Defecting from Konoha

Oguri Hayashi's victory was strange, but he didn't tell his subordinates. Battles between ninja are secret; the fewer people know your fighting style, the better you can survive on the battlefield.

Of course, those at the level of the Yellow Flash, who could completely disregard intelligence and whose power no one could resist, didn't need to be so cautious.

Oguri Hayashi was far from that level. Hiding oneself was the most basic practice for a ninja.

Oguri Hayashi had lived here for twelve years. Although he still had memories from his previous life, his growth had undoubtedly changed with his environment, and his behavior had shifted towards becoming more ninja-like. This was a good habit he had cultivated to survive the end of the Second Shinobi World War.

Or perhaps, because he had watched Naruto in his past life, he was more like a ninja than some actual ninja.

Oguri Hayashi's logic was very clear, and he had a firm grasp of his own capabilities. Without any bloodline or outstanding talent, he was neither a persevering individual like Might Guy or Rock Lee, who could open all Eight Gates and defeat Uchiha Madara with sheer willpower, nor a great researcher like Orochimaru, nor a wise strategist like Jiraiya who would shine in his later years.

The only reason he had survived this long could be summed up in four words: cautious and meticulous.

But now, an opportunity to change his fate had suddenly landed in his hands, and he absolutely had no reason to let it go.

The opponent's four different outfits had already revealed some things to him. These people must have transmigrated to the worlds of Harry Potter, Attack on Titan, and a few others. But it was such a coincidence that four people from different worlds appeared in the Naruto world simultaneously. Any normal person would notice something was wrong, right?

Having read many novels, Oguri Hayashi could roughly guess that the opponents came from a reincarnation space, an infinite world, or something similar. But what did that have to do with him?

Because he was a native of this world, he couldn't go to those infinite worlds at all.

He couldn't leave the Naruto world; that was the biggest problem.

Seeking cooperation with them was one option, but it didn't fit Oguri Hayashi's personality. He was unwilling to rely on others' charity to gain benefits.

What's more, could he expect kindness from them? They were only here for short-term gains. Who could guarantee that they wouldn't be short-sighted and kill him for their immediate benefit?

There was no foundation of trust between them, and these baseless assumptions had no basis for discussion. Therefore, Oguri Hayashi wouldn't foolishly dream of cooperating to ambush Konoha and Sand ninjas of High Ninja and Chunin rank to obtain Ninjutsu scrolls.

And obtaining Ninjutsu scrolls would provide no quality improvement for his ordinary Chunin-level Chakra.

He was indeed young now, and his body hadn't fully developed yet, but even after he grew up, to what extent could his Chakra volume reach?

High Ninja? Kage-level? Better than Kisame?

Even if it were comparable to a Tailed Beast, so what? In the later stages, Tailed Beasts and Kage-level ninja would merely be lambs to the slaughter.

Not to mention anything else, Oguri Hayashi had easily extracted a lot of useful information by just deceiving them a couple of times with Chinese. And during the conversation, he had also weighed his options internally, ultimately concluding that his benefits would be maximized only after killing them.

Reincarnators from the Infinite Hall? Fellow countrymen from China?

How could that compare to the benefits gained from killing them?

On Ling Chaozong, Oguri Hayashi had already found a handwritten note titled "My Style Secret Technique."

Having not watched the anime for over twelve years, Oguri Hayashi couldn't immediately recall what "My Style" was.

He put the note in his pocket and continued searching the bodies.

Searching bodies was an important part of ninja school. First, one had to be wary of the opponent setting traps on the corpse. Second, the corpse, including the head, held valuable intelligence. You could tell from their stomach what they had eaten recently, when they ate it, and their logistical situation.

After bringing the head back to the ninja village, there were ninjas like the Nakano Clan who could read the secrets in the deceased's mind, maximizing the dead person's value.

But none of this mattered to Oguri Hayashi. What Oguri Hayashi wanted was to find their equipment and handwritten notes that could help him become stronger.

The Omni-directional Mobility Gear was retrieved from the trees by three subordinates, along with the corpses.

The corpses of Ruan Takou and Joe were also brought over, along with their equipment.

It seemed the Infinite Hall did not retrieve their bodies and equipment. This Infinite Hall was different from what he imagined. Was it because of the rules of this world, or because it simply didn't want to retrieve them? Or was it because of... him?

Oguri Hayashi took off the Multi-function Night Vision Goggles and placed them on his head. After a little fiddling, he turned them on. The interface was entirely in English. Perhaps people from the Naruto world wouldn't even know how to turn it on, let alone use it if they happened to open it. But Oguri Hayashi was the type of person who learned English thoroughly just to play "Divinity: Original Sin," so this bit of English wasn't difficult for him.

The display had three modes: thermal imaging, black and white night vision, and zoom in/out. It was more powerful than real-life night vision goggles, but he wondered how long the battery would last.

He hung the display around his neck and approached Joe's body.

This wizard from the Harry Potter world had his throat slit like a chicken by Kimura. Blood had drained from his carotid artery, turning his expensive English waistcoat into a dark, blood-soaked garment.

However, the cloak he wore was not stained with a single drop of blood.

This was a magical item that was precious even in Harry Potter – an Invisibility Cloak, a relic of Harry Potter's parents. He never expected this guy to bring it out.

Besides this, Joe also had a spellbook, but it seemed encrypted, as no text appeared no matter how he flipped through it. Muggles probably couldn't see it.

As for the Omni-directional Mobility Gear, he also unfastened it and tried it out briefly. The physical fitness required to maintain balance in mid-air through long-term training was not a problem for ninjas. He had only familiarized himself with it and could already use it somewhat clumsily.

He casually threw the Invisibility Cloak over himself and disappeared before his subordinates' astonished eyes.

"Kimura, take these three corpses back with you," Oguri Hayashi's voice seemed to echo from the trees or from somewhere else.

"Go back and tell Lady Tsunade that I, Oguri Hayashi, have defected."

His words shocked Kimura and the other two. They looked up and searched everywhere for Oguri Hayashi, but the entire forest was as quiet as if there were no living beings, sending a shiver down their spines.

Year 35 of Konoha: Konoha Chunin Oguri Hayashi defects.

This news, amidst the chaotic Second Shinobi World War, didn't even make a ripple before quickly disappearing among more important and complex battle reports.

If you find this book good, remember to add it to your bookshelf to avoid losing it next time.