Returning to Sunagakure

A week later, Uchiha Gen had completely mastered the Spirit Transformation Technique.

With his physical body remaining safely within the Uchiha clan compound, and the pre-set Izanagi as a safeguard, he had essentially bid farewell to all his worries.

"Forbidden Jutsu: Spirit Transformation Technique, activate!"

A translucent Uchiha Gen emerged from the physical body that sat cross-legged on the floor.

Target: Sunagakure. Departure!

In less time than it took to drink a cup of tea, he had flown from Konoha to the skies above Sunagakure. The Spirit Transformation Technique was truly fast. Looking down at the village below, Uchiha Gen was speechless for a long moment. He recalled how Naruto had rushed and scrambled to reach Sunagakure to provide support, taking quite a long time. His own speed was only a hair slower than the Flying Thunder God Technique, though the learning curve for that jutsu was far too steep—it wasn't something one could master simply by grinding their life away.

Sunagakure was quite large; after all, land in the Land of Wind wasn't particularly valuable, unlike the prime real estate of Konoha. Using the soul perception granted by the Spirit Transformation Technique, Uchiha Gen spent only a moment locating Pakura.

After a busy day, the hardworking Master Pakura returned to her cozy little nest. The Kirigakure Front had been relatively stable lately. Although she didn't know what the higher-ups in Kirigakure were thinking—attacking Konoha while simultaneously at war with Sunagakure—it was undoubtedly a good thing for her own village!

Originally, Sunagakure hadn't expected Konoha to provide large-scale support despite their alliance, but now that the Kirigakure leadership had clearly lost their minds and provoked Konoha, Konoha would have to get involved whether they wanted to or not.

"Sigh... given the current state of the war, it's only a matter of time before the village signs a peace treaty with Kirigakure. Could things really turn out the way he said?" Pakura pondered, feeling hesitant.

"Yo, Pakura, thinking of me? So deep in thought?"

"Who's there!" Pakura immediately assumed a combat stance. As an elite jonin, combined with her Scorch Release—a technique famous throughout the Ninja World—Pakura was a seasoned veteran of the battlefield. The fact that someone could approach her without her noticing meant their strength was at least above that of the Fourth Kazekage.

After all, even the Fourth Kazekage couldn't approach her so silently! Perhaps Elder Chiyo could do it! In an instant, Pakura's mind raced.

"It's me, Uchiha Gen. It's good to see you're safe," Uchiha Gen revealed his form, smiling at Pakura. After all, in a sense, she was his first woman.

"Ha? You beast!" Pakura gritted her teeth at the sight of him, though she quickly calmed down. She wasn't surprised that Uchiha Gen could infiltrate Sunagakure; every village had spies, and any ninja of jonin caliber could generally manage it. Even some chunin or special jonin with unique abilities could pull it off.

"They say a night as husband and wife leads to a hundred days of grace. We spent 72 hours in the Tsukuyomi Space, three whole days of non-stop interaction, and now you call me a beast the moment we meet? Do I not have a name?" Uchiha Gen looked at her with black lines on his forehead.

"Bastard, don't bring that up! What is your purpose in coming here?" Pakura's face flushed, clearly recalling the unpleasant positions.

"Ah, it's nothing major. Did you find the hair of that unlucky soul who can perform the One's Own Life Reincarnation that I asked you to collect? This concerns our future happiness, you know!" Uchiha Gen reminded her.

"Your goal is the One's Own Life Reincarnation?" Pakura looked at Uchiha Gen with a grave expression.

"Yes, exactly. Given our relationship, I need your help, so I won't hide it from you. The forbidden jutsu developed by your village's Elder Chiyo, the One's Own Life Reincarnation, can transfer one's own life force to another, even bringing the dead back to life!"

"What does that have to do with you? That is our village's forbidden jutsu!" Before Uchiha Gen could finish, Pakura interrupted him sharply.

"What's yours is mine, isn't it? Given our relationship, I'm practically a son-in-law of Sunagakure. By that logic, I'm qualified to learn the One's Own Life Reincarnation!" Uchiha Gen shamelessly declared.

"Tch, there's no way I'll let you achieve your goal," Pakura said, turning her face away.

"Little Pakura, don't be so heartless. I treat you as a woman, and you treat me as an enemy? Besides, I'm doing this for your own good. Think about it—in the current state of the Ninja World, who can guarantee whether tomorrow or an accident will come first? If you were to die one day, I could use the One's Own Life Reincarnation to save you, couldn't I?" Uchiha Gen reasoned.

"Hmph! Would you really be so kind? I am a Sunagakure jonin, and you are an Uchiha from Konoha!" Pakura's resolve wavered.

"What does Sunagakure or Konoha have to do with anything? Because of what happened between us, you only have one identity in my eyes: my woman!" Uchiha Gen said domineeringly. In his past life, he had been a socially awkward man who had never dated. He had heard from "experts" online that there were shortcuts to a woman's heart, so he had skipped the dating phase and taken the shortcut. Besides, there were no authorities in the Ninja World to arrest him for it! He could do whatever he wanted.

"Forget it. If things really turn out as you say, then that is my fate. You don't need to sacrifice yourself to resurrect me," Pakura said, having already mentally scripted a 72-episode war-romance-suspense drama in her head based on his words.

Uh? What's going on? Sacrifice myself to save you? What kind of wishful thinking is that? I haven't lived enough myself! How could I just sacrifice myself? I'm not some pathetic simp!

"We can change our approach. We don't necessarily have to perform the One's Own Life Reincarnation ourselves. We could just go catch a few bandits, right?" Uchiha Gen said, winking at Pakura.

"Impossible. The One's Own Life Reincarnation is a forbidden jutsu; it's not something just any bandit can learn," Pakura interrupted his fantasy.

"Don't be so absolute. They don't necessarily need to learn it. Our goal is just to make the bandits perform it. Performing it and learning it are two completely different things! Knowing the 'what' without needing to know the 'why'!" Uchiha Gen said, feeling quite pleased with his own cleverness.

"My current state is caused by the Konoha forbidden jutsu, the Spirit Transformation Technique. This soul form can directly control another person's body. As long as I possess someone, I can just manipulate them into performing the One's Own Life Reincarnation, right? In that sense, my method is even more convenient than Elder Chiyo's puppet manipulation. After all, puppet manipulation only controls the body and chakra flow; if the target's consciousness doesn't cooperate, the jutsu fails." Uchiha Gen had been present when they discussed saving Kushina, so he was well aware of the precautions regarding the One's Own Life Reincarnation—even if he didn't know the specific hand seals.