One's Own Life Reincarnation

"Sasuke, Izumi, time to eat."

Uchiha Mikoto slid the bedroom door open, but the scene that met her eyes made her freeze in place.

At the same time.

"Mmm~"

Exhausted from having only just fallen asleep, Uchiha Izumi let out an instinctive murmur. She shifted her body, tightening her arms around Sasuke's neck, and after finding a more comfortable position, she drifted back to sleep with a smile on her lips.

Sasuke: "..."

A smile tugged at the corners of Uchiha Mikoto's mouth as her dark eyes darted between the two of them with a knowing glint.

She sensed, however vaguely, that the atmosphere between them had undergone some sort of change.

Sasuke gave an awkward laugh and gently patted Uchiha Izumi's back, whispering into her ear, "Izumi-chan, wake up. It's time to eat."

Feeling the warmth of his breath on her ear, Uchiha Izumi's body instinctively recoiled. She buried her face into the crook of Sasuke's neck, rubbing her cheek against his as she mumbled, "It tickles~ stop it."

"..." Sasuke was speechless, forced to try again. "Stop sleeping, it's time for dinner."

"Mmm~" Finally waking up, Uchiha Izumi lifted her head. She rubbed her eyes, then, still dazed with sleep, she naturally draped her arms back around Sasuke's neck. "Dinner...?"

"Yeah." Sasuke nodded, then gestured toward the doorway behind him. "Mom is waiting for us."

Mom?... She turned her head slowly to see Uchiha Mikoto standing in the doorway with a smile on her face. Uchiha Izumi froze for a split second, then realized what was happening and jolted upright!

She quickly loosened her grip on Sasuke's neck and scrambled to her feet, flustered. "Mi... Mi... Mikoto-auntie!"

Seeing Izumi's face burning red and her frantic, clumsy demeanor only confirmed Mikoto's suspicions. "Izumi, you must be tired from training today. Come on, wash your face and come out to eat."

"No, that's alright, Mikoto-auntie," Uchiha Izumi said, waving her hands frantically. "I should go home and eat. My mom is probably waiting for me."

"Not at all," Mikoto laughed. "I already spoke with your mother. You're staying here for the duration of the break."

"Eh~?" Uchiha Izumi blinked. "Staying here?"

"Yes!" Mikoto tilted her head with a smile. "I figured since you're on break, I'd ask your mother to let you stay here to help look after Sasuke. And well, she agreed."

As she spoke, she gestured to the luggage bag in her hand. "Look, she even helped pack your change of clothes and asked me to bring them over."

"Izumi, feel free to stay here for the holidays. I'm counting on you to look after Sasuke~"

"Eh eh eh~?"

Elsewhere.

Land of Wind, Sunagakure.

Inside a secret laboratory.

Having just finished mixing a batch of poison, Chiyo, an advisor of Sunagakure, leaned back in her chair to rest and pulled a scroll from the shelf beside her.

After breaking the seal on the scroll, she stared at the contents in silence, lost in thought.

She seemed to be reminiscing about something, or perhaps mourning a memory.

The scroll was clearly marked with the words: "One's Own Life Reincarnation"!

"It really is here!"

In the shadows.

Two Spore Clones' eyes lit up.

They had been lurking in Sunagakure for nearly a year, all for the sake of this technique.

To avoid alerting Chiyo or raising her suspicions, they had only monitored her from the shadows and never dared to touch any of her belongings.

This was also the first time in nearly a year that Chiyo had entered this secret room.

The moment they discovered this hidden chamber protected by a sealing barrier, they realized the ninjutsu scroll had to be inside.

And they were right!

Ten minutes later, Chiyo sighed and snapped back to reality.

She closed the scroll, reapplied the seal, and placed it back on the shelf.

"I wonder where Sasori is now..."

"I hope he's still alive..."

After muttering these words, she walked out of the secret room...

One Spore Clone moved quickly to follow her, while the other remained inside the chamber.

Confirming through the telepathic connection between the clones that Chiyo had moved far away, a baby-like arm reached out from the wall inside the room...

Late at night, the world was silent.

In a room within the Uchiha clan's main estate.

Sasuke, who was being held in Uchiha Izumi's arms, suddenly opened his eyes.

"Finally got it?"

Inside the Soul Space.

Setsuna, who had been resting on Elder Nobuhiko, sensed something and suddenly looked up.

A scroll appeared out of thin air and hit the ground with a soft thud.

What is that?

Setsuna blinked her eyes, leaped twice to reach the scroll, and lowered her head curiously to sniff it.

Can I eat it?

With that thought in mind, she tentatively opened her mouth.

"Lady Setsuna!" Elder Nobuhiko, who had also sensed the disturbance and woken up, immediately stopped her. "That must be a scroll Sasuke sent in. You can't just bite into things!"

Setsuna froze, then turned her head in annoyance. "I'm not a puppy! Why would I just bite into it?"

If I hadn't said anything, you would have already taken a bite! Elder Nobuhiko grumbled inwardly.

"Hmm?" At that moment, Sasuke's figure appeared. He picked up the scroll and asked, "Why are you both still awake?"

Setsuna immediately looked up, her face full of curiosity. "Master, what is this?"

"Just a ninjutsu scroll."

"Master, you still need ninjutsu scrolls?" Setsuna was shocked.

"Ah, well, I can't just go around killing people for the sake of a single technique."

"Can't you?"

"..." Sasuke was speechless.

In Setsuna's mind, killing a person is probably no different from killing a bug.

Pushing the thought aside, he roughly assessed the seal on the scroll and then used Setsuna's chakra to weave the hand signs.

"Release!"

The seal was undone with ease.

Elder Nobuhiko came to Sasuke's side, and seeing the scroll unfurled, he looked curiously at the contents.

One's Own Life Reincarnation?

He turned the name over in his mind, but found no information on it.

Clearly, this was a technique he had never heard of, which only made him more curious. "What is this technique...?"

"A technique that resurrects the dead at the cost of one's own life."

Elder Nobuhiko was startled. "Someone actually developed such a forbidden technique?"

"Yes," Sasuke nodded. "It's a forbidden jutsu developed by Sunagakure."

Elder Nobuhiko hesitated. "Sasuke, why do you need this technique..."

"It's good to be prepared for anything," Sasuke said. "Even with your Mangekyo, I don't have enough Dojutsu power to cast the technique on everyone around me."

"But the cost of life..."

"That's what your eyes are for. Your Dojutsu can offset that cost."

"But you only obtained my eyes today..." The implication was clear: he knew Sasuke hadn't decided on this on a whim, but had been planning it for a long time.

"True. Before I obtained your eyes, I had intended to control certain life forms specifically to use this technique," Sasuke said with a wry smile. "Even now, I haven't abandoned that idea."

Elder Nobuhiko nodded. "It is always good to plan ahead."

Sasuke was somewhat surprised by this response.

"You didn't think I would lecture you, did you?" Elder Nobuhiko raised an eyebrow. "Don't forget, I was born in the Warring States period, where life was as cheap as grass. I'm no saint; if I had even a shred of misplaced compassion, I wouldn't have survived until yesterday."

"Of course, although we haven't spent much time together, I can tell you aren't the type to treat human life as worthless for your own selfish desires. I trust you will make reasonable arrangements."

He said he wouldn't lecture, but he had effectively put Sasuke on the spot—a classic case of advancing by retreating.

"Don't worry, old man. There are many interesting life forms in the current ninja world that can perfectly substitute for human lives."

"But before that, I must master this technique myself so I can control them to perform it."

Sasuke handed the scroll to Elder Nobuhiko. "I'll leave it to you. Study it well, and once you've learned it, pass it to me through the Soul Space. Thank you."

"..." Elder Nobuhiko's mouth twitched.

He had seen people help others with homework, chores, or even missions, but this was his first time seeing someone help another person learn a ninjutsu!

In the end, he could only mutter, "What a cheat of an ability..."

"Mm," Sasuke stretched and laughed. "Elder Nobuhiko, you should know that I don't want to reap without sowing either. I envy those who can work hard and enjoy the process of becoming stronger. But with the Soul Space, I have completely lost the qualification to sweat, grow step by step, and reap the joy of achievement."

"Besides, my meridian system hasn't finished growing yet. Even if I wanted to learn this ninjutsu, I couldn't, could I?"

"So, I have to rely on you."

"..."