Hidden Leaf Library Forbidden Archive Check-In! Impure World Reincarnation and a Vast Trove of S-Rank Forbidden Techniques!

Hokage Building, top-floor office.

Hiruzen Sarutobi sat in the Hokage's chair, the pipe before him having gone unlit for a long time.

He looked out at the prosperous Hidden Leaf, yet his heart was in turmoil.

Orochimaru's hollow, obedient demeanor had struck him even harder than his defection had.

It was not merely the end of an S-rank rogue ninja. It was more like... a subversion of the very definition of a ninja.

Kamizuki Yu, this young man, always brought unimaginable "surprises."

"Lord Third, are you still troubled by Orochimaru's matter?"

Kamizuki Yu's voice pulled Hiruzen Sarutobi back from his thoughts.

He had appeared in the office at some point, holding a cup of hot tea.

Hiruzen Sarutobi rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Yu, everything you did to Orochimaru... is there really no problem with it?"

Kamizuki Yu handed him the teacup. "Are you referring to side effects, Lord Third, or the moral aspect?"

"...Both."

"There are no side effects. As for morality..." Kamizuki Yu gently blew on the steam rising from his own cup. "When dealing with a madman like Orochimaru, one who abandoned all moral boundaries long ago, using conventional means would be unfair to his victims."

He paused before adding, "Besides, a living Orochimaru who can contribute to Hidden Leaf is far more valuable than a corpse."

Hiruzen Sarutobi accepted the tea, and its warmth slightly soothed his chaotic thoughts.

Kamizuki Yu's words were simple and blunt, yet impossible to refute.

"What do you intend to do with him next?"

"Drain every bit of research from his head, then have him keep working for Hidden Leaf." Kamizuki Yu spoke casually. "I believe he'll be very 'willing.'"

Hiruzen Sarutobi fell silent for a moment.

"Orochimaru's research into forbidden techniques surpasses anyone else's in the ninja world. This incident has also reminded us that Hidden Leaf still has many shortcomings in its control of and countermeasures against forbidden techniques."

Kamizuki Yu picked up the thread. "That is why I want to gain a deeper understanding of these 'taboos.'"

Hiruzen Sarutobi's movements froze.

"You want to enter... that place?"

"The Hidden Leaf Library's Forbidden Archive." Kamizuki Yu nodded and spoke plainly. "Many of Orochimaru's techniques originated there, or are related to its records. Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated. I need to understand their principles in order to better develop countermeasures, and perhaps even... prevent trouble before it arises."

The reasoning was grand and impeccable.

Hiruzen Sarutobi stared at Kamizuki Yu.

This young man possessed unfathomable strength, and his temperament far surpassed that of his peers.

Even Orochimaru had not had room to struggle in his hands.

Perhaps the things in the Forbidden Archive truly were nothing more than "knowledge" to him.

"The Forbidden Archive contains dangerous powers capable of overturning an entire ninja village. Every scroll could bring disaster." Hiruzen Sarutobi's tone was grave.

"That is precisely why I need to go." Kamizuki Yu set down his teacup. "Lord Third, you understand better than anyone that power itself is neither good nor evil. What matters is the person who wields it."

His gaze was calm and confident.

"Now that Hidden Leaf's greatest internal source of instability has been 'stabilized,' we need to prepare for even greater threats that may come from outside in the future."

Hiruzen Sarutobi unconsciously tapped his fingers against the desk.

Kamizuki Yu's proposal was perfectly reasonable.

His strength also made him qualified to come into contact with those taboos.

Had it been anyone else, Hiruzen Sarutobi would never have relented.

But Kamizuki Yu... he always seemed capable of creating miracles.

"Very well." Hiruzen Sarutobi finally made his decision. "I grant you special permission to enter the Forbidden Archive."

"Thank you, Lord Third."

"However, ANBU must accompany you," Hiruzen Sarutobi added. "Those are the rules."

Kamizuki Yu raised an eyebrow slightly before returning to calm. "Fine."

Yet his thoughts were quite different. ANBU accompaniment? Are they afraid I'll empty out the Forbidden Archive, or that I'll lose control while practicing on the spot? Fine, I'll go through the motions.

A short while later, deep within the Hidden Leaf Library.

A heavy metal door blocked the way forward. It was covered in sealing formulas and gave off an unsettling aura.

This was the entrance to the Forbidden Archive.

Two ANBU wearing animal masks stood behind Kamizuki Yu like statues.

Their presence blended into the shadows. Unless one deliberately sensed for them, they were almost impossible to notice.

Kamizuki Yu stopped and glanced back at them.

"You two wait here."

One of the ANBU seemed about to say something, but when he met Kamizuki Yu's eyes, the words reached his lips and were swallowed back down.

That gaze was calm, yet it carried an unquestionable pressure.

As though any objection from them would be as futile as a mantis trying to stop a chariot.

It was confidence born from absolute strength, as well as the invisible privilege granted by his soaring status after dealing with Orochimaru.

Kamizuki Yu ignored them and pressed one hand against the metal door.

His chakra flowed slightly, and the complex sealing formulas on the door wriggled like living creatures, producing a series of fine mechanical clicks.

[Authentication approved.]

A cold mechanical voice rang out, and the heavy door slowly opened inward by a narrow crack.

A chill, decayed smell, mixed with the rich scent of accumulated knowledge, rushed out from behind the door.

Kamizuki Yu stepped inside, his figure vanishing into the darkness.

The metal door closed silently behind him.

The two ANBU exchanged glances, each seeing a trace of helplessness in the other's eyes.

They knew perfectly well that this "Chief Advisor" did not want them following him inside. They truly could not follow him, and they did not dare to.

The Forbidden Archive was dimly lit.

Only several ever-burning lamps emitted a faint glow, barely illuminating rows of enormous bookshelves that reached to the ceiling.

The air was filled with the distinctive scent of paper, along with a faint trace of... bloodlust and madness.

Stored here were all the ninjutsu, secret techniques, and dangerous research materials that Hidden Leaf had classified as forbidden since its founding.

Every scroll represented a piece of unknown, dark history.

Kamizuki Yu walked slowly among them, his gaze sweeping over the names of those tightly sealed scrolls.

[Multiple Shadow Clone Technique], [Mutual Multiplying Explosive Tags], [Spirit Transformation Technique], [One's Own Life Reincarnation]...

These S-rank forbidden techniques, capable of causing bloody turmoil in the outside world, were merely inconspicuous items on the shelves here.

His goal was clear.

Judging by the system's usual nature, the more central and important the location, the more generous the check-in reward.

Before long, he reached the deepest part of the Forbidden Archive.

There were no bookshelves here, only a solitary stone platform.

Resting quietly atop it was a massive scroll wrapped in layer upon layer of seals, emitting an aura more ominous than all the other forbidden techniques combined.

Beside the scroll was a relatively tidy area, seemingly once someone's research room. Powerful chakra imprints still lingered there.

The Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju.

Only this master of forbidden techniques had been qualified to establish his research room at the core of the Forbidden Archive.

Kamizuki Yu stopped and silently recited in his heart.

System, check in here.

[Ding! Check-in successful at the Hidden Leaf Library Forbidden Archive (Tobirama Senju's former research room/core sealed scroll storage site)!]

[Congratulations, Host, you have received: [Impure World Reincarnation (perfect, side-effect-free version; can be released at any time; no mental binding; the reincarnated retain their strength perfectly and can even be controllably enhanced; no living sacrifice required)]!]

[Congratulations, Host, you have received: [Perfect analysis and improvement methods for multiple S-rank forbidden techniques (including efficient formation layouts for Mutual Multiplying Explosive Tags, partial theoretical deductions and avoidance methods for Dead Demon Consuming Seal, and more)]!]

A massive flood of information instantly poured into Kamizuki Yu's mind.

Everything about [Impure World Reincarnation]—from its casting requirements and ritual steps to the summoning and binding of souls, and even its release method—became incomparably clear.

More importantly, this "perfect, side-effect-free version" of [Impure World Reincarnation] completely overturned the original setting.

No living sacrifice was needed!

This meant that the technique's greatest moral shackle had been completely removed.

The reincarnated could perfectly retain their strength, and their power could even be artificially enhanced to a certain degree.

The summoning could be released at any time, allowing the reincarnated soul to return safely to the Pure Land without being desecrated.

This was no longer an evil forbidden technique, but a... controllable, powerful, nearly unbeatable method of summoning combat strength.

Kamizuki Yu absorbed the information. His face remained calm, but his heart was already roiling.

If Tobirama Senju knew that the technique he had developed could be improved to this extent, who knew what he would think.

He would probably leap out of the Pure Land and drag Kamizuki Yu into an all-night research discussion.

Besides [Impure World Reincarnation], he had also received perfect analyses of vast numbers of S-rank forbidden techniques.

It was not merely a matter of learning them. He understood their fundamental principles and had mastered ways to improve them, avoid their side effects, and enhance their effects.

For example, with [Mutual Multiplying Explosive Tags], he could now use fewer tags to arrange chain traps that were more powerful, covered a wider area, and were harder to dismantle.

For example, with [Dead Demon Consuming Seal], although he had only gained partial theoretical deductions, it was enough to grant him a deeper understanding of this ultimate sealing technique that took both sides down together. He had even found an initial approach for avoiding the risk of having one's soul consumed.

His knowledge base and technique arsenal expanded to an unprecedented extent at that moment.

His understanding of the very concept of "ninjutsu" had also risen to a new level.

Kamizuki Yu slowly opened his eyes. Within those deep pupils, countless runes seemed to flow, form, and vanish.

He reached out and gently brushed the massive scroll beside him, which sealed an unknown, terrifying forbidden technique.