"Is there darkness in Konoha?" Orochimaru stated his observed phenomenon:
"First, you must acknowledge the diversity of human hearts.
Some people have good hearts, some have evil hearts. This is an objective reality that you cannot change. The malicious actions of evil people are also inevitable.
Secondly, some people use dark means to achieve some bright goals, while others use seemingly bright means to achieve dark goals.
Many things appear bright on the surface but contain darkness within. Other things appear dark, yet their ultimate purpose is bright.
Nothing is necessarily absolutely right or wrong; it depends on which stage the matter is in."
Orochimaru's words left the two from the Sarutobi and Shimura clans bewildered.
Nawaki nodded. What his teacher Orochimaru said was very correct, but unfortunately, he couldn't accept it.
Why couldn't the people in the village work together harmoniously to build the village, instead of having all sorts of darkness appear?
Nawaki stopped his random thoughts, crouched down, placed his finger on the ground, and used the Senju perception secret technique to sense the vibrations in the surrounding earth.
"Enemy attack! Someone is hiding behind the boulder at 1 o'clock!"
Nawaki charged over first, with his two teammates following.
As the de facto squad leader, Nawaki would absolutely not let his two teammates take risks.
The most dangerous places had to be handled by Nawaki himself. Regardless of who his teammates were, this was his resolve, aiming to become Hokage.
The sound of fighting came from behind the boulder.
Orochimaru walked forward unhurriedly.
A few seconds later, all sounds ceased.
Nawaki dragged the corpse of an Iwa-nin out from behind the boulder.
"Teacher, there might be an Iwa-nin reconnaissance team nearby."
"Mmm, you take command. Eliminate this team."
The three students left, while Orochimaru continued walking slowly.
With Nawaki's current strength, ordinary Iwa-nin were no match for him.
Orochimaru would only intervene if there were Jōnin or Elite Jōnin.
The second Iwa-nin was more cunning, moving underground, probably using the Earth Release: Fish in Earth Reflection Technique.
However, this didn't trouble Nawaki; vibrations underground couldn't escape his detection either.
Yōkō moved underground, pretending not to have noticed the pursuing Senju Nawaki. Only when Nawaki got close did he jump out of the earth and flee towards the trap's location using the Body Flicker Technique.
Battalion Commander Yellow Dog had set an elaborate trap and had hidden far away a kilometer early to avoid detection by Orochimaru.
As long as Fox lured the enemy into the trap, the mission would be accomplished.
A small valley appeared ahead, its entrance blocked by rocks, with a slight turn behind them.
The trap was just beyond the turn.
Yōkō heard the sound of something cutting through the air behind his head. He turned and blocked three pursuing shuriken with his kunai.
Senju Nawaki appeared instantly via Body Flicker and threw a punch at Yōkō's face.
Yōkō hurriedly raised his arm to block.
A great force was transmitted from his elbow.
The Senju clan's taijutsu style was brutal, expansive, and immensely powerful.
Someone who hadn't even taken the Chūnin Exams yet possessed such strength.
Nawaki was also inwardly startled.
Judging from the sensation transmitted through his fist, this Iwa-nin also had considerable strength.
Moreover, the feeling of the impact was extremely resilient. One punch下去, apart from a slight shake in the elbow, the shoulder, waist, and other parts remained completely still.
This wasn't achieved by training specific muscles, but rather because the muscles and cells throughout the entire body were very strong, resulting in such performance.
Yōkō possessed an ordinary Senju Bloodline, so his physique was stronger than an average person.
At that moment, an Iwa-nin emerged from behind the large rock, wanting to help Yōkō.
Yōkō turned his head and shouted: "Don't mind me! Deliver the intelligence! I'll cover your retreat!"
Upon hearing this, Iwa-nin immediately turned and left from behind the rock.
Hearing that the Iwa-nin wanted to deliver intelligence, Nawaki quickly formed hand seals to use a ninjutsu, no longer testing Yōkō.
What intelligence had these Iwa-nin gathered? Did they know the headquarters was planning to advance?
As Nawaki had previously deduced, after Mitokado Homura met with the Kumo-nin, Konoha's command camp began preparations to break camp.
Kumogakure was restless, wanting to deal a fatal blow to Iwagakure while it was weak.
This intelligence was very important; they absolutely could not let the Iwa-nin escape.
Nawaki threw a shuriken and formed hand seals: "Shadow Shuriken Technique!"
Orochimaru, watching from a distance, nodded repeatedly. Nawaki had already mastered this complex A-rank ninjutsu. Truly a genius of the Senju clan.
That idiot Jiraiya still hadn't learned the Hokage-sensei's self-created famous technique even now.
Dense shuriken, covering the sky like locusts, rapidly shot towards Yōkō.
Shuriken came from all directions; there was no way to avoid them.
The shuriken spun extremely fast, emitting an eerie sound similar to a saw blade.
He held his kunai, blocked a few shuriken, causing the shadow clones of the shuriken to burst into white smoke.
However, more shuriken hit him.
His head, throat, chest, and abdomen – all were struck by shuriken.
Yōkō fell.
Nawaki was very confident in his ninjutsu; the enemy Iwa-nin had sustained several fatal wounds.
Before dying, Yōkō saw Nawaki be the first to rush past the large rock, turn the corner, and run into the valley.
Boom!
An explosion occurred!
The explosive tag trap personally set by Battalion Commander Yellow Dog was so well-hidden that even Orochimaru might not have detected it immediately.
Senju Nawaki was still too inexperienced.
Yōkō died.
—
Everything went black; his vision shifted.
When Yōkō opened his eyes again, he saw a full moon.
He had appeared on the road ten days ago while pursuing Senju Kashiwa.
[Mochizuki's Arc activated!
The host has only one resurrection chance per month. Upon death, they will resurrect on the previous full moon night.
Reward: One lottery draw opportunity:
1- A-rank Ninjutsu: Shadow Shuriken Technique (Beginner Level);
2- Senju Perception Secret Technique;
3- Bloodline: Senju of the Forest (Medium-High Grade, can be purified).]
This... they are all very tempting.
The Shadow Shuriken Technique, the signature ninjutsu of Sarutobi Hiruzen and his disciples.
A top-tier ninjutsu among weapon-throwing techniques.
Sarutobi Hiruzen, Orochimaru, and Namikaze Minato all knew this technique.
The second option was also very valuable: the Senju Perception Secret Technique.
Sensor ninjas were treasures, the ones given priority protection within a team.
Hyūga ninja, Inuzuka ninja, and Aburame ninja were the tactical core of many squads.
Perception was Yōkō's weak point.
If he could master a perception secret technique and know the enemy's position in advance, it would undoubtedly be a great help for survival.
The Senju Perception Secret Technique involved placing a finger on the ground and using the earth's vibrations to sense the enemy's direction.
Yōkō also had Earth Release and coveted this secret technique.
The third option was actually the Senju of the Forest Bloodline again.
It was a higher grade than the previous ordinary level, a medium-high grade.
This meant that after choosing this option, his bloodline purity would be on par with a mid-to-high-level Senju clansman, similar to the Senju Kashiwa they were currently pursuing. Barring accidents, he could become a Jōnin around the age of 20.
Yōkō thought about it. Ninjutsu and secret techniques could be obtained later, but bloodline abilities were rare and hard to come by.
The Senju clan was on the verge of extermination. If he didn't choose now, there might be no chance later.
While the squad was resting, Yōkō chose the third option: Senju of the Forest Bloodline.
(End of Chapter)