Recently, Iwagakure's army had launched another assault on the borders of the Land of Fire, leading to the fall of several more defensive outposts.
At this stage of the war, the borders of the Land of Fire could no longer effectively resist Iwagakure's relentless infiltration and invasions.
If not for the risk of being attacked from multiple sides, which required Iwagakure to first eliminate all Konoha forces along the border, the Tsuchikage, Ōnoki, would have already led his army straight toward Konoha Village in a full-scale assault.
After yet another battle where they managed to repel Iwagakure's main forces, Konoha's frontline shinobi finally had a brief moment to catch their breath.
While tending to the wounded, they quickly consumed Military Rations Pills to restore their stamina and prepare for the next wave of attacks.
Covered in dust and drenched in blood, Orochimaru finally appeared before Tsunade and the others once again.
"Do you need me to step in?" Tsunade asked him. Now that she had overcome her hemophobia, she was once again a formidable force on the battlefield.
"It's not the right time yet." Orochimaru shook his head. "Even if you take action now, it won't have a decisive impact.
Your medical ninjutsu and summon, Katsuyu, have already helped ease a lot of my burden."
"You're using me to scheme against Ōnoki, aren't you?"
Although it was phrased as a question, Tsunade's tone was firm and displeased.
It seemed like both her teacher and her teammate had the same mindset—treating her as a bargaining chip, using her to the fullest.
Katsuyu was one of her symbols. Tsunade didn't believe that after all this time, Iwagakure would remain completely unaware of her presence on the battlefield.
In recent times, Konoha's casualty rate had dropped significantly, and Iwagakure would definitely investigate the reason.
Konoha's higher-ups, under the pretense of boosting morale, hadn't even attempted to conceal her return.
That meant it wouldn't be difficult for Iwagakure to obtain intelligence on her presence in the Konoha-Iwagakure battlefield.
Trying to keep her as a hidden trump card was now impossible. Once Iwagakure learned of her involvement, they would naturally be on guard against her.
Given her understanding of her teammate, Tsunade knew that Orochimaru was well aware of this fact.
"Why not?" Orochimaru remained indifferent to Tsunade's displeasure. He was a pragmatist.
"At the very least, I should know your plan, right?" Tsunade clenched her fist and waved it in front of Orochimaru.
"If you keep avoiding the battlefield, Ōnoki will definitely try to investigate your movements. I plan to leak information about your hemophobia."
Orochimaru's expression remained calm, as if completely unbothered by Tsunade's implicit threat.
"Using me as bait?" Tsunade immediately understood his intention.
Once it was confirmed that she suffered from hemophobia, Ōnoki would undoubtedly send an assassination squad after her.
Eliminating Tsunade would deal a severe blow to Konoha's morale and significantly affect the outcome of the war.
In any battle, taking down the enemy's medic was always a priority. If not for Tsunade's overwhelming personal strength making it difficult to target her, she would have died back in the Second Great Ninja War.
If it gets out that she has hemophobia and loses her combat ability, the cunning and sly Ōnoki from Iwagakure will definitely take advantage of it.
"I will keep pushing Ōnoki to escalate things. At that time, I will have Minato leave the frontlines first. Kagetsu and Shisui will also go. As guards, it wouldn't be good if they're not there."
Orochimaru clearly had the intention to heavily injure Iwagakure's elite forces. There were, of course, various political games at play here. To make the enemy act according to the plan, all aspects had to be well-prepared in advance.
"Minato?" Tsunade, who had already overcome hemophobia, nodded. The name "Yellow Flash" had already worn out her ears over this time.
As a great weapon against Iwagakure, if Minato didn't leave the frontlines, Ōnoki and Iwagakure might not dare to carry out an assassination attempt against her.
At that point, Minato would also have Iwagakure tied down, and it would depend on whether he could escape and return with the Flying Thunder God technique.
"Kagetsu and Shisui, are you sure?"
Tsunade had no objections about Minato, but she had doubts about Kagetsu and Shisui.
One was a researcher, and her impression of Kagetsu's strength was still stuck several years ago.
After returning to the village, the most information she had heard about Kagetsu was about his research talent.
As for missions, although he had completed three S-rank missions, from the mission reports, it was clear that Shisui was the main force. Kagetsu had only played a supporting role, acting as the brain.
He hadn't even truly become a Jonin yet.
But Shisui was now blind. A blind Uchiha without the amplification of the Sharingan—how much strength could he still maintain? Only he himself knew for sure.
As for Anko? Tsunade always thought of her as similar to Jiraiya. Her attempts to develop ninjutsu always ended in explosions, and her actual combat ability was questionable.
To deal with her, the assassination squad sent by Ōnoki would be Iwagakure's elite, and once the battle began, Tsunade didn't want Kagetsu to face any accidents.
"Don't think of Kagetsu as just a researcher. Like us, he also mastered the perfect Hogyoku Mode. Even as support, his Shadow Jutsu will surprise you."
Orochimaru gently corrected Tsunade's deep impression of Kagetsu.
"By the way, where is Kagetsu?" Orochimaru glanced around but couldn't find him. Finally, his eyes landed on the laboratory inside the base.
"In the lab," Tsunade said, her gaze following his to the laboratory. "It seems like he's made a significant discovery from that wooden stake he brought back from the Shikkotsu Forest. He's been in the lab for two days without coming out."
"I've come out."
The lab door suddenly opened, and Kagetsu walked out. His face was tired, but his eyes were unusually bright.
When Orochimaru saw the Rinnegan in Kagetsu's eyes, he couldn't help but widen his own in surprise.
"The Rinnegan?" Orochimaru's voice was raspy and filled with curiosity.
"Huh?" Kagetsu touched his left eye. "It's just a tool for researching the wooden stake. I have to say, it's very useful. If it weren't for this eye, the research progress on the wooden stake wouldn't have gone so smoothly or quickly."
"Tsunade said you've made a major discovery with that wooden stake. What did you find?" Orochimaru asked curiously.
"The origin of chakra?" Kagetsu tilted his head.
Orochimaru's expression suddenly became serious, and the smile on his face disappeared. However, his golden, snake-like eyes, just like Kagetsu's, brightened up.
The origin of chakra?
This was truly, so tantalizing and intriguing!
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