Chapter 6: Pursuit of Orochimaru

Aoba hadn't truly left. Instead, after Naruto departed, he reappeared by the riverbank. But this time, standing in front of him was not Naruto but Sasuke.

At this moment, Sasuke stared at Aoba with red eyes.

In reality, Sasuke himself didn't know why he had come out so aggressively. The night of the massacre had just recently occurred, and he hadn't yet fully processed it all.

Most of the time, classmates at school wouldn't mention the incident in front of him. Hearing about it suddenly from a stranger, Sasuke, still a child, couldn't control his emotions.

"You know him..." Sasuke began to get agitated again, though Aoba couldn't understand what exactly was fueling his anger.

In the world of Naruto, the two main characters had truly tragic fates.

Both had lost their entire families and bore deep-seated grudges. The only difference was that Sasuke's actions were closer to those of a normal person. If my entire family is killed, then I'll go after you.

Naruto, on the other hand, became increasingly unreasonable. Just because his parents died, he forgave Obito. He even forgave Neji, who had only died the previous day...

"In reality, no official ninja in Konoha is unaware of that incident."

"Do you know where he is?"

"I'm sorry, but I don't. Sasuke Uchiha, I don't dare claim to understand how you feel. In fact, there are very few people in the ninja world who can claim to understand your feelings. However, as an adult, I can give you a bit of advice.

One must plan thoroughly before taking action. Itachi Uchiha is an extremely powerful ninja. He's formidable in every aspect. To defeat such a ninja, relying solely on anger and hatred isn't enough.

You can hold onto your anger and hatred, as they will give you motivation. But you must also maintain some degree of rationality. That will help you make the right decisions.

Practice tree climbing and water walking with Naruto. Chakra control training will help you regain your composure."

Encountering these two children was partly by chance, but there was also a deliberate element on Aoba's part.

After all, they were both children of destiny, and he was preparing to leave a small connection with them from an early age. It might come in handy someday in the future.

....

It was time for the mission. This time, the team was quite substantial. There were small teams from both the Anbu and Root. Together with Aoba, there were a total of nine people in the pursuit team.

Whether it was Anbu or Root, everyone wore masks, so Aoba could only recognize a few. What he could determine was that the Anbu team included a member from the Hyuga Clan, one from the Yamanaka Clan, and another with a sword, whom Aoba guessed to be the Moonlight Sword Master.

For a time, Konoha was quite fond of swordsmanship. During the time of Hatake Sakumo's fame, known as Konoha's White Fang, many Konoha residents learned sword techniques.

Unfortunately, after White Fang's death, this trend quickly declined. Now, there were very few who used swords in Konoha. The famous Three Moon Dance had been passed down to only a handful of people.

The guy who occasionally coughed lightly was probably the later Moonlight Sword Master, Gekkō Hayate.

In the original story, he first appeared as an examiner in the Chunin Exams. It seemed that his health declined later, leading him to leave the Anbu.

Thus, the team had a balanced composition: an offensive sword master, a tracking sensor from the Hyuga Clan, a trap and support specialist from the Yamanaka Clan, and the remaining member was likely a ninjutsu-type ninja.

As for the Root team, he couldn't make any judgments. The Root members rarely showed themselves. He had no experience working with Root and didn't know their configurations or any familiar faces.

The leader of this mission was a Root captain.

"The team is assembled. Begin the operation."

The nine-person team left Konoha and embarked on the mission to capture Orochimaru.

In the original story, there was little description of Orochimaru's activities at this time. So he didn't know where exactly Orochimaru was.

However, by the timeline, he should have started preparing to establish Otogakure (Sound Village). After all, according to the timeline, the Chunin Exams a few years later would see Otogakure already established.

Building a ninja village wasn't something that could be done in a day or two. So, it was entirely possible that he was starting preparations now.

Aoba had no hope for this mission. Firstly, in terms of combat power.

If the nine of them worked together, they would definitely be able to contend with Orochimaru.

Moreover, the team included at least two swordsmanship experts. This was clearly a measure against Orochimaru, as the cutting damage of swords was effective against Orochimaru's soft-body and snake-type jutsu.

But Orochimaru's skills weren't limited to conventional ninjutsu. At this time, it was uncertain whether he had mastered the Forbidden Jutsu, Impure World Reincarnation. Even if he hadn't, he was still proficient in numerous types of ninjutsu, with many hidden trump cards.

Any slight disunity within the team would make it impossible to succeed under him.

But this was absolutely impossible. First of all, Root members were absolutely untrustworthy. At this time, Orochimaru and Danzo should have some connection. The Sharingan in Danzo's possession should still have been transplanted by Orochimaru.

They were in a cooperative relationship now. Thus, Root members could not be trusted. Even if they weren't cooperating, Aoba wouldn't trust Root. Similarly, Root would not trust him.

He easily guessed that this operation, on the surface, was to capture Orochimaru. But in reality, it was likely a test of his loyalty.

What hidden missions Root had was beyond his guess.

Because Root had advance intelligence, the group traveled overnight. Along the way, they encountered almost no obstacles. Aoba wasn't familiar with the others and didn't engage in much conversation.

In reality, the level of this team meant that few could threaten them in the Land of Fire.

Once outside the Land of Fire, the Root members led the group toward the Land of the Waterfall.

"The Land of the Waterfall, not the Land of Rice Paddies." Aoba thought to himself. It seemed that Orochimaru hadn't yet gone to the Land of Rice Paddies to prepare for the establishment of Otogakure.

However, the Land of the Waterfall had its own ninja village. And it was the only nation outside the Five Great Nations to possess a tailed beast. Compared to other small nations, it had some strength.

"Orochimaru's base is in the valley ahead. It has been confirmed that he is in the base. We will rest here and start the operation at midnight tonight."

The Root captain gave the order. The group then began to rest on the spot.

Aoba found a large tree, leaned against it, and closed his eyes. For a moment, everyone fell into a silent rest.

However, unseen in the sky, a leaf above Aoba's head suddenly detached. It floated gently into the sky, slowly crossing the slope, and fell into the valley.