Can We Burn Some Incense Before We Leave?

"Orochimaru..."

Inside Konoha's Root base, Shimura Danzō practically gritted his teeth as he looked at the reply in his hand.

Ever since he had been ambushed by the Mysterious Person suspected of being Uchiha, he had been eager to get an answer from Orochimaru.

After all, that incident had cost him far too much!

Not only had his secret been exposed and a chunk of flesh been cut from his arm, but Uchiha Shisui's Mangekyo had also been lost.

More importantly, his Root forces had been downsized by Hiruzen Sarutobi because of this incident!

That was the Root he had spent who knew how much effort rebuilding after nearly being wiped out by Hanzo in the Land of Rain...

Every time he thought about it, his heart bled!

Yet Orochimaru simply ignored him. Whenever the matter concerned his experiments, Orochimaru would answer.

But the moment the Mysterious Organization came up, Orochimaru would start beating around the bush, and then ask him for research funding...

After all this time, he had not obtained a single useful piece of information!

"That damned bastard. Since you've chosen to do this, don't blame me for using a few methods on you."

Danzo took a deep breath and forced down the fury in his heart.

He knew Orochimaru's situation was not good right now.

Another absurdly powerful person had appeared in the Shinobi World, someone strong enough to take down Orochimaru and Sasori of the Red Sands almost instantly!

To be honest, Danzo had been quite shocked when he received the news.

What shocked him even more was that he had not been able to find any information about this person at all!

"But if I can't find him, I can find you..."

Danzo lightly tapped his fingers against the tabletop. Although Orochimaru had hidden himself well, he could still find him.

Besides, using the investigation of the Mysterious Person as an excuse to send Anbu after Orochimaru was perfectly reasonable!

"After all, that 'Asura Chakra' the Mysterious Person mentioned is probably something only you know about..."

With that thought, Danzo finally made up his mind!

This would also serve as a warning to Orochimaru, especially since Orochimaru had refused to provide information while taking so much of his money...

If he really swallowed this insult, he would no longer be Danzo!

As for Orochimaru's safety, he truly was not worried.

That fellow was genuinely good at running, and genuinely hard to kill...

"Kakashi-senpai, what is it this time?"

Inside the Hokage Office Building, Hyuga Makoto looked strangely at Kakashi beside him.

"Why the rush? Aren't we supposed to monitor and investigate that guy?"

"I don't know either. I received the notice at the last minute."

Kakashi looked at Hyuga Makoto with his dead-fish eyes and reminded him quietly.

"Also, while we're working, you should still use our code names..."

"Oh..."

Hyuga Makoto nodded with a strange look on his face. He had originally wanted to discuss the Caged Bird with Hyuga Hiashi, but then several Anbu colleagues had called him away.

But after thinking it over, he felt this was not necessarily a bad thing.

Giving Hyuga Hiashi more time to consider it might actually be better.

Normally speaking, he basically would not object.

"At most, he'll ask me to limit the number of people. After all, those old Main Branch geezers aren't all dead yet."

If Hyuga Hiashi opposed it...

That would not be a big deal either!

Hyuga Makoto was not afraid of the Caged Bird in the slightest. He could simply throw the problem back to Konoha.

"The Yin Seal was given by the village, and the Hokage was the one who gave me the idea..."

If you have the guts, go to Konoha and make a fuss with the Hokage!

The most likely outcome, however, was that before he even left the gate, it would already have become, "Why has the Main Branch betrayed the village?"

"You two are here?"

Hyuga Makoto was happily thinking to himself when he entered the Hokage's office with Kakashi.

Hiruzen Sarutobi was reading documents with a pipe between his teeth. When the two entered, he dispensed with the formalities.

"I'm sorry to interrupt your vacation. I need you to carry out a mission."

"Hokage-sama, are we leaving the village again?"

Hyuga Makoto blinked and instinctively turned to look at Kakashi.

Kakashi's dead-fish eyes grew even more pronounced, and Hiruzen Sarutobi looked somewhat helpless.

"The matter is urgent, but I've thought about it for a long time. In the end, I felt it would be better to entrust it to you."

"Hokage-sama, what is the mission?"

Kakashi took the initiative to speak. He was still quite serious when it came to missions.

"Is it Orochimaru again?"

"Yes, that's right."

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded and spoke in a deep voice around his pipe.

"According to our intelligence, there are traces of someone suspected to be Orochimaru in the Land of Fields. You have had the most contact with Orochimaru, so I've decided to assign this mission to you."

"I see..."

Kakashi nodded silently, but could not help glancing at Hyuga Makoto from the corner of his eye.

They really had had the most contact with Orochimaru. They had only left the village twice, yet they had run into Orochimaru both times!

There really was no one else like them...

Shaking his head, Kakashi could not be bothered to dwell on this nonsense and immediately continued asking questions.

"Then how will we choose the team lineup this time?"

"As usual."

Hiruzen Sarutobi answered without hesitation.

"I've also already contacted Jiraiya. He's in the Land of Hot Water and has already set out."

There was still no result concerning Uchiha Itachi. On the surface, he was still the bridge between Konoha and the Uchiha.

Since that was the case, Hiruzen Sarutobi did not intend to alert the enemy. Sticking to the usual arrangement was still the best choice!

Of course, he was also worried something might go wrong, so he had specifically sent someone to contact Jiraiya.

As for Jiraiya, Hiruzen Sarutobi found that fellow rather troublesome as well.

After Orochimaru's defection, his remaining two disciples could not exactly be called models of virtue and excellence, but they could certainly be described as reckless womanizers and gamblers...

But unfortunately, in this era when Konoha lacked successors, they really were the village's main pillars.

"I think I understand what you mean, Hokage-sama."

Just as Hiruzen Sarutobi was feeling somewhat depressed, Hyuga Makoto suddenly spoke.

This left Kakashi looking extremely strange, and even Hiruzen Sarutobi froze for a moment.

"Makoto, what is your opinion this time..."

"Hokage-sama, having Uchiha Itachi join the operation is truly an excellent decision."

Hyuga Makoto stroked his chin and spoke with a serious expression.

"Not only will it avoid alerting the enemy, but since we're investigating Orochimaru, we can also test whether the people behind him will make a move!"

"That's right."

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded lightly. This really was what he had been thinking.

"After all, that fellow is also a member of the Mysterious Organization. Once he makes a move, we can confirm more information!"

"Yes, I think that's also why you called Jiraiya-sama here, Hokage-sama."

Hyuga Makoto sighed with deep emotion, but his words made Hiruzen Sarutobi pause.

I called Jiraiya here to protect your safety, didn't I?

But before he could say anything, Hyuga Makoto continued.

"Orochimaru was badly injured last time. If we show up together with Jiraiya, we're forcing them to make a choice!"

"..."

"If the Mysterious Person makes a move, he'll be exposed right in front of us. If he chooses to endure it, then that's already dividing the Mysterious Organization!"

"..."

"In short... Hokage-sama, what a brilliant plan!"

"..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi fell somewhat silent with his pipe between his teeth. There was only one thought in his mind.

Is this really what I was thinking? How sinister is this?

Why does it sound so much like that bastard Danzo and the decisions my former teacher used to make?

But he could not be bothered to dwell on it now. He could only nod "firmly."

"That's right, that's exactly it. Time waits for no one, so hurry up and get moving."

"Yes, Hokage-sama!"

Hyuga Makoto and Kakashi did not waste any time. They saluted and prepared to leave.

"Wait."

However, Hiruzen Sarutobi suddenly spoke again.

"I have a suggestion. I hope you'll consider it."

"Hokage-sama, please go ahead."

"Before you leave, could you go burn some incense first?"

"..."

"I really don't mean anything else. I simply hope you can return safely..."

"..."