Out of caution, Shiyu Uchiha had personally led teams on several reconnaissance missions, but the results were rather limited. Nevertheless, based on faint traces and years of accumulated experience, he keenly sensed that the enemy was most likely mobilizing its forces for an imminent operation.
As someone familiar with the original storyline, Shiyu had actually foreseen this long ago. After all, in the original storyline, there was an incident where Cloud-nin attempted to launch a sneak attack against Iwa-nin.
Unexpectedly, though, Mū, the leader of Iwa-nin Village, proved himself to be a step ahead. He not only saw through the Cloud-nin's plan but also successfully executed a counter-encirclement tactic.
However, the battle's outcome probably went beyond what Mū expected, with Iwa-nin suffering heavier losses than anticipated.
The Cloud-nin suffered even worse consequences. Even the immensely powerful Third Raikage died bravely on the battlefield while covering his forces' retreat. Therefore, faced with unusual movements from Iwa-nin now, Shiyu Uchiha couldn't afford to be too complacent. He needed to be fully alert and handle this situation with the utmost vigilance.
As for how the Third Raikage found an opportunity for a surprise attack, naturally, it was because Konoha and Iwa-nin had already entered into a full-scale war, which occupied the majority of Iwa-nin's attention.
Moreover, only under such intense combat circumstances would both sides deploy massive visible forces onto the battlefield, resulting in an extremely tense and deadlock-prone situation. In turn, this tied up most of Iwa-nin's strength, thus giving Cloud-nin what they believed to be a favorable opportunity—or perhaps just a false one—for planning and executing this sneak attack.
Surprisingly, however, despite Mū seemingly devoting himself entirely to fighting against Konoha, the hidden power he still retained remained astonishing. Truly worthy of being called the greatest troop-producer in the Ninja World. If Hiruzen Sarutobi possessed similar capabilities, Konoha wouldn't have found itself in such a desperate struggle in this war.
So even though Iwa-nin now looked stretched thin due to the full-scale war with Konoha and had pulled troops away from their defenses against Cloud-nin, after careful consideration, Shiyu Uchiha firmly believed that secretly, Iwa-nin must've replenished these missing numbers completely—perhaps even more than before. Therefore, when they finally struck, they would have the strength to bring down the Third Raikage.
After deep contemplation, Shiyu Uchiha had already reached a clear judgment. To better prepare for the upcoming defensive battle, he made up his mind firmly: This time, he absolutely wouldn't recklessly launch a preemptive strike again. The core strategy for the coming battle was simple—drag it out until something changed.
After all, the fate of the Third Raikage served as a clear example—facing enemies outnumbering him several times over, forcing an aggressive assault could only lead to severe losses. Currently, the number of Iwa-nin troops far exceeded Konoha's, approximately twice as much. If they continued employing aggressive tactics, their side simply couldn't bear such enormous consumption.
In fact, Shiyu Uchiha had begun suspecting whether all of this might be part of a carefully orchestrated scheme by Mū. After all, relying solely on passive defense wasn't sustainable either; just the loss of manpower and resources alone would prove fatal.
Even if Onoki had decided to launch an attack on the Land of Lightning, completely resolving the current crisis remained extremely difficult, even practically impossible.
Thus, based on the current situation, he devised this "fishing" plan: one part would operate openly, using this opportunity to test just how deep Konoha's hidden strength ran;
Meanwhile, another part would work in secret. If luck was on their side, they might even eliminate the Cloud-nin as a long-standing threat once and for all—an ultimate plan that struck two targets with one arrow.
In Onoki's mind, if the overt part of the plan succeeded smoothly, they could crush Konoha's frontline forces and advance unimpeded into Konoha's heartland, reaping immeasurable benefits.
First, they could plunder Konoha extensively, filling their coffers;
Second, using the fruits of this victory as bait, they could easily lure in the Third Raikage, allowing the secret plan to be executed successfully.
Onoki firmly believed that faced with such immense temptation, the Third Raikage would absolutely be unable to resist.
If the covert "fishing" operation succeeded, it would completely remove the threat posed by the Cloud-nin, freeing Iwa from future concerns behind its back, allowing him to focus fully on confronting Konoha. He believed that as long as he took personal command, breaking through Konoha's defenses was inevitable.
At that point, whether to force Konoha into signing a defeat agreement and receiving massive reparations, or to invade the Land of Fire to plunder and ultimately destroy Konoha entirely, would all be within Onoki's final decision.
For this reason, Onoki specially assigned a large and formidable legion specifically against the Cloud-nin, numbering as many as ten thousand strong. Such a massive ninja force would be more than sufficient to wage a full-scale war, yet now was being used merely for an ambush—an obvious case of overkill.
In Onoki's eyes, his flawless plan would be a guaranteed profitable deal as long as either part succeeded. And if both plans were fulfilled as desired, it would undoubtedly be a windfall of epic proportions—an outright bargain!
However, what Onoki had completely failed to anticipate was just how severely he had underestimated the Third Raikage's indomitable will, as well as how thoroughly prepared and cunning Shiyu Uchiha would be in response.
Shiyu Uchiha, wielding the advantage of knowing the big picture as a transmigrated being, although he only knew the general direction of history in the Ninja World at present, still occasionally granted him a bird's-eye view over the entire unfolding situation.
Therefore, after deep reflection, he finally made a bitter decision in his heart: drawing out a vast stockpile of wartime supplies he had previously stored away through the ninken clan, deploying these to confront the unprecedented crisis now looming ahead.
After all, for the Uchiha Clan, this crisis represented a crucible—a pivotal turning point in the Third Great Ninja War.
If they could successfully survive this critical moment, the path awaiting the Uchiha would undoubtedly be one of boundless horizons; but should they fail to endure this calamity, then Shiyu Uchiha would have no choice but to begin considering how best to sell off Konoha Village for the most satisfactory price possible.
After all, he was merely the head of the Uchiha Clan, not the Village Chief of Konoha. Therefore, when making decisions, he would naturally prioritize the gains and losses of his own family.
Moreover, when it came to choosing a "next village," Shiyu Uchiha had already decided a long time ago—on the Third Raikage and his successor, the Fourth Raikage.
In today's ninja world (the realm of shinobi across the land), only these two possessed enough courage and vision to accept a powerful yet controversial clan like the Uchiha.
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