Starts In Konoha: Unlocking Shadow Clone

"Planet? Aliens?"

These terms were completely new to Orochimaru, yet they sparked an intense curiosity within him.

His eyes glowed with excitement, "This must be another of your research discoveries, right, Naruto-kun? I wonder if you'd be willing to share a bit?"

To him, it felt as though a door to a new world was opening, and he was desperate to explore it.

Seeing this, Naruto was speechless.

This was just basic knowledge from his previous life's textbooks, things he'd known since childhood. Yet, explaining this to Orochimaru felt daunting. How would he even begin to convey that the world they lived in was a gigantic sphere, with no tangible evidence to back it up? Even if Orochimaru believed him, he would probably still be perplexed.

After pondering a moment, a light bulb went off in Naruto's mind, 'There is no need to prove anything to Orochimaru.'

He simply pointed to the sun and said, "Look at the sun!"

"The sun? What about it?" Orochimaru asked, somewhat puzzled.

"The sun is also a planet."

Naruto explained: "You understand the concept of perspective, right? The sun is actually incredibly far away, yet it's undeniably there. So, who's to say it couldn't harbor life? If there is life on the sun and if those beings could survive in such extreme heat and reach our world, wouldn't they be terrifying?"

"That… makes sense…"

Orochimaru's face grew solemn.

He saw the sun every day, but he'd only ever thought of it as a source of light. But now, following Naruto's line of thought, the idea seemed truly horrifying.

"Besides that, think about the Chakra in our bodies. Everyone knows chakra originated from the God Tree's fruit that Otsutsuki Kaguya ate. This power was passed down to her son, the Sage of Six Paths, and eventually became the foundation of ninjutsu as we know it." (T/N: The Author made it seem that everyone knew about Kaguya and God Tree.)

Naruto added, "Given how much Shinobi have innovated with Chakra, like the Nidaime Hokage's development of the Impure World Reincarnation, it's not impossible that Kaguya or the Sage of Six Paths might have explored ways to resurrect themselves or even become immortal."

Orochimaru fell silent, processing this revelation.

"Think about it again. For someone as powerful as the Sage of Six Paths, why didn't he leave any descendants? By rights, the Otsutsuki Clan should be the strongest in existence, yet they're nowhere to be seen. Isn't that strange? The current Otsutsuki Clan may well be so powerful that they could eliminate every Shinobi in the world with a mere flick of the wrist. Such a possibility isn't far-fetched."

Naruto concluded, "So, it's not enough to focus on enemies we can see, and it's the unknown threats that are truly terrifying. Everything I do is just to survive in the face of such unknowns."

After hearing what Naruto said, Orochimaru felt suffocated.

Having witnessed countless deaths, Orochimaru knew the fragility of life, which was why he pursued immortality at all costs. But he had never considered the terrifying implications Naruto was describing.

'If Naruto-kun's words were true, then it was entirely possible that the Otsutsuki Clan, with their centuries of advanced Ninjutsu research, had already achieved immortality and were now conquering distant stars, like the sun or the moon, and perhaps even worlds beyond.'

'What if, one day, the Otsutsuki Clan remembered this Shinobi World? They might be able to wipe out every Shinobi with just a thought.'

It's not wrong for Orochimaru to think like this. After all, even a single glare from Itachi could bring him to his knees in agony, so the prospect of confronting the ancient Otsutsuki, or even beings from another world, was far more terrifying.

As he pondered this, Orochimaru felt his apprehension grow with each passing thought.

After a long while, he finally let out a deep breath.

"I never imagined you thought so far ahead, Naruto-kun. Surviving truly is a noble goal!"

With utmost seriousness, Orochimaru declared, "Naruto-kun, rest assured, I will support you with everything I have!"

To Orochimaru, living was paramount, and cooperating with Naruto was now his only conceivable way to survive in the face of such unknown threats!

"Is that so? I'm glad you understand."

Naruto laughed heartily. He wasn't entirely sure what thoughts were running through Orochimaru's mind, but as long as Orochimaru was receptive, it meant he'd be even more driven in his research on immortality, and that was good enough for now.

Naruto took out a Heaven scroll and Earth scroll, then gave them to Orochimaru and instructed: "Take your subordinates and keep a low profile while completing the Chunin Exams. I'll find a way to get Sasuke out of the village afterward, and then you can leave with him. Just focus on your research and forget about any unnecessary schemes."

"Don't worry, I will."

Orochimaru nodded seriously, and with a puff of white smoke, he vanished completely.

With Orochimaru taken care of, Naruto's attention shifted back to Sasuke, and he couldn't help but grimace. "Oh, right, there's still you. If I'd known, I would have asked Orochimaru to stick around a bit longer."

There was no choice. Sasuke, now bearing the Cursed Seal, was already running a high fever and showing signs of discomfort. With no one else around, Naruto would have to look after him himself.

Rustle!

Just then, he heard a rustling from a nearby bush.

At the same moment, Naruto's danger sense kicked in.

Naruto was not surprised but instead delighted, 'Talk about perfect timing. I wonder which three unlucky souls have come to serve as assistants?'

Thinking to himself, Naruto vanished and darted toward the bush.

With the boost from the Kyubi's Chakra, his speed was incredible, and he reached the bush in the blink of an eye.

"Ahhh!!!"

The person hiding in the bushes suddenly screamed.

"What are you screaming for? Did I step on your tail? Really..."

Naruto was speechless. He recognized the trio in the bushes… they were none other than the Ino-Shika-Cho team.

Judging by how quickly they arrived, it was likely Choji, lured by the scent of grilled fish, couldn't resist and had rushed over. And the one who screamed was, of course, the startled Ino.

Only Shikamaru maintained his usual expression of mild annoyance.

"Since you're here, lend a hand. Shikamaru, go catch some fish. Choji, start grilling, and Ino, take care of Sasuke."

Naruto quickly assigned each of them a task.

Shikamaru was the first to protest, "Why should I listen to you? I won't do something as troublesome as catching fish."

Choji grabbed Shikamaru's arm and tried to dissuade him, "Come on, Shikamaru, just catch some fish. The smell is amazing! After eating nothing but fruit all day, I really need some meat."

Shikamaru pulled his arm free and said, "If you want to eat it, catch it yourself. And don't blame me if the smell attracts a ton of other exam takers. Who's going to protect you then?"

Choji immediately threw a tantrum and said, "I don't care! I want grilled fish, and nothing's stopping me!"

"All you think about is eating."

Ino complained, then turned to Naruto and said anxiously, "You still haven't said why I have to take care of Sasuke. Is he… is he hurt?"

"Sasuke… He's, uh, sick. Yeah, he's got a high fever!"

Naruto couldn't exactly bring up the Cursed Seal, so he came up with an excuse, "Sakura isn't here, so, Ino, this is a great chance for you to bond with Sasuke. He's just lying over there, take a look..."

Before Naruto could finish his words, Ino had already dashed off toward the river.

Seeing this, Naruto couldn't help but chuckle.

Choji also chuckled and said, "Since Sasuke is sick, he'll need some nutritious food to recover. Fish is perfect for that! Looks like I'll be staying here to grill fish, haha!"

Only Shikamaru shook his head helplessly, "Sigh, what a bunch of troublesome people. I'm not getting involved."

Hearing this, Naruto rummaged through his bag and pulled out a complete set of Heaven and Earth scrolls, casually waving them in front of Shikamaru.

"This is a full set of Heaven and Earth scrolls. I was planning to give them to you out of goodwill, but since helping a teammate is too much trouble for you, maybe I'll just hold onto them instead."

As he said this, he made a show of putting the scrolls away.

Bang!

Shikamaru immediately sprang up and grabbed the scrolls. He then rolled up his sleeves and said, "Helping out teammates is no trouble at all. I'll go catch some fish right now..."