The night Orochimaru defected did not stir much of a disturbance within Konohagakure.
The incident took place in a hidden laboratory on the outskirts of Konoha, and those dispatched were ANBU operatives. Ordinary ninja and civilians were completely unaware—they slept soundly.
Minato's family, after learning what had happened, also slept soundly.
At this point, what else could be done?
Makoto slept just as well. Only at dawn, when the shadow clones that had followed the ANBU dissolved, did they wake him once. Lying in bed, he opened his eyes, received the feedback, then rolled over and went back to sleep.
Just as he had expected—the ANBU couldn't even find a trace of Orochimaru.
Jiraiya, who had rushed back in haste, hadn't slept all night. Relying on his familiarity with his old friend, he managed to find him, shouting about friendship and bonds as he charged in.
But even though Orochimaru was injured, he still failed to bring his companion back.
That snake—regardless of his combat strength—was top-tier when it came to survival and escape. Just like his "skills" in abducting naïve children, those ability points were basically maxed out.
Hiruzen also hadn't slept all night. He remained stationed in the Hokage's office, caught between regret and worry, waiting for updates.
As the sun rose, sunlight streamed through the glass and spread across the floor. Smoke curled upward from his pipe, shifting in the light—just like his current state of mind.
An ANBU appeared in a Body Flicker, kneeling on one knee before the desk.
Hiruzen gently removed the pipe from his mouth and asked, "Was he captured?"
"Apologies, Hokage-sama. We were unable to locate the target."
"I see…"
Hiruzen inexplicably let out a breath of relief. Perhaps… it was better that Orochimaru had escaped.
"What is the situation in the village now?"
"Last night, while our focus was on Orochimaru, dozens of ninja within the village also went missing. They were all former subordinates of his."
Hiruzen wasn't surprised. His disciple had always had a group of diehard followers within the village. It was only natural they would flee alongside him.
Most of those ninja were loners—without family or attachments.
He had never expected Orochimaru to defect, so he had never taken any measures against those loyal to him. He just hadn't expected things to escalate to this point. Now, anything he said was meaningless.
"What about the three students he previously led?"
"Hyūga Tetsu and Akado Manabu were completely unaware. However, according to intelligence provided by Higashino Makoto, last night Orochimaru had Anko invite him to the eastern laboratory. When Makoto arrived, the Orochimaru he encountered was only a clone."
"Why did he seek out that child?"
"Orochimaru developed a type of cursed seal, which has already been implanted into Anko. He also appeared to attempt the same on Higashino Makoto—but failed."
"A cursed seal…"
Hiruzen thought of Orochimaru's obsession with forbidden techniques.
"What does it do?"
"At present, it is unclear. However, it is extremely dangerous. According to Makoto, Anko nearly died at the time, but her condition has now stabilized and she is receiving treatment in the hospital."
"Not even sparing the life of his own student… That man truly has lost all humanity. If I had known, back then I should have—"
This ANBU operative was Hiruzen's eldest son. Although he was somewhat dissatisfied with his father's decisions, as both son and subordinate, he couldn't say much.
After all, he wasn't like his rebellious younger brother.
"Hokage-sama, many of Orochimaru's subordinates remain in the village, including his three students. What should we do next?"
Hiruzen thought for a moment.
"Hand them over to the Intelligence Division for individual interrogation and screening. See if anything can be extracted—but the methods must not be excessive. After all, they are still comrades of Konoha. Understood?"
"Yes!"
The ANBU ninja rose to carry out the order. But upon reaching the door, he glanced back at his father, as if he had something more to say.
"Is there anything else?"
This time, the ANBU changed his form of address: "Father… this morning Musashi came to me and said—Asuma, he…"
"Asuma? What is he up to now?"
"He left behind a letter and ran away from home. He said he couldn't stand what Konoha has become and decided to go out into the shinobi world to find his own path."
Hiruzen: "…"
Damn it. Not a single one of these brats gives me any peace.
Ever since last year's mission in the Land of Fields involving the Fūma Clan, Sarutobi Asuma had already been harboring such thoughts. Finally, last night, after sensing that something major had happened in the village—and learning from his jōnin leader Sarutobi Musashi that Orochimaru had defected—he could no longer tolerate his old man.
You can't even manage your own disciple, and you think you can manage me?
The rebellious youth decisively abandoned his comrades, abandoned the girl he admired, and set off on a journey to resolve the confusion in his heart.
"Father, should we send someone to bring him back?"
Hiruzen sighed, waving his hand.
"No need. Let him go."
...
That same day, various rumors began to spread throughout Konoha. But many people didn't believe them—after all, the subject was one of the Legendary Sannin, a war hero, and a disciple of the Third Hokage.
Someone like that would defect?
Why? Where's the logic? It sounded like complete nonsense.
But as the information was gradually confirmed, everyone quietly shut their mouths.
What was there to discuss? Say that the Third Hokage failed to discipline his student? Say that Konoha drives away talent? If you talk like that, do you still plan to survive in Konoha?
In the end, both ordinary ninja and civilians came to a single conclusion:
The higher-ups' circle is a mess.
Konoha did not issue any order forbidding discussion.
On the contrary, on the third day, the Hokage's office released an official announcement:
[Orochimaru, having secretly stolen and researched forbidden techniques, conducted illegal human experiments, violating the code of Konoha shinobi. Furthermore, he attacked fellow ninja of the same village and was responsible for at least three cases of missing ninja squads. When ANBU attempted to apprehend him, he resisted violently and has now defected.]
[Effective immediately, Konoha declares Orochimaru an S-rank missing-nin. All Konoha ninja who encounter him are obligated to capture or eliminate him.]
[Any force within the shinobi world that shelters or protects Orochimaru will be regarded by Konohagakure as issuing a provocation and declaration of war. Konoha reserves the right to retaliate.]
...
With several days of psychological preparation, this announcement did not cause much reaction within Konoha.
Most ninja, regarding the statement that they were obligated to capture or eliminate Orochimaru upon encountering him, simply didn't take it seriously.
Go fight one of the Sannin, Orochimaru? Are you kidding?
Most people had enough self-awareness not to throw their lives away. If they really encountered Orochimaru, they would simply avoid him from afar.
...
Unlike Konoha's reaction, once this announcement spread outward through various channels, it caused a huge uproar across the entire shinobi world.
Orochimaru was no nobody—his reputation was forged by beating down the other great villages.
While ninja are not the direct rulers of the world, they are an overwhelming supernatural force that ordinary people cannot challenge. Every move made by the Five Great Villages affects war and peace across the world.
Orochimaru was among that tiny group standing at the very top—among billions of people. And someone like that defected?
...
Each of the major villages reacted differently.
In Sunagakure, inside the Kazekage's office, Rasa—now firmly seated as the Fourth Kazekage—looked at the intelligence scroll in his hand and suddenly felt as if he had found a kindred spirit.
He had previously felt somewhat guilty about selling Pakura to Kirigakure. Now? That last trace of guilt vanished completely.
After all—Konoha did it too.
Now he was thinking that, if the opportunity arose, he might try to make contact with Orochimaru. Given Orochimaru's former status in Konoha, he must possess a vast amount of jutsu and intelligence.
Rasa found that… very tempting.
...
Ōnoki read the report in silence.
He only felt that Konoha was being wasteful.
Over here, he couldn't even find a suitable successor—while Konoha had so much talent that they were turning into missing-nin.
What could he even say?
He could only sigh inwardly:
Hiruzen is incompetent. Konoha is disgraceful. How could they compare to the steadfast unity of our Iwagakure's Will of Stone?
Too bad the Sage of Six Paths doesn't bless us.
...
Kumogakure, on the other hand, didn't show much reaction.
They were still in a standoff with Konoha and hadn't signed a peace treaty yet.
Even without Orochimaru stationed on the northern front, they couldn't win against Konoha anyway. His defection didn't significantly impact Konoha's strength.
After all, Hiruzen was still there. The Yellow Flash was still there. And that damned brat who kept putting people in wheelchairs was still alive and well.
However, the Fourth Raikage did feel a bit of satisfaction.
He had a grudge against Orochimaru.
According to Kumogakure's intelligence, the rampage of the previous Eight-Tails jinchūriki, Blue B, had been caused by Orochimaru—this directly led to Blue B's death.
And Blue B… was his cousin.
...
Among the four great villages, the one that cared the least about Orochimaru's defection was Kirigakure.
These water-playing lunatics were currently causing trouble in the southeastern region of the Land of Fire, while simultaneously indulging in internal strife back home.
They had no interest in Konoha's missing-nin.
Defection?
We're better at that than anyone.
It happens every day—nothing worth making a fuss over.
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