Konoha Village.
There is a small building next to the Hokage Building, where the Jounin Class of Konoha is located.
Some jounin who do not have obvious departmental divisions in the village, but are strong and often go out to perform tasks, basically come here to check in.
So that the Jonin squad leader can convey the Hokage's orders at any time, and then go out to perform tasks as soon as possible, ensuring efficiency.
Although the jounin squad leader has no real power, the mere function of conveying the Hokage's orders at any time means that he must be a popular ninja among the jounin in the village. Otherwise, if he cannot convince the crowd, it will be difficult to handle the job of following the ninja squad. The relationship between jounin.
Basically, a ninja who can become a Jonin squad leader will either become the Hokage in the future, or he will become the Hokage's confidant and assist the Hokage in the future.
Today's third-generation Hokage Sarutobi Hiruzen, during the period of the second-generation Hokage Senju Tobirama, he accumulated a lot of popularity by serving as the Jonin squad leader.
During World War II, Hatake Sakumo also came from a grassroots background. With his military exploits, he won the position of Jonin squad leader. It is precisely because of his first-class strength and character that he has gained the support of a large number of ninjas among civilian jounin and family jounin. In the end, he was favored by wealthy families such as Hinata and Uchiha, who wanted to use him to break the Senju clan. Monopoly on the position of Hokage.
After Sakumo's death, Nara Shikaku, the elite jounin of the Nara clan, became the jonin squad leader.
The Nara, Yamanaka, and Akimichi clans have established a deep friendship since the Warring States Period, and have always advanced and retreated together. At the same time, they have always had a good relationship with the Sarutobi clan.
In addition, the Nara clan controls most of the medicine business in Konoha and has raised deer for generations. Many precious medicinal materials related to deer are basically of higher quality from the Nara clan.
Nara Shikaku is known as the 'brain tank' among the Jounin of Konoha for his correct advice in many battles. Therefore, although his strength is much inferior to Sakumo, he can convince the public as the Jonin squad leader. .
Nowadays, Nara Shikaku, Akimichi Dingza, and Yamanaka Haiichi, the three contemporary Inokacho, all support Namikaze Minato. Of course, the three do not completely represent the meaning of the ninja clan behind them.
Among the three clans, quite a few jounin still support Orochimaru more, while other jounin are still waiting on the sidelines, waiting for the Third Hokage's intention.
Although Orochimaru is a disciple of the Third Generation, he has not made a public statement so far.
...
On this day, Nara Shikaku was working in the small building of the jounin class.
Although the Third Ninja War has come to an end, Iwagakure has completely ceased war with Konoha, and the two sides have begun to discuss alliance matters, but the details still need to be discussed, and Konoha naturally wants to strive for benefits as much as possible.
I haven't seen the third Hokage take the blame and resign because of this matter, so I can't give up even a single cent of the benefits that can be obtained.
Now the only thing Konoha needs to deal with is the Kirigakure Village on the eastern front. After being severely damaged by the Hyuga and Uzumaki coalition forces several times in succession, Kirigakure no longer dares to carry out large-scale attacks.
The Eastern Front suffered heavy casualties, and Konoha's losses were also considerable. As the Jonin squad leader, Nara Shikaku also needed to help the third generation deal with matters such as rewards based on merit, appeasement of the wounded, and distribution of pensions. Although he could not make decisions, A specific charter should be drawn up for Hokage.
At this time, Sarutobi Hiruzen, dressed in casual clothes and holding a pipe in his mouth, walked into the Jonin Class' office leisurely like an old man taking a walk after a meal.
"Hokage-sama!"
"Hokage-sama! Why are you here?"
All the ninjas who were working put down what they were doing and bowed slightly to Hiruzen Sarutobi.
"You're welcome, I'm just passing by here and came up to take a look." Sarutobi Hiruzen waved his hand, and the wrinkles on his face deepened.
"Hokage-sama, please sit down."
A jounin brought a chair.
Sarutobi Hiruzen sat down and said with a smile: "I am no longer the Hokage. Now I am a Jonin like everyone else."
"Hokage-sama, although you have submitted your resignation to the Daimyo-sama, of course you will still be Hokage until the Fourth Hokage officially succeeds to the throne, and you will always be our respected Third Hokage-sama!"
As soon as Sarutobi Hiruzen finished speaking, a jonin said quickly.
For some Jonin who were born as civilians, many people really respected him.
If it hadn't been for the Sakumo incident, even if Hiruzen Sarutobi had made some misdirections during the war and had given up asking Iwagakure to pay war reparations in order to end the war as soon as possible, he would not have had to abdicate due to his previous jounin support rate. .
Of course, for the jounin who had always supported Sarutobi Hiruzen, they still wanted to fight for him, because they felt that the third generation had definitely done more good than bad for Konoha.
"Thanks to your efforts over the years, the village will get better and better. Now I can finally retire with peace of mind." Sarutobi Hiruzen said with a smile. He seemed to be in a good mood. He looked at the rope tree behind the crowd. , waved to him and said: "Shengshu, come and accompany the old man for a walk."
Naoki was stunned for a moment, then walked out, nodded and said, "Yes, the Third Generation."
Since the rope tree was reborn after its severed limbs and its strength increased greatly, it has become the face of Konoha jounin. The current mission success rate is 100%.
Many people lamented that it might not be a bad thing for Nao Shu to be disabled when he was high-spirited in his early years. It was precisely because of his disability that Nao Shu became mature and his character became much tougher.
Sarutobi Hiruzen wanted to compensate the Senju clan, so he transferred Naoki into the Jonin class and asked him to study behind Nara Shikaku.
Naoki is now Orochimaru's disciple, and Orochimaru is currently his most preferred successor. Naoki also has great hopes in the future.
A few years ago, because of Sakumo's incident, the relationship between Sarutobi Hiruzen and Tsunade was very tense, and because of the wrong decision in the wood escape experiment, the Senju clan suffered heavy losses, so they had to ease their relationship. After all, there was someone behind him. The entire Sarutobi clan.
Although Sarutobi Hiruzen has arranged for his eldest son Sarutobi Shinnosuke and his wife to join the ANBU and serve as ANBU minister and ANBU captain respectively, if the fourth generation is unwilling to reuse them, the Sarutobi clan will sooner or later be squeezed out of the political center and gradually marginalized. .
After all, once Orochimaru comes to power, he will definitely control most of the real power.
As an emperor and a courtier, at that time, what he said for the third generation was no longer as effective as it is now.
Sarutobi Hiruzen and Naoki left the Jonin class and walked on the streets of Konoha.
"Third generation sir."
"Sandaime-sama, Mr. Nōshu."
Along the way, the villagers passing by would greet Sandai cordially, and from time to time someone would also greet the rope tree.
In the early years, the villagers still called Shengshu "Master Shengshu" because it was for the sake of the first and second generations.
As for now, Shengshu has truly gained recognition by relying on his own abilities.
"Rope tree." Halfway through, Sarutobi Hiruzen suddenly said after blowing out the smoke ring.
"Sir, Third Generation." Shen Shu said respectfully.
Sarutobi Hiruzen smiled and waved his hand, saying: "Don't be so formal, I am the disciple of your grandfather, the Second Generation, and your teacher Orochimaru and your sister Tsunade are both my disciples. Speaking of which, You are my disciple and a beloved Jonin in the village, so you don’t have to be so distant from me."
"Yes." Naoki nodded, but still maintained basic etiquette. It was obvious that he felt a little alienated from the third generation.
There was a hint of disappointment in Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes. It seemed that Naoki couldn't get as close to him as Minato did.
"Are you still blaming me for what happened to Bai Yu?"
"Bai Yu's decision to leave was his own choice." Sheng Shu shook his head.
He and Bai Yu have known each other for many years, but it was only in the past few years that he truly understood that Bai Yu, who looked gentle on the outside, was actually a man with sharp edges and strong opinions.
Even without the White Fang incident, I feel like Konoha still can’t keep White Fang.
Of course, if there hadn't been the White Fang incident, maybe Bai Yu wouldn't have been so determined and had a direct quarrel with the top management.
Facing Sarutobi Hiruzen, the former rope tree was full of admiration and admiration.
But over the years, he had his own thoughts.
Sandai is a pure but complex person.
He has devoted decades of hard work to Konoha, and he is definitely chosen for his hard work and merit. However, he has his own selfish motives and hopes that Konoha will go in the direction he set, so many backward and wrong policies have been retained. He also made many mistakes that he shouldn't have made.
Sarutobi Hiruzen saw Nawaki fell silent and knew that he didn't want to talk about this matter anymore, so he changed the subject and said: "Tsunade is still unwilling to come back? In fact, I think she will definitely be qualified if she becomes the fourth generation. .”
Still testing!
Shengshu frowned slightly, and then said: "My sister will still keep in touch with me outside. She said she wants to relax outside and doesn't want to come back for the time being. She has paid a lot for the village over the years. Now she is tired and wants to rest. My brother We can also work hard together without her.”
"Since this is Tsunade's intention, then we can only respect her wishes." Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded and said: "But now that you have grown to this extent, I believe that whether it is Tsunade, the second generation, or the first generation Both adults will be pleased."
"By the way, what has Orochimaru been doing lately? It seems like I haven't seen him for a long time."
Sarutobi Hiruzen changed the topic.
"Teacher Orochimaru seems to be busy developing new techniques recently, and I have only met him once." Naoki said.
The two continued to stroll and chat on the street.
Suddenly, four ANBU ninjas wearing animal masks suddenly appeared in front of Sarutobi Hiruzen. One of them quickly came to his side and whispered something in his ear.
"What!?" Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression suddenly changed and he lost his voice.
"Sandaime-sama, what happened?" Nao Shu couldn't help but ask.
Sarutobi Hiruzen looked uncertain and said to the rope tree, "You come with us."
With that said, the four Anbu disappeared first, while Sarutobi Hiruzen and Naoki also used the teleportation technique to leave.
The group of people left Konoha and quickly rushed towards Orochimaru's stronghold outside the village.
After the six people broke through the barrier and entered the underground laboratory.
He saw Orochimaru who was constantly moving towards the operating table.
It wasn't until six people broke out of the door and made a huge noise that Orochimaru came back to his senses.
I saw him holding surgical forceps, his hands stained with blood, and even a trace of blood on his face.
In the dark environment, under the illumination of the operating light, Orochimaru looked extremely gloomy.
"Orochimaru, you actually used your fellow villagers for human experiments, why?!" Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes showed deep disappointment and regret. He didn't expect that his most valued disciple would do such a thing, and also in the fourth quarter. It's time for the position of Dai Hokage to belong.
"Lord Orochimaru, why would a ninja like you do such a thing?" The ANBU ninjas on the side couldn't help but speak. When they received the information, they immediately went to notify the third generation. In fact, they themselves were a little embarrassed. Confident.
Orochimaru was stunned for a moment, looked back at the ninja lying on the experimental table, and suddenly came to his senses.
Danzo!
"Orochimaru, you disappoint me so much! I have noticed your malicious and ambitious eyes for a long time, but... I didn't expect you to do it to this extent!" Sarutobi Hiruzen He quickly formed seals with his hands and used psychic techniques to summon the Ape Demon King.
"Teacher Orochimaru, is this true?"
Naoki stared blankly at the ninja on the operating table. At this age, he was still a minor.
Facing the disappointed, shocked and painful looks of Sarutobi Hiruzen and Naoki, Orochimaru's expression turned cold and he walked towards the six people. As he walked, he said, "Sarutobi-sensei, are you going to kill me?"
"I...I..." Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes gradually became moist, and he seemed to be unable to kill Orochimaru.
boom--!
Orochimaru looked deeply at Sarutobi Hiruzen and Naoki, and a terrifying aura suddenly erupted around him.
Caught off guard, all four ANBU were hit and fell to the ground.
However, Sarutobi Hiruzen and Naoki were only slightly affected.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Orochimaru quickly ran towards the stronghold.
'Wood Release: The Tree Realm is coming! '
Naoki used Wood Release to stop Orochimaru.
However, the latent shadow snake hand released by Orochimaru twisted the thick tree trunk and escaped through the gap.
From the beginning to the end, Sarutobi Hiruzen didn't take any action and just stood there in a daze.
"Sarutobi, why don't you take action and keep him!" the monkey demon king said anxiously.
...
In the dense forest in the northern part of the Country of Fire.
Orochimaru was walking through the forest in a miserable state.
"Damn Jiraiya, you are so persistent." Orochimaru cursed secretly.
After Jiraiya learned that he had defected, he blocked him halfway and insisted that he return to Konoha to explain the matter clearly. Orochimaru was naturally unwilling to face Jiraiya's childish behavior.
In the end, Jiraiya had to take him back by force, and the two could only fight.
In fact, both sides have reservations.
The final result is of course Orochimaru wins.
With Jiraiya using Sage Mode, the forbidden techniques Orochimaru has been researching over the years are not vegetarian.
In particular, although Orochimaru was merciful, he was much more ruthless than Jiraiya.
After injuring Jiraiya, Orochimaru consumed a large amount of chakra and was not at ease.
This incident has ruined his reputation. No matter how he explains it, it is already too late. The most important thing is the attitude of the third generation, which finally made Orochimaru completely disappointed.
The master does not know the disciple, and the disciple does not know the master.
From now on, I can only part ways with Konoha.
Orochimaru took one last deep look at the location of Konoha, and then continued to rush towards the north.
His first stop was Tian Country.
Orochimaru kept walking through the forest, and soon saw strict security at the border.
He took out a scroll from his arms, formed seals with his hands, and used psychic techniques, preparing to summon snakes responsible for communication and reconnaissance to avoid Konoha's defense line.
For the time being, he didn't want to indiscriminately kill Konoha's shinobi when he left.
Of course, the most important thing is not to attract attention and be surrounded.
Bang!
An earth-yellow snake appeared from the smoke, wrapped around Orochimaru's arm, and opened its mouth.
"Um?"
Orochimaru's expression changed, and the moment the earth-yellow snake opened its mouth, there were several detonating talismans superimposed on top of each other, which detonated instantly.
boom--!
Orochimaru pulled away immediately, but was still injured by the detonating talisman.
The earth-colored communication snake was shattered into pieces by the explosion, and Orochimaru's right arm hung down, blood dripping continuously.
"Sandai!" Orochimaru's eyes were a little unbelievable.
This communication snake was often used by him during battles. In most cases, he would use it to communicate with the third generation, so he just summoned it out of habit. Unexpectedly, the third generation actually set a detonating talisman trap in the snake's mouth in advance. As long as When he is summoned, it explodes.
The third generation actually wanted to kill him!
In other words, the relationship between master and disciple is completely broken!
Orochimaru's expression quickly darkened.
The noise caused by the explosion had already attracted the patrolling Konoha ninjas. Orochimaru's eyes flashed with murderous intent, and he quickly retreated while covering his lowered right arm.
However, he was soon caught up by Konoha's ninjas.
The person coming was none other than Kakashi, who had shown great talent in the Battle of Kannabi Bridge.
After receiving the Sharingan as a gift from Obito before his death, Kakashi's swordsmanship improved to a higher level. In just two months, his strength was greatly improved.
"It's you!" Orochimaru suddenly appeared and blocked Kakashi in the middle of the road. His expression was slightly cold, and a powerful murderous aura was released.
"Orochimaru, come back with me."
Kakashi tensed up and pulled out the White Fang dagger from behind. With the infusion of Thunder Chakra, the blade instantly turned silver-white, and a weak electric arc flashed on it. At the same time, Kakashi opened the slanted sword. The forehead protector he was wearing revealed the double Magatama Sharingan in his left eye.
"With your half-hearted Sharingan and sword skills, do you think you can defeat me?" Orochimaru said coldly, slowly walking towards Kakashi. If possible, he would definitely not want to attack Sakumo's child. But it depends on Kakashi's own choice.
"Stop!" Kakashi took half a step back, gripped the White Fang dagger tightly, took a deep breath, and felt a stream of air rising from his lower abdomen. After merging with chakra, it flowed towards the limbs, a powerful force The power appeared throughout the body.
Noticing the change in Kakashi's momentum, Orochimaru's golden vertical pupils narrowed slightly, and he paused slightly, but continued to walk towards Kakashi.
Just when the battle was about to break out, a gentle voice suddenly sounded from the side of the two of them: "Kakashi, drawing a sword against an elder is not what Sakumo-senpai taught you, right?"
"Um?"
"who?!"
Both Kakashi and Orochimaru were startled. They looked towards the east and saw a black-haired man in white clothes standing on the top of the tree not far from them. It was Bai Yu who they had not seen for a long time. .
"Bai Yu?"
"Senior Bai Yu!"
The tense atmosphere disappeared immediately, and Bai Yu appeared beside Orochimaru in a flash.
He raised his hand and stretched it towards the injured area of Orochimaru's right arm.
Orochimaru narrowed his eyes and clenched his fists for a moment, but then relaxed them.
Feeling the gentle chakra gradually coming from the wound on his right arm, Orochimaru asked in a deep voice: "Why are you here?"
"As soon as I heard that Mr. Orochimaru had left Konoha, I wanted to beat gongs and drums to celebrate, so I came to you as soon as possible. How about it? If you haven't decided where to go for the time being, do you want to stay with us, the Uzumaki clan? a period of time."
Bai Yu asked with a smile while treating Orochimaru.
When Orochimaru heard this, his eyes flickered, and the corners of his drooping mouth raised slightly, but in the end he shook his head and rejected Bai Yu.
"Forget it, but I welcome you to visit me at any time." Bai Yu was not particularly disappointed. After all, he originally felt that the possibility of Orochimaru's direct agreement was very small, especially in this kind of time when he was in trouble.
Orochimaru fell into silence, then nodded: "Yes."
"Well, the wound has been temporarily treated. Please don't move around for a while. It will take a week to recover and you will be fully recovered."
After Bai Yu used Palm Senjutsu to treat Orochimaru's injuries, he applied ointment on him and then wrapped a bandage.
"Yes." Orochimaru said calmly.
At this time, Bai Yu turned to look at Kakashi. Seeing that he was holding the White Fang dagger in his hand and maintaining the same movement in a daze, he said, "Kakashi, what are you doing? Aren't you tired of holding the knife?"
"Hmm...huh?" Kakashi was stunned, and quickly stopped chakra output and put the White Fang dagger back into its sheath.
Bai Yu smiled and said: "Kakashi, just to show my face, just pretend that you didn't meet us today, okay?"
Kakashi fell silent.
Seeing this situation, Bai Yu continued: "Otherwise, you wouldn't think that Orochimaru-sensei was injured and you could defeat him, right?"
"I really have no chance of winning," Kakashi said.
Bai Yu: "Or are you ready to take a look at it with the two of us now?"
Kakashi looked embarrassed: "Senior Baiyu, you are joking. At the beginning, I just wanted to fight Orochimaru to see the gap between me and the top ninjas."
"You have made great progress. You should have mastered the breathing method I taught you. It's just that your current condition is not a small problem. The Sharingan cannot be closed and will continue to consume your energy and chakra. It is not suitable for you. , you should be able to feel the increased load on your body all the time, which is not conducive to your future development."
Bai Yu knew Kakashi's condition well through the information of Uchiha Issei, who was transformed into a wood spirit, and could see his problem at a glance.
"This is a gift from a friend." Kakashi nodded. He also felt something was wrong, but he valued Obito's thoughts.
"Let's do this. Teacher Orochimaru and I will take the first step, and I will come to you after a while to see if I can help you solve this problem." Bai Yu said.
Kakashi: "Thank you, Baiyu-senpai."
"Then let's go!" Bai Yu waved his hand and turned to look at Orochimaru.
Orochimaru glanced at Kakashi indifferently, and then left with Bai Yu.
Kakashi stayed where he was with an awkward expression.
