Board Thread:Naruto Discussions/@comment-30881771-20170815144139/@comment-734582-20170817131601

Ravenlot 27 wrote: Besides, I wonder why the reseach of Shin and cloning has never been revealed up to the current era. Presumably it wasn't quite there yet. After all, it seems that Orochimaru was intent on unlocking a power beyond either clan's, yet Shin clearly showed that such power could not be awakened that way. Which is why he wanted Itachi, because he had such powerful eyes. It seems that Orochimaru thought that he would need a live uchiha and not just some intermediary.

It also seems that while Shin would make a good vessel, initially he wanted to use Kimimaro but that fell through, and Sasuke was next but it took too long. Once he was ready for Sasuke, Sasuke killed him. In short, there was no real opportunity where he could've use Shin. While he may have been able to use a Shin in stead of an unnamed shinobi, it seems that Orochimaru was unwilling to risk a precious body.

Furthermore, it's not clear what the timeline of Shin is, it's possible that the cloning came only after he was revived.