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Mastermind of the Akatsuki 386
🕑 Added 2025-05-04 16:00:11 +0000 UTCChapter 386: The Meeting of the Three Legendary Sannin
Danzō let out a cold laugh and said, “You already made a move against Hiruzen Sarutobi. Do you really care about this? You're just trying to squeeze more benefits out of me.”
Orochimaru didn’t deny it. He nodded slightly. “You're not wrong. But what can you offer me now? I’ve already obtained what I wanted.”
Danzo smirked for a second, “I can revoke the bounty on your head, even allow you to return to Konohagakure and serve as the Hokage’s second-in-command.”
“You think I care about the Hokage position?”
Orochimaru stared at Danzō and continued, “If I cared about becoming Hokage, I wouldn’t have left Konoha in the first place. As for lifting the bounty? That’s even more ridiculous. Who would actually dare try to capture me for a reward?”
Danzō fell silent for a few seconds, staring intently at Orochimaru.
At the moment, he indeed had nothing compelling to offer that could persuade Orochimaru to cooperate.
Orochimaru, who had already established his own independent shinobi village, lacked neither funding nor subordinates. He could freely purchase experimental materials from the black market, practically without any limitations.
Was there really no way to convince Orochimaru?
Just then, a bold thought flashed through Danzō’s mind. Should he take advantage of their solitude and strike now? If he could use Sharingan genjutsu to control Orochimaru, he would gain a powerful asset.
But such a move came with considerable risk. Orochimaru wasn’t like Shisui Uchiha, he was cunning and constantly on guard. If the attack failed, it would completely sever their fragile alliance.
Though Danzō wasn’t worried about Orochimaru exposing their dealings, if Orochimaru deliberately caused trouble for him, it would be difficult to handle. After all, Orochimaru had mastered the Impure World Reincarnation technique and held the First and Second Hokage under his control.
Danzō himself had thought about having the First and Second Hokage return in that form to protect Konoha, but he knew that if he really did that, Hashirama-sama and Tobirama-sensei would surely oppose him with all their might.
Reviving past Hokage would completely ruin any chance he had of becoming Hokage himself.
As Danzō’s thoughts spiraled, Orochimaru was also weighing his options, wondering whether to continue cooperating with Danzō or simply eliminate him here and now.
Their thoughts mirrored each other, both were considering ending their old alliance right here.
Just as Orochimaru hesitated, a voice whispered into his ear. After hearing its message, Orochimaru smiled and said to Danzō, “Danzō, I’ll agree to cooperate with you, but I have a few conditions.”
Seeing Orochimaru willing to cooperate, Danzō let out a sigh of relief and asked, “Name your conditions. As long as they’re not too outrageous, I can accept them.”
As he spoke, Danzō was already setting boundaries in his mind.
He was willing to accept Orochimaru’s demands, but he would never allow Orochimaru to meddle in the internal affairs of Konohagakure. Ever since the Third Hokage’s death, Danzō had already considered the village his own.
Orochimaru could read Danzō’s intentions and smiled. “Don’t worry. I won’t make things too hard for you. I only want a few people. My Otogakure is still short on manpower.”
“You? Short on people? Your sound shinobi did quite well during the Chūnin Exams.”
“They did, but they’re still far from what I consider ideal subordinates…” Orochimaru paused, then added, “What I want are true geniuses.”
Danzō grew impatient. “Cut the crap and just tell me who you want.”
Orochimaru looked toward Kabuto Yakushi, not far away, then said, “Kabuto Yakushi is a talented individual. Once we start working together, he’ll be under my command.”
Danzō nodded in agreement. Kabuto was an elite shinobi of Root and had the potential to become a jōnin in the future, but that was the extent of it. At most, he’d make a decent subordinate.
Exchanging Kabuto for Orochimaru’s cooperation was a trade well worth it.
After securing Kabuto’s allegiance, Orochimaru continued, “Besides Kabuto, I want another shinobi, Sasuke Uchiha.”
“You want Sasuke Uchiha too?” Danzō frowned, visibly troubled.
Sasuke wasn’t just any shinobi, he was Itachi’s younger brother. One of the main reasons Itachi hadn’t leaked Konoha’s secrets over the years was precisely because of Sasuke’s existence.
After a moment of silence, Danzō said, “Orochimaru, I can’t hand over Sasuke to you. He’s the last Uchiha in the village. The rest of the leadership keeps a close eye on his every move. If you really want Sasuke Uchiha, I can at least provide you with intelligence.”
After a pause, he continued, “Even so, I must warn you, although Sasuke is a Konoha shinobi, his brother is Itachi Uchiha. If you take Sasuke, Itachi will definitely come after you.”
Orochimaru’s lips curled into a smile. “Danzō, the very reason I want Sasuke is because of his brother, Itachi Uchiha. You still remember our old Wood Release project, don’t you? Itachi would be the perfect test subject.”
“That project was all fake. You’re just after his Mangekyō Sharingan…” Danzō bluntly exposed Orochimaru’s true motive, then said, “But it’s actually better if you take him. The village doesn’t need that kind of threat around.”
“Risk often brings opportunity, Danzō. Isn’t that why you’re competing for the Hokage seat? If you wanted a quiet life, you wouldn’t be a shinobi.”
Danzō no longer wanted to banter. He said seriously, “Enough talk. Let’s discuss the terms of cooperation properly.”
Orochimaru nodded as well. He was also curious about Danzō’s plan.
A few minutes later, Danzō revealed his plan, he wanted Orochimaru to attack Tsunade and expose her hemophobia to the world, proving she was unfit to protect the village as Hokage.
Then, Danzō would appear mid-battle and swiftly defeat Orochimaru, avenging the fallen Third Hokage and “saving” the village.
After hearing the plan, Orochimaru sighed as if he was hearing some shitty plot of ‘Hero saving the damsel in distress’ but he ultimately agreed.
After discussing the details, they were ready to part ways. Before leaving, Danzō used Root’s communication methods to summon Kabuto.
He glanced at Kabuto and said, “Kabuto, from now on, you are Orochimaru’s shinobi. But I hope you won’t forget who you once were. You’ll always be a shinobi of Konoha.”
Kabuto put on a worried, uneasy expression, hesitating between Danzō and Orochimaru.
Danzō vanished in a flash using the Body Flicker Technique. Left behind, Kabuto turned with a look of quiet disappointment and said to Orochimaru, “Orochimaru-sama… please take care of me.”
Orochimaru didn’t waste words and gestured for Kabuto to follow him as they headed into the dense forest.
However, even Orochimaru failed to notice, when he turned away, the confusion and hesitation in Kabuto’s eyes had vanished, replaced by something far more calculating. Ever since saving the orphanage director, Kabuto no longer had any reason to stay in Konohagakure.
All these years spent undercover in Konoha and Root were entirely to live up to Lord Byakuya’s expectations, and now, the latest mission Byakuya had given him was to infiltrate Orochimaru’s side.
He had long heard of Orochimaru’s name.
This was a shinobi who had maintained a long-standing cooperation with Danzō, a venomous snake lurking in the shadows. But even so, Kabuto Yakushi was confident he could complete this mission and stay hidden by Orochimaru’s side.
The only regret was that he wouldn’t get to witness Danzō’s downfall with his own eyes.
---
A few days after returning to Konoha, Tsunade had already adapted to her role as the head of Konoha’s hospital.
Though she still felt uneasy at the sight of blood, she was able to guide the medical-nin of the village through her experience, while also beginning to reform the existing medical structure.
Twenty years ago, she had once proposed a major reform during a high-level council meeting.
It was simple: every shinobi squad should be assigned a medical-nin. The medical-nin didn’t have to be exceptionally skilled, but at the very least, they needed a fundamental understanding of medical techniques.
This reform greatly reduced the casualty rate among shinobi squads and earned Tsunade immense praise and recognition. But that was two decades ago, and combat methods in the shinobi world had evolved since then. Medical-nin had to adapt to the new era as well.
She’d heard that in Amegakure, there was already a technique that sealed medical ninjutsu into scrolls.
With some pre-prepared medicines, almost every shinobi there had the ability to heal themselves. Coupled with chakra-powered weapons, even the average Ame-nin now possessed formidable strength.
After finishing a long day of work, Tsunade headed toward a nearby izakaya, planning to unwind with a few drinks.
Originally, she’d hoped to relieve her stress with a little gambling, but Konoha had no casinos at all, much to her frustration.
Once she became Hokage, she was absolutely going to open a casino right in the center of Konoha.
Halfway there, though, something began to feel off.
Wasn’t this around the time when Shizune would usually find her and try to talk her out of going to a casino or bar? Urge her to focus on repaying her debts? Could it be that Shizune had gone to visit Dan? Even if so, she should’ve told her.
That thought sobered Tsunade up instantly. Shizune’s sudden disappearance felt strange, very strange.
Still, Shizune had jōnin-level skills. It didn’t make sense for her to be attacked within the village.
Just as Tsunade was lost in thought, a civilian suddenly appeared beside her. Her sharp instincts kicked in, and she used the Body Flicker to instantly subdue the person.
Upon inspecting the civilian, Tsunade’s expression darkened.
The person had been under a genjutsu and had approached her under manipulation. Their real purpose was still unclear.
After canceling the genjutsu, Tsunade questioned the civilian. He looked confused, but then handed her a letter.
The moment she saw the envelope, her heart sank.
She quickly scanned the letter, and her face turned ashen. With a single punch charged with monstrous strength, she struck the wall beside her, leaving behind a deep crack.
The contents of the letter were simple.
It revealed that Shizune hadn’t disappeared by accident; she’d been kidnapped. But the target wasn’t Shizune herself. The enemy’s real goal was to meet Tsunade.
A meeting place was specified. She was also warned not to bring anyone with her.
This was obviously a trap, and Tsunade knew it well.
What she didn’t know was who the attacker was, or what kind of confidence they had to dare request a meeting with her. Had the new generation forgotten the name of the Legendary Sannin?
So, should she go alone, or tell Jiraiya first?
After a brief moment of consideration, Tsunade decided to take the initiative and face the mysterious enemy who had taken Shizune. Still, she made sure to notify the other high-ranking members of Konoha before leaving.
Following the directions in the letter, Tsunade quickly arrived at a secluded alley.
After several turns, she finally saw the shinobi who had taken Shizune. Her expression froze, and her gaze sharpened instantly.
The one who had kidnapped Shizune was none other than Orochimaru, her former comrade and teammate.
Seeing her arrive, Orochimaru didn’t make things difficult for Shizune. He cast a genjutsu on her, making her fall into a deep sleep, then turned to Tsunade and said:
“Long time no see, Miss Princess Tsunade.”
“Orochimaru…” Tsunade almost growled his name through clenched teeth. “Why did you kill the old man? You knew he doted on you the most.”
Unfazed, Orochimaru replied, “I simply helped him fulfill his wish, to die on the battlefield. When Minato died and the old man chose to serve as Hokage again, his soul had already died. And so, his death now is just the death of the flesh. His Will of Fire died long ago.”
Orochimaru paused before smirking, “Don’t you find it laughable, talking about the Will of Fire coming from your mouth?”
Tsunade glared into Orochimaru’s eyes and said coldly, “No matter what your reasons are, you killed our teacher.”
“I’ve never denied that.” He paused, then added, “But if performing human experiments means someone loses their Will of Fire, then the Second Hokage should’ve lost his a long time ago.”
With a wave of his hand, Orochimaru continued, “I didn’t come here to waste time chatting. I have something else I want to ask of you. If you agree, I’ll give you something in return, something you’ll be satisfied with.”
“What do you want me to do?” Tsunade asked, puzzled.
Orochimaru got straight to the point. “Do you remember the Wood Release project the old man shut down back then? I want to borrow your medical expertise to restart it, to reduce the risks of integrating Hashirama cells.”
“Restart the Wood Release project? And why the hell would I agree to that?”
Tsunade was disgusted by the idea. For one, Wood Release experiments required the use of Hashirama’s cells, the ones harvested from her grandfather’s remains.
And besides, the Wood Release experiments were brutal. Countless shinobi had died in those tests.
As if he had anticipated her reaction, Orochimaru calmly said, “Don’t rush to reject me. Let’s talk about what you really care about. If you help me with this, I’ll use the Impure World Reincarnation to bring back Nawaki and Dan.”
