132 Undercurrents Stirring

Having served as Tsuchikage for so many years, Onoki, much like Hiruzen Sarutobi, was nothing short of a "sly old fox." If there were any flaw in this assessment, it was merely the omission of the word "old."

A figure of his caliber, ever since learning that the Cloud Village had gone all-in, had likely been pondering the source of their confidence. Offering such intimate intelligence at this juncture was almost certainly a probing maneuver. Of course, it was also, in large part, a mixture of persuasion and temptation. Even though the Cloud and Leaf villages had a pact, treaties between nations are viewed as sacred and inviolable when it suits one's interests, and as nothing more than scraps of paper when they do not. This intelligence was essentially saying: "The Land of Lightning has been left in such a vulnerable, compromising position by my Rock Village—honestly, don't you want to take a shot?"

Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado were clearly unable to resist the temptation and began to stir restlessly. But, truth be told, they were old now. Whether or not to rise to the occasion was a decision that ultimately rested with the "Sannin of Konoha"—Orochimaru, Tsunade, and Jiraiya. Due to their temperaments, the latter two were more inclined toward self-preservation than decisively launching a war.

Orochimaru held the real decision-making power, and he had no such intentions. Why bother? Distinguishing between the Cloud or the Rock—fighting back and forth—wouldn't it all be his eventually? Although his "nursery" was currently limited to Konoha, Orochimaru firmly believed that in the future, it would surely expand to encompass the entire ninja world. He needed time—three years? Five? With every passing moment, the situation would shift significantly. Thus, acting contrary to his nature, Orochimaru remained extremely conservative. Even with the Cloud Village being so alluring, he simply refused to take the bait. Even Jiraiya, at critical moments, possessed the willpower to keep his own belt fastened.

"Orochimaru, this is really..." Koharu and Homura were clearly disappointed.

However, they could say no more. When the intelligence arrived, before communicating with Orochimaru, the two had already consulted with the village, and the Third Hokage’s standing order was for Orochimaru to make the call. With the master and his disciple standing on the same side, there was no resisting that, and not even Danzo could do much about it.

"Things have reached this point; the battle between the two villages has come to an end. I leave the rest to you." Orochimaru stood up, his gaze falling on Tsunade as a faint smile touched his lips. "I have a task back in the village that I need to attend to." Whether it was Shizune, Karin and her mother, or the chakra-infused spirit of the Third Kazekage—this trip had yielded such treasures that it was time to return and digest them.

Koharu and Homura exchanged a glance and offered no protest. The Cloud Village was currently in no state to wage war; on the contrary, they should be worried about whether Konoha might join forces with the Rock. The signing of a "peace treaty" was naturally unproblematic, and they could even seize the opportunity to make some exorbitant demands—such as the rare mineral deposits of the Land of Lightning.

...

One day later, Land of Lightning, Cloud Village.

That night, ripples suddenly disturbed the air above a mist-shrouded peak. A moment later, a man wearing a tiger-striped mask stepped out and alighted on a cedar tree. Hidden within the gloomy clouds, he looked down at the flickering lights on the pagoda-like peaks and let out a scoff.

The war between the Rock and Cloud had erupted suddenly, only to stop just as abruptly, ending with Onoki wounding the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki. It was truly baffling that it had just ended like that. The Cloud Village was one thing, as they were fighting a defensive war, but the Rock Village—the aggressor—had achieved no substantive results, yet they were content to accept this outcome?

What puzzled Obito the most was that Konoha hadn't taken the opportunity to strike while the Cloud Village’s rear was exposed. Since when had the atmosphere of the ninja world become so amiable? Even if only to retaliate for the Cloud's previous opportunism, Konoha should have acted.

"Hehehe..." Obito let out a low, grim chuckle. "The Fourth has only been dead for so long, and the village has become increasingly pathetic."

"Indeed, indeed. Konoha's behavior is truly hard to fathom." On the tree trunk, Zetsu emerged halfway from the leaves of his giant pitcher plant. He echoed the sentiment, then asked in confusion, "Should we proceed with the original plan? The peace talks between the Cloud and the Leaf will begin soon."

Obito glanced at Zetsu and pondered for a moment. The original plan was to take advantage of the Cloud Village sending envoys to Konoha to assassinate them, thereby inciting a war. But if they did that now, no matter who died, the Cloud would likely swallow the insult, as their current strength could not support a war against Konoha.

After a moment of silence, Obito spoke. "The plan continues. Next, help me scout a suitable high-ranking Cloud official. I need a pawn to drag out these peace talks until the Fourth Raikage recovers from his injuries."

Only when strength is balanced can there be a confrontation. A Cloud Village with the Fourth Raikage is a completely different entity from one without him; that much was clear from this war.

"You intend to use genjutsu to control them?" Zetsu leaned forward, puzzled. "Aren't you worried about running low on ocular power?"

Shisui's Mangekyo could permanently alter a person's will through physical means. But other Sharingan—be it Mangekyo or Rinnegan—were fundamentally genjutsu that consumed ocular power. They were transient, time-limited abilities that required regular replenishment. At this moment, Obito was already controlling the Fourth Mizukage of the Hidden Mist and the Tailed Beast within him; both were extraordinary beings that occupied much of his ocular power. Maintaining an additional powerful ninja might truly affect his everyday capabilities.

"It is worth it." Obito was silent for a moment before laughing softly. "Besides, for high-ranking members of the Cloud, one doesn't necessarily need to choose those with great strength. Once a ninja grows old and frail, they are easy enough to control."

...

The next day, mid-morning.

After more than a day of travel, Orochimaru and his party returned to Konoha.

"Back in the village again." Tsunade gazed at the gates of Konoha and sighed faintly. Compared to when she left, she really hadn't made much progress in all these years.

"...Tsunade, long time no see!"

While she was immersed in sorrow and self-reproach, a hearty, laughing voice suddenly rang in her ears. Immediately after, as if a great gust of wind had blown past, a sturdy figure pulled her into an embrace. "Let’s have a reunion hug!"

Feeling the heat surrounding her body, Tsunade felt a flash of shame followed by a surge of rage. She exerted her immense strength to break free and delivered a punch straight at Jiraiya.

Jiraiya arrived at the scene with great speed, and with equally great speed, he vanished.

*Boom, boom, boom...*

He crashed through several large trees in front of the gate, flew deep into the woods, and was buried under a pile of broken branches and timber. Everyone present swallowed hard. Those with sharp eyes who recognized Jiraiya couldn't help but mutter to themselves: they had just reunited; surely they weren't about to have a permanent farewell, were they?

Seeing Orochimaru standing there calmly, looking as if he were long accustomed to this, they marveled: the daily bickering of the "Sannin" was just too dangerous.