Uchiha Jin ignored Tōdai's emotional outburst and instead began calmly assessing the situation.
There was no need to guess.
The fact that the Fourth Raikage, A, had led two thousand Cloud shinobi into the Land of Fire could only be the work of one man—
Shimura Danzō.
No one else in Konoha possessed that kind of nerve.
Jin had to admit it.
Danzō's move was exquisite.
By escalating the conflict, he not only provided himself with a flawless excuse for his collusion with Kumogakure, but also manufactured a golden opportunity to wash his name clean.
Once the Raikage marched into Fire Country, war became unavoidable.
It no longer mattered whether Konoha wished for peace.
An invading Kage leading troops across the border left them with no choice.
If Konoha failed to respond, its reputation across the shinobi world would plummet. The Fire Daimyō would demand accountability. The villagers would demand blood.
They had to win.
And once they did?
The man who had "engineered" the war through bold strategy would naturally become its greatest contributor.
Another stepping stone toward the Fourth Hokage seat.
As for the attempted assassination of Hiruzen Sarutobi—
Without concrete evidence, Hiruzen could do nothing.
Tenzo bore the Tongue Eradication Seal.
He could not testify.
And Danzō could easily twist the narrative—
Claim he had sent Tenzo as insurance.
Claim he had anticipated the ambush.
Claim he had saved Hiruzen's life.
In that version of events, Hiruzen would owe him thanks.
Jin let out a quiet breath.
"Danzō truly knows how to play the board."
He glanced at Tōdai.
His earlier attempt to sow discord between Cloud and Danzō had unintentionally strengthened the latter's position.
The more Kumogakure hated Danzō—
The cleaner Danzō appeared.
"Jin," Uchiha Fugaku said gravely. "What do we do?"
They had barely over two hundred combat-capable shinobi here.
Against two thousand?
Suicide.
And these were the elite of the Uchiha.
If they perished here, the clan would suffer irreparable damage.
Yet retreating without action?
That could easily be spun as cowardice.
"Calm down," Jin replied evenly. "We gathered this intelligence ourselves. The village never issued us any orders."
"That means we control the narrative."
"We can pretend we know nothing and withdraw."
"Capturing these Cloud shinobi and the Eight-Tails jinchūriki is already a tremendous achievement for the Uchiha."
Fugaku paused.
Then slowly nodded.
Jin was right.
They had never been formally deployed.
They were not bound by command.
Before further discussion could continue, Tobi stiffened slightly.
White Zetsu communication.
Jin noticed immediately.
"Report."
Tobi grinned.
"Konoha has a bigger problem now."
"The Fourth Raikage changed direction."
"At the same time, both Sunagakure and Iwagakure border units are mobilizing."
The grin widened.
"This is turning into something interesting."
Jin's eyes sharpened.
"Map."
An Uchiha handed one over.
Jin spread it open before Tobi.
"Where did the Cloud forces redirect? Where are Suna and Iwa gathering?"
Tobi pointed.
"Cloud turned here."
"Suna is mobilizing here."
"And Iwa here."
Jin traced the lines carefully.
Then his gaze froze on a single location deep within Fire Country.
"Kikyō Mountain."
Fugaku inhaled sharply.
Kikyō Mountain lay northwest of Konoha, positioned internally rather than at the frontier.
It was the central logistics hub linking the Takigakure line, Kusagakure line, Amegakure line, and Kawagakure line.
In wartime, it functioned as the supply relay station.
More importantly—
It was the final defensive bastion protecting Konoha's northwest approach.
If the outer borders fell, retreating shinobi regrouped at Kikyō.
If Kikyō fell—
There would be nothing left between the enemy and Konoha.
One day's forced march would bring an army to the village gates.
Normally, the mountain fortress was lightly garrisoned.
Because it was internal.
Because it was "safe."
If Cloud seized it—
If Suna and Iwa coordinated—
They could sever Konoha's border forces, collapse defensive lines, and force a three-front encirclement.
Jin exhaled slowly.
"A is sharper than he looks."
"He must have coordinated with Iwa and Suna in advance."
"When he couldn't confirm Tōdai's situation, he activated the backup plan immediately."
Fugaku's expression hardened.
"Then we have no choice."
"Kikyō Mountain cannot fall."
For the first time since the ambush—
True urgency set in.
If Konoha collapsed—
The Uchiha would collapse with it.
This was no longer about politics.
It was about survival.
Read 50 chapters ahead on P@treon -> [email protected]/warewolvesTL(replace@ with a)