Judging by the situation on the field, he could handle these people even without help. After all, he still looked relaxed and completely in control.
But the moment he saw Orochimaru, his expression turned cold.
Without needing to be told, Konoha's Jonin surrounded the Sunagakure shinobi. After seeing the Kazekage's head, their resolve completely crumbled. They dropped their weapons and surrendered.
Some, however, simply disemboweled themselves rather than suffer the humiliation of capture.
That was the end of Sunagakure's last chance to turn things around. Their defeat was all but certain.
"Orochimaru, what are you doing here? What exactly are you after?" Jiraiya asked coldly.
"Jiraiya, it's all a misunderstanding. Orochimaru saved me. Otherwise, the Kazekage would have captured me!" the Daimyo hurriedly called out.
He and Jiraiya had always gotten along well. In fact, if Jiraiya hadn't refused back then, the Daimyo wouldn't have gotten involved in the Fourth Hokage's selection.
"My lord, have you lost your mind? How can you believe anything someone like him says?" Jiraiya strode forward without a trace of politeness and flicked the Daimyo on the forehead. The latter wasn't even the least bit angry. He simply covered the sore spot and looked aggrieved.
Their dynamic was practically that of an older brother dealing with his little brother.
That alone showed just how unusually close they were.
For the Daimyo's sake, Jiraiya couldn't be bothered to argue with Orochimaru any longer. He would leave him to Hiruzen to deal with later.
On the way, Kakashi filled Jiraiya in on what had happened. Jiraiya glanced at Keiichi in surprise. He'd thought Naruto would be the one to deal with Shukaku in the end, not this kid.
*I haven't even had a chance to settle the score with you for taking Naruto out to some remote