Starts In Konoha: Unlocking Shadow Clone

"Stop wasting your energy. You can't break the contract."

Naruto formed a hand seal and restored his true appearance.

"Naruto?"

Sandaime looked at Naruto in disbelief. He never expected that Orochimaru's companion would be Naruto.

"How did you learn the Nara Clan's secret technique? No, that doesn't matter… come over here! Orochimaru is dangerous, whatever he's promised you, you mustn't trust him!"

Hearing this, Orochimaru looked mildly offended, "Sensei, I was your student no matter what. Is it fair to speak of me this way? Besides, I'm just as bound by Naruto-kun's contract as you are. Can't you see the situation?"

"What!"

After hearing this explosive news, Sandaime didn't know how to start for a moment.

When he had expelled Orochimaru, it wasn't simply due to lingering sentiment. Orochimaru, as one of the Legendary Sannin, was incredibly powerful. Even for Sandaime, trying to take Orochimaru down might have ended in mutual destruction.

Yet now, it seemed that Naruto's contract was beyond even Orochimaru's control.

Seeing this, Naruto couldn't help but frown.

'Considering that Sandaime had been monitoring everything, he should have been able to deduce the situation. Why was he so shocked?'

He couldn't help but ask the question in his mind.

"Monitoring? You mean this?"

Sandaime pointed at his crystal ball.

Naruto nodded, "Exactly. If you hadn't been spying on me, I wouldn't be here in the dead of night."

"I was never monitoring you." Sandaime replied.

Naruto snorted coldly, "Don't lie. I used a special method and saw that ever since I requested the Chunin Exam to re-started, you've been watching me. If I hadn't caught on, why would you so quickly approve the re-start, and why keep tabs on me?"

Sandaime explained, "Naruto, you're overthinking it. Ibiki and the others came to me about it. I agreed to the retest only after careful consideration. After all, the Chunin Exams involve many other villages, and ending it hastily would cause diplomatic issues. I was observing you because you initiated the request, and I wanted to see how much you had grown lately!"

"Wait, what?"

Naruto was dumbfounded for a moment.

Thanks to the contract, he knew Sandaime wasn't lying.

'So, it turned out that he had been reading too much into things?'

The realization left him at a loss for words. But given how far he had come, there was no turning back now.

In the end, he found a silver lining: at least he hadn't killed the wrong person. Not only that, but with Sandaime as his servant, he could act even more freely in Konoha.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but give Orochimaru a thumbs up, "Fortunately, I have your advice, otherwise, things could have gotten messy."

"Naruto-kun, you flatter me. I also have my own selfish motives." Orochimaru said, dismissing the praise with a wave of his hand.

"Go ahead, share your thoughts."

Naruto gestured.

In fact, he has always been curious about Orochimaru's intentions. After all, in the original work, Orochimaru had killed Sandaime without hesitation. But now, with the opportunity right in front of him, he was holding back.

Naruto couldn't make sense of it.

Sandaime didn't say anything, as he also wanted to know what Orochimaru thought.

After a moment's silence, Orochimaru pondered and said, "I'll keep it simple: I wish to study all Ninjutsu and discover the world's truth. This so-called peace between nations is false and only hinders my research. I had contacted other villages, and as soon as Sarutobi-sensei dies, they would attack Konoha, plunging the Shinobi World into chaos. So in such a situation, I could conduct my research freely."

"Foolishness! Utter foolishness!"

Sandaime slammed the table angrily, his eyes blazing with fury.

It doesn't matter if he dies alone, but the main thing is that if a war happened, Konoha will be destroyed, and all lives will be lost. He will be too ashamed to face Shodaime and Nidaime, as well as many villagers!

Orochimaru stood up defiantly, staring at Sandaime with determined gaze, "Sensei, times have changed, and you are old. This supposed peace has only led to stagnation. Sacrificing now is necessary for a better future. It's clinging to an illusion of peace that's truly foolish!"

The tension between Orochimaru and Sandaime had been mounting, each firmly believing in their own arguments, their clash intensifying by the second.

"Sit down, both of you, and stop arguing. Listen to me!"

Naruto's sharp command brought the two to an abrupt halt, forcing them to pause their heated debate.

There is no other way. There is no winner or loser if we continue arguing like this, and it will be bad if we attract the ninjas outside.

Realizing that continuing this way would only attract unwanted attention from the Shinobi outside, Naruto waited for them to calm down. Once things had settled, he asked, "Orochimaru, you mentioned your ideas earlier, but you still haven't explained what benefits having Sandaime under the contract brings you."

Orochimaru explained, "If Sensei follows your orders, you can just let him ignite the flames of war himself. It would lead to chaos even faster than killing him would!"

"Absolutely not!"

Sandaime, who is just about to light his pipe, threw it to the ground, trembling with anger.

He turned his head and looked at Naruto, "Naruto, I don't know how you gained these incredible Ninjutsu, but I need to know… will you side with Orochimaru?"

"Of course not."

Naruto shook his head.

While he didn't feel personally invested in others' lives, instigating a war was beyond what he could accept.

Hearing this, Sandaime nodded approvingly, finding comfort in Naruto's response.

On the other hand, Orochimaru looked perplexed and said, "Naruto-kun, sacrifices are inevitable for the sake of research. Don't you understand that?"

Naruto said helplessly, "Of course, I understand. But you can use lab mice for experiments. Even if you need human subjects, you could use criminals who deserve it. There's no need to start a war and harm innocent people."

"Well said, Naruto!"

Sandaime showed a satisfied smile, then turned his head and scolded Orochimaru, "Even a kid like Naruto understands better than you do… why can't you see it?"

"I…"

Orochimaru started to retort, but before they could argue further, Naruto intervened, "Orochimaru, Sandaime's message is clear. When he expelled you from Konoha, didn't you understand why?"

"Understand what?" Orochimaru asked with a frown.

"Sigh… For someone so clever, you sure can be dense sometimes."

Naruto sighed, "Sandaime is only the Hokage of Konoha, and he only cares about the development of Konoha. If you want to cause trouble, go to another village. Don't you understand this?"

As the Hokage there were things Sandaime couldn't openly say. But Naruto had no such concerns.

Hearing this, Orochimaru's expression faltered, "Sensei, do you really mean this?"

Sandaime remained silent but gave a faint nod, showing a tacit agreement.

"See? That's how it is."

Naruto said, patting Orochimaru on the shoulder.

Orochimaru fell silent, his gaze shifting, clearly lost in thought. But without further argument, it was evident that Naruto's words had struck a chord, and Orochimaru was likely now considering ways to stir up trouble in other villages.

Of course, these things are not Naruto's business.

With the tension between the master and student resolved, Naruto couldn't help but feel a sense of satisfaction, as though he had fulfilled a lingering regret from watching the original work.

But just as Naruto's smile began to spread, Sandaime's voice interrupted him, "Now that Orochimaru's issue is settled, perhaps it's time to discuss your issues, Naruto… kun?"