Warlock Invasion of Naruto.

From then on, they had no choice but to part ways with Konoha.

Orochimaru took one last deep look at the location of Konoha, then continued heading north.

His first stop was the Land of Fields.

Orochimaru continued to move through the forest and soon saw a tight security perimeter at the border.

He took out a scroll from his robes, formed hand seals, and cast a summoning jutsu, preparing to summon the snake responsible for communication and reconnaissance to bypass Konoha's defenses.

He didn't want to indiscriminately kill Konoha ninjas when he left.

Of course, the most important thing is not to attract attention and get surrounded.

Bang!

A yellowish-brown snake emerged from the smoke, coiled around Orochimaru's arm, and opened its mouth wide.

"Ok?"

Orochimaru's expression changed. The moment the yellowish-brown snake opened its mouth, several explosive tags stacked together inside detonated instantly.

boom--!

Orochimaru managed to escape immediately, but was still injured by the explosive tags.

The tan-colored communication snake was shattered into pieces by the explosion, while Orochimaru's right arm hung limply, blood dripping continuously.

"The Third Hokage!" Orochimaru's eyes showed disbelief.

This communication snake was one he frequently used during his campaigns, and he often used it to communicate with the Third Hokage. So he had just summoned it out of habit. He hadn't expected that the Third Hokage had set up an explosive tag trap in the snake's mouth beforehand, which would explode as soon as he summoned it.

The third generation actually wanted to kill him!

Or rather, the bond between master and disciple was completely severed!

Orochimaru's face quickly darkened.

The commotion caused by the explosion attracted the attention of the Konoha ninja on patrol. Orochimaru's eyes flashed with murderous intent, and he quickly retreated, clutching his lowered right arm.

However, he was quickly caught up by Konoha ninjas.

The visitor was none other than Kakashi, who had distinguished himself in the Battle of Kannabi Bridge.

After receiving the Sharingan from Obito before his death, Kakashi's swordsmanship improved even further, and his strength increased significantly in just two months.

"It's you!" Orochimaru looked at Kakashi, who had suddenly appeared and blocked the road, his expression turning cold, and a powerful killing intent was released.

"Orochimaru, come back with me."

Kakashi's expression tightened, and he drew the White Fang short sword from his back. As he infused it with Lightning Release chakra, the blade instantly turned silver-white, with faint arcs of electricity flashing across it. At the same time, Kakashi removed his headband, revealing the two-tomoe Sharingan in his left eye.

"With your half-baked Sharingan and swordsmanship, do you think you can defeat me?" Orochimaru said coldly, slowly walking towards Kakashi. If he could, he certainly wouldn't want to lay a hand on Sakumo's child, but that was up to Kakashi's own choice.

"Stop!" Kakashi took a small half-step back, gripped the White Fang short sword tightly, took a deep breath, and felt a stream of energy rise from his lower abdomen. After merging with his chakra, it flowed to his limbs, and a powerful force appeared throughout his body.

Noticing the change in Kakashi's aura, Orochimaru's golden vertical pupils narrowed slightly, and he paused for a moment, but continued walking towards Kakashi.

Just as the battle was about to break out, a gentle voice suddenly rang out from beside the two: "Kakashi, drawing your sword against your elders, that's not something Sakumo-senpai taught you, is it?"

"Ok?"

"Who goes there?!"

Kakashi and Orochimaru were both startled and looked eastward. They saw a black-haired man dressed in white standing on a treetop not far away. It was none other than Shiroba, whom they had not seen for a long time.

"Bai Yu?"

"Senior Bai Yu!"

The tense atmosphere vanished instantly, and Bai Yu flashed to Orochimaru's side.

He raised his hand and reached towards Orochimaru's injured right arm.

Orochimaru narrowed his eyes and clenched his fists instantly, but then relaxed them again.

Feeling the gentle chakra gradually emanating from the wound on his right arm, Orochimaru asked in a deep voice, "How did you end up here?"

"When I heard that Orochimaru-sensei had left Konoha, I was so excited I wanted to celebrate, so I came to find you right away. How about it? If you haven't decided where to go yet, why don't you come and stay with our Uzumaki clan for a while?"

While treating Orochimaru, Bai Yu asked with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Orochimaru's eyes flickered, and the corners of his downturned mouth turned up slightly, but in the end he shook his head and refused Bai Yu.

"Never mind then, but you're always welcome to visit me." Bai Yu wasn't particularly disappointed, since he had always thought that Orochimaru was unlikely to agree immediately, especially in this situation where he could be considered down on his luck.

Orochimaru fell silent, then nodded: "Mm."

"Yes, the wound has been treated for now. Don't move around too much for a while. You should be able to fully recover in about a week."

After Bai Yu used his palm-wielding technique to heal Orochimaru's external injuries, he applied ointment and then bandaged him up.

"Hmm," Orochimaru said calmly.

At this moment, Bai Yu turned to look at Kakashi and saw him holding the White Fang short sword, standing there in a daze. He then asked, "Kakashi, what are you doing? Aren't you tired of holding that sword?"

"Hmm...Hmm?" Kakashi was taken aback, and quickly stopped his chakra output, sheathing the White Fang short sword.

Bai Yu said with a smile, "Kakashi, give me some face and just pretend we never met today, okay?"

Kakashi fell silent.

Seeing this, Bai Yu continued, "Otherwise, you don't think you can beat Orochimaru just because he's injured, do you?"

"I really have no chance of winning," Kakashi said.

Bai Yu: "Or are you going to fight the two of us now?"

Kakashi looked embarrassed: "Senior Shiraha, you're joking. I just wanted to spar with Orochimaru at first to see the difference between me and a top-tier ninja."

"You've made quite a bit of progress; you should have mastered the breathing technique I taught you by now. However, there's a significant problem with your current state. The Sharingan can't be shut down, which will continuously drain your energy and chakra, making it unsuitable for you. You should be able to feel the increasing burden on your body at all times, which is not good for your future development."

Bai Yu, having obtained information about Kakashi's condition through the Kodama incarnation Uchiha Issei, immediately recognized his problem.

"This is a gift from a friend," Kakashi nodded. He also sensed something was amiss, but he valued Obito's sentiment.

"Alright, Orochimaru and I will head out first. I'll come back to you in a while and see if I can help you solve this problem," Bai Yu said.

Kakashi: "Thank you, Senior Shiraha."

"Then we're off!" Bai Yu waved his hand and turned to look at Orochimaru.

Orochimaru glanced at Kakashi with a cold expression, then left with Shiraha.

Kakashi remained where he was, looking somewhat embarrassed.

10132316

[Chapter 142. A Kaleidoscope for Two]

Bai Yu accompanied Orochimaru all the way to the Land of Rice Fields, where they were secretly received by the daimyo of the Land of Rice Fields.

During this period, Bai Yu did not try to recruit Orochimaru again, since they had a considerable understanding of each other.

Bai Yu knew that even if he offered the most favorable terms, Orochimaru was unlikely to agree.

As for some of the most core secrets, the only person Bai Yu could trust was Kushina, so he couldn't possibly reveal things like breathing techniques and meditation methods.

Moreover, his desire to recruit Orochimaru stemmed not only from his appreciation of Orochimaru's abilities and research skills, but also primarily from their past mentor-student relationship, as Orochimaru had indeed treated him very well in the past.

At this time, deep within the mansion of the daimyo of the land of fields, there was a secluded courtyard.

This place is usually reserved by the daimyo of the Land of Rice Fields for extremely distinguished guests. When Hiruko came to the Land of Rice Fields before, he did not stay here.

However, Orochimaru was different. Even after learning that he had defected from Konoha, his importance in the eyes of the Daimyo of the Land of Rice Fields did not diminish in the slightest.

In the courtyard, Bai Yu and Orochimaru sat on the veranda, leisurely drinking tea.

After hearing Orochimaru's explanation of the defection, Bai Yu raised an eyebrow, put down his teacup, and said, "So... it's very likely that Danzo framed you! After all, if he kicks you out of the game, he'll be only one step away from becoming the Fourth Hokage."

"Why don't you explain to the Third Hokage?" Bai Yu asked. Seeing Orochimaru remain silent, he then gave a self-deprecating smile. "That's true. How can I explain something like this? Knowing the Third Hokage as I do, he would definitely assume immediately that you did it on purpose."

Orochimaru turned to look at the old tree in the yard, its leaves withered, his eyes somewhat somber.

"This matter is related to what happened with Sakumo..." Bai Yu continued, but after noticing Orochimaru's expression, he stopped talking.

Using one's own village's ninjas for experiments is indeed extremely heinous. Even if Orochimaru was framed, he still bears undeniable responsibility. However, like the Sakumo incident, this matter can be considered a minor or major issue.

As long as public opinion leans towards saving his comrades over completing the mission, Sakumo will naturally not commit suicide due to the collapse of his faith.

Similarly, the Third Hokage first imprisoned Orochimaru, then investigated the matter, and finally punished Orochimaru accordingly.

To be realistic, given Orochimaru's reputation in Konoha and his importance to the village, even if this matter were to come to light and his reputation were severely damaged, most ninjas would still choose to forgive him.

Because a Kage-level ninja like him is worth countless Jonin, Chunin, and Genin.

Of course, guiding public opinion is very important.

The Third Hokage probably made a judgment on Orochimaru in his mind as soon as he saw that scene, which is why Orochimaru was completely disheartened and decided to betray Konoha.

"So what are you planning to do in the future? Will you stay in the Land of Fields?" Bai Yu changed the subject.

Orochimaru snapped out of his daze and said, "I will continue to develop forbidden techniques. I will go wherever it is safe. Danzo will not let me off easily, after all, I know too many of his secrets."

"Exploring the unknown is indeed fascinating, but I hope you can stick to your principles and not harm innocent people because of this incident..." Bai Yu nodded slightly, not finishing his sentence, but he knew Orochimaru understood what he meant.

What Orochimaru was like in the original work has nothing to do with the current Bai Yu. He only knows that the Orochimaru he knows is a person who is cold on the outside but warm on the inside. At the very least, he is not a ninja who kills innocent people indiscriminately and has no humanity.

Bai Yu didn't want Orochimaru to become like the character in the original story because of this incident.

"If I really wanted to find test subjects, many people would volunteer," Orochimaru said calmly, but there was a hint of dissatisfaction in his eyes, as if he was blaming Bai Yu for thinking of him that way.

“Indeed.” Bai Yu nodded. If Orochimaru were to run a pyramid scheme, those people from his previous life would probably be doomed. The key is that even if he were to do something dangerous, if he made the dangers clear beforehand, there would probably be a lot of people willing to become test subjects.

It's not that those people are the problem, but in this damned chaotic world, many people will stop at nothing to become stronger, and they're not even afraid of death.

"In that case, I'm relieved and will get ready to go back now."

Bai Yu stood up with a smile.

Orochimaru also stood up, looked at Bai Yu, and slowly said, "Don't you want to know what forbidden technique I'm researching? This is a true eternal technique. Once successfully developed, it can grant immortality. Aren't you interested?"

“I’m very interested, but while eternity may exist in this world, there is no true eternal technique. Every ninjutsu has its flaws and is never absolutely perfect,” Bai Yu said seriously, but then added in a joking tone, “Besides, even if you do successfully develop the so-called eternal technique, if it takes too long, I might be dead by then.”

"You're underestimating me?!" Orochimaru said with a stern face, "In ten years at most, I will be able to successfully develop the Eternal Technique. Don't regret it then!"

"Then I'll definitely develop even more powerful techniques, and you'll definitely want to trade with me," Bai Yu chuckled.