Seven Days Ago
A Dimly Lit Cave
A stone lamp stood in the center of the cave, its flame flickering, causing the surrounding rocks to shift between light and shadow.
Nine figures, all wearing the same attire, stood in a circle around the lamp as phantom projections.
"Deidara, Sasori, report on your mission," a phantom with eyes containing concentric rings said.
"Ugh... The mission failed, but Orochimaru used a jutsu to summon the Third Kazekage. I killed the Third Kazekage, but that person definitely looked like the Third Kazekage, used the same jutsu, and seemed unkillable," a hunchbacked ninja said.
"Hmph, what's so great about the Third Kazekage? He still got blown up by my art," Deidara, a blond-haired ninja, said proudly.
"I searched the rubble thoroughly, but I couldn't find the Third Kazekage's body. I can't guarantee he's dead," Sasori added.
"Sasori-danna, don't you have any faith in my art, un? The Third Kazekage was definitely blown to smithereens!" Deidara complained. "If he's still alive, I'll kill him myself, yeah. But, what was that jutsu anyway? Why was the Third Kazekage summoned by Orochimaru?"
"Do you have any idea, Itachi?" the apparent leader asked, turning to Uchiha Itachi.
"It's likely the Edo Tensei, a jutsu developed by the Second Hokage. It can revive the dead and control them freely. They're also unkillable, so you can only use sealing jutsu or physically restrain their movements," Itachi said after a moment of thought, sharing the information he knew.
"Then wouldn't killing Orochimaru solve the problem?" Deidara asked.
"Even then, the Edo Tensei bodies won't stop."
"What?!"
"There's one more thing. Konoha was recently attacked. It's suspected that Orochimaru and the Sand Village colluded, but they failed to destroy Konoha," the leader continued.
"Hmph, idiots," Deidara said, gloating.
"The Sand's One-Tail Jinchuriki has been revealed, but the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki's identity is still unknown. So, I want to send someone to investigate," the leader said, looking around at the group.
"I'll go," Itachi suddenly spoke up.
"Then it's entrusted to you, Itachi, and Kisame," the leader said, looking meaningfully at Itachi.
"The Konoha Jinchuriki, huh? Samehada will surely love the Nine-Tails' chakra," a shark-faced phantom said excitedly.
"A ninja village called Otogakure has sprung up in the Land of Rice Fields. Orochimaru is likely involved in its establishment. This attack on Konoha was probably a joint effort by Orochimaru, using Otogakure and the Sand. Therefore, we need to send a team to investigate in secret. This mission is assigned to Sasori and Deidara," the leader said.
"Alright! Watch me blow that bastard to kingdom come this time, un!" Deidara said excitedly.
"Idiot, I said secret investigation," Sasori said calmly. Then he asked, "If the investigation confirms the information, should we destroy Otogakure?"
"......" After a moment of silence, the leader said, "Capture Orochimaru alive. Bring him to me."
"What a pain... Wouldn't it be easier to just kill a traitor like that, yeah?" Deidara complained.
"Can I handle the Sand Jinchuriki?" Kakuzu spoke up.
"Hm?" The leader looked at Kakuzu with surprise. This person was only interested in money; he wouldn't willingly take on a mission without a commission. "Don't be hasty. Wait until we've confirmed the locations of all nine Tailed Beasts before making a move. Acting now will only draw the attention of the major nations."
"Hmph..." Kakuzu grunted and said nothing more.
"Hey, hey, Sasori-danna, why is Kakuzu so hostile towards the Sand, un?" Deidara whispered to Sasori.
"I don't know," Sasori replied coldly.
"This meeting is adjourned. Disperse," the leader said, and his phantom disappeared.
The other phantoms also vanished one by one.
Konohagakure
Sakura was currently standing in front of a house, covered in mud. After a diligent underground search, Sakura had finally dug out Sasuke's house.
With a Herculean effort, Sakura had finally managed to get Sasuke's house to stand firmly in this swampy area.
After another round of cleaning, the mud on the house was finally washed away.
Sakura lay unceremoniously on the tatami mats of Sasuke's house, waiting for Sasuke to cook her a meal.
She had been busy since morning until afternoon without eating a single bite. She had to clean up her own mess.
At Sasuke's request, Sakura hadn't cleared the surrounding bone forest. Sasuke said it was an excellent training ground. Since Sasuke didn't want it cleared, Sakura didn't bother.
The starving Sakura suddenly heard Naruto's voice outside.
"Sasuke... Sasuke..."
Sakura rushed out to see Naruto calling out to Sasuke outside the house.
"Naruto, over here!" Sakura waved to Naruto.
"Ah, Sakura-chan, you're here too," Naruto asked, seeing Sakura at the entrance of Sasuke's house. "What happened here? How did it become like this?"
"Haha, don't worry about it. Did you come to see Sasuke? He's cooking," Sakura said, leading Naruto into the house.
"Huh, why does it smell like fresh earth in here?" Naruto asked, sniffing the air.
"It's nothing, nothing. I just dug this house out of the ground," Sakura said awkwardly.
"What happened here? Why did this place change so much overnight?" Naruto was still very curious.
"Nothing happened. Last night, an enemy came here, and I ran into him. Then I fought him, and these are the results of the jutsu," Sakura said sheepishly.
Battles between ninjas caused enormous damage to civilians. Luckily, no one was here. If this had happened in a place where civilians lived, who knows how many people would have died. Sakura had gained a deeper understanding of the destructive power of ninjas.
"An enemy? Sakura-chan, were you hurt?" Naruto asked anxiously.
"Ugh... I was hurt a little, but I'm fine now, haha," Sakura said truthfully.
"Damn it! If I had been here, I would have beaten him to a pulp!" Naruto clenched his fists upon hearing that Sakura was injured. Then he asked, "Who was it?"
"It was one of Orochimaru's spies," Sakura said, not wanting to dwell on the issue. She asked Naruto instead, "What did you come to see Sasuke for?"
"Ah, right! Kakashi-sensei asked me to inform you and Sasuke that the inauguration ceremony for the Fifth Hokage will be held tomorrow," Naruto said, crossing his arms with a clearly disgruntled expression.
"Oh, is that so? Lady Tsunade is finally going to become the Fifth Hokage," Sakura said with a bit of emotion. "Naruto, Lady Tsunade will be a good Hokage. You need to cooperate with her in the future, understand?"
"Alright, alright, I know," Naruto said dismissively. "And one more thing. Kakashi-sensei said Lord Third wants to see Sasuke."
"Hm? What for?" Sakura asked, puzzled.
The Third Hokage wanted to see Sasuke? Could it be to ask about Kabuto's information? But Konoha should know more details, since Kabuto had been undercover in Konoha for a long time and even had a public identity.
"I don't know. Kakashi-sensei didn't say," Naruto said, still sulking. It seemed Tsunade's words belittling the Hokage had rubbed Naruto the wrong way.
"Clatter."
"Yo, Sasuke," Naruto greeted Sasuke, who emerged from the kitchen wearing casual clothes and carrying dishes.
"Hm? Naruto? What are you doing here?" Sasuke's eyes lit up with surprise at seeing Naruto.
"He came to mooch off us," Sakura said quickly, preempting Naruto.
"Hmph, I didn't come to mooch! Kakashi-sensei told me to tell you that Lord Third wants to see you," Naruto immediately contradicted Sakura.
Sakura looked at Naruto, speechless. You really don't give me any face, do you? Hinata liking you is really thanks to your parents' good karma.
"What does the Third Hokage want to see me about?" Sasuke asked.
"I don't know about that. Oh, and also, tomorrow is the Fifth Hokage's inauguration ceremony. Kakashi-sensei told us not to be late," Naruto said, swallowing as he looked at the food Sasuke had made.
"If you want to eat, then eat, you dead-last," Sasuke said, setting down the dishes. "I'm going to see the Third Hokage first."
"Hey~~ Sasuke, aren't you going to eat?" Sakura quickly asked.
"No need. You guys eat. I'm going," Sasuke said and left.
"Sakura-chan, munch... you said... munch... what does... munch... Lord Third want with Sasuke?" Naruto started eating unceremoniously as soon as Sasuke left.
"Hey? Weren't you not here to mooch?" Sakura said, her face darkening slightly as she watched Naruto devour the food.
"Don't worry about that... munch... Sasuke's cooking is pretty good, munch... but he's still far behind me... munch..." Naruto mumbled between mouthfuls.
"Tch, all you can do is grill fish and make instant ramen. It's not that Sasuke is far behind you, it's you who's far behind Sasuke," Sakura retorted, no longer wasting words on Naruto. She had been busy all day, skipping both breakfast and lunch.
Morning, Hokage Office Conference Room
The Third Hokage, Koharu Utatane, Homura Mitokado, and Danzo Shimura, the four disciples of the Second Hokage, were sitting around a round table, discussing something.
"Hiruzen, I strongly oppose this," Homura said.
"I second that," Koharu said.
"Hiruzen, keeping him is already a hidden danger. You need to reconsider this," Danzo said.
The Third Hokage looked at his former comrades with a wry smile. This matter was technically a private affair of the Third Hokage and didn't require consultation with anyone. However, to avoid future trouble, he had to bring it up with the advisory council.
"This matter is, in a way, my personal business. I'm only bringing it up with you as a notification. I've already made my decision," Hiruzen said calmly.
"Hiruzen, this isn't just your personal business. Because you're the Hokage, this concerns the entire village," Homura said, not backing down.
"That's right, Hiruzen. I think you haven't thought this through," Koharu added.
This time, the two advisors and Danzo were all on the same side. This matter was of great importance, and even the usually mediating advisors were firmly opposed.
"Hiruzen, isn't Orochimaru's lesson enough?" Danzo said, his tone somber. "By doing this, you're disregarding the lives of everyone in the village."
"I believe that if we just ignore it, it will breed a second Orochimaru," Hiruzen retorted, not yielding an inch. "Besides, don't you bear some responsibility for Orochimaru's actions?"
"What are you implying, Hiruzen?" Danzo immediately retorted.
"Sigh~~~~" Taking a puff of his pipe, the Third Hokage continued, "I don't want to dwell on the past, but this time, I hope you won't interfere."
Looking at Danzo, the Third Hokage couldn't express any particular emotion. Danzo had also supported Orochimaru's research. These things were gradually uncovered after Orochimaru's defection.
"Hiruzen, this matter is different from Orochimaru. He's from that clan. If he learns the truth, I fear..." Koharu didn't finish her sentence. The consequences were easy to imagine.
"And, Hiruzen, don't forget, it's been so long, we can't be sure if Uchiha Itachi is still trustworthy. If Itachi tells him the truth about what happened back then, you should know what the outcome will be. Judging from his current behavior, I don't think he'll make the same choice Itachi did. The best course of action now is to deal with him secretly. Both Jiraiya and Tsunade are in the village now," Danzo said, uttering words that made the Third Hokage furious.
"Uchiha Itachi will not betray the village," the Third Hokage said to Danzo, emphasizing each word.
"Hiruzen, Danzo, calm down," Koharu interjected, seeing that the two were about to argue.
"Then, Hiruzen, we want to know what you're thinking. Why are you doing this?" Homura asked.
"......" After a moment of silence, the Third Hokage said, "Because I don't want to see him go down Orochimaru's path."
"Just that?" Homura asked, surprised.
"Due to my mistake, Orochimaru didn't walk the right path. Now, I want to make up for my past mistakes. This is also for the future development of the village. The Uchiha clan's incident ultimately had our fault in it as well," the Third Hokage said gravely. "Once we're all in the ground, naturally no one will know the truth of what happened back then. I believe Sasuke can protect Konoha just like Itachi."
The three were silent. The Third Hokage's words didn't offer much convincing evidence, but they could hear a firmness in his voice. It seemed that nothing could change the Third Hokage's mind.
Danzo stood up, said nothing, and walked out. Then, Koharu and Homura also left the conference room one after another.
The Third Hokage, seeing them leave, understood their attitude: they didn't agree, they wouldn't oppose, and they would wait and see.
Yes, the Third Hokage wanted to take Sasuke as his disciple. This matter, in any case, was the Third Hokage's private affair. But the problem was one was the Hokage, and the other was an Uchiha.
Back then, Uchiha Itachi had put in a great deal of effort to enter the Hokage's direct ANBU Black Ops, opening a channel connecting the Uchiha and Konoha. And now, although the Uchiha had been wiped out, the Hokage taking an Uchiha as his disciple still made the advisors nervous.
Because it meant that Uchiha Sasuke would enter Konoha's upper echelon in the future, representing that Uchiha Sasuke had the opportunity to run for Hokage in the future. In this ninja world, inheritance was something highly valued.
Therefore, this was not only the Third Hokage's personal affair, but it concerned the future of Konoha.
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