Orochimaru watched the sizzling grilled meat on the hot plate, picked up a piece, dipped it in a little mustard and sauce, and offered it to Uchiha Hikari's mouth.
"Awoo~!"
Uchiha Hikari, in a very good mood, narrowed her eyes and took a bite of the delicious grilled meat.
"It's not that simple. You Konoha are quite skilled at capturing intelligence Ninja."
Chiyo, having shed her disguise, ate the grilled meat heartily, picked up a beer, and chugged a large mouthful, wiping the beer foam from her mouth without any pretense. Since she had been discovered, there was no need to maintain the disguise.
The ANBU Ninja were stunned when they found Chiyo on the street. They then realized that the "Chiyo" who had been in the inn was a puppet.
"That's unavoidable. There's too much intelligence that cannot be leaked, so naturally, we have to ferret out the intelligence Ninja from various Various Ninja Villages stationed in Konoha."
Orochimaru ate the grilled meat and engaged in a verbal sparring match with Chiyo, which left Uchiha Hikari utterly confused.
"Chiyo, are you in Sunagakure truly unwilling to exchange for the One-Tail Jinchuriki?"
Orochimaru put down her chopsticks and said meaningfully.
"You should be asking yourself that!"
Chiyo said irritably. If Shukaku hadn't been sealed by Orochimaru shortly after its emergence, without much chance to prove itself, how would the Third Kazekage have thought Shukaku was unimportant to Sunagakure?
Chiyo didn't mind leaking some intelligence to Orochimaru. To some extent, this person in front of her was very likely the next Hokage, and building a good relationship would do no harm.
Moreover, the alliance between Sunagakure and Konoha might not go smoothly, but it should ultimately succeed.
Chiyo could see that Konoha's Hokage was inclined to form an alliance with Sunagakure.
However, the meaning in Orochimaru's words... Chiyo heard the hidden meaning but couldn't grasp its full implication.
"Chiyo, with Sunagakure's actions, it will be difficult to gain Konoha's trust and sign an alliance agreement. Sunagakure will need to pay a certain price, so you'd best prepare yourself mentally."
Orochimaru got up to pay the bill. She had already warned Chiyo. If Sunagakure didn't want to use money and resources to get Bunbuku back, it was highly likely that Chiyo's son and daughter-in-law, and her grandson who would soon be born, would be exchanged to Konoha.
The price... Chiyo was well aware of this. If Sunagakure hadn't acted against Konoha, Konoha would certainly welcome talks of cooperation and alliance.
Although Sunagakure's actions against Konoha failed and did not cause significant casualties, they still acted against Konoha.
After the failure of their actions, they then talked about forming an alliance. Chiyo even felt a little ashamed, but for the future of Sunagakure, she could only grit her teeth and go through with it.
"Uncle Torifu, long time no see."
Orochimaru left the barbecue restaurant and unexpectedly encountered Akimichi Torifu, who had become as thin as a lightning bolt. She supposed he had used the Red Chili Pill from the Three-Colored Pills on the battlefield.
With Akimichi Torifu's seniority, he didn't need to go to the battlefield, but he insisted on volunteering and consumed the Red Chili Pill to transform during a battle with Hidden Mist.
"Orochimaru, is there any possibility of further improving the Chili Pill among the Three-Colored Pills?"
Akimichi Torifu spoke weakly. After displaying his might on the battlefield, he was sent back to Konoha, lay at home for a whole day, and then rushed to the barbecue restaurant to eat back the calories he had lost.
"Uncle Torifu, you must understand that the effects of medicine have limits. Further improvement of the Red Chili Pill cannot eliminate its side effects. To gain powerful strength, one must inevitably pay a price for it."
Orochimaru shook her head slightly. She had already done her best to reduce the side effects of the Red Chili Pill.
Even with her current knowledge, there was no possibility of further improving the Red Chili Pill.
Unless other ingredients were added, but that would inevitably affect the lifespan of the Akimichi Clan members.
Solving one problem would create new ones, and solving new problems would require developing new medicines.
Eventually, the Akimichi Clan's Three-Colored Pills might become Five-Colored Pills, or even Six-Colored Pills.
Indeed, the more secret medicines they consumed, the more the Akimichi Clan might become known as the Ninja World's famous 'medicine pot' clan, with all their strength coming from drug use.
"Orochimaru, is this Uchiha Hikari? What a lovely child!"
Akimichi Torifu rummaged around and found two bags of potato chips, which he handed to Uchiha Hikari.
"They're very tasty!"
"Thank you..."
Uchiha Hikari said a little shyly, accepting the kindness of the person in front of her. Because Orochimaru called him "Uncle Torifu," he must be a trustworthy person.
"Speaking of which, Uncle Torifu, you must have sneaked out after this, hiding it from Aunt Harudō, right?"
Orochimaru remembered that Akimichi Harudō liked to eat three-colored dango, and to help Akimichi Torifu regain weight quickly, she might make a mountain of three-colored dango.
"Shhh!"
Akimichi Torifu motioned for Orochimaru and Uchiha Hikari to be quiet. Like a thief, he looked around, and after confirming he didn't see his wife, he whispered, "Please don't tell Harudō. I really don't want to eat any more three-colored dango."
After speaking, Akimichi Torifu snuck into the barbecue restaurant like a thief.
"Orochimaru-sama, Hokage-sama requests your presence."
A dark figure appeared; it was an ANBU Ninja.
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