Most of the Jonin remaining in Konoha participated in this high-level meeting, so shortly after its conclusion, Fugaku quickly gathered everyone on the rooftop of the Hokage Tower.
Fugaku scanned the crowd with an authoritative gaze and said, "You're all the most elite ninja of Konoha. I don't need to waste time emphasizing security! In one hour, complete all preparations and gather at Training Ground 35!"
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!" —
As soon as Fugaku finished speaking, the Jonin vanished in a blur.
One hour wasn't much time—just enough to bid farewell to family while also preparing various ninja tools and medicines.
Soon, only four members of the Uchiha remained on the rooftop.
Aozora turned to Shisui and said, "Brother, prepare for me a standard set of throwing ninja tools, 200 explosive tags, and a medical bandage kit. I'll accompany the Chief to finalize some official matters at Police Force HQ."
Shisui nodded and then vanished with a 'whoosh' from the rooftop.
Aozora would participate in the first attack, then return to the village depending on circumstances.
He had specifically requested this from Fugaku. On one hand, he wanted to contribute effort; on the other, he wanted to test whether killing enemies on the battlefield could earn him Golden Droplets.
In the Chief's office at Police Force HQ...
"...Therefore, I will be heading to the border to command operations on the front line. Matters concerning the Police Force will be handed over to Deputy Chief Kintai. Please all cooperate fully with Kintai's work!"
As soon as Fugaku finished speaking, all the high-ranking officers present immediately responded in unison.
"Yes, Chief!"
"Understood!"
"..."
Fugaku nodded slightly and waved his hand. "Kintai and Hachidai stay behind. The rest can return to work!"
After everyone else left, Fugaku subtly glanced at Aozora.
Aozora nodded and stood up. "To make this short: Chief Fugaku has volunteered to defend the front lines against the invasion. This is the best opportunity for our Uchiha clan to show our true strength and compete for the Hokage title.
However, becoming Hokage depends not only on battlefield achievements but also on how we're perceived back home.
We must not only fight brilliantly but also ensure our efforts are properly publicized. Every accomplishment of the Chief must reach the ears of the villagers, establishing a glorious and majestic image of him within their hearts."
This speech made several people in the office involuntarily twitch their mouths. For the proud and reserved Uchiha, self-promotion was looked down upon.
Understanding their awkwardness and resistance, Aozora turned serious. "This isn't joking! If we want to become Hokage and change the Uchiha image, this step is absolutely necessary!
Why does the Third have such high prestige and reputation despite never personally participating in a major war?
The 'Sage of the Ninja World,' the 'Strongest Hokage...'"
Kintai curled his lip and scoffed, "Fine, maybe the 'Sage of the Ninja World'... but 'Strongest Hokage'? Pfft!"
Aozora admitted, "That does sound ridiculous. The First pacified the chaotic era, and the Second had remarkable battle records. Compared to them, the Third's achievements are indeed lackluster. However, in the eyes of ordinary villagers and regular ninja of Konoha, the Third really is the strongest Hokage. That's the power of cultivating reputation.
Ninja naturally admire strength — that's human nature. This reputation alone helped the Third easily gather a large following!"
Kintai showed no interest and coldly snorted, "They're just insignificant tricks. As long as we possess absolute power, the Hokage position will eventually belong to the Uchiha."
Seeing Kintai's unwillingness, Aozora suggested, "Then let Captain Hachidai take charge! Kintai already has heavy responsibilities managing the Police Force!"
Hachidai wanted to say he was also busy, but after catching a glance from Aozora, he simply nodded.
Kintai said, "If that's settled, I'll take my leave now!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he had already risen.
"Wait a moment!" Fugaku stopped him. "Kintai, I have full confidence in you overseeing the Police Force, and I'm not worried about Clan affairs either. However... I fear you might mishandle the relationship between the Clan and the Village.
Now that the Uchiha have found a peaceful way to obtain the Hokage position, I don't want any unpleasant incidents occurring between our Clan and the Village during this period!"
Kintai paused briefly, then silently replied, "I understand. I wouldn't want our clansmen getting hurt either."
Although he advocated for an armed coup, he knew it would lead to massive casualties or even the Clan's destruction.
After Kintai walked out of the office, Aozora said, "I still think it would be better if Kintai accompanied you to the border!"
Fugaku shook his head, "That would throw the Police Force into chaos! Don't worry about that. Just help Hachidai with the plan. We don't have much time left!"
"Alright then!"
Aozora exhaled, then began instructing Hachidai and Kyudai.
"The villagers are wary of war—they'll catch on to something strange sooner or later these next couple days. When that happens, you can secretly spread rumors about Iwagakure's attack. In fact, this news will eventually spread throughout Konoha anyway; you just need to promote it earlier.
Tomorrow, Lord 'Fugaku' and Lord 'Shikaku' will lead the main forces on a campaign.
At that time, you should publicize the content of the High-level Meeting, emphasizing how the higher-ups were trembling in fear before the Iwagakure threat, while our Police Chief bravely volunteered himself for the villagers and for Konoha.
Don't get too deep into the details of the meeting itself. Focus on painting our Police Chief as all ice on the outside, but fire inside—loves Konoha, fearless.
You can ask novelists to polish the story—feel free to exaggerate a bit. Present it as if it were overheard at the teahouse."
After explaining the first step, Aozora paused briefly to give Hachidai some time to digest the information.
When Hachidai nodded, Aozora continued, "In the following days, gradually spread rumors about powerful figures in the Iwagakure invasion force. Give them all legendary titles representing invincibility, fabricate impressive battle records for them.
Take Kitsuchi for example. We can claim he masters [Earth Release] [Ultimate Art] techniques and call him the 'Child of the Earth,' an undefeated man as long as he stands on solid ground!
Or Han. We can spread that within him resides a demon comparable to the Nine-Tails, possessing destructive powers capable of tearing heaven and earth apart!
Details can be fabricated by novelists. The more exaggerated, the better."
Hachidai asked in surprise, "Aren't we supposed to be promoting our Police Chief? Why are we boosting our enemies instead?"
Aozora smiled, "This is what we call the power of contrast. First exaggerate the enemy's strength to make our side shine brighter later. Even if (though unlikely) we lose, villagers might feel disappointed but won't overly blame our Police Chief. If we win, though, the Clan Leader can reap all that glory!"
"Amazing!" Hachidai gasped in amazement. "Aozora, you're incredible!"
Aozora continued, "I'll go to the Front Line with the chief. After the first battle, win or lose, I'll send you a battle report. Then you can proceed with the promotion based on the report."
Hachidai nodded. "Mission will be completed without fail."
Shaking his head, Aozora said, "It all happened way too fast. We can only promote it at places like Sake Bars (traditional Japanese drinking houses). If we had prepared beforehand, we should have started a [newspaper] – the perfect medium for promotion."
"A newspaper?"
"The perfect medium for promotion! I'll talk more about it later. Right now, I still have some things to prepare. I'm off!"
Without wasting any more words, Aozora bid farewell to everyone and headed straight home.
After accepting the ninja tools that Shisui had prepared for him, Aozora returned to his house and picked up several blank fire-sealing scrolls.
Whenever he went out, he always made sure to carry multiple fire-sealing scrolls. Encountering the Strange Celestial Flames was a rare opportunity, and Aozora didn't want to miss out just because he didn't have a scroll to seal them.
After finishing his preparations, Aozora grabbed the cage covering the Corpse Crow (Puppet) and hurriedly made his way toward Fugaku's house.
Looking at the large crow, Shisui asked, "Aozora, what's wrong with this big raven?"
"It's severely injured," Aozora explained. "I'm treating it right now. It'll recover soon enough."
Upon arriving at Fugaku's house, Itachi ran forward enthusiastically when he saw Aozora and Shisui.
"Master! Brother Shisui!"
After greeting them, Aozora gently patted Itachi's head and said, "Itachi, Shisui and I have an important mission to accompany your father on. Right now, there's something very important I need you to take care of for me."
Itachi looked serious as he replied, "Please tell me, Master! I'll definitely complete the task!"
"Here!" Aozora handed the cage to Itachi. "This is my Summon. It encountered an accident and needs someone to look after it now!"
Itachi looked at the large raven inside the cage and gasped, "Wow, what a huge raven!"
Aozora smiled slightly; Itachi still had that youthful innocence in him.
Aozora then handed him another sealing scroll. "Inside has stored nutrient solution—just inject some every day."
Itachi solemnly nodded after receiving the scroll.
Gazing at the raven inside the cage, Itachi suddenly asked, "Teacher, once it recovers, can I sign a Summoning Contract with it?"
For some reason, instead of feeling evil or fear upon seeing the large raven, he felt strangely familiar with it.
"With it?"
Aozora was taken aback. The Corpse Crow (Puppet) was actually a vessel he had prepared specifically for splitting his own soul—how could he allow anyone else to form a contract with it?
Yet shortly afterward, inspiration struck him. Why not?
If the Corpse Crow really learned how to use Reverse Summoning, it meant the crow could perform Reverse Summoning on its contractor.
Then, if Aozora encountered a powerful enemy, besides having the raven perform Reverse Summoning to bring him away, he could also summon the Corpse Crow and have it use Reverse Summoning to call upon other ninja bonded with the Ninja Ravens to come to his aid!
The more he thought about it, the more promising the idea seemed!
Coming back to himself and noticing the expectant look in Itachi's eyes, Aozora smiled and replied, "I'm okay with it! But we must ask Shisui first—the Ninja Ravens originally signed their contract with Shisui!"
Shisui smiled and added, "Of course you can!"
Upon hearing this, Itachi immediately burst into joy, exclaiming, "Thank you, Master! Thank you, Brother Shisui!"
Thinking of how Itachi had unintentionally helped him conceive an interesting ninjutsu, Aozora pulled out another scroll from within his robe and handed it to Itachi.
"This is my Ninja Tool Throwing technique. Aside from practicing the Foundation Building Secret Jutsu during the holiday, make sure to train thoroughly. I'll be checking your progress when you return!"
The scroll contained a simplified version of Yu Qi that Aozora had compiled, which utilized chakra to accelerate the flight speed of ninja tools and alter their trajectory mid-air.
Aozora decided to teach Itachi this Ninja Tool Throwing technique. One reason was to reward the boy for his inspiration; the other was to ensure he didn't fall behind in his training.
In the original storyline, Itachi should have already graduated by now and been improving through missions and guidance from his mentor.
But because of him, Itachi chose to stay at the academy. Although his body had grown stronger thanks to the Foundation Building Secret Jutsu, his overall power inevitably stagnated.
This Ninja Tool Throwing technique could give Itachi's abilities a significant boost.
Moreover, it served as the foundation of Yu Qi. If Itachi performed well in the future, Aozora would gradually teach him Yu Qi and accept him as an official disciple.
And if Itachi ever reached Kage-level power, Aozora would gain yet another Kage-level "summoned person"!
Why did he say "yet another"?
Because Aozora had already decided—the first "summoned person" spot was reserved for his older brother, Shisui!
Itachi accepted the scroll with a solemn expression and said earnestly, "Teacher, please rest assured. I won't disappoint you!"
"Then work hard, okay?"
After saying that, Aozora and Shisui took their leave and headed straight toward their assembly point.
When Aozora and Shisui arrived at the gathering location, they found many ninja had already shown up.
They were all wearing flak vests, and their belts carried multiple fully packed ninja tool pouches, clearly indicating thorough preparation.
Everyone wore grim expressions and silently inspected their ninja tools.
As experienced jonin, they had already entered mission mode the moment they received their assignments.
Soon, Fugaku and other jonin also completed their preparations and arrived at the rendezvous.
At the appointed time, Fugaku immediately led the group out of Konoha through a secluded barrier gate without hesitation.
After leaving Konoha, the entire infiltration squad moved like a ghost army, deliberately avoiding populated areas while traveling through desolate regions, swiftly heading northwest toward the Land of Fire's border.
Throughout the journey, the team remained virtually silent; even those responsible for scouting—Hyuga Hiashi and others—as well as the commanding officer, Fugaku, primarily communicated via hand signals.
An ordinary person placed in such an environment might quickly feel uneasy.
However, these individuals were seasoned ninja hardened by life-and-death trials, so they considered this normal.
Aozora strongly disliked this kind of silence during missions—he had previously relaxed his teammates in his own way during missions with Shuichi and others. Yet this time, he made no unnecessary moves.
First, he wasn't leading the unit. Second, considering how resilient jonin were mentally, ten days of silence wouldn't wear them down. Instead, it kept them highly focused, benefiting mission execution.
Four days later, at dusk—outside Iwagakure's main camp.
Han dispersed the Rock ninja attacking the Konoha outpost and stormed angrily into Kitsuchi's tent.
"The Konoha outpost only has a dozen men left, and they barely have any explosive tags remaining," Han yelled. "Why did you order me to retreat? If I had charged one more time, the Konoha outpost could have been taken today!"
Kitsuchi replied calmly, "No need to rush. We've advanced far enough already. Let's gradually wear down Konoha's forces! If we go further, we'll enter the heartland of the Land of Fire. The Fire Daimyo won't be able to turn a blind eye to this anymore.
"In his anger, he might even mobilize the entire nation for war—we can't let Iwagakure alone face the wrath of the Land of Fire!"
Hearing this, Han shook his head in disdain. "You and Onoki are just too cowardly. Konoha now is nothing but stray cats and dogs—what's there to fear? As for the daimyo's forces, it's like wolves being led by a timid sheep—what threat could they possibly pose?"
Kitsuchi nodded slightly at Han's words before replying, "Han, naturally you have no reason to fear them. But have you considered the 1000 subordinates under your command? If we provoke Konoha and the Fire Daimyo, how many of the ninja who followed us on this campaign do you think would make it back to the village safely?"
Han stayed quiet for a moment, then muttered, "Alright, you're the commander—I'll follow your orders."
With that, he turned and left Kitsuchi's tent, heading back to his own quarters.
Watching him go, Kitsuchi gave a small shake of his head, grabbed the latest report, and scanned through it carefully.
After finishing it, he ordered, "Shu, I'm giving you two days—have the demolition squad set traps around the camp perimeter!"
Shu frowned as he replied, "Kitsuchi, Konoha's team only left three days ago. Such a bloated squad won't reach here in less than a week—why the rush?"
Kitsuchi replied solemnly, "Being a ninja means dealing with constant uncertainty. To live long, you must always prepare for the worst-case scenario!"
"My lord is being overly cautious," Shu argued. "Judging from these reports, Konoha is already scared out of its wits—they call Han 'Steam Demon' and you 'Child of the Earth'!"
Shaking his head again, Kitsuchi replied, "That might just be Konoha trying to make us let our guard down. This time, the mission is led by Fugaku Uchiha and Shikaku Nara. And the Ino–Shika–Cho combination has always been a tough opponent—we mustn't underestimate them!"
"Hai!" Shu acknowledged the order and walked out of the tent.
Kitsuchi carefully compared the intel with the map in front of him several times, double-checking everything before finally letting himself rest.
At that moment, dark clouds veiled the moon, plunging the night into pitch-black darkness, not a trace of moonlight remained.
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