A month passed in the blink of an eye.

The day of the final phase of the chunnin exam neared in.

At the border of Land of Fire,

Rasa moves together with his subordinates. This is the place marked by Orochimaru.

Rasa patiently waits for Orochimaru's arrival.

"Kazekage-sama… is this your final decision?" Baki questions him.

"What needs to be done has to be done! We have no choice. This is the only way for Suna to survive." Rasa resolutely clenches his fists.

"Your wish is my order, Kazekage-sama." Baki nods his head.

"But we can't trust Orochimaru. He is a sly snake who can backstab us any moment." Baki warns him.

"I know. I have made necessary arrangements in case that happens." Rasa nods his head.

Rustle… rustle…

The sound of footsteps crushing gravel and sand falls in their ear.

Rasa and the group turn towards the sound and notice Orochimaru walking towards them.

Rustle… Rustle…

Orochimaru stops in front of Rasa.

"So… Lord Kazekage… are your preparations ready?"

"We are all set on our side. How are the preparations on your side?" Rasa nods his head.

"My spy has already infiltrated Konoha. With just a signal of mine; everything will be set in motion." Orochimaru licks his lips.

"I cannot enter Konoha without being detected, but that doesn't mean I won't lend a hand. Once the attack starts, I will deploy my summons to assist you in the battle. Till then, I will wait outside Konoha, ready for your signal."

"Very well… you can join my forces hiding outside Konoha," Rasa explains to Orochimaru.

"Lord Kazekage, I am impressed by your resourcefulness. Being able to spread false rumors and distract the border forces of Konoha to sneakily traffic your own man. That's such an impressive feat."

Orochimaru curiously stares at Rasa.

"I just happen to know the right person who could do the job for me." Rasa shrugs his shoulder.

"Very well… we will take our leave then."

Rasa nods his head and prepares to retreat.

"Oh! I almost forgot about it." Orochimaru stops Rasa.

Rasa turns around and stares in confusion.

Orochimaru points towards the cloaked figure.

"He is the person whom we talked about."

"Who?"

Rasa notices the man cloaked in black beside Orochimaru.

'Strange… I can't even feel his presence at all. It is almost like he isn't even here.'

He scrutinizes the cloaked figure. Rasa tries to peer through the figure to see his appearance, but fails to do so.

"It is a pleasure to meet you."

Rasa extends his hand towards the figure as he secretly uses his gold dust to coat his hand.

"Don't bother yourself with such childish tricks. I have made a deal with Orochimaru. I will help you deal with whoever you want."

The figure slaps Rasa's hand away, dispersing all the gold dust.

Rasa feels a numbing sensation in his hand as it gets paralyzed.

'What kind of jutsu is this?' His eyes widen in surprise.

"Lord Kazekage… he will act as your retainer and bodyguard to infiltrate Konoha. I hope you are fine with it." Orochimaru proposes a plan.

"Ah… yes… yes. There is no problem." Rasa shakes his head.

"Then… we will meet later."

Orochimaru turns around and leaves as he slowly disappears from their vision.

"Let's go," Rasa orders his subordinates.

"Yes… Kazekage-sama."

The group follows after him with the cloaked figure closely walking beside Rasa.

------------------

Outside Konoha,

Izuna is resting against the wall as he waits for Kazekage's arrival.

Shisui, Itachi, Guy, and Kakashi are standing beside him.

"Are you guys ready for the contingency plan?" Izuna questions them.

"Yes, Leader… we are ready." All of them nods their head.

Sigh…

"You don't have to call me that in open. Your alternate identities are a secret."

Izuna shakes his head.

"Just address me how you usually would?"

"Nii-san… do you think that snake Orochimaru is still alive and will attack Konoha?" Itachi asks him.

"Yes, I do. That snake is like a cockroach. No matter how many times you crush him, he will just stand up and walk away like nobody's business." Izuna chuckles.

"Shisui, Itachi… both of you will engage with the anbu members of the Suna village and neutralize them as quickly as possible. You will later provide support to others."

Shisui and Itachi nod their head.

"Kakashi, Guy… you will take care of the jounins in the arena. Both of your skills are a cut above the rest of the jounins."

"I will show my YOUTH to those Suna bastards." Guy clutches his fist.

"…"

The group ignores him as Itachi raises a question.

"Nii-san, what about you? All of us are occupied with an enemy or other; who will you fight against?"

Shisui and Kakashi also curiously stare at him.

"Izuna is unarguably the strongest Ninja of our village. Even father, Jiraiya-san and Lord Third agree with it. So, who can possibly occupy Izuna and prevent him from dealing with the forces of Suna?" Kakashi states the fact.

"That's true. I am also curious to know who would be my opponent. Who can bank the confidence of Suna?" Izuna wonders.

'I have a person in my mind.'

The incident of Nine-tails freshens up in his memory as the appearance of a purple figure comes into his mind.

'No… that guy is gone for good. It can't be him, right? If it's him, then I would have to use my trump card to deal with him. I hope that won't be the case.'

Izuna shakes his head to discard such thoughts.

Hmm…

He senses multiple chakra signatures quickly approaching the village.

"They are here." Izuna signals them.

Whoosh… whoosh…

Multiple Ninjas dressed in Suna shinobi outfit stops in front of Konoha's entrance.

Izuna walks towards them as a fake smile appears on his face.

"Welcome Kazekage-sama… it is our pleasure to have you in Konoha."

Izuna politely greets him.

Kakashi, Guy, Shisui, and Itachi control their laughter as they stare at Izuna.

'This guy is such a good actor.'

Izuna notices the group as his lips twitch slightly. He ignores them and turns towards the Kazekage.

"The final exam will start tomorrow, so there is still time to relax and enjoy yourself in Konoha. We have arranged a small tour for the group. I am sure you will like the hospitality of Konoha."

"Alright! We will take you on that offer." Rasa nods his head.

Izuna leads them towards their lodgings as he secretly inspects them.

'There doesn't seem to be anything wrong with this group of shinobis. I can handle them easily.'

His vision stops on the cloaked figure as a strange feeling well within him.

'What? I wasn't able to sense this person at all.'

He tries to sense the chakra signature of the cloaked figure and fails.

'How could it be? It is almost like this person is not even present here. What kind of technique is he using to mask his presence? Let me see his guise with my Sharingan."

He secretly activates his Sharingan and inspects the cloaked figure.

"What?"

Izuna's eyes widen in surprise as he is unable to see through the cloaked figure.

'Somehow he can evade my perception.'

Izuna's expression turns tense.

"Hmm… did you say something?"

Rasa questions him.

Ahem…

Izuna clears his throat and points towards the cloaked figure.

"He is?"

"Oh! He… he is one of my bodyguards. There is nothing to worry about it. Now, I can't visit another village without some security, can I?" Rasa laughs and dodges the question.

'So, he is the person who is meant to be my opponent? I have a bad feeling about it, but at the same time, I am excited to fight and go all out. It has been a while since I last went all out. I am ready to dance.'

Izuna has mixed feelings about the cloaked figure.

The cloaked figure feels a gaze. He raises his head and notices Izuna's stare. He notices an illusion around Izuna's eyes as his eyes pierce through the illusion.

'Interesting…'

The figure murmurs to itself before completely ignoring Izuna.

Grrr….

Inside the Sin Grimoire,

Kurama growls as he stares at the cloaked figure.

"This person is bad news. I can feel it."

"What?"

Minato turns to Kurama.

"I can't sense the depth of his power, but I can feel a mix of conflicting emotions from that guy. I had never felt so much agony, pain, and suffering in one person.

On the other hand, I can feel some sinister emotions lurking in his heart."

Kurama explains to Minato.

"I just can't wrap my head around it."

"Will Izuna-kun will be alright?"

Kushina asks in worry.

"I don't know." Kurama shakes his head.

"Can you ask Sin about it?"

Kushina asks him.

"No… I can't. Sin has been in a dormant state after Izuna visited Ryuchi cave. It won't respond to me."

Tch…

Kushina bites her lips in worry.

"Izuna-kun will be alright. I am sure he is prepared for it. We have to trust in his abilities since we can't help him. Nonetheless, we must warn him about that man."

Minato assures Kushina.

---

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