"Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu!"
Inside the same underground hall, Kabuto Yakushi brought forth another prisoner. Orochimaru performed the Impure World Reincarnation technique with practiced precision. Tadpole-shaped seals crawled across the bound, gagged prisoner. Soon, a large cloud of white dust enveloped him into a floating mummy form.
But unlike previous resurrections, the figure remained motionless. Instead of gradually materializing like Hiruzen and Danzo, this mummy trembled violently before collapsing in white ash.
Everyone — Uchiha Sasuke, Orochimaru, and the rest — looked on, shocked.
"What happened?" Sasuke asked.
Orochimaru frowned deeply.
"Are you certain you killed Obito?"
Sasuke replied curtly.
"It shouldn't be possible for the resurrection to fail—unless the gate to the Pure Land is blocked," Orochimaru explained. "Even gods can summon souls with that jutsu. Obito's soul alone shouldn't resist."
Three possibilities existed: Obito hadn't yet died and his soul hadn't crossed over; the head wasn't his; or someone else already used Impure World Jutsu to summon Obito's soul.
Sasuke named the last possibility outright: "The Akatsuki leader?"
The flashpoint battle between Human Puppet and Impure World Reincarnation armies shocked the world—everyone knew Nagato had mastered the jutsu too. Sasuke assumed Nagato recovered Obito's soul.
Angered at the thought, Sasuke created a small black hole and stepped inside. Kakashi followed. Orochimaru looked on, irritated.
"The Uchiha are arrogant...but they admire strength," Orochimaru mused. "Simple people, but also oddly comforting. Sasuke will serve Konoha well."
They returned to packing.
Obito awakened as if from a dream, finding himself in the River Country mountains—facing Uchiha Madara.
"I'm resurrected?" Obito asked, confused.
"No. I revived you with Impure World Reincarnation," Madara corrected. "You did die by Sasuke's hand."
Madara chided him: he'd been too powerful to die to someone two generations younger. Even Itachi, without Hashirama cells, surpassed him now.
Obito asked if his current body was real. Madara said it was a White Zetsu clone, sustained only by the curse seal's remnants. Obito's actual body was long gone. Still, he quietly said, "Thank you."
Madara smirked. "You must've seen someone in the Pure Land."
Obito remained silent, remembering Rin. He'd begged Sasuke not to kill his soul, just to see her again—but now feared he was unworthy.
Madara continued: "Now that you're alive again, get back to work. Impure World grants perpetual chakra and ocular power. Hunt alternate dimensions without relying on me. Once you and Toneri are banished and I become Ten‑Tails Jinchūriki, I'll resurrect everyone you care about."
Obito's black eyes glimmered.
A black hole appeared. Madara and Obito vanished once more, continuing their interdimensional search.
In the bigger picture, this was just another minor incident for Izayoi and Madara. They saw the ninja world as a playground.
Despite their combat supremacy, their true enemies remained Ōtsutsuki Isshiki, Toneri, and sealed Kaguya—anyone capable of toppling their dominance. Except for Izayoi, all remaining Ōtsutsuki were targets.
Izayoi played it perfectly—using Madara's ambition and Sasuke's loyalty as pawns to uncover Isshiki. Real power came from genuine alliances, not puppetry.
With Sasuke gone on his mission, Izayoi got to work—implanting Obito's renewed Kamui eye over Danzo's. He then turned his Wood Clone into Toneri, using Yin Nine‑Tails energy to pilot Kamui and explore alternate realities.
Although rarely seen at the Hokage's office, once Charlotte's talent reached Transcendent (Color), her progress became effortless—cell by cell, system by system. What once took months now took brand-new days.
By August, leaders from the ninja world had come to Konoha. Although the older generation led by Ōnoki refused due to pride, the likes of Gaara, Meirei, Darui, and Mei Terumi arrived in their stead. Their presence was overshadowed by Izayoi and Nagato seated at the center, commanding respect.
At the Chūnin Exams' official start, Sasuke stood as Izayoi's Anbu-protector and asked Nagato: "Am I Obito's reincarnation?"
Nagato replied gently: "No. I transferred control of the Impure World army to Madara. Itachi has left the Akatsuki. When he visited, his hair was nearly white."
Izayoi distributed reassuring smiles. The exam progressed without incident, and Hanabi emerged as champion. With Hanabi's strength nearing Hinata's own eventual level—and her mastery of Super Hurricane Ball and Twin Lions Fist—she drew attention across the ninja world.
She'd become the youngest exam graduate and sole prodigy of the Sixth Hokage.
Afterward, the other Kage-led guests departed—but Nagato stayed in Konoha at Izayoi's invitation.
Days later, major news rocked the village: Izayoi pardoned Orochimaru, lifted his S-rank wanted status, and appointed him head of the Science and Technology department.
To prevent backlash, Izayoi shifted absolute blame onto Shimura Danzo by rewriting history: Danzo forced Orochimaru to continue taboo experiments, kidnapped children via Root, used Anko in coercion, and stole Hashirama's cells. Orochimaru, once the hero turned villain, was now the coerced victim.
Mitomonaka En and Utatane Koharu, under oath, corroborated the revised narrative. Public anger turned to Danzo—his name was stripped from the Hero Monument, graves defaced, and his clan driven from Konoha's center.
Sasuke, as Anbu chief, oversaw the purge and clan investigation. Inside the Anbu holding cells, Shimura elders were tortured and forced to confess to Danzo's crimes. Every clan applauded.
Orochimaru once feared he'd be shunned forever—but Izayoi's political brilliance had made him an unlikely comeback story.
Orochimaru, Kabuto, and Sasuke all returned to Konoha, dazed by the scale of change.