The moment the ANBU finished speaking, every gaze in the war room shifted toward Minato Namikaze.
Minato himself froze.
My disciple?
His only living student, Kakashi Hatake, had already departed with Hyuga Hiashi to reinforce the Police Force. There was no reason for him to be here.
And the ANBU had specified—an Uchiha.
There was only one person who fit that description.
But that was impossible.
Uchiha Obito was dead.
Minato's instincts screamed that something was wrong.
"Let him in," Homura Mitokado decided after a brief pause. "Jin left the village immediately. Perhaps he sent someone back."
It was the most reasonable explanation.
Moments later—
Heavy footsteps echoed down the corridor.
The door opened.
A young man stepped inside.
He wore a Konoha forehead protector. Traditional Uchiha attire. The right side of his face was grotesquely scarred.
Recognition flickered across several faces in the room—familiar, yet distant.
Minato, however, shot to his feet.
His eyes widened.
His breath caught.
"…Obito?"
The young man gave a crooked grin.
"Long time no see, sensei."
Minato vanished in a flash and reappeared before him, hands gripping his shoulders, scanning him in disbelief.
"It's really you…?"
The room erupted.
"Uchiha Obito?!"
"Wasn't he killed during the war?"
"Kakashi's Sharingan—wasn't that his?"
Shock rippled through the chamber.
Obito glanced around but didn't elaborate.
"Sensei, I survived. Someone saved me," he said simply.
His tone sharpened.
"I planned to return after you became Hokage. But the front has changed. Jin had no choice but to send me."
Minato understood the subtext instantly.
This wasn't the place for explanations.
"What's happening?" he asked.
Obito didn't waste a second.
"Jin has captured the fleeing Cloud delegation and the Eight-Tails jinchūriki. From them, he obtained critical intelligence."
"Kumogakure has formed a covert agreement with Iwagakure and Sunagakure."
"Two thousand Cloud shinobi led by the Fourth Raikage, A, are advancing toward Kikyo Mountain."
"At the same time, Sand and Stone forces are mobilizing along the borders of the Land of Waterfall, the Land of Grass, and the Land of Rivers."
"The situation is urgent. A decision must be made immediately."
The room went deathly silent.
"Kikyo Mountain?!" Nara Shikaku slammed a hand onto the table.
"If Kikyo falls, Konoha has no defensive depth. The enemy could reach our gates in a single day."
"Our border garrisons in those regions total only fifteen hundred. They cannot hold against coordinated multi-front pressure."
"If the enemy secures Kikyo and establishes it as a stronghold, the war will spill directly into Fire Country's heartland."
Homura's expression darkened.
"Can you confirm the accuracy of this intelligence?"
He wanted—needed—it to be wrong.
Shikaku answered before Obito could.
"This isn't about certainty. It's about probability. This is the only viable counterplay for those two thousand Cloud shinobi. If they see the opportunity, they will take it."
"And we must assume they will."
He was Konoha's strategist.
He did not gamble on hope.
Homura turned sharply toward Shimura Danzō.
"Danzō. Was this within your calculations?"
Danzō's lone eye flicked briefly to Obito before returning to calm indifference.
"Does it matter now?"
"Immediately notify Hiashi and Orochimaru. Redirect them to Kikyo Mountain."
"Mobilize additional forces from the village."
Shikaku raised a hand.
"Jiraiya's forces cannot move."
"If the Raikage is trapped inside Fire Country, Kumogakure may attempt desperate retaliation. They can still raise four thousand."
"We must retain two thousand in reserve to guard against Kirigakure."
"If Cloud has allied with Stone and Sand, they have undoubtedly contacted Mist as well."
"We cannot assume silence means neutrality."
Koharu frowned.
"If we hold two thousand in reserve, that leaves only two thousand for reinforcement."
"The borders of Waterfall, Grass, Rivers—even Rain—require defense."
"Where do we send them?"
Shikaku's voice was steady.
"Our forces are insufficient to defend the entire frontier."
"If we spread out, we will be defeated piecemeal."
"So we concentrate."
"The two thousand go to Kikyo Mountain."
"The fifteen hundred currently stationed along the borders will withdraw and regroup at Kikyo."
"We consolidate overwhelming force."
His gaze swept the chamber.
"We draw every enemy into one decisive engagement."
"The first battle—will be the final battle."
"One war. One decision. One outcome."
The room fell into heavy silence.
This was no longer a border clash.
It was a gamble for Konoha's survival.
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