It was already the next morning by the time Asakura returned to the Konoha camp again.
This time, the journey of searching for the Red Sand Scorpion was extremely smooth.
If you want to kill Sasori of the Red Sand, even if Asakura and Chizuru Uchiha join forces, they might still not be his opponents. But if the goal is simply to force Sasori to reveal his Third Kazekage puppet, it is not difficult.
Now that the entire plan of Chao Yanqian has been basically completed, all that is left is to deliver these photos to the village, let the village publicize them, and expose the fact that Sasori assassinated the Third Kazekage.
As for the many lives lost in the conflict, all he needed to do now was wait quietly for the village's recognition and reward.
"Chizuru, I'm going to report to Orochimaru next. As for what you plan to do, I believe you've already made your decision!" After saying farewell to Uchiha Chizuru, Chao Yanqian walked toward Orochimaru's tent.
"Who's there?" Chao Yanqian asked the guarding ninja.
"Orochimaru is currently discussing tactics against Sunagakure with Kagami Jonin, and several other Jonin are inside as well," the guard replied.
"Understood. Could you please go in and report that Chao Yanqian has urgent business with Orochimaru?" said Chao Yanqian.
"Of course. Please wait a moment."
Nara Shikaku is inside too? That's perfect!
Originally, Chao Yanqian was worried that Orochimaru might not hand the photos over to the village's leadership. To be safe, he had prepared a duplicate set. But with Nara Shikaku and other Jonin present, as long as the photos were given to Orochimaru publicly, he wouldn't dare try anything underhanded.
"Orochimaru, Shikaku-sensei, seniors," Chao Yanqian greeted respectfully.
"Yanqian! Has the mission been completed?" Nara Shikaku asked first.
"It has!" Chao Yanqian replied with a slight smile.
The nature of Chao Yanqian's mission was known only to Orochimaru after all, it involved classified matters. But once those photos were revealed, the mission's content would no longer matter.
"Chao Yanqian, you were so eager to see me not just because of the mission, I presume?" Orochimaru's hoarse voice carried a warning as he gazed darkly at Chao Yanqian.
"Of course not," Chao Yanqian said, taking out the photos. "Orochimaru, Shikaku-sensei, seniors please take a look. During my mission, I encountered Sasori of the Red Sand from Sunagakure. In the battle, I discovered this."
As everyone's attention shifted to the photos, Chao Yanqian continued, "The puppet Sasori used was modeled after the Third Kazekage. Because Sasori's human puppets can use the abilities the original ninja possessed in life, and this puppet could use Iron Sand techniques, I concluded that Sasori assassinated the Third Kazekage and turned him into a puppet."
"What?!" a Jonin exclaimed. Upon closer inspection of the photo, it was clear the puppet was using the Iron Sand technique. If what Chao Yanqian said was true, then Sasori really had assassinated the Third Kazekage.
This revelation would shake the shinobi world the assassination of a Kage, especially the one hailed as the strongest Kazekage in Sunagakure's history. The incident would not only boost Sasori's infamy, but also damage Sunagakure's prestige and cause political turmoil.
Those Jonin present strategic minds trusted by Orochimaru and Shikaku immediately understood the implications of the evidence.
The Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, and Elder Chiyo were locked in a power struggle. If these photos were made public, Chiyo's influence would crumble, and Rasa could fully seize control of Sunagakure.
In the original timeline, Chiyo and her brother Ebizō withdrew from public life possibly due to losing that power struggle, or perhaps because of the disgrace involving Sasori's defection.
In any case, Chiyo still held considerable sway in Sunagakure. If internal conflict broke out between her and Rasa, they wouldn't have the strength left to fight Konoha. And Konoha could withdraw from the Suna front and focus entirely on the Iwagakure threat.
"You went to confront Sasori alone? That was reckless!" Nara Shikaku rebuked. "This information is incredibly important. You should have returned immediately to report it, not engaged him directly!"
"Shikaku-sensei, I wasn't alone. On the mission, I encountered Uchiha Chizuru-senpai. We fought Sasori together. However, his strength was overwhelming. Even with both of us, we couldn't defeat him and had to retreat," said Chao Yanqian.
Hearing that, a subtle frown formed on Nara Shikaku's face.
Shikaku was a high-level thinker. Previously, his concern for Chao Yanqian's safety had kept him from overanalyzing. But now, recalling that Yanqian had defended Uchiha Chizuru in a past dispute involving Suna, he began to wonder if there was a deeper connection between the two.
"Heh heh heh..." Orochimaru chuckled, gazing at Chao Yanqian with something like admiration. "Chao Yanqian, you've done excellent work. With these photos, our war with Sunagakure might end sooner than expected."
Although Orochimaru praised him outwardly, Chao Yanqian knew Orochimaru must be displeased inside.
Seeing the photos, Orochimaru had instantly understood why Chao Yanqian sought out Sasori. Originally, Orochimaru hadn't considered it significant but if Sasori was indeed the assassin of the Third Kazekage, then this was critical intel.
But the fact that Chao Yanqian hadn't reported this to Orochimaru...
What did that imply?
It meant Chao Yanqian was no longer planning to follow Orochimaru, or at least no longer intended to cooperate with him.
If Orochimaru found out that Chao Yanqian hadn't even obtained Chizuru's Sharingan, he might lose all trust in him.
But Chao Yanqian had prepared for that, too.
Orochimaru's secret actions against the Uchiha Clan had already been relayed to Chizuru. With Chizuru as a potential ally and Tsunade backing him politically, Chao Yanqian wasn't afraid. He didn't believe Orochimaru would dare act against him now.
As long as he could survive for a while until he mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique he would no longer have any fear of Orochimaru.
"Yes, these photos are critical," said Nara Shikaku. "I suggest we notify the village immediately. At the same time, we should discreetly reach out to Fourth Kazekage Rasa and inform him that Konoha is willing to help him regain full control of Sunagakure."
To Rasa, consolidating power over Sunagakure would certainly be more important than continuing the war with Konoha.