In Otogakure, when Naruto saw the message in the group chat, his pupils froze for a moment.
Jiraiya, Tsunade, Orochimaru.
During the Second Shinobi World War, they fought the legendary Shinobi Hanzo of the Salamander to a standstill, earning his praise as Konoha's Legendary Sannin. Their strength was immense.
Based on the intel Naruto gained from his training at Ryuchi Cave, among the Sannin, Tsunade had the most extraordinary bloodline.
She was the granddaughter of the Shodaime Hokage, Senju Hashirama, possessing the Senju Clan's bloodline, and also inheriting the Senjutsu of Shikkotsu Forest.
It was no exaggeration to say that Tsunade's vitality even rivaled that of the White Snake Sage and the Great Toad Sage.
Without overdrawing her life force, she could live for thousands of years without aging or dying.
Tsunade's endurance, physical capabilities, and recovery ability were all among the top in the Shinobi World.
Her only shortcoming might be that the destructive power of the Ninjutsu and Senjutsu she mastered wasn't quite enough for instantaneous burst damage.
But this was something Jiraiya could perfectly compensate for.
Jiraiya, who trained at Mount Myoboku and mastered Sage Mode, was proficient in all nature transformation Senjutsu, Genjutsu, Taijutsu, and even Summoning Technique. He was a powerful, all-round Shinobi with no obvious weaknesses.
Across the entire Shinobi World, probably no one could confidently claim they could definitively defeat Jiraiya.
His abilities were too comprehensive. Plus, with the help of Mount Myoboku, his escape ability was also extremely strong.
If the situation turned sour, Jiraiya could retreat into his summoned toad and flee far away.
"A truly troublesome enemy."
Naruto frowned slightly, thinking about countermeasures.
Without a doubt, he was now the village's most wanted Missing-nin, an ultimate weapon they would absolutely not let roam free.
Jiraiya and Tsunade were not novice Shinobi fresh out of the Academy.
The tricks Naruto could think of and use would probably be largely ineffective against them.
Therefore…
"The only one who can deal with the Sannin... is another Sannin, Orochimaru."
A cold, sharp smile curled on Naruto's lips. He clenched his right fist, having made a decision.
'Orochimaru probably didn't know about this intel yet.'
'Konoha would never let such important information leak, especially not to a Missing-nin like Orochimaru.'
'So, if I, posing as a Root organization mole, delivered the message to him...'
'What plans would this man, who holds countless trump cards, have?'
Naruto was very curious.
Let's not forget.
Among the Sannin, the one at the core was never Tsunade with the noblest bloodline, nor Jiraiya with his immense luck and strength…
It was this prodigy, this man with an extreme pursuit of immortality…
Orochimaru!
In the experimental hideout.
Orochimaru had once again extracted the cursed seal energy from Jugo's body. A frightening, sinister aura emanated from him as his long tongue flicked over his lips.
He chuckled with a sinister, low laugh.
"The plan is half complete. The Kekkei Genkai of these Shinobi are all abilities that counter the Akatsuki's members. In battle, they can achieve a 1+1>2 effect."
In front of Orochimaru was a row of transparent incubation tanks. Inside were seven Shinobi of completely different appearances and builds, their eyes tightly closed.
On their necks, they all bore Orochimaru's Cursed Seal.
These individuals were specially selected and gathered by Orochimaru during this time, specifically designed to counter the Akatsuki!
In the Naruto World, for battles below the Kage-level, intel could decide many things.
Knowing the intel on the Immortal Duo, one could specifically devise tactics to counter their immortality, using just a few Chunin to tie them down.
Knowing the intel on Sasori and Deidara, one could set traps in advance, arranging inescapable locations to complete the hunt with perfect timing and terrain!
One could say, with sufficient intel, Orochimaru could completely achieve defeating the strong with the weak, using minimal force to maximum effect.
The only truly difficult one to deal with was the nearly flawless Pain.
Deva Path, Preta Path, Animal Path, Naraka Path, Asura Path, Human Path.
Six bodies, shared vision, complementary abilities, near-perfect coordination, and outrageously comprehensive combat power.
The only way to defeat the Six Paths of Pain was to find Nagato hiding behind them.
Orochimaru had made arrangements for this as well.
As the leader of Otogakure, Orochimaru's cunningness and connections ran deep and were terrifying. Few in the Shinobi World would not give him face.
"This way, everything is ready except for the east wind. We just need to wait for..."
"Who's there?!"
Just as Orochimaru was immersed in his own world, a sickly smile curling his lips,
A crisp knocking sound suddenly disrupted his thoughts.
"It's me."
Naruto, disguised as Yamato and wearing a Root's mask, stood outside the hideout, speaking in a low voice.
"It's you. What is it? Does Danzo have another message?"
Seeing 'Yamato' appear, Orochimaru relaxed his guard slightly and chuckled softly.
"Very important intel. Enough to affect the battle."
"Speak."
Orochimaru's expression shifted to a more normal one. He walked out of the hideout, glancing at Naruto out of the corner of his eye.
"The matter is too significant. It's better to discuss it in a more secluded place."
Naruto looked around, adopting an extremely grave expression as he spoke to Orochimaru.
Ten minutes later.
The two arrived at a soundproof room deep within Otogakure.
After pouring a cup of tea, Naruto took a deep breath, looked seriously into Orochimaru's eyes, and slowly began to speak.
"...Konoha is preparing to move against the Kyubi. Your former partners, two of the Sannin, Tsunade and Jiraiya, will both join this operation."
After speaking, Naruto held his breath and focused, observing Orochimaru's reaction.
Contrary to expectations, Orochimaru showed no shock or alarm. Instead, he took a small sip of tea before smiling faintly.
"That they would take action... I anticipated it long ago."
As a former Sannin, Orochimaru was undoubtedly the one who understood Tsunade and Jiraiya best.
These two had a faith-like loyalty to Konoha. Even if they had to die a thousand times, they would absolutely protect the village.
With the Kyubi's Jinchuriki having fled, how could they not take action?
The only thing that slightly surprised Orochimaru was how quickly they had assembled this time.
"Have they determined the first search location? On Konoha's side."
"Probably here. You know how long Konoha has been wary of you. Even if they can't capture the Jinchuriki, taking the opportunity to eliminate you would also be a good thing for Konoha."
Naruto said calmly, without a trace of emotion in his voice.
Sandaime definitely had means to track him… the White Snake Sage had told him this, and Naruto was aware of it himself.
During this past month, Konoha must have known he was at Orochimaru's hideout.
The reason they hadn't come yet was likely because they thought he had defected to Orochimaru, and were gathering forces to take down Orochimaru in one fell swoop.
Not a bad plan... it's just that everything was part of a larger scheme.
Naruto sneered inwardly, his eyes fixed on Orochimaru, waiting for his response.
"Here? Hah, that does sound like Sensei's style."
Orochimaru snorted coldly, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes.
Although he referred to Sandaime as 'sensei', he held not an ounce of sympathy for this former teacher in his heart.
He was Orochimaru, a man destined for immortality.
On this path, everyone else could die… all except him!