The welcoming ceremony concluded, and the crowd gradually dispersed.
The Daimyo, surrounded by the Hokage and other high-ranking Konoha officials, walked toward the Hokage Building.
Orochimaru was left alone.
No one spoke to him, and he didn't care.
For him, such occasions were truly boring.
He turned and walked home.
His steps were unhurried, like a leisurely stroll under the twilight sky.
"Orochimaru."
Just as he rounded the corner of the street, a voice called out to him.
His usually indifferent face immediately broke into his characteristic smile.
"Hiruzen-sensei."
"It's so late. Aren't you going to sleep, old man?"
"It's only just gotten dark..." Sarutobi Hiruzen looked at him and got straight to the point.
"What kind of person is that Daimyo?"
"Sensei," Orochimaru chuckled. "Before asking that, shouldn't you first ask what I've been doing these past few days?"
Hiruzen took a puff from his pipe.
"Would you tell me?"
"Hehehe..." Orochimaru's laugh was low and hoarse.
"You haven't asked. How do you know I wouldn't?"
Hiruzen fell silent.
He looked at the familiar yet distant face in front of him, then spoke again after a pause.
"Come sit with me at my place."
As he spoke, his gaze flickered slightly toward the nearby alley.
It was empty.
"Don't bother looking." Orochimaru's tone carried a trace of mockery.
"Those are the guards sent by Daimyo-sama to protect me. Very professional."
Hiruzen paused.
Guards that even Orochimaru admitted were professional...
He silently retracted his gaze, then looked back at Orochimaru.
"Are you coming?"
"Forget it." Orochimaru waved a hand. "I still have things to do."
Hiruzen did not move. He simply stood and stared at him.
No questioning. No pressure. Just a silent gaze.
The smile on Orochimaru's face faded slightly.
"I really do have things to do."
Hiruzen remained silent. The embers of his pipe flickered dimly.
Orochimaru finally showed a hint of impatience.
He knew his teacher well. This kind of silence meant he wouldn't leave until he got what he wanted.
Letting out a sigh, Orochimaru tugged at the corner of his mouth.
"Alright, I'll tell you."
"Two things."
"First, to develop a vaccine capable of dealing with large-scale plagues."
"Second, to research a method that can double food production."
Then he added.
"This Daimyo is different from any dignitary we've ever known."
With those words, he turned and left.
His figure slowly merged into the night.
Only a drifting sentence lingered in the air.
"Smoke less, Sensei. Your wrinkles are getting worse."
Hiruzen stood silently in place.
The evening breeze stirred a few fallen leaves.
At some point, his pipe had gone out.
Vaccine. Increased food production.
These two phrases left him dazed for a long time.
...
In the Hokage's office, the lights were bright.
Over a dozen elite Jōnin-class shinobi gathered around a massive map, discussing in low voices.
The map was covered with densely packed markers in different colors.
This room had clearly become a temporary war command center.
When Arashi entered the office, surrounded by the group, all the busy shinobi stopped what they were doing and stood up to salute.
"Daimyo-sama."
"You've all worked hard. Please continue." Arashi waved his hand, his gaze sweeping across the room.
Minato followed closely, explaining with initiative.
"Daimyo-sama, these Jōnin-class shinobi are working overnight to analyze the infiltration clues from the Kumo squad."
Arashi nodded and continued walking, heading toward one particular corner.
There, a man with pineapple-like hair and a slightly weary expression was staring intently at an intelligence scroll on the desk.
Arashi walked up beside him and casually picked up the scroll laid out before him.
Shikaku immediately looked up. When he saw who it was, he quickly stood and explained.
"Daimyo-sama, this is a compilation of all the tracking intel we've gathered on the infiltrating Kumo squad."
Minato quickly added.
"Jōnin Shikaku had just returned from escorting supplies to the front line. He jumped straight into intel work without rest and hasn't slept in two days."
Arashi paused while flipping through the scroll and glanced at Minato.
This young Fourth Hokage was using this moment to demonstrate Konoha's diligence, showing they had not been negligent.
"You've worked hard."
Arashi closed the scroll and spoke calmly.
His eyes left the intel and turned sharp again.
"Are there any battle reports from the border?"
"Yes." Minato quickly retrieved a scroll from a nearby stack and handed it over.
"To ensure nothing is missed, intelligence from the Land of Lightning border is reported daily."
"These are the reports from the past half month."
Arashi opened the scroll.
It recorded the results of every minor skirmish along the northeastern border over the last two weeks.
Victory. Rout. Minor victory.
Line after line reflected good news.
Based on these reports, Konoha's border forces had seemingly overwhelmed the Kumo harassment teams.
The strength of the largest Hidden Village in the world was on full display.
Arashi nodded slightly in approval. He was just about to say something when he suddenly stopped.
His gaze froze on one particular section of the report.
Everyone nearby noticed the change in his expression.
The once slightly relaxed atmosphere instantly turned heavy.
Arashi tapped on the scroll and looked at Minato.
"This report begins from the day after the Kumo infiltration squad entered the country."
"What about before that?"
"Uh..." Minato hesitated for a moment, answering instinctively.
"The earlier reports have already been archived. These are the latest..."
"I'll get them."
Before Minato could finish, Shikaku spoke up and stepped away.
He too had sensed something and immediately moved toward the wall, where scrolls were stacked high.
"Thank you."
As Shikaku searched, Arashi asked again.
"Jōnin Shikaku, you just returned from the front line. How are things there?"
"Very troublesome," Shikaku answered without turning.
"Those Kumo shinobi are completely reckless. They fight like they have nothing to lose."
"We're about even. Neither side is gaining a major advantage. It's been a stalemate..."
He suddenly stopped talking.
Evenly matched. Stalemate.
When he left the front lines, that was still the case.
But after returning, the reports he saw were all Konoha victories.
A chill ran down his spine.
He finally realized what was wrong.
His hands began moving faster. He rummaged through the scrolls with urgency.
The rustling of paper echoed through the room, drawing confused glances from the surrounding Jōnin.
Finally.
Shikaku grabbed several old scrolls and quickly returned, his hands trembling.
Arashi didn't say a word. He simply took the scrolls and laid them out on the table alongside the current report.
Two sets of reports. A clear timeline. A shocking dividing line.
That line was exactly the day the Kumo infiltration squad entered the Land of Fire.
Before that, the battles were evenly split. Wins and losses confirmed a stalemate.
After that, every entry glowed red with victory. A flawless winning streak.
Everyone who saw the two scrolls side by side fell silent.
Color slowly drained from their faces.
They had been fooled.
All of Konoha had been deceived by Kumo's illusion of false victories.
"This... how could this be..."
Minato stared at the dividing line. His body swayed. His lips lost all color.
Arashi slowly looked up, his eyes cold and devoid of warmth.
"The answer is already clear."
His voice was soft, yet every word struck like thunder.
"Kumo's main forces were never at the border."
"They..."
"...have already entered the Land of Fire by some method we don't yet know."
(To be continued.)