Team 7 naturally heard such intense commotion. After flying into the sky, they saw that a section of the forest in the distance was gone, replaced by a massive meteorite crater.
With an attack of such power, the three knew with certainty that it was Ge Liang who caused it.
"How about it, should we go over?"
"Forget it, for the boss to use such a powerful attack, I can't think of anyone else in this forest besides Orochimaru."
Nodding, if Orochimaru dared to attack Karin and offend their uncle, then he had to be prepared to pay the price.
"It would be even better if we could just kill Orochimaru."
...Orochimaru ultimately succeeded in using the Substitution Jutsu.
However, he underestimated the power of this attack.
The intense explosion's shockwave directly left him severely injured.
At this moment, Orochimaru lay on the ground, spitting blood, looking as if he was about to die.
"Alright, my Heaven Sword didn't even hit you directly; it was just the aftershock. Who are you putting on this act for now?"
Standing on his Flying Sword, Ge Liang looked down at Orochimaru with an annoyed expression.
"Is that so? Indeed, nothing can be hidden from you."
That's right, despite how miserable Orochimaru looked, it was all an act for Ge Liang.
He knew that Ge Liang seemed to already know about his attack on Karin, and the previous attack was his punishment.
To vent Ge Liang's anger, he naturally had to make himself look more pathetic.
But now that Ge Liang saw through him, his miserable appearance lost its meaning.
"Wah~"
Orochimaru tilted his head back, forcefully opened his large mouth, and a brand new Orochimaru emerged from within.
"Orochimaru-Style Substitution Jutsu?"
Although this Jutsu looked disgusting, it was indeed a life-saving divine skill.
Using an external body as a substitute, no matter how severe the external injuries, as long as Orochimaru had enough Chakra to use this Move, he could fully recover.
Of course, this did not involve Soul injuries.
"Speak, Orochimaru, how do you want to die?"
The 'newborn' Orochimaru gasped for air, clearly having expended a lot of Chakra using the Orochimaru-Style Substitution Jutsu.
However, upon hearing Ge Liang's words, Orochimaru did not show a dejected expression; instead, the corners of his mouth curled slightly upward, looking very pleased.
"You think I won't kill you?"
"Although I don't know why, I don't think you will kill me. If you wanted to kill me, you would have just done it; there's no need to ask."
Indeed, Ge Liang did not want to kill Orochimaru, not for the sake of the so-called plot, but because he admired Orochimaru as a person.
The anime naruto is also known as the legend of the eyes.
In this Ninja World where better bloodlines meant greater power, Orochimaru, as a commoner, was able to strengthen himself through scientific means. Ge Liang truly admired such a person with a spirit of scientific research.
The Heaven Sword attack just now was a punishment for Orochimaru; if he hadn't dodged it, then he would have died. So be it.
If he dodged it, Ge Liang wouldn't mind sparing his life.
Of course, this would come at a price.
"You guessed correctly, I indeed won't kill you."
"Then what price do I need to pay?"
"Ninjutsu? Or wealth?"
Talking to smart people was easy. Ge Liang hadn't even stated his conditions, and Orochimaru had already proactively brought it up.
"I want Ninjutsu, and I want money."
"Alright, I will offer you satisfactory wealth and enough Ninjutsu."
Ge Liang was very satisfied with Orochimaru's attitude, but too many Ninjutsu were useless to him. Even if he gave them to Sasuke and the others to Cultivate, they probably wouldn't think much of them.
Among the Ninjutsu collected by Orochimaru, Ge Liang only had one that caught his eye.
"You can give me whatever amount of money you deem fit. As for Ninjutsu, I don't need many; you just need to give me the forbidden Jutsu, Edo Tensei."
"Edo Tensei? I understand."
Seeing Orochimaru agree, Ge Liang had nothing more to say.
"Then that's that. The commotion just now has probably alerted Konoha, so you'd better slip away quickly. I'm still waiting for you to send me money and the forbidden Jutsu."
After speaking, Ge Liang controlled his Flying Sword to ascend directly into the sky, disappearing into the horizon.
With Ge Liang gone, Orochimaru naturally had to leave too.
Fortunately, he knew many escape Moves, and after Ge Liang flew away, he also successfully left the Forest of Death.
Soon after the two left, the Third Hokage arrived with a large group of people and saw the husk left behind by Orochimaru after using his Orochimaru-Style Substitution Jutsu.
"Orochimaru?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi naturally knew that Orochimaru had returned to Konoha. When someone found the Danzo he impersonated, he wanted to capture Orochimaru.
Unfortunately, the one Orochimaru sent to the rendezvous was just a Clone.
He still felt regretful about not catching Orochimaru, fearing that this fellow would cause some destruction in Konoha.
Now seeing this scene, he figured that the attempt at destruction failed, and instead, he got beaten up.
Within a radius of three hundred meters, not a blade of grass grew. The only person in all of Konoha who could unleash such an attack was probably Ge Liang.
At this moment, Hiruzen Sarutobi decided that he needed to have a good talk with Ge Liang after the Chunin Exams.
It was truly a waste to not utilize such a powerful fighting force.
"Seal all entrances and exits of Konoha Village. Entry is permitted, but no one is allowed to leave. Fully search for Orochimaru."
"Yes!"
...The Third Hokage's decision did not affect the trio of Team 7. After waiting for several hours at the Central Tower entrance, Naruto finally had 'guests' arrive.
"Oh~ it's them."
Just like in the original work, besides Team 7, the first to arrive at the Central Tower were the Sunagakure squad.
"Hehe, since it's them, I might as well say hello."
Naruto's 'hello' wasn't to greet them, but to control his Flying Sword and directly attack Gaara.
"Watch out, it's an ambush."
Temari reacted quickly. Seeing an attack, she immediately pulled Kankuro to dodge.
As for Gaara? He didn't need to dodge.
Gaara, protected by his Sand Shield, did not dodge. He believed this attack would be blocked by the sand as usual.
Unfortunately, the power of the Sword Control Incantation was simply not something a pile of sand could stop.
As expected, the sand couldn't stop Naruto's Flying Sword at all, and it successfully hit Gaara's body.
"Gaara."
Seeing Gaara get attacked, Temari and Kankuro were shocked. They quickly ran to Gaara's side and began to be on guard.
"Don't be so nervous."
At this moment, Naruto walked out from the forest, hooked his small hand, and the Flying Sword returned to its sheath.
"It's you~ Why did you attack Gaara?"
This blond-haired boy in front of them was one of the few who could make Gaara suffer a setback. Temari naturally appeared extremely vigilant towards such a person.
"What you said is funny. We are all candidates in the Chunin Exams. Do I need a reason to attack you?"