Although the Eight Gates Technique is relatively easy to get started with even Genin can begin developing it, it wasn't something Kaede could fully master in just a short moment.
He did manage to locate the eight positions of the Gates within his body, but the real challenge lay in how to train and loosen them, and how to freely open and close them. That was the true essence of the Eight Gates.
"Looks like I'll need a lot more practice…"
Kaede muttered to himself, deep in thought.
He considered whether he should shortcut the process by asking Might Duy for guidance. Playing it safe, asking Duy directly would definitely be more reliable. After all, even if the method was simple and brute-force, it was still a Forbidden Technique, one that might pose risks during development.
That morning's academy test was a general physical ability assessment, including tasks like tree climbing and weighted runs. However, these were no big deal for any of the ninja students. Even Obito passed with relative ease.
Once the test ended, Kaede returned home. After a quick meal and a bit of tidying up, he left again, heading into the village to look for Might Duy and Might Guy. Unfortunately, Duy was apparently out on a mission, and only Guy was training alone at their usual spot.
Without Duy, Kaede couldn't set up a "coincidental encounter" to ask for guidance, but he wasn't in a rush. He returned home, grabbed the chakra blade White Fang, and headed for the forested mountains behind the village.
"This time… I think I'm finally ready."
Arriving at his usual training spot, Kaede gripped the White Fang tightly, took a deep breath, and began training in earnest. He didn't create any Shadow Clones, this time he trained with his real body.
After yesterday's sparring match with Kakashi, Kaede had continued training in the Hatake Sword Style at home and felt himself nearing the threshold of sensing chakra flow.
The Hatake Sword Style, a blade technique that made White Fang's name feared across the entire ninja world, had two stages.
The core of the first stage was: chakra flow.
This meant allowing chakra to flow naturally through the weapon, enhancing its sharpness and attack power. Once mastered, the power of the Hatake Sword Style would increase drastically.
The second stage went a step further, chakra shape transformation.
In this phase, flowing chakra is solidified into a razor-sharp form. Combined with the Hatake Sword Style, the destructive power would increase again by a huge margin.
No matter what level a shinobi was at, mastering the first stage alone guaranteed Chunin-level strength. The second stage pushed the user into Jounin-level strength.
Beyond that… depended entirely on talent.
You might think reaching Jounin level makes the technique just "average," but that's only because almost anything stronger than the Hatake Sword Style falls into the realm of Forbidden Techniques and Secret Arts. Techniques like the Flying Thunder God are simply out of reach for most ninja.
Kaede had never once slacked off in his training with the Hatake Blade Style. That's because it required refined chakra control and was compatible with nearly every form of taijutsu, even techniques like the Eight Gates or Sage Mode could be used in tandem with it.
Shhh! Shhh!
Kaede continued to swing his blade. A faint white glow shimmered across White Fang, subtly trembling with each slash and leaving behind glowing arcs in the air.
He trained like this for hours before returning to the village for a meal. Then he came back out to continue.
Seven hours...
Eight hours...
Nine hours…
Under the effect of 3x time acceleration, Kaede kept repeating the most basic forms of the Hatake Sword Style, integrating the increasingly familiar chakra flow into each motion.
Over time, his crude movements became smoother. What was once unfamiliar became second nature, until finally, with one clean slash, Kaede felt the chakra flowing along his blade perfectly align with his cutting motion.
"That's it!"
His eyes lit up.
He paused, felt out that exact state again, and swung once more. The result was the same, perfect execution.
After repeating it dozens of times to confirm he'd fully mastered the technique, Kaede finally relaxed.
The first stage of the Hatake Sword Style was complete!
"Let's test the power…"
Calming his breath, Kaede stepped in front of a thick wooden post. His eyes focused, and he slashed with the White Fang. A thin white arc flickered through the air.
Shhht!!
The thick post, easily as wide as a man's arms, was sliced clean through as if it were tofu. The top half slid off silently.
"Yeah… that's powerful. With White Fang and chakra flow, I could probably slice through an opponent's kunai with brute force."
Kaede evaluated the strike quietly.
The legends about White Fang were clearly true. Just the first stage of the Hatake Sword Style alone could bring a shinobi to Chunin level, and perhaps even give an edge against others at the same level.
With Kaede's prior strength already at Chunin level thanks to his ninjutsu and taijutsu, this now elevated him to Elite Chunin, even in his base form!
"Next up… the accelerated state."
He exhaled, his eyes gleaming.
That last slash was done at normal speed. But under time acceleration, the Hatake Sword Style should become even more devastating!
Silently—
Kaede activated 3x Time Acceleration.
Anyone watching from afar would've seen his entire body shift into a strange fast-forward mode, his movements and even his breathing seemed unnatural, surreal.
In that state, Kaede gripped the chakra blade, gathered chakra flow, and unleashed a slash toward the wooden post.
Shhht!!
The slash was so fast it left behind afterimages.
In a flash, a white crescent arc like a blade of light tore through the air and effortlessly pierced the thick post.
"This…"
Kaede's eyes widened in awe.
Under time acceleration, the slash's range had extended beyond the blade itself, it had launched a chakra wave nearly a foot long!
This was something only the second stage of the Hatake Sword Style could do!
Trying to calm his excitement, Kaede circled behind the post. There, he could clearly see a clean line where the wooden post had been cleaved in two. The ground itself had a faint cut as well.
"While the power might not yet match a true second-stage slash, in the accelerated state, I can already achieve ranged attacks by leveraging chakra flow and sword technique!"
Kaede took a deep breath, reassessing his current strength level.
Tokubetsu Jounin.
A specialized speed-type Tokubetsu Jounin.
He wasn't sure how he'd fare against opponents who used genjutsu or forbidden techniques, but against standard Chunin or even most Elite Chunin his overwhelming speed would let him end battles in seconds.
And the best thing about being a speed-type shinobi?
He wasn't afraid of being outnumbered.
Genjutsu users or those with forbidden techniques might struggle against groups, but Kaede with his speed could freely enter and exit combat, dodging and striking at will.