Konoha's medical team had finally arrived in Hidden Grass, and the small village's hospital was overflowing with wounded and poisoned patients. Amid the chaos, an Iwagakure intelligence operative kept a close eye on the young medical-nin known as Xiao Gang. What he didn't notice, however, was the tiny kikaichū perched on a window frame—silently observing his every move.
Orochimaru lifted the kikaichū from his fingertip and murmured, "So you're the rat tailing Tsunade…"
By late night, the medical ward had quieted. After stabilizing the last patient, Tsunade dragged her exhausted body outside, feeling a headache coming on.
Does this place even have real medical-nin?
The sloppy, amateurish methods she had witnessed all day made her blood boil. If this had been Konoha, she would've smacked every one of those so-called medics back to the Academy.
And worst of all, Orochimaru had cleverly slipped away earlier, murmuring something about "monitoring enemy intel." Tsunade clenched her teeth.
More like you were just tired and wanted to nap at the inn…
Just as she stepped past an alley, the faint whistle of metal sliced through the night.
A rain of kunai tore through the air.
Blood splattered—Tsunade collapsed without a sound, steel buried in her torso.
And then her body puffed into smoke.
A substitution log clattered to the ground.
"What?!" The Iwagakure spy staggered backward. "What kind of jutsu—?!"
Before the words finished, a blade whispered behind him.
The cold tip of a kunai pressed against his throat.
Orochimaru's voice slithered beside his ear like a ghost.
"You chose the wrong target."
A wet snap echoed through the alley as the kunai sliced cleanly through flesh.
The spy collapsed.
Tsunade emerged from the shadows, arms crossed. "Orochimaru, you could've moved a little sooner."
Orochimaru shrugged. "You seemed fine."
She shot him a glare before staring at the body. "How are we going to prove he's not from Hidden Grass?"
"No need," Orochimaru replied. "Hidden Grass will need to prove he isn't one of theirs. Otherwise, Konoha will treat this as an attack on a medical-nin we sent to save their people."
He hoisted the corpse with one hand and began walking toward the Village Chief's residence.
Tsunade blinked.
Oh… that's why he killed him so decisively. No trace left behind, no explanation needed. Let the Grass struggle to clear their own name.
---
Confrontation at the Village Chief's Manor
The guards at the entrance tensed when they saw the corpse dangling from Orochimaru's grip.
"Halt! The Village Headman is resting—you cannot enter!"
Orochimaru's golden eyes narrowed.
"Do not force me."
The guard swallowed hard. "A-at least tell me what happened—I'll report it to the Headman."
Orochimaru let the corpse fall at the guard's feet. The thud echoed ominously.
At that moment, the door slid open.
Kusa Minoru, the Village Chief, stepped out. His gaze fell on the body, and his complexion shifted.
"… San Iwa?" he whispered.
"Yes, that's him," Tsunade snapped. "I leave the hospital for five minutes and he tries to kill me! If Orochimaru hadn't acted, your village would be answering to Konoha with bodies, not words."
Kusa Minoru wiped cold sweat from his forehead.
Orochimaru's voice turned ice-cold: "Xiao Gang-sama requires an explanation. You will prove this man is not a Grass shinobi. Otherwise, we will report this as an attack by Hidden Grass on Konoha's medical team."
Even the breeze seemed to pause.
Kusa Minoru bowed so low his forehead nearly hit the floor.
"I—I understand! We will investigate immediately!"
Grass shinobi scrambled through San Iwa's house, digging through every drawer and document. No matter how hard they looked, they found nothing that confirmed his village of origin.
A skilled intelligence agent was like a blank piece of paper—no roots, no trail. San Iwa had covered his tracks flawlessly.
The Grass forces strengthened protection around Orochimaru and Tsunade, fearing another attack. If anything happened again, Hidden Grass would be wiped off the map before they could even protest.
Back at the inn, Tsunade leaned tiredly against Orochimaru's shoulder, gazing out the window. "Do you think they'll find proof?"
"Unlikely," Orochimaru replied. "A capable intel-nin leaves no footprints."
Tsunade grinned mischievously. "Then… does that mean we can ask for compensation?"
Orochimaru sighed. "We represent Konoha. Please stop damaging your image."
"And what does my image have to do with Xiao Gang-sama?" she muttered.
Orochimaru squinted.
Mito-sama gave her that identity, yet she still hasn't internalized it…
In the end, Hidden Grass never found proof of San Iwa's past. All they managed to deduce was that he had lived disguised in their village as a sculptor.
It was enough to keep Konoha from suspecting them.
Barely.
---
Retaliation in the Shadows
Upon returning to Konoha, Orochimaru and Tsunade filed their report.
Danzo Shimura received it silently, his expression unreadable. Then he nodded once.
The very next night, Root operatives ambushed an Iwagakure team escorting a supply caravan in the Land of Earth.
Only the medical-nin was killed.
No one else was harmed.
The message could not have been clearer.
When Hiruzen heard of Danzo's response, he didn't scold him.
Iwagakure's ambush had threatened Konoha's medical-nin—and more importantly, his own student.
If he weren't Hokage, he would've led the retaliation himself.
Of course, Iwagakure struck back, launching a deadly ambush on a Konoha operative—but the target had survived by detonating a rebirth pill, escaping in a burst of blinding light.
News spread like wildfire.
Konoha's shinobi rushed to buy their own rebirth pills for mission safety, turning the small village clinic that made them into a bustling center of commerce.
---
Mount Myōboku – Prophecy of the Great Toad Sage
"Jiraiya! Jiraiya!"
Gamabunta's booming voice shook the mossy cliffs of the toad village.
Jiraiya leapt down from a rock, wiping sweat from his brow. "Bunta? What's the matter?"
"The Great Toad Sage is calling you."
Jiraiya froze. "…The Great Sage? Seriously?"
The last few times he visited, the ancient toad had forgotten who he was. Jiraiya still wasn't sure if the Sage truly remembered him or just pretended.
Bunta snorted. "Move it. The Sage has issued a prophecy."
Jiraiya nearly tripped over himself.
"A prophecy?! For me?!"
Ten years had passed since he first summoned a toad by accident at age six. Now sixteen, he had waited over a decade for this moment.
Inside the sacred hall, the Great Toad Sage sat upon his grand cushion, half-asleep. Jiraiya knelt on one knee, heart pounding.
"Great Sage… you called for me?"
The Sage blinked slowly, then croaked, "Ah… yes… I have seen a prophecy…"
Jiraiya held his breath.
The Sage's voice echoed:
"A white snake… shall stir chaos in the shinobi world. And so shall the one who follows the path of wandering… writing… guiding the one who brings transformation…"
When the prophecy ended, Jiraiya felt both enlightened and utterly confused.
A white snake?
The image that instantly appeared in his mind was—
Orochimaru.
The pale skin.
The serpentine presence.
The sage mode with that elegant white tail.
There was no one else the prophecy could refer to.
Jiraiya left Mount Myōboku with a heavy heart.
Would Orochimaru change the world… for better or worse?
Would he—Jiraiya—become the guide the Sage spoke of?
He looked down at the book in his hands, written by his favorite adult novelist, Miya.
For a moment, he allowed himself a foolish dream.
Maybe I could become an author too…?
No! Not those kinds of books! I'm supposed to write something that guides the chosen one… Not smut!
He slapped his cheeks to clear his thoughts.
Still… a small smile tugged at his lips.
If the prophecy was true, then the small ripples beginning in Hidden Grass, Iwagakure, and Konoha…
Were only the very beginning