In the blink of an eye, another three days had passed.
As the final round of negotiations between Konoha and Iwagakure approached, the attacks from Kirigakure had grown increasingly frantic. The outposts stationed along the eastern border of the Land of Fire were nearly all embroiled in battle.
Some of these outposts had even been captured.
In response, Nara Keiko had no choice but to move troops around, reinforcing the outposts to prevent Kirigakure's advance.
In the past, these events had nothing to do with Qingming. After all, his outpost, Heishi, was located near Feiyu Town, one of the four major breakthroughs of Kirigakure, and was in a highly strategic position. No matter how much troops were redeployed, his outpost was never directly affected.
However, this time was different.
That morning, while Qingming was out on the battlefield gathering intelligence, he suddenly received an order from Sano Nobuhisa to return to the Heishi outpost immediately.
Although Qingming was puzzled, he followed the command and quickly flew back to Heishi.
Upon his arrival, he was surprised to find that it wasn't Sano who had summoned him, but Nara Keiko. The latter had sent an urgent message instructing him to head south to the central command post, where a task awaited him.
There were no further details about the task at hand.
Given the urgency of the situation, Qingming didn't waste any time. After quickly replenishing his supplies and equipment at the outpost, he activated his Wind Style: Wind Wings technique and flew toward the command post.
Normally, the journey between the Heishi outpost and the command post would take half a day, but with Qingming's swift flight, he arrived in less than ten minutes.
After confirming his identity, he entered the command post's meeting room.
To his surprise, he wasn't the only one summoned. Several other Jonin were present, including someone he knew—Uchiha Shisui.
Unlike his previous assignment at Heishi, Shisui had remained stationed at Yotsu Port under Nara Keiko's command since arriving. This allowed him to avoid the trap set by Danzo last time.
However, Qingming couldn't help but wonder: if Shisui had been with him the previous time, would Danzo still have dared to make such a move? Perhaps not, but it was also possible that Danzo would have sent even stronger forces to eliminate them both.
Shaking his head, Qingming discarded these thoughts. There was no point in dwelling on the past; what was done was done.
After greeting Shisui with a nod, Qingming casually sat down in an empty chair. Without concern for the reactions of others, he immediately began practicing his Palm Sage Technique to strengthen his body.
Ideally, he would have preferred to focus on practicing his Mind Reflection Technique. According to his progress, his Sharingan's evolution would break through the 20,000/50,000 threshold today.
However, the Mind Reflection Technique wasn't something he could practice openly, and the current environment wasn't conducive to it. So, he decided to focus on other training for now.
...
Time passed slowly.
About fifteen minutes later, Nara Keiko entered the meeting room.
He looked visibly exhausted but still managed to summon the energy to speak, "Everyone!"
At these words, all attention immediately turned toward him.
He continued, "The reason I called you all here is to assign you a very important task."
Everyone grew serious, waiting for further details.
However, instead of explaining the task right away, Keiko took a deep breath and said, "Not long ago, the Red Tree Outpost was captured."
"What?"
The room was immediately filled with shock. Everyone, including Qingming, reacted with surprise.
Having been on the battlefield for such a long time, Qingming knew the importance of various outposts. Though the Red Tree Outpost itself was not highly significant in terms of military value—it was located on the second line of defense—it held enormous political value. It served as a gateway to the Feudal Lord's estate.
If it fell, Kirigakure would have an open path to march into the heart of the Land of Fire and even possibly target the Feudal Lord. While the Feudal Lord didn't hold a particularly high status among Konoha's upper echelons, there was still a show of respect.
Due to its political significance, Konoha had stationed several hundred ninjas there over the past two to three years, fortifying the defenses more than at other frontline outposts.
Now that Keiko was reporting the fall of this strategic outpost, it was no wonder that everyone was shocked.
After a long silence, someone finally asked, "Captain, how exactly did the Red Tree Outpost fall? As far as I know, Kirigakure didn't seem to have the manpower to launch such an attack."
Other people nodded in agreement.
The room erupted into discussions.
Keiko cleared his throat and raised his hand to silence them.
Once the room was quiet again, he said seriously, "This is the very reason I gathered you all. According to the latest intel, Kirigakure deployed the Six-Tails."
"What?"
This time, everyone was even more stunned. Before Keiko could finish his explanation, someone interrupted, "What is Kirigakure trying to do? Are they starting the Fourth Great Ninja War?"
It was understandable why everyone was so shocked. Kirigakure's actions were extremely reckless.
At this point in the war, it was clear to everyone that the conflict was all but over. The remaining time was merely a matter of securing the last bargaining chips for peace talks.
But Kirigakure's actions were akin to throwing a nuclear bomb into someone else's backyard just before the war ended.
If Konoha did not retaliate, it would be impossible to justify to their own people, and the upcoming negotiations would become even more difficult.
However, if Konoha responded in kind, the war would most likely drag on and intensify. At that point, all the efforts Konoha made toward peace would be in vain.
Thus, Konoha's leadership had split into two factions.
One faction, led by Danzo, was in favor of using the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki for a counterattack, hoping to punish Kirigakure for its arrogance.
The other faction, led by Hiruzen Sarutobi, advocated for de-escalating the situation and ending the war as quickly as possible.
It was clear that Nara Keiko belonged to the latter faction, and most of the people in the room also leaned toward this side. Even Qingming, who had been ambivalent about the war, was now categorized as part of the peace faction, although he did not consider himself a pacifist.
Keiko's gaze swept over everyone before he spoke, "Your mission is critical. The Third Hokage has ordered you to immediately organize a team and retake the Red Tree Outpost."
"Reorganize a team? Are there still survivors at the Red Tree Outpost?"
"And what about the Six-Tails?"
As soon as Keiko finished speaking, two questions were immediately fired from the group.
Keiko motioned for silence, then answered the first question, "The attack from Kirigakure was sudden, but due to the indiscriminate attacks from the Six-Tails, the Kirigakure ninjas didn't dare to get too close. Although the Red Tree Outpost was captured, we still have many surviving ninjas there, and they are actively resisting the advancing Kirigakure forces."
Hearing this, Qingming thought for a moment and realized the situation. Based on the age of the current Six-Tails Jinchuriki, Yuka, who was still a child, it was impossible for him to control the full power of the Tailed Beast.
It was likely that Kirigakure had used the Six-Tails as a weapon, allowing the Tailed Beast to cause widespread destruction.
In this case, if the Konoha ninjas inside the Red Tree Outpost were clever, they would have a good chance of surviving.
As Qingming pondered this, Keiko had already addressed the second question.
"Don't worry about the Six-Tails. Someone is handling it. For now, it's classified, but you'll find out who once you arrive."
Everyone in the room began speculating about who it might be, but Qingming didn't need to think twice to know it could only be one person—Minato Namikaze.
This was not just because of his strength, which was sufficient to deal with the Six-Tails, but also because his wife, Kushina Uzumaki, was the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.
If the hawks wanted to retaliate using the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, Minato would have no choice but to step in and deal with the problem—before it could cause any further damage.
This would prevent Danzo's faction from forcing his wife into a dangerous mission.
Qingming didn't know whether this had happened in the other timeline, but if it had, Minato had most likely handled the situation perfectly. If it hadn't, it wouldn't have been too much of an issue.
The release of the Six-Tails, though a significant risk, also provided Minato with the perfect opportunity to step in and handle the situation.
Without human intervention, the Tailed Beast, driven solely by its hatred and brutal instincts, would not be a match for someone as skilled and strategic as Minato, especially given his proficiency in sealing techniques.
Thus, despite the urgency of the situation, Qingming remained calm, understanding that it wasn't as dire as it seemed.
After considering these possibilities, Qingming relaxed, his expression softening.
Just then, Nara Keiko called his name and began assigning him tasks.
Qingming's mission was simple: use his flying advantage to reach the battlefield first, gather intelligence, and then relay it to the other Jonin who would formulate a more targeted strategy.
Additionally, he was assigned a special task: to assist with dealing with the Six-Tails, if necessary.
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