Were They Played?

"Someone's here."

Sasuke somewhat nervously.

The timing was really bad; he couldn't even stand up, and Sakura seemed to have less Chakra left than him.

The black-haired boy quietly slipped his intact left hand into his ninja tool pouch.

It wasn't that he was prepared for battle... he simply didn't have the strength to fight anymore.

Instead, a cruelest thought arose in his mind.

Just now it was my turn to protect her, and now I'm going to become a burden to Sakura again?

No, he has another option.

So...

"So don't be nervous," Sakura turned back and smiled, "We're all on the same side!"

Snap!

Two Anbu Ninja appeared in front of the two men in a Body Flicker Technique.

It was Shino and Yugao.

Sakura had originally planned to rush back to support Sasuke and Sasuke after treating their Sasuke. Unexpectedly, they quickly finished off the enemies and came to her aid instead.

As expected, these veteran Anbu and Jonin are no pushovers; they all have a few trump cards up their sleeves!

"You guys made such a racket, I was shocked over there!" The female ninja with the white mask glanced at Sasuke, then said to Sakura.

"Hmm... that was my final blow to him." The girl said without batting an eye, the first part of "final blow," I suppose.

Her hands continued to perform Medical Ninjutsu, while she gestured with her lips towards the place where Kimimaro had died in the final battle.

"Using the Kekkei Genkai of bones?" Yugao glanced at the traces left after the battle and secretly clicked her tongue in amazement. "I didn't expect Orochimaru to have such a talent among his subordinates."

"You've had a tough time too, Tobi." Shino glanced at Sakura casually. It was the first time he had ever seen his young female subordinate in such a disheveled state. She had nearly a dozen large wounds and scabs all over her body, which looked quite gruesome.

He couldn't even remember which mission this pretty girl had been injured on.

I don't think so?

Elegant and composed, or sharp and decisive, that has always been his impression of Yuan.

As the last-positioned turret-type damage dealer in the team, her most frequent task is to mercilessly wield that beautiful silver-white line from afar, cleanly and efficiently slaying enemies. Even in close combat, her powerful Cherry Blossom Impact and Nintaijutsu ensure her invincibility.

He couldn't believe that this battered ninja was the same formidable teammate he once knew.

Sakura Haruno is medical-nin, after all. Does she not even have enough Chakra to heal herself?

Even from a distance, he could sense Kimimaro's terrifying Chakra; he truly was a formidable opponent.

"Time is running out," Shino urged, watching Sakura finish treating Sasuke's most critical leg wound. "Although we've eliminated the enemies in this area, new enemies could appear at any moment, even Orochimaru himself..."

"Can you still walk?" Sakura helped Sasuke up, and the latter tried to put his supporting leg on his injured leg. He immediately gasped, his forehead covered in cold sweat from the pain.

Shino shook his head. "Looks like we can't walk anymore. I'll carry you on my back!"

He walked over, hoisted the arrogant-looking boy onto his back, and was about to set off when the three Anbu of the Fourteenth Squad paused almost simultaneously.

Yugao instinctively placed her hand on the longsword behind her, carefully examining it for a while before relaxing her tense face. "Don't worry, it's someone we know."

After Yugao's words, Sakura also sensed that the massive Chakra rapidly approaching did indeed feel somewhat familiar.

Who could it be?

Her question didn't last long.

The newcomers clearly sensed their Chakra and quickened their pace.

Amidst the billowing smoke, a ghastly green figure raced towards them, then came to a stop in front of them, leaving two long skid marks.

"The Blue Beast of the Hidden Leaf of Konoha has arrived!"

The man shouted.

Oh, it was him.

Snap!

Sakura Haruno slapped her forehead directly with her right hand.

They put their hands to their foreheads and looked at each other in silence.

On Kimimaro's battlefield, the battle has ended.

Meanwhile, far away, another battle involving the Sound Ninja was also nearing its end.

The "tail" in "tiger's head and snake's tail" (虎头蛇尾).

Fire Style: Searing Migraine!

A torrent of Chakra erupted from the mouth of one of Kakuzu's bodies, transforming into orange-yellow flames that turned the valley beneath Kakuzu's feet into a sea of fire.

Boom--!

The Kakkō flickered, and the heat was oppressive.

The venomous flames quickly transformed everything in the valley below, including the endless sea of snakes that had just been wreaking havoc, and even Orochimaru's body, into fuel for the raging inferno.

The raging flames cast an unpredictable shadow on Kakuzu's face.

Orochimaru remained completely still...

Although the Fire Style: Searing Migraine technique is terrifyingly powerful, Kakuzu doesn't believe it can burn a strongman like Orochimaru to ashes!

So... where did he go?

I can't sense Orochimaru's Chakra, and I can't sense his presence.

After the flames died down, he used Earth Grudge Fear to search again, thoroughly turning over every corner.

Nothing was gained.

"Where is Orochimaru?" Kakuzu's cloudy pupils shrank to a point, his expression growing increasingly hostile.

As a seasoned Kage Level ninja, Kakuzu confident that Orochimaru couldn't possibly escape his senses and observation, unless—

"Orochimaru escaped...! That slippery bastard!" Kakuzu said with a grim face and hatred.

He was confident that Orochimaru would be no match for him in a direct confrontation, but he was truly at a loss when faced with such a slippery opponent.

At the start of the battle, Orochimaru acted as if he was ready to fight to the death, fully displaying his Kage Level strength and creating a clash of titans.

Various S-rank Ninjutsu and bizarre Secret Technique emerged continuously from their hands.

The terrifying power of advanced Release Techniques quickly plowed through the land within a one-kilometer radius, then reshaped the terrain; the snakes that died on the battlefield raised the ground several meters higher.

However, Kakuzu never expected that Orochimaru's aggressive, desperate stance was just a feint; while Orochimaru was enthusiastically displaying various Five Elements Release Techniques, Kakuzu was shocked to find that Orochimaru had vanished without a trace.

"Hmph, this guy has used all his skills on running away!" Kakuzu sneered. Orochimaru's black market bounty was extremely high, Kakuzu was really heartbroken that he had escaped this time.

However, this time they finally managed to track Orochimaru down, unlike a few years ago when Orochimaru chased after him and found absolutely no trace of him.

His base should be nearby; we can search again, we might find some clues...

Thinking of this, Kakuzu's depressed mood improved somewhat, and he looked towards Hidan.

"Hey! Hidan, are you done with your ritual yet?!" Kakuzu was furious when he saw Hidan going through that extremely time-wasting evil god ritual again.

"Tsk, what's the rush!" Hidan scrambled to his feet, muttering things like "It hurts so much." Seeing Kakuzu carrying Kabuto's corpse, he immediately shouted, "Hey, Kakuzu, you're not even going to let this guy's bounty go?"

Kakuzu patted the corpse on his shoulder, glanced coldly at Hidan, and then said in a deep voice, "This guy named Kabuto has a high bounty on the black market... even Konoha is after him. Letting Orochimaru go this time will at least make up for the loss with his bounty, and that will make me feel a little better!"

"Are you that obsessed with money?" Hidan said disdainfully. "It's always the same; you never let a single penny slip by! If I hadn't kept urging you, we would have definitely missed Orochimaru on this mission!"

He grumbled a few words, then noticed that Kakuzu's eyes had turned extremely cold and gloomy.

"... Hey, what I said is true, isn't it? Why are you looking at me like that? Am I wrong?"

"No... something's wrong with the corpse! It's stiff like this, how could it be the corpse of someone who just died!" Kakuzu abruptly threw the corpse to the ground, a feeling of being fooled welling up inside him, his face instantly turning somber that it seemed as if water could drip from it.

After careful observation, he quickly discovered a flaw. "There are fine sutures on the neck... This person isn't Dou!"

"What? We've been tricked?" Hidan roared, his scythe flying out in fury, slamming into a nearby boulder and shattering it into pieces.

Kakuzu was equally furious at this moment. It was bad enough that Orochimaru had managed to outmaneuver Hidan, but even someone like Kabuto had managed to completely outsmart him?

However, at this point, Kakuzu actually calmed down.

He thought for a moment.

"That guy named Danzo lured us here using Konoha's ninja intelligence. Could he be playing us too?"

(This is Chapter Two. I rushed to finish it, so the quality is a bit poor. Please be gentle with your criticism. There was a typhoon and hail here, it was terrifying! The windows were rattling from the hail, and the flowerpots almost fell off the building.)