"Lord Hokage, I have an idea."
At that moment, someone in the tent raised their hand. The others looked over. It was Minato. He and Shikaku, both considered outstanding junior figures in this battle, had also been summoned to participate in the discussion.
"Speak," Hiruzen said.
After a brief pause, Minato slowly laid out his idea.
Upon hearing it, the eyes of everyone in the tent immediately lit up.
"This is indeed a good method. And moreover, with Minato's abilities, he can certainly execute it," one of the Jonin said, stroking his chin in thought.
"The only thing to be careful about is that his doujutsu is reportedly very powerful, and he is also a ninja with extremely sharp perception."
"I have fought him before. I understand him well enough. There should be no problem," Minato said with quiet confidence.
"That could work, Minato. This move of yours is simple yet brilliant. If it succeeds, I am afraid those Sand Village people will only be able to stare in disbelief."
"I did not realize you had something like this up your sleeve."
Others joined in with similar praise.
Even Hiruzen, whose expression had been heavy throughout the discussion, allowed himself a small smile. It carried a genuine hint of relief.
Days passed.
Numerous small-scale clashes broke out between the Sand Village and Konoha within the Land of Rivers. However, the kind of large-scale engagement that had opened the war had not occurred again.
For Konoha, since the Sand Village had already been forced out of the Land of Fire, there was no immediate threat to their country, and no urgent reason to escalate the conflict further.
This was also in the immediate aftermath of a defeat that had shaken their confidence somewhat.
On the Sand Village's side, Shimizu and Yuji also had no intention of expanding the war at this stage. For both villages, this Great Ninja War had only just begun, and the future developments across the wider ninja world were still uncertain.
Many years had passed since the end of the Second Great Ninja War, and each village's new generation had begun to mature and show their capabilities. But the ability to replenish lost strength had limits.
The pillar of military power was always the village's greatest asset in turbulent times, and no leader wanted to see it depleted recklessly.
The war had barely started, and manpower was already being consumed rapidly. Prolonged warfare inevitably settled into small-scale battlefield engagements and targeted tactical deployments.
Villages like Konoha, which needed to manage threats from multiple directions simultaneously, were especially cautious about casualties. Because once several fronts were active simultaneously, a stable situation on one battlefield meant troops could be redirected to assist a more difficult one.
The conflict between the Sand Village and the Hidden Stone Village on the border during the previous era had lasted many years, and even then, most of the fighting had been small-scale.
The large-scale engagements only came at the end, when the Stone Village had been cornered and forced into attempting a full offensive.
War was a tool, not a goal in itself. The Kage of the great villages all understood this.
Continued small-scale attacks also served a secondary purpose. The Sand Village's medical ninja, while well-trained in theory, were still relatively new to actual battlefield conditions.
They needed a sustained environment of real engagements to develop properly.
Beyond that, Yuji understood clearly that in another large-scale direct battle against a fully prepared Konoha, the Sand Village would almost certainly come out worse. The advantage they had worked so hard to secure in the first engagement could be erased in a single decisive blow.
On a small battlefield, the Sand Village was inherently at a structural disadvantage and could not always come out ahead. But on small battlefields, certain tactical planning characteristics could be applied more precisely.
It was about using tactical sophistication to compensate for the gap in raw combat power between both sides. And every troop deployment had to be meticulous to ensure the Sand Village did not suffer defeats severe enough to tip the cumulative statistics against them over time.
"The Third Hokage's thinking is very clear," Yuji said one day, after rejoining Shimizu and looking at the map hanging before them. He narrowed his eyes. "He is truly an experienced veteran of the battlefield."
In recent days, the Hidden Sand Village and Konoha had clashed frequently within the Land of Rivers. But each engagement had involved only a few hundred combatants on both sides combined. Not even a thousand.
Konoha was operating as the defensive side. Although they had been ambushed in the opening strike and the anger from that was still present, they had been unusually restrained in response.
They were not fighting to the death or seeking a decisive revenge battle against the Sand Village. Perhaps some lingering caution remained from the initial defeat.
Otherwise, given the momentum with which Konoha had arrived at the border in the opening stage, anyone observing from the outside would have assumed they intended to press a furious counterattack.
But because the Sand Village had already been forced out of the Land of Fire, what Konoha actually wanted was simply to prevent another incursion into their territory.
As long as the Sand Village did not attack, Konoha would not push further. The Sand Village, as the attacking side, naturally bore greater battlefield pressure compared to Konoha's relatively comfortable defensive posture.
Konoha's concerns also extended well beyond just the Sand Village. Other villages posed threats that demanded attention and reserve capacity.
Therefore, the more they could stabilize and contain the Sand Village front, the fewer casualties they would need to absorb there.
As for why the Sand Village continued pressing its attacks against Konoha despite this, the answer was simple.
They were waiting for something. And it required more time.
"This great Ninja War is not just between the Sand Village and Konoha. How can the village make money without completely igniting the flames of war across the entire ninja world?"
"Recently, the number of spies from other villages within the Land of Rivers has increased, has it not?" Yuji asked, looking at Shimizu.
"Yes. The Hidden Mist, Hidden Stone, Hidden Rain, and Hidden Cloud. Not a single one is missing. They are all secretly monitoring our battle with Konoha," Shimizu nodded.
Everyone was getting restless.
"The Hidden Cloud Village is surprisingly calm. According to my calculations, by now they should have already engaged Konoha at the border," Yuji frowned.
He had been waiting for the flames of war to ignite within the Land of Fire, which would force Hiruzen to return to the village to take charge of the broader situation.
Taking advantage of the wider ninja world's deteriorating stability, they would indirectly force the enemy to lose a Kage-level warrior from the active battlefield.
Only with the Hidden Cloud Village's involvement would this Great Ninja War truly begin in the full sense of the term, even if it was the Sand Village that had fired the first shot.
Something was not right.
He took a slow breath, then closed his eyes in contemplation.
Shimizu remained undisturbed and waited.
"In the opening phase of this war, I targeted and eliminated a number of Leaf Village clan faction members," Yuji said after a moment.
"On one hand, this weakened Konoha's fighting strength in future engagements. On the other hand, it narrowed the gap between the Sand Village and the Leaf Village on this small-scale battlefield level."
"Without those influential clan figures who could wield significant power in small-scale engagements, and with our tactical advantages layered on top, we can minimize our own casualties to the greatest possible extent."
"Small-scale conflicts would not normally lead to the rapid elimination of important military figures, because before both sides have fully assessed each other and built up reliable enemy intelligence, the risks and variables involved in targeting specific individuals are too great.
If something goes wrong, the loss of a single key person could be more damaging than losing an entire unit, and far harder to accept."
"Even so, the fighting capability of those remaining Konoha clan members still has room to flourish on these smaller battlefields. Their upbringing and the resources available to them allow them to demonstrate a higher level of combat skill than ordinary ninja. As I anticipated, even in small-scale direct confrontations..."
He paused.
"Judging from the battle results of the past few days, even though I have tried my best to strategize and have accounted for every aspect, and we still hold the medical advantage, we are losing more engagements than we are winning.
The overall situation on the small-scale battlefield level is unfavorable. Fortunately, our casualties remain within controllable and acceptable limits."
He narrowed his eyes.
"But why is the Hidden Cloud Village moving so slowly? Given the Raikage's personality and military ambition, he should have immediately launched his attack against Konoha the moment he learned we were at war. That was the expected trigger."
While he was deep in thought, a subordinate entered the tent.
"Lord Shimizu, intelligence has arrived from the village. The Hidden Cloud Village and Konoha are at war!"
Upon hearing this, Yuji opened his eyes. His gaze sharpened instantly.
His moment of opportunity had finally arrived.