In a certain location in the Land of Rivers.
Inside a dark room stood six men with strong auras. Their faces were indistinguishable. One man stood in the middle with his hands clasped behind his back, while the others stood with bowed heads and slightly bent backs, all in a posture of respectful listening.
Knock, knock, knock—
"Come in!" said the man standing in the center with his hands behind his back. His voice was oddly deep and resonant, as if being amplified through something.
The door opened, and a respectful man wearing a Rain Village forehead protector walked in. He did not dare to be presumptuous, bowing as he presented a paper scroll to the man in the center, speaking rapidly and clearly: "Lord, a message from the Land of Fire!"
A black shadow swept by, and the scroll was already in the man's hand. As he opened and read it, the aura around him grew increasingly sinister. The surrounding men felt an inexplicable chill.
Bang!—
The man fiercely slammed his fist onto a wooden table next to him. A sharp crack sounded, and the table instantly splintered into pieces.
The man could not help but curse: "Trash! Utter trash! Three Chūnin were actually defeated by three Konoha Genin brats! I want to know, are the Konoha ninja too strong, or are our Rain Village ninja too inept?"
The man stressed the words 'strong' and 'inept' heavily.
The six men around him did not dare to answer and remained silent.
The man sighed inwardly at their reaction. After a moment, he regained his composure and calmly instructed: "Immediately relay the message to the remaining members in the Land of Fire. Send the two most elite squads to intercept them. Do you understand, the two most elite squads? Everyone else is to immediately abandon all supplies, bring only the map, and return. Tell them to execute this command without delay. Go!"
"Yes, Lord!" The Rain Village ninja who had delivered the message bowed and left to carry out the order.
Just then, one of the five men standing in bowed reverence stepped forward and tentatively asked: "Lord, I don't understand why only two squads will suffice."
The man standing in the center saw his aura gradually soften. Finally, someone teachable, he thought, and answered faintly: "That location is not far from Konoha Village. Under extreme pressure, they could enter Konoha's warning perimeter in half an hour. If even these two squads can't stop these three strange Genin, then sending more people would just be sending them to their deaths once they reach Konoha's warning perimeter! Furthermore, at that point, moving from the shadows to the light means it's no longer espionage; it's war!"
The man who had stepped forward bowed as if having received instruction, and then retreated to his place.
The room fell silent once more.
Orochimaru and the other three quickly left the bandit camp and found a small town where they rested first.
Although Orochimaru knew that rushing to Konoha without stopping would put them within the village's warning perimeter in half an hour, he didn't dare to gamble. He couldn't risk not making it in time, especially while dragging Chi, an 'ordinary person,' and he couldn't risk an ambush during that critical half-hour.
After Orochimaru and the three's Chakra and stamina were mostly recovered, they walked together to the town entrance.
Orochimaru spoke sternly to Chi: "Chi, I have no need for trash, so I'm giving you a test. Do you understand?"
Chi nodded resolutely, his dark eyes fixed intently on Orochimaru, waiting focusedly for him to continue.
Orochimaru continued: "You must now make it to Konoha alone, using your own strength. Then, find my house. Remember my name: I am Orochimaru. Can you do it?"
Chi maintained his stubborn and determined expression, nodded seriously, and then turned and walked away without looking back. His young figure possessed a firm resolve, like someone who would not turn back until the goal was reached.
Tsunade said indignantly: "Orochimaru, he's just a normal child! Aren't you being too cruel?"
"Yeah, Orochimaru, letting him come with us wouldn't hurt anything!" Jiraiya chimed in.
Orochimaru gave a wicked smile: "That child is not ordinary..."
Orochimaru stopped himself. If he can reach Konoha, he will become the sharpest sword under my command!
Shaking off his thoughts, Orochimaru said calmly: "Alright, let's plan this out. The two of you go first, rushing toward Konoha with all your strength. I'll shadow you from the darkness behind, about a hundred meters back. If you encounter an ambush, if you can just hold them off for a moment, I can immediately rush in and launch a surprise attack from the shadows. We'll seize the chance to kill the enemy with one blow!"
Jiraiya and Tsunade heard Orochimaru's words. Although they knew this was the best method for the current situation, they couldn't hide their displeasure at being used as bait by Orochimaru.
The atmosphere suddenly became heavy, with anxiety over the dangers ahead and internal discord among the group.
Orochimaru keenly sensed the change in atmosphere. He glanced at their expressions and immediately guessed their thoughts. He turned back and said softly: "I'm sorry."
The two were momentarily stunned, but their eyes quickly showed relief.
Jiraiya, arguably the person who understood Orochimaru best, remembered Orochimaru's contributions during the bandit camp raid. He felt a bit ashamed of his recent thoughts. He rushed forward, casually slung an arm around Orochimaru's shoulder, and laughed loudly: "Haha, don't worry! With I, Jiraiya-sama, here, we'll all make it back to the village safely!"
Tsunade flashed a brilliant smile.
Orochimaru smiled wryly. I truly have changed, he thought.
The three prepared themselves, activated their Shinshin, and set off toward Konoha as planned.
Orochimaru shadowed Jiraiya and Tsunade from about a hundred meters behind in the distance, employing his masterful anti-tracking and reconnaissance skills. His small body concealed all killing intent and his faint, nearly inaudible body odor. He moved like a massive python slithering through the forest, fully utilizing every shadow in the woods, advancing silently without leaving the slightest trace.
Jiraiya and Tsunade carefully and cautiously used their Shinshin, weaving swiftly between the trees. One massive tree after another was quickly left behind. The distance to Konoha grew shorter, but the unease in their hearts grew stronger.
Whoosh, whoosh!—
Jiraiya and Tsunade leaped over another large tree, continuing their rush forward without stopping.
What they didn't notice was a pair of eyes watching their every move from a shadow beneath the tree.
The person hiding in the darkness waited until Jiraiya and Tsunade had moved far away, then pulled down the headset they wore and whispered: "Calling Team One and Team Two. Moth calling Team One and Team Two!"
"Team One here, Moth speak!"
"Team Two here, Moth speak!"
The person identified as "Moth" was about to speak, when he suddenly froze!
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