In the distance, Tsunade, who had been resting to recover her stamina with a few soldier pills, could no longer sit still after seeing Nawaki and his group locked in close combat with the Rock ninja.
Orochimaru, standing nearby, watched the scene with a complex expression. "We were supposed to protect them," he said quietly, "but instead, they had to travel all this way to rescue us. I am ashamed to be their teacher."
With that, the two, ignoring the dissuasion of others, dashed down directly, charging towards the Iwagakure ninja.
Although Tsunade and Orochimaru had not yet reached their peak, they were undeniably Elite Jonin in terms of strength, arguably in the first tier below the Kage. Despite their current exhaustion, their combat power remained exceptionally high. Previously, if they hadn't fallen into the enemy's trap and Jiraiya hadn't been injured, the three of them alone would have been enough to contend with this group for a long time. Now, with the Konoha ninja joining in and taking on most of the pressure, Orochimaru and Tsunade entering the fray was like a tiger entering a flock of sheep. The Rock ninja, who had been barely holding on, immediately disintegrated.
It wasn't until the sun reached its zenith that Orochimaru killed the last Rock ninja attempting to escape, bringing the battle to a perfect conclusion.
After the battle, Tsunade did not rest. Instead, she went directly to Nawaki, gave him a hard smack on the head, and scolded, "You idiot, who told you to come here!"
Nawaki clutched his head, not retorting, but instead stared fixedly at Tsunade. Tears quickly welled up in his eyes, falling until he finally hugged Tsunade and cried. Tsunade could no longer be angry. She hugged Nawaki back, her angry expression quickly softening into tenderness.
Orochimaru also walked over and said to Kyuushin and Minato, "I don't want to say the same thing as Tsunade, but I still want to say, you all did a great job."
Kyuushin nodded, while Minato urgently asked, "Where is Jiraiya-sensei? Is he alright now?"
"Jiraiya sustained a minor injury, but there's no life-threatening danger. He's over there," Orochimaru said, pointing towards the direction they had come from. Minato nodded to the two and then quickly ran towards Jiraiya's location.
Orochimaru looked at the two still embracing and said to Kyuushin, "Summon Katsuyu. Many of our ninja are injured."
"Yes," Kyuushin replied, then quickly cut his finger and performed the Summoning Technique. After a burst of smoke, Katsuyu appeared. "Lady Katsuyu, please heal everyone." Katsuyu responded and then split apart, crawling towards the injured ninja.
While Kyuushin was quickly clearing the battlefield, far away in Konoha's Hokage's Office, the Third Hokage was frantically dealing with affairs. The ninja world was in turmoil, and accurately discerning the intentions of the major nations from various intelligence reports was no simple task.
Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. When it opened, it was Danzo, holding a report. He wasted no words and went straight to the point: "We obtained some intelligence from the mind of the Iwagakure ninja who was killed earlier. Take a look."
The Third Hokage took the report and read it carefully. After a long while, he looked up. "Tell me your thoughts, Danzo."
Danzo frowned, organized his thoughts, and then said, "From the intelligence, Iwagakure has always been restless. They have been active for some time, setting up strongholds and collecting intelligence in various smaller countries. The only regrettable thing is that we never knew which nation was their true target. This is likely the aim of Onoki, that old fox. As long as any two parties are embroiled in a major war, he can quickly mobilize and profit from the chaos."
The Third Hokage nodded. "The Third Tsuchikage is experienced yet cunning. This is indeed something he would do." He then sighed. "But this time, Orochimaru and his group's actions have likely disrupted Iwagakure's arrangements in the Land of Grass. Do you think Onoki will use this opportunity to challenge us?"
Danzo frowned deeply. "Logically, he shouldn't. If Iwagakure were to enter a war first, other countries would certainly seize the opportunity. However, the Land of Earth's economy is relatively backward. If the domestic war faction collectively pressures Onoki, it's not guaranteed that they won't take desperate measures."
"That's right," the Third Hokage said, his brows tightly furrowed. "Not only that, there's also the Land of Rain from before, and the Land of Wind, which has always been eyeing us covetously. If these three were to unite, the Land of Fire might fall into an extremely dangerous situation."
The office fell silent. After a long while, Danzo finally looked up. "In that case, why don't we thoroughly muddy the waters?"
"What do you mean?"
"From the intel, we know that Iwagakure has also been active in the Land of Frost, which has always been the Land of Lightning's exclusive territory. If the Land of Lightning learns of this news, a conflict is inevitable. We can also provide them with the intelligence we collected about the Land of Earth's strongholds in the Land of Waterfalls. This way, the conflict will surely escalate. We'll employ some tactics in the middle, and there's no doubt they'll end up fighting."
Hearing Danzo's plan, the Third Hokage considered it carefully before agreeing. "Good. This will tie up both the Land of Earth and the Land of Lightning."
Having resolved this matter, the Third Hokage relaxed slightly, picking up his pipe. However, Danzo spoke up again: "The ninja world has been restless, and there are many affairs. Your Anbu alone probably can't handle it all. I request to establish a new department to train Anbu and share some responsibilities. What do you think, Hiruzen?"
The Third Hokage fell into thought. "Alright, what do you plan to name this department?"
"Let's call it 'Root'," Danzo said, walking to the window. "You are the great tree that basks in the sun, and I am the root that works in the darkness to supply you with nutrients." The Third Hokage nodded, acknowledging the statement.
However, just then, a messenger hawk suddenly flew over. This was a hawk used only for the most important messages. Danzo quickly took the message and handed it to the Third Hokage, whose brows immediately furrowed again.
"What's the news?" Danzo asked, knowing it was bad.
Taking the note, he read it aloud: "The Hidden Sand Village of the Land of Wind has dispatched high-ranking officials and a group of ninja to invade the Land of Fire, plundering resources. A portion of the areas near the Land of Rivers has already been devastated."
The Third Hokage put down his pipe. "Originally, I intended to entrust the matter of the Land of Earth to you, but now it seems the Hidden Sand Village's issue is the most urgent. Therefore, I order you to quickly proceed to the front lines and bring the situation under control. I will allocate a contingent of ninja to you. As for the Root matter, we will arrange it after your return." While giving orders, he also instructed the Anbu to summon Sakumo Hatake.
Soon after, Sakumo entered the office. "Hokage-sama, Lord Danzo."
The Third Hokage nodded and handed him the intelligence. "Originally, with your wife pregnant, I shouldn't disturb you. But now the situation has changed. The village needs your strength," he said. Sakumo's wife was found to be pregnant after the New Year, and the Hokage had allowed him to rest. But now, with the tense situation, he had no one else to assign.
Sakumo did not decline. "What do you need me to do?"
The Third Hokage directly issued his orders. "Danzo, I appoint you as the overall commander for this operation. Sakumo Hatake, you are the deputy commander. I will allocate all necessary personnel. I have only one demand for you: no matter who from the Hidden Sand Village has come this time, since they have come, leave their lives in the Land of Fire!"
"Yes!" the two responded in unison.