- 4 days later -
"Finally!" Kakashi muttered, a slight grin touching his lips as he looked at the figure standing across from him in his base.
The blood clone looked exactly like him, right down to the calm expression in its eyes. For the past four days, Kakashi had spent every spare hour down here, focused entirely on fixing the main limitation of standard cloning techniques.
Shadow clones were highly useful, but the memory feedback loop was a massive problem. Receiving a giant dump of memories and mental fatigue the second a clone popped was a major problem for most.
By using his own blood as the medium for this new technique, Kakashi had managed to bypass that issue entirely. The result was a clone capable of completely independent thought and execution, severed from the standard feedback loop so it wouldn't send back a wave of information or exhaustion when it vanished. Even better, he had built a specific feature into its design: he could actively look through the clone's eyes at any moment to check on its progress without interrupting its actions.
*Ding
Kakashi ignored that for now, leaving it for later; right now, he had somewhere he needed to be. Feeling out the mark he left on Orochimaru, Kakashi felt the signature in the Land of Fire before he vanished.
He appeared right next to the man, startling him slightly.
"Fufu~ So, you really did put a mark on my soul," Orochimaru said as Kakashi took in the lab's surroundings. "What can I do for you, Kakashi?"
"I need medical equipment," Kakashi replied, his eyes scanning the various tables and shelves. "Specifically, advanced preservation tubes, the specialized liquid that goes with them, and a full set of instruments for high-level genetic work."
Orochimaru raised an eyebrow, a slight grin touching his lips as he nodded in understanding. "Moving on to the next phase of your research, I see. I always keep spares of my finest equipment. I can have a complete set of tubes and cultivation instruments ready for you immediately."
"Appreciated," Kakashi said simply, keeping his tone even.
"Though I must admit," Orochimaru laughed quietly, gesturing vaguely toward a row of pristine, sealed crates against the wall, "I am quite curious to see what kind of biological marvels a mind like yours plans on culturing next."
Kakashi pulled out a storage scroll and held it out to Orochimaru. The scroll was filled with 25 million Ryō.
"For your research. It's not cheap after all; call me using the mark when you need more," Kakashi replied, already thinking about what he had planned.
Orochimaru took the scroll, his eyes widening slightly at the sheer amount before he tucked it away with a satisfied smile.
Kakashi looked at him, his expression completely serious. "If I got a sacrifice, you could summon the Death God, correct?"
Orochimaru's eyes narrowed into sharp slits, his expression freezing for a fraction of a second before a deeply intrigued, knowing grin spread across his face.
"Kukuku... Minato Namikaze," Orochimaru purred, the name rolling off his tongue with a mix of dark amusement and clinical fascination. "You wish to rip the Fourth Hokage's soul out of the Shinigami's stomach. A bold move, Kakashi. Given your sudden interest in genetic preservation tubes, I assume you aren't just looking to have a nostalgic chat with your old sensei; you plan on giving him a permanent home."
Orochimaru tapped the scroll containing the millions of Ryō against his palm. "Yes, it is entirely possible. The ritual is dangerous, and it requires a specific mask from the Uzumaki clan's ruins alongside a flesh sacrifice, but with my expertise, it can be done. I must say, your ambition is becoming truly breathtaking."
"You're close enough, but I plan on bringing him back in a much simpler way. I'm sure it'll be something you'd like to observe."
Orochimaru stared at the shifting purple ripples of the Rinnegan, completely captivated.
"Life and death as mere concepts," Orochimaru murmured, a small, highly amused smile returning to his face.
Kakashi sealed everything he came for in scrolls, packing them up and thinking about Minato-sensei.
"If you're not busy, I can get you that sacrifice now. You'd need two, correct? One to free Minato-Sensei and the other to take the fall with the Shinigami."
Orochimaru's expression sharpened, a dangerous spark of enthusiasm flaring in his eyes as he lightly tapped his fingers together.
"You catch on quickly, Kakashi," Orochimaru replied, his voice slipping into a smooth, calculating register. "Yes, two sacrifices are exactly what the ritual demands. One vessel to physically hold Minato's soul once it is pulled into this realm, and a second life to offer directly to the Shinigami to appease its blade and pay the toll for the release."
Kakashi nodded, his mind already filtering through potential targets as he safely tucked the sealed medical scrolls into his gear.
"I'll be back shortly," Kakashi said simply, his hand resting over his storage pouches.
Orochimaru cleared out a large, stone chamber deep within his underground facility, sweeping away unnecessary tables and drafting a massive, circular sealing array across the cold floor. He didn't have to wait long. Within minutes, Kakashi materialized back inside the room.
Tossed onto the floor were two identical, pale humanoids, White Zetsus, completely immobilized by high-grade paralysis seals. In Kakashi's hand was the weathered, horned mask of the Shinigami, retrieved straight from the abandoned Uzumaki shrine in Konoha.
Orochimaru's eyes widened slightly as he took in the white creatures, his tongue instinctively flicking over his lower lip.
"White Zetsus as the sacrifices," Orochimaru chuckled, stepping forward to examine the bound entities.
Kakashi handed over the demonic mask, his expression completely flat. "Everything is here. Let's get my sensei out of that stomach."
Orochimaru took the heavy, weathered mask from Kakashi's hands, his fingers moving along the grotesque horns with a look of pure clinical focus. Without another word, he lifted the artifact and pressed it firmly over his face.
The air in the stone chamber instantly turned ice-cold.
A heavy pressure slammed into the room as a massive, spectral entity materialized directly behind Orochimaru. The Shinigami loomed over them, its transparent, demonic form giving off an aura of death. Its phantom hair drifted lazily in the sudden, freezing wind, its mouth holding a glinting dagger.
Kakashi looked up. His eyes spun back into the Rinnegan. He could see the vast, swirling void within the entity's stomach, and the two powerful souls locked inside a permanent, agonizing struggle.
As Kakashi stared directly into its hollow eyes, the Shinigami suddenly paused. The entity seemed to tense, locking its gaze entirely onto Kakashi's Rinnegan. For a brief moment, the Reaper of souls appeared visibly wary.
But it was bound by the laws of the mask. Orochimaru let out a raspy, strained grunt as the Shinigami's spiritual blade synchronized with his own movements. He grabbed the invisible hilt projection, slicing a clean, horizontal line across his own abdomen.
Simultaneously, a massive tear ripped open across the stomach of the spectral Reaper behind him.
A torrent of dark, pale blue spiritual energy erupted from the Shinigami's gut, swirling wildly into the center of the chamber. Orochimaru immediately pointed toward the first White Zetsu on the floor, using the sealing array to direct the toll. The spectral hands of the Reaper lunged forward, seizing the Zetsu's life force as the price for the release.
Before the glowing soul could dissipate, Kakashi reached out. His hand physically clamped directly onto Minato's soul. With a firm, decisive motion, he forced the brilliant energy straight down into the second White Zetsu.
The white creature violently convulsed on the stone floor. Minato's soul easily overwhelmed and suppressed the creature within a single second.
As the soul completely settled and took control, the physical form of the White Zetsu began to morph. The pale, featureless skin shifted rapidly, taking on the precise physical traits, face, and clothing of Minato Namikaze.
Behind the array, Orochimaru tore the mask from his face and tossed it aside, clutching his bleeding abdomen as he collapsed to one knee. He let out a harsh cough, but his eyes remained locked on the figure, a dark smile pulling at his lips.
Minato's eyes slowly opened, displaying the black sclera and pale irises of a reanimated corpse. He looked down at his hands, closing them into tight fists, before his gaze locked onto the silver-haired ninja standing over him.
"Kakashi...?" Minato spoke, pushing himself up from the stone floor.
"Yes, it's me, Sensei, but let's pause this conversation for a second; I'm not done yet."
Kakashi instantly wove a pair of hand seals, moving smoothly from Snake to Ram. The room shook violently with the weight of his chakra as a massive surge erupted from him, filling the entire stone chamber with a blinding, warm light.
"Outer Path, Samsara of Heavenly Life Technique," Kakashi said.
The blinding light centered on Minato's chest, sinking deep into the flesh vessel. The dark, artificial sclerae of his eyes instantly turned brilliant white, and his pale irises bled back into a vibrant, clear blue.
Every single paper-like crack across his skin closed up, melting away into smooth, healthy flesh.
A sudden, sharp gasp tore from Minato's throat as his lungs expanded, drawing in genuine oxygen for the first time in over a decade. His hand reflexively flew to his chest, his fingers twitching in utter bewilderment as he felt the heavy, rhythmic thud of a living heartbeat pounding beneath his ribs. Warmth traveled rapidly through his limbs, flushing color back into his skin.
From his place on the floor, Orochimaru clutched his stomach, his breath trembling as he stared at the scene. He didn't speak. He watched in complete silence, his analytical mind struggling to grasp the reality of a flawless resurrection happening right in front of his eyes.
Minato looked down at his trembling hands, feeling the real sensation of his own skin, before locking his blue eyes onto Kakashi. "A heartbeat... I'm actually alive."
- Chapter End -
Kakashi is motivated, and so am I. Wooo!!!!