"But here's the problem. Since you think it's related to me, why didn't you tell me about something so big until now?"
Orochimaru looked over the Konoha leaders. Except for the Third Hokage and Danzo, who didn't change their expressions, the others looked away, seeming unsure.
Why did they tell Orochimaru so late? It made sense.
Negotiating peace with Kumogakure was a big deal for the village. They didn't want any problems at the last minute. Also, they wanted Orochimaru to take the blame, so why would they give him a chance to use this to threaten them?
They were playing with time. After Orochimaru finished his business outside the village, they could punish him without worrying too much.
Who knew Orochimaru had such tricks? Kabuto used the time they were trying to use against him.
But how could it be so lucky? Was Kabuto really that smart and accurate?
Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura looked at Jiraiya, with questioning looks.
They shouldn't trust everything Orochimaru said about Sage Arts and Ryuuchi Cave. They trusted Jiraiya more.
Jiraiya wouldn't lie to protect Orochimaru at a time like this.
Jiraiya met their eyes and nodded with a wry smile.
Summoning scrolls could do that, but his relationship with Mount Myōboku was good. He never thought it could be a restriction.
Always assuming the worst about the world - only Orochimaru and his student would think of that.
When Jiraiya admitted that what Orochimaru said was true, the atmosphere in the meeting room became strange.
Everyone had different expressions, raising eyebrows, widening eyes, pursing lips, wrinkling noses... but no one spoke.
It was too embarrassing.
Kabuto attacked Root and half destroyed it, making him an S-rank missing-nin. The reason they let someone like that escape was because the village didn't trust Orochimaru.
No wonder Orochimaru was acting that way from the start. They would feel resentful too.
It was embarrassing for a student to betray his master. Orochimaru had ways to fix the mistake, but he was away on business, and the village was slow to tell him. Now everyone knew, and he lost face.
Not to mention, the village was blaming Orochimaru for it... cough, they were being unfair!
Utatane Koharu was speechless. What she said before didn't make sense anymore.
She wanted to complain that Orochimaru didn't explain this earlier, but she remembered that he had just returned from business and was brought to the Hokage's room for questioning without even resting. She held back her anger.
She felt frustrated, especially after learning that it was their own fault. She felt even more frustrated and couldn't even find a reason to vent.
"Let's put this matter aside for now."
The Third Hokage, who had been calm all along, finally spoke. "Next, let's discuss how to deal with missing-nin..."
"Wait, Hiruzen, this matter isn't over."
Seeing that Orochimaru had turned the situation around with a few words, Danzo's eyes flashed, and he made up his mind.
Revealing this would hurt his reputation, but he didn't care.
"Yakushi Kabuto was a spy from Root sent to other countries."
Danzo stood up, looked around, and said in a rough voice,
"Not the betrayal a few months ago. Yakushi Kabuto betrayed Root long before that. He knew too many secrets, so I sent Orochimaru to clean up the mess. But I never expected..."
Danzo looked at Orochimaru, his voice harsh.
"Orochimaru, to place his people in Root and steal secrets, hid him."
"In other words, if not for Orochimaru's selfishness, today's events could have been avoided."
With Danzo's sharp accusations, the atmosphere in the meeting room became tense again.
Everyone looked at Orochimaru, with strange looks.
Even the Third Hokage and the village leaders were surprised and caught off guard.
Kabuto's betrayal wasn't recent. There was a backstory? And it was a dangerous situation that could have been prevented?
"Tsk tsk... Lord Danzo, don't just tell half the story."
Orochimaru smiled mockingly. "Since we're talking about the past, let's tell the whole story."
He looked around at the serious faces and smiled.
"Now that we've come this far, let's explain Yakushi Kabuto's background."
"Starting from when he got the surname 'Yakushi'."
"..."
Yakushi? That surname was rare.
The people in the room frowned and thought, but Orochimaru had already started to explain.
Soon, the image of a child who had suffered from war, been displaced, and finally been adopted by an orphanage director appeared in everyone's mind.
This child who had lost everything found something precious again in the orphanage.
But in the ninja world, such happiness was fragile. Soon, his life took another turn.
"...Yakushi Nono, you might know her as the 'Walking Shrine Maiden', but she was actually one of Root's strongest spy ninjas."
Orochimaru looked at Danzo and said slowly, "Danzo wouldn't want her to retire. He threatened to cut off the orphanage's funding and sent Yakushi Nono back to the battlefield."
The audience didn't react much to this story. They had all experienced war. Danzo's actions were normal, and he could even say, 'I did it for the village.'
With these spies active, they could reduce their losses.
Orochimaru knew this. He immediately started talking about what the audience was interested in.
"After Yakushi Nono was sent to the battlefield, Kabuto joined Root to help the orphanage and lighten Yakushi Nono's burden. He also became a spy ninja."
Orochimaru smiled. "Although Kabuto's ninja talent was average, even bad, he had a talent for being a spy."
"Do you know what the talent for being a spy is in Root?"
Everyone in the room was among the top ninjas in Konoha. When Orochimaru asked, words immediately came to their minds.
"Collecting information, observation and counter-intelligence skills, reasoning ability... those aren't it."
"At best, those are just abilities, things that can be learned. True talent needs something deeper."
Orochimaru licked his lips, his expression suddenly sinister.
"Yakushi Kabuto had no parents or relatives. His only home was the orphanage, and the person he cared about most was Yakushi Nono. That's his background, and it can be considered a qualification."
"Because when you send out a spy, the biggest worry isn't that he'll be exposed and killed, but that he'll betray you."
"Someone who can be controlled and won't betray you is the greatest talent a spy can have."
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