The Plan

The Kumogakure Ninja's group rushed out of the izakaya in a rather erratic manner, but this did not affect the noisy atmosphere inside.

Of course, some people will remember this encounter, which can hardly be called a conflict or incident.

Located at a major transportation route in the northern continent, it's not surprising that there are some Gyuki here.

Informants, mobs, spies, missing-nin, intelligence specialists, and even ninjas hidden among the common people—like mice lurking in the shadows—peep, eavesdrop, collect, and seize all sorts of intelligence, passing it on to their superiors, which is then compiled and submitted to the desks of those forces that have some influence over the ninja world.

Orochimaru's Otogakure, Akatsuki, Kumogakure, Iwagakure, and even Konoha itself, including the nobles and daimyo of the Land of Fire.

But in front of that seemingly ordinary young nobleman and maid, none of them dared to make a move.

Those who work in intelligence are all sharp-eyed people. They saw clearly how that Kumogakure Jonin, Jonin Ukon Uroko, retreated in such a sorry Elite Jonin was terrified. These two must be incredibly powerful.

It seemed to radiate boundless light, an existence that could neither be ignored nor looked at directly!

So they shrank their heads even lower, hiding deeper into the darkness, trembling as they tried to minimize their presence.

Like an ostrich burying its head in the sand.

Sakura Uchiha sat at the bar and could see several suspicious-looking guys at a glance. They might have tried hard to hide themselves, but the Chakra fluctuations they deliberately concealed could not escape Sakura's perception. This attempt to cover up their presence only made them more conspicuous.

However, she wasn't very interested in cleaning up these small fish.

It's just weeds; once you clear one crop, another will grow back.

Sakura Uchiha was only interested in everything because it was her first mission—although field missions were nothing new in her memories, "experiencing" a mission was a different matter altogether.

When the excited girl turned around, she found that the black-haired woman beside her had deactivated her Transformation Technique and returned to her original appearance.

The beautiful woman she called "Sasuko" was actually a boy in real life.

It was Sasuke Uchiha.

"Alright, everyone, deactivate your transformations. There's no need to maintain this disguise, Sakura!" he said. "We've already been exposed anyway."

Sasuke isn't a fan of cross-dressing, and for a straight man like him, this kind of outfit is still too awkward.

Sakura Uchiha shrugged and had no choice but to remove her disguise and revert to her girlish appearance.

"There's only one option for cross-dressing: zero times or countless times," she said, looking at Sasuke with a frustrated expression. "Haven't you discovered any new hobbies?"

Sasuke felt a chill run down his spine under her gaze and quickly turned his head away. "Where did you hear that nonsense... Why would I be interested in dressing up as a girl! Be serious, we're on a mission!"

"Hmph, if the mission is the priority, you should continue to play the role of a maid, Sasuko!" Sakura Uchiha glared at him resentfully and pouted.

The idea of disguising themselves and infiltrating Orochimaru's lair came from Sakura Uchiha.

You might not believe it, but among Team 7, including Kakashi, the one who uses the Transformation Technique best isn't Sakura, who has the best Chakra manipulation, but Naruto. In the original story, his Transformation Technique even caught Kaguya off guard. To carry out a mission, Sakura Uchiha even wrote a letter to Naruto, who was training at Mount Myōboku, to learn some Transformation Technique techniques from him.

Sakura's idea did indeed avoid alerting the enemy to some extent, and it was out of public interest; but her demand that Sasuke become Sako's Sasuko was purely a product of her own perverse sense of humor.

As for the noble young man she transformed into, his appearance was somewhat based on his previous life's appearance—unfortunately, even Sakura Haruno herself had almost forgotten what he looked like. Having received the memories of the original, her impression was even more blurred, so she could only transform him into someone handsome.

She managed to turn a serious and solemn assassination mission into something resembling a picnic.

It was only because these two were highly skilled, confident in defeating Orochimaru, and also possessed youthful impetuosity, that they acted in this way.

Seeing her feigned annoyance, Sasuke couldn't help but find it amusing, and explained, "There's no point in pretending any further. That's Orochimaru's core territory, not a place for ordinary people to enter."

"Snort!"

The girl ignored his words, deliberately turning her head away, her bright eyes darting around as if she were lost in thought.

Sasuke shook his head.

He actually knew she wasn't really being stubborn.

After spending more than half a month together, Sasuke had basically figured out the girl's personality.

As a clone, her personality is essentially very similar to the original; she's a rare girl who isn't driven by romance, and is more rational than emotional. So, of course, she doesn't have the spoiled, capricious, or pretentious princess-like temperament. However, compared to Sakura Haruno's steely straightforwardness, the clone Sakura has a touch more softness on top of the original's cool and upright nature. Perhaps, in replicating the original's spirit, she inherited more of the original Sakura's soul in the core of her personality than the transmigrator's.

"Let's get back to business," Sasuke a smile. "Do you have a plan for the next step?"

Upon receiving the assignment, Sakura Uchiha sat up straight and said earnestly, "I've carefully studied the latest information Kakashi-sensei left us, and considering Orochimaru's cunning nature..."

Her delicate brows furrowed slightly, her lips pursed slightly, and she pondered for a moment.

"It seems there's really no better way than a direct assault."

At this point, the waiter began serving the food, and the two stopped talking. Sasuke took the opportunity to think hard for a while, but he didn't come to any conclusion.

That's normal.

Given Orochimaru's slippery nature, Konoha has wanted him for so many years, and Akatsuki has been secretly hunting him for so long. Despite the two major powers targeting him, they haven't been able to do anything to him. On the contrary, he's been living a more and more comfortable life. How could Sasuke and Sakura, two newcomers, come up with such a brilliant plan in such a short time?

Moreover, Sasuke is not good at quick thinking.

Sakura Uchiha certainly inherited some of the original's intelligence, but even if Sakura Haruno herself were here, could she catch that slippery white snake?

If Obito hadn't caused a commotion when Obito contacted Orochimaru, Konoha wouldn't be able to pinpoint Orochimaru's exact location!

"Eat first, we can talk about it after we finish eating," Sasuke said helplessly. "If all else fails, we'll just take him base by base, digging three feet into the ground to find him!"

"It's more reliable if we disguise ourselves and sneak over..."

Sakura Uchiha secretly rolled her eyes at him.

However, after racking their brains for a long time, the two still couldn't come up with a reliable idea, and even the last hot meal was tasteless, which was a bad start.

When I stepped out of the izakaya, the snow had stopped, and the earth was covered in a blanket of white, exceptionally beautiful and with stunning scenery.

The girl immediately perked up.

"The good news is that Orochimaru didn't accept Akatsuki's invitation, which means he also considers Akatsuki an enemy..." A thought struck her, and she suddenly asked, "So, how much stronger do I seem now compared to when I fought Orochimaru last time?"

Sasuke was slightly taken aback, then looked the girl up and down, pondered for a moment, and said in surprise, "From the surface... she doesn't seem to have changed much!"

He knew that Sakura Uchiha was definitely much stronger than Sakura Haruno at that time, but without using Sage Mode and other Secret Technique, this progress was not so obvious on the surface. If you had to take into account the rapid physical development and the robust growth of Chakra over the past year, it was just a natural increase in strength, which was incomparable to the monstrous growth rate of the original body.

Sakura Uchiha smiled slightly and said, "Then it seems Orochimaru has a reason to come out and face me... if he has a clear enough understanding of his situation!"

This is what she thought--

Orochimaru is now in a dilemma: he is unwilling to rejoin Akatsuki, but he cannot submit to Konoha... Continuing to run away and becoming a fugitive is certainly one option, but things are different now. If Akatsuki or Konoha are determined to capture him, how long he can escape is a question.

Therefore, for Orochimaru, the best way to break the deadlock is to fight Sakura head-on, even though she doesn't seem to be making much progress.

However, whether or not Orochimaru can be captured depends on his own plans. To reiterate, true strategic planning doesn't exist in the Hokage world. The main storyline of Hokage is a series of failed plans: the Sand Ninja plotted a rebellion for years and failed; Obito plotted to destroy the world for two or three decades and failed; Madara plotted to conquer the world for decades or even centuries and failed; Kaguya and Black Zetsu plotted revenge for over a thousand years and still failed.

Sasuke thought for a moment, then realized, "That's true!"

Compared to their previous cluelessness, the two were now at least somewhat confident, and their mood immediately improved.

Sakura Uchiha lightly leaped onto the snow and gracefully walked away. She applied her Water Walking skills to the soft snow, managing to leave no trace as she walked. The commoners passing by almost thought they had seen a fairy dancing in the snow.

A few Body Flicker Technique, the two had disappeared from the town, stepping through the snow and beginning to venture deeper into Orochimaru's territory.

[Two chapters released in quick succession, one more to come.]