After Someone Dies, Do They Have a Soul?

At the Might Family home, Genichi arrived with the supplements he'd prepared.

"Uncle Dai, I came today because I'd like to take Guy on as my disciple." After the pleasantries, Genichi got straight to the point.

"Of course, for now, he can keep training in Taijutsu under your guidance. Remember to bring Guy to the Senju Clan compound tomorrow. Long-term training inevitably leads to hidden injuries, so let Hana check you both over and treat you first. I've also arranged a long-term order for medicinal herbs to nourish the body from the Nara Clan. When you get there..."

"That's wonderful! This is what youth is all about!" At his words, the father and son embraced and wept with excitement. "Guy, you mustn't let Lord Genichi down. You have to work twice as hard! Double today's training, and if you can't finish it, run ten laps around the village on your hands..."

Watching the father and son get so worked up that they completely forgot about everyone else, their teeth occasionally flashing with an eerie light, Genichi thought, If Hatake Sakumo hadn't made a name for himself so early, the "White Fang of Konoha" might well have been someone else.

His decision to take Might Guy as a disciple hadn't been made on a whim. After careful consideration, Genichi had realized that raising Guy was incredibly cost-effective.

Taking on an ordinary disciple meant carefully planning their growth, teaching them all kinds of ninjutsu and techniques step by step, and checking in regularly to make sure they were training hard.

With a genius disciple, all he had to do was steer them in the right direction and keep them safe in the early stages.

But with Might Guy, there was hardly anything to worry about. He already had goals, motivation, talent, and perseverance. It was like planting a seed that would grow on its own through photosynthesis. Genichi only needed to water it now and then and help fill in the gaps.

Besides, Guy's potential was truly immense. He was one of the few ninjas in Shippuden who could take part directly in the final battle. With Genichi's tailored training, there was no reason he couldn't grow even stronger.

According to the data recorded in the Book of Elements, Book of Combat, and Book of Characters, Might Guy's chakra levels were all 10. He could also control the rampaging chakra of the Eight Gates with Taijutsu. Perhaps he could even learn Genichi's Sage Mode.

Back at Ryūchi Cave, the White Snake Sage had recognized at a glance that Genichi's use of Natural Energy was different from the Sage Mode of Ryūchi Cave.

During those two years of training, Genichi hadn't only studied Ryūchi Cave's Senjutsu. He'd also continued to explore ways of using Natural Energy on his own.

He'd made some initial progress and discovered two different states.

The first was a standard combat mode. Senjutsu mixed with Natural Energy was already more powerful than ordinary ninjutsu. Genichi developed it further, using his Magnet Release to turn the world's magnetic field. This allowed the Senjutsu he used to draw in even more Natural Energy from the environment, expanding its range and increasing its power. The boost was substantial in places rich in Natural Energy.

The second was a mode for daily training. He used Magnet Release as a buffer to draw Natural Energy into his body, then mixed it directly with his spiritual and physical energies in equal proportions to form "Senjutsu Chakra," which was higher in quality than ordinary chakra.

Thinking of the cultivation methods from the fantasy novels of his previous life, Genichi kept this "Senjutsu Chakra" circulating through his body's chakra pathways instead of releasing it as Senjutsu. He continued until his body gradually adapted and the "Senjutsu Chakra" slowly dissipated, reverting to its more fundamental spiritual and physical energies. Throughout the process, his body quietly absorbed some of the Natural Energy.

The process was slow and the changes were subtle, but with daily training, Genichi could still clearly feel his body growing stronger in every way. It was an upward shift in his very level of life.

It wasn't just surface-level changes like greater strength or speed. Genichi also felt his energy growing, his mind becoming clearer, his body recovering faster, and the amount of chakra he could refine steadily increasing.

The ninja system, which relied solely on chakra training, harmed its practitioners even as it harmed their enemies. Excessive chakra refinement damaged the body and could even endanger their lives. That was why most ninjas didn't live long, and why their peak years were so few.

Only after Genichi introduced Natural Energy did he achieve a positive cycle, growing stronger the more he trained. Now this was a proper supernatural energy system.

Genichi had also wondered whether he could make this training method available to the people around him. But he'd hit a wall at the very first step: most people couldn't sense Natural Energy.

Then he'd thought of the all-purpose Dora-Snake. The Curse Mark developed by his teacher Orochimaru seemed to have a similar effect. Around that time, Orochimaru had happened to come to Ryūchi Cave.

Ryūchi Cave.

After Genichi had successfully entered Sage Mode, Orochimaru hadn't wasted any time. He'd gone straight back to the village laboratory to continue his research.

Then one day, Orochimaru suddenly returned to Ryūchi Cave and called Chiba Genichi away from his training.

"Genichi, I want to test you on something." Orochimaru sounded excited, his eyes concealing a hint of madness—or perhaps an obsession with something.

"Tell me, do people have souls after they die?"

Seeing Orochimaru in this state, Genichi thought of the forbidden technique, Living Corpse Reincarnation. Even with Nawaki still alive, Orochimaru had already set out on the path to immortality.

"I suppose they do. We haven't directly observed them, but Impure World Reincarnation and the Spirit Transformation Technique both provide indirect proof that souls exist."

"Heh, exactly." Orochimaru licked his lips. "I've recently studied those two techniques in depth, and confirmed that souls still exist even without a body."

"Genichi, did you know? Chakra can store all of a person's information. That means that if I split my soul and inscribed it into chakra, I could use a Curse Mark to take over someone else's body under the right conditions."

Orochimaru grew more and more excited as he spoke. "When the body gradually withers, I'll simply find another young one. I can keep doing that forever, and thus live eternally. That's immortality! With an endless lifespan, sooner or later I'll master every ninjutsu and all the knowledge in the world."

"Genichi! My dream is almost within reach!"

Genichi had expected this, so he showed little reaction on the surface. Inwardly, though, he couldn't help admiring Orochimaru. Now that's what you call the greatest scientist in the Ninja World.

The Ōtsutsuki were talking!

The Ōtsutsuki Clan's signature ability, Karma, was a divine technique that made immortality possible.

It turned its user into data and copied them, then compressed that data into a "Karma" and implanted it in a "Vessel." The compressed data would gradually thaw inside the Vessel, and once it had fully thawed, the user could reincarnate.

But the thawing took time. During that period, the host could freeload on the user's power, and Vessels had to meet stringent requirements.

If the conditions weren't met and the data thawed completely too soon, the Vessel would die within a few days. Without a spare body prepared, death was final.

Now consider Orochimaru's Living Corpse Reincarnation. With a single ninjutsu, he'd practically recreated the Ōtsutsuki Clan's divine technique.

It even had many advantages. First, the host couldn't freeload on his power. Second, the Curse Mark could lie dormant for a long time and activate the reincarnation when the host was weak. And third, he could leave Curse Marks in many places. As long as a Curse Mark and Orochimaru's living cells remained, he could revive from the mark.

Although Living Corpse Reincarnation fell short of Karma in some respects, that didn't diminish Orochimaru's talent. After all, the Ōtsutsuki were a clan that treated planets like pastures, traversed the cosmos, and called themselves gods.

Seeing that his disciple was far calmer than expected, Orochimaru couldn't help asking, "Does immortality no longer appeal to you?"

Genichi recalled the shortcomings of Living Corpse Reincarnation, then replied, "Teacher Orochimaru, it might work in theory, but I imagine there are still many limitations in practice."

"Where will you find a suitable body? Will the target's soul resist? How long will it take to repair a damaged soul? The body gradually dies, but won't the soul also be worn down by time?"

Orochimaru's golden, slit-pupiled eyes suddenly narrowed. His knuckles turned faintly white from the strain, and it was as if an invisible hand had closed around his throat. He hadn't expected Genichi to see through the flaws in reincarnation after hearing just a few simple ideas, as though he'd witnessed the process himself.

"Heh. No technique is perfect from the start. Compared with immortality, these problems are trivial." After his shock, Orochimaru explained, "Genichi, you're always full of strange and wonderful ideas. I came this time to hear your thoughts, too. If you're willing, I won't keep this glory to myself."

After thinking it over, Genichi spoke. "Teacher Orochimaru, your idea is good, but I'd like to make a few adjustments.

"Do you know about cloning? The technology isn't very advanced yet, but perhaps one day we'll be able to clone our own bodies from our cells. Such bodies would be perfectly suited to us, with no risk of a struggle between souls.

"Perhaps we could even cultivate special cells during the cloning process, and use them to obtain the power of a Kekkei Genkai.

"Instead of searching the entire Ninja World for a suitable body and prolonging your life at the cost of your soul and strength—like a coiled serpent slithering through the mud and hunting in the undergrowth—it'd be better to prepare something better for yourself from the start."

Before Orochimaru could recover from his fantasy, Genichi suddenly remembered that the Ninja World's souls and Pure Land seemed a bit like the Soul Reaper who wielded a Zanpakuto.

So he asked, "Teacher Orochimaru, can the soul of an ordinary ninja retain its consciousness and strength?"

Hearing the implication, Orochimaru worked out Genichi's line of thought, too. "You want to turn a ninja into a spirit? A soul is certainly harder to kill than a body, and can exist for longer. It might be possible to preserve one's consciousness, but a soul on its own would be drawn to the Pure Land and couldn't remain in the Ninja World for long."

Genichi also thought of the state of the Ōtsutsuki and the Tailed Beasts, so he asked, "What about turning into chakra? Haven't immortal beings already existed in the Ninja World for ages?"

"You mean the Tailed Beasts? Heh, it's not that easy. I just said that chakra can carry all of a person's information.

"Then why do you think I'm researching a ninjutsu for reincarnating souls? Why don't I just turn myself into a chakra life-form like a Tailed Beast? Do you think it's because I don't want to?"

Orochimaru sighed helplessly.