Scroll of Sealing

Konoha, a secret chamber deep within the Hokage office.

The air was heavy and oppressive, with only the flickering candlelight on the walls illuminating the massive scroll resting on the central stone pedestal.

Hiruzen Sarutobi personally brought Orochimaru here, his expression grave as he undid the seal on the scroll.

"Orochimaru, remember, every technique contained within this scroll could lead to catastrophic consequences."

"Research is fine, but it must never be abused."

"Furthermore, this book is forbidden from being taken out of this place."

The Third Hokage's voice carried an unquestionable authority.

"Yes, teacher."

Orochimaru bowed slightly, though his eyes were already captivated by the ancient, unfurled scroll.

Once Hiruzen Sarutobi left, the stone door of the chamber slowly closed, sealing off everything from the outside world.

Only then did Orochimaru straighten up and walk slowly toward the stone pedestal, his gaze falling upon the scroll.

This scroll was the secret treasure of Konoha, the Scroll of Sealing, which recorded countless forbidden techniques...

He took a deep breath, suppressing the excitement in his heart, and began to browse carefully.

The first thing to catch his eye was the Multi Shadow Clone Technique.

"Hmm... the principle is much the same as the standard Clone Technique, except that a single set of hand seals can produce hundreds or thousands of clones."

Orochimaru glanced at it for a few moments before losing interest.

This kind of technique, which relied on a massive amount of chakra to pile up numbers, lacked technical depth and held little value for him.

He continued to look further down.

Flying Thunder God Technique.

The pinnacle of space-time ninjutsu, a forbidden technique invented by the Second Hokage and brought to prominence by the Fourth Hokage.

By using markers to achieve the effect of instantaneous movement, it could be considered quite formidable.

But Orochimaru merely skimmed over it.

Although the Flying Thunder God Technique had research value, it was not what interested him the most.

Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tags.

A forbidden technique that summons a massive amount of explosive tags to create an infinite, continuous explosion.

The power was astonishing, but in essence, it was still just an application of explosive tags and could not be considered something revolutionary.

Orochimaru's gaze moved rapidly, as one powerful and bizarre forbidden technique after another passed before his eyes.

His expression remained calm, until...

Impure World Reincarnation!

These four characters made his gaze come to a halt.

He carefully read the records regarding this technique.

The method of use was described quite clearly:

First, a living person is required as a vessel for the soul to descend.

Second, a certain amount of biological material from the deceased—such as blood or hair—must be obtained to serve as a "coordinate" to connect with the soul of the dead.

Third, perform the hand seals and cast the technique to forcibly summon the chakra (soul) of the deceased residing in the "Pure Land" back to the current world, attaching it to the vessel.

The technique is complete.

The page even included detailed hand seal gestures and precautions required for the ritual.

"Is that all there is to it..."

Orochimaru looked at the records and fell into deep contemplation.

In terms of principle, this technique was not particularly complex.

The core could be broken down into two parts:

One is the "retrieval" mechanism.

Using the living tissue of the deceased from their lifetime as a unique "keyword," it precisely locates the target's chakra information within the database of the world of the dead, known as the "Pure Land."

The second is "summoning and possession."

Through a specific ritual, the retrieved chakra (soul) is forcibly pulled from the Pure Land back into the real world and attached to a pre-prepared vessel, completing the "reincarnation."

"Interesting...

It is a pity, however, that this technique is likely still just a semi-finished product."

Orochimaru muttered, shaking his head with some regret.

He had been wondering earlier: given the personality and pragmatic style of the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, if the Impure World Reincarnation had truly been perfected to the point where one could summon powerful individuals at will, how could he have possibly not used it during the First Shinobi World War?

If he were to summon Hashirama Senju, the First Hokage, and Madara Uchiha directly, the entire Ninja World would likely be pinned to the ground and crushed by Konoha.

It seems this technique is currently nothing more than a semi-finished product...

A glimmer of contemplation flickered in the eyes of Orochimaru.

Regardless, in his view, the research value of this technique far exceeded everything he had seen before.

"This shall be my next research project."

Orochimaru nodded; the Impure World Reincarnation technique likely touched upon the true essence of the energy known as chakra.

Ordinary five-element ninjutsu—whether Fire Style, Water Style, or Lightning Style—are essentially simulations of natural phenomena like flames, water currents, or lightning by imbuing one's own chakra with specific properties through nature transformation.

For example, the Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu does not spew flames composed of plasma in the true sense, but rather a "cluster of chakra energy possessing the high temperature and burning properties of fire."

Its essence remains chakra.

This is also why the Karma of the Otsutsuki clan or certain special sealing techniques can absorb these ninjutsu.

Because they are absorbing the chakra itself that constitutes the ninjutsu.

Theoretically, casting such five-element ninjutsu requires only two steps:

First is nature transformation, which imparts a specific attribute to the chakra.

Second is shape transformation, which molds the chakra with specific attributes into the desired form, such as a fireball, a water dragon, a spear, and so on.

His teacher, Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, is known as the "Professor of Ninjutsu" precisely because he mastered nature transformation and shape transformation to a level of pure, divine perfection.

To the Third, whether casting Fire Dragon Bullet, Water Dragon Bullet, Fireball Jutsu, or Wind Cutter Technique, there is little difference; they are all merely different combinations of attribute and shape manipulation applied to chakra.

However, this still remains at the level of "application" of the energy known as chakra.

It is much like how humans learned to use fire—they can use it for warmth, lighting, cooking, or even forging metal, but that does not mean they understand the chemical essence of "combustion."

Ninjutsu itself is a black box of technology; the user does not need to understand the principles, only to perform hand seals to guide the chakra to flow through specific meridians to activate the corresponding ninjutsu.

Simply put, it is much like a handgun; one does not need to understand the mechanics to use it, only to pull the trigger.

These ninjutsu have not truly delved into the core question of "what exactly is chakra."

But the Impure World Reincarnation...

It directly communicates with the so-called Pure Land, summoning back the chakra (soul) of the deceased.

Furthermore, the summoned dead can exert their abilities from when they were alive at one hundred percent, even utilizing their Kekkei Genkai.

This can no longer be explained by simple nature transformation and shape transformation.

It may have already touched upon the mysterious realm between chakra and soul, life and death.

This is the fundamental knowledge that Orochimaru truly craves to explore!

However...

Orochimaru's brows furrowed slightly.

What is recorded in the Scroll of Sealing is merely the "user manual" for the Impure World Reincarnation technique.

As for how this technique was developed by the Second Hokage?

What is the theoretical foundation? What attempts and failures were experienced along the way?

The relevant research notes and experimental data...

There is absolutely nothing!

"Only the method of application, but no development process or detailed explanation of the principles..."

This left him somewhat disappointed.

Without theoretical support or research records, attempting to reverse-engineer the complete principles based solely on a method of use is extremely difficult.

"Where would the research records of the Second Hokage be kept?"

Orochimaru's gaze flickered.

Tobirama Senju.

This name immediately made him think of someone else.

Of the Senju clan... Tsunade!

Perhaps, within the ancestral lands of the Senju clan, the research materials of the Second Hokage regarding the Impure World Reincarnation might still be preserved?