Chapter 59 – The Rat's Nest Gets an Uninvited Visit
Jiraiya looked at Shikaku.
The Nara shook his head.
"All traces vanished the moment they left yesterday. My guess: they're already outside the village."
"I see…"
Jiraiya exhaled heavily.
"Keep looking."
"The Nine-Tails and Sharingan are too important to lose to another village."
Naruto was his student's son, the Nine-Tails jinchuriki, and far too valuable to Konoha.
Sasuke was the last Uchiha in the village.
If possible, Jiraiya wanted them back—even if it meant dragging them home in chains.
Meanwhile, Naruto and Sasuke.
Not long after they slipped away from Jiraiya's sight with Aike's group, an invitation from Orochimaru arrived.
The goal was obvious: intel on Aike.
Soul manipulation arts had the snake practically drooling.
On the streets of Konoha.
"Tsk tsk."
"Yesterday this place was packed. Now look at it."
Nami glanced around.
Yesterday: bustling crowds, food stalls, life.
Today: rubble, craters, and seven-tenths of the village in ruins.
"Those two brats really don't hold back," Carina whistled.
"Technically not just them," Aike corrected. "The explosive tags were planted decades ago. They only pulled the trigger."
He gave the quick version.
"In fact, if Yangyō Village hadn't been wiped out thirty years ago, these tags would've gone off back then."
"One guy buried enough tags to level Konoha… under the nose of the strongest hidden village?"
Nami, Carina, Kaya, and Izumi all stared.
Even Aike had found it ridiculous when he first saw the plot.
Genma was just a jonin-level guy with a knack for traps.
Konoha had dozens of jonin, sensor nin, and literal X-ray Hyuga.
Yet nobody noticed tens of thousands of explosive tags sitting under their feet for decades.
Truly a plot hole the size of a crater.
The five hadn't walked far when they stopped in unison.
"Being tailed?"
Nami's Observation Haki picked up several shadows glued to them.
"White-hair's men?"
Kaya asked, confused.
After seeing Aike's power, she figured Jiraiya wasn't that stupid.
"Root," Izumi answered.
Killing intent flared in her eyes.
Old dog hasn't come looking for me, so he sends snacks first.
"Perfect," Aike shrugged. "Follow the rats, find the nest."
He had planned to deal with Danzo in a few days anyway.
Free delivery.
Izumi nodded once and vanished.
She was back in under a minute.
"Found it?"
"Found it."
"Then let's go. That old fossil has something nice I want to take home for Hikari."
A few steps later, the five simply blinked out of existence.
No one on the busy street noticed.
Not even the tiny white-phosphorus snakes hiding in the cracks.
At the same time, in a forest not far from the old Uchiha district.
"These rats actually tracked us here."
Sasuke extinguished the flames on a charred Root corpse.
"Get anything?"
Naruto sighed and crushed another one's neck.
"Reverse tongue curse seals. Can't talk."
"Naruto-kun already knows where Danzo is hiding, doesn't he?"
Orochimaru slithered out of the shadows, glancing at the bodies with a cold smile.
"
I happen to have quite a lot of information on Root bases."
"Tell me about those people, and every location is yours."
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