Jiraiya had already prepared for the failure of the plan, intending to take the blame himself and allow the Fourth Hokage to reassume his position. He saw no issues with Shikaku's plan and immediately approved it.
Utatane Koharu, Homura Mitokado, and Danzo Shimura were unaware of their secret plotting. Jiraiya, under the guise of treating Kurama Yakumo's illness, gathered the relevant personnel outside the village, at Kurama Yakumo's residence. With the preliminary preparations mostly complete, Ino needed to release Minato Namikaze's soul.
Tsunade, Ino, Shizune, Kakashi, Shikaku, and Kurama Yakumo, serving as a tool, were all present.
Jiraiya coughed, arriving last. He didn't come alone; he brought a man in a black robe and hood.
"Orochimaru! Jiraiya, what exactly are you trying to do?" Even with his face obscured, Tsunade recognized her former teammate. She quickly shielded Ino and Shizune behind her.
Kakashi and Shikaku both adopted defensive stances.
Orochimaru chuckled sinisterly twice and removed his hood.
"Tsunade, Kakashi, Shikaku, everyone here... seems to be familiar faces. Is that black-haired girl Dan's niece?" He finally looked at Ino: "Oh, it's you. We met during the Chunin Exams. A very strong Water Release Ninja."
He paused, filled with curiosity: "Can you tell me how you made a deal with the Shinigami?"
He had thought about this question for a long time, believing it shouldn't be difficult, just that he hadn't grasped the trick.
To get the answer to this question, he risked a great deal, escaping from Danzo and convincing Jiraiya to join the entire plan.
Tsunade angrily demanded: "What exactly is going on? Jiraiya, I need an explanation!"
Jiraiya quickly appeased her, assuring her that Orochimaru would remain under his constant surveillance, and he would take responsibility for any problems that arose.
"Actually, the Orochimaru you knew is already dead. That period of life experience is now my memory, stored in my mind." Orochimaru pointed to his head: "I'm no longer interested in destroying Konoha. You can trust me to a limited extent."
He looked at Tsunade somewhat provocatively: "We can fight side by side again. Aren't you happy?"
"I don't believe a word you say!" Tsunade declared fiercely.
Jiraiya coughed: "Orochimaru provided us with all the intelligence on the Akatsuki Organization. He said Sasori assassinated the Third Kazekage and turned him into a human puppet. We had no idea about this information before. He also said the Akatsuki Organization has a guy named Zetsu, a Ninja with incredible intelligence gathering abilities. Orochimaru is currently useful to us... Huh? Huh!"
Before he could finish speaking, Tsunade forcefully pulled him aside.
The two whispered for quite a while before Tsunade's expression gradually softened.
Ultimately, the relationship between the Sannin was actually very subtle, far less pure than that of Team 7.
The Third Hokage taking Tsunade as his disciple involved too many political factors!
Did Tsunade need the Third Hokage as a teacher? No, she did not.
Did the Third Hokage need Tsunade as a disciple? Yes, very much so!
Orochimaru was the Third Hokage's most valued disciple, followed by Jiraiya.
Tsunade and Jiraiya had a good relationship, and Orochimaru and Jiraiya also had a good relationship, but Tsunade and Orochimaru's relationship was relatively ordinary.
Ever since Nawaki became Orochimaru's disciple and was later killed by an Exploding Tag, there wasn't much interaction between them. Regarding the Third Hokage's death, Tsunade at most felt sympathy; she wasn't particularly angry, and it was even less likely for her to seek revenge for the Third Hokage.
If Orochimaru wasn't a good person, was the Third Hokage a good person? In Tsunade's view, there wasn't much difference between the two.
Her anger was mostly a facade. If none of you mind, then I don't care either.
"You're letting him come with us to Sunagakure? You're not joking, are you?" Tsunade asked, pointing at Orochimaru.
Jiraiya sighed heavily: "He'll gather some subordinates to help distract Sunagakure's attention. Afterwards, we'll have an explanation. This is also part of the deal."
Tsunade laughed, a bright and cheerful laugh: "He'll follow whichever side is planning this collapse, right? You two are truly amusing!"
Jiraiya looked at Ino: "Orochimaru wants his soul back."
Ino flatly refused: "Impossible. I haven't prepared that many sacrifices. Today, at most, I can retrieve the Fourth Hokage's soul."
Jiraiya gave Orochimaru a look, as if to say,'See, you asked me to speak for you, I asked, but she can't do it, so it's not my problem.'
Orochimaru didn't even look at him, but stared at Ino: "What price do I need to pay to get my soul back?"
He didn't know what Ninjutsu, Secret Technique, or Bloodline Limit Ino was using. Facing a Ninja who could chat cheerfully with the Shinigami and even haggle, he regarded her as being on the same level as himself.
With Danzo's manpower and resources, he had done extensive research on the Shinigami during this period. The more he researched, the more he felt it contained many hidden secrets.
In his opinion, Ino must have mastered this knowledge, or at least a part of it.
The capable are teachers. He didn't mind lowering his stance to ask for guidance or to make a deal.
Ino first looked at Tsunade.
Tsunade shook her head, meaning, 'Whatever decision you make, it has nothing to do with me.'
She then looked at Jiraiya.
Jiraiya pursed his lips, saying nothing.
Ino scrutinized Orochimaru from head to toe.
Orochimaru certainly had many good things in his possession. The broken horn of the Eight-Tails was in one of his secret bases, and even Kabuto didn't know its exact location. Unfortunately, the timing wasn't right now.
She thought for a moment and asked: "What was that giant gate you summoned when you resisted my Steam Impurities Explosion?"
The current Orochimaru was actually a life information duplicate he left within Anko Mitarashi's body, a copy from the moment before he defected from the village, so he wasn't as evil. His subsequent experiences felt more like a familiar yet strange memory to him. He recalled it carefully.
"That was Rashomon." He glanced at Tsunade: "It was once the First Hokage's Summoning Technique tool. Then the old man, the Third Hokage, gave it to me."
Ino extended her hand to him: "Give me that Summoning Scroll, and I'll have the Shinigami return your soul."
Is it that simple?! Orochimaru hadn't expected the key item to be on him. This was a huge loss!
Not having mastered the core technology was truly frustrating.
Unfortunately, without Ino, the "black intermediary," he wouldn't know how to use this thing himself. It was like carrying a pig's head but not knowing where the temple door was.
"Alright!" He opened his mouth and quickly spat out a sticky Summoning Scroll.
Ino looked a bit disgusted, but still reached out to open it, signed her name, and then used the Summoning Technique.
Orochimaru could only summon a Triple Rashomon, but Ino's Chakra was much greater than his. When the smoke cleared, five giant gates with demon masks appeared.
She looked at them. The aura was correct. These were the former gates of the Shinigami Old Iron's home.
------------------------
I've posted 70+ chapters in advance on Patreon.
Webnovel updates will still be daily, as usual.
It might not seem tempting right now but who knows what the future holds?
[email protected]/SolyuraMT
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"