Reincarnation Technique

In an entirely sealed chamber in Root's Underground Base, a forbidden place designated by Danzo, a strange banner stood on an Altar at the center of the room. It was about two meters tall, its pole gleaming with a bone-white luster, its purple surface traced with dark golden runes.

The stone door to the chamber slowly opened. Danzo stood at the entrance, his face cold and still tinged with lingering anger, then slowly stepped inside.

As Danzo entered, the stone door closed again, leaving him alone in the chamber.

Danzo strode up to the Altar, his gaze fixed on the strange banner radiating an ominous aura.

After a few seconds of silence, Danzo spoke. "You were right. That short-sighted bastard Hiruzen chose to negotiate with Iwagakure. That man! He's planning to quell the village's dissent by stepping down, and he's recommended Minato Namikaze as his successor for the Hokage Position!"

By the end of his words, Danzo's face had twisted into a grimace. He spoke through gritted teeth.

As his words fell, the banner atop the Altar stirred without a breeze, and a translucent figure emerged from its surface.

Shiraishi floated in the air, a playful smile on his handsome face as he looked down at Danzo.

Shiraishi was a transmigrator, and he had transmigrated twice.

His first transmigration had happened after he bought an unknown Jade Bead at an antique market on Earth.

The Jade Bead had sent his soul into a world of cultivation, where he was reborn as a demonic cultivator and inherited the legacy of the ancient Nine Nether Sect.

The Nine Nether Sect was one of the ancient holy sites of demonic cultivation. Its signature treasure was the Ten Thousand Soul Banner, which had repeatedly stirred up bloody chaos in the cultivation world and struck fear into the Immortal Sects of the righteous path.

Naturally, after receiving the inheritance, Shiraishi had chosen to refine this supreme demonic treasure.

However, unlike some deranged demonic cultivators who casually sacrificed entire cities of mortals,

Shiraishi had identified a differentiated market segment, achieved value conversion through the simple reuse of accumulated momentum, found his own vertical niche through distinctive leverage, and brought about industry-wide collaboration and platform integration. By using a focused strategy that combined points and lines, he had found a refined approach for igniting a saturated market, ultimately creating a win-win for all parties.

In short, unlike most anthropomorphic demonic cultivators, Shiraishi hadn't gone around slaughtering people and refining his treasure through the blood sacrifice of mortals. Instead, he had found a decaying kingdom in the southwestern region of the continent, where few cultivation forces held sway.

There, he had proclaimed, "Heaven is dead; the Yellow Heaven shall rise! In the year of Jiazi, the world shall prosper!" and launched a sweeping Peasant Uprising.

With Shiraishi's secret guidance and support, the Peasant Uprising had successfully overthrown the decaying kingdom. Countless nobles, aristocrats, and powerful clans had been wiped out, and a new regime had risen on that oppressed land.

Through the Peasant Uprising, Shiraishi had reaped hundreds of thousands of souls. He had not only completed the Ten Thousand Soul Banner, but also formed the finest Golden Core and become a Golden Core cultivator.

Unfortunately, the day the Ten Thousand Soul Banner was completed, it had drawn a thunder tribulation. Its power was immense. Though Shiraishi had survived the tribulation by relying on the secret techniques of his inheritance, he had attracted the attention of the righteous path and the covetous eyes of other demonic cultivators.

In the days that followed, Shiraishi had suffered attacks, both overt and covert, from cultivators of the righteous and demonic paths. Though the Ten Thousand Soul Banner had allowed him to fight Nascent Soul cultivators on equal terms while only at the Golden Core realm,

he had been unable to overcome the odds alone. In the end, righteous cultivators had surrounded him. To escape, he had used a Forbidden Jutsu from his inheritance, detonating his Golden Core and gravely wounding his attackers, while his Yin Spirit had taken refuge within the Ten Thousand Soul Banner.

It was also during that self-detonation that Shiraishi had activated the Jade Bead in his mind, which had brought him across worlds but remained dormant ever since.

Carried by the Jade Bead, he had transmigrated once more, arriving in the Naruto World. Danzo had found him a year ago.

"To realize your ideals, you should never place your hopes in someone else. I'm sorry you only realized that now." Shiraishi descended to the ground and came to stand before Danzo.

Facing Shiraishi, who had appeared purely in spirit form, Danzo furrowed his brow and subtly took half a step back, putting a little more distance between them.

Danzo was deeply wary of this being, who claimed to be the spirit of a Six Paths Artifact, especially after witnessing the strange banner's ability to seize souls.

Shiraishi looked at Danzo, paying no heed to his little movement. "So, what did you come to me for today, Darkness of the Shinobi, Shimura Danzō?"

Danzo looked at Shiraishi. After a few moments of indecision, his intense longing for the Hokage Position won out, and he gritted his teeth as he asked, "Can that Reincarnation Technique you told me about really work?"

A smile appeared on Shiraishi's face. "See? I told you a long time ago: given your status and age, you have absolutely no chance of becoming Hokage."

"You're Konoha's Darkness of the Shinobi. You represent the deepest darkness in this village. You think you're protecting it, but you're nothing more than the Third Hokage's lackey."

As he spoke, Shiraishi stepped up to Danzo again and asked in a faintly mocking tone, "You're like a chamber pot. When the Third Hokage needs you, you're his most prized possession. But once he's done with you, he tosses you into a dark corner, filthy and unfit to be seen in public."

"Enough!" Danzo roared, breathing hard as his chest heaved.

Danzo could never accept being described as a filthy chamber pot.

"Am I wrong?" Shiraishi asked, feigning surprise as he looked at Danzo.

"My contributions to Konoha will speak for themselves in time," Danzo said coldly.

"In time?" Shiraishi laughed as if he had just heard the funniest joke in the world. He clutched his stomach with one hand and pointed at Danzo with the other. "Do you have any successors? Biological or political, do you have any?"

Danzo's expression grew even uglier.

"Root is nothing but a mindless weapon you forged. It's a useful weapon in your hands, but would it really be useless in someone else's?" Shiraishi continued.

"After you die, who will publicize your contributions from the shadows? Those mindless weapons in Root?"

At that, Danzo gradually calmed down. He stared straight at Shiraishi, a hint of resolve flashing in his eyes.

"Can you guarantee that nothing will go wrong with the Reincarnation Technique?"

Shiraishi flew up and descended onto the Altar, sitting down with his legs dangling over the edge and gently swinging. Grinning, he said, "Just bring me someone, and I'll help you complete the reincarnation."

"I'll bring someone. I hope you won't disappoint me," Danzo said calmly.

"Good. Then shouldn't we discuss my terms? After all, I've always believed in fair dealings, just like our previous arrangement," Shiraishi said.

"What do you want?" Danzo asked warily.

"A young, living body that satisfies me, and an identity that lets me move freely around Konoha without raising any questions," Shiraishi said with a smile.

Danzo furrowed his brow. Ever since he had obtained this strange banner a year ago, he had kept trying to truly bring it under his control.

But to this day, he had made no progress. Instead, after their repeated dealings, he had gradually fallen behind and become the one in need.

"The Hokage Position is right in front of you. Do you really want to watch the fruits of your life's efforts fall into the hands of some young man?"

Seeing Danzo hesitate, Shiraishi continued to tempt him. "You should know better than anyone that becoming Hokage as Danzo is out of the question."

"But with just one simple jutsu, all you have to do is cast off this battered, decaying body. You can become Konoha's Hokage directly, regain a young body, and have a beautiful wife. No one will notice anything amiss."

Danzo couldn't help swallowing. What Shiraishi was offering was simply too tempting.