"Father?"
Minato was startled, his eyes quickly scanning the surroundings. He was genuinely curious about Shiro's father and wanted to see which "old friend" from the Uchiha clan would appear. Everyone paused their attack, waiting quietly for the arrival of Shiro's father.
Three seconds passed. The scene was dead silent. No one appeared.
"Damn it! We were tricked by that brat!"
The ninja from Konoha and the Sand had fierce looks on their faces, cursing their own gullibility. Shiro, too, was confused.
Where did that old man go? Your son is surrounded by dozens of enemies, and you can't even be bothered to come and help?
Just as their anxiety began to mount, the wounded bodies of several Anbu were suddenly thrown into the center of the venue. Immediately after, a large number of Uchiha clan members rushed to Shiro's side.
"Shiro, we are here!" Inabi Uchiha said respectfully.
Shiro asked, "Where is Fugaku?"
"Lord Fugaku and Yashiro are fighting Jiraiya and Tsunade outside the village," Yashiro Uchiha reported. "The current situation is unclear."
On the other side of the village, Fugaku and Yashiro, unwilling to continue their stalemate with Jiraiya and Tsunade, had been retreating while fighting. Suddenly, they found that the two Sannin were gone.
"What's going on? Have they stopped chasing us?"
"Could this be a trap?"
"Never mind that. It's better that they're not chasing us. Let's go find Lord Madara and Shiro first!"
"Yes!"
At that moment, Tsunade and Jiraiya were confronting Orochimaru. Originally, Orochimaru had wanted to escape from Konoha, but he hadn't expected to be discovered by these two after slipping outside the village walls.
Orochimaru gasped for breath, an evil smile on his face. "Long time no see, my two old classmates."
"Orochimaru," Jiraiya said, "you really are incorrigible. Can't you go a single day without causing trouble?"
Tsunade added, "I see there's something wrong with your hands. Are they sealed? Hmph. That's the price you pay for messing with Konoha."
"Hehehe…" Orochimaru laughed. "A price? If this price can be exchanged for the life of the Third Hokage, then it was well worth paying."
"What?!" Jiraiya and Tsunade's expressions darkened instantly.
"Orochimaru! What did you do to our sensei?!"
"Don't you understand? I've already killed him. The price was my own two hands."
Upon hearing this, Tsunade roared in fury, "How dare you… to our sensei…!"
"Don't look at me with such a bitter, vengeful expression, Tsunade," Orochimaru said with a nonchalant smile. "Since we have met, it must be fate. As an old friend, are you interested in healing my hands? If it's you, it should be possible."
"Hah?" Tsunade rolled up her sleeves, revealing her pale, powerful fists. "Heal you? How dare you say such a thing! The only thing I want to do right now is kill you!" As she spoke, she took a step forward, raising her leg to bring it down on Orochimaru with all her might.
"Protect Lord Orochimaru!" Jirobo and Sakon immediately stood in front of him, ready to defend against Tsunade's attack.
"Stand down. I will be fine," Orochimaru murmured confidently. He raised his head to look at Tsunade, who was about to attack, and said slowly, "As long as you can heal my hands, I can help you resurrect those two people… the two people you care about most."
"!!!"
When Tsunade heard Orochimaru's words, her body stopped instantly, and she stood frozen, a dazed, uncomprehending expression on her face.