Orochimaru, the man of miracles

Sasuke, Orochimaru, and Kabuto arrived at an abandoned underground research facility outside the Valley of the End.

Orochimaru said, "After the battle at the Valley of the End, the Second Hokage secretly built this underground facility to hide Madara's remains, keeping it from the First Hokage. Once Madara escaped using Izanagi, the facility was abandoned. It just happens to be a suitable place for our ritual."

Sasuke handed the mask to Kabuto and reminded him, "You saw the procedure in my Genjutsu."

Holding the mask, Kabuto hesitated. "Lord Orochimaru, I still don't trust Sasuke, so please let me be the sacrifice to the Shinigami. If it fails, you'll remain unharmed. If it succeeds, you'll recover the souls of your arms as you wished, and the only price will be my life!"

Orochimaru spoke earnestly. "Kabuto, your dedication is admirable, but I must perform this ritual myself. You'll understand why in a moment!"

Kabuto was more solemn than ever. "I know you obtained techniques that don't exist in this era from your future self! But how can you be certain that future self was 'real'? What if it was a lie Sasuke-kun fabricated, or if Sasuke-kun himself is being controlled by some unknown entity? Can you completely rule out those possibilities?"

Kabuto seemed overly cautious, but with Orochimaru's safety at stake, he had to tread carefully!

He had even resolved to destroy the mask if it came to that... at least then Orochimaru wouldn't have to take an unwarranted risk!

The rational Orochimaru didn't dismiss Kabuto's concerns. "Even so, my curiosity compels me to discover the answer for myself. Even if it costs me my life, I would gladly pay that price."

Kabuto volunteered again. "Then let me satisfy your curiosity, Lord Orochimaru—with my life!"

Orochimaru offered no further explanation. Instead, he gave a warm smile and spoke words that struck straight at the heart. "Then let me put it another way... Kabuto, your life is immensely precious to me. More precious even than the answer itself. Do you understand?"

Tears welled in Kabuto's eyes. "Lord Orochimaru, I... I... what have I done to deserve such..."

Orochimaru smiled. "Now... will you help me?"

Kabuto removed his glasses, wiped away his tears, cleared the fog from the lenses, and settled them back on his nose. Then he stepped forward and said solemnly, "If you fail, I'll follow you into the afterlife!"

He personally fitted Orochimaru with the mask that summoned the Shinigami!

Just as before, Orochimaru unleashed all the chakra in his body!

Boom...!!

Amid the white storm that rose, the Shinigami manifested behind Orochimaru!

Kabuto marveled, "So this is the Shinigami!!!"

Orochimaru said, "Let's begin... Kabuto!"

Gritting his teeth, Kabuto placed a kunai in Orochimaru's hand and helped move his arm, driving the kunai toward his abdomen. At the same time, the Shinigami behind him sliced toward his own abdomen with his Tachi!

Orochimaru said, "Unlike before, this time I only need to release my arms from the Shinigami's stomach. A small opening just wide enough for their souls to pass through will suffice..."

Kabuto understood. "So... a minimally invasive procedure?"

Whoosh!

The souls of Orochimaru's arms barely slipped through the tiny wound in the Shinigami's abdomen, turning into streams of light that flowed into Orochimaru's arms. Orochimaru's soul was whole again!

Sasuke clenched his hands, his gaze somber. "The size of the wound doesn't matter. The price of undoing the Reaper Death Seal is the caster's soul. Orochimaru escaped that fate before through Living Corpse Reincarnation, but he can't use it this time. In other words, the real challenge comes next..."

"Heh heh heh heh heh..."

Behind Orochimaru, the Shinigami let out a sinister cackle. His hand passed through the Prayer Beads, poised to extract Orochimaru's soul!

Orochimaru said, "All right, Kabuto. Stand back!"

Kabuto retreated to Sasuke's side, his expression intensely anxious.

The corners of Orochimaru's mouth lifted as his hands formed seals neither of them had ever seen!

Forbidden Jutsu: Soul Concealment Technique!

Whoosh...!!

The Shinigami's soul-devouring hand... suddenly stopped moving. Confusion then appeared on his grotesque, terrifying face!

Kabuto was stunned. "Lord Orochimaru, what did you do...!?"

Orochimaru said, "The Soul Concealment Technique is a technique that hides the soul. I concealed my own soul, so the Shinigami can't find it. Naturally, there can be no sacrifice."

So that was it.

Sasuke smiled. "Next... all you need to do is remove that mask and make the Shinigami disappear, and everything will be settled, right?"

Yet an inscrutable smile curled Orochimaru's lips. "That would work, but it wouldn't satisfy me!"

Whoosh!

His long hair streamed through the air, and his hands kept shifting from seal to seal!

Sasuke was taken aback. "What... else are you planning?"

Orochimaru said, "I didn't hide my soul to escape being sacrificed to the Shinigami! I did it to create the conditions for the Shinigami to inhabit my body next!!!"

Sasuke abruptly realized something. "Don't tell me you intend to...!!"

Whoosh!

The final hand seal fell into place!!

Orochimaru said, "Precisely. This is a Sealing Jutsu developed specifically to seal the Shinigami of the Reaper Death Seal!"

Six Paths Shinigami Coffin Seal!

Despite the "Six Paths" in its name, the technique had no actual connection to the Six Paths. It was simply the future Orochimaru's tribute, as a shinobi, to the Six Paths founder of Ninshu across the ages!

Boom...!!!

An astonishing suction force erupted from within Orochimaru!

Crack! Crack!

At that moment... cracks appeared in Orochimaru's mask. Realizing something was wrong, the Shinigami tried to forcibly sever his connection to the "medium," but the sealing formula had already activated!

The Shinigami turned into a stream of white light that was continuously drawn into Orochimaru's body!!

"Lord Orochimaru...!!!"

What was happening before Kabuto's eyes had already surpassed his understanding!

Sasuke had witnessed far greater things, so he wasn't shocked enough to lose his composure.

His astonishment came more from being moved.

As far as he knew, Orochimaru's research should never have reached this stage.

He naturally understood. During the ten years after I narrowly escaped death, when I lost my will to fight and wallowed in despair, he was still quietly moving forward—all so I could challenge the gods once more?

Before him, Orochimaru's appearance had completely changed after absorbing the Shinigami. Symmetrical horns grew from his head, and a white Haori that seemed both real and illusory draped over him. Black inscriptions covered his skin, flickering in and out of view. Ancient Prayer Beads hung around his neck, a sword rested at his waist, and he held a bell-shaped ritual implement... he bore some resemblance to the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki, but the feel of his Chakra was entirely different.

Crack!

The mask shattered completely. Orochimaru's slit-pupiled eyes had turned dark gray, and a "卍"-shaped mark appeared on his forehead.

"There's no doubt about it. This is the Shinigami's jinchūriki."

Orochimaru said in a low voice, "In this state, I can use all of the Shinigami's powers. Naturally, that includes the powers of the four Hokage inside him. Kabuto, do you believe Sasuke-kun now?"

Having witnessed such a miracle firsthand, how could Kabuto have any doubts left?

He adjusted his glasses and bowed in reverence. "From this day forward, I am willing to give everything I have, alongside Lord Orochimaru, to help Lord Sasuke fulfill his wish!"

Sasuke stepped forward and helped Kabuto to his feet. "The honor is mine!"

Orochimaru said, "Sasuke-kun, next I'll help you take your first step toward becoming an Ōtsutsuki. This is also one of my most important reasons for taking control of the Shinigami!"

Holding the ritual implement in his right hand, he extended his left arm. An illusory white snake flew from beneath his Haori sleeve and bit Sasuke's neck!

"I'm going to transfer Hashirama Senju's Chakra to you in its entirety. Naturally, your current thirteen-year-old body can't withstand all that power at once, so..."

Orochimaru smiled. "There's no better method than relying on the Cursed Seal..."

Gurgle, gurgle, gurgle!

As Hashirama Senju's Chakra flowed in, the jet-black Cursed Seal gradually began turning pure white...