Konoha: Starting with Sage Mode

Over the past two years, Mito has treated him very well. Their relationship has long since become more than just that of master and apprentice. Mito genuinely cares for and cherishes him like a grandson, and the same concern he shows when looking at Nawaki is undeniable.

He truly felt Mito's kindness, and thus felt grateful and respectful.

However, this teacher who treated her like family was about to pass away, and the weakness of her soul's fire was undeniable.

He was extremely reluctant to part with her, but he couldn't bring himself to ask her to stay.

Because he knew that Mito had long since given up on living.

She had long since lived enough and was tired of living. She just wanted to grow old naturally and then go to another world to find familiar people.

If she hadn't kept her promise to her husband to protect Konoha, she might have already followed the First Hokage.

Kirito quietly watched Mito's soul fire for a while, then drifted away, flying swiftly through the air and arriving at the outer perimeter of the Senju clan's territory in no time.

The Spirit Transformation Technique has a remarkable ability to sense souls: it can remember discovered souls. Once remembered, as long as the remembered soul is still alive, the user of the Spirit Transformation Technique can vaguely sense its direction and then find it.

During the Fourth Shinobi World War, Dan Kato used his Spirit Transformation Technique to find Tsunade, who was on another battlefield, hundreds of kilometers away, and then sent her his chakra.

In other words, Kirito can now remember the aura of every soul and identify a person's identity. No matter what kind of disguise the other party makes on the surface, as long as the soul has not changed, they cannot hide it from him.

After three weeks of nighttime exploration, Kirito has used his amazing memory to memorize the soul aura of everyone in the Senju clan's territory, and even the soul aura of many people in Konoha Village.

Therefore, he can immediately detect any unfamiliar soul that approaches.

Now, Kirito has discovered that some rats have come to the Senju clan's territory.

These rats did not dare to venture deep into the Thousand Hands territory, but only sneaked around on the outskirts.

"These guys are Root ninjas, right? What's Danzo up to?"

Kirito recognized the familiar soul aura within these rats and immediately understood where they came from, his expression turning sour instantly.

In Konoha, anything associated with Danzo, that old schemer, is never a good thing.

The Senju clan had done him a great favor, and he couldn't just stand by and watch Danzo do bad things to them.

So he quietly approached the Root ninjas to see what they were doing.

Soon, he discovered what these rats were doing. They were secretly destroying the sealing barrier surrounding the Senju clan's territory. Among them were experts in sealing techniques who were able to bypass the barrier's detection and carry out the destruction secretly.

Moreover, the destruction was highly technical. They didn't completely destroy the sealing barrier, but only secretly damaged a small part of it. This allowed the barrier to continue functioning normally on the surface, but once invaded by external enemies, the barrier would be practically useless.

"What is Danzo trying to do? Has he gone mad? Mito-sensei is still alive! This guy's audacity is off the charts! Does he really think Mito-sensei can't lift a sword?"

Kirito was furious at what these Root ninjas were doing.

He had never underestimated Danzo, but judging from today's incident, he had underestimated the courage of this dark figure of Konoha. It was estimated that there was nothing in the world that could frighten him anymore.

They were truly unscrupulous and extremely arrogant.

Mito and Tsunade were still alive, and the Senju clan's prestige in the village remained. Yet, this good disciple of the Second Hokage dared to secretly plot against the Senju clan.

They secretly sabotaged the Senju clan's sealing barrier.

What are they planning to do?

How about a night of annihilation for the Thousand Hands clan?

"And these three traitors, have they lost all their conscience? They actually helped Danzo fight against their own clan."

Kirito shifted his gaze from the Root ninjas to three ninjas dressed similarly to them, and his anger intensified.

At the same time, he was extremely shocked and even felt a chill.

Although these three ninjas were completely concealed from head to toe, their soul aura could not fool Kirito; these three were members of the Senju clan.

A thousand hands are cloudy, a thousand hands are alike, a thousand hands are clear water.

These three people are all members of the Senju clan's guardian team. Among them, Senju Cloud Hand is a Jonin and also the vice-captain of the guardian team.

Kirito never expected that Danzo's reach was so far, that he had already developed people within the Senju clan, and that the traitor he had developed held such a high position.

The three traitors played an indispensable role in enabling these Root ninjas to so easily break the Senju clan's sealing barrier here.

As expected, the traitor within the organization is the most destructive.

Chapter 52: Colluding with each other

Regardless of the reason, betraying one's own people is unforgivable.

Kirito stared coldly at Senju Unte, Senju Raido, and Senju Shimizu, who were acting as accomplices. He had already memorized these three people, and in order to prevent these three traitors from causing even greater damage in the future, he planned to tell Mito about it immediately.

It is not too late.

At the same time, Senju Unten, Senju Raido, and Senju Shimizu, who were helping the ANBU ninja break the sealing barrier, suddenly felt a chill run down their spines. They looked around nervously, but found nothing amiss. They also saw the sensory ninja who was keeping watch shake his head, and only then did they feel relieved again.

The three of them were well aware of what they were doing. If this were discovered, they would be secretly executed, expelled from the clan register, and forever nailed to the pillar of shame of the Thousand Hands clan.

Their families will also be implicated.

However, they had no regrets. They firmly believed that everything they were doing was worthwhile. As long as they could protect the village, they could give up their families, relatives, honor, and so on. They were the roots of Konoha, and protecting the village was their everything.

Danzo, who inherited Tobirama's will, is the one they can trust and the one they should be loyal to.

"Hurry up, I have a bad feeling."

Thousand Hands Cloud Hands whispered to the Root ninja beside him who was responsible for breaking the sealing barrier.

Ninjas' intuition is often very accurate, especially that of powerful ninjas.

Upon hearing this, the Root ninja beside him nodded and said, "I'll try my best, but although Orochimaru's method is very good, the process is just too complicated. This is the first time I've done something like this, so I have to be careful..."

Orochimaru?

Kirito, who was hiding in the shadows, frowned when he heard an unexpected name mentioned in the conversation between the two.

No wonder these Root ninjas were able to bypass the senses of the sealing barrier set up by Mito herself and destroy it; it turns out they had Orochimaru, a master of sealing techniques, helping them.

He's a guy you shouldn't underestimate.

It has to be said that this guy is a ninjutsu genius; no wonder he was able to break the powerful S-rank soul sealing technique, the Reaper Death Seal, later on.

However, since Orochimaru is also involved in this matter, and he is in cahoots with Danzo, the seriousness of the matter immediately increases several levels.

Orochimaru was the Third Hokage's most outstanding disciple.

So here's the question.

Was this a collaboration between Orochimaru and Danzo, done on Orochimaru's own initiative, or was it secretly instructed by the Third Hokage?

To be honest, he found it strange that he unexpectedly encountered Orochimaru at the hospital a few days ago.

He originally thought it was because the war in the Land of Rain was about to end, but that wasn't the case. According to the intelligence brought back from the battlefield by the Senju clan, although Konoha had gained the upper hand, they still needed to work hard to completely defeat the Rain Ninja.

Who has the ability to bring Orochimaru back from the battlefield of the Land of Rain at this time?

The answer is self-evident.

"Third generation, don't make a mistake. I hope this has nothing to do with you."

Kirito left quietly with a heavy heart.

This matter was far too serious for his small shoulders to bear, so Mito had to step in.

……

Meanwhile, in the Hokage's office, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, was still working late into the night reviewing documents, just like always.

Suddenly, the Third Hokage stopped writing, looked up at a shadowy spot in the room, and asked, "Is that Orochimaru?"

"Sarutobi-sensei, you're still as perceptive as ever."

The next moment, a hoarse voice appeared, and Orochimaru slowly emerged from the shadows, revealing half of his face. On the other half of his face, which was still in darkness, golden eyes gleamed with a cold, faint light.

Upon seeing Orochimaru again, the Third Hokage frowned slightly.

Ever since Orochimaru returned from the battlefield, he has become increasingly unable to understand his prized disciple.

The Orochimaru of the past was never as cold-blooded and unfamiliar to him as he is now.

That cold, indifferent gaze that disregards life was all too familiar to the Third Hokage; it was the same look in the eyes of his good comrade-in-arms, Danzo.

The war ultimately left a deep mark on his disciple, causing his growth to deviate from his expectations.

"Orochimaru, don't you understand? A person who disregards life can never become Hokage."

The third generation sighed inwardly, but did not offer any direct reminder.

Geniuses are always arrogant, and his disciple is even more so. His lecturing now will only backfire.

Some things can only be understood and experienced through personal experience.

He must erase the feelings of master and disciple from his heart and return to the Hokage he should be.

The Third Hokage's expression turned serious, and he questioned, "Orochimaru, what do you want with me so late? I remember you were supposed to return to the Land of Rain battlefield tomorrow. Why aren't you getting a proper rest tonight? If you want to say goodbye, you can do it tomorrow."

Orochimaru returned because he was seriously injured on the battlefield, and Tsunade had other missions to attend to and couldn't leave, so she had to secretly send him back to Konoha for treatment.

Now that his injuries have mostly healed, it's time for him to return to the battlefield and play an important role.

Since Orochimaru was seriously injured and left the battlefield of the Land of Rain, the Rain Ninja immediately showed signs of a counterattack, which shows how important Orochimaru was on the battlefield of the Land of Rain.

"I'm planning to return to the battlefield now, so I came here specifically to say hello."

Orochimaru smiled slightly.

"I see, I understand. I'll help you keep your departure a secret."

Upon hearing this, the Third Hokage immediately understood Orochimaru's meaning and nodded in agreement.

The fewer people who know that Orochimaru is leaving the village, the better, so as to keep it from those despicable traitors in the village.

The thought of a traitor made the Third Generation unpleasant.

Recently, the battlefield situation on the Sand Village side has become increasingly unfavorable. It seems that many of their plans were known to the Sand Village in advance, resulting in either meager gains or complete failure.

Even if he doesn't want to admit it, he has to admit that there is a traitor within his own ranks.

Catching the traitor is now a matter of urgency.

Unfortunately, the traitors were too well hidden, and we couldn't afford to create panic within our ranks by trying to catch them, which could lead to even greater setbacks in the battle.

He's really having a headache right now.

"Then I'll have to trouble you, teacher. I'll take my leave now."