"This old man can really use the One's Own Life Reincarnation Technique?!"
Hearing Ebizō say that he would revive Gaara, Ryosuke looked at him in surprise.
He had always thought that the One's Own Life Reincarnation Technique was Chiyo's Forbidden Technique.
He didn't expect that, as Chiyo's younger brother, Ebizō also knew it.
The reason he had mentioned the One's Own Life Reincarnation Technique to Temari before was because he had assumed that Chiyo must have left behind a scroll in Sunagakure.
He had thought that someone would need to learn this Forbidden Technique.
He wasn't sure if it would be too late.
But in any case, Ryosuke had already spoken, and whether they could succeed or not was Sunagakure's own business.
It had nothing to do with him.
Even if they failed and couldn't revive Gaara, that would be Sunagakure's loss.
Ryosuke had nothing to lose.
But still, he hadn't expected Ebizō to actually know this Forbidden Technique.
By the way, why are so many people learning this life-for-life type Forbidden Technique?
Is everyone just tired of living?
Ebizō knelt beside Gaara's body and began performing the One's Own Life Reincarnation Technique.
In the corner—
A battered Kankuro watched Temari and the lifeless Gaara from the shadows.
His previous decision had been the most rational choice.
But now, standing before his siblings, Kankuro felt ashamed. He didn't have the courage to face them.
Temari noticed Kankuro hiding in the corner. She hesitated but ultimately didn't approach him.
She knew that Kankuro's decision had been the right one. But it still didn't sit well with her.
After all, there's a fine line between being rational and being cold-blooded.
Kankuro had chosen logic. But Temari was someone who followed her heart.
She valued family more than reason.
So at this moment, Temari held a bit of resentment in her heart. She didn't want to speak to Kankuro.
Ryosuke wasn't concerned with these matters, nor did he care about other people's family issues.
At this moment—
He watched as Ebizō knelt beside Gaara's body, forming hand seals and releasing a wave of blue energy.
"Interesting."
Ryosuke observed closely.
To be honest, Chiyo was truly talented to have created a Forbidden Technique capable of bringing back the dead.
Unfortunately? this technique had a major flaw.
It couldn't revive someone who had been dead for too long.
How long was "too long"?
That depended on the user's mastery of the technique.
If the user was highly proficient, they could bring back someone who had been dead for ten days—maybe even half a month.
But if they were inexperienced, even half a day might be too late.
Clearly, Ebizō's mastery of the One's Own Life Reincarnation Technique wasn't on the same level as Chiyo's.
That's why he had checked Gaara's body first—to make sure he hadn't been dead for too long.
If Gaara had been dead for more than a day, Ebizō wouldn't have been able to do anything.
Luckily, Gaara had died only after Shukaku was fully extracted.
He had been dead for less than an hour. That was still within Ebizō's abilities.
Ten minutes later—
Gaara's eyelids suddenly twitched.
Meanwhile, Ebizō, having exhausted his chakra and life force, collapsed.
"Elder Ebizō!"
The surrounding Suna ninjas cried out in alarm.
Two Jōnins rushed forward to support Ebizō, only to find that he wasn't breathing.
He was gone.
At this moment—
"Look! Lord Gaara is alive!!"
Someone shouted.
Gaara, who had been lying motionless, suddenly opened his eyes and sat up.
"This is…"
Gaara looked around, confused.
The last thing he remembered was Shukaku being forcibly removed from his body.
Then, everything had gone dark.
And now, why was he back in Sunagakure?
Gaara's mind struggled to process what had happened.
"Gaara!"
Temari ran up to him, her voice trembling with excitement.
"You're alive! That's… that's great!"
She kept repeating to herself, overwhelmed with relief.
Hearing Temari's words, Gaara finally realized something.
Wait!
Shouldn't he be dead after having Shukaku extracted?
So how was he still alive?
Just as he was trying to figure it out—
His eyes landed on the lifeless body of Ebizō, surrounded by mourning Suna ninjas.
"Elder Ebizo?"
A realization dawned on him.
"It was Elder Ebizō who used a Forbidden Technique to save you." Temari explained.
Gaara froze.
"But… why?"
He couldn't understand.
Hadn't he always been the monster that the village feared?
Over the past year, things had slightly improved.
But still, most people kept their distance from him.
They were afraid.
They avoided him.
Yet now...
Why would Elder Ebizō give up his own life for him?
Gaara stood there, speechless.
At this moment—
"Excellent Forbidden Technique!"
Ryosuke, who had just finished drinking the juice, placed the cup down and walked over.
"It's you!"
Gaara looked at him.
Ryosuke smiled at Gaara.
Then he turned to the Sunagakure ninjas in front of him and said, "Since I saved your village's future, I hope you can give me the scroll recording the One's Own Life Reincarnation Technique as a thank-you gift. What do you think?"
Everyone in Sunagakure: "..."
"This... of course, it's no problem!"
A Sunagakure executive stepped forward and agreed.
Their village was now at its weakest.
Although Gaara had been revived, Shukaku inside him was gone.
Not to mention, even if Shukaku were still there, it wouldn't have made a difference against the man standing before them.
There was no way they could defeat him anyway.
And, Ryosuke had a point.
If he hadn't saved Temari and brought Gaara's body back, they wouldn't have been able to revive him.
Given Ebizō's mastery of the One's Own Life Reincarnation Technique, by the time they found Gaara's body, it would have been too late.
So, when Ryosuke claimed that he had saved Sunagakure's future, he wasn't wrong.
Giving him the scroll of One's Own Life Reincarnation Technique as a token of gratitude?
No issue at all!
It made perfect sense!
Temari looked at Ryosuke with a speechless expression.
But deep down, she was grateful.
Even though he was asking for something in return, Temari found it understandable.
After all, Ryosuke wasn't exactly on friendly terms with Sunagakure, so expecting him to help for free was unrealistic.
So, taking some benefits—wasn't that reasonable?
As for whether the One's Own Life Reincarnation Technique was too valuable?
Honestly, Temari didn't care that much.
Gaara being alive mattered more than anything else.
And given how the village had treated them before, Temari's sense of loyalty had weakened.
Soon—
The One's Own Life Reincarnation Technique scroll was brought by a Sunagakure ninja and handed over to Ryosuke.
Of course, they had kept a copy for themselves.
There was no way Sunagakure would willingly give up such a miraculous ninjutsu that could bring the dead back to life.
Even if it was a life-for-a-life exchange, just like how Ebizō had traded his remaining years for Gaara's long future—
It was still worth it!
And the higher-ups of Sunagakure already had an idea.
If they could train a unit specifically in the One's Own Life Reincarnation Technique, then their top-tier fighters would never need to fear death again.
Of course, if there is no intact body left, it won't work.
However, what was Sunagakure best known for?
Some might say Magnet Release.
But in truth, Magnet Release was a Kazekage-specific ability, and most Sunagakure ninjas didn't have it.
So, what was their real specialty?
Puppet Technique!
It is widely practiced in Sunagakure.
They even had a department dedicated to it.
For example, Chiyo was a master of the Puppet Technique.
And among these techniques, there was a forbidden one—Human Puppet!
It allowed someone to turn a living person into a puppet, even modifying their own body.
This was Sunagakure's Forbidden Technique, though few puppet masters ever fully transformed themselves.
At most, they altered minor parts like fingers or arms.
But no one had ever completely converted their entire body into a puppet, leaving only their heart and brain.
That didn't mean they couldn't do it. It's just that they simply didn't want to.
So—
One's Own Life Reincarnation Technique + Human Puppet
Is this a loophole?
Many Sunagakure executives were already considering the possibilities.
If they could perfect it, the results would be groundbreaking.
In the future, Sunagakure's power would skyrocket.
Even if they lacked peak-level fighters, their high-tier combat strength would surpass villages like Kirigakure—maybe even rivaling Iwagakure and Kumogakure.
Of course, they weren't thinking about competing with Konoha.
After all, they knew how powerful Konoha was.
Trying to rival them?
That was just foolish!
Besides, they had already re-signed an alliance treaty with Konoha.
As long as they didn't provoke them, with the harsh desert conditions of the Land of Wind, Konoha would have no reason to invade them.
I mean…
What would they even gain?
More sandstorms?
Taller cacti?
After more than an hour—
Gaara had finally grasped everything that had happened.
Ebizō had used a Forbidden Technique to bring him back—at the cost of his own life.
Because of this, Gaara's mindset changed drastically.
After his resurrection, the Sunagakure higher-ups seemed to treat him very differently.
This further deepened Gaara's sense of belonging to the village.
Ryosuke said, "Alright, you guys handle the rest. I have other matters to attend to, so I'll be leaving now."
Ryosuke saw that there was nothing exciting left to watch, so he prepared to return to Konoha.
After all, Sunagakure was full of wind and sand, and the air was unbearably dry.
For someone like him, who was used to Konoha's environment, it was unpleasant.
With every breath, he felt like he was swallowing a mouthful of dust.
No wonder no one had ever bothered to invade this place.
With an environment this miserable, who would even want to?
"Wait a moment!"
Just as Ryosuke was about to leave using his teleportation technique—
Temari suddenly called out to him.
"What is it?"
Ryosuke turned to look at her.
Temari said, "I want to go with you."
Ryosuke: "???"
This result was beyond his expectations.
Sure, he had just played the hero by saving her, but he had never imagined that she'd want to leave Sunagakure with him.
After all, this was her home. She was the Fourth Kazekage's daughter.
A princess of Sunagakure.
And now, she wanted to go to Konoha with him?
What's going on?
Did she really just abandon everything?
Ryosuke looked at Temari in confusion.
The Sunagakure executives around them were also staring, some with frowns on their faces.
If not for Ryosuke's presence, they would have already started shouting.
The Kazekage's daughter, wanting to leave for another village?
What was the meaning of this?
Did she not want to stay in Sunagakure anymore?
***
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