At this point in time, the external environment had once again entered a phase where there was friction and conflict, but it was largely a period of peace. As for the internal situation of Konohagakure...
In the original history, the Uchiha clan would have started to stir. After they gained the power of the Konoha Military Police Force, they would have felt that although the power was great, in essence, it was just like being a 'security captain' who was mainly responsible for 'miscellaneous tasks' and was unable to enter the decision-making department.
Because of this, they would have continued to vie for power. After the two powerful figures of the Senju clan had passed away and there was no one left to suppress the power of the Uchiha clan, they would have once again challenged the Hokage Residence, the center of power.
This series of messy events would have caused the relationship between the two sides to become increasingly strained, leading to the Third Hokage, Hiruzen's approval of them to plummet.
At the same time, it would have made another shady figure, Danzō, feel even more certain that his teacher, the Second Hokage, Tobirama, was right—the Uchiha clan was an unstable and dangerous factor.
This would have further intensified the rate of Danzō's descent into darkness, leading to the Third Hokage's inaction towards the Uchiha clan and Danzō's series of manipulative schemes, which ultimately led to the tragic downfall of the Uchiha clan.
However, the situation was different now. The internal atmosphere of Konohagakure was still very harmonious. After all, not only had Hashirama not passed away, but he was also enjoying himself in the capital. The Second Hokage, Tobirama, also didn't die on the battlefield and was still living in seclusion in Konohagakure, acting as a behind-the-scenes master.
In addition, the Senju clan wasn't 'without a successor.' That guy Hibari was getting more and more powerful. He had made a big name for himself in the war, and his presence was showing signs of developing into the third great hero of the Senju clan.
So, although the Uchiha clan still felt that the power they held was a bit useless, they didn't dare to be too aggressive. At most, they would offer some suggestions and use more gentle methods to see if they could get more benefits.
Up to now, most of the clans in Konohagakure, with the exception of the rebellious Uchiha clan, had begun to change their strategies. They were learning from the Senju clan by putting the interests of the village before the interests of their own clan, or at the very least, they were tying the interests of their clan and the village together.
Even the stubborn Hyuga clan, through the Mitsumine Group, had become more closely intertwined with Konohagakure and the Senju clan. Therefore, as long as the Uchiha clan didn't cause any trouble, Konoha would still be very stable.
Because of Konoha's stability, which meant there were no messes or jokes being made, and because the war had ended, and they had even formed an alliance with the Kumogakure, the Mitsumine Group once again shifted its business focus back to Konohagakure.
After all, this was the Mitsumine Group's home base. The relationships with all levels of government were in place, so they wouldn't be intentionally made to suffer for anything.
As soon as the Mitsumine Group's focus returned, the entire economy of Konoha once again boomed. A large number of merchants from all over the country and other nations gathered here, hoping to make a fortune.
Early the next morning, Orochimaru packed his things and came to the vicinity of the Mitsumine Group's merchant guild. Looking at the bustling scene of people coming and going, he felt a bit emotional.
He considered himself a genius, but compared to the 'monster' that was Hibari, he was still far behind. Not to mention his talent as a shinobi, the contributions he had made to Konohagakure at such a young age were something he could never catch up to. He knew that when Hibari was his age, he had already founded this formidable Mitsumine Group.
Just as Orochimaru was looking at this scene, Hitenn Hyuga, the Anbu's Deputy Commander, appeared next to him without him noticing.
Hitenn could be said to have been tormented by Hibari. As a Deputy Commander, he was used as the Commander all day. He had to arrange everything, big and small, in the Anbu, and it almost worked him to death. Fortunately, the post-war work was finally done, and the Anbu had also found and eliminated the traitors who had betrayed the village during the war.
As a result, the Anbu didn't have much to do, and Hitenn had only just recently been able to relax a little.
"Orochimaru, you're going to the Land of Hot Water to find Commander Hibari, right?" Hitenn suddenly asked.
When Orochimaru heard his voice, he wasn't surprised at all. Instead, he said calmly, "Hyuga-dono, that's correct."
"Good. The Third Hokage has already informed me of this and told me to arrange for you to join the Mitsumine Group's supply convoy. This is a letter from me. With this letter, you'll be able to successfully join the convoy and head to the Land of Hot Water." Hitenn nodded, then took out a letter from his wide sleeve and handed it to Orochimaru.
Orochimaru politely accepted the letter, then said, "Thank you, Hyuga-dono. It's a bother for you to have to come here yourself."
Hitenn waved his hand, then said, "Don't be so polite. You're the disciple of the Third Hokage, and I have a very good personal relationship with the Third Hokage, so helping you out is no big deal. At the same time, Commander Hibari also likes you very much, and by association, my impression of you is also very good. I hope you can become an excellent shinobi and a source of pride for our Konoha."
Listening to Hitenn's words, Orochimaru once again felt the specialness of his identity. It was really good to have two powerful backers.
Hitenn Hyuga, as the Anbu's Deputy Commander and the young master of the great Hyuga clan, was said to be on the verge of becoming the head of the clan soon. For him to be so friendly to a person of commoner birth truly made Orochimaru happy.
"I will remember your teachings, Hyuga-dono," Orochimaru said.
Hitenn also nodded, then looked at Orochimaru with his Byakugan and said again, "Also, I have a personal favor to ask of you this time."
Orochimaru didn't even think and just said, "Please tell me, Hyuga-dono..."
It was no joke. Not to mention that Hitenn was a good friend of his master and Hibari, just his identity alone meant that if he asked Orochimaru for something, he couldn't refuse.
"It's nothing major. I just want you to pass on a message to Commander Hibari for me. Tell him that in three months, I will be fulfilling my marriage contract and holding a wedding at the Hyuga clan's estate. After that, I will officially take over as the head of the Hyuga clan. I hope Commander Hibari will be able to come. Also, it's been a long time, and I miss him very much. I look forward to his early return to have a chat." Hitenn said in a very serious manner.
Orochimaru was stunned to hear this, then nodded and said, "Please rest assured, Hyuga-dono. I will pass on this message to Hibari-dono."
"Thank you very much. I heard that you like to research ninjutsu. These are some copies of our Hyuga clan's collection. They don't have much meaning staying at home. The journey is long, so I'll give them to you to pass the time. I hope you can gain something from them and help Konoha solve its problems early." Hitenn said, and at the same time, he took out a small scroll and handed it to Orochimaru.
After Orochimaru reached out to take it, Hitenn nodded kindly at him, then turned and left.
Orochimaru looked at the scroll in his hand and then at Hitenn's back, and murmured softly, "This is the Konoha that the older generation expects... right?"
Of course, this 'older generation' was in reference to young shinobi like Orochimaru. In reality, Hitenn and the others were still very young.
But it seemed that in this simple scroll, Orochimaru felt a heavy sentiment being conveyed.
In the eyes and hearts of most of these 'older' yet still young shinobi who had experienced the war and the difficult early days of Konoha, Konohagakure was above all else. Hitenn was like this, Kagami was like this, Danzō was like this, Sakumo was also like this, and it could even be said that for Hibari, he was also like this now.
Therefore, they greatly admired those who were talented and had contributed to Konohagakure, and Orochimaru was one of them. Because of this, they would help wherever they could, without expecting anything in return. Perhaps this was a noble spirit of this generation of Konoha shinobi.
And after this, the greatest contribution of the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, during his tenure was none other than continuously summarizing and consolidating these spiritual strengths, extracting their essence, and finally condensing a spiritual heritage called the 'Will of Fire.' And this 'Will of Fire' has, since then, influenced generations of Konoha shinobi and even the people of Konoha!
As the saying goes, where the leaf dances, the fire burns on!
It was precisely because of this 'Will of Fire' that Konohagakure was able to stand tall in the shinobi world for so many years and cultivate one outstanding shinobi after another!
Although this will had not yet been summarized by Hiruzen and had not yet been condensed into an essence to be passed down, the simple act that Hitenn had just performed made Orochimaru, a smart and mature person, feel a hint of this meaning within it.
This made Orochimaru feel a little emotional and had a somewhat transformative effect on him.
With Hitenn's letter and arrangements, Orochimaru quickly joined the Mitsumine Group's supply convoy heading to the Land of Hot Water. There was no delay. Perhaps because Hibari was rushing them, the supply team set off quickly after getting everything ready.
Orochimaru... was embarking on a journey out of the village, and even out of the country, for the first time. He probably didn't realize at this moment that he would later wander the world, bringing harm to countless people and things.
At the same time, in the Undercity in the Land of Hot Water, Hibari was also researching and refining the details of his Shiryōjutsu.
In Hibari's view, this Shiryōjutsu could be developed into three main branches.
The first branch would be secret jutsu related to 'dark immortality,' similar to the 'immortal body' or 'Jiongu jutsu.' From this, a series of derivatives could be created. If he had the chance, he could even trick that kid Orochimaru into joining him and incorporate his 'Immortality Technique' and other things into it, thus enriching and strengthening this branch of ninjutsu and secret jutsu.
The second branch would be to continuously expand on the 'corpse jutsu' branch by using the Skeleton Revival Jutsu and Walking Corpse Jutsu that he had developed. In the end, he could use the perfected Edo Tensei as the ultimate secret jutsu of this branch.
If Hibari remembered correctly, there was also a forbidden jutsu in Earth Release called 'Ultimate Revival Jutsu: Soil Bodies,' which could also control the dead, and a ninjutsu that was a bit similar to Edo Tensei but was actually a lower-quality version called 'Earth Release: Reincarnation Jutsu.'
These two jutsu were used by a guy who was one of the Twelve Guardian Shinobi later on. And if there were no surprises, this jutsu should have been in the Daimyō's palace. If he had the chance in the future, Hibari could go and get it to check it out. He could also enrich this 'corpse branch' with it.
In addition, if he developed any new jutsu related to the dead in the future, he could incorporate them into it and continuously improve it. And this wasn't something only he could do. He was just the founder. If someone were to learn these later, they could also continuously develop and fill in the blanks.
The third point and branch would be secret jutsu related to curses. However, this branch was a bit more troublesome. Currently, Hibari didn't have many jutsu related to curses. 'Death Possession Blood,' was one, and he would see if he could research and develop from there.
If he had the chance, he would also find a way to get the Spirit Transformation jutsu from the Kato clan, incorporate it, and give it a try. Then he would also have to see if he could trick that kid Orochimaru into letting him incorporate things like the cursed marks he would get later. If he thought about it carefully, there was a lot of potential.
Hibari planned to call these three branches the 'Immortality Branch,' the 'Necromancy Branch,' and the 'Cursed Jutsu Branch.' With these three branches as the foundation, he would continuously build a complete and powerful Shiryōjutsu shinobi school to serve as the secret text of their Necro Cult.
"Sigh, whenever I think of these things, I suddenly miss that kid, Orochimaru. I wonder what he's been up to lately? Jiraiya has played himself into disappearing, and Tsunade has come here to me. Both of his teammates are gone. Could he have been put on a new team?" Hibari put down his paper and pen, and murmured softly while stroking his chin.
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