Minato rose to fame during the Third Great Ninja War and was hailed by the ninja nations as "Konoha's Yellow Flash." His reputation spread far and wide, and naturally, all information regarding this war was much clearer than that of the Second.
Akasuna no Sasori became an S-rank rogue ninja of Sunagakure at age thirteen. The Third Kazekage had nearly disappeared at the same time.
Within the ninja world, rumors spread saying that the Third Kazekage had been killed by Akasuna no Sasori.
However, this was indeed difficult to believe because the Third Kazekage was known as the strongest Kazekage in history, capable of controlling [Iron Sand Body] and possessing immense power.
This super elite ninja, who surely ranked among the top tiers of the ninja world, dying at the hands of a mere thirteen-year-old boy—especially within Sunagakure itself—naturally made nobody willing to believe it.
Even Minato himself was skeptical, but he never expected that this criminal, infamous throughout Suna and the Land of Wind's history, would look so... beautiful.
He was stunning enough to make both men and women feel insecure about their own appearances.
No one else could know Minato's thoughts, but Hatake Sakumo, while watching the distant figure of Sasori walk away, momentarily showed something in his eyes too.
Observing this expression from Sakumo, Minato couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
Because the parents of Akasuna no Sasori, Liu Fei and Ko Hui, had both died at Sakumo's hands near the end of the Second Great Ninja War.
The history he knew so well had changed again, as if repeating itself.
For example, the names of the Sannin, or how Nawaki barely escaped death...
More coincidentally, the year Sakumo committed suicide after failing his mission was also the very year before the disappearance of the Third Kazekage and the start of the Third Great Ninja War.
However, since Minato had already altered Nawaki's fate, he would now do everything possible to change the fate of his most respected mentor.
If Sakumo could be kept alive, perhaps he could alter the destiny of his own gifted student:
Kakashi.
"Alright, rest here in Sunagakure for a few days, then leave," a staff member at the Sand Village supply depot waved them off carelessly, dismissing Minato and his team.
All the Konoha ninjas present put on an act of exhaustion. After all, any normal person would be mentally and physically drained after such a long journey.
Although they were all ninja, their chakra had been sealed, significantly reducing their stamina. While not exactly tired, staying in Sunagakure was necessary to carry out their plan.
"Thank you, sir." Hatake Sakumo even pretended to bow respectfully toward the Suna ninja.
Seeming pleased by Sakumo's gesture, the Sand ninja gave everyone a final reminder.
"Remember, don't step onto the village's main road, or you will be treated as enemies and eliminated—regardless of whether you are civilians or not."
Everyone nodded solemnly upon hearing this.
Konoha had similar protocols, but the atmosphere within Sunagakure didn't seem nearly as friendly as that of Konoha's shinobi.
Killing someone just for stepping onto a main road seemed brutally harsh.
But every village had its own way of doing things, and Minato and the others understood this well, so they left on their own.
Rather than start wandering around Sunagakure right away, they made their way straight to the civilian part of town.
They found a small, modest inn to stay at. Since their cover identities were that of a family from an obscure little village in the Land of Wind, they didn't have much money.
The inn owner, a civilian of Sunagakure, was very kind and welcoming. Although they lived within Sunagakure, as civilians they all felt rather anxious during wartime.
However, due to the scarcity of supplies caused by war efforts, the inn didn't offer much in the way of good food.
After finishing dinner, the Konoha group split into two separate rooms, in accordance with their cover identities.
Sakumo and Junko Watanabe shared one room, while Mikoto stayed in the other with the rest of the family.
Hyuga Kubei and Hanyu Yamanaka went into the other room.
Once they entered the small room, sliding the door shut behind them, Sakumo and the others first carefully observed their surroundings.
It was possible that Suna ninja might be monitoring these outsiders.
Once they'd confirmed the area was safe, they started chatting like a normal family would.
"Tired as hell. Finally can get some decent rest."
Sakumo said, though his hands were subtly forming hand signs even as he spoke.
It was a silent code Konoha ninja used when they couldn't speak aloud on missions.
[Did you spot anything unusual?] This was the message behind Sakumo's hand signs.
Minato and the other three simultaneously shook their heads.
Of course—they'd only passed through a small part of Sunagakure. Even if Desert's Sorrow could only grow outdoors, it wouldn't possibly be planted somewhere along the roadside where outsiders could easily discover it.
[Tomorrow, we'll pretend to tour Sunagakure as cover while we split up to look around.] Mikoto signaled with her hands.
Understanding her meaning, Minato shook his head, signaling back.
[We need to observe, yes, but we mustn't separate.]
[This family has traveled far together from the Land of Wind. Family sticks together through hardship—we must always remain close.]
Mikoto hesitated slightly before nodding after seeing Minato's signal.
[What should we do then? We don't have much time here in Sunagakure. If we search like this, our chances of finding Desert's Sorrow are slim.] Mikoto asked.
Seeing this, Sakumo Hatake gave a slight smile without showing any obvious reaction, almost as if he was observing Minato's response.
Minato smiled calmly and signaled again.
[Sunagakure may be large, but Tsunade-sama mentioned Desert's Sorrow requires very specific sunlight conditions to grow. Many of Sunagakure's buildings are located in shaded areas, so we can skip checking those places entirely.]
Realization dawned on Mikoto—this would significantly narrow down their search area.
A flicker of astonishment passed through her gaze toward Minato.
A look of approval flickered across Sakumo's eyes, although his expression remained calm.
"Fuu, go check on your two uncles and see if they need anything?"
The four exchanged glances, then Junko Watanabe spoke up.
"Hmm."
Minato responded briefly and took this opportunity to go to the room of Kubei Hyuga and Hanyu Yamanaka to inform them of their decision.
...
The next day.
A group of six led by Minato arrived on the streets of Sunagakure for "sightseeing."
To avoid suspicion from the Suna ninjas, they didn't stick exclusively to obvious or high-profile locations. After all, keeping an eye on Sunagakure was part of Konoha's intelligence-gathering mission.
Hatake Sakumo and Junko Watanabe, in particular, had to walk together like a loving elderly couple.
But who could really know what either of them was thinking at that moment...
...
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