Talking dreams with an artist is more effective than just discussing benefits.
...
The war was progressing just as Konoha had anticipated.
One enemy force after another was defeated, then sent to reinforce other units. With each major battle, Konoha's advantage grew steadily.
Years of conflict and countless small victories had finally borne fruit — fruit nourished by the corpses of countless ninja from both countries.
The Sand ninja army finally collapsed. Chiyo's poisons were neutralized by Tsunade, and the first-generation puppet master Bunzaemon was killed in close combat by Sakumo Hatake.
The hills were filled with fleeing Sand ninja, and the Konoha ninja, now the clear victors, declared yet another major triumph.
"It's a shame the old man won't let us invade the Land of Wind. Our so-called victory is just repelling invaders. When it comes to absolute losses, we're not much better off than Sunagakure," Tsunade said irritably, standing on high ground overlooking the battlefield, where Konoha ninja were chasing the retreating Sand ninja like herding sheep.
Kato Dan stood beside her and said gently, "If we marched into the Land of Wind, the war would escalate. They'd fight back with everything they had, which would increase our own casualties... Even if both sides suffer equally, Sunagakure would still hurt more."
"If we really want to make them hurt, we should hit them where it counts. They think they can come and go as they please?" Tsunade shook her head, frustrated just thinking about it.
At the start of the war, Konoha, Iwagakure, and Sunagakure mainly fought in the Land of Rain. Only later did they divert troops to directly invade enemy territories.
After Hanzo declared Amegakure's withdrawal from the Second Shinobi World War, the three countries concentrated their forces, turning it into a full-scale invasion-and-counter invasion conflict, escalating the brutality of the war.
Sunagakure had been the most aggressive in attacking Konoha, and now that they were defeated, Konoha had no plans to counter-invade. This infuriated the strong-willed Tsunade.
Or perhaps, she was just tired of the war. Her beloved younger brother had died.
Luckily, her lover was still with her.
Looking at him gave her a small measure of comfort. She asked, "What do you think of that brat, Kazama Shi?"
"Very promising. Both his secret technique system and his mental resilience are solid. From what I've observed, the space-time jutsu he developed is very interesting — it has strong practical value," Kato Dan said, not holding back his praise. He had always been generous and supportive of his allies.
After a moment of thought, he added, "But his body is quite weak. Plus, he lost two fingers during the mission to assist Yakushi Nono, which reduces his potential."
"That can be dealt with — as long as there's no kekkei illness, the village has several techniques that can strengthen his body. But fingers..." Tsunade frowned. That was trickier.
Installing prosthetic fingers? Konoha didn't have that kind of technology.
Missing two fingers meant certain hand seals couldn't be formed. The only silver lining was that he could control corpses to perform techniques in his stead.
"Sunagakure can no longer pose a threat. Let him return to the village and rest. I'm interested in his condition as well," Tsunade said.
Few people truly shine in war.
Kazama Shi didn't think he was one of them — but others thought differently.
After defeating Sunagakure, the Konoha ninja were ecstatic. They gradually returned to the main camp, bringing with them captured loot and prisoners.
These spoils would serve as bargaining chips in post-war negotiations.
Many of them were injured and covered in dust, but their spirits were high as they loudly bragged about their feats on the battlefield.
The medical corps was especially lively, as wounded ninja came to be treated, making it a crowded area.
"Hey, did you hear? The Sandstorm Araki is dead — he was an elite jonin from Sunagakure!"
"Yeah, I heard. Lord Kato Dan is incredibly strong. Maybe he's even Kage level!"
"Not only that, I heard Lord Kato Dan said Kazama Shi was the one who disrupted Sandstorm Araki and created the opening!"
"The guy who uses that Soul of the Dead Technique?"
Kazama Shi's performance brought unprecedented attention to the Soul of the Dead Technique. The ability to control corpses freely was just too unusual — especially on a battlefield strewn with bodies. Anyone could grasp how terrifying the technique was.
The impact was even greater when Kazama Shi developed a new space-time ninjutsu based on it.
There was no way to keep it secret. The battle against Araki had already drawn attention, and many had witnessed Kazama Shi's "Void Realm" technique firsthand. Word quickly spread.
Space-time ninjutsu!
Who wouldn't want to learn it?
Just hearing the name "Namikaze Minato" was enough. Even if they'd never seen him fight, anyone could imagine how dazzling instantaneous movement must be.
Now that the Flying Thunder God Technique was gaining notoriety, and they had a young ninja on their side who could use space-time ninjutsu?
"Is this technique developed from the Soul of the Dead? That jutsu has this kind of potential?!"
Everyone who learned about Kazama Shi's achievements reacted with astonishment.
Especially the medical ninja — they felt like their minds couldn't keep up.
If controlling corpses was already impressive, then the ability to also use space-time ninjutsu through them completely changed the perception of his version of the technique.
Such was the allure of space-time ninjutsu.
The medical ninja became obsessed, trying to obtain the Soul of the Dead Technique through various channels, even trading military merit for it. But once in hand, no matter how hard they studied it, they confirmed — it was just a simple jutsu that allowed brief control of a corpse.
"No matter how hard you train, you can only make a corpse move for a few dozen seconds. And it can't handle high-intensity combat. So how did Kazama Shi fix these flaws? How can his corpses move freely for long periods and even use jutsu from when they were alive?"
Not to mention, Kazama Shi could control multiple corpses at once, all with considerable combat power — and he could even perform space-time jutsu through them!
Driven by curiosity and awe, Kazama Shi's name spread like wildfire.
To be fair, he hadn't yet done anything to change the course of the war or become a Konoha hero — but the buzz he created briefly outshone everyone else.
Kato Dan's casual remark that "Kazama Shi is a genius" — whether just to make conversation or not — also began spreading rapidly.
More and more people started re-evaluating Kazama Shi and began to believe he really was a genius.
If the Iwagakure front could produce Namikaze Minato, then surely their side could produce a Kazama Shi too?
"...My talent is nowhere near Namikaze Minato's. My comrades are exaggerating too much," Kazama Shi said helplessly as he stood before Tsunade to report in.
Genius?
Maybe one day. But not yet.
"Don't underestimate yourself. Everyone can see your capabilities. Your main shortcomings can be addressed."
Tsunade was all business. She hadn't summoned him just for a briefing — Kato Dan had already told her the details. She wanted a close look at Kazama Shi, one of the ninja under her command in the medical corps.
But upon examining him up close, she was shocked by his physical condition.
She placed a finger on his shoulder and quickly ran chakra through him: "With your body, how are you even alive? No wonder the Root division skipped you during recruitment."
It was shocking. The scrawny young man before her was like a paper doll!
The scarcity of living cells could not be hidden from a top-tier medical ninja like Tsunade.
"I was born this way. That's why I say I owe my survival to the village's support," Kazama Shi replied.
Tsunade had never seen a body like this. It looked normal on the outside, but up close, it was frighteningly hollow.
By all logic, someone like this should've died from a common cold. But Kazama Shi had lived to sixteen and become a capable chunin.
"No wonder your file says you're antisocial, but some teammates say otherwise. I get it now... With a body like this, keeping distance from others is probably what kept you alive."
Out of professional curiosity, she really wanted to study his body in detail — but she left that thought in her head.
"I'll teach you the chakra-stimulation technique. With your learning ability, it won't be hard. It can improve your chakra levels. But your fingers... there's nothing I can do. Not that you seem bothered."
Kazama Shi immediately summoned a zombie: "Lady Tsunade, the techniques I want to use can be performed through my zombies. This compensates for my shortcomings."
"A zombie... So your technique really has evolved beyond the original Soul of the Dead. It's become something else."
"Yes. I've given this new secret art a name: Corpse Release."
Corpse Release...
Just the name sounded like a forbidden technique.
But that didn't matter. Tsunade believed Kazama Shi was cautious and intelligent. He wouldn't recklessly use his comrades' corpses.
As for using enemy corpses? It was wartime. That was acceptable.
Tsunade didn't try to study the zombie in detail. She knew better than to pry into the secrets of someone's personal jutsu.
This gave Kazama Shi a favorable impression of her — though perhaps that was helped by the fact that he had voluntarily summoned a zombie.
"You have Sandstorm Araki's corpse, don't you? How long before you can turn him into combat-ready undead? How much of his original strength will remain?"
"Hard to say. It's my first time working with a body at this level. Just the modifications alone will take several days. As for his strength, I'd say I can preserve at least fifty percent."
In truth, it should be over eighty percent. Kazama Shi had obtained the body before Araki died — he was already partially infected while still alive.
This preserved the most of his original abilities — the best kind of zombie in Kazama Shi's eyes.
The only reason he couldn't fully preserve Araki's strength was that he needed time to complete the transformation. During that period, the body's vitality would inevitably decrease.
There was no helping it — Kazama Shi didn't have enough chakra to accelerate the process. He had to do it gradually.
"I see. Your secret art is even better than I thought. You can utilize even elite jonin corpses."
Tsunade was deeply impressed. If he could use elite jonin already, then perhaps with more development, he could even use Kage-level bodies?
Combined with space-time jutsu... This new secret art system had terrifying potential.
Thankfully, Kazama Shi was a Konoha ninja!
The only regret was his severely depleted body. Even with the chakra stimulation technique, his chakra limit would always be low.
Then Kazama Shi suddenly said, "Lady Tsunade, I'd like to learn the jutsu that accelerates cell division. I'm sure you have it? I'd like to trade merit for it."
"Of course I do. It's a B-rank medical jutsu. But the village rarely teaches it to you guys. Do you know why?" Tsunade looked serious.
"I can guess... Accelerating cell division lets you heal quickly and create more chakra, but it also shortens your lifespan."
Kazama Shi smiled. "But you've seen my condition. I've got a good secret art, but not enough chakra to use it properly. I could die on the battlefield any day. I may not even have a future."
Tsunade fell silent. Then she summoned a pile of scrolls, searched through them, picked one, released the sealing formula, and handed it to him.
"Since you've made your decision, I won't say more. I hope this jutsu helps you go further."
Tsunade knew he was right. Shortened lifespan? That hardly counted as a drawback in this insane world. Who could guarantee they'd live to die of old age?
Kazama Shi left Tsunade's tent with satisfaction and took a deep breath.
Another valuable tool in hand. Whether used on himself or his zombies, it would be worth it.
That said, it was still just a supplement. Even with this technique, Kazama Shi's body would never be like Kabuto Yakushi's.
Kabuto could take a Rasengan from Naruto head-on and heal visibly without hand seals or techniques — his cell division was constantly accelerating.
What Kazama Shi had to actively train for, Kabuto got as a passive buff.
And the Uzumaki and Senju clans? Their sheer vitality meant they could regenerate with barely any effort at all.
"I still need the Living Rebirth Technique... I hope Sasori of the Red Sand doesn't let me down," Kazama Shi muttered. He pinned great hopes on Sasori. If even Sasori couldn't help, his plans would face serious setbacks, and he'd need to find another way.
He might even have to abandon the Living Rebirth path temporarily and rely on cell acceleration and chakra stimulation as stopgaps.
Half a month passed. The war had fully stabilized. People were starting to relax.
Some ninja still went on missions in squads — either to hunt down remaining scattered Sand ninja or transport supplies.
There was another special case: finding and protecting Sand teams en route to Konoha for peace negotiations.
Kazama Shi didn't take on any new missions. To outsiders, he appeared diligent in his training — either selecting corpses or studying the techniques he received from Tsunade.
Sometimes, he left camp to train alone — which was normal. Sunagakure had lost, and with peace talks underway, Konoha no longer strictly restricted ninja movements like before.
Kazama Shi sent his zombies into the forests of Konoha, wandering and carving markings on trees and rocks that seemed ordinary.
Each mark was carefully etched based on a codebook left by Sasori of the Red Sand, conveying different messages.
Six days passed. When Kazama Shi found a new mark on the back of a rock, he knew Sasori had arrived.
"So cautious... another puppet?" Kazama Shi examined the puppet before him and directed nearby zombies to try and locate Sasori's real body.
"You're not bad yourself. Looks like your power has grown again. Each corpse is one of your eyes," said Sasori. "But don't waste your effort. My real body isn't even nearby. This is just a clone operating the puppet."