Chapter 144 : The Hard-to-Kill Orochimaru!!

To be honest, Itachi Uchiha's behavior is truly abnormal. 

For the sake of Konoha, he didn't hesitate to forcibly change Sasuke's will.

So, the question is, does Itachi love Sasuke more, or does he love Konoha more? 

The massacre of the entire Uchiha clan can be said to be for Sasuke, so that he wouldn't suffer persecution from the village after the Uchiha clan was suppressed by Konoha.

On the other hand, it could also be said that it was for Konoha.

The strength of the Uchiha clan is well-known throughout the entire ninja world.

If the clan revolted against Konoha, no matter who the final victor was, Konoha would suffer tremendously.

By giving Sasuke his own eyes, letting Sasuke's Mangekyo Sharingan evolve into the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan, and ensuring he wouldn't go blind, it's enough to prove his love for Sasuke.

At the same time, he used Shisui's eyes to modify Sasuke's will, as if to say that he didn't love his brother that much after all.

This twisted behavior is really hard to say if he loves his brother or the village more.

"Sensei, what do you think of Itachi?"

In the Hokage's office, Sarutobi Hiruzen had complicated feelings toward Itachi.

He liked that Itachi protected the village, but he was somewhat disgusted by his actions toward his brother.

On a personal level, he found it hard to accept Itachi in this way.

But from the perspective of the village, having more people like Itachi, who protect the village, would definitely be a good thing.

"As for me? I don't like Itachi Uchiha."

"Huh? Why not?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen was a bit surprised.

He thought that Itachi's actions to protect the village would please Tobirama-sensei.

After all, Itachi is an Uchiha.

"Protecting the village is fine, but the methods and ways matter. The rest, you'll have to understand on your own."

Hiruzen Sarutobi: "…"

Senju Tobirama was also powerless.

He was, after all, the Hokage of the village.

Just as Sarutobi Hiruzen had thought, such a Uchiha, Tobirama didn't mind having more of them.

But he would never alter his younger brother's will for the sake of the village.

Back when Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara founded Konoha, Hashirama's intention was to protect his family.

Hashirama's ambitions were vast; he treated everyone who joined the village as his family.

Madara didn't share such lofty ambitions. Before the village was founded, he only wanted to protect his younger brother Izuna.

But then, Izuna was killed by Tobirama.

After the village was established, Madara initially wanted to protect the Uchiha clan. However, when he decided to leave, his clan betrayed him, forcing him to leave Konoha alone.

From the actions of Hashirama and Madara, it was clear that family mattered more than the village.

However, Hashirama treated everyone in the village as family, which was why he fought against the returning Madara to protect the village.

As for Tobirama, he believed he didn't have his older brother's open-mindedness.

If it came down to choosing between his younger brother and the village, he would always choose his brother.

Of course, he couldn't say this outright. He would just let Sarutobi Hiruzen figure it out on his own.

[After Sasuke killed Orochimaru, he joined forces with his former classmates from the Sound Ninja Academy to form a Snake Squad.]

[The goal of the squad was simple: to kill Uchiha Itachi.]

[Despite being gravely ill and his body on the brink of collapse, Itachi agreed to a duel with Sasuke three days later.]

"Heh, I never imagined I would die at Sasuke-kun's hands."

On the screen, Orochimaru used Living Corpse Reincarnation to try and take over Sasuke's body, only to be killed by Sasuke in return.

Watching this scene, Orochimaru wasn't angry. In fact, he was thoroughly entertained.

"Such a strange person, to be able to laugh after seeing the scene of your own death."

Nearby, Naruto's voice reached them, causing Orochimaru to laugh again. "Naruto, I'm not so easy to kill."

"You're lying. On the screen, you clearly died at Sasuke's hands."

"Is that so?" Orochimaru turned to look at Sasuke, whose face was clearly unpleasant. "Does Sasuke-kun also think I'll die by your hand?"

Sasuke sneered at the words. "I don't believe you'd die so easily by my hand."

"Hehe, it seems Sasuke-kun knows me well."

"Of course, someone as disgusting as you wouldn't die so easily."

"Really hurts my feelings. After all, I'm your teacher. Can't you say something nice to me?"

"Something nice? What's the point?"

"Hmm, it seems there's no point."

"Then that's settled."

"Sasuke-kun, you're just not cute."

At this, Sasuke stopped responding. He fixed his gaze on the screen, where the battle between him and Itachi was being played.

[In their battle, Itachi's acting skills were once again on full display. He pretended to be about to gouge out Sasuke's eyes (for his own use), but in reality, he had no intention of harming Sasuke. Not only that, but he also played the role of an evaluator of Sasuke's abilities.]

[He mainly focused on testing these points of Sasuke's.]

[First: Genjutsu.]

[Test requirement: After putting the opponent in VR glasses, was there an immersive feeling?]

[Second: Shuriken.]

[Test requirement: Was there anything flashy, something that would catch the eye?]

[Third: Taijutsu.]

[Test point: After taking so many drugs from Orochimaru, could Sasuke still become the champion of the traditional triathlon?]

With this, after a round of testing, Uchiha Itachi felt that the education from the Sound Ninja Academy had been effective on Sasuke, but it was still not enough.

However, Itachi's current physical condition wasn't great, and he didn't have much time left to spare for Sasuke.

At this point, what Itachi could do was help Sasuke break free from Orochimaru's curse mark and push Sasuke to his limits before he died.

After Sasuke released the S-rank jutsu, Chidori, Itachi used Susanoo to block it.

After successfully blocking Chidori, Sasuke was completely exhausted.

At that moment, Orochimaru's presence inside Sasuke made its move, attempting to take over his body.

"As expected, you're not that easy to kill. But can you explain why you're coming out of my curse mark on the screen?"

Hearing Sasuke's slightly reproachful words, Orochimaru shrugged and responded, "In order to achieve immortality, I created the technique called 'Living Corpse Reincarnation.' The key to this technique is transferring one's soul into the body of another, fully taking over both the body and the soul."

"For immortality, you created such a technique... no wonder you're called the 'Cold Lord.'"

"Thank you for the compliment. To get back on topic, since I created Living Corpse Reincarnation for immortality, it only makes sense that I could put my soul fragments into the curse mark to revive after death, right?"

"So, as long as you don't kill everyone with the curse mark, no matter how many times you die, you can always come back?"

"Hehe, pretty much."

"Normally, each time you use this technique, your soul would be damaged. It makes sense that your resistance to genjutsu is so low, given that you split your soul into the curse mark for resurrection."

"To achieve immortality, these are necessary means."

"Physically and psychologically, you really are disgusting, Orochimaru."

"Sasuke-kun, you've hurt me again."

"Really? I'm so sorry."

"It's okay, I forgive you!"

"Hehe."

"Hehe."

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