Naruto: From Kushina Uzumaki onwards, a traitor

Ninjas who see Orochimaru respectfully address him as "Lord Orochimaru".

Orochimaru led Chiba straight to the innermost tent.

Jiraiya and Minato Namikaze were both inside the tent.

Jiraiya was overjoyed to see Orochimaru arrive: "Orochimaru, you've finally come! The old man said you were coming to the Land of Hot Springs to support us, which is a relief."

Orochimaru didn't bother catching up with Jiraiya; he went straight to the point and asked, "How's the situation now?"

Jiraiya said seriously, "The situation is very bad. Our front-line positions have been retreating again and again, and we have almost reached the point where we can retreat no further."

Orochimaru walked to the sand table, and Jiraiya explained the current situation in the Land of Hot Springs to him.

As soon as Chiba entered the tent, she looked at Minato Namikaze.

Several years have passed, and Minato Namikaze has changed a lot. He looks much taller and more resolute, and he has developed a sharp and imposing aura.

Minato Namikaze was also sizing up Chiba.

In Minato Namikaze's eyes, Chiba's changes were also significant.

Chiba turned her gaze and walked to Orochimaru's side, wanting to see how things were in the Land of Hot Springs.

Jiraiya explained to Orochimaru, "It seems that the ninjas of Kumogakure have reached an agreement with Yugakure in the Land of Hot Springs, and many Kumogakure ninjas are stationed in Yugakure."

The border between the Land of Hot Water and the Land of Fire is very long. With only so many ninjas, it's difficult to stretch the battle line that far. For now, we can only do our best to barely keep the Cloud Ninjas outside the border of the Land of Fire.

Meanwhile, the Hidden Cloud Village has also amassed a large number of ninjas in the Land of the Moon. Whenever their fighting strength is depleted, the ninjas stationed in the Land of the Moon will promptly support the Land of Hot Springs to replenish their forces.

Given the current situation, it's highly likely we'll have to completely withdraw from the Land of Hot Water and return to the Land of Fire.

Orochimaru stared at the sand table, his brows furrowed.

He had prepared for a very bad situation for the Konoha ninja in the Land of Hot Springs, but he did not expect it to be this bad.

Jiraiya, on the other hand, was overjoyed. Since arriving in the Land of Hot Springs, he had been looking worried every day.

If it were just about fighting, Jiraiya wouldn't care.

However, Jiraiya had to personally handle many troop deployments and task assignments.

Jiraiya was also in a real bind.

Now that Orochimaru has arrived, these tasks can all be delegated to him, since Orochimaru excels at this kind of thing.

Orochimaru was looking at the sand table, deep in thought.

Jiraiya looked at Chiba and said, "Kid, it's been a long time. I didn't expect you to become Orochimaru's disciple. Orochimaru is quite picky about his disciples. Not bad."

Chiba bowed to Jiraiya and said, "It's been a long time, Lord Jiraiya."

After exchanging greetings, Chiba ignored Jiraiya and started looking at the sand table with Orochimaru.

Seeing Chiyu's coldness, Jiraiya curled his lip and muttered, "No wonder they're master and disciple, both of them are so cold."

Chiyu looked at the flag belonging to Konoha on the sand table with a strange expression.

This front line is right on the border of the Land of Fire.

If they retreat any further, the border will disappear, and they'll retreat all the way to the Land of Fire.

Orochimaru turned to look at Chiba and asked, "Chiba, what do you think we should do to change this situation?"

Not only Chiba, but Jiraiya and Minato Namikaze also looked at Orochimaru in surprise.

Unexpectedly, Orochimaru asked Chiba for a way to change the situation.

Orochimaru said, "Just say it. This is a battlefield."

Orochimaru's meaning was clear: the battlefield was a good opportunity to make a name for oneself.

If Chiba wants to enter the core of Konoha, he has to do everything he can to make a name for himself.

Orochimaru is helping Chiba achieve his goal.

Qianyu frowned slightly, lost in thought.

Jiraiya whispered to Orochimaru, "Orochimaru, isn't it a bit hasty to ask a kid about such an important matter?"

Orochimaru laughed and said, "Jiraiya, don't underestimate my disciple. He's even smarter than me."

Jiraiya looked at Chiba, who was deep in thought, with a skeptical gaze: "Really?"

After a while, Qianyu snapped out of her reverie.

Orochimaru asked, "Chiba, how is it?"

"I have an idea, but it may not be rigorous."

"Although it's agreed that I will judge whether your idea is feasible."

Chiba nodded, then asked, "Before that, I would like to ask Lord Jiraiya a question. Is it because of Lord Jiraiya that our Konoha ninjas have not retreated to the Land of Fire and are still stationed on the border? My next thought is based on this question, so please answer me, Lord Jiraiya."

Jiraiya stroked his chin and replied, "While there's a reason for self-praise, you could say that's part of it. After all, I am one of the legendary Sannin, renowned throughout the ninja world."

Chiyu began his analysis: "In my opinion, the Hidden Cloud Village is definitely not prepared to go to war with our Leaf Village yet. Otherwise, given the current situation and the disparity in strength between the two sides, the Hidden Cloud Village would definitely be able to attack and force us back into the Land of Fire."

Jiraiya played a crucial role in this. As one of the Legendary Sannin, Jiraiya was stationed here, which was tantamount to demonstrating to Kumogakure our determination to defend the border.

If even Jiraiya-sama has fallen, then Konoha will inevitably send more ninjas to support him, which is not in their interest.

Since it is currently known that Iwagakure has already cooperated with Kumogakure, if Konoha sends ninjas to support the Land of Hot Springs, then Kumogakure will be under great pressure. Although it is a cooperation, Kumogakure probably does not want to face the pressure from Konoha alone, and let Iwagakure have it so easy.

Therefore, in my opinion, before the start of a full-scale war, the Hidden Cloud Village will not take any further action, but will maintain this status quo.

In that case, once the all-out war begins, they can easily break through the border defenses, directly invade the Land of Fire, and start the war there.

Jiraiya listened to Chiba's analysis, and his expression became very serious.

As Chiyu said, there is currently a huge disparity in the number of Konoha ninjas and Kumogakure ninjas in the Land of Hot Water. If Kumogakure were to gather a ninja force to attack them, they would have no choice but to retreat to the Land of Fire.

However, since they retreated to the border, the frequency of attacks from the Hidden Cloud Village against them has decreased significantly.

So, Chiba's analysis is correct; Kumogakure is intentionally maintaining the current situation in the Land of Hot Springs.

Chapter 50 Deciding the Plan

In Jiraiya's tent at the Konoha ninja encampment.

Qianyu shared her analysis.

Jiraiya also agreed with Chiba's analysis.

Orochimaru nodded in satisfaction and said, "Good analysis. So, what's the solution?"

Chiyu continued, "It's unrealistic to drive the Hidden Cloud Village ninjas out of the Land of Hot Springs because the difference in strength between the two sides is too great. There are only so many Konoha ninjas who can stay here right now, and even if Konoha sends more ninjas to support them later, there certainly won't be many."

Orochimaru's plan requires dividing Konoha's ninjas into four groups, while also stationing some ninjas in Konoha. Meanwhile, Kumogakure can continuously send ninjas to the Land of Hot Springs.

However, relying on the reputations of Jiraiya and Orochimaru, they might be able to push the front line forward a bit, leaving us some room to maneuver, so that once the war begins, we won't be left with only the option of retreating to the Land of Fire.

Jiraiya asked, puzzled, "Relying on my and Orochimaru's reputation?"

Minato Namikaze also didn't understand what Chiba meant by reputation.

Chiyu explained in a deep voice, "Yes, it's about relying on reputation. We need to make a big show of it to let the ninjas of Kumogakure know that two of the three legendary Sannin of Konoha have arrived in Yugakure. It's about scaring them and making them hesitant to act rashly."

At the same time, Jiraiya and Orochimaru will also step in to attack one of their strongholds, letting them know that the Land of Hot Springs will be a key area for Konoha to defend.

At that time, they would probably think that Konoha's reinforcements had arrived and that a counterattack from Konoha was about to begin. They would then use this to advance part of the front line, moving it away from the border of the Land of Fire and into the territory of the Land of Hot Water, thus giving us more room to maneuver.

However, the advance of the front line must not be too large, because if too much time passes, they will definitely find out that Konoha's reinforcements are only Orochimaru-sensei.

If the front line advances too far, we simply cannot hold it. It will only be a waste of our fighting strength, and we may even have to retreat back to the border of the Land of Fire, which would be a complete waste of effort.

After the front line is fully advanced, we will hold our current position and buy time for Orochimaru to implement his overall plan.

This is the method I can think of; I don't know if it will be helpful to Orochimaru-sensei.

After pondering for a moment, Orochimaru said, "Your method is quite mature. It can be said that your method can be implemented according to plan."

As you said, our combat strength is completely no match for the ninjas of Kumogakure, so it is basically impossible for us to advance our lines in a head-on confrontation.

My initial idea was for Jiraiya and me to attack the Cloud Village ninja forces to stabilize the current situation, and then find a breakthrough to push the front line forward.

Qianyu, your method is a bit radical, but if it succeeds, our gains will be enormous, and it will allow us to be more flexible in our future plans.

Therefore, I prefer to use your method, Chiba, to execute the plan. Jiraiya, what do you think?

After thinking for a moment, Jiraiya said, "I also think it's feasible, but if we carry out this plan, we need to attack one of their strongholds. The strongholds we've discovered in Kumogakure are all marked on the sand table. Orochimaru, which stronghold do you want to attack?"

Orochimaru directly pulled a flag representing the Cloud Village's stronghold from the sand table: "Since we want to announce our existence to them and make them afraid, we must choose the toughest nut to crack, otherwise we won't achieve the effect of being afraid to harm the enemy."

Looking at the flag in Orochimaru's hand, Jiraiya asked in surprise, "Are we going to attack Yugakure directly?"

Minato Namikaze said anxiously, "Lord Orochimaru, Master Jiraiya, this is too reckless. Yugakure not only has Cloud Ninja stationed here, but also Yugakure Ninja."

"The ninja from Yugakure haven't directly engaged us in battle yet. If we were to attack Yugakure directly, they would definitely become our enemies, which would put us in an even more unfavorable position."

Orochimaru ignored Minato Namikaze.

Qianyu burst out laughing.

Minato Namikaze heard the disdain in Chiyu's laughter and frowned, saying, "Chiyu, what are you laughing at?"

Chiyu turned her head and said in a strange tone, "It's nothing, I just think your idea is pretty good. Wouldn't it be better if we could form an alliance with Yugakure and kill the Cloud Ninja from within and without?"

Jiraiya awkwardly explained, "Minato, the fact that Yugakure directly agreed to let the Cloud Ninja station in the village is tantamount to making us Konoha hostile. If we want to achieve the effect of being hesitant to act against the enemy, Yugakure is indeed the best choice."

Moreover, instead of waiting for the ninjas of Yugakure to fight us, we might as well attack them directly and catch them off guard.

If the attack succeeds, then the largest stronghold of the Cloud Village ninja in the Land of Hot Water will be gone, and the Hidden Hot Water Village will certainly not dare to allow the Cloud ninja to be stationed in the village again.

At the same time, the ninjas of Yugakure will certainly be even less likely to oppose us, the ninjas of Konoha.

Although it is indeed a risky venture, the rewards would be substantial if successful.

Moreover, this time we are launching a surprise attack on Yugakure. The ninjas in Yugakure and the stationed Kumogakure don't have many Jonin; most of them are Chunin and Genin. With Orochimaru and me here, the chances of success are very high.

Furthermore, we are not attacking Yugakure; as long as the desired effect is achieved, our plan will be considered a success.

Minato Namikaze still feels like it's too risky.

Minato Namikaze knew very well that if Chiba's plan were implemented, there would definitely be casualties, and the casualties would likely be considerable.