"Please, Tsunade, won't you treat the Fourth Raikage?"
That idea had never even crossed Killer Bee's mind—nor that of any of the Kumogakure leadership.
Two major villages were locked in conflict. One of Konoha's Sannin, Orochimaru, had injured their leader—yet another Sannin would volunteer to heal him?
The very suggestion was absurd.
Just thinking about it made the whole scenario sound like a bad joke. Who in their right mind would believe such a thing was possible?
The truth was, Orochimaru had used it as a flimsy excuse to leave the village. It was a convenient justification, stretched thin and riddled with holes. He might have convinced Jiraiya, but only because he played up the impact of his "hemophobia" and acted erratically enough to avoid suspicion.
Besides, the Fourth Raikage's injury wasn't even fatal. Damaged kidneys required rest, not a desperate gamble. There was no need to risk Tsunade aggravating the wound further during treatment.
In truth, Kumogakure had more pressing matters than healing their leader. The real threat was Iwagakure's looming aggression.
From the start, Kumogakure had assumed they couldn't keep the Raikage's condition secret.
Konoha had no reason to help them hide it—and even if Konoha wasn't in the mood to wage war after the Nine-Tails disaster, they'd certainly be happy to see Iwagakure pressure Kumogakure.
Konoha would likely exaggerate the Raikage's injury, station troops near the border of the Land of Lightning, and quietly push Iwagakure into moving first. Standard wartime maneuvering.
If things progressed unchecked, Kumogakure would be caught in a pincer—just as Konoha once was—facing coordinated aggression from multiple villages.
A complete reversal of fortune.
Kumogakure had no intention of letting that happen.
Though the Raikage needed time to recover, and their disguise had failed, the elders and nobles came to a simple conclusion: if war is inevitable, then start it on their own terms.
Strike first—just like Konoha once did. Tempt Iwagakure into attacking, then hit them hard with all available force.
That's why Killer Bee had Gyūki leave behind a tentacle clone. By using the excuse of requesting Tsunade's treatment, they created an opportunity for him to appear elsewhere—possibly misleading enemy surveillance.
"If I'm right," Orochimaru said, "you've completely abandoned defense along the Fire Nation border."
He licked his lips, a smile tugging at his face—sharp and mocking.
"You've got guts. You saw those two old fossils hesitating, and gambled they wouldn't dare launch a full assault."
Still, even Orochimaru had to admit—it might just work.
Even if Konoha's leadership learned the Land of Thunder was wide open, would Homura and Koharu have the resolve to attack?
Doubtful.
Old age makes people cautious. They cling to what they have. As long as they don't lose, they're content—not eager to win, just desperate not to risk.
Watching from the sidelines as Kumogakure and Iwagakure clash?
That kind of cold, pragmatic restraint suited them perfectly.
It suited Hiruzen too.
The once-mighty "Professor" of the ninja world had grown old. Why else would he hand over the mantle of Hokage to someone as young as Minato?
The Fourth Raikage, though… he still had fire in him. Despite looking a little older, he was still from Minato's generation—energetic, proud, and fierce to the bone.
"Tsk tsk…" Orochimaru glanced at Killer Bee.
"The strategy itself isn't bad. But your execution? Sloppy. Too many loose ends."
Killer Bee's expression tightened. Orochimaru had seen through their plans far too easily.
Even someone with Bee's laid-back demeanor couldn't help but crack a wry smile.
"Plans never survive contact with reality," he muttered to himself.
Originally, Killer Bee had planned to head to the Land of Sound, confront Tsunade, and then retreat after revealing his presence. But what he didn't expect was that shortly after departing from the Land of Thunder, news arrived from Iwagakure—the bounty on his head had doubled on the black market.
Even more surprising was how quickly the bounty hunters acted. That they were able to chase Tsunade—someone as famous and powerful as Orochimaru—all the way to the Land of Iron was far beyond Killer Bee's expectations.
And then, by sheer chance, upon arriving in the Land of Iron, he overheard from two S-rank rogue ninja that Tsunade suffered from hemophobia.
Watching Konoha's princess about to die at the hands of bounty hunters, Killer Bee hesitated. Should he intervene or not?
There was no doubt that Tsunade's death would be a seismic event in the ninja world—on par with the death of the Fourth Hokage. Konoha would surely erupt in a frenzy of revenge.
But then came the real question: Who would they target?
Would it be the two rogue ninja who actually attacked her? The shadowy forces behind the bounty? Or would Konoha trace the entire sequence of events back to its origin—Kumogakure?
With no time to think, Killer Bee acted on instinct.
Kumogakure's current posture against Iwagakure hinged on the fact that Konoha's two senior advisors were old, cautious, and slow to act. Their restraint gave Kumogakure confidence that Konoha wouldn't retaliate.
But if Tsunade—one of the legendary Sannin—were to die, all of that carefully calculated stability would vanish.
Killer Bee couldn't take that risk.
He suspected that even Tsuchikage Ōnoki wouldn't dare take such a gamble. If the old man found out that Tsunade had hemophobia and that the two rogue ninja nearly succeeded, he might literally explode from the stress. Killer Bee grinned darkly, already imagining Ōnoki's funeral in Iwagakure, wondering if they'd need a strong, black-skinned man like himself to carry the coffin. He could even do a cameo appearance.
Of course, if he did save Tsunade, he wasn't about to send her back to Konoha. No—he'd bring her to the Land of Thunder. She might not heal the Fourth Raikage, but as a hostage or bargaining chip, she'd be valuable in deterring Konoha from attacking.
In that sense, Killer Bee was simply adapting to the situation—doing what was best for the village. After all, it was too dangerous to bet everything on the assumption that Konoha would stay passive.
But now that everything had unfolded, there was no point regretting it.
Killer Bee turned a serious gaze toward Orochimaru.
No matter how clever a strategy might be, if it's exposed, it's worthless—nothing more than empty words and wasted effort. And unlike Konoha's two aging advisors, this man in front of him had already figured everything out.
The only thing Killer Bee could do now was return to Kumogakure as quickly as possible and report the failure of their strategy.
Then, perhaps, he could turn the tables—admit that they'd been planning to lure Iwagakure into war and had pre-positioned troops, then spin it into a new story: they were simply redeploying forces to the border with the Land of Fire for defense.
It wouldn't be ideal—like being sliced by a dull blade—but it was better than letting Orochimaru gut them with a single cut.
"Wait."
Just as Killer Bee was preparing to dispel his shadow clone, Orochimaru spoke up.
"Judging by your defeated expression, it seems you're planning to abandon the strategy against Iwagakure. What's the matter? You're not even going to talk to me about it?"