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

Chapter 397 - A Mirage Named...

After a moment of heavy silence, Hiruzen Sarutobi lifted his eyes from the scrolls spread across his desk and nodded to the group assembled before him.

"Very well. Regarding what happened in the Land of Earth... This matter requires a broader perspective, so we'll leave things here for now." the Third Hokage said firmly. He sat down and clasped his hands. "I'll call a strategy meeting with Shikaku first thing in the morning. He always sees possibilities that we often overlook. I'll decide our next steps on that matter then."

Kakashi nodded, understanding the Hokage's implication. The smartest strategist of the Nara clan was the best person to untangle the complexities of the current situation with the Land of Earth.

Hiruzen turned to the silver haired Jonin. "Kakashi, you've been through enough for one day. Go home, rest while you can. When Daichi wakes tomorrow, escort him here. I want to speak with him directly."

"Understood, Lord Hokage," Kakashi replied with a respectful nod. He nodded to Tobirama and Jiraiya before slipping silently out of the room.

The moment the door clicked shut behind Kakashi, the Third Hokage turned to the other two. "We've been reacting, defending, and enduring Orochimaru's attacks until now. I'm done with playing defense. It's time to shift our approach... We're not going to wait anymore. Now that he's dead, we can go on the attack."

"Finally!" Jiraiya's eyes sparked with interest, stepping closer. "What do you want us to do sensei?"

Tobirama's expression grew serious. "You want to dismantle Orochimaru's operations proactively, don't you?"

"Precisely," Hiruzen confirmed, eyes gleaming with determination.

He enrolled a map and pointed to a series of symbols clustered within a specific territory. "We know several of Orochimaru's bases and laboratories. It's high time we take direct action. We'll systematically hunt down every known base and destroy them—starting with the ones located here, in the Land of Rice Paddies."

"I'm not arguing with this plan but now that he's dead, you really don't need to look so grim." Jiraiya said with a small smile, trying to relieve some tension in the room.

Hiruzen sighed and leaned back in his chair. "Orochimaru may be dead but there might be several strong unknown shinobi who are still fanatically loyal to him. Like that dead Guren woman. If they decide to retaliate and take revenge for their master's death, that will be another headache we'll have to deal with in the future."

"There is also the man called Kabuto Yakushi. He is highly intelligent, a capable spy and an excellent medic ninja. As I recall from the reports, he is Orochimaru's direct and closest subordinate. We need to find him as well." Tobirama spoke as he recalled all the information the village gathered on the dead missing Sannin and his allies.

"Yeesh. Ok, when you put it like that, we still have a lot on our plate." Jiraiya grimaced and sighed.

"Exactly," Hiruzen nodded. "Right now, they don't know what happened to Orochimaru. And they don't know that we have so much intelligence on them. The next few days will be our best window of opportunity to find and get rid of them before they realize what happened and go into hiding."

Jiraiya rubbed his chin, nodding slowly. "Makes sense."

"We'll begin with his known base in the Land of Rice Paddies. If we eliminate his assets there, we can cripple his influence in that land and among the people there. I've already sent Anbu 'Bear' to investigate that land. He should be using your teleportation marker in the morning." Hiruzen said, eyes gleaming with determination.