Tsunade nodded in agreement: “I’ll arrange it.”
After Tsunade left, the Third Hokage asked, “How’s the situation in Kirigakure?”
Koharu Utatane held up a document: “Killer B is out of danger after emergency treatment. His physical strength as a jinchūriki allows for a quick recovery, and he’ll be discharged soon.”
“Yugito’s letter has been delivered to Kirigakure. They’re all staying obediently at the embassy and haven’t gone anywhere.”
The Third Hokage nodded. This time, Kirigakure was truly scared.
They probably didn’t expect the Uchiha to publicly support Konoha.
While Konoha did gain some benefits from this negotiation, the Hyuga clan...
The Third Hokage felt a deep headache. How did the Uchiha produce an anomaly like Kawasaki?
All the changes in the Uchiha were triggered by Kawasaki becoming the deputy clan head.
Now, their Hokage lineage had lost the Hyuga as an ally, and recalling Jiraiya was a desperate measure.
If only Orochimaru was still here.
The Third Hokage knew Orochimaru’s nature well.
But Orochimaru’s research abilities and intelligence were top-notch.
If Orochimaru were to become the Hokage...
The Third Hokage was lost in thought for a moment.
“Sarutobi? Sarutobi?”
Koharu Utatane’s voice brought the Third Hokage back to reality.
Shaking his head, he realized he was getting old. Orochimaru wouldn’t return.
The Third Hokage regained his composure: “Hmm, what’s Danzō been up to lately?”
Koharu Utatane hesitated slightly: “Since Root joined the Konoha Military Police Force, Danzō has only let them handle security maintenance tasks.”
“Due to too many complaints, Danzō personally went to discipline the force.”
“His specific whereabouts are unclear recently, but he’s frequently sending people to scout the Uchiha territory.”
“Hmph, the Uchiha are not easy to mess with these days.”
The Third Hokage felt a mixture of love and hate for Danzō. They had been teammates in their youth.
Later, they became leaders - he became the Hokage, while Danzō handled the shadows, and they worked together seamlessly.
But in recent years, Danzō’s ambition had swelled, and Root’s size had grown beyond imagination.
He, the Hokage, didn’t even know how many Root members were lurking in the shadows.
Before, Danzō had his eyes on Shisui’s Mangekyo Sharingan.
As a result, Kawasaki caught him red-handed, dealt him a heavy blow, and Danzō still hasn’t given up to this day.
“Hmm...”
The Third Hokage thought for a moment.
“Tell Kawasaki about this, let them sort it out themselves.”
Koharu Utatane nodded in agreement.
He’d also noticed Danzō’s growing ambition in recent years. Their former teammate had become arrogant.
Now that the Uchiha were so powerful, Danzō would likely suffer a major setback.
...
The Land of Rice Fields.
After days of long-distance travel, Itachi, Shisui, and the others finally reached the Land of Rice Fields.
The Land of Rice Fields was a small, insignificant country, less than one-tenth the size of the Land of Fire.
Resources were scarce, and its national strength was weak.
However, after days of trekking through the wilderness, everyone just wanted a good rest and to gather some information.
In a small town.
The Uchiha group, without hesitation, booked the entire inn.
The innkeeper was about to go bankrupt.
Suddenly getting such a big order, he was overjoyed, his eyes narrowed into slits.
He was extremely enthusiastic towards Itachi and the others, agreeing to all their requests quickly.
Everyone rested for a whole day, their spirits were restored.
Early the next morning, Tōya started inquiring about news in the Land of Rice Fields.
“Didn’t your Land of Rice Fields recently build a new ninja village?”
“Yo, esteemed guests, you know about that?”
The innkeeper said in surprise.
“It’s been a few years since we built Otogakure. It’s not big, but it’s quite powerful.”
“Many ninjas from other places have gone to Otogakure. Their mission efficiency is exceptionally high.”
“Our Daimyo is very supportive of Otogakure. I heard he gave them a lot of money.”
Before leaving, Elder Tōya had inquired about Otogakure’s location and some details.
After the Uchiha rested up, they quickly set off for Otogakure.
The Land of Rice Fields was small, and it only took two days to reach Otogakure territory.
To avoid accidental injury, Itachi asked the others to settle in the town while he and Shisui planned to scout ahead alone.
Otogakure looked quite shabby, smaller than the Uchiha ancestral home, with only a few hundred people coming and going.
But when Itachi and Shisui entered the village, they could clearly feel the presence of many powerful chakra.
Those were all jōnin-level ninjas.
The two secretly kept their guard up, following the client’s instructions to find the mission center.
The mission center was just a window.
Inside sat a chubby aunt, a normal person.
Shisui stepped forward to talk, the aunt smiled: “Welcome to Otogakure, is there anything I can help you with?”
Shisui politely replied: “We’re looking for someone, they may be in your Otogakure.”
“Oh? I wonder who you’re looking for?”
The aunt asked curiously.
“They are looking for me.”
A bespectacled man with a smile on his face walked in from outside, it was Kabuto Yakushi.
“Come with me.”
Kabuto Yakushi greeted the aunt and led Itachi and Shisui towards the back of the village.
The back of the village was next to a small mountain. The fewer people there were, the only sounds left were their three footsteps.
After a while, Kabuto stopped in front of a mountain pass.
“I wonder what brings the renowned Shunshin Shisui and the young master of the Uchiha to our Otogakure?”
As soon as the words left his mouth, several figures jumped out from the side, wearing various headbands.
These were Orochimaru’s followers, recruited from other villages. All of them were jōnin-level.
They all looked at Itachi and Shisui unkindly.
Itachi ignored the stares around him and took a step forward: “You’re Kabuto Yakushi, where’s Orochimaru?”
Itachi’s tone was calm, without the slightest ripple, but these jōnin were like they had been stimulated.
“How dare you address the Great Lord by name!”
Immediately, they rushed towards Itachi and Shisui.
.....
Suddenly, a kick aimed at Itachi.
“Oh, oh...”
Accompanied by the crow’s cries, Itachi turned into a flock of crows.
As the crows were in mid-air, Itachi used Shunshin to reach the sky.
Shuriken flew out, whizzing through the air, colliding and changing positions in the sky.
It took the four Otogakure ninjas to block Itachi’s shuriken attack.
Itachi Shunshined closer, kicking one Otogakure ninja flying.
The remaining three quickly engaged in combat with Itachi.
The other two charged towards Shisui, Shisui glanced at them, and the two immediately fell to the ground unconscious.
Kabuto Yakushi stood there without moving. These Otogakure ninjas were jōnin Orochimaru had collected.
They were quite skilled.
But even with a group attack, Itachi didn’t take much effort to defeat them.
Itachi simply used the Crow Clone Technique.
Shisui stood still, one genjutsu rendered the two powerless. He didn’t even participate in the subsequent battle.
Soon, these jōnin from Otogakure lay on the ground…