Naruto: Zombie Release

Neither the Third Hokage nor Danzo had expected this.

"A unique talent emerging from the war orphans adopted across various towns of the Land of Fire?" 

The Third Hokage puffed on his pipe, looking over the data card in his hand with keen interest.

It listed a series of evaluations regarding Arata's abilities, ranging from D-rank to B-rank. The accompanying text detailed his background and growth.

A war orphan, with a clean record and high loyalty.

"Unexpected, completely unexpected. What a delightful surprise."

"His body is too frail, though. Both his taijutsu and chakra levels are at the lowest D-rank," Danzo said, glancing over the report.

"Don't be too harsh on the young. 

From one perspective, isn't it even more remarkable that a body like his could develop a technique suspected to involve space-time manipulation through the Dead Soul Technique? 

Who would've thought someone would show such talent at this age? No one ever noticed his potential before."

The Third Hokage was pleased, another unplanned talent had surfaced. And what's more, he had inflicted damage on Sunagakure, tipping the scales further in Konoha's favor.

This kind of exchange, trading pawns and wearing down the enemy, fit perfectly with the Third's tactical philosophy.

Danzo slowly closed his eyes, mentally noting Arata's name.

"Tatsuma made a mistake… He failed to identify him from that batch of war orphans."

Not long ago, while reviewing Root's intel, Danzo had come across a report from Tatsuma that mentioned Arata. 

But back then, the boy was just a tool being used to pressure Nono, nothing more than a footnote.

A war orphan who dabbled with corpses? Normally, someone like that wasn't worth a second glance.

But now? In such a short time, who would've imagined Arata would display such brilliance? 

For a newly promoted Chunin to participate in an A-rank mission, deliver outstanding results, and ensure the team's success, that was truly rare.

"The Dead Soul Technique... According to Terai's report, Nono doesn't seem to possess this specific variation, meaning Arata must have developed it independently…"

Especially the technique that allowed him to form hand seals with a corpse and then swap places with it, that was a cognitive leap. 

Danzo had studied countless jutsu, but this was the first time he'd seen anything like it.

Mutual summoning? Perhaps something along those lines. But aside from Arata, who else could switch places with their own summoned corpse in real-time?

No one. Absolutely no one. Since records began in the ninja world, only Arata had achieved this.

Chakra resonance? Mental link? Specialized mechanisms embedded within the corpses?

Danzo contemplated various possibilities, already considering how he could exploit Arata's talents. 

A researcher this skilled in corpse manipulation could be invaluable to his forbidden experiments.

If only Tatsuma hadn't failed, if they'd brought Arata into Root early on... His abilities would be far beyond what they were now. 

With proper training, his evolving Dead Soul Technique would've become a deadly masterpiece.

The Third Hokage sighed. "What a shame. A talent like his... yet he's lost two fingers. That will impact his ability to develop new techniques."

"That's irrelevant," Danzo replied. "He can draw out a portion of the corpse's original strength. 

As long as we give him the corpses that have no further research value, he can repurpose them. 

The only question is, what's the upper limit of this technique? If Root could acquire it, we could push its development further."

"Danzo, we cannot force our comrades in the village. Coveting the jutsu of subordinates has no place in Konoha," the Third Hokage warned, glancing at him sternly.

"He's Tatsuma's subordinate. I plan to promote him to head of corpse processing. 

With his experience dealing with corpses since he started serving Konoha, he's well suited for the role as a Chunin."

"Let's wait until the war with Sunagakure is over."

"Hiruzen! His abilities are limited. The enemy will surely notice him."

"Danzo, I'm the Hokage. I know how to make the best use of his talents."

With that, the two men wrapped up their brief discussion on Arata.

Danzo's thoughts drifted elsewhere.

If Arata's Dead Soul Technique truly had potential for deeper development, if he could draw more of a corpse's original strength, then the value of this jutsu would be immense. 

In a way, it resembled that forbidden technique.

"Orochimaru gained considerable merit during the war. He's always been obsessed with Impure World Reincarnation… If…"

Danzo's heart burned with ambition.

"Tsunade has already reached the front lines. It won't be long before we end the war with Sunagakure."

The Third Hokage spoke with deep satisfaction. 

He had led the village to victory in one war and was now on the verge of winning a second. 

Under his leadership, Konoha would remain triumphant.

Danzo responded coldly, "Aren't you going to ask what she's really doing there?

Orochimaru has been active on the battlefield against Iwagakure for some time, but Tsunade and Jiraiya are both completely undisciplined. They act as if the village's orders don't matter."

Tsunade's rebellion could still be excused, she had lost her beloved brother, after all. 

In the early stages of the war, when the conflict hadn't fully escalated, some of her actions, though unsanctioned, had been tolerable.

At the very least, she had established the medical corps, indirectly saving countless ninja lives. 

That contribution was undeniable. Even if Tsunade rarely stepped onto the front lines, it was completely understandable.

But Jiraiya? He was another matter altogether. Staying in the Land of Rain to teach children? Completely absurd, almost deranged.

Maybe Hanzo had rattled something loose in his head.

…

Many Konoha shinobi witnessed Tsunade walking into the command camp, likely a deliberate move on her part to announce her return to all.

"Hey, isn't that Lady Tsunade? And beside her… that's Lord Dan, right?"

"Huh, they're back from their mission?"

"That's great! Now those Sunagakure bastards won't dare act so smug. We're definitely going to win!"

The Konoha shinobi were ecstatic. Many rushed over to catch a glimpse of Tsunade, their cheers filling the air.

Everyone knew Tsunade was Konoha's strongest medical ninja. With her on the front lines, Sunagakure's poisons would no longer be a threat!

"Tsunade's back? She's at her peak right now."

Arata had stepped outside as well, blending into the crowd as he watched Tsunade. He noticed a smile tugging at the corner of her lips, a sign of confidence in their impending victory.

If nothing went wrong, the decisive battle with Sunagakure was about to begin. Konoha would win.

What he didn't understand was why Tsunade had returned at this particular time. Still, no one dared raise any real criticism.

Arata averted his gaze. Even just standing in the crowd, a few people recognized him and came over to exchange a few words.

"Huh? Why are you wearing a mask?"

"Oh, nothing. I had a mission recently, took a lot out of me…"

"I heard about it! You guys brought back critical intel on Sunagakure. 

And now that Lady Tsunade's here at the front, we'll be able to return to the village soon, right? We've gotta hit those Sand bastards where it hurts!"

Arata's reputation was spreading. His Dead Soul Technique had broken new ground. Before him, no one had ever imagined such a possibility.

The Dead Soul Technique had become Arata's signature jutsu.

As he chatted with familiar and unfamiliar faces, Arata was already planning his next moves.

With the corpse-substitution technique, his safety had improved dramatically. 

As long as he didn't run into one dangerous situation after another, he could instantly switch positions to anywhere there were more Konoha shinobi, relying on his comrades for protection.

Unknowingly, this technique of his had begun to resemble Limbo just a little…

Uchiha Madara's Limbo was far from just a noob-stomping cheat. His shadow clones were essentially full duplicates of himself, multiplying his strength several times over.

More importantly, the ability to seamlessly switch between the main body and shadows made it one of the most advanced space-time substitution jutsu, virtually flawless.

That Naruto managed to handle it with just a few shadow clones was due less to strategy and more to sheer protagonist plot armor.

Sasuke's path was more straightforward, he had to figure out how to use the Rinnegan powers gifted by the Sage of Six Paths.

'If I could just overcome the limitations of low chakra reserves… If I could use this technique multiple times, I could just barely qualify as a space-time jutsu user. 

In that case, this complete and original new technique deserves a name of its own… I'll call it, Zombie Shift: Hollow Domain.'