Returning Home at Noon

With no personal grudge between them, Orochimaru chuckled mockingly. It was hard to tell who he was mocking. So many people had died. How many times had Sand Village invaded the Land of Fire? How many Konoha ninja had they killed?

A look of reminiscence filled Orochimaru's eyes as he continued, "I truly can't remember anymore. Familiar companions, comrades, disciples, subordinates around me—they all died. Too many people died, and I killed too many people as well. Whether it was Konoha or killing, it was all so boring. That's why I said this much."

Orochimaru stopped because he discovered that Rasa no longer had any sign of life. Only his lightless eyes still stared in Karura's direction.

"Tch!"

Orochimaru drew the Kusanagi and casually released the Edo Tensei, watching Karura and Kankuro turn into dust.

"Seeing how persistent you are, I'll release the souls of your wife and child."

Kabuto allowed Rasa's corpse to fall onto the sand, then tossed over the corpses of the two Sand Village guards as well.

"The mission is complete. I should return to Konoha too. After all, I'm Konoha's subordinate now."

Kabuto adjusted his glasses and turned toward Kimimaro.

"You."

Kimimaro knelt on one knee. The skin all over his body was cracked, and blood dyed the white sand red, yet he still maintained his protective stance. Only after confirming Rasa's death did he collapse like a puppet with cut strings.

"What a pity. Such a fine vessel. You've worked hard, Kimimaro."

Orochimaru glanced at the dying Kimimaro, with not the slightest hint of regret in his tone.

"Yes, Lord Orochimaru."

Kimimaro murmured as he lay on the ground.

A complicated emotion flashed through Kabuto's eyes.

When he injected Kimimaro with a painkiller, the white-haired youth used his last bit of strength to grab his wrist.

"Is Lord Orochimaru satisfied?"

Kabuto glanced at Orochimaru, who was examining Rasa's corpse, and softly said, "You did very well."

Kimimaro closed his eyes in satisfaction.

The desert wind swept up white sand and gently covered his pale face.

"Tell them to disperse the barrier. Leaving behind a concealed barrier here will be enough."

Orochimaru looked into the distance. Konoha and Sand Village would receive the greatest surprise at the upcoming Chūnin Exams.

Vultures began circling in the distance. A few more unknown corpses had been added to the desert.

Fei Yun walked over slowly and said in surprise, "Impressive. I didn't expect the Fourth Kazekage to die like that!"

"Still, something seems off."

"Rasa's Magnetic Release didn't seem to be in good condition."

"Was it merely because he couldn't bear to attack his wife and child?"

Orochimaru crossed his arms and smiled. "I investigated Rasa's personality long ago. He loved his wife, and he loved his village too. So before they acted, I secretly stirred up Shukaku for a while."

The recent Shukaku rampage was known to the upper ranks of Shadow Village, Konoha's ally. Naturally, Fei Yun had heard of it as well.

Still, he was puzzled. "So Shukaku's rampage was also your scheme. But what effect did that have on the operation?"

Orochimaru looked at Rasa's body on the ground. "A Shukaku rampage would inevitably destroy large numbers of civilian homes. Sand Village would have to spend a great deal of money compensating them. Sand Village was already buried in debt, and it was also preparing to launch a large-scale war. Where would it find the money?"

Orochimaru paused before continuing, "That meant Rasa had no choice but to extract his own gold dust to fill the gap, while expending vast amounts of energy and chakra to gather more gold dust."

Fei Yun suddenly understood. "I see. So you weakened the Kazekage, and then added Kimimaro's Edo Tensei. That was a double suppression of both mind and body. How insidious, Orochimaru. Anyone who became your enemy would be terribly unlucky."

Orochimaru spread his hands. "That has nothing to do with me. He simply couldn't overcome his own inner conflict. He deserved to die. This world does not pity the weak."

"Hmph, that's true. The waters of fate are heartless—that is the way of heaven."

Orochimaru crouched down, used a kunai to slice off Rasa's face, and put it over his own.

After some adjustments, he became identical to the Fourth Kazekage Rasa, even matching his temperament perfectly.

Orochimaru put on the Kazekage's hat, donned the Kazekage's imperial robe, and swayed seductively in place a few times.

"How is it? No one should be able to tell that I'm not Rasa in this outfit, right?"

Fei Yun stroked his chin and commented, "Not cold enough. The Kazekage is supposed to be aloof. He wouldn't be as frivolous as you. Still, this technique is perfect for disguises."

Orochimaru chuckled. "The Vanishing Face Technique. I once handed this technique over to a small organization, and it received unanimous praise."

Once everything was settled, Orochimaru turned to Fei Yun. "Fei Yun, the Chūnin Exams will last a long time. I need to head to Konoha right away, and there are still many matters waiting for me. What do you plan to do?"

After thinking for a moment, Fei Yun said, "I'll enter Konoha using the identity of a Shadow Village genin that you prepared for me. I won't wait for you. I need to begin acting early and give the four great clans something big."

Fei Yun had no intention of waiting over a month to act alongside Shadow Village and Sand Village. By then, he would only be able to kill a bunch of cannon fodder. The members of the four great clans might not be good at anything else, but they were certainly fast at running for their lives. Once war broke out, those people would hide, and killing them would become extremely difficult.

So Fei Yun planned to secretly control several key figures first, then put on a show for Konoha's old fogeys. He wondered whether they would be angered to death on the spot.

Orochimaru frowned slightly. "If Konoha becomes alert ahead of time, could that affect our plan?"

Fei Yun did not care.

"By then, everyone's attention will be on the Chūnin Exams. It should be fine."

"Besides, so what if they become wary? Do you think we'd be afraid of them?"

Orochimaru nodded. "That is true, but we should still be as cautious as possible."

"I received intelligence that Konoha has begun recalling a large number of ninja to safeguard this event. Jiraiya and Tsunade are among them."

"I heard Konoha is so nervous because of you, Fei Yun."

A cold curve rose at the corner of Fei Yun's mouth.

"Good. Let them return. Then they can have a taste of the Nine-Tails' Tailed Beast Bomb."

The Fourth Kazekage Rasa was dead. He died without a sound, causing not a single ripple in the Shinobi World. The world remained the same, everything continued as usual, and the sun still rose.

Orochimaru replaced Rasa and led Sand Village onward toward Konoha.

Konoha warmly received Orochimaru, escorting him through Konoha's gates with a welcoming party. They even hosted him with the highest standards, laying out a Konoha full-course banquet with 181 dishes. Fei Yun could not help but sneer inwardly. Sand Village was practically the shinobi village that had invaded the Land of Fire the most times. Konoha's actions perfectly displayed its groveling weakness toward outsiders and domineering arrogance toward its own people.

Sand Village's covetous heart toward Konoha had been obvious to everyone for decades. Could Konoha's old fogeys really not know?

But it did not matter. They threw shit at me, and I'll use that shit to make pizza. But if anyone inside Konoha dares to disobey me...

"Hahaha! I don't care whether you're the Senju or the Uchiha Clan—I'll wipe out your entire clan!"

Fei Yun also entered through Konoha's gates, but since his identity was that of an outsider, he had to undergo a thorough inspection before being allowed inside.

Although he wore the face skin Orochimaru had prepared and used the Vanishing Face Technique to alter his appearance and temperament, Fei Yun was still somewhat worried that someone might notice something wrong.

Fei Yun adjusted the Shadow Village forehead protector on his face, ensuring that it sat at just the right angle—casual-looking, yet able to conceal the upper half of his face.

At Konoha's gates, a ninja wearing sunglasses shouted, "Next!"

With the Chūnin Exams about to be held, inspections at the gates were several times stricter than usual.

Teams from all kinds of small ninja villages formed long lines. Every person had to undergo detailed questioning and document checks.

A sunglasses-wearing ninja was glaringly scanning every ninja entering the village.

His Konoha forehead protector gleamed beneath the sunlight, and a vicious scar ran across his right cheek.

"Morino Ibiki, captain of the Konoha Interrogation Division. Name, affiliated village, and purpose for coming to Konoha." Ibiki's voice was as rough as sandpaper.

"Fei Yun, a Shadow Village genin here to participate in the Chūnin Exams." Fei Yun deliberately made his voice sound youthful and tremble slightly as he handed over his pass and Shadow Village recommendation letter.

Ibiki accepted the documents. His sharp gaze examined Fei Yun from head to toe through his sunglasses. Fei Yun could feel Ibiki's chakra probing his subtle reactions like invisible tentacles.

Ibiki sneered. "Tell me about Shadow Village's landmark buildings." It was a test.

Fortunately, Fei Yun really was from Shadow Village.

"There is a clock tower in the center of our village. The village chief built it, and its bell rings every day at sunset. The entire village can hear it."

"Also, the ground at the training field south of the village has turned purple from constant ninjutsu practice."

Ibiki's expression did not change in the slightest as he compared Fei Yun's answers against the intelligence report in his hands. "When was the last time you saw your village chief?"

"At the Chūnin selection tournament three months ago."

These were all details from the intelligence Orochimaru had provided, as well as the image of Shadow Village that Orochimaru showed to the outside world.

Konoha's entry inspections were extremely strict. After passing Morino Ibiki's examination, Fei Yun still had to undergo checks from Konoha's two gatekeepers.

They carefully inspected the authenticity of his ninja documents to ensure they were not forged.

Afterward, they thoroughly checked his facial features to make sure they matched the information on his documents.

They also carefully examined whether he had used the Transformation Technique or other methods of disguise.

Fortunately, the Vanishing Face Technique was sufficiently sophisticated, and they did not see through it.

"No problem. Go in." Izumo Kamizuki and Kotetsu Hagane exchanged a glance, nodded, and only allowed Fei Yun into Konoha after confirming everything. They then continued inspecting the other ninja.

As Fei Yun walked through the gates, the afternoon sunlight made him squint.

Konoha Village truly was prosperous. Shops lined both sides of the broad streets, while the faces on Hokage Rock gazed down upon the entire village with solemn authority.

It had to be said that Orochimaru's planning was reliable. Shadow Village, which he had seemingly worked so hard to establish over the years, appeared useless at first glance. Yet at this moment, Fei Yun understood what an ingenious chess piece it was. Having an identity in the open was far too important. Otherwise, how could such a large group of terrorists enter Konoha so easily and openly?

After entering the village, Fei Yun did not go to the inn for visiting ninja. He had more important matters to handle.

Fei Yun first passed by the former Uchiha Clan compound without drawing attention. It had already been completely transformed into one of Konoha's ninjutsu training grounds.

Fei Yun did not approach it. After giving it a distant glance, he left.

He appeared to be wandering aimlessly around Konoha Village, but in truth, he was secretly observing the gathering places of the Sarutobi Clan, the Shimura Clan, and the other two great clans, the Koharu and Mitokado families.

But this was only the beginning of the plan. To put on a flawless and spectacular performance for Konoha, much work remained. Reconnaissance could not be completed in just a day or two. Fei Yun needed to thoroughly understand the distribution of their clan members and even their patterns of movement. He had no intention of merely killing one Sarutobi Hiruzen and a group of cannon fodder. If possible, Fei Yun wanted to send all four great clans to die neatly before the eyes of the four old fogeys. Simply killing them would be letting them off too easily.

However, Supreme Danzo, that old hawk-dog, had been hiding especially well lately. After several days of reconnaissance, Fei Yun had even used the Sharingan to control several people, yet he still could not find the slightest trace of Supreme Danzo. Instead, he unexpectedly obtained a valuable piece of intelligence: Tsunade, one of the Sannin, had truly returned!