"Lord Orochimaru!"
Unlike Tori's attempt at maintaining a facade of equal footing during their last meeting, Inu was far more direct. The moment he saw Orochimaru, he dropped to one knee, his tone as reverent as if he were reporting to Danzo himself.
For a split second, Orochimaru almost mistook him for a regular Anbu operative.
"Danzo sent a new 'dog' this time, I see," Orochimaru sneered, his voice dripping with a double-edged mockery that played on both the man's mask and his status as a lackey. "Speak. What does Danzo want now?"
He didn't bother wasting breath on a small fry like Inu. Orochimaru had never truly respected Danzo; he had merely affiliated himself with Root to better facilitate his own experiments. Now that he had secured a massive victory, his prestige was at an all-time high. Upon his return to the village, his standing would inevitably skyrocket, and his relationship with Danzo would have to shift accordingly.
He had to make it clear to Danzo: if they were to continue working together, it would be as equal partners, not as master and servant.
"Lord Danzo is well aware of your terms, Lord Orochimaru," Inu replied. He clenched his fists, doing his best to swallow his indignation for the sake of his master's prestige. He kept his voice as calm and clinical as possible. "He has agreed to your request to join the research. However... the Lord has a few conditions of his own."
Inu paused, tentatively glancing up to gauge Orochimaru's reaction.
"I'm listening," Orochimaru replied without a beat of hesitation. Inu immediately lowered his head again, feeling the weight of the Sannin's gaze.
"The Lord requires you to hand over the child named Akiren. I am to take him back to Root."
"Heh. You seem to have missed the point," Orochimaru interrupted with a cold, dismissive chuckle. "Tsunade won't allow that boy to be taken."
"You needn't worry about that, my Lord. Tsunade-hime will be leaving the camp shortly. When that happens, we only ask that you turn a blind eye." Inu's tone took on a hint of smug confidence.
"Is Danzo still obsessed with that?!"
Before the words had even left Inu's mouth, Orochimaru unleashed a wave of glacial killing intent. It was so visceral that Inu felt as if a thousand needles were pricking his skin.
"Lord Orochimaru, please be at ease. This time, the Lord only intends to draw Tsunade away," Inu explained hurriedly, sensing that Orochimaru had seen through their ploy.
"Hmph."
The killing intent vanished as quickly as it had appeared. Inu let out a breath he didn't know he was holding, his heart hammering against his ribs. The pressure Orochimaru exerted was no less terrifying than Danzo's.
"Is that Danzo's only request? It's never that simple with him, is it?" Orochimaru's voice rang out again, laced with unmasked derision.
"In addition... the Lord hopes you will agree to one more thing." Inu felt both embarrassed and furious at the early mockery, but he managed to maintain his deferential posture.
"Heh." Orochimaru didn't answer with words, but his laughter made his thoughts perfectly clear.
"The Lord requests that upon your return to the village, you provide full support regarding the investigation into Akiren."
"Danzo is as petty as ever," Orochimaru remarked, immediately catching the subtext. He sneered. "Does he really want to stoop so low as to take revenge on a child just because that boy, Hatani, ruined his plans?"
Mockery aside, Orochimaru began tapping a long, pale finger against the desk in thought. He recalled something he had overheard while making his rounds at the field hospital recently. The derision faded from his face as he spoke.
"Tell Danzo I can take his side on this. But... the boy's life must be preserved. And afterward, he is to be handed over to me."
"This... I must report this to Lord Danzo first. Please forgive me, Lord Orochimaru."
"There is no rush," Orochimaru chuckled, looking like a man who already knew the answer. "Danzo has plenty of time to think it over."
Back in her own tent, Tsunade lay on her cot, staring at the ceiling.
Nara Shikashin had made the situation perfectly clear: Hiruzen Sarutobi had sent Akimichi Choza and Yamanaka Inoichi—the heirs of two major clans—to lead the escort. Even if Danzo had sent Aburame Shikuro to tail them, he wouldn't dare move against the sons of such influential families.
But Tsunade felt like a bird startled by the mere sound of a bow. The trauma of her recent ordeal made it impossible to find peace. She tossed and turned, her mind plagued by nightmares of Nawaki stepping into that paper bomb trap, his body almost vaporized in the blast.
Finally, after an eternity of mental agony, when the entire camp had fallen into a deep, silent slumber, she sat up. She threw on her flak jacket, secured her map and tool pouch, and quietly slipped out of the tent and away from the camp.
She thought her departure was a secret. She didn't notice the figure waiting in the shadows near the perimeter, who vanished the moment she disappeared into the night.
Great. I knew having that cursed necklace around would lead to trouble.
Looking at the four ninjas wearing Amegakure forehead protectors who had just blocked their path, Hatani felt a silent roar of frustration in his heart.
"Gentlemen, what is the meaning of this?" Minato asked, still attempting to appeal to reason. "Your leader, Hanzo, has already agreed to sign a peace treaty with Konoha. Don't cause unnecessary trouble now and ruin a hard-won peace."
Technically it was a diplomatic appeal, but it sounded more like a threat.
Against regular Rain ninjas who feared Hanzo like a god, Minato's words might have worked. But against the four men in front of them, they were useless. These were no Rain ninjas—they were the Iwa assassination squad led by the Jonin, Fumikawa.
"Hmph! A treaty?!" Fumikawa sneered. "Countless comrades of ours died at the hands of Leaf shinobi. My own leg was lost because of your people. You think a scrap of paper is enough to make us bow and beg for mercy? In your dreams!"
Fumikawa's orders made it impossible to let Nawaki go, and his personal grudge had only intensified since his leg had been amputated due to Aburame Shikuro's poison.
However, he had found his targets far more easily than expected, and for that, he actually had Shikuro to thank. If he hadn't encountered the Aburame and been forced to amputate his calf, he wouldn't have been in such a vengeful state, scouring the area for the man.
Because he was searching for Shikuro, he had stumbled right into Hatani's group.
As the saying goes: "You can wear out iron shoes in a fruitless search, only to find what you seek without any effort."
Fumikawa had failed to find Shikuro, but he had found the mission's primary target. He circled the group like a vulture closing in on carrion.
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