A night spent with Lord Scorpion!~

A few minutes passed, or perhaps only a second, as Kabuto stared in astonishment at Orochimaru, who had suddenly knelt on the ground, panting heavily.

"Lord Orochimaru?" Kabuto murmured, but dared not approach, for the Poisonous Snake was exceptionally ferocious when injured.

Orochimaru was in very poor mental condition; his already pale face turned even whiter.

Tōka stared at Orochimaru strangely. Could it be that Orochimaru had already used the Living Corpse Reincarnation? Why was his mental state so poor?

It's just a Golden Wheel Nine Revolutions; Orochimaru is at least Kage-level.

Sudden!

Several powerful auras surged from the direction of Konoha. The fact that Tōka could detect them with his Chakra Sensing Technique meant that the people were already very close.

For a ninja, this distance is only a matter of moments.

Tōka didn't have time to think and quickly left.

Seeing this, Kabuto, who was hiding in the shade, disregarded the potential danger and rushed to Orochimaru's side, saying in a low voice, "Lord Orochimaru, someone is coming."

"Ugh!..." Orochimaru covered his forehead and slowly stood up. After sensing the surroundings briefly, he indeed sensed many unfamiliar presences in the direction of Konoha.

"Leave first."

Bang!

Kabuto immediately threw a smoke bomb, and as a puff of White Smoke appeared, the two of them vanished instantly.

Whoosh whoosh!!

Several dark figures descended in succession; they were none other than a group of Konoha ANBU Anbu wearing animal masks.

"It shows signs of Ninjutsu and has scales; it must be a giant Summoning Beast!"

The Cat-Faced Anbu quickly scanned the surroundings, spotted a huge scale at its feet, picked it up, and examined it closely.

Snake?

And it looked like a giant snake.

"Large Forest have been destroyed. Have any bodies or injured people been found?" Dog-Faced Anbu voice.

"There are blood-stained pieces of clothing, like equipment from the Anbu." The voice of the Cat-Faced Anbu turned serious.

"Is that so? Leave one team to continue the search, we'll go report to the Lord Hokage first." The Dog-Faced Anbu hesitated for a moment, then immediately said.

"Yes!"

A group of Anbu arrived and left quickly, and soon the deserted forest fell silent once more.

The Hokage Building remained silent all day, leading Tōka to guess that Minato was discussing the decisive battle against Kumogakure and Iwagakure with a group of advisors.

The hazy night shrouded the vast Konoha like a mysterious veil.

Due to the war, night seemed to fall exceptionally early in Konoha, and as darkness fell, the residents all stayed indoors.

The streets suddenly became empty, appearing somewhat desolate in the inky night.

Crunch, crunch...

Suddenly, a shadowy figure the size of a finger darted past and, in a dark corner, the moonlight shone down and illuminated the little creature.

It turned out to be... a little mouse with its head tilted back, looking around with its bright, darting eyes.

A moment later, the little mouse paused in its peeking, as if it had caught the scent of rice. Then, it slid down and disappeared around the street corner.

On a street near the Hokage Building, Tōka's house is located at the street corner.

The reason the Third Hokage arranged Tōka's room here was to keep Tōka under their watchful eyes.

Little did they know, this has now become a hidden danger.

The little mouse moved nimbly and, in the blink of an eye, scurried along the pipe into a room on the top floor.

Tōka, who was lying in bed looking at the moon, twitched his ears and immediately turned his head to stare at a dark corner of the room.

Crunch, crunch...

The sound of the puppet's joints moving rang out, and a small mouse Earth Flow out and stood quietly not far away.

"Scorpion?" Tōka sat up abruptly, staring at the tiny mouse, no bigger than a thumb. Upon closer inspection, it was clear that it was an exquisitely crafted puppet mouse.

The little mouse looked around and found a relatively open space.

Bang!

A puff of White Smoke rose, Hiruko's figure suddenly appeared before Tōka's eyes.

Tōka activated his Chakra Sensing Technique to scan the surroundings, but found no other presences. He breathed a slight sigh of relief and then asked.

"It's so late, is something the matter?"

"Change your clothes and come with me."

A deep, hoarse voice came from within the Hiruko. Even Konoha, Sasori had to be more cautious.

Although Tōka was very puzzled, she still put on her coat as instructed, got out of bed, and followed Scorpion's footsteps.

The two figures, clinging to the shadows of the eaves, quickly left the residential building, disappearing into a Dark Alley with two whooshing sounds.

The Nara clansman responsible for surveillance was killed by Orochimaru during the day, and it's unknown whether the people of Konoha have found out.

Tōka subconsciously glanced around and, finding no one had followed, his tense nerves relaxed slightly. "Scorpion, what's wrong? Why did you have to call me out now?"

He wasn't sure if there were any Anbu surveillance agents, but he had to be extra careful, especially during such sensitive times.

Minato is not someone who can be easily fooled!

Moreover, with the Flying Thunder God Technique at their disposal, they hold the initiative; they can fight whenever they want and leave whenever they want, and no one can stop them.

The most terrifying thing is that once Minato decides to make a move against Tōka will have no chance to escape!

Throughout the entire Konoha, the person Tōka fears most is Minato.

"Don't worry, they won't find out," Scorpion said in a hoarse voice, his tone full of confidence.

"So what exactly are we going to do?" Since Scorpion was so confident, Tōka didn't know what to say. He pursed his lips and returned to the original question.

Scorpion glanced at Tōka indifferently without saying a word, then turned around and transformed back into a puppet rat, darting out of the Dark Alley in the blink of an eye.

A cold glint flashed in Tōka's eyes; she sensed a dangerous aura emanating from him.

After a slight pause, Tōka decided to follow and see what Scorpion was up to!

Their voices One Flash by, disappearing silently into the darkness.

Before long, Tōka noticed that Sasori was heading straight for the Hokage Building. Could this guy really be here to assassinate the Hokage?

A terrifying thought flashed through Tōka's mind, and he almost stomped the puppet rat flat!

"The Hokage Building doesn't seem to have many guards, but the hidden security is unusually tight." Tōka and Sasori arrived at the foot of the Hokage Building without any trouble and hid in the building's shadow.

"If you want my help, you must tell me your purpose."

"Intelligence," Scorpion finally spoke, his voice low and serious.

"Intelligence?" Tōka raised an eyebrow, a look of doubt on his face. Was there any intelligence that Black Zetsu couldn't obtain in the entire Ninja World?

"Information on the defenses of Konoha's main camp!" Sasori spoke again. "Our main mission this time is to loot, and if we can steal the information on Konoha's main camp's defenses..."

How much do you think Kumogakure and Iwagakure will spend to buy it?

Upon hearing this, Tōka's expression changed drastically; he truly hadn't expected Scorpion to possess such cunning.

No, that's not right.

It reeks of conspiracy; there's absolutely no way Sasori could have come up with such a scheme. Besides Black Zetsu, who else in Akatsuki could come up with such a treacherous move?

Black Zetsu is actually planning to make money from both sides; that's quite a clever trick!

However, this mission is also quite dangerous. If Konoha discovers it, not only will they lose the intelligence they were supposed to steal from Konoha, but they will also lose the more than one billion yen commission they received from Konoha.

"The Hokage Building isn't easy to break into. What's your plan?" Tōka glanced at the Hokage Building in the night.

Beneath the seemingly calm surface, dangers lurk everywhere.

Ordinary buildings—only heaven knows how many Elite Ninja, traps, and mechanisms are hidden inside.

Especially now that the time is approaching, once exposed, they will be facing the entire Konoha, a behemoth as massive as Mount Tai.

"We don't need to go in, it can go in." With a bang, Hiruko reappeared, and Scorpion glanced at the puppet rat at his feet.

Tōka's gaze fell on the puppet rat, which was about the size of a fingertip, and a flash of understanding appeared in his eyes.

These little creatures are very difficult to detect, and even if they are discovered, Sasori will deny it to the death, Konoha can't do anything about it; at most, they can only send more people to monitor them.

Because Konoha didn't know Sasori's identity, let alone his abilities.

"It's feasible for a little mouse to go in." Tōka understood Scorpion's idea and nodded slightly. The plan was to steal the defense map of Konoha's camp without being discovered if they failed.

"What rat? This is a little scorpion!" Scorpion glared coldly at Tōka and scolded in a low voice.

"Uh... a scorpion?" Tōka's eye twitched. What kind of scorpion is round and plump? However, he only thought this to himself and would never say it out loud.

"Then what do you need me to do?"

"Set up Genjutsu Trap and be on guard."

Upon hearing this, Tōka stood frozen in the night wind, completely bewildered. They actually... summoned him out just to keep watch?

Inside the Hokage Building, it was past midnight.

Minato was still reviewing documents in his office; wartime matters often far outnumbered peacetime matters.

Looking at the two tables piled high with paper, Minato was devastated.

In the cool night, Cold Wind howled outside the window.

Minato. A feeling that something was bound to happen tonight welled up in his heart. He put down the documents and turned to look out the window.

A full moon hung high in the sky, appearing utterly lonely in the starless night.

"How is Feiliu doing?" Minato asked inexplicably, looking somewhat eerie, as he looked at the empty room.

In reality, Minato was speaking to the hidden Anbu.

With a whoosh, an Anbu appeared in the hall, kneeling on one knee with a very respectful expression.

"The Anbu responsible for monitoring Hiruko has reported back that Hiruko stayed in her room all day and should be asleep by now."

"Don't be careless; after all, the opponent is Kage-level." Minato nodded slightly, offering a word of caution.

"Yes!" The Anbu nodded in response, kneeling quietly in place to await Minato's next orders.

After a moment of contemplation, Minato suddenly realized something, and a figure flashed into his mind. It seemed that the information about that guy had not yet been sent back.

He quickly asked, "Where's Tōka? Why haven't we received any news about Tōka today?"

"Uh..." The Anbu was also taken aback upon hearing this, "Rabbit is in charge of monitoring Tōka, and it seems we haven't heard from him all day."

"What?!" Minato's expression changed slightly, and his narrowed eyes widened slightly, a look of surprise One Flash across them.

Isn't the Rabbit just Nara Kagemaru?

Although he couldn't remember all the code names and individuals of the Anbu knew the identities and strengths Minato over 90% of them.

Nara Kagemaru's Secret Technique allows him to hide in shadows, making him the best candidate for surveillance and reconnaissance.

Although Tōka's overall combat strength is not strong, his abilities are terrifying and bizarre, which is why Minato specifically dispatched Nara Kagemaru to monitor Tōka.

The All-Killing Ash Bones with a single blow; and Genjutsu that are effortlessly easy to execute and impossible to defend against.

To obtain the intelligence they possess by monitoring Tōka, they must do so without being discovered by Tōka.

However, Nara Kagemaru not only possesses Secret Technique but also has a very high intelligence; he is not the kind of person who is irresponsible.

No news has come back all day...

"I'm afraid... Nara Kagemaru is already..." Minato's eyes turned cold, and his hands, hanging at his sides, clenched into fists unnaturally.

His fists were clenched so tightly they cracked, and the veins on the back of his hands were clearly visible.

From the moment he first saw Tōka, Minato was on guard against Tōka.

Minato had a feeling that no matter how much benefit Tōka's actions brought to Konoha, it was merely a superficial phenomenon.

Tōka must have a deeper, more sinister purpose in doing this!

Minato never trusted Tōka, or rather, never completely trusted Tōka.

"Send someone to contact Nara Kagemaru immediately! We need to see him alive or dead!" After a brief silence, Minato shouted sternly.

"That Tōka..." The Anbu hesitated for a moment before asking.

Upon hearing this, Minato paused slightly, a look of hesitation on his face.

He was wary of Tōka and monitored Tōka, but he couldn't find any evidence against Tōka. If he were to take action against Tōka based solely on suspicion without any proof...

Minato would never do such a thing.

"Send men to keep a close watch on them. If anything unusual is detected," Minato paused, then his eyes narrowed, revealing a chilling killing intent. "Kill!"

"Yes!" The Anbu acknowledged the order and vanished in Body Flicker Technique.

The room became empty again, and the cold moonlight cast a solitary shadow.

Minato stood by the window with his hands behind his back, looking up at the lonely moon hanging high in the night sky. He didn't know if what he was doing was right or wrong.

How wonderful it would be if Tōka appeared in Konoha.

If only Tōka's background weren't so bizarre.

Minato not only recalled the scene from more than three years ago, when he first witnessed a rain of stones falling from the sky in the West Forest of the Land of Fire.

A huge rock shattered, and six-year-old Tōka emerged from it.

"Who exactly are you, Tōka..."

Minato's murmur was drowned out by a huge explosion. His eyes snapped open, his sharp gaze shooting into the distance like an eagle's.

That direction is... Konoha's main camp?

An evil, Death Aura chakra permeated the air!

"Jinchūriki?" A look of seriousness flashed in Minato's eyes. Kumogakure only had two Jinchūriki in total: the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki and the Two-Tails Jinchūriki.

Although the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki is evil, it is even more violent and ferocious.

The Jinchūriki of the Two-Tails Jinchuriki is evil, cold, and filled with death energy.

Moreover, Eight-Tails Jinchuriki Killer B, is currently imprisoned and under close guard, so a terrifying aura is emanating from the direction of the Konoha Main Camp.

It can only be...

Yugito, the Jinchūriki the Two-Tails!

Is Kumogakure preparing for a final battle?

A gentle breeze swept through the night, causing the Kage's Ceremonial Robe to flutter in the wind.

The handprint of the Minato standing at the window changed and he instantly disappeared from the spot.