"So what are you planning to do?" Black Zetsu wasn't at all surprised by Tobi's unreasonable outburst. After all, the guy had always been the very definition of a hypocrite.
"…What else can I do?" Tobi sighed, staring blankly up at the night sky as he muttered, "Guess I'll leave it to fate."
"That pessimistic? Doesn't sound like you."
"This situation is completely out of my hands now. How am I supposed to predict how many troops Konoha will send?" Tobi's expression suddenly sharpened, a dangerous glint flashing in his eyes. "Heh… if things really reach the worst-case scenario, then I'll just have to do something… extreme."
Black Zetsu sneered. "You say that like anything you've been doing so far has been remotely proper."
"At least right now, I'm still thinking about Iwagakure. I haven't shoved them straight into a pit of fire," Tobi replied without the slightest shame.
The way he said it…
…made it sound like, if necessary, he wouldn't hesitate to sacrifice Iwagakure completely.
That would be quite the move.
The question was—did he even have the ability to pull it off?
"With your current identity as Nishitani Kenichirō? I doubt you can manage anything that big," Black Zetsu said skeptically.
Tobi shook his head solemnly and pointed at his own face. "Tell me—what do you see?"
…A middle-aged man's face. What else?
"Handsome!"
"…."
"Handsome is justice. I stand for justice. And justice always wins!"
Black Zetsu closed his eyes, feeling a headache coming on. So this idiot had chosen to transform into Nishitani Kenichirō… just because of his face?
Could he be any less reliable?
"…By the way," Black Zetsu continued dryly, "aren't you worried that acting this erratically might raise suspicion?"
If Tobi really tried something drastic, exposure would be inevitable.
And for beings like them—who thrived in the shadows—being exposed was the last thing they wanted.
"Why would it?" Tobi replied confidently. "Look around—who would ever suspect me?"
But after he said that, there was no response.
Silence.
Tobi blinked, then glanced around, only to realize that Black Zetsu was nowhere to be found.
"Huh? Where'd Little Black go?"
Suddenly, a voice came from behind him. "Who's Little Black?"
Tobi spun around, startled. "Whoa—Kuroishi?! What are you sneaking around for?!"
Kuroishi frowned. "Nishitani-senpai… shouldn't I be the one asking you that?"
"What are you doing out here in the middle of the night?"
Tobi, still playing the role of "Nishitani Kenichirō," immediately struck back, accusing first. "You used your clan's secret technique to sneak up behind me—what exactly were you planning?"
That Little Black is so unreliable. Someone sneaks up on me and he doesn't even give me a heads-up... Forget about merging with me ever again.
Still, that Iwa ninja named Kuroishi… his stealth technique was impressive.
To get this close without being detected…
Kuroishi quickly explained, "I thought you might be an enemy, so I—"
"Have you ever seen an enemy this handsome?" "Nishitani" shot back without missing a beat.
Then, all of a sudden, he crouched down and picked up a wriggling shadow from the ground, his tone turning oddly relieved.
"Finally found you… Little Black."
"Did you have fun tonight, Little Black?"
Kuroishi took a closer look—
It was a field mouse.
…What the hell?
Since when did Nishitani-senpai have this kind of hobby?!
The man in front of him was nothing like the composed, reliable senior he had heard about.
"Senpai… you—"
"You what?" Nishitani's voice suddenly turned cold, his earlier nonsense vanishing in an instant. "If you keep sneaking around like that, next time I won't hesitate to cut you down."
"Yes! My apologies—it was just a misunderstanding."
Faced with a senior of such rank and experience, Kuroishi didn't dare push further.
Nishitani shot Kuroishi a sharp glare before turning away, clutching his "Little Black" with a look of complete satisfaction as he headed back to camp.
Once he was gone, Kuroishi remained where he was, carefully scanning the surroundings again. He checked every shadow, every rustle of movement—but found nothing unusual.
No trace of the "third presence" he had half-expected to discover.
"…Was I just overthinking it?" he muttered to himself.
"Looks like it," came a young man's voice from the tree above. It was Sora.
"You got results on your end too?"
It turned out that both Kuroishi and Sora had grown suspicious of Nishitani's behavior, and had quietly begun investigating him in secret.
"Yeah. We've confirmed he's not a spy using transformation techniques or disguise," Sora said, his gaze still lingering on the direction Nishitani had left. "Kuroishi, I think you might've been overthinking things. The medical unit already checked him."
After a brief pause, Sora added in a lower voice, "And besides, if word gets out that we're doubting a senior jōnin like this, it could hurt morale."
"I know," Kuroishi replied. "That's why I haven't told anyone else."
He hesitated for a moment before continuing, "In that case… maybe Nishitani-senpai just went through something that changed him. That's why he's… like this now."
"…Only he would know," Sora said quietly.
—
Not long after, Iwagakure's large force resumed its march toward Kannabi Bridge.
After days of continuous high-speed movement, they were already closing in on the bridge that connected the Land of Earth and the Land of Fire.
Once they crossed Kannabi Bridge, it would take just one more day's travel to reach Iwagakure.
Kitsuchi suddenly turned to his adjutant. "Shunshin Shimizu… still following us?"
"Yes. He's been trailing us the whole time, maintaining a distance of roughly thirty kilometers."
At that distance, even a large force could close the gap in half an hour. It meant Konoha's side was clinging to them relentlessly.
"Quite bold of him," Kitsuchi said with a faint snort. "Not afraid we might turn around and swallow him whole."
"Then why don't we turn around and do exactly that?" Nishitani cut in immediately.
Before Kitsuchi could respond, Kuroishi spoke first. "Nishitani-senpai, are you still thinking about killing Shunshin Shimizu?"
"What else?" Nishitani shot back bluntly. "Just let him keep running wild like this? Doesn't that bother you?"
"The safety of Iwagakure should come before personal grudges—"
Kuroishi's words were abruptly cut off.
"Enough. Don't bother explaining," Nishitani said coldly. "Just thinking about it makes my blood boil. Ten full divisions, and we can't do anything to a mere four hundred men… This humiliation—I'll carry it for the rest of my life."
That sting…
…was something everyone present could feel.
If it wasn't dealt with, it would fester, eating away at their morale.
"But the situation back in the village is urgent—we don't have the luxury—"
"What if we do have a way?" one of the division commanders interjected, turning toward Nishitani.
Nishitani's eyes lit up immediately. "We set up an ambush at Kannabi Bridge and wipe them out as quickly as possible," he said rapidly. "It won't take much time. Our strength far surpasses theirs."
"But that would expose the location of Kannabi Bridge…" Kuroishi still felt uneasy.
"Don't cling to wishful thinking," Nishitani replied sharply. "You won't be able to hide it forever. With Shunshin Shimizu's persistence, he'll discover the bridge sooner or later anyway."
His reasoning was hard to refute.
Which left only one question—
How could they set up the ambush in the shortest time possible, lure the enemy in, and end the battle just as quickly?
"Report!"
An Iwagakure ANBU suddenly appeared.
"To the east, approximately one thousand Konoha shinobi are advancing rapidly toward our position! Distance: less than fifty kilometers!"
That meant Konoha would soon have close to fifteen hundred troops in total.
Under those circumstances, retreating safely would no longer be an option.
With proper tactics, it was entirely possible to annihilate an enemy force even larger than their own.
Kitsuchi made his decision instantly.
"Kuroishi, Sora—you two each take your divisions and advance at full speed toward Kannabi Bridge. Do not let it fall into Konoha's hands."
"Yes!"
"The rest of you—form up with me. We'll hold them off right here."
...
Read Advanced Chapters on : www.patreon.com/c/ReadJin
~ Every 300 PS = Bonus Chapter!
~ Push the Story forward with your [Power Stones]