Pursuing Orochimaru

The night was as dark as ink.

Inside the Hokage Office,

Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi listened carefully to the Anbu report, then looked at the scroll on his desk again.

Orochimaru.

His most valued disciple really was suspected of carrying out these experiments.

After Danzo had used his name to issue a mission to the Uchiha, he had grown suspicious as well.

Thinking of the reports of people disappearing around Konoha over the past few years, Sarutobi Hiruzen had ordered the Anbu to investigate.

The results were just as he had expected.

Orochimaru really had begun researching forbidden jutsu. No...

Rather, the casualties caused by these experiments had grown increasingly severe, so severe that even he could no longer ignore them.

Click.

The office door opened, and Danzo walked in once again without so much as a greeting.

"Hiruzen."

Danzo came to stand before Sarutobi Hiruzen. The sound of his cane tapping against the floor rang especially clearly through the office.

The Anbu member nearby remained unmoved. Even the eyes beneath his mask did not shift.

Sarutobi Hiruzen looked up at Danzo. After a long pause, he said, "Kakashi, you may leave."

Kakashi, who had been kneeling on one knee, rose at his words and turned to leave the Hokage Office.

Danzo glanced at Kakashi's retreating figure. The Sharingan...

Then he turned back to Sarutobi Hiruzen behind the desk and asked, "What are you planning to do about Orochimaru?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen paused, then slowly replied, "We have to find Orochimaru."

"Of course." Danzo's lips curled into a smile. His sinister face was hard to read in the dim light. "But have you decided who to send after him?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen looked at Danzo but did not answer.

"You know Orochimaru's strength better than anyone. Ordinary Anbu..." Danzo paused. "Won't be enough."

"So?"

"The Uchiha."

Danzo spoke the Uchiha name without the hostility he had once shown toward them. "The Sharingan is best suited for tracking, and it's also the most effective against Orochimaru's forbidden jutsu."

"Have them send an elite squad to follow the clues and search for the underground laboratory."

Sarutobi Hiruzen kept his gaze on Danzo's face. "What are you trying to do?"

As Danzo's old classmate and lifelong rival, Sarutobi Hiruzen did not believe Danzo had suddenly changed his mind.

"I'm not trying to do anything." Danzo's voice was unhurried. "What, do you think it's inappropriate, too?"

"Or is it that... you're not as confident in the Uchiha as you've always claimed to be?"

As he spoke, Danzo gently tapped his cane against the floor again.

Silence settled over the office.

"After what you've done, do you really think it's appropriate for me to assign the Uchiha Military Police Force to this mission?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen slowly let out a breath.

"Heh."

Danzo's lips curled into an ambiguous sneer. He met Sarutobi Hiruzen's gaze. "I remember you saying that the Uchiha and Konoha were one, and that they would never betray us."

"If that's true, then this is their chance to prove it. Have them search for Orochimaru's underground laboratory. It will show that we recognize the Uchiha's abilities, and it will also be..."

"A chance for them to prove their loyalty."

There was no denying that Danzo's words tempted Sarutobi Hiruzen.

Especially after seeing Fugaku's attitude that day, Sarutobi Hiruzen was eager to know what Fugaku really thought.

"Very well. I've said my piece, Hiruzen."

With that, Danzo turned and left the office, for once not slamming the door behind him.

The sound of his cane faded outside. Sarutobi Hiruzen sat alone in the office for a long while before murmuring, as if to himself, "A test?"

Hayato had just returned from the Police Force when a clansman stopped him at his front door.

"Hayato, the clan leader summons you."

The man was a young adult without a trace of arrogance. After delivering his message, he left at once.

Hayato looked puzzled. The training had only ended yesterday, and Fugaku was summoning him again today?

Was something the matter?

Wait—

Hayato thought of something and hurried inside. He went to the calendar and examined it.

One date, marked deliberately with an oil-based pen, stood out conspicuously.

Orochimaru defects in a week.

No, Hayato realized he was mistaken.

Orochimaru's actual defection would happen when Sarutobi Hiruzen led a team to confront him. Before that, Orochimaru had been hiding in an underground base on Konoha's outskirts.

With a rough plan in mind, Hayato gathered his things and headed back outside.

"Pursue Orochimaru?"

Uchiha Fugaku sat in the seat of honor, his eyes half-lidded and his expression unreadable.

The three clan elders exchanged glances, their eyes full of coldness.

"Fugaku, this is obviously a trap."

Uchiha Inabi spoke up. The Third Hokage's Anbu had just arrived, bringing an official scroll from the Hokage and the Hokage's seal.

The mission was for the Uchiha Clan to dispatch its most elite squad and pursue Orochimaru with all their might. According to the intelligence, Orochimaru's base was inside an underground laboratory.

"The most elite squad."

Fugaku repeated the words the Anbu had just spoken, his tone calm.

"Hmph. They claim we're best suited for tracking missions, but wouldn't the Hyuga's Byakugan be even better?"

Yashiro was the first to lose his temper, his words already brimming with discontent.

"Elder, choose your words carefully."

Fugaku raised his head and looked at Yashiro. "Hunting a rogue ninja is only natural."

A nearly imperceptible flicker crossed his eyes. His meaning was clear: no one knew whether Sarutobi Hiruzen had an informant here.

Yashiro caught the warning and could only take a deep breath. "But..."

"Besides," Fugaku cut him off, "the Third Hokage trusts us, which is why he gave this mission to the Uchiha. Isn't this our chance to prove our loyalty?"

Fugaku knew the Third Hokage's order came from the doubts stirred by his words that day.

And after that day, the Uchiha Clan had seemed far too calm in response to Root's actions.

He had still been careless.

Fugaku sighed inwardly, then looked at the three clan elders. "I've already sent for Shisui and Hayato."

The three elders froze at that.

Shisui? Hayato?

"Those two..."

"I know. But this is the best way to ensure success."

Fugaku knew how rare Shisui and Hayato's talents were, but the Uchiha needed to reassure the Third Hokage and the other senior officials.

He had chosen Shisui and Hayato because they were more likely to survive.

"The Uchiha's loyalty to the village—this is the perfect chance to make sure everyone sees it clearly."

Inside the Council Chamber, the three clan elders said nothing more.

They still remembered what Fugaku had said here that day. They also understood the hidden meaning behind his words now.

The Uchiha had to keep Konoha reassured.