Yakushi Kabuto and Terai each vanished in a flash.
They left the area and headed in different directions.
The region settled back into silence.
No one knew how much time had passed.
As the sun high above slowly began to descend,
"Whoosh!"
"Whoosh!"
"Whoosh!"
"Whoosh!"
From the southeastern part of this wilderness, more than a dozen figures suddenly appeared, speeding straight into the area where Yakushi Kabuto and Shimura Danzō had lingered earlier. Their auras were all exceptionally powerful. The young man leading them stood at the center, his face cold and his whole body radiating murderous intent. In his eyes, a pair of crimson-black Tomoe spun rapidly.
The newcomers were Sasuke Uchiha, along with Hoshichi, Xinghuo, and more than a dozen other Snow Ninja Anbu, who had followed him all the way under orders from their village and were temporarily obeying his command.
As soon as Sasuke arrived with Hoshichi, Xinghuo, and the others,
a tall, lean figure stepped out from within the group. He formed Hand Seals and carefully sensed the flow of chakra and other unusual auras in the surroundings. It took him little time to pinpoint the approximate spot where Danzō and Yakushi Kabuto had stood.
Then he immediately returned to Sasuke.
"Lord Sasuke, this is the place. Yakushi Kabuto's aura is very strong. There are also more than a dozen unfamiliar auras in the area opposite us. Judging by what I sensed, every one of them is at least Jonin-level. They stayed here for about half an hour, then split into two groups. One group, still numbering more than a dozen, headed north. The remaining two or three went southwest."
The Snow Ninja Anbu member reported in a highly respectful tone.
"Hmph! So that old dog Danzō really did come here! Can you determine when