This time, it was Izuna's turn to be stunned.
Seeing his expression, Mito couldn't help but let out a soft chuckle. "First you come here to flatter me, then you ask if I'm a sensory ninja. Did you really think I wouldn't figure it out?"
Though Izuna had always been shamelessly forward with her, he had only just arrived at a war camp. No matter his inclinations, he should have been focused entirely on the battle, not seeking her out as soon as night fell. Asking if she was a sensory ninja during their meal only confirmed her suspicions.
"You really are a clever woman, Mito," Izuna said in admiration.
Mito rolled her eyes at him. "Enough. What is it you want?"
Izuna laid out his entire plan.
As she listened, Mito fell into a long silence, her beautiful face a canvas of hesitation and conflict. After a long while, she managed to say, "Do you know that the Uzumaki are allied with the Senju right now?"
Izuna moved closer and wrapped his arms around her. "I'm sorry, Mito, but I can't do this alone. I need your power."
"So you want me to betray my own clansmen and help you fight the Senju?" Mito whispered.
They were both silent for a long time. Finally, Mito spoke again. "And if I refuse? Will you..."
"I won't force you!" Izuna cut her off, but then added stubbornly, "But I'm still going."
"It'll be dangerous. I might be discovered by the Senju. Or worse, captured and used as a tool to threaten the Uchiha, or a bargaining chip. If I'm unlucky, that bastard Senju Yuma will kill me, and I'll never see you again..."
As Izuna rambled on, Mito, who had been feeling heavy-hearted, suddenly burst into laughter. "If you were that easy to catch, my grandfather and the Senju clan head would have caught you back in the Land of Whirlpools!"
The moment she smiled, she remembered the gravity of their conversation and forced her expression to become serious again. "Isn't this just another way of forcing me? You're using your own life as leverage."
Izuna smiled. "Mito, does that mean I'm important to you, too?"
Mito froze, stunned. After a moment, she lowered her head and rested it on his shoulder. "You idiot," she murmured. "Can't you feel it?"
Izuna held her tighter. "Mito, I'm so happy. This is the first time you've said I'm important to you."
They embraced for a long time before Mito finally relented. "Fine. You truly are a curse upon my life. You win."
Izuna loosened his arms and looked her directly in the eyes, his voice filled with joyous surprise. "You agree?"
A desolate look flickered in Mito's eyes. "If grandfather finds out, he'll surely brand me a traitor to the clan."
Izuna leaned down and pressed his lips to hers.
Having experienced this before, Mito didn't resist as fiercely. After a few seconds, she wrapped her arms around his neck and began to gently respond. It was less about affection and more as if she were seeking a new emotional anchor.
Only when Mito's red lips were slightly swollen did Izuna reluctantly pull away. He finally whispered the three words in her ear. "I love you."
"I... hate you," Mito whispered back. Tears welled in her eyes, streamed down her cheeks, and were kissed away by Izuna.
Late into the night, Izuna changed into a new set of black combat attire, leaving off his red armor. He had Mito change out of her cumbersome white kimono and into the form-fitting uniform of an Uchiha kunoichi.
After telling her to wait, Izuna went to the main tent and summoned Uchiha Akichi, Uchiha Shin, and the other senior officers. He announced his intention to strike, a solo raid on the Senju.
Uchiha Akichi was shocked. "Vice-Clan Head, the Senju position is in complex terrain, shielded by forests. For you to go alone..."
Izuna raised a hand, signaling him to stop. "If we don't pull off something spectacular now," he said with a faint smile, "we won't be able to restore the clan's shattered morale."
"But... but, Vice-Clan Head, even so, to go alone is too..." Uchiha Shin said, his face etched with worry.
"I know what I'm doing. Do you really think I'm going there to die?"
Hearing this, the others didn't know how to dissuade him. All they could do was hope that their Vice-Clan Head could, as he had so many times before, create another miracle.
"Mito, that outfit really suits you," Izuna teased as he walked out of the Uchiha command tent, looking her up and down in her kunoichi attire.
To make a comparison from his past life, the white kimono had given Mito the gentle grace of a noble lady. But this tight-fitting ninja uniform, which outlined every curve of her body, lent her a bewitching, almost dangerous allure.
Mito, walking beside him, didn't reply. Instead, she kicked him in the calf. That was her answer.
The rugged mountain paths of Shirotani Pass were manageable for a few people, but a large force of several hundred would be easily spotted. And in the ninja world, there was a particularly vexing type of specialist—the sensory ninja.
A powerful sensory ninja's range could even surpass the Byakugan of the Hyuga clan. The best among them was the future Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama, who could sense battlefield conditions from a thousand li away. Of course, the current Tobirama wasn't quite that monstrous, but he wasn't far off.
But Tobirama was just one individual. When it came to the clan most skilled in perception, it was undoubtedly the Uzumaki. Even those who weren't sensory specialists possessed remarkable sensory abilities. And Mito's own ability was, without a doubt, the strongest in the entire Uzumaki clan at present—a fact Izuna had witnessed firsthand. Her perception even surpassed that of the Senju Tobirama he had fought two years ago.
And so, using Mito's nearly cheat-like sensory ability, Izuna had devised a plan.
There was no question that this plan exploited Mito's abilities against the Senju. As an Uzumaki, she was naturally hesitant. But it was said that when a woman falls in love with a man, there is nothing she wouldn't do. After immense internal conflict, Mito had finally agreed to Izuna's plan.
After cresting a mountain ridge, Izuna raised a hand, stopping Mito. He looked ahead.
The area before them was a dense forest, the location of the Senju encampment. It was just as Uchiha Shin had described: the terrain was complex and the thick woods provided excellent cover. A perfect place to hide an army.
"Mito, you can begin."
At his word, Mito's slender fingers began to form seals. The vermilion mark on her forehead started to release chakra, and the strands of hair by her ears began to float.
Izuna watched quietly. Under Mito's perception, her field of vision expanded for dozens of li. The trees and mountains that obscured the Sharingan's sight were non-existent to her senses.
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