Pointing out the innocent

As Enel had expected, it didn't take long for them to discover the corpses in the dango shop due to the smell of burnt flesh, and the alarm sounded. There were no less than six Genin and four Chunin dead. Even Danzo was upset by the matter when he learned of the circumstances.

"Who has the audacity to kill so blatantly in our territory?" he wondered aloud.

Worse yet, they couldn't obtain any information from the bodies because their brains were fried, and it seemed that the owner had been drugged with some kind of medicine that caused him to forget the entire day. At least, these were the preliminary results of the investigation.

"Are you telling me that ten ninja were killed in the middle of the village, and we have no clues about who did it?" the Hokage said with contained anger in his voice.

"We were able to confirm by the plates and chopsticks present that there were at least two more people at the scene," said the ANBU kneeling before him. "Right now, we are conducting DNA tests to see if we have any matches with blood samples from other villages."

Hiruzen sighed, not satisfied with these results since the chances of there being matches were minimal if it had been done so professionally. Another ANBU appeared in the office a few minutes later and handed him some documents while reporting.

"Hokage-sama, there's one match, and the other is unknown."

Hiruzen impatiently took the papers and, upon seeing the identified sample, had to give it a second look to be sure he saw it correctly.

"Orochimaru's former disciple, Anko Mitarashi?" the Hokage murmured, puzzled.

He knew the young woman; she had been going through a rough patch, becoming the target of hatred that her master had earned. He had intended to approach her within a month, the best time to instill the Will of Fire in her and turn her into a useful tool for the village.

But he was aware of her progress in her skills, and although Anko had an affinity with Fire, her current chakra reserves wouldn't allow her to leave the bodies in the state they were found. It could only mean...

"Orochimaru!" Hiruzen crumpled the documents in his hand in anger.

The two present ANBU exchanged silent glances. From their perspective and the information they knew about the Sannin, Orochimaru was too careful to leave such an obvious trail by acting recklessly. It didn't seem to be his modus operandi.

However, since the Third Hokage was Orochimaru's master, he should know his behavior and abilities better, so perhaps there was something they didn't see that the wise Hokage did.

"Hokage-sama, do you think Orochimaru returned to recover Anko?"

"It's a possibility," Hiruzen left the papers on the table as he took a puff from his pipe. "What I don't understand is why. He could have taken her when he left, and from the tracking I ordered, I'm certain he hasn't done anything noteworthy other than taking on missions and indulging excessively in dangos."

"Maybe it's because of what he left in Anko's body?"

"The cursed seal?" The Hokage pondered, and he really couldn't think of another reason that would justify the need to recover her, as she held no further value beyond the seal. "Perhaps there was something he didn't want us to discover about the seal. It's a pity that the analysis revealed so little information, and Anko herself couldn't control it. If they could reproduce the seal and it was a controllable power boost, naturally Anko's value would skyrocket."

"Were there any updates from the barrier team?"

"No, Hokage-sama," the ANBU who brought the documents replied. "Other than a slight momentary disturbance, there was no movement. But the barrier team checked several times, and the interval was so brief that they are certain it was just a small animal."

Hiruzen nodded. It was precisely because the village's barrier was so sensitive that spies had so much trouble getting in. Occasionally, a lucky animal that had cultivated a bit of chakra would appear and trigger a false alarm.

"Send out a few more patrols these days, and remind them to be vigilant for any traces of Orochimaru."

"Yes, Hokage-sama!"

Meanwhile, a few kilometers away from Konoha...

"Um, I know it might be a bit late to ask, but... are you sure about taking me?" Anko asked as she began to realize that her presence could get Enel into serious trouble. "I mean, if they find out it was you, your village..."

"Don't worry; it's not like it's the first time," he reassured her. "When we get to the village, you'll understand everything, and we'll help you with that little parasite you have," he said, pointing at the cursed seal.

"Parasite?" Anko looked puzzled as she touched the seal. "This is just a defective seal; my ma... my former master couldn't get it to work the way he wanted."

"It's more complicated than that, but we have time to talk."

"...I just realized that I don't know your name or the name of your village," Anko said, somewhat embarrassed, as she rubbed the back of her neck with slightly flushed cheeks.

He couldn't help bursting into laughter, and Anko joined in his laughter. They had barely spoken for half an hour and had caused quite a commotion, but Anko hadn't even noticed until this moment.