Intel brought by Hatake Sakumo

But compared to Scorch Release, it was clearly the Uchiha Kagami before him who drew Orochimaru's attention more.

After the others left, he used a Summoning Snake to notify his subordinates in Konoha and gathered more detailed intel on Uchiha Kagami.

Before this, he only knew that this brat was an Uchiha who had awakened the Three-Tomoe Sharingan early on.

He had seen the Three-Tomoe Sharingan before—it was nothing special, middling at best.

But this brat's Dojutsu Power clearly far surpassed ordinary Three-Tomoe users. Orochimaru even suspected he had awakened the legendary Mangekyo!

Uchiha Kagami hadn't deliberately hidden his intel.

Superb Uchiha Ninja Swordsmanship, assisting in sealing the Nine-Tails' rampage with his Dojutsu Power, mastering a Rank A jutsu developed by Namikaze Minato in just two days...

Ninjutsu, Taijutsu, Genjutsu—triple mastery!

On top of that, he possessed an Invisible Slash with power rivaling a Kekkei Genkai.

Add in a cold and decisive personality—someone like this...

Unless overwhelmed by sheer brute force, even Orochimaru couldn't think of a strategy to defeat him.

Things like poisoning or sneak attacks were a joke under the gaze of the Sharingan.

If I summon Manda, can I beat him?

Orochimaru was even considering using his Trump Card.

"How high is the upper limit of the jutsu Jing-kun used to kill Pakura?"

"I'm not trying to pry into the secrets of your jutsu; it's just for planning subsequent missions."

Uchiha Kagami thought for a moment and said, "If the opponent is unprepared, it should be able to kill an Elite Jonin."

"Strictly speaking, even the Hokage is only an Elite Jonin..." Orochimaru narrowed his eyes. "Is it really wise to use such a first-strike kill ability so soon?"

"A jutsu is developed to be used."

"What's there to hide, Orochimaru-sama? I'd advise you not to dwell too much on this jutsu." Uchiha Kagami looked at Orochimaru with interest, his tone like a senior teaching a junior.

"By the time you think of a way to defend against this technique, I'll have already updated it several times over."

"This is the composure of a genius..."

Orochimaru didn't take offense and quietly ended the topic, saying, "Minato-kun... what do you think? Why did the Sand Hidden suddenly increase their infiltration of the Land of Fire?"

"Based on known intel, they seem to be looking for someone. Who could be worth such a large-scale operation?"

"It's the Third Kazekage."

It wasn't Kagami who spoke—he wasn't foolish enough to leak such information.

A silver-haired man stained with blood pushed aside the curtain of the command tent and appeared abruptly.

"Sakumo Older Brother!"

"Hatake-senpai!"

Even Orochimaru was visibly startled, noticing the dense wounds covering Hatake Sakumo's body.

The worst was at his wrist—half his palm had been sliced open!

Hatake Sakumo's face was pale, his gaze landing on the stunned Kakashi.

"Long time no see, Kakashi."

Thump!

Kakashi couldn't hold back his emotions and lunged into Hatake Sakumo's arms, sobbing silently.

His intact hand gently patted Kakashi's back, Hatake Sakumo's eyes full of affection.

And guilt.

No matter how you looked at it, Kakashi was still just a child. Abandoning him and leaving like this was truly unforgivable.

After the touching father-son reunion, Orochimaru asked the key question.

"Sakumo Older Brother, what do you mean by the Third Kazekage?"

Suddenly, a Nara Clan ninja burst in without announcement. The news was too explosive—he had to tell Orochimaru immediately.

"Orochimaru-sama! Intel from Yamanaka Ino! They're searching for the missing Third Kazekage, that's why—"

"Uh..."

He glanced around and spotted Hatake Sakumo.

Orochimaru frowned, pointing at him. "Guard the door. Don't let anyone in."

"Sakumo Older Brother, continue."

Compared to the intel in those Sand Hidden ninja's heads, Orochimaru was far more interested in what Hatake Sakumo could bring.

He was also very curious about who had managed to wound Hatake Sakumo this badly.

"I met Sasori of the Red Sands from Sunagakure—Elder Chiyo's grandson."

"The genius Puppet Master. I've heard of him."

Skipping the step of explanation, Hatake Sakumo's next sentence plunged the room into deathly silence.

"He assassinated the Third Kazekage and turned both himself and the Kazekage into Human Puppets."

"I fought him. You could call it a mutual defeat—he got away."

"So that's how it is..." Kakashi looked at his father's battered body, then reconsidered.

"Then if we just explain this to Sunagakure, they'll abandon the war and go after Sasori of the Red Sands, right!"

Only Kakashi was that naive here.

Orochimaru shook his head. "Without the Third Kazekage's Human Puppet corpse, Sunagakure won't believe it."

"They'll only think that not only the Kazekage, but also Sasori of the Red Sands, was killed by us."

"Even if they did believe, it wouldn't matter." Minato's mind was quick too.

"Elder Chiyo is a clever woman. The moment she learns this news, she'll declare it's Konoha's scheme to sow discord and break Sunagakure's unity."

"She'll only pour more war power in—shifting from searching for the Third Kazekage to taking revenge on Konoha in his name."

Kagami Uchiha chuckled softly, looking at Kakashi. "The best way to divert internal conflict is to turn it into external conflict."

It wasn't just his ninjutsu talent—Kakashi felt his intelligence was being crushed too.

Sensing his dejection, Hatake Sakumo ruffled his hair.

"How you arrange things specifically is your business. I'm just telling you this intel before I leave."

"Leave... Father, where are you going?!"

Hatake Sakumo sighed, forcing a bitter smile. "Sasori of the Red Sands' target is me. As long as I leave the Land of Fire, he'll chase after me."

More importantly, he feared Sasori would go after Kakashi. Someone bold enough to assassinate a Kazekage and succeed... was far too dangerous.

Orochimaru's brow furrowed deeply. "There's no need for a trade-off. In my view, Older Brother Sakumo is more important than the Third Kazekage plus Sasori of the Red Sands."

"I can work something out. With this intel of yours, we can completely erase the fallout from your earlier departure."

To be fair, Orochimaru wanted Hatake Sakumo to return to Konoha. In their early days on the battlefield, the three of them had received no small amount of care from Sakumo.

After Sakumo left, Tsunade had been so angry she stopped speaking to Sarutobi Hiruzen. Even he and Jiraiya had their complaints about the Third.

Anyone with sense could see what had really happened back then.

Hatake Sakumo shook his head and smiled. "No need. I've gotten used to my life now. The feeling of freedom is quite nice."

"Is that so..." Orochimaru didn't press, choosing to respect Sakumo's decision.

"Father! I also..."

Hatake Sakumo stopped Kakashi's next words, crouched down to meet his eyes, and said with a gentle smile, "Wait until you've grown into a ninja who can stand on your own, then make your own decision."

He turned his gaze to Minato and Kagami. "Minato-kun, Jing-kun, I'll trouble you to look after him. Knowing Kakashi is with you puts my mind at ease."

"Senior Sakumo, I will definitely protect Kakashi." Minato nodded firmly.

Aside from Kushina, Konoha was the most important thing in Minato's eyes. He deeply respected this great ninja who had given most of his life for the village.

Kagami Uchiha shifted his gaze to Orochimaru. "Now that you know this intel, Orochimaru-sama, what do you plan to do?"

Orochimaru's long tongue licked out instinctively, his voice chilling. "Naturally, while Sunagakure is leaderless, we hit them hard and make them feel it!"

"A very wise choice." Kagami Uchiha nodded in satisfaction. If it were those old men back in the village, they'd probably be discussing using this intel to negotiate peace with Sunagakure.