A full week after the latest assassination attempt shook Konoha, the team dispatched to the Land of Wind returned.
Since it was a covert operation, Orochimaru, Tsunade, Jiraiya, and thirty Jōnin, disguised as ordinary villagers, slipped into the Hidden Leaf Village in small groups to avoid drawing attention.
Their arrival went unnoticed by the general populace, a testament to their skill and secrecy.
Once inside Konoha, Tsunade, Orochimaru, and Jiraiya didn't pause to rest.
Instead, they made a beeline for the Hokage Building, their faces grim with purpose.
Barely half an hour after their arrival, four ANBU operatives melted into the shadows, departing the Hokage Building on some urgent mission, their forms vanishing like whispers in the wind.
At that same moment, Ren, the scrappy young ninja with a knack for trouble, stood in a wide training yard.
Across from him was a man in his late twenties, exuding an aura of quiet intensity. His presence was like a storm held in check—calm, but ready to unleash havoc.
His eyes held a mix of gentleness and steel, a balance that made Ren both respect and fear him.
"Today, only Lightning Release and taijutsu are allowed. No time limit. You don't rest until I say so!" the man declared.
His voice wasn't loud, but it carried an unshakable authority that brooked no argument.
Ren pouted, his usual bravado faltering. He knew better than to push his luck with this guy.
Hatake Sakumo, age twenty-nine, was the Minister of ANBU and one of Konoha's most formidable shinobi.
Though his raw power hovered at the cusp of Kage-level—some might call it Elite Jōnin peak—his mastery of the Hatake clan's ultimate kenjutsu and Lightning Release made him a nightmare on the battlefield.
His combat prowess rivaled that of a true Kage, capable of felling opponents far above his rank.
Ren had heard rumors that during the Second Shinobi World War, Sakumo's White Light Chakra Sabre had carved through enemies like a divine judgment.
Some whispered that, given time, he'd already crossed into Kage-level strength, especially with his lethal combination of speed, precision, and electrified blade work.
Even Danzo, the scheming war hawk, would hesitate to cross swords with him.
Sakumo's personality was as rigid as his blade. Upright to a fault—Ren privately called him "Captain Stick-in-the-Mud"—he approached training with the same ruthless discipline he demanded of his ANBU subordinates.
When he'd agreed to mentor Ren, he hadn't held back, treating the boy like a raw recruit.
His method? The ANBU punishment system. If Ren slacked off or failed to meet the day's training quota, rest was forbidden.
Try to sneak a break? Sakumo would unleash a crackling Lightning Release: Thunderbolt Strike, sending Ren yelping and scrambling across the yard like a singed cat.
Whoosh!
A faint sound cut through the air, and a shadow materialized at the edge of the training yard.
The figure, clad in the sleek black garb of an ANBU operative—let's call him Uchiha Cannonfodder the First—bowed deeply to Sakumo.
"Lord Minister, the Hokage requests your immediate presence at his office for an emergency meeting," he said, voice low and respectful.
"A meeting?" Sakumo's brow furrowed slightly. As ANBU Minister, he was Third Hokage Sarutobi Hiruzen's right-hand man, privy to Konoha's darkest secrets.
But an emergency meeting of this urgency was rare, even for him. "Who else is summoned?"
"Lord Danzo, Lord Homura, Lord Koharu, and the Hokage's three disciples," Uchiha Cannonfodder the First replied.
"I see…" Sakumo's eyes narrowed as the weight of the situation settled on him.
The thirty Jōnin who'd accompanied Orochimaru, Tsunade, and Jiraiya to the Land of Wind were all ANBU operatives under his command.
Yet he hadn't been informed of their return until now. For them to rush straight into a high-level meeting meant something catastrophic had surfaced—something that could shake the very foundations of Konoha.
Sakumo glanced at Ren, ready to order him to train alone.
Before he could speak, Ren cut in, his voice brash but tinged with curiosity. "I'm coming too. This sounds big. If it wasn't, that old monkey Sarutobi wouldn't drag you into it. Let me listen in—maybe I'll have some genius ideas to share."
Sakumo hesitated. Ren's boldness bordered on insolence, but the kid had a point. Danzo, for reasons Sakumo couldn't fully fathom, doted on Ren like a favored protégé.
This was a high-level meeting, restricted to Konoha's elite, but if Ren wanted in, only Danzo himself could bar the door.
Besides, time was short, and Sakumo wasn't in the mood to argue with a teenager who'd probably sneak in anyway.
"Fine," Sakumo said, his tone clipped. He stepped forward, grabbed Ren's arm, and channeled chakra into a Body Flicker Technique.
The world blurred as wind roared in Ren's ears, the training yard vanishing in a dizzying rush.
Before Ren could blink, his feet hit solid ground again.
He stumbled, shaking his head to clear the vertigo, only to freeze as a familiar figure loomed before him.
"Hey, sweetheart, what're you doing here?" Ren grinned, locking eyes with Tsunade.
"You little punk, who's your sweetheart?!" Tsunade's roar hit like a Shockwave Technique, rattling Ren's skull.
He wobbled, clutching his head, and finally registered his surroundings.
He was standing in the middle of the Hokage's office, surrounded by Konoha's heaviest hitters.
Sarutobi Hiruzen sat behind his desk, pipe in hand. Danzo stood to one side, his cane tapping impatiently.
Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu, the Hokage's advisors, watched with stern expressions.
Orochimaru and Jiraiya flanked Tsunade, their faces unreadable. And—oh joy—every pair of eyes was now fixed on him.
"Uh… yo, what's good, everyone? You guys work hard out there?" Ren flashed a shameless wave, tossing a provocative smirk at Tsunade before sidling up to Danzo's side under her fiery glare.
The room fell silent, the tension thick enough to choke a tailed beast. Sarutobi tapped his pipe on the desk, setting it down—a rare gesture that underscored his exhaustion.
He rubbed his temples and spoke in a low, gravelly voice. "Since we're all here, let's begin. Orochimaru, report."
Orochimaru stepped forward, his pale eyes sweeping the room.
When every gaze locked onto him, he spoke, his voice a hoarse rasp that sent chills down Ren's spine. "Over the past two months, we've investigated the disturbances in the Land of Wind. First and foremost, we've confirmed that the Land of Wind is preparing for war."
The words landed like a Great Fireball Technique, igniting a storm of unease.
Though war had been a looming specter, hearing it confirmed by Orochimaru's cold, analytical tone hit differently. Everyone except Danzo, the eternal hawk, frowned.
Sakumo's jaw tightened, Homura's eyes widened, and even Koharu, usually unflappable, leaned forward.
Shock rippled through the room, but these were seasoned shinobi. They steadied themselves quickly, waiting for Orochimaru to elaborate.
"Because all our spies in the Hidden Sand Village were eliminated, we had to start from scratch," Orochimaru continued.
"We split our thirty ANBU into three teams, led by myself, Jiraiya, and Tsunade. Our investigation revealed that dozens of large and medium-sized towns across the Land of Wind are devoid of ninja presence.
We then set up surveillance outside the Hidden Sand Village, monitoring all entries and exits for two months.
Our conclusion: aside from a few exceptions, nearly every ninja in the Land of Wind has been consolidated in the Hidden Sand Village."
"All of them concentrated? Every spy wiped out? That's textbook pre-war mobilization!" Koharu gasped, her voice tinged with disbelief at the Sand's audacity.
"Are they out of their minds?" Homura interjected, his sharp mind already picking apart the implications.
"Do they really think twenty years of preparation makes them strong enough to challenge Konoha? No, there's more to this. Orochimaru, you're holding something back. What else did you find?"
Orochimaru's lips twitched into a faint, unsettling smile. "As expected of Elder Homura. To gather more precise intelligence, I infiltrated the Hidden Sand Village in disguise. While dining at a tavern, I observed a group of individuals. Though they wore civilian clothing, their demeanor and presence betrayed them."
"What was off about them?" Jiraiya asked, leaning forward, his usual goofiness replaced by razor-sharp focus.
"They were Jōnin," Orochimaru said. "One of them complained incessantly about the food, muttering about the unbearable heat. He repeatedly sipped from a water flask at his waist. Jōnin are trained to endure harsh conditions—such behavior stood out. It suggested…"
"The Hozuki clan," Danzo cut in, his voice cold and certain. His visible eye narrowed.
"I've clashed with Hozuki Jōnin before. Their Hydrification Technique renders them immune to physical attacks by liquefying their bodies. The Second Hokage once noted that Hozuki shinobi carry water flasks when operating outside the Land of Water to maintain their jutsu. Orochimaru, you must have uncovered further evidence to confirm this, correct? The Land of Wind has allied with the Land of Water."
The room froze. An alliance between the Hidden Sand and the Hidden Mist? That wasn't just trouble—it was a potential death knell for Konoha's dominance.
Ren, standing beside Danzo, felt a chill crawl up his spine, though he masked it with a cocky grin. This was about to get messy, and he was right in the thick of it.