"A deal?"
Orochimaru's golden, slit-pupil eyes narrowed further. "What could a little Uchiha brat like you possibly offer me?"
"Are you going to offer me your body and become my vessel?"
Orochimaru licked his lips and eyed Yao greedily.
Even in his current situation, Orochimaru couldn't stop coveting Uchiha Yao's body.
"I'm quite satisfied with my body for now. I have no plans to replace it!"
Yao shook his head. "I can heal your arms!"
"You can heal my arms? You little Uchiha brat—do you even know what caused this injury?"
Orochimaru gave a derisive laugh, his tone cold and mocking.
Yao wasn't surprised by his reaction. His voice remained calm.
"Your hands' souls were sealed by the Third Hokage using the Reaper Death Seal!"
"Conventional medical ninjutsu can't reach the level of the soul. There's only one way to get them back."
"Oh?"
Orochimaru raised an eyebrow.
"Use the Reaper Death Seal again, cut open the Shinigami's stomach, and all the sealed souls will be released!"
Yao explained, "Then your hands will naturally return to normal."
"The Reaper Death Seal... cut open the Shinigami's stomach..."
Orochimaru's pupils contracted as he repeated the words softly.
He immediately began weighing the possibility of this method in his mind.
Logically...
It really did seem feasible!
The Reaper Death Seal sealed its target's soul inside the caster, then the Shinigami swallowed both the soul and the caster's soul.
If it could be reversed...
But there was another problem!
Orochimaru rasped, "The price of using the Reaper Death Seal is sacrificing the caster's soul!"
"Are you trying to trick me into using it so I'll be annihilated?"
"Trick you? Orochimaru, you think far too highly of yourself. If I wanted to kill you, would I need to trick you?"
Yao scoffed. "The Reaper Death Seal doesn't necessarily require a soul sacrifice!"
"Just wear the Shinigami mask passed down by the Uzumaki Clan, and you can change the sacrifice from a soul to a body."
"Giving up a carefully cultivated body... shouldn't be much of a price for you, Orochimaru, should it?"
"After all, you're already used to changing bodies, aren't you?"
Orochimaru fell silent, running his tongue over his cracked lips.
This information went beyond the scope of his research on the Reaper Death Seal.
His knowledge of the jutsu was still superficial, limited to knowing it existed and understanding its general principles.
So Orochimaru couldn't judge whether Yao's words were true.
But he had to admit that Yao's proposal hit the mark, both in its logic and in how well it understood him.
Give up his body?
That was indeed the price he was most "adept" at paying.
"How can you prove what you're saying?" Orochimaru rasped.
"Orochimaru, you really are... such a cautious, suspicious man!"
Yao shook his head, pulled an old scroll from inside his clothes, and casually tossed it over.
Yakushi Kabuto hurriedly caught it.
"I found this in the Root Base. It's about the Uzumaki Clan's sealing jutsu. Take a look for yourself!"
Yao spoke indifferently.
Kabuto looked to Orochimaru for permission. When the latter gave a slight nod, he carefully unrolled the scroll and quickly skimmed through it.
The further he read, the more astonished Kabuto looked.
The scroll did indeed mention the "Shinigami mask."
It also described how the mask could potentially change the form of the sacrifice, enough to confirm that Yao hadn't made the whole thing up.
"Orochimaru-sama..."
Kabuto lowered his voice and quickly relayed the key information to Orochimaru.
After hearing him out, Orochimaru's eyes gleamed with curiosity and greed.
"Interesting... I'll verify these records myself."
"Now then..."
"Tell me, Uchiha Yao. You went to so much trouble to find me and offered me this information and method. What do you want from me?"
A deal required both sides to give and take!
Orochimaru didn't believe Uchiha Yao had come to help him out of kindness.
Meeting Orochimaru's gaze, Yao stated his terms:
"Two things!"
"First, the summoning contract scroll for Ryūchi Cave."
"Second, the complete jutsu formula for your improved Impure World Reincarnation, along with all your research notes."
The Root Base also had the Impure World Reincarnation, but it was still the crude version developed by the Second Hokage.
Yao didn't need that. He wanted Orochimaru's improved version!
"The summoning contract scroll for Ryūchi Cave?"
Orochimaru narrowed his eyes. "You want a snake Summoning Animal from Ryūchi Cave, Uchiha brat?"
"After the power you showed when suppressing Shukaku... do you still need the help of a Summoning Animal?"
"A Summoning Animal?"
Yao shook his head. "No! I want Ryūchi Cave's Senjutsu."
Sage Mode!
That was Yao's goal.
The boost Sage Mode gave to one's strength was unparalleled.
What level would his Wood Release reach if it were enhanced by Sage Mode?
He couldn't claim it would match the First Hokage at his peak, but it would definitely come close—solidly at the Super Kage level.
Besides...
Senjutsu Chakra was one of the few forces capable of effectively damaging a being on the level of the Ten-Tails, or even at the Six Paths Level.
For that alone, he had to learn Sage Mode!
Orochimaru's pupils suddenly contracted as he stared at Yao.
After a long pause, a low, hoarse laugh came from his throat.
"Heh heh... You Uchiha brats really are more ambitious than I imagined!"
He licked his lips, his tone conflicted. "But Senjutsu... isn't something you can master easily!"
"The volatility of Natural Energy is beyond your imagination."
"What's more!"
"Ryūchi Cave itself isn't somewhere an ordinary person can find, and its trials are extremely dangerous."
"But since you want to go yourself, I won't stop you!"
"I can give you the summoning contract scroll for Ryūchi Cave."
"As for whether you get what you want... that's up to you!"
Orochimaru agreed without hesitation.
Giving him the summoning contract didn't mean Yao would necessarily learn Senjutsu, much less that Ryūchi Cave would accept him.
It was merely an opportunity!
It cost Orochimaru nothing, and he was even happy to see how things played out.
"The Impure World Reincarnation..."
This time, Orochimaru hesitated.
It wasn't that he absolutely couldn't teach the Forbidden Jutsu. His hesitation came from another consideration: competition for resources.
The number of renowned, powerful shinobi in ninja history, as well as dead shinobi with special bloodline limits or abilities, was finite.
The materials and sacrifices required for the Impure World Reincarnation weren't unlimited either.
Every additional person who learned the Impure World Reincarnation meant a potential "competitor" in the future, someone who might vie for these limited "powerful shinobi resources."
Every time someone successfully reincarnated a powerful shinobi, Orochimaru would have one fewer usable "pawn" in his hands.
He'd be raising his own competition. How could he possibly agree to something that hurt him while benefiting someone else?
Before you continue