Being a rogue ninja is worse than being Hokage.

Tsunade answered.

As the Hokage, she knew more than anyone else.

Six years ago, when Naruto was ten years old, Danzo Shimura disregarded the orders of the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, and attacked Naruto with the aim of regaining control of the Nine-Tails.

Although Tsunade did not investigate how Danzo attacked Naruto, it is certain that the source of Naruto's resentment towards Konoha was that incident.

It was after that accident that Naruto, who had survived the ordeal, began to hide himself and deceive everyone in Konoha at the time.

But perhaps... everyone except Danzo.

Three years ago, when Orochimaru invaded Konoha, the movements of Danzo's "Root" organization became extremely strange.

Tsunade once discussed this matter with Jiraiya.

From Tsunade and Jiraiya's perspective, although they are reluctant to admit it, Naruto's extreme defection three years ago may also be related to Danzo.

Even so, as the Hokage, Tsunade would naturally put the village first.

Three years ago, Jiraiya and Sakura approached her and invited her to succeed as the Fifth Hokage. Tsunade's motivation was not entirely due to being moved by Sakura's words.

Deep in her heart, she still cherishes the dream of her deceased younger brother and lover to become Hokage.

As a disciple of the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, Tsunade inherited the Will of Fire from the Third Hokage. Even though she loathed Konoha's decision, she still longed for this dreamland that was adorned with blood and tears and protected by the bonds she had lost.

There are also children in the village, just like Rope Tree and Broken Tree back then.

Tsunade is looking forward to Sakura's growth and is willing to make an exception for Sasuke and Naruto for Sakura's sake.

but……

The Hokage has to make sacrifices for the sake of the village.

If Naruto Uzumaki's decision to defect from Konoha stemmed from the darkness that Konoha could not eliminate on its own, then the root cause lies in the fact that Konoha was unable to eradicate it on its own.

As long as the darkness of Konoha persists, no one can guarantee that Naruto, who hates this darkness, won't bring pain to Konoha again, just like he did three years ago.

Especially now.

Tsunade's gaze was fixed on Kakashi's empty left eye socket, which was covered by his eyelid.

Naruto's act of taking Kakashi's Sharingan once again threatened Konoha's interests.

The strength Naruto displayed when he reappeared before the world three years later showed that he was no longer the same person who could only choose to flee in a sorry state and live a lowly life three years ago.

Kakashi himself is a sensitive person. He usually covers most of his face with a mask and headband, appearing indifferent but actually having a sharp mind.

Tsunade's expression had already given him a clue as to the decision made by the Konoha leadership.

"I see. No wonder you let Sakura leave first."

"I only delayed the time it took for her to know the decision; as a ninja of Konoha, she couldn't be kept in the dark about it in the end."

Tsunade abandoned her previous friendly demeanor and demonstrated her resolve as Hokage.

"Naruto Uzumaki's act of taking your eyes is not only believed by Konoha's advisory group, but Jiraiya and I also agree that he still harbors strong hostility towards Konoha."

"His current cooperation with Sasuke Uchiha may affect Sasuke Uchiha's mind, which originally had the possibility of returning, and make Sasuke Uchiha join him in being hostile to Konoha."

Sharingan and Jinchuriki...

If either of these combinations is not handled carefully, it could bring utter destruction to Konoha.

Tsunade took a deep breath and finally announced Konoha's decision regarding their future treatment of Naruto and Sasuke:

"Konoha will now begin preparations to reclaim the Nine-Tails. As for Uchiha Sasuke, if he resists Konoha during this process, he will also be classified as a rogue ninja, regardless of whether he lives or dies."

Chapter 42 Research on the Corpse Sealing Technique

After receiving information about Orochimaru's death and Naruto's act of taking Kakashi's Sharingan.

Perhaps Danzo Shimura also encouraged two other Konoha advisors, Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado, who were just as old as him, to put pressure on the Hokage faction.

In short, under all circumstances, Konoha decided to no longer treat Naruto and Sasuke, who had left Konoha, with a "gentle" attitude.

Naruto and Sasuke are currently unaware of this decision.

Let's leave aside what Sasuke might be thinking for now.

Even if Naruto knew, he wouldn't care too much.

If the Nine-Tails and the Sharingan were to team up, and Naruto were Danzo, Naruto would also feel anxious and take immediate action in the face of this undesirable situation.

This was a situation that Naruto had anticipated from the beginning. As long as he reappeared in Konoha's sight, Danzo's heart, which had been forced to restrain itself due to the loss of information about Naruto, would naturally be restless again.

Rather than focusing on this situation which he had already prepared for, Naruto's main concern now lay in receiving Orochimaru's legacy.

No wonder Orochimaru conspired with Danzo in the original story and knew many of Danzo's secrets.

Even someone as eager as Danzo to eliminate all threats was unwilling to kill Orochimaru.

At this moment, I look at the various research legacies left behind by Orochimaru after his death.

Naruto clearly recognized that Orochimaru's "wisdom" regarding "research" was irreplaceable in the entire ninja world.

Orochimaru's ninjutsu skills are undeniable and stand out in the entire ninja world.

Orochimaru's talent in ninjutsu is merely the superficial impression seen by those who do not understand him. Those who truly understand Orochimaru's actions do not pay too much attention to his ninjutsu skills, but rather to his vast amount of research data.

Danzo wanted to kill Orochimaru, which would be time-consuming and laborious, but it was not impossible.

However, killing Orochimaru is easy, but obtaining this research data is not so simple.

"Are you looking at these documents again? Are they still documents about the Sharingan of the Uchiha clan?"

Karin's questioning voice came from behind Naruto, who was standing in front of the laboratory table.

No, I'm just browsing.

Naruto shifted his gaze from the research scroll spread out on the table to Karin, who had moved closer to stand beside him. "Speaking of which, how much of Orochimaru's research on the Sharingan have you figured out?"

"I've used Shadow Clone Jutsu to speed up my memorization and I've almost finished reading it. The theories and logic expounded in those studies are not difficult to understand. Orochimaru's research materials are written in a way that is easy to understand. Even an ordinary person who knows nothing can understand the general idea."

Karin and Naruto exchanged a glance. After hesitating for a moment, she decided to tell Naruto her concerns: "The difficulty lies in the actual operation, Naruto. I can't guarantee that when we're actually preparing to transplant the Sharingan into you, it will be as 'smooth' as ​​reading the research data."

“I’m not in a hurry to equip myself with the Sharingan right now,” Naruto smiled. “Besides, I have great faith in your abilities; I’m sure you’ll find a way to make the surgery go smoothly.”

Sensing Naruto's trust in her, Karin turned her head away, no longer looking into his eyes. Her face slightly flushed, she raised a hand to push up her glasses and said in a strained tone, "Praising me too much won't work! But of course I'll do my best to help you, so don't worry about that!"

Since Naruto was willing to entrust her with his trust, Karin would naturally make a promise in return.

Naruto understood Karin's concerns and reiterated his advice to her not to overthink things:

"As I just said, there's no rush to install the Sharingan, so you can take your time to adjust your mindset and prepare at your own pace."

However, the best way to get rid of these random thoughts is to shift your focus, so Naruto changed the subject: "How is Sasuke doing? Karin."

"The snake venom secreted by Orochimaru resonated with the cursed seal of his 'Reanimation Jutsu,' making it unexpectedly difficult to deal with, but I have completely removed those toxins."

"But... is the current Uchiha Sasuke really him?"

Although Karin has properly dealt with the snake venom, the harm caused by the venom is not important. What is important is the impact of the "Reanimation Jutsu" triggered by the venom on the reincarnation vessel chosen by Orochimaru.

"Orochimaru is not at his peak. His current power is insufficient to take over Sasuke's body. There is no doubt that the current Sasuke is the real one."

Naruto was quite certain about this, and Orochimaru himself knew that he couldn't directly take over Sasuke's body right now, so he used the cursed seal to lurk inside Sasuke's body.

If it weren't for Itachi Uchiha, Orochimaru might have actually been able to possess Sasuke's body as he wished.

Since Naruto was so certain, Karin stopped thinking about it.

"But I never expected that Orochimaru, one of the Legendary Sannin, would actually be a snake in his true form."

Karin recalled the image of Orochimaru, who had abandoned his human form and transformed into a white-scaled serpent after being betrayed by Sasuke and driven to the brink of despair.

A giant white snake, with scales that are reversed, resembling a small white snake.

A snake made of snakes.

He's a monster among monsters.

Karin hated Orochimaru's true form; when she sensed Orochimaru's chakra, she felt utterly disgusted.

That kind of disgust is like...

"Anyway, thank you for your hard work during this time."

Before Karin could come up with a specific adjective, Naruto's words of comfort interrupted her thoughts.

Karin is indeed working very hard. She is the only proper medical ninja here. She has to treat the snake venom that Sasuke inhaled when he killed Orochimaru, and also help Naruto study the information about the Sharingan left behind by Orochimaru.

Unable to reconnect with her thoughts, Karin stopped thinking about the now-dead Orochimaru and returned the topic to the research data Naruto was currently looking at:

"Speaking of which, this guy named Orochimaru seems to research everything. His research materials cover a wide range of topics, to the point of being chaotic... Since it's not research material about the Sharingan, what are you looking at now?"

"The physical structure of the Hozuki clan."

Naruto was indeed just browsing casually. Just as Karin said, Orochimaru's research was so extensive that it was chaotic, and his research from different periods was scattered across different bases.

"Hozuki? Is he from that pool of water?"

The "puddle of water" that Karin mentioned refers to Hozuki Suigetsu, the first member of Sasuke's "Hawk" squad in the original work.

Although Karin is now free from Orochimaru's control because of Naruto, she and Suigetsu Hozuki are fundamentally incompatible, and their first meeting was fraught with conflict.

However, these were all minor incidents, so Naruto and Sasuke didn't bother with them.

As for why Orochimaru's stronghold, where Hozuki Suigetsu was imprisoned, was the location?

That's because Sasuke, who values ​​not killing indiscriminately, didn't deal with other people who might leak information after killing Orochimaru, so the news of Orochimaru's death couldn't be kept secret.

So after killing Orochimaru, they immediately changed their hiding place.

This base was chosen by Sasuke; his target was Hozuki Suigetsu, who was located within it.

The reason, of course, is to find assistance in dealing with the Akatsuki organization.

Will you stay here for a while longer?

Karin squinted at the research materials on the table, then lost interest in them, instead asking Naruto about his next move with great curiosity.

"Well, I'm going to finish reading all the research materials on the Corpse Sealing Technique that I only read halfway through when we moved the base."

Naruto has no intention of leaving the laboratory for the time being; he may stay for a while longer.

"I'll rest here for a while. If you're about to leave, remember to wake me up."