Returning to the main topic.
"Given that the Third Mizukage can't take action, the biggest opponents in the Mist Village will become the Hōzuki, Yuki, and Kaguya clans."
"The Hōzuki clan's Secret Technique can be countered with Lightning Release. The Yuki clan's Ice Release shouldn't be too hard to deal with if we attack it with Fire Release. According to the settings from another anime, the Ice-Ice Fruit is countered by the Flame-Flame Fruit, so it should be roughly the same here."
"As for the Kaguya clan, I saw something in my family's ancient records that says the Kaguya were once driven into the sea by the Hyūga clan. I don't know if it's true."
When Aburame Shiken said this, he deliberately glanced at Hyūga Hiyasu.
Hyūga Hiyasu grinned.
"For the Hyūga, fighting the Kaguya is easier than disciplining our own sons."
"Good. Then there's nothing too concerning about the clans. Next, we need to pay attention to the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist: Executioner's Blade Jūzō Biwa, the Blunt Blade wielder Jinin Akebino, the Longsword user Kushimaru Kuriarare, the Explosive Blade wielder Jinpachi Munashi, the Samehada wielder Fuguki Suikazan, the Lightning Blades user Raiga Kurosuki, and the twin-sword user from the Hōzuki clan. I don't know his name though—and it's definitely not Hōzuki Mangetsu. He should be about the same age as Kakashi right now, maybe two or three."
"Also, the future Fourth Mizukage Yagura Karatachi, the future Fifth Mizukage Mei Terumi, and Ao should be about our age. Hiyasu, you probably didn't forget their intel, right?"
Aburame Shiken asked.
"How could I forget? Back when I played the mobile game, I even collected all their bond combinations."
Hiyasu replied.
"Good. Then I won't repeat the details. There's still one major unknown enemy—Genji, an elder of the Mist Village. In the original story, during the Fourth Great Ninja War he was already a frail old man, so we couldn't really judge his combat strength. But right now this is only the Second War, so his strength definitely shouldn't be underestimated. Of course, if he happens to be the same Third Mizukage who was secretly being controlled the whole time, that would be even better."
"Alright, that's enough, Shiken. That's already plenty. But there's one more thing I want to ask you. How do you remember all this Naruto information so clearly? Those flashback arcs were long and boring. Most of us just watched the classic moments and focused on the Leaf Village storyline. How do you even know the plots of other villages so well?"
Everyone else also turned to look at Aburame Shiken.
You're all transmigrators, but this guy's preparation is way too excessive.
"I'm afraid of dying. The death rate in Naruto is ridiculously high. Dying to some late-game powerhouse wouldn't be so bad, but if I got my throat slit by some nameless nobody early on, that would be way too humiliating. So after I learned the Aburame Secret Technique, I've been working on intelligence gathering the whole time. In the ninja world, if your intelligence leaks, you die. Just like the future Akatsuki organization—if your ninjutsu, secret techniques, or intelligence get exposed, you die. Especially that so-called 'immortal duo.' Three Chunin, two Jonin, and one growing protagonist are enough to wipe them out. It was during that time that I started noticing how strange you guys from the Leaf Village were acting."
Cough.
Cough.
Cough.
Cough.
The four of them quickly turned their heads away.
They were already grown up—there was no need to bring up the stupid things they did as kids.
Besides, who could've imagined that another transmigrator had been secretly observing them back then?
"Wait a second. When you started looking for us, you were five. Five! And you were already learning the Aburame Secret Technique?"
Inuzuka Ryoha shouted.
"Mhm."
Aburame Shiken nodded.
Hiss—
No wonder you're our commander and strategist.
You're terrifying.
Raising insects inside your body at the age of five…
Just imagining that scene—
Ugh.
"Alright then, I'm good. Leave the Mist Village to me. I absolutely won't drag you guys down."
"Be careful of Danzō and Uchiha Madara. Ideally the battlefield should reach a stalemate. That way Madara will focus his attention on the Mist Village and won't interfere with our plans elsewhere. Kamito, it'd be best if you also go fight in the Mist Village."
"No problem. Even Uchiha Shisui—who hasn't even been born yet—managed to earn the title 'Shisui of the Body Flicker' there. I wonder what kind of title they'll give me."
Uchiha Kamito accepted the assignment cheerfully.
As for the claim that Mist techniques counter the Uchiha and that Water Release counters Fire Release—
Give me a break.
No one can counter a group of Uchiha who love studying. If someone gets countered, it just means that particular Uchiha was too dumb to learn properly.
"Next is Ryoha. Your battlefield is the Land of Rivers. When I recommended that battlefield to you, I had already thought it through carefully. The Sand ninja have pushed the front line entirely into the Land of Rivers now. The surrounding area is all forest, which greatly weakens the Sand ninja's signature Wind Release. Even their sand-control techniques lose much of their power. So your main opponents will be the puppet troops led by Chiyo. Aside from Chiyo, there's also her son and daughter-in-law. Other than them, there aren't any major powerhouses. Rasa's Gold Dust can't really be used effectively there either. There's also Pakura with Scorch Release, but she only became famous during the Third War, so I'm not sure if she had any combat experience during the Second."
"The Third Kazekage is known as the strongest Kazekage. Magnet Release and his iron sand techniques are all extremely troublesome. By then Orochimaru-sensei should head over there. And after that battle with Hanzo, the three of them have already touched that level. There's a good chance they'll break through during this war. So you don't need to worry about Kage-level fighters, Ryoha. But you do need to be careful of the Second Kazekage."
"The Second Kazekage, Shamon—he's not dead yet?"
Inuzuka Ryoha asked in confusion.
"There's no news that he's alive, but there's also no news that he's dead. Everyone knows how anime works—if a character's death isn't explicitly confirmed, they'll definitely appear sooner or later. So your mission isn't to win. Your mission is to make the Sand ninja too afraid to step into the forest. You don't need victory. The key battlefield isn't yours. As long as your line doesn't collapse, the breakthrough will come from somewhere else."
"Got it. Forest guerrilla warfare. Ancient wolf cavalry. I know that style like the back of my hand."
"Hideki, our battlefield will be the biggest turning point. It's kind of ridiculous when you think about it—right now the massive forces of the Cloud Village and the Stone Village are actually our easiest opponents."
The Third Tsuchikage with Kekkei tōta.
The Third Raikage with the strongest spear and the strongest shield.
And yet the battlefield where they were located was the most likely place to achieve a breakthrough.
"Sakumo Hatake is on the Cloud ninja battlefield, so you don't need to worry about the Third Raikage charging in recklessly. If he dares to leave, the Cloud Village leadership might as well prepare to replace him. And if that happens, the Cloud Village won't just regress ten years. They don't lack brutes, but people with brains are seriously rare there. Coordinate with Sakumo Hatake and have him trade lives with the Third Raikage. After that, you need to drive the Cloud ninja back from the main battlefield. If you succeed, this war can be won. But there's one issue—you specialize in Earth Release, and Lightning Release counters Earth Release."
"Countering my Earth Release won't be that easy. Besides, the Cloud ninja mostly use Lightning Release to enhance their bodies. Pure Lightning Release techniques are rare. My pressure isn't actually that big."
Senju Hideki said with a smile.
Besides, even if he couldn't use Earth Release, so what? His towering height of two meters thirty wasn't for nothing.
"Good. Right now the Cloud ninja's only real confidence is the Third Raikage. Once he's traded off, their hollow strength will be exposed. The Fourth Raikage is about our age, but he definitely can't match us. The Two-Tails doesn't have a suitable jinchūriki yet, so it probably won't enter the battlefield. As for the current Eight-Tails jinchūriki, Blue B, there's a high chance he'll appear on the battlefield—but his relationship with the Eight-Tails probably isn't that harmonious. Hideki, you'll be fine."
"A tailed beast… I don't have the strength to fight one yet."
Senju Hideki understood his limits.
"But you've got someone powerful backing you up. Go find Tsunade."
"Tsunade? You mean…"