Eve of the Decisive Battle

In the autumn of Konoha Year 36, the day before the decisive battle of the Second Ninja War.

The rain in the Land of Rain never ceased.

Orochimaru braved the rain through a dense forest and arrived before a small cabin. Before he entered, he faintly heard Jiraiya teaching inside.

"Next, we'll begin Frog Splash Training. The goal is to disguise yourselves as frogs and cultivate the patience to remain unmoved by anything."

Only Jiraiya could come up with such an absurd teaching method.

Though Jiraiya's methods looked rather unreliable, they were actually quite effective.

In the original timeline, aside from Yahiko, who died young, Minato, Nagato, Konan, and Naruto all possessed at least Kage-level combat strength.

"Alright! Let's get going!"

Yahiko excitedly flung open the door and was about to head outside when he rammed straight into Orochimaru, who was standing there.

Seeing one adult and three children inside, all dressed in green Frog Suits, Orochimaru was prepared for it, but black lines still ran across his face...

The sight was too beautiful. Orochimaru could barely bear to look at it.

Being able to train while wearing such embarrassing clothes—truly, only you could do it, Jiraiya!

"Huh, Orochimaru? What is it?"

Jiraiya, wearing a round green frog head, asked Orochimaru.

"Let's talk outside."

What Orochimaru wanted to say to Jiraiya was not something the others should hear.

"You three stay here. I'll bring you oranges when I come back."

Jiraiya instructed the three children.

After following the path for a while and making sure no one was around, Orochimaru looked at Jiraiya and said, "Jiraiya, something happened to Tsunade. I don't even know whether she can continue being a ninja."

"What?! How could she have suffered such a serious injury?!"

Jiraiya could hardly believe that Tsunade, who was both immensely powerful and highly skilled in medicine, had suffered an injury even she could not heal.

"The injuries to her body can be healed, but the wounds in her heart cannot."

Orochimaru then gave Jiraiya a detailed account of Tsunade and Danzō Katō's newly begun relationship, as well as the accident Tsunade's team had encountered yesterday.

Dan Katō's death was no small loss.

His Mind Transfer Jutsu was silent and undetectable. Not only could it ignore distance and attack enemies on a mental level, it was also extremely effective for gathering and relaying intelligence. With Danzō Katō dead, the Mind Transfer Jutsu might be lost to Konoha forever.

But that was not the most important thing.

What mattered most was that if Tsunade could not take part in the decisive battle, it would deal a considerable blow to both their morale and strength.

She was a powerful fighter who had reached the Kage level, and her Medical Ninjutsu could greatly enhance the strength of Konoha Ninja.

In the previous battles, the survival rate had risen tremendously because Tsunade was there.

The more people survived, the more combat power they had. No powerful individual could replace that kind of endurance.

Tsunade was the stabilizing pillar of the battlefield. Her presence allowed Konoha Ninja to fight with even greater fearlessness.

At the Konoha camp, Hiruzen Sarutobi's residence also served as the place where he handled official matters.

Only the master and disciples—Hiruzen Sarutobi, Orochimaru, and Jiraiya—were there now.

Jiraiya had already changed into his combat outfit and taken off the Frog Suit that had served as a teaching prop.

"Orochimaru, is there really no way to cure Tsunade?"

Jiraiya looked at Orochimaru with hopeful eyes.

Ever since they were young, Orochimaru, the smartest among the three, had always been the one who made the decisions.

Hiruzen Sarutobi also puffed on his pipe as he looked toward Orochimaru.

Tsunade's presence was far too important to the village.

"If even Tsunade cannot cure her own hemophobia, what could I possibly do?"

Orochimaru shook his head.

When it came to medical skills, although Orochimaru, the foremost scientist in the shinobi world in the field of biological science, possessed a certain level of expertise, how could he possibly compare to Tsunade?

"She can only return home, travel more, and see more. With a different state of mind, she can try living a new life."

Orochimaru suggested.

"Can that cure Tsunade?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi asked doubtfully.

"Only time can wash everything away. Perhaps she must forget the pain she feels now."

Orochimaru paused.

"Or there may be another way."

Orochimaru spoke with some hesitation.

"What way?!" ×2

"Put Tsunade in danger and let her overcome her hemophobia through her own willpower."

"No! Orochimaru, that's far too dangerous!!"

Jiraiya grabbed Orochimaru and shouted. Then he turned to the Third Hokage.

"Sensei, we can't do this!"

"Let this old man think it over some more..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi took deep puffs from his pipe.

He stared at the thickening smoke, seemingly lost in memories of the past...

During the First Ninja War, the Second Hokage had died while covering their retreat.

Hiruzen Sarutobi had assumed the position of Third Hokage in a time of crisis. With the help of his fellow students, he successfully secured his position and led Konohagakure to victory in the First Ninja War.

But he had also lost his close friend, Kagami Uchiha.

The Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, had once told them that when an Uchiha with the Three Tomoe Sharingan suffered an extreme emotional shock, there was a chance of awakening the legendary Forbidden Eye.

It was the Mangekyō Sharingan once possessed by Madara Uchiha.

Back then, Kagami Uchiha had chosen to put himself in danger in order to obtain that power to protect Konohagakure, confronting his fear of death in an attempt to stimulate himself.

At Danzo's urging, Hiruzen had not stopped him.

And from that day onward, he had never seen Kagami again.

Hiruzen Sarutobi made up his mind. He abruptly rose to his feet and called out to Orochimaru and Jiraiya, who were about to head out to see Tsunade.

"Orochimaru! Jiraiya!"

Orochimaru and Jiraiya turned back to look at the Third Hokage.

"This old man is confident that even without Tsunade, I can still lead Konohagakure to victory in this war! Orochimaru, I have decided to adopt your first suggestion!"

"Kōtō!"

The Third Hokage called out.

"Lord Hokage!"

Kikume Kōtō, who had been standing guard outside, entered the room.

"Make the arrangements. Send an Anbu squad to escort Tsunade back to the village.

Also, spread word that Tsunade's squad obtained extremely important supplies and intelligence at the cost of Dan Katō's life, and that Tsunade has already escorted those items back to the village."

The news that Tsunade had developed hemophobia was top-secret intelligence.

But if Tsunade did not appear on the battlefield tomorrow, it would likely arouse the suspicions and provoke the probing of those with ulterior motives. He intended to spread false information to conceal the truth.

Jiraiya and Orochimaru exchanged a glance and smiled.

This was the teacher they knew—the Third Hokage of Konohagakure, the Ninja Hero Hiruzen Sarutobi.

"Let's go see Tsunade off."

After stepping outside, Jiraiya made the suggestion to Orochimaru.

Orochimaru agreed.

The wind and rain gradually subsided, revealing the rare sunlight of the Land of Rain.

But the sunlight would not last long, for dusk had already arrived.

"Lady Tsunade, it's getting late. We should set off soon."

An Anbu said to Tsunade.

Tsunade sat atop a rock as a light breeze carrying the scent of sunlight gently brushed across the tips of her hair.

"I'm waiting for someone."

Tsunade calmly said as she looked toward the setting sun.

"They're here."

Tsunade usually carried herself in a brisk and decisive manner, but today, she had unusually calmed down, displaying a charm unique to women.

Jiraiya was somewhat entranced as he looked at Tsunade like this.

Orochimaru nodded in acknowledgment to the Anbu members who greeted him.

"You can withdraw first."

Tsunade clearly had some things she did not want others to hear.

The Anbu hesitated upon hearing this. After exchanging glances, one of them finally stepped forward and replied:

"Sorry, Lady Tsunade, but you can say whatever you need to say here."

Orochimaru said nothing. The Anbu were the Hokage's Direct Unit; even as Deputy Commander, he had no authority to command them.

Jiraiya stepped forward and said, "We just came from Old Man's place. Lord Hokage has important classified intelligence that he asked me to relay to Tsunade.

Sorry, everyone, but you can't be allowed to know about this."

Seeing Jiraiya's firm attitude, the Anbu could only agree.

Who knew whether one of these three might become the next Hokage and their future superior?

"Tsunade, what did you need us for?"

Jiraiya asked anxiously.

Neither of them noticed Orochimaru suddenly fixing a cold gaze on a patch of shadow.

Realizing he had been discovered by Orochimaru, the Anbu in the shadows silently leaped out, gave a salute, and immediately vanished with a Body Flicker.

Only then did Tsunade and Jiraiya react.

"It's fine now. We can be sure no one is listening in."

"Orochimaru, Jiraiya, help me!"

A trace of pleading showed in Tsunade's eyes.

"Don't panic. Take your time and tell us."

Jiraiya pressed a hand to Tsunade's shoulder as he replied.

"Something was wrong with Dan's death! I suspect our intelligence was leaked!"

Tsunade spoke quietly.

"I'll help you investigate it thoroughly. Jiraiya isn't suited to handle this matter."

During this war, a group of people including Mito Uzumaki had gathered around Orochimaru, and he had begun establishing his own faction within Konohagakure.

Jiraiya, meanwhile, had no interest in power and still had three burdens to look after. In the end, this matter would have to fall into his own hands.

"I'm counting on you, Orochimaru."

For various reasons, Tsunade left the Land of Rain on the night before the final battle erupted. Once she was gone, no one knew when the Three Ninja would meet again.