"These three students of Jiraiya do have some ability, but Hanzo is very important to Konoha now..."
Sarutobi Hiruzen found himself in a dilemma. The Hidden Rain Village could help Konoha hold off the Hidden Sand Village. Although they had conceded some missions in the Land of Rivers to the Hidden Rain Village, as long as the Hidden Rain Village was around, the Hidden Sand Village's primary hatred remained directed at them.
If a rupture occurred with the Hidden Rain, and Hanzo withdrew all his forces, Konoha would again face off against the Hidden Sand.
Konoha didn't have enough ninja to fight on multiple fronts, especially now that their enmity with the Hidden Cloud Ninja had deepened.
After contemplating for a moment, Sarutobi Hiruzen had the Anbu summon Jiraiya. This time, Jiraiya came alone, without Yahiko and Konan.
"Old man, did you find out why the Root targeted my students?"
As soon as Jiraiya entered the room, he spoke loudly. Sarutobi Hiruzen, upon seeing his demeanor, realized his intentions and said irritably, "Danzo didn't know the leader of the Akatsuki Organization was your student. Fortunately, the news didn't spread, or you think Hanzo wouldn't come looking for us..."
As he spoke, Sarutobi Hiruzen threw the Akatsuki Organization's intelligence to Jiraiya, letting him see for himself.
"So many people... As expected of students taught by me, Jiraiya-sama, they are quite capable!"
Jiraiya laughed upon seeing the achievements of Yahiko and his companions, but Sarutobi Hiruzen knocked his pipe on the table, his expression turning serious, and said,
"Jiraiya, the reason the Root intercepted your two students is due to the alliance terms between Kikyo Castle and Konoha. Now Hanzo views the Akatsuki Organization as a threat and wants Konoha to help eliminate them."
"Hanzo's proposal? That old guy..."
Upon hearing this, Jiraiya clicked his tongue, realizing the trouble, and asked, "Old man, what do we do now?"
"We can't fall out with Hanzo, or the Hidden Sand Village might again have bad intentions..."
After pausing for a moment, Sarutobi Hiruzen continued, "Let him pretend to be chased by Konoha ninja once. You handle this matter yourself. The trouble you caused, don't think someone else will solve it for you."
"Huh? You want me, a teacher, to chase down my students, old man? You're really good at coming up with ideas!"
Jiraiya quickly waved his hands in refusal, then asked, "Old man, would you chase your own students?"
"I already said it's just a pretense. As long as it looks real to Hanzo, it's enough. If they end up severely injured but not killed, isn't that fine?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen patted the table, saying, "Konoha can also secretly support the Akatsuki Organization with some funds and medical supplies or living resources. But we cannot allow our alliance with Hanzo to be broken, or the battle of Kikyo Castle might happen again."
"Is that so.... Even if it's just pretending, chasing my own students is still a bit... Forget it, I'll go talk to Yahiko. They should understand me as their teacher. I'll head back now, old man."
Jiraiya scratched his head and said, then turned to leave the Hokage Office. But before leaving, he peeked back and asked, "Old man, how much are you planning to give Yahiko...."
"Get out, you're a Konoha ninja!"
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"Danzo-sama, I didn't expect you would personally want to transplant the Hashirama Cells, it's quite surprising...."
Orochimaru noticed Danzo bringing people to his base and requesting a transplant, and a trace of surprise flashed across his golden vertical pupils.
"It's nothing to be surprised about, Orochimaru. The power of the First Hokage will be even stronger in me; however, I need to record the surgery process, no problem, right, Orochimaru?"
After Danzo finished speaking, he removed his surplus clothing and lay down on the operating table, not giving Orochimaru a chance to refuse. He had already found a reason; being the Hokage Assistant, if something unexpected happened, the recorded surgery process could let Orochimaru explain.
In reality, Danzo just wanted to document the transplant process to study it later.
"Whatever, Danzo-sama has more audacity than Teacher Sarutobi, and with more Chakra, the power of the Wood Release grows stronger...."
Orochimaru couldn't be bothered to dispute with Danzo over these details. Recording a transplant procedure was useless as handling the Hashirama Cells was vital in the early stages. If Danzo merely recorded a transplant procedure hoping to attempt it later... that would be courting death.
"Orochimaru, who are the two individuals Hiruzen sent for the surgery?"
"I don't know. The Anbu identities are confidential, and they wear masks during the surgery...."
Orochimaru remarked, though he was not unfamiliar with one of them. He had performed missions with Sarutobi Shinnosuke enough times to recognize the scars on him.
Although labeled as an Anbu member, if Sarutobi Shinnosuke joined the Anbu, what Teacher Sarutobi said was correct.
The transplant surgery was soon a success. After Danzo got off the operating table, he noticed only minor wounds on his body.
His Chakra seemed to be gradually changing, and he could feel it.
"Why not give it a try, Danzo-sama."
Orochimaru handed over a piece of Chakra test paper. Danzo had a single attribute Wind Escape; if he mastered the Wood Release, water and earth attributes would appear.
Danzo took the Chakra test paper and infused it with Chakra. The paper split down the middle, one side crumbled, while the other got wet.
Danzo now mastered the Wood Release with the addition of two Chakra attributes.
"Orochimaru, about that Juinjutsu of yours...."
"If you can't present a sufficient price, then forget it, Danzo-sama."
Orochimaru shook his head and said, "In a way, this is already considered as my trump card."
"How about the Sealing Book?"
"Not enough, the Sealing Book has little allure for me... never mind, Danzo-sama, you probably don't have what I seek anyway, maybe we'll talk about it later."
Orochimaru, not very interested, stated. What he currently needed most was an assistant, ideally one as skilled in medical ninjutsu as Uzumaki Minami, someone who could save a lot of effort in the experiments.
Even though he had a student following him, that student was still learning, and his potential was almost tapped out.
"Even the Sealing Book won't do, Orochimaru, you're too greedy."
Danzo replied coldly, but there was nothing he could do about Orochimaru. He signaled the medical ninja he brought to document everything and snorted, leaving directly after.
A few days after the Chunin Exam concluded, the Ninja World seemed to calm down due to the exam.
However, this peace was merely superficial. Kitsuchi from the Hidden Rock Village revealed their experiences in Konoha upon returning, especially highlighting the contact between the Hidden Cloud Ninja and Konoha's use of the Wood Release.
Kitsuchi had never witnessed the Wood Release, but Onoki had lived through the era when the Wood Release quelled unrest, and he had firsthand experience with the power of the Mangekyo Sharingan.
The war between the Hidden Cloud Ninja and Konoha at the Land of Hot Water battlefield ended too quickly—the Hidden Rock Ninja barely had time to engage before the Hidden Cloud Ninja were defeated and returned to the Land of Lightning.
This time, the Third Generation Raikage approaching was a chance for Onoki to observe what he intended.
Yahiko and Konan returned too, feeling disillusioned once learning of their pursuit linked to Hanzo. Previously, all three of them admired the Half-God of the Hidden Rain Village, hoping Hanzo would one day endorse their ideals.
But after learning about this, Yahiko found himself at a loss.
However, after careful thought, he accepted Konoha's proposal, not believing Jiraiya-sensei would deceive him. Besides, the Akatsuki Organization was in dire need of resources to implement their relief initiatives.
So, Yahiko and Konan were on the border between the Land of Rain and the Land of Fire, almost under the noses of a Hidden Rain patrol, when Yahiko was 'severely injured.'
Afterward, the members of the Akatsuki Organization rushed to Yahiko's aid, and with that, Jiraiya and his companions swiftly returned to Konoha.