Kakuzu grinned: "Don't worry, no one even noticed me when I tried to assassinate the Hokage."
"Why don't you try again? The Nidaime Hokage doesn't have the same good temper as the Shodaime."
Kakuzu awkwardly waved his hand: "Let's not, even though I have six lives, I don't want to go looking for death specifically."
Torifū smiled and said no more.
Amado stood to the side, also unable to understand what Torifū and Kakuzu were talking about. However, it didn't sound like anything good. Why were these adults constantly talking about fighting and killing?
Torifū didn't continue talking to Kakuzu either, since they would be meeting in two days. But Torifū hadn't yet decided whether to meet Kakuzu in his real identity or as a puppet. After all, Torifū was currently only a nine-year-old child. Although he was very strong, his youthful face didn't exude much authority. If he were to meet him like that, it might really affect Torifū's image in Kakuzu's eyes. Before, he had always maintained a mysterious and profound image, only for it to turn out that behind it was just a young brat. And to think Kakuzu had been bowing and scraping to him—who could handle that?
No, he had to let a clone handle the handover with Kakuzu. Once Amado was brought near Konoha Village, Torifū would go and pick him up himself. That way, he wouldn't fear exposure. Amado, being a child, would naturally be easy to fool, so there was no need to hide anything from him. After all, a six-year-old child definitely needed someone to care for him.
Torifū's consciousness had barely returned to his main body when he had already devised an excuse for Amado's identity. He would just say that he met an orphan while playing outside, and out of pity, he took him in. After all, he had already "picked up" two clans, so one more child wouldn't hurt. However, according to custom, such orphans from outside the village had to be sent to the orphanage for collective upbringing and care. But if Torifū were to propose adopting Amado, Tobirama would likely not refuse. After all, an orphanage wasn't necessarily a good place, so it was naturally better if someone adopted him.
If Amado arrived in Konoha at this time, he would be just in time for the Ninja Academy's enrollment next month. Although Torifū intended for Amado to create things like mobile phones, computers, and even more advanced electronic products in the future, he still wanted Amado to receive comprehensive education. Otherwise, if he knew nothing but how to create things, wouldn't that be a waste of talent?
It was important to remember that the original world's Amado became such an amazing scientist without anyone's help. If he were to become useless with Torifū's assistance, that would truly be a great embarrassment.
In the cave, Amado also understood that he seemed to be going to live with the person from just now. To be honest, he still had hopes for the future. Although his parents had recently passed away, which was a huge blow to him, he still had to strive to live on. That's why he followed Kakuzu all the way to the Land of Fire—he just wanted to survive. He also knew that Kakuzu was interested in his ability to make small trinkets, so he made this box while walking along the road. The materials were all collected along the way. Looking at it now, all his choices seemed to have been correct. Amado noticed that the person from just now clearly seemed to have a higher status than Kakuzu, and he seemed to have taken an interest in him.
The firewood in the fire crackled. In a day or two, his life might be completely different. Whether it would be better or worse, he couldn't know. He could only pray that his deceased parents would bring him good luck.
"Go to sleep early, little brat. We'll be on our way tomorrow morning. Once we reach our destination, both of us will be free."
Amado obediently put down the box he was fiddling with, lay on the straw bed Kakuzu had prepared, and fell asleep. The straw pile was very uncomfortable; it made his body ache. Whenever this happened, it was when he missed his parents the most. At first, he would secretly shed tears, but now he no longer did; he had gradually adapted to this kind of life.
Kakuzu, on the other hand, didn't care what Amado thought; he only considered him his mission. His care along the way was simply out of fear that Amado would die and he wouldn't be able to complete the mission. Kakuzu's seriousness was mainly due to the mutual trust he shared with Torifū, as they had once fought side by side. Moreover, his current life was quite leisurely; traveling all over the world was like a vacation, and he had a lot of money, making him incredibly carefree.
During this time, besides Amado, he had also collected the blood of a Kekkei Genkai ninja—it seemed to be Scorch Release? He couldn't quite remember. However, its combat power wasn't very good; it could only be used for restricting movement and the like. Kakuzu estimated that Torifū probably wouldn't like this Release. But it didn't matter; this blood was just a bonus. The main point was Amado.
The next morning, Torifū controlled his Shadow Clones to carry out the spies apprehension operation. These spies all acted very low-key and were alone in the village, which made the capture much easier. Acting early in the morning also wouldn't disturb the villagers. With Torifū's strength, capturing them was a piece of cake. It didn't even take half an hour for all seven spies to be captured by Torifū. Taking advantage of the few people around, Torifū quickly led them away from their residences and rushed towards the Hokage's Office. However, no matter how much they tried to hide, a clone and seven spies, making a total of fourteen people, flashing back and forth across the rooftops was quite noticeable. But the villagers tacitly chose to ignore them.
The Hokage's Office door was open, but there were no guards. Torifū entered and headed straight for the second-floor office. Inside the office, Tobirama was already seated at his desk, waiting for Torifū.
"Good, that was quick."
Torifū brought the spies before Tobirama. Each of their faces wore an expression of disbelief. It seemed they were asking, 'How did you get caught too? How did they get the information?' However, they should be more concerned about their own lives now.
"Hehe, when Hokage-sama asks for something, I definitely have to take it seriously."
Tobirama briefly scanned the seven spies. They all matched the intelligence, and he nodded. "Well done. These are the ones."
Kumotsuru Torifū immediately asked, "Are there any who slipped through the net?"
Tobirama pondered for a moment and slowly said, "The intelligence shouldn't be wrong, but we can't rule out that possibility. Fortunately, I invited the Yamanaka clan head early this morning; he should have arrived by now."
Just as he finished speaking, a knock sounded at the door: "Hokage-sama, it's me, Yamanaka Tamaki."
"Yamanaka clan head, please come in quickly."
Immediately, Yamanaka Tamaki pushed the door open and entered. Torifū was no stranger to this person; he had dealt with him several times over the years. In terms of strength, he wasn't particularly powerful, but he could also be ranked as an Elite Jōnin. However, his specialty was primarily intelligence interrogation. The Yamanaka clan's secret techniques determined that they were not a clan skilled in combat.
"These are the Kumogakure spies I had Kumotsuru Torifū apprehend. To ensure that no one slipped through, I would like to ask the Yamanaka clan head to interrogate them."