Warlock Invasion of Naruto.

"How could this be?! Even double barriers couldn't stop the explosive tags?"

Bai Yu had just arrived at Konoha Hospital at noon when he received some terrible news.

Nawaki followed Orochimaru to suppress the wandering ninjas. After the main battle had ended, while pursuing a small group of fleeing enemy ninjas, he recklessly stepped into an explosive tag trap.

Although he did not die on the spot, he was seriously injured and remained unconscious.

They were just sent back to the village.

If Orochimaru hadn't brought Nawaki to Tsunade's location immediately and taken care of him along the way, Nawaki would probably have died on the way.

No one expected that, with Orochimaru's protection, Nawaki would be severely injured and on the verge of death.

Orochimaru probably never expected that Nawaki, after his careful training, would fall into such a low-level trap.

10132205

[Chapter 31. Not destined to be a protagonist, yet...]

Bai Yu quickly ran to the third floor and arrived at the operating room at the corner.

Orochimaru stood quietly outside the operating room door, his Jonin uniform stained with blood.

Although he appeared relatively calm and showed little emotional change, Bai Yu noticed that his fists were clenched very tightly.

Bai Yu approached Orochimaru, bowed respectfully, and asked:

"Lord Orochimaru! How is Nawaki?"

"Tsunade is being treated inside..." Orochimaru replied, his voice unusually hoarse and dry.

Rescue... Bai Yu's heart sank.

The surgery was still ongoing, and the entire corridor was deathly silent.

A short while later, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, rushed over.

"Orochimaru, how is Nawaki? Why did this happen?" Hiruzen Sarutobi's tone was stern, with a hint of accusation.

He never imagined that sending Orochimaru with Nawaki to the relatively safe Land of Rain for training would be a good thing for the former Senju clan's Jonin and ease tensions.

As a result, Nawaki was seriously injured and nearly died right under Orochimaru's nose.

It's important to know that Orochimaru was the disciple on whom he placed high hopes, the strongest contender for the Fourth Hokage, and the best successor in his heart!

Nawaki is also very talented, and most importantly, he is the grandson of the First Hokage, so he may even become the Fifth Hokage in the future.

Although the Senju clan disbanded on the spot, abandoned their surname, and completely assimilated into Konoha, these people are still in Konoha, and they still have a sense of belonging to the Senju clan. This is a rather powerful force.

Although Tsunade and Nawaki also gave up the "Senju" surname, they were still able to gain the support of the original Senju clan ninjas in the village by leveraging the prestige of the First and Second Hokage.

Many of the old members of the Senju clan want to rebuild the Senju clan, and even Nawaki can restore the Senju clan name with just a shout.

Orochimaru came from a commoner ninja family and was highly respected in the village. After taking Nawaki as his disciple, he gained the support of Tsunade and the former Senju clan ninjas.

With the support of the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, even the renowned Sakumo Hatake, the White Fang of Konoha, could not gain an advantage in the competition with Orochimaru.

Now that this has happened, what will the former Thousand Hands clan members think?

Regardless, they bear a considerable responsibility.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's appointment as the Third Hokage was essentially a decision made by the Second Hokage, not one chosen by the majority.

Despite his own efforts and the help of his three companions, he secured the position of Hokage and gained support among commoner ninjas and small and medium-sized clans. However, the two powerful clans, the Hyuga and Uchiha, were still somewhat dissatisfied.

The Uchiha clan, in particular, played a crucial role in the establishment of Konoha through the reconciliation between the Uchiha and Senju clans.

The First Hokage even made a promise to make Madara Uchiha the Second Hokage, but this was later abandoned due to opposition from many people.

However, the Uchiha clan's covetousness for the Hokage position has never ceased.

"It was my oversight," Orochimaru said in a deep voice.

A short while later, the other three Hokage advisors, Koharu Utatane, Homura Mitokado, and Danzo Shimura, also arrived at the operating room door.

At least one-fifth of the Jonin and Chunin of Konoha have intricate connections with the Senju clan.

The death of the rope tree will surely cause a huge uproar in the village.

......

Soon, the indicator light on the operating room door changed from red to green.

The operation is over.

When the operating room door opened, the medical team leader, Minami, and Nonou were the first to come out.

"The Third Generation Lord, the Advisor."

"How is Rope Tree?"

"Shuki is out of danger for now, but his legs... are beyond saving."

At this moment, medical staff wheeled the unconscious Nawaki out of the operating room.

Bai Yu noticed that the lower leg and knee of the rope tree had been cut off.

Although he survived, his ninja career was over.

For ninjas, their hands are the most important; losing even one hand means losing almost all of their ninjutsu.

The advanced technique of forming hand seals with one hand is not common.

Secondly, he lost his leg. If Rope Tree were already an adult, with his body fully developed and his strength reaching a certain level, he could still maintain a certain level of combat power with the help of a prosthetic leg even after losing one leg.

But he is only 12 years old and is in a period of rapid development. In particular, both of his legs are broken, and even his knees have been amputated. He will probably have to use a wheelchair for the rest of his life.

Bai Yu noticed that the bracelet he had given Rope Tree on his wrist had lost its energy field response, indicating that the [Barrier] spell had been activated.

He had done tests and found that if a single explosive tag exploded at close range, two [Barrier] spells stacked together could completely defend against it.

You should know that when an explosive tag explodes at point-blank range, no matter if you are a Jonin or a Kage, if you don't have a strong defensive method, you will be crippled or killed.

As an enchanted item created with a level 0 spell, this level of defense is already quite powerful.

Rope Tree was so badly injured that he must have stepped on multiple explosive tags.

Bai Yu felt somewhat heavy-hearted.

In the face of brutal war, no matter how talented you are or how illustrious your status, once you step onto the battlefield, you only have one life.

We cannot be careless in the slightest.

Bai Yu not only created the demonized items, but he also repeatedly reminded Sheng Shu to be careful during his daily cultivation and before Sheng Shu left.

Although the outcome of Nawaki's death has been changed, this result feels like it has "killed" him.

Limb regeneration is a medical ninjutsu that has yet to be developed in the ninja world.

Even in the wizarding world, low-level wizards cannot do this.

Perhaps Shiraha will find a way later, but it's clear he can't help Rope Tree now.

"Concentrate the best medical resources; we must save Nawaki's life," Hiruzen Sarutobi said in a deep voice. "What about Tsunade?"

"Lady Tsunade is still in the operating room, she..." Minami's face was a little pale, both from exhaustion and heartache for Nawaki, after all, the child was quite lovable.

"Sigh~" The third generation sighed deeply, feeling very troubled.

"Third Hokage, may I go see Tsunade-sensei?" Bai Yu asked softly.

"You?" Hiruzen Sarutobi was taken aback for a moment, then nodded and said, "Go."

These people probably have nothing to offer Tsunade in terms of comfort.

"Orochimaru, come with me," Hiruzen Sarutobi said in a deep voice.

Orochimaru silently followed him away, and Danzo and the others also left together.

Bai Yu took a deep breath and walked into the operating room.

Tsunade was seen leaning against the corner of the wall next to the operating table, her body curled up, covered in blood, trembling slightly, trying to suppress her sobs.

Bai Yu came to Tsunade's side and knelt down.

Hearing the noise, Tsunade slightly raised her head. Her eyes were swollen and as red as a rabbit's.

"Tsunade-sensei, if you want to cry, just cry it out loud, it will make you feel better." Bai Yu gently wiped away Tsunade's tears.

[Obtained the tear of a powerful radiant creature (1/1), Emotional Power complete, meets standards, Quality: Perfect]

This time, however, the information from the "Eye of Truth" did not bring Bai Yu any joy.

"Waaaaah—!" Tsunade let out a piercing scream, looking at Shiroha who looked about the same age as her younger brother, and suddenly hugged him tightly.

......

In the Hokage's office.

"Orochimaru, do you know what the consequences of this will be?!"

"It was my oversight."

Faced with his teacher's questioning, Orochimaru finally stopped suppressing his emotions, his voice filled with regret and self-blame.

"Fortunately, Nawaki survived! Tsunade's emotions are not suitable for returning to the battlefield immediately. You should leave the village right away and go to the front line to lead the troops." Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed.

He couldn't bring himself to be harsh on this disciple on whom he had placed such high hopes. After all, the incident with Nawaki was an accident, and Orochimaru needed to continue to build up his military achievements to make up for his mistakes.

"The people posing as wandering ninjas in the Land of Rain are from the Hidden Cloud Village. I want to go to the Land of Lightning first!"

Orochimaru said in a deep voice.

"What do you want to do?!" Hiruzen Sarutobi exclaimed in surprise. "If we provoke Kumogakure at this time, the situation will deteriorate rapidly once they join the war. The front line needs you to take charge now."

"Jiraiya has already received the message and will be arriving at the front lines soon... I'll be back soon."

Orochimaru's expression turned cold.

"I will make sure that Kumogakure is unable to participate in the war!"

After saying that, he turned and left.

Orochimaru, who always agrees with Hiruzen Sarutobi on important matters.

For the first time, I chose to disobey orders.