The next day, Shinra arrived at the academy and noticed that the classroom was more tense than usual.
After finding his bench, he sat down and overheard his classmates talking.
"Who would've thought that one of the Sannin would betray Konoha? I even heard that he kidnapped a lot of children to run illegal experiments. I never would've guessed that a war hero of Konoha would turn out to be scum!"
A small smile formed on Shinra's lips, which he quickly wiped away.
'That's one more threat gone from the village. The number of kidnappings should decrease drastically now. If Danzo somehow dies from a stroke, Konoha would be in its safest position in years.'
The next event should be a year from now — Kumo's so-called peace treaty, where Hinata was going to be kidnapped, but the assailant would be killed by Hiashi. That incident had Kumo threaten to restart the ninja war with Konoha.
With Minato gone and one of the Sannin missing, the only two who could deter other villages were Hiruzen and Danzo. Still, giving Hizashi over to them was a questionable decision. Although Kumo wouldn't be able to start a war, they knew Konoha was in a dire state.
Unfortunately, this wasn't the worst shape Konoha would be in yet. A few years from now, the Uchiha massacre would commence. Stranger still was that no village made a move on Konoha during that period.
Shinra didn't place much importance on Orochimaru's defection. Today was a very special day for him.
He was finally going to attempt his first ninjutsu, and it was none other than the Clone Jutsu. They had been taught the hand seals and theory behind the jutsu in class a while ago.
However, theory and practice were two different things. The first time Shinra attempted the Clone Jutsu, the result was even worse than Naruto's. It looked like a humanoid, white, deflated balloon with no features.
According to the scroll, this was due to poor chakra control, similar to how Naruto never actually managed to form a proper clone until he got his hands on the Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu.
Now that he was able to maintain the leaf exercise for about an hour without any problems, he was going to attempt the jutsu once again.
After class, he returned to training the jutsu. The first couple of attempts were already miles better compared to his first, but they were still failed clones.
Over the next few days, after completing his daily body training, he devoted the rest of his time to practicing the Clone Jutsu.
On the fifth day, he finally managed to form a decent clone. A massive grin was plastered on his face.
'My first jutsu is finally learned. I still need to practice it a bit more to decrease the time it takes to form one. After fully mastering this jutsu, I'll move on to the Transformation Jutsu.'
While Shinra was taking his first steps in his ninja career, the entire ninja world was in turmoil.
In Kumogakure, the Fourth Raikage sat before his two advisors and his assistant.
"Now that the snake is gone, Konoha should be extremely weakened. We should take this chance to sweep them out."
His first advisor, Kinaru, shook his head. "Unfortunately, the flames of the Third Great Ninja War are already dying out. Suna has formed an alliance with Konoha. Iwa suffered terribly at the hands of the Yellow Flash, and Kiri lost their Seven Ninja Swordsmen."
"Even Kumo wasn't well off either. We lost the Third Raikage. I'm afraid the Daimyō wouldn't support us if he learned of this."
Ay clenched his fists as he remembered his father's death against an army of Iwa shinobi.
"But we can't let go of this chance. It's not every day that Konoha suffers such a major setback."
The second advisor, Okana, who looked to be the oldest in the room, spoke.
"Although a direct attack would be difficult to pull off, we can judge Konoha's state by sending our shinobi into their village."
Everyone looked at her in confusion.
'If we could do such a thing, the war wouldn't have ended this way.'
Okana continued, laying out her plan. "Although this plan is solid, Konoha's vigilance should be very high right now. I suggest we wait a few months before setting it into motion."
The Fourth Raikage looked at his advisors calmly. His father had left behind capable subordinates. Whether this plan succeeded or failed, Kumo would ultimately benefit.
In Sunagakure, Rasa looked at the reports in his hands as a cold glint passed through his eyes.
'It's a shame this incident happened at this moment. If only that bastard Daimyō supported his home village instead of a foreign one, we wouldn't be in this situation.'
In Kirigakure, Yagura — under Obito's control — received the news and didn't bother addressing it.
Iwagakure also chose to take a backseat and observe how events would unfold.
At the center of the storm, the Hokage's office was completely silent. All four elders of Konoha were present.
The silence was broken by a mocking voice.
"To think he managed to escape you. You've grown weak, Hiruzen."
"According to intel reports, Orochimaru is severely wounded. Considering his condition, he won't be able to leave the Land of Fire easily. I will send ANBU squads to track him down," Hiruzen said, still conflicted over his momentary decision to spare Orochimaru.
"That's not enough. I'll send a few Root squads to assist," Danzo offered.
"Thank you. I'd appreciate that," Hiruzen replied.
Seeing part of the issue handled, Koharu raised another concern.
"What about Orochimaru selling our secrets to enemy villages? Especially since he's already read the Scroll of Seals. If any of those jutsu fell into other villages' hands, it would be a nightmare."
All their expressions darkened. Most of the jutsu in the scroll had been created by their sensei, Tobirama Senju. Having them leaked was no small matter.
"Although Orochimaru has defected, no village would willingly shelter him given his nature and crimes. I will call Jiraiya back to chase him down, preventing him from staying in one place for too long," Hiruzen said calmly.
"Jiraiya?" Danzo scoffed. "Last I checked, Orochimaru has never lost to him. If Jiraiya were to die, Konoha would become a laughingstock."
"Don't worry. Jiraiya has already mastered Sage Mode. That alone makes him the best candidate to track Orochimaru. As for Jiraiya dying — that's unlikely. Any ninja who reaches our level is extremely difficult to kill."
The discussion continued late into the night.