I just returned to Konoha and found that my entire clan was gone.

Chapter 23 Reunion with Orochimaru

Ye Lan stopped and looked at Gaara, who was holding a plush toy in one hand.

"Um...can you take that monster away? I'm so scared of it," Gaara said, his eyes brimming with tears.

"If I take it away, you will also lose your life. Instead of being afraid of it, you should think about how to get along with it," Ye Lan said after a moment of silence, and then left Gaara's mental world.

In reality, Gaara gradually transformed from his tailed beast form back to his original appearance, lying peacefully on the ground, having fallen into a deep sleep.

"You bastard, what have you done to Gaara!" Temari, who had been tied up by Shikamaru, woke up and shouted loudly when she saw Gaara's appearance.

Ye Lan: "It's just a genjutsu from the Uchiha clan. I'll just let him sleep for a while."

"Can genjutsu achieve this effect?" Sasuke thought Ye Lan would have to go through a lot of trouble, but he didn't expect that a single genjutsu would directly defeat Gaara.

“This is our clan’s talent. Tailed beasts are not scary to the Uchiha. I will teach you when your Sharingan evolves to the three-tomoe stage.”

Sasuke couldn't help but feel hopeful upon hearing Ye Lan's words; the power of the Uchiha clan was indeed formidable.

"Brother Yelan, shall we go back now?" Xiaoying said, seeing that the mission was complete. She wanted to hurry back to the village to see how it was doing.

"Okay, you take these Sand Village ninjas to find Kakashi. I have some things to take care of." Ye Lan pointed a finger at the ground and used the Chakra Sensing Jutsu once again.

Before anyone could ask what was going on, Ye Lan simply vanished from their sight.

"Honestly, they called us here just to keep watch over us. What a hassle," Shikamaru said, looking at the now-vanished Yelan.

"Stop complaining, Shikamaru. At least Gaara has been dealt with. Let's just do our jobs." Sakura helped Temari up. As a fellow female ninja, it was better for her to watch over Temari.

Orochimaru's chakra was extremely weak, and he was quickly leaving the village. One, two... there were six people in total, including Orochimaru: one Jonin and four Chunin-level chakra users, presumably his subordinates. Ye Lan quickly pursued Orochimaru, not for Konoha's sake, but because he was after Orochimaru's ninjutsu, the Impure World Reincarnation.

Before leaving the venue, Ye Lan witnessed the First and Second Hokage, resurrected through Edo Tensei, conversing with Hiruzen Sarutobi. This revealed that resurrected ninjas possess the consciousness and memories of their previous lives. Therefore, if he were to resurrect deceased members of the Uchiha clan, he could obtain information about the night of the massacre. He was determined to force Orochimaru to hand over this technique.

Orochimaru, his face grim, fled quickly under the cover of his subordinates. His hands hung limply at his sides, as if he had lost all feeling in them. He hadn't expected that Hiruzen Sarutobi had also learned the Fourth Hokage's ninjutsu, sealing a part of his soul into the stomach of a Shinigami. He would never be able to use hand seals again, which would reduce his fighting power by at least half. It seemed that this plan to destroy Konoha had failed.

"Who goes there!" Orochimaru's snake-like vertical pupils suddenly contracted as he sensed a powerful chakra nearby, and he abruptly stopped in his tracks.

Upon hearing this, the Sound Four all picked up their weapons and surrounded Orochimaru in the center, determined to protect him even at the cost of their lives.

Kabuto, standing to the side, adjusted his glasses. Their situation was dire; if they encountered another powerful enemy, they might not survive.

"Orochimaru, we meet again." A ninja emerged from the shadows, his headband casually hanging at his waist, a ninja sword in his hand. It was Uchiha Yoran.

"I didn't expect it to be Ye Lan-kun." Orochimaru stuck out his tongue with interest. He had gathered some information about Ye Lan through Kabuto and knew that the ninja in front of him was Uchiha Shisui's younger brother, Uchiha Ye Lan, who had recently returned to the village.

"What brings you here, Ye Lan? This isn't the place to talk." Orochimaru knew that Ye Lan hadn't attacked him directly because he wanted to talk to him about something, but Orochimaru was impatient and just wanted to leave Konoha as soon as possible.

"I want the Impure World Reincarnation technique." Ye Lan stated his purpose directly.

"As expected, did you see that technique? It seems that Yelan-kun also wants to revive his comrades, after all, what happened to the Uchiha clan." Orochimaru wasn't surprised; anyone would want to master the ability to revive.

Ye Lan: "I have my own methods for using this technique, you don't need to worry about it."

"You bastard!" Seeing Ye Lan's attitude towards Orochimaru, Tayuya's temper flared up.

Thud—

Ye Lan released his chakra, and a black chakra stream burst forth from his body, bringing immense pressure that rendered Tayuya and the others speechless.

"Hand it over and I'll let you pass. If you don't, you should know what will happen to you, Orochimaru!" Ye Lan showed no politeness. He didn't know how the Third Hokage was doing now, but judging from Orochimaru's miserable state, he was afraid the Third Hokage wasn't in much better shape. The enraged Konoha ninjas and Anbu would definitely hunt down Orochimaru, so dragging it out would be advantageous for Ye Lan.

"It's been a long time since anyone has dared to threaten me, kid..." Orochimaru's eyes flashed with ferocity. He had never been so humiliated before, and was even threatened by a junior.

Ye Lan gripped his ninja sword tightly, ready to make his move. Kabuto and the others looked at him nervously. Kabuto knew best that if they fought, the best outcome would be that the four Sound Ninja and he would all die, and Orochimaru was unsure if he could escape.

"and many more!"

Ye Lan's hands were already preparing to form hand seals when Orochimaru suddenly stopped him. He really wasn't confident he could escape Konoha with Ye Lan's obstruction. Moreover, he had already seen Jiraiya's signature toad when he was escaping. If Jiraiya caught up again, he would likely die, which was something he absolutely couldn't accept, given his fear of death.

Orochimaru spat out a scroll from his mouth, gesturing for Kabuto to hand it to Yelan.

"This is the scroll for the Impure World Reincarnation. I hope you will keep your promise." Orochimaru was in a very bad mood.

Ye Lan took the scroll with some disdain, opened it and glanced at it. Although he didn't know the specific method and principle of the Impure World Reincarnation, he could still tell the difference between a genuine and a fake high-level ninjutsu. After seeing that there was nothing unreasonable about it, he put the scroll away and stepped aside.

"Let me remind you, Lord Yelan, that using the Impure World Reincarnation requires a living person as a sacrifice. The stronger the sacrifice, the stronger the resurrected person will be. You should be prepared." Orochimaru said as he passed by Yelan, his mood finally improving after Yelan kept his promise.

Ye Lan didn't say much after hearing this, but simply closed his eyes and pondered.

"I can see that Yelan-kun has no loyalty to Konoha. Why don't you leave Konoha with me?" Orochimaru suddenly became interested. He had a morbid desire for the Sharingan. Yelan was powerful and difficult to subdue, but if he returned to Otogakure with him, he could subtly change Yelan's mind.

"Hmph, Orochimaru, put away that disgusting look of yours. This is my final warning: don't lay a hand on Sasuke." Ye Lan opened his eyes, the three-tomoe Sharingan in his pupils slowly rotating. "Otherwise, I'll kill you no matter where you are."

Chapter 24 Post-War

Ye Lan returned to the village. After Orochimaru fled, Sunagakure suffered repeated defeats, but the village had stabilized the situation. Only then did he learn that the Third Hokage had died in battle.

In the end, he still died as a ninja... Looking at Hiruzen Sarutobi's death, I still feel a little sorry. After all, as the Hokage, he knew best what had happened to the Uchiha clan. He died before he knew a lot of information. Fortunately, he had already obtained the Edo Tensei.

After resting at his residence for a few days, Ye Lan was informed by a ninja that he should attend the funeral of the Third Hokage and other fallen ninjas.

A light drizzle began to fall from the sky, sprinkling softly onto the earth. Ye Lan walked quietly along the road leading to the funeral site, dressed in simple black clothes, which echoed the attire of most people around him, making the whole scene appear even more solemn and dignified.

A solemn atmosphere permeated the funeral scene, with people standing silently in the rain, their faces showing grief and sorrow.

Kakashi quietly approached Ye Lan upon seeing his arrival. "The three genin from Sunagakure have all been imprisoned. We don't know Sunagakure's attitude yet, but war is unlikely to break out. According to the Anbu, Orochimaru killed the Fourth Kazekage before the tournament."

Upon hearing that Orochimaru had defeated the Kazekage, Ye Lan realized that the whole affair was over. He remained silent, pondering who could take on the role of Hokage.

"The village will probably be very busy from now on. I don't have time to teach Sasuke and the other two, so I'm asking you to take care of them for me. Both Naruto and Sasuke are now under the village's protection. The village can't afford any more mistakes," Kakashi said.

Since Hiruzen Sarutobi's death, he hasn't been assigned any new tasks, and the two advisors haven't summoned him either, so Ye Lan has been idle.

"Kakashi, you're the one who should be Naruto and the others' teacher. You always make me take care of the students. You're so irresponsible." Although Ye Lan understood, she still complained.

Kakashi smiled somewhat embarrassedly, "Well, this is a special case. Besides, your official Jonin appointment should be coming soon. You'll be leading other ninjas on missions quite often in the future, so just consider it getting used to it."

He blocked Orochimaru and personally captured the Sand Village's Jinchuriki, bringing him back to the village. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call Ye Lan a hero of Konoha for his role in this attack. The higher-ups didn't specifically publicize it, but the title of Special Jonin was no longer suitable for Ye Lan.

"You make it sound so easy..." Ye Lan really didn't want to cause trouble for himself, so in the end he didn't refuse Kakashi's request.

Leaving the funeral, Ye Lan ran into an acquaintance, Hong Dou.

"Captain," Ye Lan greeted.

"You don't need to call me captain anymore. The Chunin Exams are over and we're not on the same team anymore. Just call me Anko." Anko patted Yelan on the shoulder.

As expected, it was the same as always. Ye Lan silently increased the distance between Dian and Hongdou.

But this person, seemingly oblivious to everything, stepped forward and continued, "Ye Lan, remember we agreed to grab a drink after the Chunin Exams? Are you free tonight?"

"Team... Red Bean, I'm not an adult yet, I can't drink this..." Ye Lan was interrupted by Red Bean before she could finish speaking, "I know you're not an adult, so I can drink juice, right?"

Ye Lan agreed to Hong Dou's suggestion and went to the barbecue restaurant she had mentioned that evening. She'd heard that this restaurant was incredibly popular in Konoha, and you couldn't get a table without a reservation. Perhaps because the village had just experienced a battle, there weren't many people eating barbecue that night.

"Here!" As soon as Ye Lan entered the store, he saw Hong Dou raising her hand to beckon him over. When he went over, he found that there was not only Hong Dou, but also Shiranui Genma, Yamashiro Aoba, Tsutsumi Iwashi, Kamitsuki Izumo, and others.

"You were summoned here by Anko too," Genma greeted him.

Ye Lan nodded, looked around, greeted everyone, and sat down. The group of people were all at least a decade older than him, and he wasn't very familiar with them, so they didn't talk much. Moreover, Ye Lan was the only one with the juice, so he didn't take the initiative to talk to anyone.

"Speaking of which, with the Third Hokage gone this time, I wonder who will become Hokage..." said Yamashiro Aoba, who was quite drunk.

“That’s not something you or I can worry about. The village still needs to function, and it’s time for us to get busy,” Izumo Kamitsuki chimed in.

"I heard the advisors wanted Jiraiya-sama to become Hokage, but he refused. I really don't know who can take on this responsibility," said Genma, who was more well-informed as the Hokage's bodyguard.

"Even Jiraiya, one of the legendary Sannin, is unwilling to become Hokage. I wonder who could be suitable?" Kotetsu was also quite drunk.

"Lord Jiraiya probably wants to bring Lady Tsunade back to the village. Lady Tsunade is perfectly capable of becoming Hokage." Anko's face was flushed.

Izumo Kamui said, "Lady Tsunade has been gone from the village for so long, and no one knew where she was. How could she have been found so easily?"

Listening to his colleagues' conversation, Ye Lan didn't interrupt until the group had drunk quite a bit before the gathering ended.

In the days that followed, Ye Lan led Naruto and the other two on some D-rank or C-rank missions issued by the village. These missions were all carried out around the village and did not go too far away. In their spare time, Ye Lan led them to train at the training ground.

Sakura's strength surprised Naruto and Sasuke. In close combat, neither of them could withstand more than a few punches from Sakura. Sakura continued to practice the ninjutsu taught by Ye Lan, while Sasuke perfected his use of Chidori. At this point, Naruto began to feel unhappy.

"Brother Yelan! Teach me some powerful ninjutsu too!" Seeing Sakura become stronger under Yelan's guidance, Naruto also wanted to learn new ninjutsu.

"Haven't you already mastered using the Nine-Tails' chakra? Why are you still learning ninjutsu? Just continue to train your control over it," Ye Lan said idly from the side.

"But I also want to learn the Chidori ninjutsu!" Although he didn't want to admit it, Sasuke's Chidori looked much cooler.

"The key is that I don't know how to use Chidori either." Chidori Yoru could barely use it, but he didn't have the right to teach Kakashi a ninjutsu that wasn't his own. Besides, this technique was less useful to him than using a ninja sword.

"Then teach me some other cool ninjutsu!" Naruto kept shaking Ye Lan's arm, just like a little kid.

"Naruto! Stop bothering Ye Lan!" Sakura said when she saw Naruto's expression.

"Tch, so biased. They teach Sasuke and Sakura but not me," Naruto muttered, pursing his lips.

"Hey, take this." Ye Lan had no choice but to hand Naruto a chakra paper.

"What's going on?" Naruto asked, puzzled.

"This is a chakra paper, you idiot. Brother Yelan is testing what kind of chakra you have before he teaches you anything!" Sakura explained from the side.

Sasuke stopped his training and looked over when he saw Naruto take the chakra paper. He was also quite curious about what kind of talent Naruto had.

As soon as Naruto injected his chakra, the paper split in two.

"Huh, what's going on?" Naruto stared blankly at the paper in his hand.

"It's wind. You actually have chakra similar to mine." Ye Lan said, looking at the chakra paper that had been split in two. "Wind Release is the most powerful ninjutsu, and it's also a very difficult attribute to master. I happen to be quite good at Wind Release. Naruto, do you want to learn it?"

Chapter 25 Old Friends

"If Lightning Release has the strongest piercing power, then Wind Release has the strongest cutting ability among ninjutsu. Once mastered, it can cut through anything." Ye Lan said, condensing a ball of chakra in his hand. Then, under Naruto's astonished gaze, he swung it, and a wind blade appeared in his hand, directly cutting down several trees in the training ground.

"Wow, that's amazing!" Naruto's eyes lit up. "Brother Yelan, I want to learn that!"

“Reaching this level isn’t something that can be done in a short time. First, you need to fully master the nature and form transformations of Wind Release…” Ye Lan’s gaze sharpened as he turned to look behind him. “Who is it!”

"Hey! No need to be so nervous!" A middle-aged man with white hair wearing a headband with the character "oil" on it stepped out. He waved his hand and said, "I'm here to see Naruto. Kakashi said he's been with you lately."

"Perverted Sage, what brings you here?" Seeing that Naruto recognized Jiraiya, Ye Lan lowered his guard. He looked at the other's face and felt that it was somewhat familiar.

"How many times have I told you! Stop calling me the Perverted Sage! Call me Lord Jiraiya! Kid! I've come to see you because I have something to do. Are you coming with me?" Jiraiya said, looking at Naruto.

"What is it?" Naruto knew that Jiraiya was a womanizer, but he also knew that Jiraiya was a very powerful ninja.

Jiraiya, he is one of the legendary Sannin who are on par with Orochimaru. No wonder his appearance feels familiar. Compared to the information in the library, he is much older. Ye Lan thought to himself, but his personality is completely different from Orochimaru's.