Hiruzen Sarutobi's Suspicion

Time passed in a flash, and it was still that same wooden house. The Third Hokage, pipe in mouth, wore a grim expression as he gazed at the empty room.

Several Anbu ninjas were conducting a search inside. Moments later, one Anbu flickered into view before the Third Hokage, saying nothing, merely bowing his head and holding out a scale-like object with both hands.

The Third Hokage silently lowered his head and picked up the scale. A faint, fishy scent wafted up, carrying with it a hint of vague familiarity.

"Snake scales from Ryūchi Cave... So it really was that disciple of mine who did this?!"

The news of Yamato's disappearance only came to light this morning when he failed to report for his Anbu shift change.

The Third Hokage personally launched an investigation and quickly found Yamato's residence. In fact, the moment he entered Yamato's home, the Third Hokage already had his suspicions.

That faint groove on the ground—others might not recognize it, but the Third Hokage knew it well. It was the mark of the Snake Path, the crawling trail left behind by massive serpents slithering through grass and soil.

Staring at the snake scale before him, the Third Hokage could almost see his former disciple sneering at him:

"Sarutobi-sensei, the Wood Release ninja—my own creation—has now been taken back by me."

"I should never have shown mercy back then... As things stand now, Orochimaru has become a menace!"

A pang of regret struck the Third Hokage's heart. The Orochimaru defection incident had been a rare moment of softness from this "Hero of the Shinobi World." After all, the Third Hokage himself knew well that most of the blame pinned on Orochimaru was actually Shimura Danzō's doing.

But at the time, the Third Hokage had no choice. Orochimaru had directly kidnapped ninjas from their own village for experiments, and the disappearances of Konoha ninjas had stirred up such a commotion that it could no longer be suppressed.

It wasn't so much that Konoha had driven Orochimaru out, but rather that Orochimaru had actively defected from Konoha!

Yet, considering various factors, the Third Hokage ultimately couldn't bring himself to strike the final blow, allowing Orochimaru to escape Konoha Village.

Now, with the conflict between Konoha and the Uchiha Clan escalating, the Third Hokage growing old, and Jiraiya wandering abroad, Hiruzen Sarutobi lamented to find himself increasingly powerless against the threat of Orochimaru.

"Enough. Let it be for now. Have the Anbu ninjas track down Orochimaru's whereabouts. That disciple of mine must have left many sleeper agents in Konoha, or else he couldn't have found Yamato."

"Also, once you locate Orochimaru, the Anbu are not to engage. Simply notify me directly."

"Yes, Lord Hokage!"

Letting out a soft sigh, the Third Hokage hadn't given these orders out of lingering softness for Orochimaru. Rather, he knew full well that sending ordinary Anbu ninjas after Orochimaru would be nothing short of sending them to their deaths.

Even he, the Hokage himself, now stood little chance of victory against that disciple, whose growth had reached unknown heights.

"It seems... I'll have to call Jiraiya back. He's been searching for Orochimaru's trail all these years, and now we finally have a lead on him, don't we?"

Back when Orochimaru defected from Konoha, Jiraiya had left as well, claiming he was going after Orochimaru. In truth, the main reason was that Jiraiya had grown somewhat disillusioned with Konoha Village.

As for Jiraiya's search for the so-called "Child of Prophecy," the Third Hokage didn't put much stock in it. Even if such a child existed, the odds of them appearing in Konoha were far greater than some genius ninja spontaneously manifesting in the wild.

Konoha's situation was growing worse by the day. The Third Hokage was aging. The Uchiha Clan, after Uchiha Shisui's death, seemed to have quieted down, but the two remaining prodigies who had once leaned toward Konoha now harbored a rift with the village's high command.

The Third Hokage was well aware of the consequences of allowing Danzō to kill Shisui, but the threat of Shisui's Kotoamatsukami was simply too great. In comparison, the trust of Uchiha Shūichi and Uchiha Itachi was a trivial sacrifice.

Speak of the devil, and he appears. Just as the Third Hokage thought of his old comrade, Shimura Danzō appeared outside the wooden house and slowly walked in.

With a single glance, the Darkness of Konoha spotted the snake scale in Hiruzen's hand, his eyes narrowing slightly:

"A great serpent from Ryūchi Cave?! Hiruzen, this was Orochimaru's doing?!"

"I don't need you to tell me that, Danzō! I have eyes and can see for myself."

The Third Hokage snorted coldly. Back when Orochimaru betrayed Konoha, Shimura Danzō had fanned the flames considerably—in fact, one could say Danzō had orchestrated the entire affair from start to finish.

Though Orochimaru had willingly walked into the trap, that didn't absolve Danzō of responsibility. Now that Danzō had brought up Orochimaru again, it would be strange if the Third Hokage gave him a pleasant look.

Shimura Danzō paid no heed to the Third Hokage's tone, or rather, he had long grown accustomed to it.

"Hiruzen, I told you back then—if the Wood Release ninja had been trained within Root, he would have become Konoha's greatest trump card. But you insisted on pulling him out of Root, and look where that's gotten us."

"Hmph, that bastard Orochimaru has been coveting Wood Release for a long time..."

The Third Hokage took a long drag from his pipe, exhaled the smoke, and fixed a cold stare on Shimura Danzō, his voice turning icy:

"Enough, Danzō. I only want to ask you one thing—did you leak Yamato's information?!"

"What nonsense are you spouting, Hiruzen?! Are you accusing me?!"

"Exactly! How many people in all of Konoha do you think know Yamato's specific details and still have some connection to Orochimaru?"

Danzō was struck speechless. Yamato had originally been a member of Root, forcibly taken from him by Hiruzen Sarutobi. Of course, Danzō had all of Yamato's intelligence.

As for his connection to Orochimaru, though Danzō had been extremely discreet, he never imagined he could hide it from Hiruzen Sarutobi. To put it bluntly, Root's very purpose was to handle such dirty work. Orochimaru's research talent was undeniable—failing to maintain contact with him would have been a true dereliction of duty.

"Hiruzen! What benefit would I gain from leaking Yamato's whereabouts to Orochimaru?"

"Orochimaru would only steal the Wood Release ninja away—he wouldn't leave him for Root!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyelids drooped slightly as he spoke calmly:

"That's precisely why I haven't arrested you outright—only harbored suspicions."

Taking a deep breath to suppress his rising anger, Shimura Danzō set aside thoughts of the blame being heaped on him and said:

"Let me go after Orochimaru! I'll bring Yamato back..."

"Forget it. Orochimaru once served as Root's deputy and is very familiar with its operations. Root will stay out of this."

Hiruzen Sarutobi refused outright, making it clear that his suspicions of Shimura Danzō had not yet been cleared.