The Adventurous Gamer Ninja - Daichi Hekima [Vol. 02]

Chapter 372 - So Close Yet So Far

A short while ago- Before the attack.

The Five Leaf ninjas were discussing their infiltration strategy.

Tobirama spoke up. "Tsunade will no doubt be restrained. But I'm sure you can free her and her student. I will focus on Orochimaru. The moment he's out of the base, I'll move in for the kill."

"No." Daichi shook his head and opposed. "We don't know what he did to sensei. We need him alive. Maybe not in one piece. But we definitely need him alive. We have to be careful about this."

"It'll be a bit more of a headache but it's doable." Tobirama agreed after a few seconds of consideration.

"I have an idea that can minimize the risks even further..." Danzo suddenly spoke.

As everyone turned to him, Danzo began to lay out his strategy. He looked at the Genin and spoke. "Jiraiya is partially right. You are an important asset of the village. Sending you into Orochimaru's palms is a foolish idea. But he won't come out unless it's you walking into his trap... That's why I propose that I switch with him. I will take your place and confront him."

Tobirama and Jiraiya were suspicious when they heard that.

"Danzo, why do you want to meet with Orochimaru?" Tobirama asked with narrowed eyes.

"It's not for any nefarious purpose. Like I said, I only wish to minimize the risk on our side." Danzo turned to the second Hokage and replied with a casual shrug. "With me and Kakashi keeping Orochimaru and his guards distracted, you three can go in and find them."

Jiraiya and Tobirama glanced at each other and nodded.

Meanwhile Daichi was keeping a calm face as he looked at the elder. 'What's he up to? What's his angle? He has to have an angle he's playing at? Now that his future at the Leaf has come to an end, is he planning on joining up with that Snake?'

Daichi thought about it some more and frowned. 'Seems less likely. Based on everything I know about this guy, even though he's a backstabbing scumbag, he cares about the village. He wouldn't deliberately make things more difficult for us...Hmm... It looks like the Second Hokage and Jiraiya don't trust him. They must have some plans in place in case Danzo rebels.'

"Very well. Danzo will disguise himself and take Daichi's place." Tobirama spoke with crossed arms. 'We need to cover every angle Orochimaru might exploit.'

Danzo nodded. "Now we just need to consider Orochimaru's likely responses and countermeasures."

Kakashi glanced at Danzo with a serious gaze. "What do you think he would do?"

"He won't simply stroll out of his base unprepared," Jiraiya answered, glancing at Danzo and then to the rest of the group. "Once he realizes we're here, he'll want to protect his work. Orochimaru's cunning. He might leave a shadow clone inside to guard Tsunade and Shizune, or a summoning. Likely one of his snakes to monitor them."

Daichi nodded, arms loose at his sides. "Yeah. Based on his paranoid personality, he would definitely have a shadow clone inside. And that clone could react fast. Orochimaru might let his clone kill them or move them away if anything goes wrong." He paused a beat. "If it's just a snake summon, we have a better chance. Summons can be distracted or taken out more easily."

Jiraiya exhaled, turning to face them all. "Let's assume the worst—that he employs both options. A snake could be used to keep an eye on them, while a shadow clone remains in reserve. Orochimaru's experiments are too important for him to leave unguarded."