Too Much at Stake

Yemo had just returned to the base and hadn't Jiraiya had a chance to rest when he was subjected to a three-way interrogation by Orochimaru and Jiraiya. However, neither Orochimaru nor Jiraiya blamed Yemo too much for his mission.

After all, this was Yemo's first mission, and such a high-level one at that. He had no mission experience whatsoever, so everyone could understand his failure. Moreover, Yemo's performance was not bad; he did achieve something, killing a Special Jōnin.

Yemo bowed and reported, "Teacher Orochimaru, Lord Jiraiya, I did not come away empty-handed this time. I have investigated and found out that Lightning Hidden Village did not sit with Iwagakure this time; it was all just a delaying tactic by Lightning Hidden Village."

Upon hearing this, Orochimaru and Jiraiya were shocked. Jiraiya even stood up from his chair, but quickly regained his composure and returned to his seat.

After a brief moment of shock, Orochimaru asked in an extremely serious tone, "Yemo, what exactly happened here? How did you discover the secrets of the Kumogakure's higher-ups?"

Next, Yemo didn't hide anything and explained the matter with Killer B in detail, although he made some appropriate adjustments to some parts.

After listening to Yemo's story, Orochimaru was stunned for several seconds before he came to his senses, as was Jiraiya. Neither of them expected that Yemo's mission this time would be so full of twists and turns.

Looking up at Yemo, Orochimaru's tone was unusually serious, "Yemo, you should understand what a mission is for a ninja. A mission is a ninja's life. Yet you actually used the mission's content to make a deal with the local authorities. You should know what the consequences will be."

"Disciple understands," Yemo bowed and admitted his mistake, but then suddenly changed the subject, saying, "However, disciple also understands that if we can complete the mission, it's acceptable for this information to be leaked. Besides, it's not exactly classified information. When Lord Jiraiya was attacked by the so-called 'Iwa Ninja,' the higher-ups in Kumogakure must have known that we would send intelligence agents to investigate the authenticity of the 'Iwa Ninja.' Therefore, in my opinion, the content of this mission isn't classified information. So, if we can use this not-so-classified information to complete the mission, I think it's worthwhile."

After listening to Yemo's explanation, Orochimaru pondered for a moment, then turned to look at Jiraiya. Just then, Jiraiya, and their eyes met. Their long-standing understanding allowed them to instantly comprehend each other's thoughts.

Turning his gaze away, Jiraiya looked at Yemo, a hint of confusion in his eyes, and asked, "Then how are you so sure that Killer B isn't deliberately deceiving you to get you to pass on the message and mislead us?"

With a smile, Yemo said confidently, "I think it's absolutely impossible."

Seeing Yemo's confidence and certainty, Jiraiya became interested, shifting his body slightly and saying, "Where do you get the confidence to be so sure it's impossible?"

Yemo gently raised a finger and explained his reasoning, "My confidence comes from one aspect: according to what I learned from Killer B Bee, their purpose in this war is merely to distract us while secretly sending an elite squad to kidnap my older sister Kushina."

"What!"

Orochimaru and Jiraiya exclaimed in unison that Kushina's identity was extraordinary; she was the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki and played a vital role in the village.

Jiraiya slammed his hand on the table, angrily saying, "So that's why the Land of Lightning suddenly stationed troops on our border. They're secretly plotting to steal our Nine- Konoha Nine-Tails Jinchuriki!"

Orochimaru wasn't as agitated Jiraiya. He tapped the table lightly with his middle finger, as if talking to himself, and said, "That makes sense. If it's the Nine-Tails, then it's indeed worth the Land of Lightning paying such a huge price, even at the cost of starting a war."

At this moment, Yemo suddenly said, "Their purpose in capturing my older sister was not for the Nine-Tails inside her."

Hearing Yemo's words, Orochimaru and Jiraiya confused. Jiraiya asked suspiciously, "Yemo, what do you mean? If Kumogakure is capturing your older sister, what else could it be for if not the Nine-Tails?"

Pursing his lips, Yemo explained, "It's not that Kumogakure's goal wasn't the Nine-Tails inside my sister; it's that they were completely unaware that she possessed Nine-Tails. They captured her simply because she could suppress the Tailed Beast's rampage. Kumogakure was preparing to transfer the Eight-Tails to another Jinchūriki, and to prevent the Eight-Tails from going berserk, they wanted to capture her."

"In our recent battle, my ability to suppress the Tailed Beast Chakra was discovered by Blue B, the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki. That's why Kumogakure sent out a large number of ninjas to capture me when I was discovered."

"Therefore, since I was their target in the Land of Lightning, and they had me trapped, Killer B had no reason to lie to me. However, they didn't expect Minato to use the Flying Thunder God Technique to take me away."

"I see!" Jiraiya nodded, having roughly understood after Yemo's explanation.

Orochimaru remained silent. He leaned back in his chair, his slightly bent fingers tapping lightly on the armrest, lost in thought. No one knew what Teacher Orochimaru was thinking at that moment.

The room fell silent. None of the four spoke, and only soft breathing echoed in the air.

After a long silence, Orochimaru's eyes narrowed slightly, his sharp gaze fixed on Yemo, and he said sternly, "Yemo, as my disciple, although I haven't known you for long, I understand your personality. Are you hiding something here? Your excuse just now was a bit far-fetched."

Upon hearing this, Jiraiya and Minato's gazes involuntarily focused on Yemo, looking at the silent Yemo with suspicion. Could it be that Orochimaru was right, and Yemo really was hiding something?

"As expected of Teacher Orochimaru, "Yemo thought to himself. Orochimaru had a strong grasp of people's hearts, judging that Yemo was hiding something just because Yemo's reason was somewhat far-fetched.

After a moment of contemplation, Yemo spoke in an extremely serious tone, "Teacher Orochimaru, Lord Jiraiya, I have indeed concealed some things, but I did not do so intentionally, because I did not know whether I should tell them or not."

Seeing Yemo's extremely serious expression, Orochimaru and Jiraiya felt a chill in their hearts. It seemed that this matter was definitely no small thing, and might even have far-reaching implications.

"Speak, there are only the four of us here now, and what we're about to discuss will remain in this room," Orochimaru said after a pause, signaling to Yemo to speak without worry.

With Orochimaru's assurance, Yemo had no more reservations and said, "Teacher Orochimaru, as far as I know, the Kumogakure Village's deployment of troops on the border is not intended to start a war. Their purpose is merely to exert pressure and attract the attention of the Konoha High Command, but someone has attacked them."

At this point, Yemo stopped there, knowing that Teacher Orochimaru and Jiraiya would understand what he meant without him having to spell it out.

As expected, Yemo finished speaking, both Orochimaru and Jiraiya's expressions changed repeatedly. If what Yemo said was true, Kumogakure did not want to start a war, but rather launched a war only after someone attacked them, then the attacking party was very intriguing. In other words, there was a mastermind behind the scenes pushing Kumogakure and Konoha to engage in war.

The fact that Kumogakure initiated the war means they are certain that Konoha attacked them, but Orochimaru and Jiraiya certain that they never gave any orders to secretly attack Kumogakure.

Of course, this doesn't mean that no one in Konoha possesses the power to do such a thing, but those who could surpass Jiraiya and Orochimaru to accomplish this are few and far between, and those with the motive to do so are...

These speculations are only possible if the information Yemo provided is true, but Orochimaru and Jiraiya stopped there after reaching this point...

Just as Yemo had worried, this involved far too much, involving the struggle between the two factions in Konoha. Even Orochimaru and Jiraiya did not want to get involved in this vortex.

Although Minato didn't say a word, the cold sweat that had appeared on his forehead at some point clearly showed that Minato understood what it meant.

After putting aside his speculations, Orochimaru's gaze swept over Yemo and Minato, and he instructed, "Today in the room, we only discussed the success or failure of this mission, understand?"

"Understood!" Yemo and Minato replied in unison.

"Alright, you can all leave now."

Upon hearing this, Yemo and Minato quickly went outside, leaving only Jiraiya and Orochimaru with furrowed brows and a Jiraiya of impending doom.

This kind of thing definitely needs to be kept secret. If it gets out, the fact that some high-ranking officials in Konoha are secretly instigating Kumogakure to attack Konoha and causing a major war would create a huge storm in Konoha. The entire Konoha High Command would become the target of all the villagers' anger, and their integrity and reputation would be completely ruined. It could even cause internal turmoil in Konoha, giving the other four great ninja villages an opportunity to take advantage. Therefore, this news must be kept secret. As for how to deal with it, that's not Yemo's problem, but Jiraiya and Orochimaru's.

In any case, Yemo and Minato would never reveal a single word. It's best for them not to get involved in this kind of power struggle among the higher-ups.