Does a Soul Exist After Death?

Chiba Genichi visited the Might household, carrying the tonics he had prepared.

"Uncle Dai, I've come today because I wish to take young Guy as my disciple." After the initial pleasantries, Genichi got straight to the point.

"Of course, for now, he will continue to train in taijutsu under your guidance, Uncle Dai. Remember to bring Guy to the Senju Clan compound tomorrow. Long-term physical training inevitably leads to hidden injuries, so let Hana give you both a check-up and treatment. I've also placed a long-term order for nourishing herbs with the Nara Clan, so when the time comes..."

"Wonderful, simply wonderful! This is youth!" Upon hearing this, the father and son embraced and wept, overcome with excitement. "Guy, you must never let Lord Genichi down! You must work twice as hard. Today's training volume is doubled! If you don't finish it, you'll run ten laps around the village on your hands..."

Watching this father and son duo, who became so agitated they completely ignored everyone else—with the occasional eerie glint reflecting off their teeth—Genichi thought to himself, If Hatake Sakumo hadn't become famous so early, the title of "White Fang of the Leaf" might have belonged to someone else.

His sudden decision to take Might Guy as a disciple was not a whim. After careful consideration, Genichi realized that cultivating Might Guy offered an incredibly high return on investment.

To take on an ordinary disciple, one must devote heart and soul to planning their growth, teaching various ninjutsu techniques hand-in-hand, and supervising their training from time to time.

To take on a genius disciple, one only needs to grasp the general direction of their growth and ensure their safety in the early stages.

But with Might Guy, there was no need to worry much at all. He possessed his own goals, motivation, talent, and perseverance. It was like planting a seed that would naturally photosynthesize and grow; one only needed to water it occasionally and fill in the gaps.

Moreover, Might Guy's potential ceiling was truly high. He was one of the few ninjas in the Shippuden era capable of participating directly in the final decisive battles. With Genichi's targeted cultivation, his future strength might reach even greater heights.

According to the data recorded in the Book of Elements, Book of Combat, and Book of Characters, Might Guy's chakra level was a 10. Since he could use taijutsu techniques to master the violent chakra unleashed by the Eight Inner Gates, he might even have a chance to practice Genichi's Sage Mode.

Back at Ryūchi Cave, the White Snake Sage had seen at a glance that Genichi's application of natural energy differed from the Sage Mode of Ryūchi Cave.

During those two years of cultivation, Genichi hadn't just been learning the senjutsu of Ryūchi Cave; he had also been slowly researching his own methods of utilizing natural energy.

He had tentatively explored two states.

One was the conventional combat mode: Senjutsu mixed with natural energy was inherently more powerful than ordinary ninjutsu. Genichi developed it further, using his Magnet Release to rotate the magnetic fields of heaven and earth. This allowed his senjutsu to draw upon the natural energy in the environment, expanding the range and increasing the power of his ninjutsu. In environments rich in natural energy, the amplification was quite significant.

The other was the daily cultivation mode: using Magnet Release as a buffer to absorb natural energy into the body, mixing it one-to-one with spiritual and physical energy to form "Sage Chakra," which possessed a higher quality than ordinary chakra.

Genichi thought of the true methods of immortality from the fantasies of his past life, so he controlled this "Sage Chakra" to circulate through his meridians instead of releasing it as senjutsu. He kept this up until his body gradually adapted and the "Sage Chakra" slowly dissipated, reverting into higher-quality spiritual and physical energy. In this process, the human body also silently absorbed a portion of natural energy.

Although this process was slow and the changes were subtle, with daily practice, Genichi could clearly feel his body growing stronger in every aspect. This was a change in the level of life itself.

It wasn't just superficial changes like increased strength or speed; Genichi also felt his energy becoming more abundant, his mind clearer, his physical recovery faster, and his ability to refine chakra growing.

The ninja system, which relied purely on refining chakra, was harmful to both the enemy and oneself. Excessive refinement damaged the body and could even endanger life, which was why most ninjas had short lifespans and brief peaks of strength.

It wasn't until Genichi introduced natural energy that he achieved a positive cycle, becoming stronger with every practice. This was the proper way for a transcendent energy system to function.

Genichi had also considered whether this cultivation mode could be popularized so that those around him could practice it, but he was immediately stuck at the first step: most people could not perceive natural energy.

He then thought of the omnipotent "Doraemon-Snake," Orochimaru. The Curse Mark his teacher was researching seemed to have a similar effect, and it was precisely during that time that Orochimaru happened to arrive at Ryūchi Cave.

Ryūchi Cave.

After Genichi successfully entered Sage Mode, Orochimaru hadn't wasted any time, returning directly to his village laboratory to continue his research.

Suddenly, one day, Orochimaru arrived at Ryūchi Cave again and called out Chiba Genichi, who was in the middle of his cultivation.

"Genichi, I want to test you with a question." Orochimaru's tone was somewhat agitated, his eyes hidden behind a trace of madness—or perhaps an obsession with something.

"Tell me, after a person dies, is there truly a soul?"

Seeing Orochimaru in this state, Genichi immediately thought of the forbidden technique [Living Corpse Reincarnation]. He hadn't expected that even with Nawaki still alive, Orochimaru would still embark on the path of seeking immortality so quickly.

"There should be. Although it cannot be directly observed, both [Impure World Reincarnation] and the [Spirit Transformation Technique] can prove from the side that the soul should exist."

"Heh, not bad." Orochimaru extended his tongue to lick his lips. "I have recently studied the two techniques you just mentioned in depth and confirmed that even without a physical body, the soul still exists."

"Genichi, do you know? Chakra can store all of a person's information. That is to say, if I divide my soul and record it within chakra, I can directly occupy someone else's body under certain conditions through a Curse Mark."

Orochimaru became more excited as he spoke: "When the body gradually decays, I will simply replace it with a young one, over and over again. In this way, I will possess eternal life. This is immortality! With eternal life, I will sooner or later learn all the ninjutsu and all the knowledge in the world."

"Genichi! My dream is already within reach!"

Having anticipated this, Genichi showed little reaction on the surface, but in his heart, he couldn't help but applaud Orochimaru. What does it mean to be the number one scientist in the Ninja World?

Talk to the Otsutsuki!

The unique ability of the Otsutsuki Clan: [Karma]—a divine technique that makes immortality possible.

By digitizing and copying oneself, the compressed data is implanted into a "Vessel" as a "Karma." The compressed data of the Karma gradually unfreezes within the "Vessel," and once fully unfrozen, reincarnation can occur.

However, unfreezing takes time, during which the host's power is leeched, and "Karma" also has high requirements for the "Vessel."

If the conditions are not met and it unfreezes completely ahead of schedule, the host will die within a few days. Without a backup body prepared, death is truly final.

Now look at Orochimaru's [Living Corpse Reincarnation]. Not only did he basically replicate the divine technique of the Otsutsuki Clan through ninjutsu, but it also possessed many advantages. First, it wouldn't have one's power leeched by the host; second, the Curse Mark could lie dormant for a long time, only triggering the reincarnation when the host was weak; and furthermore, Curse Marks could exist in large numbers. As long as the Curse Mark and Orochimaru's living cells existed, he could be resurrected from the mark.

Although [Living Corpse Reincarnation] still had some shortcomings compared to [Karma] in certain aspects, one could not deny Orochimaru's talent. After all, the Otsutsuki Clan were a race that treated planets as pastures, traversed the universe, and styled themselves as gods.

Seeing his disciple far calmer than expected, Orochimaru couldn't help but ask: "Can even immortality not tempt you?"

Genichi recalled the drawbacks of Living Corpse Reincarnation and then spoke: "Teacher Orochimaru, while theoretically feasible, I fear there are still many limitations in practice."

"Where will you find suitable bodies? Will the soul of the reincarnation target not resist? How much time will it take to repair the soul if it is injured? The physical body will gradually die, but will the soul not be worn down by time?"

Orochimaru's golden slit pupils suddenly contracted, his knuckles turning slightly white from the force, as if his throat were being gripped by an invisible hand. He hadn't expected that after he had only briefly mentioned his line of thought, Genichi would see through the flaws of the reincarnation, as if he had witnessed the process himself.

"Heh, no technique is perfect from the start. Compared to immortality, these problems are insignificant." After the shock, Orochimaru explained: "Genichi, you are always full of all sorts of ingenious ideas. I came this time to hear your opinion. If you are willing, I will never keep this glory to myself."

After thinking for a moment, Genichi finally spoke: "Teacher Orochimaru, your line of thought is excellent, but I would like to make some slight modifications."

Do you know about cloning technology? It's not very mature yet, but perhaps in the future, we'll be able to clone bodies directly from our own cells. Such a body would be perfectly suited to oneself, with no risk of soul conflict.

During the cloning process, perhaps special cells could be cultivated directionally, thereby acquiring the power of Kekkei Genkai.

Rather than searching the Ninja World for a suitable body, extending life at the cost of one's soul and strength, like a coiled snake writhing beneath the soil, hunting in the thickets.

It would be better to prepare a superior one for oneself from the start.

Before Orochimaru could snap out of his reverie, Genichi suddenly thought that the Ninja World's settings for souls and the Pure Land seemed similar to those of the Soul Reapers, those who wield Zanpakuto.

So he asked, "Teacher Orochimaru, can a pure ninja soul retain consciousness and strength?"

Understanding the implication from the question, Orochimaru deduced Genichi's train of thought: "You want to spiritualize ninja bodies? Souls indeed don't die as easily as flesh and are more conducive to long-term existence. Retaining consciousness might be possible, but a pure soul would be drawn to the Pure Land and unable to remain in the Ninja World for extended periods."

Genichi also thought of the state of the Otsutsuki clan and the Tailed Beasts, so he asked, "What about chakra transformation? Don't immortal beings already exist in the Ninja World?"

"You're referring to the Tailed Beasts, aren't you? Heh, it's not that simple. I just said that chakra can carry all of a person's information.

Then why do you think I'm researching soul reincarnation ninjutsu? Why not directly turn myself into a chakra lifeform similar to a Tailed Beast? Is it because I don't want to?"

Orochimaru sighed helplessly.