Chapter 12: Three Defensive Lines
After Uchiha Sanpō's detailed analysis, everyone nodded in agreement.
However, the war still had more than two months left before it would end, while the outpost's current supply situation and defensive posture were extremely dire.
Although Commander Fugaku had sworn he would resolve the supply issue, no one truly felt reassured.
The Kurama clan head was the first to turn his gaze toward the young Uchiha, asking earnestly: "Sanpō-kun, we all find your analysis very logical. But with the war still lasting over two months, do you have any good strategies to help us survive the current crisis?" (Kurama Unkai, uncle of Kurama Yakumo, currently 36 years old.)
Uchiha Sanpō turned to Fugaku and asked calmly: "Clan Head, how exactly do you plan to solve the supply problem? You're not thinking of personally returning to Konoha to demand supplies from the Third Hokage, are you? And if you can't get them, you're not planning to dip into clan funds and buy a batch of resources yourself to send here, right?"
Uchiha Fugaku gave a helpless, bitter smile and shook his head: "You guessed it exactly. That's precisely what I was thinking."
Hearing this, Uchiha Sanpō frowned deeply. He recalled a similar scene from the original story: after Uchiha Fugaku returned to the village, he brought 4-year-old Uchiha Itachi to the front lines, only to find corpses of both Konoha and Iwagakure ninjas strewn along the entire route. That alone showed how brutal the fighting had been at the time.
Raising his voice, he spoke seriously: "If the Fourth Raikage declares war on Iwagakure tomorrow, then tonight and tomorrow morning will be the critical window. I predict Iwagakure will launch a large-scale night assault tonight, aiming to crush us completely before Kumogakure intervenes. If Commander Fugaku leaves the front lines now, not only will the outpost be left leaderless and fall into chaos, we would also lose a Kage-level combatant for nothing!"
Hearing that Iwagakure might launch a major sneak attack tonight, the room suddenly realized the gravity and the atmosphere grew tense.
Kazami clan head sucked in a cold breath: "Exactly! Once Kumo declares war on Iwagakure tomorrow, Iwagakure will have to split forces to defend against the Land of Lightning. Their numerical advantage here will vanish, and the offensive-defensive balance will reverse. If I were Iwagakure's commander, I would definitely launch an all-out assault tonight while still holding the edge. If Commander Fugaku isn't here anchoring the outpost, the consequences would be unthinkable!"
The surrounding jōnin immediately agreed: "Since Iwagakure will launch a total assault tonight, we must set traps immediately and prepare thoroughly—make sure they come and never leave!"
Hearing his junior's brilliant analysis, Uchiha Hachidai grew even more appreciative and decided to give him another push.
"Sanpō, do you have any ideas regarding trap placement?"
Uchiha Sanpō bowed modestly and replied: "In terms of trap deployment, my experience is still shallow and limited. I'd like to hear the valuable opinions of the seniors first and learn properly."
This humble, respectful attitude instantly won the goodwill of the jōnin present. After all, on a battlefield soaked in blood and fire, a leader who knows how to gather collective wisdom and respect his elders is far more trustworthy.
Hearing the young jōnin position himself so humbly, he immediately gained favor from many in the room.
The Third Great Ninja War between Konoha and Iwagakure had already lasted over a year. This Konoha outpost camp had been attacked by Iwagakure five times before—both sides had accumulated experience in assaulting and defending outposts.
But when they heard suggestions to plant massive numbers of explosive tags at the valley entrance, station heavy troops on the two high grounds, and have the main force launch surprise counterattacks upon enemy detection—this kind of head-on, hard-clash defense made Uchiha Sanpō's frown deepen the more he listened.
"Um… I have some thoughts on the defense layout. I'm not sure if I should say them."
Hearing Uchiha Sanpō speak, everyone still gave him face; the room quieted temporarily.
"We have only a little over 4,000 ninjas, while Iwagakure has roughly 6,000+. Their advantage is numbers and supplies; ours is time. We have absolutely no need to clash head-on with Iwagakure. We can trade space for time—our casualties will be minimal, while our advantage grows larger over time."
After listening, the room began discussing again.
Kazami clan head, whose mind worked faster than most, spoke up: "Exactly! Kumo will declare war on Iwagakure tomorrow and launch their attack the day after. As long as we hold out one night, Iwagakure will definitely withdraw. We have no reason to fight them head-on!"
Kazami clan head's point struck the core; many jōnin's gazes returned to Uchiha Sanpō.
"My suggestion is to divide into three defensive lines.
First defensive line: composed of the valley entrance and the two high grounds on left and right—all defended by shadow clones. The goal is to delay the enemy, not to kill.
Second defensive line: in front of the outpost, with jōnin dispersed to defend. The goal is still delay—so after jōnin exhaust their ninjutsu and shuriken, they must immediately withdraw and not get entangled in prolonged fights.
After being delayed by the first and second lines, the enemy will be funneled into the third defensive line. The third line is inside the outpost itself. With buildings and complex terrain, we concentrate all traps inside the outpost, use shadow clones to lure them in, then actively detonate the traps—maximizing their killing power."
After hearing the three-line defense plan, everyone turned their eyes to the sand table and began discussing.
Uchiha Hachidai stared at the sand table, tugging at his beard: "Currently we have 439 special jōnin, 165 jōnin, and 37 elite jōnin. With this three-line setup, we should be able to inflict 800–1,200 casualties on the enemy at very low cost."
Hearing there were still so many jōnin-level fighters, the jōnin in the command tent huddled in excited discussion, eyes gleaming.
At this point, Kurama clan head asked incredulously: "Didn't we lose over 3,000 dead? How do we still have so many jōnin-level combatants?"
Hearing the doubt, Uchiha Hachidai rubbed his sore chin: "We've lost 3,226 in total—2,515 genin dead, 604 chūnin dead. The casualty rate among jōnin-level fighters is actually not that high. That's why we're not short on high-level combat power—and it's also why we've held out this long."
Kazami clan head narrowed his eyes and raised another concern: "This plan has high feasibility, but the drawback is that it requires jōnin to expend massive amounts of chakra. Once chakra runs low, a jōnin is only slightly stronger than a chūnin. If the battle drags into a stalemate, we could suffer heavy jōnin casualties."
Anyone attending this command meeting was at least jōnin level. Hearing someone point out that the plan could lead to massive jōnin deaths immediately drew objections from several voices.
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