Chapter 164 War Preparations
"It's because Fu has gained my approval, so it's not what you said about submitting to humans," Chōmei said.
"Uh, is this big fox your companion?" Fu asked, looking at Naruto.
"My teacher told me it's an important companion, but it won't even tell me its name!" Naruto muttered, glancing back at Kurama.
Chōmei noticed Naruto's bright blue eyes and said meaningfully, "Kid, gaining Kurama's approval isn't that easy." While
the two were communicating within the sealed space, those outside noticed their unusual behavior.
"You all come behind me. Sasuke, go to the village and call your father back," Mikoto said to Sasuke, calling the children behind her.
Just as Sasuke was about to go out to call for backup, Naruto and Fu snapped back to reality.
"Huh? Aunt Mikoto, what are you doing?" Naruto asked, bewildered by the prepared crowd.
"I'm sorry for causing you trouble." Fu realized that her conversation with Naruto in the sealed space might have been a bit frightening to the others, so she immediately apologized.
"Sasuke, come back, it's alright now." Mikoto breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing this and then said to Sasuke, who was about to leave. "Okay." Sasuke returned to the living room.
"Uh, Miss, you and Naruto are the same kind of person, right?" Neji asked at this moment.
"Yes, he and I are both human..." Fu admitted, but before she could finish speaking, Mikoto interrupted her.
"Alright, since there's nothing else, please sit down and have some snacks. Everyone should get along well." Mikoto said.
"Yes!" Everyone responded in unison.
...
In the Hokage's office, Nara Shikamaru and Yamanaka Inoichi, who had rarely left their clan territory since Uchiha Touhuan's coup, were unusually summoned by the Hokage today.
"Clan Chief Nara, Clan Chief Yamanaka." Upon entering the office, Uchiha Touhuan greeted them with a smile.
"Greetings, Fifth Hokage." The two bowed to Uchiha Touhuan.
"No need for such formalities, please have a seat." Uchiha Touhuan gestured for them to sit, then went to a nearby cabinet to retrieve tea leaves. While brewing tea, he said to them, "Long time no see, how have you two been lately?"
"Not bad, I guess. It's rare to have some free time. Aside from my wife's occasional nagging, this has been the life I've always dreamed of," Nara Shikaku said with a smile.
"I can't compare to him. Although I've put aside official duties, the clan's business has expanded considerably recently, and I have to keep an eye on it," Yamanaka Inoichi said.
Uchiha Touhuan only stripped the three clans of their power within the village, but didn't impose any restrictions on other aspects of their lives. With the Land of Fire relocating its capital to Konoha, the Nara clan, who ran a medicinal herb business, fared relatively well.
After all, their herbs and prescriptions were exclusively for ninjas, so the influx of nobles didn't significantly impact them, unless they were willing to stoop to selling aphrodisiacs, which was highly unlikely given the Nara clan's current state of decline.
However, the Yamanaka clan's flower business and the Akimichi clan's restaurant business both benefited greatly from the relocation, with their businesses expanding considerably.
"It seems you've all been doing well lately, which puts my mind at ease," Uchiha Touhuan said with a smile.
"I wonder what business the Hokage has summoned us for today?" Nara Shikaku asked.
"Heh, you can't hide it from the Nara clan head after all," Uchiha Touhuan poured a cup of tea for each of them. "I did summon you here today because there is something I need your help with."
"Please give your instructions, Fifth Hokage," the two nodded in unison.
"Nara clan head, what is your opinion on the current state of the war between Village Hidden by Rocks and Village Hidden by a Waterfall?" Uchiha Touhuan asked.
"Village Hidden by Rocks and Village Hidden by a Waterfall?" Nara Shikaku stroked his chin and analyzed, "If we only consider the strength of both sides, Takigakure can only hold out against Village Hidden by Rocks for two weeks at most, and that's even if Village Hidden by a Waterfall uses their tailed beasts."
"Village Hidden by a Waterfall Jinchūriki is currently in Konoha," Uchiha Touhuan said.
"Then it would be difficult to even last a week," Nara Shikaku said, spreading his hands. "The leader of Village Hidden by a Waterfall is barely qualified to be an elite Jonin in a major ninja village, let alone Village Hidden by Rocks with their combination ninjutsu, a battlefield weapon. Whether it's high-level or mid-to-low-level combat power, Takigakure is no match for Village Hidden by Rocks."
"What if Village Hidden by a Waterfall had outside help to hold off Village Hidden by Rocks's high-level combat power, and at the same time, Konoha supported them with combination ninjutsu, plus the logistical support from the Land of Fire?" Uchiha Touhuan asked with a smile.
"This…" Nara Shikaku frowned slightly upon hearing this, and quickly began to calculate.
"If we follow the conditions you've given, then Village Hidden by a Waterfall should be able to hold out for a long time, and they'll even retain the possibility of a counterattack," Nara Shikaku pondered for a moment before giving his answer. "However, if, as you say, our Land of Fire fully supports Village Hidden by a Waterfall, even if Village Hidden by a Waterfall manages to hold out, we won't gain anything."
"The apparent benefits aren't many, but the hidden interests behind them are enough to tempt every ninja village," Uchiha Touhuan smiled and shook his head. Although Nara Shikaku was extremely intelligent, his perspective on problems had always remained that of a ninja. Or rather, he had never imagined that war could be played out this way. This form of proxy war was indeed a bit beyond the ninja world's comprehension.
"Clan Chief Nara, you might as well read these before making a judgment," Uchiha Touhuan handed Nara Shikaku the contract he had signed with Iwata Sawaki and the specific plan he had discussed with Gato.
To ensure the war proceeded as planned, Uchiha Touhuan needed the assistance of a master strategist. Therefore, it was indeed time to utilize Nara Shikaku, a war strategist who had experienced the Third Shinobi World War.
Having finalized the plan, Uchiha Touhuan didn't intend to hide anything from Nara Shikaku and revealed all the current information. After reviewing
the information provided by Uchiha Touhuan, Nara Shikaku was filled with shock. Uchiha Touhuan's actions had completely exceeded his expectations as a ninja. After
a long silence, Nara Shikaku said, "If that's the case, then Konoha can gain the greatest benefit in this war without losing a single soldier."
Nara Shikaku's words were relatively mild; this contract was essentially a bloodsucking pump for Village Hidden by a Waterfall. From a national interest perspective, regardless of the war's outcome, Village Hidden by a Waterfall would be a loser when Iwata Sawaki signed this contract.
"The premise is that this war can continue indefinitely, right?" Uchiha Touhuan chuckled.
"That's right." Nara Shikaku nodded. If this were the case, for Konoha, the best course of action would be for this war to drag on for as long as possible.
"That's why I called you here," Uchiha Touhuan said.
"As you both know, I only participated in the Third Shinobi World War as an ordinary soldier, so I have no experience in managing the situation." Uchiha Touhuan continued.
Yamanaka Inoichi's lips twitched involuntarily upon hearing Uchiha Touhuan's words. An ordinary soldier... what ordinary soldier could possibly have the record of killing hundreds of enemies in a single battle?
"So, what does the Hokage want us to do?" Nara Shikaku asked.
"I plan to have you lead an elite squad to the battlefield in Village Hidden by a Waterfall to provide support. You will have full command of this unit," Uchiha Touhuan said. "Of course, considering our current non-aggression pact with Village Hidden by Rocks, the squad's identity must be strictly kept secret. At the very least, they cannot wear Konoha headbands. The Ino-Shika-Cho trio are also prohibited from intervening unless it's a matter of life and death."
"Are we going to support Takigakure?" Yamanaka Inoichi asked.
"No, the Hokage's intention is to act as a third party on this battlefield, helping whoever is at a disadvantage," Nara Shikaku said.
"That's right, exactly." Uchiha Touhuan nodded. "Because of our contract with Village Hidden by Rocks, the village can't directly support your operation this time. So, I don't expect you to achieve great results, but you must ensure your safety, understand?"
"Understood." Nara Shikaku nodded. "Then, I wonder which unit the Hokage intends us to take?" Nara Shikaku pressed. "It can't be our own clan's ninjas, can it? Although I'm more confident in commanding our own clan's ninjas, it would be hard to explain if we used our clan's Ino-Shika-Cho battle technique."
"I plan to have you take the Sarutobi clan's ninjas. The village's current ninja teams are strong but lack distinctive characteristics, so they won't expose their identities," Uchiha Touhuan said.
"If it's them, that's good," Nara Shikaku said. "However, Hokage-sama, are you sure I can command them?"
Although the Ino-Shika-Cho clan and the Sarutobi clan have basically stopped interacting after Hiruzen Sarutobi exhausted their past ties, on the battlefield, if there's a rift between soldiers and commanders, the consequences could be extremely fatal.
"You can rest assured about that. Besides you, I also plan to have Asuma lead this team," Uchiha Touhuan said.
"That's fine," Nara Shikaku said.
With the young head of the Sarutobi clan there, there's no fear of these Sarutobi ninjas disobeying orders, and for Nara Shikaku, controlling Asuma isn't difficult either.
"When do we depart?" Nara Shikaku asked.
"In three days," Uchiha Touhuan said. "You can also escort our first batch of reinforcements to them."
…
After the Third Hokage retired, the previously strained father-son relationship improved significantly.
Of course, the main reason was that the Third Hokage swallowed his pride and personally helped Asuma propose to Kurenai Yuhi.
After getting engaged to Kurenai, Asuma, like a middle-aged man who had reached a certain age, settled down and did some work as a Jonin in the village.
However, after receiving orders from Uchiha Touhuan, he readily accepted the mission.
Three days later, under the cover of night, the group disguised themselves as wandering ninjas and left Konoha.
During these three days, Onoki's mood was not so good.
At the beginning of the war, Village Hidden by Rocks achieved remarkable results on the first day, but in the following days, their forces clearly stalled in advancing the battle lines.
Their invincible combination of Earth Release ninjutsu met its match on the battlefield.
Although the Village Hidden by a Waterfall ninjas had only practiced Lightning Release: Kirin, a combined ninjutsu taught to them by Uchiha Touhuan, for a short time, and even with nearly a hundred ninjas unleashing it, its power was far inferior to the original, it was still the most effective Lightning Release against Earth Release.
What disgusted Onoki and the frontline commander, Kyoto, even more was that the Village Hidden by a Waterfall ninjas had suddenly become incredibly wealthy, throwing explosive tags around like they were free.
Village Hidden by a Waterfall clearly didn't have the financial resources for this, and considering the combined Lightning Release ninjutsu that had appeared on the battlefield before, it was obvious to Onoki who was supporting Takigakure behind it.
Of course, what truly changed the course of the battle was the addition of the Akatsuki organization. On the battlefield a day earlier, Huang Tu had the opportunity to directly kill Iwata Sawaki, the leader of Village Hidden by a Waterfall, but the appearance of a purple-haired woman in a red cloud robe completely altered the situation. After joining the battle, Konan rescued Iwata Sawaki and simultaneously took control of all the explosive tag traps laid by Village Hidden by a Waterfall. Under her control, these explosive tags seemed to come alive, inflicting heavy losses on Village Hidden by Rocks on the main battlefield in just a few breaths. Even Huang Tu suffered significant injuries in the attack.
"Damn the Akatsuki! Have they forgotten who was providing them with financial support before?" Onoki slammed his fist on the table in anger
. "And that damned Uchiha Touhuan! He's providing supplies instead of troops, huh?! Damn it!" "Lord Earth Shadow , please calm down," a member of the Anbu in the Earth Shadow 's office said.
"Get me Uchiha Touhuan from Konoha!" Onoki took a deep breath and turned to give the order.
Soon, Onoki's video call with Uchiha Touhuan resumed.
"What's wrong, Earth Shadow ? Why are you so angry after just a few days? Is the situation on the battlefield not looking good?" Uchiha Touhuan chuckled, looking at Onoki's slightly flushed cheeks.
"Hokage-sensei seems to be showing a bit little respect for our alliance," Onoki said, taking a deep breath.
"Oh? I wonder what you mean by that, Earth Shadow . Our Konoha directly rejected the alliance request from Village Hidden by a Waterfall. Isn't that enough?" Uchiha Touhuan said with a smile.
(End of Chapter)