"Quick... go save Yukimi!"
Kato struggled to get up and said, "She was taken away by Orochimaru!"
"That's why not acting with your teammates comes at a cost," Kiyosuke shook his head and said, "Give me a moment."
He entered Sage Mode to sense the location of Orochimaru. His chakra was with Yukimi's. Opening his eyes and exiting Sage Mode, he said, "I've found them. Follow me."
He led the two through the intricate underground tunnels. The Iburi Clan had lived here for who - knows - how long, and the tunnels were dug all over the place, going deep underground. After running for a minute, they stopped in front of a rock.
"Stay back!"
Kiyosuke said, then punched the rock. Flames erupted, shattering the rock and revealing a cave entrance inside.
They saw Orochimaru, who had just finished extracting blood. "Sensei, even if you wanted to heal your wounds, wiping out an entire clan is a bit too harsh, isn't it?"
"Their blood still isn't good enough. Only the blood of this little girl is useful. I was just collecting experimental samples. Now I've finished. You're a step too late, Kiyosuke - kun," Orochimaru said.
Rumble!
A roar came from the underground tunnel. Orochimaru said, "To prevent you pursuers, I specifically created a breach."
Rubble fell from the top, creating a gap. The sunlight from the ground shone in, adding a touch of light to the dim tunnel.
"Orochimaru, I won't be afraid this time!" Kakashi rushed out from behind Kiyosuke, the Chidori in his hand buzzing.
Orochimaru shot a kunai with a wire, nailing it to the cave ceiling. He dodged the attack, his feet sticking to the ceiling, looking at them upside - down. "Kiyosuke - kun, you can't catch me."
With that, he got into the hole and disappeared from their sight.
"I'll go after him," Kiyosuke said. His body turned into a ball of flames and he also got into the hole, coming out into the forest and chasing after Orochimaru. But after a while, he still couldn't find him.
He had to return to the tunnel.
As soon as he entered the tunnel, he saw a big tree with a soft glow in the tree hole. Yukimi, who had lost her life, was lying in the tree hole, smiling at Kato.
"What... is going on?"
"I don't know," Kakashi shook his head. "The girl had lost her life and turned into smoke. But Kato used Wood Release to try to catch her. Later, the power of those who had died helped Kato hold her, and it became like this."
"Using the power of an entire clan to exchange for a future? That's quite interesting." Most likely, Yukimi survived because of the clan's wish. She was on the verge of death, but with this power, she was able to live.
It seemed there wouldn't be any more accidents.
Shaking his head, Kiyosuke said to Kato, "Should we take her back to Konoha? Let her live an ordinary life. If she stays outside, it's easy for something to happen to her."
Kato hesitated for a moment and said, "But what about Lord Danzo..."
"I'll take her back," Kiyosuke said.
"Hey, this isn't in line with the rules," Kakashi frowned.
"What's the big deal? I found her on the way. You can testify."
"Don't drag me into this. You can ignore the Third Hokage's orders, but I can't."
Was this the special treatment that came with great power? He couldn't learn this!
"Do you want to come back to Konoha with us? Tenzo can come and see you occasionally," Kiyosuke said to Yukimi.
"Tenzo..." Yukimi looked at Kato, hesitated for a moment, and finally nodded. "Okay."
She had no relatives left. She could only rely on Tenzo.
"Good. From now on, you're an innocent girl I picked up on the way. Your family was massacred by Orochimaru, so I brought you back. I'll arrange a job for you later," Kiyosuke said.
After hearing this, Kakashi slapped his head helplessly. "You always like to do things your own way. I get it. I didn't see Orochimaru today, nor this strange clan. I just picked up this girl with you."
"Yeah, great. Let's go back. Sensei has run too far. We can't catch up," Kiyosuke said.
"You didn't deliberately let Orochimaru go, did you?"
"Nonsense. How could I deliberately let sensei go? Let me tell you this, in the ninja world, when it comes to life - saving skills, he's number one. No one else dares to claim the top spot," Kiyosuke said.
Even if his body was killed and his soul sealed, Orochimaru could still survive. His life - saving skills were truly the best in the ninja world!
"Is it really that exaggerated? It is that exaggerated! I know my teacher well," Kiyosuke said.
"You still call him teacher now?"
"It doesn't hurt to call him that," Kiyosuke said.
The four of them went back to Konoha together. Kato left at the gate. He had to return to Root. Kiyosuke took Yukimi and arranged a temporary residence for her.
Then he reported Yukimi's origin to Hiruzen Sarutobi.
After hearing the report, Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed and decided to let Yukimi stay in Konoha. But he told Kiyosuke that if anything went wrong, he would be responsible.
Naturally, Kiyosuke had no objections. He arranged for someone to tutor Yukimi about Konoha's knowledge and help her get familiar with things around her. Then he found a job for Yukimi.
She worked in the Konoha Orphanage. Yukimi's personality was very suitable for taking care of children. She liked children and could get along well with them. She really liked her job.
Kato could also come to see her occasionally. The people around were friendly, and she gradually fell in love with this place.
Anko was also brought back from the Land of Waves by Kiyosuke's shadow clone.
She had been implanted with the Cursed Seal of Heaven by Orochimaru. However, it was still a prototype, incomplete, without the ability to enhance her power, and it also put a burden on her body.
The only function, perhaps, was that when Orochimaru was near, she could sense his presence with this ability.
Anko's survival could be considered a miracle.
However, she had no idea what had happened in the Land of Waves. Her memories had been sealed by Orochimaru. No matter how hard the Anbu members tried, they couldn't get any useful information from her.
Finally, they used the Sealing Technique: Evil - Sealing Method Seal to seal the power of the Cursed Seal of Heaven to prevent Anko from being affected by the power of the cursed seal in daily life.
"Big brother, did Orochimaru really defect?" Anko, sitting in Kiyosuke's house, asked.
"Yeah, he defected from Konoha to pursue the truth in his heart," Kiyosuke put down the kunai he was wiping and said, "What's wrong? Are you still bothered by what happened before? That's not like you."
"No, I just... I can't remember a lot of things," Anko said, clutching her head in pain. "Every time I try to recall, it feels like my head is going to split. I want to know what I've forgotten."
"It's just a very bad memory. Don't worry about it," Kiyosuke said.
"Okay, accompany me on a mission, big brother," Anko said.
"Sure, okay."