On the other side, having cast the Samsara of Heavenly Life Technique, Ryōsuke felt a massive amount of vitality and chakra continuously draining from his body.
At least half of his reserves had been siphoned away.
Fortunately, he managed to withstand it without his life being in danger.
Compared to Nagato, his vitality and chakra reserves were vastly superior.
His formidable constitution, coupled with his Sage Body, allowed him to cast the Samsara of Heavenly Life Technique without worry.
With this, he had acquired a powerful resurrection ability, capable of reversing life and death like a true Sage.
He hadn't forgotten the promise he made to his grandfather.
Resurrecting his parents in this life would be his way of fulfilling his filial duty.
Next, it was time to go see Shisui.
Opening a portal, he dragged Orochimaru's unconscious body along and slowly stepped through into a secret room.
There, he saw that Shisui had already broken out of the glass container and was half-lying on the floor.
"Shisui, put your eyes back in."
He then took a container vial from his pocket and tossed it over. Inside were Shisui's Mangekyō Sharingan.
Shisui caught the vial. Hearing the voice, he knew it was Ryōsuke.
Opening the lid, he took out the two eyeballs and pressed them into his eye sockets. A sudden wave of pain washed over him, and tears of blood streamed from both eyes.
He could feel his optic nerves slowly reconnecting.
After a short while, he opened his eyes. The light was a bit blinding at first, but his vision gradually cleared.
Shisui was deeply shocked. He felt that Ryōsuke looked much more mature than before. *'Has a lot of time passed?'* he wondered.
He remembered dying.
He would never forget the sensation of death.
"Ryōsuke, what's going on? Didn't I die?"
"I resurrected you using the Rinnegan."
Seeing Shisui brought back to life, Ryōsuke felt a surge of joy.
A man who lived for the village, someone with such profound righteousness, shouldn't have died so young.
Shisui was utterly astounded.
He finally realized that Ryōsuke possessed the Rinnegan—the eyes that stood above the Mangekyō Sharingan, the eyes of a Sage.
*'This ability to resurrect me must be a power of the Rinnegan as well,'* he thought.
Beside Ryōsuke was the rogue ninja, Orochimaru.
His eyes were vacant, indicating he was being controlled by a genjutsu.
Right now, Shisui was more concerned about the village's situation.
And since Ryōsuke even had the Rinnegan, the Third Hokage was probably already...
Remembering that the Hokage he so deeply respected had actually moved against him filled his heart with immense pain.
Still, he couldn't help but ask.
"Ryōsuke, how are things in the village now?"
"It's fine. Although the village just suffered a massive attack, the enemies have basically all been wiped out," Ryōsuke replied.
Shisui immediately grew worried.
Carefully sensing the fluctuations in the air, he indeed felt the lingering traces of a great battle. Fortunately, it had been resolved, but that wasn't what he was most concerned about right now.
"What happened to the Third Hokage?"
Ryōsuke answered, "The Third Hokage committed suicide out of fear of punishment, and Danzō was killed as well. You can check the record scrolls at the Konoha Military Police Force for the details. After all, a lot of time has passed."
"The crimes they committed were more than enough to warrant such a punishment."
Shisui's expression changed drastically, followed by a hint of melancholy. In the end, the Third Hokage had walked down that path.
*'Committing suicide out of fear of punishment... Ryōsuke probably got hold of the evidence that he tried to have me killed.'*
With Ryōsuke possessing the Rinnegan, even his Mangekyō Sharingan's visual prowess, Kotoamatsukami, had no chance of succeeding against him.
Ryōsuke spoke up.
"Shisui, I need you to use Kotoamatsukami to control Orochimaru and make him submit to me."
Once Orochimaru submitted, he could begin scientific research. This naturally included researching the awakening of the Uchiha clan's Sharingan, eliminating the need to sacrifice friends and family to unlock it.
Hearing this, Shisui looked a bit troubled.
"Ryōsuke, my Kotoamatsukami isn't actually omnipotent."
"It can only succeed if the target already has that kind of thought in their subconscious."
Ryōsuke felt a bit disappointed upon hearing this. So that was how it worked.
He had originally thought it was an incredibly powerful genjutsu that could control absolutely anyone.
But if he couldn't control him, he would lose out on a highly beneficial talent.
Leaving a guy like Orochimaru unchecked was simply too dangerous.
"Let's give it a try anyway. We won't know the result until we test it."
Shisui didn't hesitate. He immediately cast his Mangekyō Sharingan's Kotoamatsukami on Orochimaru, rooting the idea of submitting to Ryōsuke deep within his mind. A moment later, it was done.
"Ryōsuke, it's done."
"As for whether it succeeded, we'll just have to wake him up and see."
Ryōsuke promptly released his genjutsu, and Orochimaru woke up.
His eyes were filled with respect.
There was only one thought in his mind: to submit to this man, even to the point of being willing to die for him.
"Lord Ryōsuke."
Ryōsuke stared into Orochimaru's snake-like eyes.
He was a bit surprised. *'Is he really this respectful?'*
He couldn't sense any emotional fluctuations from him.
There was even a hint of fanaticism in his gaze; it didn't look like he was faking it.
Pleased, Ryōsuke said, "Shisui, your Kotoamatsukami is quite useful after all."
With his current sensory abilities, he couldn't detect any ulterior motives from Orochimaru, which meant his submission was genuine.
Shisui, however, didn't think his Kotoamatsukami was all that miraculous.
After all, he could feel that he couldn't forcibly alter another person's will.
The reason Orochimaru was successfully altered was perhaps because the thought of submission already existed within his heart.
Facing Ryōsuke's Rinnegan and being captured without any ability to resist—Shisui could easily guess how that would affect him.
For someone like Orochimaru, who was entirely focused on ninjutsu, even his Three-Tomoe Sharingan could see right through him, let alone the Rinnegan.
Ryōsuke then ordered Orochimaru, "Release the Impure World Reincarnation."
It was time to let those souls return to the Pure Land where they belonged.
Making a mockery of the dead was simply unacceptable.
As for resurrecting the two Hokage, Ryōsuke had no such intentions for the time being. Wouldn't that just be asking for trouble?
Whether it was the First Hokage or the Second Hokage, neither would likely agree with his plan to unify the shinobi world.
Hearing this, Orochimaru immediately obeyed. He formed hand seals and released the Impure World Reincarnation.
Outside the village, the dirt and ash covering the summoned Five Kage gradually dispersed. Their souls slowly ascended to the heavens, revealing the White Zetsu bodies used as sacrifices underneath.
Having finished all this, Ryōsuke finally led the two out of the room.
Outside, numerous White Zetsu lay dead on the ground. They had all been taken care of, without Ryōsuke's clones even needing to come here.
Ryōsuke had already sensed that there were no living White Zetsu left within the clan compound.
Appearing before him were his grandfather, the Great Elder, along with Gaara, Temari, Naruto, Haku, and several other Uchiha clan members.
Everyone looked at Ryōsuke with expressions of pleasant surprise.
Even from within the clan compound, they had seen the scenes of Ryōsuke's clones annihilating the White Zetsu in other areas.
Clan Head Fugaku had led the majority of the clan members out to battle.
And they, naturally, were responsible for guarding the compound.
Guarding the clan members who lacked combat ability.
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