"That's the border of the Land of Fire ahead; we'll be in the Land of Grass soon."
Tsunade stood on a tree branch, gazing into the distance, and noticed Orochimaru seemed to have discovered something.
"Orochimaru?"
"There's an ambush. Ahead at 12 o'clock, 9 o'clock, and 1 o'clock, there are about 15 people ambushing us."
Orochimaru quickly stated the direction and number of the enemy's ambush.
"I'll go get them..."
Before Tsunade could finish her sentence, she felt Orochimaru's gaze and shrank her neck, not daring to say she would go lure them out.
"There's an enemy ambush, which means the information about us going to the Hidden Grass Village has been leaked?"
Tsunade frowned. She didn't believe the information was leaked from Konoha, which meant it must have come from Kusagakure.
"Use Shadow Clones to draw them out and see what traps they've set."
Orochimaru was reluctant to use Shadow Clones. She had already created many Shadow Clones for research, and using more would leave her with even less Chakra.
"Okay."
Tsunade nodded.
"Earth Release: Fissure."
At the border of the Land of Fire, Orochimaru and Tsunade's Shadow Clones were attacked by Hidden Stone Ninja.
The ground vibrated violently, huge cracks spread, and the entire earth shattered with a roar. Beneath were sharp earth spikes and exploding tags.
They had anticipated we would pass this way and set up an ambush beforehand?
The information about us heading to Kusagakure was leaked, likely from Kusagakure's side.
Orochimaru saw the spikes and exploding tags in the trap, stepped on the broken rocks, jumped into the air, and threw out a Kunai. She reached out to Tsunade, just about to pull herself and Tsunade across with a steel wire, when she saw Tsunade form hand signs.
Just then, shuriken and Kunai came from all directions, along with gradually enlarging rocks, which were part of the Rock Bullet Jutsu.
"Release the Shadow Clones."
Orochimaru said in a low voice. In this situation, there was no need for the Shadow Clones to be attacked.
"Uh-huh."
Tsunade responded, then disappeared in a puff of smoke.
"Shadow Clones?!"
The Hidden Stone Ninja were stunned, and quickly realized they had been exposed.
"Not good, we've been exposed! Retreat!"
The intelligence they received was that a Medical Ninja would travel from Konoha to Kusagakure in the Land of Grass, but they didn't expect a powerful sensory Ninja to be protecting the Medical Ninja. The mission given by the Village wasn't to necessarily kill the Medical Ninja, so since they were exposed, they could only retreat.
"Water Release Barrier: Four-Sided Wall Formation!"
Four Water Release walls rose, forming a continuously rotating four-sided wall.
"You bastards from Iwagakure! Do you think we'll let you leave!"
Tsunade, thinking of these scoundrels who wanted her life, couldn't possibly show them mercy.
"Lightning Release!"
Orochimaru condensed Lightning Release Chakra in her hand. The four-sided wall formation flashed with dazzling lightning, and the roaring thunder continuously sounded, covering the screams of the Hidden Stone Ninja.
"Orochimaru, are we still going to Kusagakure?"
Tsunade released her Shadow Clones, and the water currents formed by Water Release Chakra dissipated. Looking at the corpses of the Hidden Stone Ninja, going to Kusagakure with leaked information was too risky.
"It should be information transmitted by Hidden Stone Ninja embedded in Kusagakure. At our current travel speed, we should reach Kusagakure by night. At that time, I will claim to be your bodyguard, Snake, and you will be Lady Xiao Gang, skilled in Medical Ninjutsu."
Orochimaru took out a white mask and put it on her face, revealing only a pair of golden eyes. She took off her white robe and put on a black trench coat, dressed very much like an Anbu.
"Orochimaru, you're thinking of!"
Tsunade understood, knowing that Orochimaru wanted to find the Hidden Stone's intelligence Ninja in Kusagakure.
"That's right, we can't just let this go. If Lord Sarutobi hadn't chosen you for this mission, you can imagine what would have happened to that Medical Ninja."
Orochimaru said coldly. She held grudges, and removing the Hidden Stone Ninja embedded in Kusagakagure would serve as a warning to them.
If she hadn't been with Tsunade, and Tsunade hadn't noticed the Hidden Stone's ambush, she might have been injured.
"Then it's settled."
Tsunade also wanted to find the Hidden Stone intelligence Ninja embedded in Kusagakure.
"Before entering Kusagakure, don't forget to disguise yourself with a Transformation Jutsu."
"I know!"
Tsunade glared at Orochimaru impatiently. She always treated her like a child; she wasn't a child anymore!
At night, a cool evening breeze blew, and the swaying weeds rustled.
In the Kusagakure hospital, many poisoned Hidden Grass Ninja lay moaning in pain, and quite a few succumbed to the toxins and died in agony.
"Has Konoha's support not arrived yet?"
The Medical Ninja were frantic, holding a mortar and pestle, constantly crushing herbs to prepare medicine to alleviate the toxins.
The Medical Ninja of Kusagakure desperately tried to save more Ninja lives.
However, Ibuse the Salamander and Hanzo's poison was too potent. Some Hidden Grass Ninja who took the medicine still died due to severe poisoning.
"I am Kusa Minoru, the Village Head of Kusagakure. Are you the Medical Ninja sent by Konoha?"
The Village Head of Kusagakure rushed to the Village entrance, looking at Tsunade and Orochimaru, who was dressed in a black trench coat and white mask like an Anbu, with a hint of suspicion in his eyes.
Medical Ninja require extensive medical knowledge, and knowledge takes time to accumulate. This young female Ninja from Konoha was simply too young.
"Are you questioning Lady Xiao Gang's professionalism!"
Orochimaru stepped forward, disguising her voice as neutral, and sternly rebuked, "There is no Medical Ninja in Konoha more capable than Lady Xiao Gang! Is this how Kusagakure treats Lady Xiao Gang, who has traveled so far? Lady Xiao Gang is here to save lives, not to be disrespected!"
"Currently, in Konoha, there is no Medical Ninja more excellent than me."
Tsunade glanced at Orochimaru. She said "currently in Konoha" and not "in Konoha."
Because Orochimaru wasn't in Konoha, there was no Medical Ninja more excellent than her in Konoha at the moment.
"Please forgive my rudeness, please follow me, both of you."
The Village Head quickly led Tsunade and her guard to the hospital, where poisoned Hidden Grass Ninja were waiting for treatment. Along the way, he explained the current situation to Tsunade.
"There are so many poisoned people?"
Tsunade looked in astonishment at the cramped, makeshift hospital filled with severely poisoned Ninja. She walked up to a Medical Ninja and said, "Bring me the analysis of the toxin's composition."
"Ah... Yes!"
The Medical Ninja quickly took out the analysis data and handed it to Tsunade.
"Prepare the antidote immediately!"
Tsunade rolled up her sleeves, fully entering work mode.
Orochimaru looked at this other side of Tsunade in surprise. It was a side she had never seen before. Previously, Tsunade had always acted like a child in front of her, appearing very unreliable.
Unbeknownst to her, Tsunade had also grown up!
Orochimaru smiled slightly and said, "Lady Xiao Gang, please call me if you need anything."
"Aren't you here to help?"
A Hidden Grass Ninja saw Orochimaru walking out and couldn't help but ask.
"I am not a Medical Ninja; I am merely Lady Xiao Gang's guard."
Orochimaru said indifferently. She had no interest in studying toxins she had already thoroughly researched, nor did she have any interest in saving people unrelated to her, unless they had value to her.
Clearly, the Ninja of Kusagakure were not useful in any way. To her, they were expendable.
Ultimately, Kusagakure and the Samurai of the Land of Iron could fight however they wanted. They just had to go to the Land of Rain looking for trouble.
Hanzo couldn't provoke the Five Great Ninja Villages, but he could certainly handle nobodies like them in the Ninja World, couldn't he?
Tsunade maintained a stern face; it wasn't appropriate to smile at such a time. She looked at the Medical Ninja who hadn't yet started moving and sternly rebuked, "Why aren't you quickly preparing the medicinal ingredients I need? Time is life, hurry up and get moving! You all look quite idle!"
"Yes!"
The Medical Ninja were intimidated by the aura Tsunade exuded and quickly sprang into action.
Tsunade, did you learn this from Grandma Mito?
Orochimaru seemed to see Grandma Mito's shadow in Tsunade, especially when she was scolding people; it was exactly the same.
The inn arranged by the Village Head was the best inn in Kusagakure. Orochimaru lay on the tatami, and one Kikaichu after another flew out from her sleeves, quietly flying out the window, spreading throughout every corner of Kusagakure, observing every move of the Hidden Grass Ninja, searching for the Hidden Stone intelligence Ninja.
Konoha's Medical Ninja have arrived... Did the operation fail?
The Iwagakure intelligence Ninja watched the Medical Ninja named Xiao Gang busy in the hospital.
He didn't notice that a Kikaichu was observing his every move.
Is it him?
The Iwagakure intelligence Ninja.
Orochimaru looked at the Kikaichu on his finger.
Late at night, all the patients in the hospital had stabilized. Tsunade walked out of the hospital, dragging her exhausted body.
The medical standards of small Villages were too poor. She didn't know how those people became Medical Ninja. It wasn't like she was in Konoha and couldn't speak too harshly; if she were in Konoha, she would have beaten them up already.
This level, and they still want to be Medical Ninja?
Get back and relearn!
If I had known, I should have dragged Orochimaru along... Tsunade thought of Orochimaru, who had gone to rest at the inn early, and felt she had been tricked.
Any talk of intelligence Ninja was just an excuse for her to be lazy!
Suddenly, several Kunai flew over, blood splattered, and Tsunade, with Kunai embedded in her body, fell to the ground.
Bang!
Tsunade transformed into a log in the smoke.
"Substitution Jutsu?!"
The Iwagakure intelligence Ninja had intended to kill the Medical Ninja named Xiao Gang while she was tired, but he didn't expect her to use Substitution Jutsu to evade his attack. This meant that her strength far surpassed his.
Thud!
The sound of a sharp blade piercing flesh rang out. Orochimaru appeared like a ghost behind the intelligence Ninja, his Kunai piercing his neck.
"Xiao Gang-sama, are you alright?"
Orochimaru looked at Tsunade, who was walking over.
"It would have been better if you had acted a little earlier."
Tsunade glared at Orochimaru, then looked at the intelligence Ninja killed by Orochimaru and asked, "Killing him like this, how do we prove he's an intelligence Ninja?"
"No proof is needed. Now, Hidden Grass Village needs to prove he is not a Ninja of Hidden Grass, otherwise, it will be declaring war on Konoha."
Orochimaru carried the intelligence Ninja's body directly to the Hidden Grass Village chief's house.
It can be done like that!
Tsunade suddenly understood why Orochimaru had only killed the intelligence Ninja after he attacked her.
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