While the "Root" organization gradually got on track and its plans moved forward steadily, Uchiha Sakuya threw himself into endless research and development. A secret room deep within the base, covered in sealing formulas and packed with scrolls and experimental equipment, became the place where he spent the most time outside of battle.
The "Eighty Gods Mirror" had given him more than the ability to copy. It had also granted him unparalleled insight into the fundamental makeup of ninjutsu and genjutsu. No longer content with copying, he began to take techniques apart, analyze them, reassemble them, and even create new ones.
The pinnacle of genjutsu:
He immersed himself in the microscopic world of the mind and chakra, drawing on the Uchiha Clan's inherited mastery of genjutsu, the forbidden techniques he had learned from the Book of Sealing, and his observations of genjutsu specialists like Shen. From this, he created several terrifying new genjutsu:
· Genjutsu: Kaleidoscope Prison: It dragged the target into a mental maze made up of countless mirrors. Each mirror reflected the deepest fears, regrets, or desires in the target's heart, endlessly refracting, distorting, and looping them until the target's mind collapsed completely, lost amid fragments of their own consciousness. The technique could even be used on several people at once, and had an extremely wide range.
· Genjutsu: Law of Causality Seal: Rather than directly creating an illusion, it planted a powerful "psychological suggestion" or "false law of causality" in the target's subconscious. For example, someone caught in the technique might become convinced that "using Lightning Release will make me hit an ally," or that "seeing a kunai makes me unable to move." Such suggestions were extremely difficult to detect or dispel, and fundamentally distorted the target's combat logic and decision-making.
· Genjutsu: Memory of Fallen Gods: One of the ultimate genjutsu against powerful individuals. It forcibly connected the target's mind to the lingering memories or moments of pain of a deceased powerhouse, making them briefly "experience" that level of despair, agony, or loss of control over their power. The result was an enormous mental shock and a brief lapse in consciousness. It could even cause the target's own power to turn against them.
These genjutsu no longer merely interfered with the senses. They struck directly at the heart's weaknesses, distorted perception, and even implanted false rules. They were terrifyingly powerful and impossible to guard against.
Further Development of a Forbidden Technique: "Pure Land Reincarnation"
Sakuya devoted even more effort to the forbidden technique "Impure World Reincarnation," developed by the Second. He loathed the crude, disrespectful method of summoning the dead, riddled with flaws—the cracks, scraps of paper, and inability to bring out their full strength.
Using the "Eighty Gods Mirror" to deeply analyze souls, contracts, and Yin-Yang Release formulas, and combining his findings with some of Orochimaru's data and the original version of the Book of Sealing, he made a revolutionary set of improvements.
In the end, he completed a brand-new S-rank forbidden technique—
"Pure Land Reincarnation"
Compared to "Impure World Reincarnation," this technique was a qualitative leap forward:
1. A perfect body: The reincarnated were no longer given cracked bodies made of dust and scraps of paper. Instead, their bodies were simulated from highly concentrated Yin Release Chakra and Natural Energy, bringing them as close as possible to the perfect forms they had possessed in their prime. They looked no different from the living, with smooth skin and lively eyes (though they remained under the caster's control), and no more eerie, mismatched pupils.
2. The soul's shackles: The core control mechanism no longer relied on a kunai embedded with a talisman. Sakuya developed a subtler and more powerful soul-contract seal that acted directly on the reincarnated person's soul. The caster could control them absolutely from a distance through the ocular power of the "Eighty Gods Mirror," leaving them almost no chance to break free. The reincarnated retained their complete personalities, memories, and combat skills, but could not disobey any of the caster's orders.
3. A new kind of offering: No living person was needed as a sacrifice! All that was required was a sufficiently sturdy corpse capable of withstanding the infusion of soul power, to serve as a "vessel" for the soul's arrival. This greatly lowered the difficulty and moral cost of using the technique—in Sakuya's eyes—and made mass reincarnation possible. The quality of the vessel's corpse affected the reincarnated person's upper limit of strength, but not their "completeness."
4. Full use of power: Thanks to the improved soul shackles and perfect body, the reincarnated could wield 100% of their strength from life. In some ways, they could even fight longer, since they no longer suffered from physical exhaustion or pain. Sakuya could also indirectly influence them through the "Eighty Gods Mirror," letting them use techniques he had copied, even if they had never mastered them in life.
Of course, the technique still had its limitations:
· A certain amount of the deceased's DNA was required, just as with Impure World Reincarnation.
· It placed enormous demands on the caster's chakra reserves and spiritual strength, especially when controlling several powerful individuals at once.
· The strength of the vessel's corpse limited the reincarnated person's upper limit of power. To reincarnate someone like Uchiha Madara, he would likely need an exceptionally powerful corpse as a vessel.
· At its core, the technique still violated the peace of the dead, and maintaining the contract continuously drained the caster's spiritual strength.
The first time Sakuya successfully used a prepared jonin's corpse as a vessel to perfectly reincarnate Kagami Uchiha, a powerful Uchiha from Konoha's earliest days, he saw Kagami's clear eyes, whole body, and surging strength—and felt his complete obedience to Sakuya's orders. He knew he had gained a key capable of overturning the boundary between life and death.
That key would provide immeasurable support for his future plans. Whether he wanted to obtain the combat experience of the deceased, summon an army of the dead, or... take revenge on certain individuals.
In the dim secret room, Sakuya watched the reincarnated person standing respectfully before him, indistinguishable from the living. The light of the "Eighty Gods Mirror" in his eyes glinted coldly. Suddenly, an idea struck him—one he had to put into practice at once...
In the secret room, the glow of Yin Release Chakra slowly faded, but did not vanish as it usually did. Instead, it flowed gently around the newly restored body like a calm stream.
Rin Nohara stood there. She was no longer trapped in the cracked shell of Impure World Reincarnation. Her skin was radiant and smooth, her eyes lively, and she looked just as she had in life, even more luminous with the pure energy flowing through her. She moved her fingers slightly. The confusion in her eyes receded like a tide, replaced by a profound clarity, as if she had awoken from a long slumber.
She... could feel it. Her heart beat slowly and strongly in her chest, warm blood flowed through her veins, and her lungs drew in cool air. These sensations, long forgotten, had returned with startling reality.
Watching this, even Sakuya could not suppress a flash of excitement and pride. "Pure Land Reincarnation" had surpassed everyone's expectations. It had not merely summoned a soul. It was as if it had... stolen a fragment of the Pure Land's very essence and reshaped it into a genuine vessel for life!
He called Obito over.
When Obito entered the secret room and saw Rin—not merely "present," but with a familiar light shining in her eyes—he staggered back as if struck by an invisible hammer, his body trembling violently. His breathing grew ragged and uneven beneath his white mask.
"Rin...?" His voice was broken, filled with boundless hope and fear, as if he dreaded that this might be another vivid illusion.
At the sound of his voice, Rin turned. Her gaze fell on Obito's strange mask and outfit, and she furrowed her brow slightly, as if trying to recognize him. But soon, a deep-rooted familiarity pierced the mists of time. Her eyes widened, and she whispered in disbelief:
"...Obito?"
Just two words, yet they seemed to hold a thousand more, instantly shattering every last one of Obito's defenses.
But in the next moment, Rin's gaze fell on Sakuya beside her. She sensed the invisible yet unbreakable soul-contract shackles inside her, along with the cold, powerful control he held over her. Her expression instantly turned complicated. Joy gave way to confusion and a trace of pain she could barely hide.
Obito caught it at once. He whipped around to face Sakuya. His voice was hoarse with emotion, but his resolve was absolute. "Sakuya! Release her! Now! End all your control over her!"
Sakuya paused. He looked at the near-mad plea in Obito's eyes, then at Rin's fully restored awareness and the complicated expression on her face as she remained under someone else's control. He understood what Obito meant at once.
"Pure Land Reincarnation" had succeeded—in fact, it had succeeded beyond all expectations. It had truly brought back a complete soul and given it a real life. But that life was still bound by the technique's shackles.
This was no longer a puppet technique that toyed with the dead. This was... interference with life itself.
Under Obito's burning gaze, Sakuya fell silent for a moment. The "Eighty Gods Mirror" in his eyes began to turn once more as he analyzed the soul contract in reverse. This time, he was no longer looking for a key to "release the soul back to the Pure Land," but for a lock that would "remove the shackles and restore her freedom."
He raised a hand and formed the seals slowly and solemnly, as if performing a sacred ritual. A gentle yet powerful light enveloped Rin once more.
"Pure Land Reincarnation: Release: Soul Returns to Freedom."
The light did not dissolve Rin. Instead, it flowed into every part of her body like warm sunlight. The invisible contract shackles within her melted and snapped in the radiance, like snow beneath the sun.
Rin's body trembled slightly. She closed her eyes, feeling the final traces of being controlled and bound disappear completely. When she opened them again, they held nothing but pure, disbelieving freedom and clarity. She looked down at her hands, feeling the life within her—truly her own, flowing without restraint.
She... had really come back. A complete soul, a real body, absolute freedom.
Obito slowly removed his mask, revealing a face weathered by time, now streaming with tears. He walked toward Rin one step at a time, each step seeming to cross countless years of longing and despair.
Rin looked at his face, both familiar and strange, and at the tears in his eyes. It seemed all her questions had found their answers. She said nothing. Tears welled in her eyes too as she slowly reached out a hand.
After life and death, despair, mistakes, and redemption, their hands crossed the vast distance of time and finally touched once more.
Warm and real.
Sakuya stood quietly to the side, watching this scene that transcended life and death. His initial excitement had settled, replaced by a deeper shock and understanding. Beneath it, though, lay a profound fear.
Yes. The power of "Pure Land Reincarnation" was far deeper and more dangerous than he had imagined. It touched the realm of the gods—or even a realm forbidden by the gods. He decided that, unless he had no other choice, he would never use this technique again. He would never risk his own safety to commit an act that trampled upon the gods.
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