"Tell the Leader not to worry. The Tsuchikage treats Deidara like his own grandson. Even if he's captured, it doesn't matter. Just have the Leader remind Deidara not to get carried away and self-destruct."
After having Kisame relay the message, Bai Mo prepared to immediately leave the Land of Waves.
As for Kisame and Itachi, they currently had no other missions.
The Land of Waves is situated between the Land of Water and the Land of Fire, so it was perfect for them to temporarily stay there, gathering intelligence while safeguarding the development of the Land of Waves.
Kisame wanted to go to the Land of Water to check on the progress, and Itachi wanted to visit Sasuke in Konoha again. Both were nearby.
Bai Mo set off alone once more.
"I need to find an opportunity to get my hands on the Flying Thunder God Technique. Even if no one can learn it, the Flying Thunder Formation would suffice."
Feeling a headache from the arduous long-distance travel, Bai Mo pondered.
Among the Five Great Shinobi Villages, the easiest to establish cooperation with were Kirigakure and soon, Sunagakure.
This was because both villages were about to experience the passing of their old Kage and the succession of a new Kage, whose personality would be completely opposite to the old one.
At the same time, these two villages were not like Konoha in the Land of Fire, where internal power structures were redundant and complex.
Just thinking about Homura Mitokado and Utatane Koharu, who witnessed the First Hokage establish Konoha and were still around during the Boruto era when the ninja village was destroyed, made Bai Mo want to laugh.
What's that saying about a scourge living for a thousand years?
In short.
The Land of Wind is very close to Amegakure, after all, Amegakure itself was a battleground during the Fourth Great Ninja War, sandwiched in between.
If cooperation with Sunagakure were to unfold, there would be no geographical issues.
But the Land of Water was different.
Even traveling from the Land of Fire to the Land of Water required taking a boat out to sea.
Not to mention that the Land of Rain and the Land of Water were separated by an entire Land of Fire.
Few can learn the Flying Thunder God Technique, but the Flying Thunder Formation is different.
Even three background ninja from Konoha could learn it, so its difficulty shouldn't be too high.
—
Konoha.
Kakashi, back in Konoha, delivered his report on the Land of Waves mission and received his payment.
Watching Naruto excitedly gesticulate about buying limited-edition instant ramen at the supermarket, Kakashi sighed.
"Don't buy instant ramen. I'm treating you guys to barbecue tonight."
Kakashi waved the payment he had just received in his hand.
"Really? Long live Kakashi-sensei!"
~
After a period of commotion, the three Genin left the Hokage's office.
Kakashi then informed the Third Hokage about the unexpected upgrade of this C-rank mission.
First, they encountered ninja, escalating from C-rank to B-rank, and then they ran into the rogue ninja Zabuza Momochi from Kirigakure, raising it to A-rank.
The Third Hokage listened to Kakashi's description, showing no signs of worry or fear. After taking a puff from his pipe, he revealed a smile: "Kakashi, it seems entrusting Naruto and Sasuke to you was the right choice."
"Lord Third, I have one more thing to report."
Kakashi had considered it for a long time on the way back and felt that the matter concerning Bai Mo and his group, as well as what he said to Sasuke, also needed to be reported to the Third Hokage.
After all, this matter couldn't be kept secret for long even if they tried.
"We also encountered Itachi Uchiha. He has joined an Akatsuki Organization."
"Oh? Tell me in detail."
The Third Hokage slightly turned his head, remaining calm.
He was one of the few who knew about Itachi's situation.
It was he who sent Itachi to the Akatsuki Organization as a spy.
"Itachi controlled me with genjutsu, and his companion said some things to Sasuke..."
Kakashi relayed what Sasuke had told him, in turn, to the Third Hokage.
Kakashi didn't know if Sasuke had concealed anything from him, so he simply reported everything he knew.
"Asura, Indra?"
Even Hiruzen Sarutobi, known as the "Professor of the Ninja World," had never heard of these two names.
However, later, Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara were mentioned, and he was familiar with those two.
"When did Madara merge with Senju's power? Where did they get this information?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi took another deep drag from his pipe, his brows furrowed.
He wasn't sure if the person Kakashi spoke of was truly Itachi using him to relay information to Konoha.
He didn't know if it was trustworthy.
As Kakashi spoke about Naruto and Sasuke, Hiruzen Sarutobi's tightly furrowed brows gradually relaxed.
"Lord Third, do you think what the other party said is true or false?"
Kakashi paused suddenly before mentioning the final method.
"Kakashi, what the other party said isn't important; their motive is. Those fantastical stories earlier, their core purpose was nothing more than to make Sasuke acquire Naruto's 'power.'"
"Kakashi, Jiraiya once told me that the Great Toad Sage of Mount Myōboku gave him a prophecy, saying that Jiraiya's disciple would become the Child of Prophecy who would change the ninja world.
Jiraiya and I initially thought it was Minato, but later... In any case, if Naruto becomes Jiraiya's disciple in the future, then he is very likely to be the Child of Prophecy who will change the ninja world.
Coupled with the Uzumaki Clan's physique and the Nine-Tails' power.
Leaving aside what that person called Asura chakra, these alone are enough to grant terrifying boosts."
Hiruzen Sarutobi put down his pipe and began to analyze.
As for Naruto becoming Jiraiya's disciple, Hiruzen Sarutobi could say this not because he had seen the future script, but through normal and reasonable deduction.
At the end, Hiruzen Sarutobi thought of a name.
"Orochimaru."
"Lord Third, what did you say?"
Kakashi was stunned.
"This matter might be Orochimaru's scheme."
Hiruzen Sarutobi looked grave, "Orochimaru defected because I discovered his research into First Hokage cell transplantation and illegal human experiments. This kind of talk is very much like Orochimaru; the so-called goodwill is his deception."
"Moreover, after Orochimaru defected, there has been no news of him. He is very likely to have also joined that Akatsuki Organization!"
"Then Orochimaru's goal is..."
"Sasuke, or possibly both Sasuke and Naruto."
"..."
Kakashi's expression also became serious.
At the same time, he admired the Third Hokage even more.
He hadn't expected that something he had pondered for a long time without understanding could be so easily analyzed by Lord Third.
Actually, if Bai Mo knew, he would also have to admire Hiruzen Sarutobi.
How the heck did he manage to get the entire process wrong, the entire result wrong, and yet the answer was the correct answer to a different question?
"Uh, wait a moment, Lord Third."
Kakashi suddenly remembered that there was one last part he hadn't finished, "That person finally gave Sasuke two choices. One was to harm Naruto, which should be cell transplantation, and the other..."
"Ah?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi looked confused, "What was that? Kakashi, say it again?"
"Drink..."
"..."
After confirming he hadn't misheard, Hiruzen Sarutobi fell into a long silence.
Finally, he sighed deeply: "Kakashi, have you been reading Jiraiya's adult novels so much that you can't distinguish between reality and fiction?"
Thinking about Kakashi's situation, Hiruzen Sarutobi felt that he too needed to cut back a bit in the future. He should stick to peeking into the women's bathhouse with his crystal ball; there's more reality there.
....
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