"Orochimaru really came to Konoha. How much does he want to surprise his beloved teacher…?"
Naruto, while sitting on his balcony, looked at the crowd in the distance and couldn't help smiling.
"There are still six days left. I must take advantage of the Third Hokage's lack of free time and attack him. Otherwise, when Anbu is free, it will be able to suppress public opinion immediately…"
"I should also take care of the few remaining old men of the Senju clan. Based on the Third Hokage's intention last time, it appears that he wanted to completely resolve the issue entirely. In any case, there are many secret bases of Root, so let's relocate them first. As they are our best witnesses."
Naruto is silently planning, while looking at the Hokage Building.
Ironically, the Third Hokage would have never even dreamed that his most trusted old partner, Danzo, was the biggest insider.
"I wonder if the Third Hokage will be more excited or surprised, when he hears the news which Orochimaru is about to reveal."
…
"Please sit down."
In the reception room of the Hokage Building, the Third Hokage sat across from Rasa, with Jiraiya, Kakashi and Asuma behind him.
On Rasa's side, it was Baki and a Sunagakure Jōnin who had been waiting together at the gate of Konoha were present.
"Tell me why my son, Gaara, disappeared in Konoha inexplicably? Third Hokage, I believe, you owe me an explanation."
Rasa looked at Hiruzen sitting opposite to him coldly.
"Of course, I do. After all, this incident occurred within Konoha and we cannot absolve ourselves of the blame. However, I still want to say that this incident has nothing to do with Konoha. Someone is orchestrating events behind the scenes, attempting to split the friendly relationship between us and Sunagakure."
Hiruzen said in a deep voice.
"You mean someone is up to something?"
"That's right. After all, there is nothing for us to gain by attacking your Jinchūriki, is there?"
Hiruzen meant that Konoha has its own Nine Tails Jinchūriki which is absolutely sealed and under control. So why should they be interested in their One Tail Jinchūriki?
As we know, the more tails a tailed beast has, the stronger its fighting power is and One Tail… The Third Hokage didn't put it in his eyes.
Although all of the tail beasts are very powerful.
"Hehe, who knows? Perhaps Konoha, by chance, is interested in acquiring the tailed beasts that were distributed by the First Hokage and our Jinchūriki just happened to be delivered to your door, so you stole it."
Rasa sneered, expressing his disbelief.
"We will never go against the decision of the First Hokage! Please rest assured. However, before your son disappeared we didn't even know that he was the Jinchūriki of Sunagakure. But, why did the Fourth Kazekage send Jinchūriki to Konoha to participate in the Chūnin exam?"
Hiruzen asked suddenly, looking at Rasa carefully.
After all, the presence of a Jinchūriki within a village entails great responsibility and it is crucial to ensure that they don't leave the village freely. Just imagine the consequences if they were to escape and fall into the wrong hands.
Especially the ambitious Kumogakure, which had tried stealing Konoha's sealing technique more than twice.
Kumogakure came to Konoha twice to abduct people.
The first time, they almost kidnapped Kushina and the second time, they were even attracted by the eyes of the Hyuga family, coming close to kidnapping the young lady of the Hyuga family.
The most annoying thing is that Kumogakure was so thick-skinned that they rebutted, saying that Konoha had killed their people without authorization and asked the Third Hokage to give an explanation.
As a last resort, in order to avoid war, the Third Hokage could only ask the Hyuga clan to hand over the killer.
Then Hyuga Hizashi volunteered to die for his big brother Hyuga Hiashi.
He was a member of the branch house with the Caged Seal engraved on his forehead, causing Kumogakure's plan to fail again.
Therefore, Fourth Kazekage sent his own son, Jinchūriki, to come to Konoha to take the Chūnin exam. If someone said that there is no problem, he can't justify it.
Moreover, the Land of Wind is adjacent to the Land of Fire, thus Hiruzen is very aware of the situation of Sunagakure. In other words, he is fully aware of their dire situation, to the extent that they are struggling to make ends meet.
Hiruzen is also sure that Kazekage just wants to start a war. Not to mention, as soon as he entered, he had this look in his eyes, which suggested something.
After all, it's not the first since someone coveted the fertile land of the Land of Fire.
'Wait... Could it be that this is a scene directed and executed by the Kazekage? What if the Jinchūriki did not disappear, but they hid him themselves? Was it just to put the blame on us?'
This sudden guess shocked Hiruzen.
'Yes! Such a thing could actually happen!'
Especially with the damned Kumogakure having actually sent another emissary. One can't help but wonder if they're going to do something again?!
"Hehe. Since you said that then why did your Nine Tails Jinchūriki take the Chūnin exam?"
"Was it because you are taking the exam in Konoha, so you feel at ease? But I remember that during the Nine Tails rebellion your Konoha was half destroyed. If Nine Tails went berserk during the exam, how many candidates do you think would have died?"
Rasa sneered, if you suspect that I have a problem, then I also doubt that you have a problem!
"..How do you know this?! How do you know who Nine Tails Jinchūriki is?!"
When Hiruzen heard Rasa's words, his expression changed immediately and he looked at Rasa solemnly.
Just so you know, Naruto being the Nine Tails Jinchūriki is a secret in Konoha. It is impossible for ninjas below a certain rank to know this information, let alone Kazekage, who is located thousands of miles away.
'Could it be a spy?'
But why is Sage Fukasaku of Mount Myōboku also missing? Does Sunagakure want to establish a connection with the Holy Land?
Regarding the disappearance of Sage Fukasaku, Jiraiya had told the Third Hokage after he returned to Konoha. He also said that Sage Fukasaku and Gaara would return safely in a short time. But when the Third Hokage asked Jiraiya why he was so sure, Jiraiya said it was the prophecy of the Great Toad Sage. He didn't reveal anything about Orochimaru.
Although he heard the Great Toad Sage's prophecy, the Third Hokage was still under heavy pressure. After all, no one knows how long it will take for it to happen. Additionally, he still had to deal with the Fourth Kazekage.
Therefore, the Third Hokage could only continue to search while dragging time.
When Jiraiya and Kakashi, who were behind the Third Hokage, heard that Kazekage knew Naruto, they also stared at Kazekage fiercely. To them, Naruto was not just Nine Tails Jinchūriki. One had a sense of guilt for Naruto and the other was optimistic about Naruto's future.
They will absolutely not allow anyone to dare to attack Naruto. Even if that person is Kazekage.
"I have my own source of information. In short, you must return me my son. If you can't find any clues, I don't mind letting my people find him ourselves. Anyway, I brought a lot of people this time."
"Furthermore, Gaara was kidnapped from your Konoha Village, but here you are accusing us while playing the role of the victim. If that is the case, perhaps there is no need for further discussion, and it would be best to settle matters on the battlefield."
As Rasa spoke, he stood up and looked down at Hiruzen opposite, whose expression had changed drastically.
…