Chapter 1 of 10

Chapter 1

13 min read3,148 words

In the dead silence of the open ground, Ye Wujì slowly opened his eyes. Just as he was about to look around to see where he was, a sudden pain shot through his body. He was about to cry out but found his throat dry and sore, the pain causing him to feel dizzy.

Ye Wujì shook his head hard, trying to clear his mind. As he was about to stand up, he realized he seemed to have shrunk. Looking at his hands, he saw they had become small, like those of a child, and much softer, no longer dry, cracked, and pale as they used to be. Just as he was about to think more about what had happened, the pain continued to surge, making it impossible for him to think clearly.

The pain made Ye Wujì forget about the changes in his body. He tried to stand up and realized something was pressing down on him. From the feeling, it seemed to be a person. "What's going on? Could I still be buried under someone? Who is on top of me? Is it Uncle Zhang who was working with me? If so, the rescue team hasn't arrived yet?" Ye Wujì thought to himself.

Ye Wujì tried to push the person off him, but he found himself tightly embraced. He couldn't push the person away. After taking a few deep breaths, he used all his strength to push the person off. The sudden exertion made his vision go black, and he swayed as he slowly stood up. It took him about ten minutes to recover. Once he did, he wanted to see who had been on top of him, wondering if it was Uncle Zhang who had come to help him during the earthquake.

To his surprise, it was an unfamiliar young man, and next to him was a pretty young woman. From their position, it seemed they had both been hugging him.

Looking around, Ye Wujì realized he was standing in the middle of a group of corpses. There were nearly a hundred bodies, both old and young, scattered around. Many wooden carts were also lying around in disarray.

Looking up, he saw that he was in a canyon, with high mountains on both sides, towering into the clouds and covered in green. Looking ahead and behind, he saw that there was only one path through the canyon, and he was standing right at the entrance.

After taking in all this, Ye Wujì finally had a chance to examine himself. From the way he felt, his body was probably between six and ten years old. Looking at the wound on his chest, he examined the young couple more closely. The man had a wound on his chest, which seemed to have been pierced through his body and then into Ye Wujì's. Given how they had held him tightly even in their last moments, they must have been his parents.

Looking at the couple on the ground, Ye Wujì felt a wave of dizziness. Although he didn't know them, tears streamed down his face, and a deep sorrow filled his heart. He sat next to them and wept silently.

"Looks like we're too late," a deep voice said beside him, followed by a thud, as if a fist had hit the ground.

"Yes, but there's still a kid alive. He's really lucky, but is this luck or misfortune?" Another voice said. For some reason, hearing this voice made Ye Wujì's heart tighten.

Turning his head, Ye Wujì was stunned. A pale face, black hair flowing, and a snake head coiled around the person, flicking its tongue. The snake head looked at Ye Wujì with cold, narrowed eyes.

"How is this possible?" Ye Wujì thought, and then he fainted.

As he lost consciousness, he saw a blond boy, about eleven or twelve years old, walking towards him.

As Ye Wujì fainted, the blond boy walked over, checked him, and seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. He then used chakra to treat Ye Wujì's injuries.

After that, he put Ye Wujì aside. "Lady Tsunade, this person's injuries are not severe. He seems to have fainted from blood loss. However, to be safe, it would be best if Lady Tsunade could check him."

A woman with blond hair and wearing a ninja outfit appeared beside him.

"Alright, Jiraiya. Put him aside for now. I'll check him later, but since you've already looked at him, he should be fine." The blond-haired woman said as she began to examine the bodies on the ground.

After finishing her examination, she walked over and rechecked Ye Wujì, treating him again. Her healing was much more effective than the blond boy's, and in no time, Ye Wujì's wounds had healed, leaving no scars.

"Besides this kid, no one else survived. Those damn rogue ninjas," the blond-haired woman said to the white-haired young man beside her.

"Those bastards, killing civilians like this, they deserve to die," the white-haired young man cursed.

"Alright, Jiraiya, this is war. There's no room for mercy," the woman said.

"Can't war be avoided? Is peace so difficult?" Jiraiya asked, thinking of the words of the Great Toad Sage, "The one who can bring change to the ninja world."

"Perhaps," Orochimaru said, not wanting to argue further.

After looking at Ye Wujì on the ground, Orochimaru licked his lips and asked, "But Jiraiya, what do you plan to do with this kid? Keeping him alive might just be a burden. In such chaotic times, how long do you think he'll survive? Or are you planning to waste another three years training another disciple? But remember, the Third has been urging us to return. This war is coming to an end, and we need to prepare for the final battle. If you're not there, Konoha might lose."

Jiraiya's face stiffened, and he looked at Ye Wujì with doubt.

Seeing Jiraiya's hesitation, Orochimaru continued, "Don't think about taking him with you. There's no time, and he's just a civilian. Even if you force him to come, he won't make it. And don't forget, the Third is already anxious. Didn't he send your apprentice, Minato, to deliver the message? Do you want to waste more time?"

"I think we should kill him. If you can't do it, I can. I'll make sure he dies painlessly. It would be a good choice for both him and us. What do you think, Tsunade?"

Tsunade was unsure and didn't know what to do.

Seeing Tsunade's hesitation and Jiraiya's silence, Orochimaru walked over to Ye Wujì and looked at him. Ye Wujì, with his white hair, looked like he was sleeping, and he looked very cute.

Orochimaru licked his lips, laughed, and the snake head beside him suddenly turned into a black shadow and flew towards Ye Wujì. Just as the shadow was about to reach Ye Wujì, there was a thud, and Jiraiya appeared beside Ye Wujì, hitting the shadow with a punch. The shadow fell to the ground, creating a hole about a meter deep. The snake's head exploded, and it was clearly dead.

Orochimaru licked his lips, smiled, and another snake head appeared behind him.

"It seems you've made up your mind. Are you sure about this?" Orochimaru asked, with a playful look in his eyes. In fact, even if Jiraiya hadn't intervened, Orochimaru wouldn't have killed Ye Wujì. They were in the honeymoon phase of their friendship, and Orochimaru knew what Jiraiya was thinking. He was just trying to help Jiraiya make a decision.

"Yes, I've decided. You go ahead, and I'll take care of him. I'll catch up as soon as possible. Don't worry, I'll find a family to take care of him and give them some money," Jiraiya said, putting away his fist.

"Alright," Orochimaru said, licking his lips, and then took out a money bag and threw it to Jiraiya. "You don't have much money, and I don't need it right now. Here, take it. Remember to pay me back." Orochimaru then walked away.

Tsunade laughed, thinking about giving some money too, but realized she had lost all her money a few days ago. She laughed awkwardly and didn't say anything.

Jiraiya and Orochimaru laughed, and even Minato laughed. Tsunade felt embarrassed, realizing she didn't have the thick skin she would have in the future.

As Tsunade and Orochimaru were about to leave, Minato suddenly spoke up, "Master, Lady Tsunade, Lord Orochimaru, how about this? I'll stay and take care of him. You go ahead, as the Third has been urging you for a long time. What do you think?"

"Alright," Jiraiya said, about to speak, but Minato continued, "Master, you have urgent matters to attend to. I can't help much right now, so I can take care of him for a few months. Don't worry, I'm an elite chunin, and I won't have any problems."

"I think that's a good idea," Orochimaru said. "It's also a good opportunity to train Minato. Let's do it. What do you think, Tsunade?"

"Good," Tsunade said, still feeling awkward.

Seeing that Orochimaru and Tsunade agreed, and being very satisfied with Minato, who was already an elite chunin at twelve and about to become a jounin, and who was very meticulous, Jiraiya nodded. He had initially thought of letting Minato see what a war was like, but since Minato had asked, it was fine.

After that, they buried the bodies. Since Ye Wujì had been sitting next to the young couple, they were buried separately. In wartime, having a grave was already a luxury, and no one cared if they were buried together. If not for Ye Wujì, the couple would have been buried with the others.

After burying the bodies, Jiraiya, Orochimaru, and Tsunade left. This was the beginning of the Three Great Shinobi's battle against Hanzo, and their names began to spread throughout the ninja world.

This was also the first time Ye Wujì met the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze. Ye Wujì was six, and Minato was twelve.

The future legendary Konoha's Eight-Color Black Night Blade and the Yellow Flash of Konoha met this way.

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