Another divine miracle: the Evil God's "shrine"!

With the Second Match over, Sasuke and his companions returned to Blue Moon Island.

Inside a Japanese-style room built with the Joint Pillar House Technique, the four sat on cushions around the four sides of an offering table.

They had brought the decapitated Hidan back with them. His body lay on the tatami, while his head was displayed on the offering table. Orochimaru had taped shut his mouth, which had been spitting curses like a machine gun.

And so, the debriefing for the Second Match began, with Hidan as its subject.

Orochimaru explained why even the Contract Seal had failed to sever the connection between Hidan and the Evil God.

"Hidan's connection to the Evil God is that of a 'devotee,' a bond that ranks above a contract. Through a specific ritual, the Jashin Cult turned Hidan into the Evil God's 'devotee,' granting him an immortal body and the right to perform sacrifices to the Evil God."

Kabuto Yakushi asked, "Can anyone become the Evil God's devotee after undergoing the ritual?"

Orochimaru answered with a smile, "Of course not. Otherwise, everyone in the Jashin Cult would be one. Three conditions must be met to become the Evil God's devotee. First, the person must be able to withstand a portion of the Evil God's power. This is the most important condition. Hidan may not look like much, but he has quite abundant chakra."

Karin nodded. "That's true. From what I can sense, his chakra is several times greater than that money-grubber's!"

Orochimaru continued, "Second, they must sincerely worship the Evil God. Third, after becoming a devotee, they must regularly perform the Death Controlling Possessed Blood ritual to sustain the Evil God. Otherwise, the Evil God will turn on them."

Sasuke nodded slightly. "I see... In other words, they become that so-called Evil God's puppet, body and soul!"

Orochimaru grew serious. "Long ago, I explored the ruins of the Jashin Cult and found relevant documents. By sacrificing a devotee through a specific ritual, one can summon the Evil God into this world."

Karin grumbled inwardly, Long ago again... Just how long has he been alive?

Sasuke and Kabuto both looked at Hidan's helpless head on the offering table. They knew Orochimaru intended to sacrifice Hidan and summon the Evil God here.

The question... was what would happen afterward.

Sasuke asked as though it were obvious, "You're not planning to use the Reaper Death Seal to seal the Evil God inside the Shinigami's belly too, are you?"

Orochimaru laughed. "That sounds nice, but actually doing it would be rather blasphemous toward the gods~."

"If you ask me, you've already desecrated the Shinigami so thoroughly that he has no dignity left," Sasuke said flatly.

Orochimaru smiled without agreeing or disagreeing. "In any case, that's not my plan."

He rose from his cushion and took a pair of porcelain jars from inside his robe. Inside them was a pair of blood-red eyes!

Sasuke leaned forward, staring at the eyes. "Those are from the Chinoike Clan...!"

Yes, Sasuke was familiar with those eyes. After the Fourth Shinobi World War ended in his previous life, Konoha had suffered an attack by "human bombs."

Sasuke had investigated the human bomb incident and eventually discovered that the perpetrators were from the Land of Lightning's Chinoike Clan!

Their story dated back to before Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha had crossed swords. A daughter of the Chinoike Clan had married into the household of the Daimyo of the Land of Lightning as a concubine. The girl was gentle and beautiful, which aroused the jealousy of his principal wife. Shortly after marrying the girl, the daimyo died of illness. His principal wife accused the girl of involvement in his death, and the Chinoike Clan was exiled to Hell Valley. The Uchiha Clan had been responsible for watching over them at the time!

Their connection to the Uchiha was not merely the grudge born in Hell Valley; they were also rivals in ocular power! The Chinoike Clan possessed the Ketsuryūgan, which could rival the Uchiha Clan's eyes. It was said that anyone caught in their dōjutsu could never escape. They could use blood to perform all manner of techniques, and could turn enemies into human bombs by inflicting wounds on them!

Orochimaru was personally acquainted with Oyashiro En, a recent head of the Chinoike Clan. En had also done something similar to Itachi, so it was hardly surprising that Orochimaru had obtained the Ketsuryūgan.

After Orochimaru revealed the Ketsuryūgan, Sasuke sank into thought!

Orochimaru smiled. "Sasuke-kun, don't you also think the Ketsuryūgan's power has something in common with Hidan's sacrifices to the Evil God?"

"Yes. They both use blood as a medium. Could it be..."

Orochimaru gave a definitive answer. "Yes. The Chinoike Clan carries the Evil God's bloodline. The Ketsuryūgan is another manifestation of the Evil God's power..."

"So we might venture to suppose that the Ketsuryūgan can also serve as the Evil God's 'shrine'!"

Sasuke marveled, "I think I understand what you're planning. You surpass my expectations every time. Calling you a man of miracles—no, a man of divine miracles—would be no exaggeration!"

"Thank you for the compliment."

Orochimaru rose with a smile.

Sasuke picked up Hidan's head, and Kabuto Yakushi moved the offering table aside. Though Karin did not understand what was happening, she knew Orochimaru was probably about to do something outrageous. She gathered up the surrounding cushions, then moved far away.

Orochimaru drew an intricate formula across the tatami and walls. It was recorded in the Jashin Cult's documents, and was so complicated that even Orochimaru needed two full hours to finish it.

Hidan's body was placed in the center of the formula.

Orochimaru set the porcelain jars containing the Ketsuryūgan on the offering table, then inscribed a separate formula around the table.

He turned and formed hand seals, his flowing hair stirring without a breeze!

Sacrifice: Evil God Descent!

Shhk...!

Hidan's body melted into blood, seeping along the lines of the first formula. When the entire array turned blood-red, a terrifying surge descended, and everything within the four onlookers' sight turned the color of blood!

In a corner of the room, Karin curled up and trembled. "This chakra is so vicious and sinister. I hate it! I don't want to stay in this room for even another moment!"

"Don't be afraid. With Orochimaru here, nothing will go wrong..."

Sasuke soothed Karin, then set Hidan's head on the tatami and peeled the tape off his mouth.

"Hidan, this is your final curtain call. Say your last words!"

Hidan stared into the empty space three feet above his head, his voice trembling with frenzy. "To Lord Jashin... I offer the highest praise!"

Sasuke's expression was conflicted. "Those are your last words? You've offered absolutely everything to the god you worship. For a moment, I don't know whether to pity you or admire you..."

Whoosh!

All the lines of the formula across the tatami and walls rapidly contracted, converging on Hidan's head!

"Arghhhh..."

As the sacrifice was completed, the Evil God's power of immortality vanished. Hidan's eyes rolled back, devoid of any sign of life. Only his fanatical devotion to the Evil God remained frozen on his face!

Boom...!

Bloody light gathered above Hidan's head, taking the form of a deity no less imposing than the Shinigami, with a sinister face and a body shrouded in blood-red robes!

"So this is... the Evil God?" Orochimaru said. "One of the Four Gods of the Earth, alongside the Shinigami, the Feathered Serpent God, and Inari."

Whoosh! He entered Reaper Unsealing Mode, his hands forming over a hundred seals in succession!

"This next technique has nothing to do with the Jashin Cult's documents. I developed it myself—a technique to seal the Evil God!"

Death: Evil Sealing Method!

Sizzle...!

The formula beside the offering table released pitch-black markings, which rapidly spread across the Evil God's robes!

Sensing danger, the Evil God fixed his blood-red eyes on Orochimaru in a ferocious glare!

Orochimaru raised the Shinigami's ritual bell and shook it rapidly!

As the bell rang, the Evil God's face contorted in excruciating pain. At last, the markings covered him completely and dragged him toward the formula around the offering table!

Though the Evil God struggled fiercely, Orochimaru suppressed him with the Shinigami's power in conjunction with the seal. He was drawn into the formula of Death: Evil Sealing Method, and the formula flowed back into the Ketsuryūgan that served as his "shrine"!

"Whew..."

Orochimaru left Reaper Unsealing Mode and let out a long breath.

"Good. With that, the Evil God's 'shrine' is complete. It may not be the perfect way to use him, but now his 'sacrificial power' can be wielded through Dōjutsu!"

Kabuto Yakushi looked solemn. "But who will inherit these eyes of the Evil God?"

An unusual look gleamed in Orochimaru's eyes. "Using these eyes doesn't require faith in the Evil God, only an overwhelmingly powerful constitution capable of bearing the strain of both the Evil God himself and the Ketsuryūgan. In addition, without the Evil God's 'immortal body,' the user will need enough 'regenerative power' to counteract the sacrifice. Only a handful of people in this world meet those conditions. I already have the Shinigami within me, so using the Evil God's power as well would cost me more than it would gain. Therefore, Karin, with your true Uzumaki Clan constitution, no one is better suited than you to wield these eyes!"

"Huh...?!" Karin exclaimed.