Suddenly, several figures rushed over from the direction of the battlefield.
Orochimaru's pupils shrank in an instant.
"Orochimaru-sama, there's some chaos at Sunagakure's encampment."
"We didn't dare get too close, but it seems like they're searching for something, and they've sent out quite a few people."
Hearing his subordinates' report, Orochimaru frowned slightly.
Judging from the situation, Gekko Chizan's operation must have been a success.
If they're searching, it's probably for that brat Sasori.
But he still didn't know the exact details.
Just as he was mulling it over, a figure suddenly appeared at the edge of the outpost.
And right next to where the figure appeared, there was a jutsu-marked kunai.
"Whoa, still not asleep at this hour? Everyone?"
"Huh? Sensei, why are you here too?"
Seeing that it was Gekko Chizan, the tension in Orochimaru's heart immediately eased.
He let out a long breath.
"Hehehe, wasn't I just waiting for someone to bring me intel?"
"Alright, you few go get some rest."
Upon receiving Orochimaru's order, the mission team nodded and respectfully withdrew.
Now, only Orochimaru and Gekko Chizan were left at the front of the outpost.
"The plan worked?"
"Yeah, I followed him back myself to confirm it."
Although he had already guessed it, hearing Gekko Chizan directly confirm the success of the plan still made Orochimaru feel a surge of excitement.
"How effective was it?"
"Did it achieve the goal?"
Faced with Orochimaru's question, Gekko Chizan couldn't help but show a faint smile.
Seeing that smile, Orochimaru was jolted.
"It really worked?"
"Yes!"
Gekko Chizan nodded solemnly.
Then he began explaining the details.
"I used Transparent Release to infiltrate Sunagakure's camp and left the letter I'd prepared at Sasori's window, then startled him awake."
"In that letter, I wrote my personal opinions about the Third Kazekage, and exaggeratedly slandered him a bit."
"After reading it, that kid Sasori took his puppets and left the camp, heading straight for the village."
"I followed him closely and tailed him all night."
"Under my watch, that brat walked into the Kazekage Building and got into a fight with the Third Kazekage."
"I don't know the exact details of the battle — I was too far away to get closer."
"But I can guarantee, Sasori definitely attacked the Third Kazekage!"
Orochimaru revealed a slightly shocked expression.
He had already fought Sunagakure dozens of times on this battlefield, but none of those experiences were as shocking as the news brought by Gekko Chizan.
A genius puppeteer from Sunagakure attacking his own Kazekage.
This was undoubtedly an act of betrayal — for a village in the midst of a large-scale war, this was like a bolt from the blue.
Whether or not the Kazekage was seriously injured, one thing was certain: Sasori would not return to the battlefield.
Without that red-haired boy's poison and puppets, their side's casualties would decrease significantly.
Orochimaru looked at his disciple with increasingly kind eyes.
He hadn't realized before — this kid was quite the all-rounder. Not only could he gather intelligence, but he had the makings of a great spy.
Not bad. Very not bad.
"Very good, Chizan-kun. Your tactic of sowing discord seems to have worked excellently."
"Keep observing for the next few days, and watch Sunagakure's movements. If it's really as you say, and internal chaos erupts..."
"Then Sunagakure is bound to react."
"They might even lose their grip and launch a large-scale attack."
"Hehehehe. What a pity — our reinforcements are just about to arrive. Whatever they try, we'll take it all!"
At that moment, Orochimaru radiated confidence.
Although Sasori wasn't as strong in puppetry as Chiyo, his poisons and stealth techniques far surpassed hers.
On the battlefield, he could hide while controlling his puppets, and even Orochimaru himself might not have been able to locate him.
Only someone like Gekko Chizan, skilled in stealth techniques, could find Sasori's hiding place in combat.
Now that the most troublesome person was gone, it was good news for the Konoha side.
"Alright, Chizan-kun. Go get some rest."
"You've had a hard night."
Seeing his disciple covered in dust and clearly exhausted, Orochimaru quickly sent him off to rest.
In his mind, this was the result of Gekko Chizan running full-speed across the desert.
Little did he know — this had nothing to do with running.
Gekko Chizan had flown the whole way. The dirt on him came from messing around with Tailed Beast Bombs.
...
Night would eventually pass. As the first rays of sunlight hit the earth...
A new day began.
However, at Sunagakure's encampment, the atmosphere was heavy.
"Chiyo-sama, we still haven't found Sasori."
"But we did find his footprints outside the camp. It seems he ran toward the village."
Chiyo had already been extremely anxious over her missing grandson.
Upon hearing there was news of him, she rushed out immediately to investigate.
Under her subordinates' guidance, she saw the footprints and immediately tensed.
Sasori was her precious grandson. How could she not recognize those footprints?
In the entire Sunagakure camp, only Sasori was still a child. The size of the footprints clearly matched his.
"Damn it, that little brat! Why would he run back to the village without saying a word?"
"Could it be that he went back to get his puppets? But that doesn't make sense..."
Chiyo was full of questions.
Meanwhile, Sunagakure itself had descended into panic.
The ANBU guards suddenly discovered the Kazekage was missing.
At first, they thought he had just gone to rest, but when they reached his quarters, he was nowhere to be found.
That's when they realized something was wrong and began searching the village for any sign of the Kazekage.
But in the entire huge village, there was no trace of him.
They even found signs of a battle in the Kazekage's office.
Eventually, they reported the situation to Elder Ebizō, who was stationed in the village.
Ebizō led a team of ANBU to investigate the Kazekage's office.
"There are quite a few traces of combat..."
"Sand iron... concealed weapons..."
"What's this?"
Suddenly, Ebizō discovered a fragment near a wall. He picked it up, and his pupils shrank in an instant.
With his trained eye, he instantly recognized it as a fragment from a puppet.
After all, his sister Chiyo was the strongest puppeteer in Sunagakure.
Puppets...
A heavy feeling settled in Ebizō's heart.
He immediately issued orders:
"Quickly summon Elder Chiyo and Rasa back! For now, Kemaki will be in charge of the front lines!"
"Move fast!"
The ANBU quickly accepted the mission and sped toward Sunagakure's camp.
Everything was unfolding exactly as Gekko Chizan had predicted.
With the Kazekage missing from the rear, Sunagakure was about to fall into chaos.
The battlefield in the Land of Rivers would soon become a foregone conclusion.
And the one responsible for all of this...
Was currently fast asleep.
...
A/N: The Land of Rivers battlefield was nearly wrapped up, and Sasori would be off-screen for a while.
The opening ceremony of the Third Great Ninja War had concluded. Now the real event was beginning.
Of course, the goal was still to stir up trouble — after all, with so many famous names in the war, how could they not get involved?
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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