Impure World Reincarnation

The journey back was smooth, and Kato Osamu, not wanting to cause any trouble, carefully avoided the returning army of Mist Shinobi from a distance, guided by his senses.

The Mist Shinobi battlefield camp in Konoha was filled with broken wood and ruins, the wounded wailed, and the dead lay solemnly, yet there was also a sense of victory and joy.

Kato Osamu, under the intense gazes of countless eyes, arrived at the command camp hidden in the mountains and met Orochimaru once again.

Orochimaru was alone in his tent, sitting quietly on the table, watching Kato Osamu slowly walk in, a slight smile playing on his lips.

However, Kato Osamu could clearly sense something unusual beneath that smile. There was no joy of victory, only a suppressed, deep anger—anger not directed at him, but undisguised.

"A day apart feels like three autumns..."

"That little brat from back then is now a big shot capable of killing a village's Kage..."

Orochimaru looked at Kato Osamu with a hint of surprise in his eyes. He hadn't expected Kato Osamu to be able to kill Karatachi Yagura. Even the weakest Kage was not someone that ordinary ninjas could achieve.

"Just lucky..."

"More than anything, I'm curious about Orochimaru- sensei... he's not exactly a good-tempered person..."

Upon hearing this, a cold glint flashed in Orochimaru's eyes, and his voice carried a hint of sneer.

"Perhaps it's because of you, my dear teacher is getting a little impatient..."

Kato Osamu caught the scroll he had casually tossed in his hand. Seeing Orochimaru's inexplicable smile, he frowned, as if this matter was somehow related to him.

Slowly unrolling the scroll inscribed with 'Top Secret', Kato Osamu studied it carefully, his face growing increasingly grim.

"So, you want me to go to the Stone Shinobi battlefield and Minato Namikaze...?"

The battlefield between Stone Shinobi and Cloud Shinobi was a chaotic mess, with Konoha's Minato Namikaze, Fugaku Uchiha, Jiraiya, Stone Shinobi's Onoki, Cloud Shinobi's Abby brothers mixed in, along with several small countries including the Land of Waterfalls, the Ōnoki of Land of Grass, Land of Rain. It was arguably the most chaotic place on the entire battlefield.

For ordinary ninjas, although it is dangerous, if they can gain merit here, they may be regarded differently by Minato Namikaze and Jiraiya, and thus enter the inner circle of Konoha.

However, none of this mattered to Kato Osamu; instead, it gave him the illusion that he was being watched by three powerful individuals.

"You guessed right. Because of my fall from power, you, as my disciple, should not be so outstanding."

If you go to the Stone Shinobi battlefield, you will definitely be required to obey Minato Namikaze's orders completely and submit to his Minato Namikaze. Otherwise, you will be essentially sidelined, perhaps hidden behind the scenes, or tasked with the most dangerous missions."

"My good teacher's methods..."

"This feels so familiar..."

Orochimaru's voice carried a hint of sarcasm, and his eyes flashed with anger, seemingly not as relaxed and at ease as he put it.

Would Minato Namikaze do that?

Kato Osamu remained silent for a moment, looking at the scroll in his hand, before finally speaking.

"He might be able to understand..."

Orochimaru glanced at Kato Osamu, his voice low and menacing. Kato Osamu understood his meaning. Minato Namikaze would certainly see through it, but he wouldn't go against the Third Hokage's wishes and would ultimately choose to acquiesce.

"I will go..."

Kato Osamu's voice was slightly low, Orochimaru's eyes narrowed slightly, a hint of surprise flashing across them as he quietly looked at Kato Osamu.

"There's something I want to hand to him personally..."

Without saying anything more, Kato Osamu slowly raised his head, a flash of gloom passing through his eyes, and looked at Orochimaru again, a smile appearing on his face, as if he no longer cared about anything.

"Orochimaru- sensei, have you ever heard of 'Pure Land'?"

"Pure Land..."

"It seems you've made some more important discoveries..."

Upon hearing this, Orochimaru's eyes lit up, and the name of a technique popped into his mind. His voice revealed a hint of curiosity and excitement.

These trivial matters of Konoha might have angered him, might have made him disdainful, but now he no longer cared. He longed for immortality and those unpredictable forbidden techniques.

"A ninjutsu capable of bringing the dead back to life..."

"Oh?"

Orochimaru's eyes lit up even more; this disciple of his was truly a pleasant surprise.

"The Scroll of Seals records a ninjutsu called 'Impure World Reincarnation,' which can use special talismans to sacrifice a living person and summon the soul of the dead back from the Pure Land."

"However, this forbidden technique still has limitations; the Impure World Reincarnation body can only exert a portion of the original body's strength."

"Furthermore, regarding the Pure Land, there is a powerful Sealing Jutsu called 'Dead Demon Consuming Seal,' which can summon the Shinigami and seal the enemy's soul at the cost of one's own."

"Legend has it that Shinigami is the guardian of the Pure Land..."

Orochimaru didn't hold back; although these two ninjutsu were forbidden techniques from the Scroll of Seals, he already knew them. He wanted to see what kind of surprise this disciple would bring him.

"As expected, summoning the souls of the dead can be done..."

"Shinigami... another name I've never heard of before..."

After a moment of contemplation, Kato Osamu slowly walked in, staring into Orochimaru's eyes. He raised one hand slightly, and his Chakra was mobilized, causing his body to gradually become transparent, appearing and disappearing.

At this moment, a faint black mist slowly emanated from his palm. Although it was almost fleeting, it was already the limit of what he could do.

Now, he can only barely step into the realm of Yin–Yang Release and create the pitch-black mist of Yin–Yang Release when his soul and body are united as one.

"This is!!!"

The Setsuna the black mist was born, Orochimaru's smile vanished completely, just as Kato Osamu had when he first saw the black bead in Madara Uchiha's hand.

Although the black mist was thin, this creation, made with the power of Yin–Yang Release, possessed an unparalleled aura of terror.

In that instant, Orochimaru felt a threat of death. He didn't know how long it had been, but once again he felt the same sense of crisis he only felt when he was weak.

"The power of Yin–Yang Release..."

"I wonder if Orochimaru- sensei has heard of him...?"

Kato Osamu wiped the sweat from his forehead. With his current strength, forcibly gathering the power of Yin–Yang Release was far too difficult.

"Yin–Yang Release..."

"This power..."

Orochimaru's eyes suddenly turned bloodshot as he stared intently at Kato Osamu's palm. He hadn't felt such a surge of emotion in a very long time.

"This is absolutely wonderful..."

"The energy formed by the fusion of the ultimate Yin Release and the ultimate Yang Release..."

"Destruction and life both lie within it..."

A smile appeared on Kato Osamu's face; he was very satisfied with the information exchange with Orochimaru.

"This is my idea regarding Yin–Yang Release and the art of resurrection. If a soul can be summoned back from the Pure Land, a body created using the power of Yin–Yang Release can perfectly house the original soul..."

"Even the Reincarnation Technique can be improved again. When the vessel can be 100% in harmony with the soul, then the soul damage during reincarnation will no longer exist..."

A scroll was slowly tossed from Kato Osamu's hand. Orochimaru caught it and gently caressed it, as if it were the most precious and rare treasure in the world. His eyes blazed with unparalleled fervor.

"This is truly... an unexpected surprise..."

With the Impure World Reincarnation and the Dead Demon Consuming Seal, the scrolls of the two forbidden books were transferred from Orochimaru's hands to Kato Osamu's. Both of them were extremely satisfied with this exchange.

"There's someone who knows more about the Pure Land and Shinigami than I do..."

"Oh? Who is it?"

Orochimaru slowly placed the scroll into his robes, then looked at Kato Osamu, a strange expression on his face, and spoke softly.

"Kushina Uzumaki!"