youthful bonds!"
"This is wonderful!"
"Guy! Ren! Keep going!"
"Burn! Run a hundred laps around the field!"
"Leave no regrets in your youth!!"
The training ground itself wasn't huge. One full lap was only around three to four hundred meters.
But a hundred laps?
That was still over thirty kilometers.
Under normal circumstances, that would already be brutal. But Ren had already finished his usual morning training before coming here. The ten laps around Konoha Village had already chewed through a huge portion of his stamina.
Running another hundred laps now was not a challenge.
It was torture.
Guy, on the other hand, looked as if he had entered some sort of ecstatic state. He shouted while running, his voice getting louder the more exhausted he became, as though roaring itself gave him fresh strength.
Meanwhile, Duy's cheers from the side kept crashing over the field like thunder.
Gradually, the sun began to dip westward.
Sweat completely soaked Ren's clothes. It ran down his neck, soaked his collar, dripped from his sleeves, and finally splashed onto the dry dirt in dark little patches. Over time, a damp track had practically formed around the edge of the field.
His breathing became heavier.
Then ragged.
Then harsh enough to make his throat sting.
Still, he kept running.
Lap after lap, Ren forced himself forward, gritting his teeth while his legs grew heavier and heavier. His vision blurred slightly at the edges more than once, and every muscle in his body screamed in protest.
At last—
The hundredth lap ended.
Ren staggered several more steps from sheer momentum before collapsing flat onto the ground.
He landed sprawled on his back, limbs spread wide, chest rising and falling violently as he fought to drag air into lungs that felt as though they were filled with fire.
He wanted to say something.
Anything.
But he didn't even have the strength to move his lips.
Guy, who stopped a few seconds later, wasn't much better off. He bent over with both hands braced on his knees, gasping violently.
"Huff… huff…"
As Ren lay there panting, the system interface appeared again.
[Eight Gates: Wow, big brother, you actually did it?]
[Eight Gates: I like that decisive personality! Running recklessly until your blood boils—that's the kind of body worthy of carrying me! Come on, keep going! Run even faster! Let youth explode! (๑•̀ㅂ•́)و✧]
More choices appeared:
A:
"OHHHH! No matter how many times, it's no problem! Let youth and strength burn together!"
B:
"Spare me… I don't have a single drop of chakra left… can I run tomorrow instead…?"
C:
"Guh, just kill me!"
Ren stared at the options in silence.
For one glorious moment, he genuinely wanted to choose C.
But in the end, reason prevailed.
He chose B.
As for A…
No, thank you.
He still wanted to live.
If he got up and ran another hundred laps in his current state, his muscles might literally start dissolving. He had no desire to be remembered as the academy student who died of overtraining because a personified forbidden technique bullied him into it.
Unfortunately, a certain forbidden technique had absolutely no intention of showing mercy.
[Eight Gates: (She suddenly leans in, face almost touching yours, her aura overwhelming.) No! Youth has no tomorrow! It's now!]
[Eight Gates: "Not a single drop left?" Who are you fooling? I can still feel sparks dancing inside your body. Come on—follow me. Take a deep breath…]
[Eight Gates: See? Feeling a little better already, right? I told you, you're not completely empty yet. Come on, come on, come on—get up and try opening a gate. It feels amazing! It's like ascending to heaven!]
Then the system displayed a prompt:
[Eight Gates has sent you an invitation to experience the "Gate of Opening."]
Accept / Decline
Ren finally understood.
Completely.
Now he understood why the system had issued such a severe warning about the risks of conquering the Eight Gates.
This wasn't a normal target.
This thing was a full-on demonic sports coach from a Japanese variety show. The kind that smiled brightly while pushing people off cliffs in the name of "fun challenge."
If outsourcing this pursuit had been possible, Ren would have happily handed the entire thing over to Might Guy and let him farm the favorability himself. Ren would even have generously accepted only thirty percent of the final reward.
Sadly…
That wasn't an option.
At that moment, Might Duy walked over carrying supplies.
He stuffed a soldier pill into Ren's mouth, then another into Guy's, and handed each of them a bottle of water.
With his signature gleaming grin, he asked:
"Well, Ren?"
"How about it?"
"Are you ready to try opening the first gate of the Eight Gates—the Gate of Opening?"
Ren chewed the soldier pill with a grim expression.
The bitter, medicinal taste spread through his mouth, but moments later, he could already feel the chakra in his body recovering a little.
He swallowed, took several deep breaths, and slowly sat upright.
"…Damn it."
"If I'm going to die, then I'm going to die."
The atmosphere had already reached this point. There was no way to back down now.
Duy and Guy were watching.
The system was watching.
Even that maniac Eight Gates girl was probably watching with sparkling eyes and clenched fists.
Ren steadied himself.
Then, recalling everything Duy had explained earlier, he guided the chakra in his body and focused it upward.
He visualized it compressing into a sharp, spinning drill of chakra—
And drove it toward the location of the Gate of Opening in the brain.
The instant the chakra "drill" hit—
A violent jolt shook his body.
Ren's eyes flew open.
His breathing stopped for a heartbeat.
Then heat surged through him like a bursting dam.
His muscles tightened all at once, and his blood seemed to roar in his ears. A wave of pain washed through his body, but mixed with it was an equally shocking feeling of release, as though some invisible restraint had actually cracked open.
His skin flushed red.
Veins bulged faintly across his arms.
And the chakra inside him became far more active than before.
"Urgh—!"
He gritted his teeth and nearly pitched forward, bracing one hand against the ground.
Duy's eyes widened.
Guy leaned in, staring with complete astonishment.
For a second, Ren thought he might lose control.
But then—
The surge stabilized.
The pressure in his body settled into something fierce but manageable.
Duy broke into a look of pure joy.
"Excellent, Ren!"
"You did it!"
"You opened it!"
Guy's face also lit up.
"Ren! That was amazing!"
Ren looked down at his trembling hands.
He could feel it clearly.
The sensation was unmistakable.
His body had become lighter.
Stronger.
Faster.
As if the chains holding it back had really been snapped apart for a moment.
At the same time, the system reacted.
[Eight Gates: OHHHH! That's it! That's the feeling! Big brother, you're not bad at all!]
[Eight Gates Favorability +5]
[Current Favorability: 5/100 (Friendly)]
[Stage Reward obtained: Physique +1]
Ren's expression twitched.
So much suffering.
So much near-death misery.
And the reward was… just Friendly.
He suddenly understood that conquering this target was going to be a long, painful road.
An extremely painful one.
Still—
As he slowly stood up again, feeling the residual power of the Gate of Opening pulsing through his body, a small smile appeared on his face.
Painful or not, reckless or not…
He had done it.
He had truly stepped onto the path of the Eight Gates.
And from this day forward, he finally possessed a trump card that could one day save his life.
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