New Destination! Otogakure!

In Rasa's eyes, the Sarutobi Clan and the Shimura Clan were nothing but hot potatoes.

Previously, he had been considering whether those six or seven hundred people from the two great clans held any utility.

If he could use them to annex a portion of Konoha's territory, Rasa would naturally be satisfied.

However, Gaara now seemed to have a very good relationship with the Uchiha Clan, and the jinchuriki appeared much more settled, lacking his former murderous intent.

To Rasa, although Gaara was his son, he was primarily a Tailed Beast weapon.

Now that the Uchiha Clan could extract more value from Gaara, it was a win-win situation for Rasa.

Cooperating with Sarutobi Asuma carried too much risk, but working with the Uchiha was a deal that was almost guaranteed to be profitable.

"Baki, take the Sunagakure Ninja and drive Sarutobi Asuma and his people out! They can go wherever they like, as long as they never set foot in the Land of Wind again."

Rasa crossed his arms and commanded Baki.

Baki nodded, "Yes!"

As expected, Sarutobi Asuma had now become a discarded pawn.

A smile curled the corner of Uchiha Yu's mouth.

Not bad, really not bad.

Asuma now had almost nowhere left to turn.

He couldn't blame himself for this; it was Asuma who wanted to rebel and failed to keep his own subordinates in check.

An organization lacking internal harmony could never amount to anything.

Although the Shimura Clan and the Sarutobi Clan were grasshoppers tied to the same rope, they each harbored their own agendas; their alliance was destined to fail.

Watching Baki leave, Rasa let out a long sigh and said, "Uchiha Yu, I will attend the Hokage inauguration ceremony in a month, so you need not worry."

Then, Rasa said softly, "I wonder how the Uchiha intend to deal with the Sarutobi Clan and the Shimura Clan."

Uchiha Yu shook his head and replied, "Who knows? It all depends on whether they want to keep courting death!"

As veteran clans of the village, the Sarutobi and Shimura clans were certainly not weak.

But the Uchiha Clan did not fear them!

In any case, their momentum was already gone, and Uchiha Yu had absolutely nothing to worry about.

Besides, where could the Sarutobi Clan go now?

The wilderness.

Expelled from the Sunagakure village, Sarutobi Asuma led the six or seven hundred people behind him, trudging through the desert with heavy, uneven steps.

Their eyes were filled with confusion.

Where were they to go?

The Land of Water kept its doors closed year-round, the Land of Lightning was incredibly bellicose, and the remaining Land of Earth...

It was no easy place to deal with either.

Due to its treacherous terrain and minimal interaction with the outside world, Sarutobi Asuma didn't know what status to adopt to seek refuge there.

Help the Land of Earth attack the Land of Fire?

Given their geographical location, even with a turncoat like Sarutobi Asuma, they couldn't be bothered to venture out.

So lost...

"Could it be that I am destined to become a rogue ninja?" Sarutobi Asuma shook his head helplessly.

Suddenly, he felt something cold and clammy against his neck.

Sarutobi Asuma frowned and reached out to grab it.

It was a snake.

"A snake!"

Sarutobi Asuma's eyes widened.

A snake in the desert?

The snake, held firmly in Sarutobi Asuma's hand, showed no fear; it simply opened its mouth and spat out a note.

"An address?" Sarutobi Asuma stared at the coordinates written on the slip of paper, his eyes widening.

The note contained a set of location coordinates, and the signature was Orochimaru.

"Orochimaru..." Sarutobi Asuma would never forget that name. Orochimaru was one of the legendary Sannin, but he had been expelled from the village by Sarutobi Asuma for conducting inhumane human experiments.

He hadn't expected that with the shift in power, even Orochimaru would be unable to sit still.

Although their group of six or seven hundred people was a hot potato for any ninja village, there was no denying they were a formidable fighting force!

It seemed Orochimaru was in great need of them.

Sarutobi Asuma gave a bitter laugh and said, "It seems I have actually reached a point where I must rely on Orochimaru."

The group changed direction once more, heading toward Otogakure.

Sunagakure.

Uchiha Yu sat in a courtyard, watching Uchiha Sasuke and Naruto playing around with Gaara.

Although it was just children at play, Uchiha Yu sat to the side, nearly drifting off to sleep.

This was far too boring.

When would he finally be able to go back?

Sarutobi Asuma had already fled, his letter had been delivered, and the intelligence had been secured; was it not time to leave?

Yet, judging by Hyuga Tokuma's demeanor, it seemed they were destined to stay for quite a while longer.

Suddenly, a chunin approached Uchiha Yu and Hyuga Tokuma.

"Senior Tokuma, we have located Sarutobi Asuma." The chunin nodded slightly.

Hyuga Tokuma rubbed his chin and asked, "Where have those people gone? They surely wouldn't be defecting to another ninja village, would they?"

The closest place to the Land of Wind was the Land of Earth, but given the nature of the Land of Earth, they would absolutely never take in Sarutobi Asuma and his group.

So, where had Asuma gone?

The ninja frowned slightly and said, "We cannot be certain. They seem to be heading toward the north of the Land of Fire, but the north of the Land of Fire... there are no major ninja villages there."

"That is true. The north of the Land of Fire is mostly deep mountains and scattered, small ninja villages. Could it be that they are heading to the Land of Lightning?" Uchiha Yu shook his head helplessly.

If they went to the Land of Lightning, it would be a miracle if the Raikage didn't beat them to death.

Those people were not to be trifled with.

Wait, the north of the Land of Fire?

A rough map of the ninja world flashed through Uchiha Yu's mind.

The north...

Amegakure? How could that be! Were they going to play chess with Pain?

Could it be Otogakure?

Uchiha Yu's heart skipped a beat.

Otogakure was Orochimaru's territory, and it should still be in its infancy; the Sound Four shouldn't even be formed yet.

At most, Kimimaro would be by Orochimaru's side!

And at this moment, Kimimaro... was only ten years old.

Could it be that Orochimaru wanted to recruit the Sarutobi Clan and the Shimura Clan?

For what purpose? To avenge Sarutobi Hiruzen?

That was certainly not Orochimaru's style. Orochimaru always had his reasons for doing things; he must have set his sights on something.

"Could it be that he wants... Uchiha Itachi's body?" Uchiha Yu furrowed his brows.

In Konoha right now, the only thing that could possibly attract Orochimaru was likely Uchiha Itachi.

"Senior Tokuma, you keep watch here. I'm going out for a bit."

Uchiha Yu instantly used the Body Flicker Technique and vanished from the spot.

Hyuga Tokuma was slightly stunned by Uchiha Yu's uncharacteristic behavior, then shook his head helplessly. "This kid, always coming and going like a dragon. Who knows where he's gone off to fool around? Oh well, as long as he comes back alive."

In the wilderness.

Uchiha Yu pursued the path toward the location of Otogakure as he remembered it.

He hoped to intercept Sarutobi Asuma; he wanted to know if the man was truly heading to Otogakure!

Relying on the flexibility of being alone and the immense physical stamina provided by his Sage Body, Uchiha Yu finally caught sight of a group of people in the distance after an afternoon of pursuit.

They were still wearing their tattered Konoha ninja vests.

It really was Sarutobi Asuma and his group!

It was now dusk; the setting sun was like blood, and smoke rose from the vast desert.

A look of exhaustion was etched onto Sarutobi Asuma's face.

The Sarutobi Clan and the Shimura Clan had consciously split into two rows, Sarutobi on one side and Shimura on the other.

It seemed that after the farce of the previous night, a deep rift had formed between these two great clans.

Sarutobi Asuma lit a cigarette, and just as he exhaled, he saw a familiar figure appear before him.

"Uchiha Yu!" Sarutobi Asuma felt a headache coming on. "Why are you following us again? Haven't we suffered enough because of you!"

Uchiha Yu had been chasing them all afternoon, and a layer of sweat had seeped onto his forehead.

"Is the place you're heading to Otogakure?" Uchiha Yu snorted coldly.

Sarutobi Asuma's pupils constricted instantly.

Damn it! How did he know?

The Shimura clan leader to the side raised his ninja sword and said, "There is a path to heaven, yet you refuse to take it; there is no door to hell, yet you come knocking! We couldn't make a move in Sunagakure, but now that you've caught up to us, you are truly courting death!"

Uchiha Yu's wrist flickered slightly as he gripped the Kusanagi Sword. "If you want to fight, you are more than welcome to try!"