Knowing that Xin wasn't upset with her, Kushina bounced back quickly, showing up bright and early the next morning at Xin's place with a homemade breakfast.
In the Hokage's office, Orochimaru had just returned to the village and was sitting across from Hiruzen.
Looking at Orochimaru's tired eyes, Hiruzen couldn't help but feel a pang of sympathy as he sighed, "You've worked hard these past few weeks."
Relaxing in his chair, Orochimaru allowed himself a small smile. "It wasn't too bad. Not as tiring as dealing with certain other people."
"...'
That was clearly a jab at Hiruzen's decision to put Danzo in charge of the war effort in the Land of Rain.
"Ahem!" Hiruzen coughed, quickly steering the conversation away. "So, what's your plan this time? The Cloud Village is very protective of their Jinchuriki. It won't be easy to get close to them."
"Since I've accepted the mission, I've already got a plan. Just have your operatives assist me when the time comes."
"Oh, and I'd like to bring someone along with me to the Cloud Village for this mission," Orochimaru added.
He wanted to bring Xin along, thinking the boy would be interested in something like this.
After all, with Xin's connection to Kushina, and the fact that the Cloud Village had targeted her, Orochimaru figured Xin wouldn't sit this one out.
"Who do you want to bring?" Hiruzen asked.
"Xin Usagi."
"Xin?" Hiruzen frowned.
He hadn't expected Orochimaru to suggest taking Xin on this mission to the Cloud Village.
If this mission succeeded, the recognition would be enormous. This clearly went against the council's decision to cool things down with Xin.
They had assigned him to be a teacher precisely to keep him out of the spotlight.
If Xin went with Orochimaru to the Cloud Village and completed this mission, all their efforts to keep him out of the limelight would be in vain.
"Xin out of the question. He's currently a Jonin instructor, responsible for training three students. Why don't you pick someone else?" Hiruzen said, immediately rejecting Orochimaru's request.
"Rejected?"
Ever since Orochimaru learned that Xin had been kept in the village as a Jonin instructor, he knew exactly what the higher-ups were trying to do. But what he didn't expect was that the village would be so determined to keep Xin out of the spotlight that they'd sacrifice the success rate of the mission.
Orochimaru wasn't sure if he could pull it off alone, but with Xin's help, he was confident they could make the Cloud Village regret ever crossing Konoha.
Even if they were discovered, he knew they could escape with ease.
But now, doing it alone? Not only would the mission be far more difficult, but if he was caught, he'd face relentless pursuit from the Cloud Village. Maybe even from the Third Raikage himself.
Orochimaru had already come up with various strategies, but the moment he tried to bring in a partner, his plan fell apart.