Pre-battle Meeting

Orochimaru cared nothing for regulations, directly having the Minato Squad join the tactical planning.

After seeing Hatake Sakumo off, he summoned several frontline Jonin, including an Anbu captain...

Sarutobi Shin'nosuke, the eldest son of the Third Hokage.

Since Orochimaru was the supreme commander of the front line, he acted as a sort of military overseer, and major decisions could not bypass him.

He wore no mask during the meeting, revealing himself as a young man who looked somewhat like the Third Hokage in his youth.

After outlining the general situation, Orochimaru began to explain his plan.

"Currently, Sunagakure has dispatched a large number of ninja to harass the borders of the Land of Fire; driving them back one by one is too passive."

"I intend to concentrate our forces and launch a direct counterattack against the Land of Wind, forcing them to retreat and defend their own territory!"

After a moment of silence, the Nara Jonin said in a deep voice: "This would indeed force Sunagakure to withdraw from the Land of Fire's borders, but Lord Orochimaru..."

"If we do that, our own border will be left undefended, and Iwagakure will not let such an opportunity pass."

Among the Five Great Nations, ignoring the smaller ones, the Land of Fire sits at the very center.

In every Great Ninja War, it is implicitly assumed that the Land of Fire is fighting the other four.

If it were only an invasion by the Land of Wind, the Land of Fire would not be panicked at all; with the strength of the Leaf, they could crush them back and forth eighteen times over.

The western front where Orochimaru and the others were stationed faced not only Sunagakure but also the nearby Land of Earth.

That old man Ōnoki, once he discovered that a large number of Leaf Ninja had invaded the Land of Wind, would absolutely have the Stone Hidden Ninja take the opportunity to plunder the Land of Fire.

Orochimaru looked at Minato: "I recall that Minato-kun encountered the Jinchuriki of Iwagakure; how was their strength?"

Unless it is a large-scale battle, the Kage of each village generally do not appear on the front lines, as protecting the village is the most important priority.

Therefore, the highest conventional combat power is the Jinchuriki.

Minato pondered for a moment and replied: "Very strong, and most importantly... they possess the ability to strike over a wide area; numbers don't mean much against them."

The strongest aspect of a Tailed Beast Jinchuriki is the ability to release the Tailed Beast Ball, which is equivalent to artillery in the age of cold weapons.

Don't be fooled by top-tier powerhouses who can treat Tailed Beasts like pets; ordinary ninja, even a perfect ninja like Hatake Sakumo, cannot deal with a Tailed Beast alone.

It is known that only Sealing Jutsu can effectively restrain a Tailed Beast.

The Mangekyo Sharingan could certainly do it as well, but not many people knew of that fact.

Orochimaru nodded: "According to the intel I have gathered, Ōnoki has been massing troops at the Earth-Lightning Border, with few forces committed to the western front."

"He certainly doesn't think the Land of Lightning is stronger than the Land of Fire; there is only one possibility for him to do this... the Jinchuriki have been at the Earth-Fire Borderline all along!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the expressions of those at the meeting changed, some showing signs of panic.

The fear of Tailed Beasts was deeply ingrained in the hearts of most ninja.

"Minato-kun, can you deal with a Jinchuriki now?"

Minato did not rush to make a guarantee; after careful consideration, he said: "Holding one back is no problem, but they usually act together, don't they?"

The Tailed Beasts of the Land of Earth are the Four-Tails and Five-Tails; when Minato and Jiraiya encountered them last time, they were together.

That is the normal situation; what kind of high-end combat unit doesn't group up and instead insists on solo-laning?

Orochimaru looked at Kagami Uchiha: "I trust that Jing-kun should also be able to hold one back."

"I will leave some ninja to deal with the regular Stone Hidden Ninja, and the two Jinchuriki will be left to the two of you."

Before Kagami Uchiha could respond, a roar rang out.

"Are you kidding me!"

Sarutobi Shin'nosuke slammed the table, glaring at Orochimaru.

"Orochimaru, letting a child face a Jinchuriki—what on earth are you thinking!"

Normally, Sarutobi Shin'nosuke would not participate in tactical discussions, quietly acting as a bystander.

But Orochimaru's words this time were so outrageous that he didn't even bother with honorifics.

Deeply influenced by his father's Will of Fire, he was already very dissatisfied with children like Jing and Kakashi joining the battlefield.

In his eyes, the Uchiha child was still just a child.

He had already filed several requests to have the two recalled, but Sarutobi Hiruzen had not replied to him.

"Shin'nosuke, Jing is not an ordinary child..." Orochimaru said calmly.

"He killed a Scorch Release user during his first battle; that is something even you would find difficult to do."

Sarutobi Shin'nosuke remained unmoved, stating firmly: "Regardless, I will not agree to such a deployment. I will request that the Hokage recall Jing and Kakashi."

He turned to the two of them, the concern in his eyes sincere: "We aren't all dead yet; the war does not need children like you to take such risks!"

"Asuma often mentions you both. I know you are geniuses far beyond ordinary children, but the cruelty of war is something you cannot understand... go back, will you?"

Hearing this, even Minato felt a bit shaken, wondering if he should let these two Junior Disciples return to the village.

If it weren't for the sake of the Uchiha Clan, Kagami Uchiha would not want to participate in the war either.

He knew all too well the cruelty of war and the preciousness of peace.

Better to be a dog in times of peace than a human in times of chaos...

However, he understood even more clearly that peace could not be achieved through compromise; only through struggle could true peace be attained!

"You are a good man, but I have no need for your kindness."

Kagami Uchiha spoke calmly.

"I am very grateful for the care shown by Jonin Sarutobi, but I am already a ninja, and I will obey the orders of Lord Orochimaru."

He turned his gaze toward Orochimaru.

"With great power comes great responsibility. Now that the village is facing difficulties, I hope to arrange for a portion of Uchiha ninjas to join the battlefield. There shouldn't be any problem with that, right?"

War is the catalyst for the Sharingan, a fact the Konohagakure Higher-ups were well aware of.

Therefore, unless absolutely necessary, they only wanted to trap the Uchiha within the village, preventing this cursed blade from being stained with blood.

Their judgment was correct, or rather, it stemmed from the correct judgment of the Second Hokage.

When the Uchiha were forced to participate in the war during the mid-to-late stages of the Third Shinobi War, it catalyzed the Mangekyo of Fugaku, and the Mangekyo of Shisui and Itachi were also influenced by this conflict.

Not to mention Kamui, which could be called the strongest Mangekyo.

Orochimaru did not know the conditions for awakening the Sharingan, but he keenly sensed that Kagami Uchiha was by no means as righteous as he appeared; there was definitely some secret.

What did that matter?

Orochimaru did not care about the schemes of the Konohagakure Higher-ups; he only wanted to see to what extent Kagami Uchiha could perform.

"I will report to the Hokage and dispatch Uchiha ninjas to provide support."

He gave Kagami Uchiha a look filled with hidden meaning.

"Later, Jing-kun can give me a list. No one knows better than you which Uchiha are more suitable for the battlefield."

The two reached a tacit agreement: Orochimaru would help him recruit people, and he would help Orochimaru guard the rear.

It wouldn't matter if he couldn't hold it; Konohagakure was currently in its prime, with the highest number of Jonin in its history.

Even the most pessimistic person would not have imagined that this war would last for ten years, dragging the powerful Konohagakure into a quagmire.

It should be said that it was the death of Namikaze Minato and the departure of the Sannin that nearly caused Konohagakure to collapse, leading to the subsequent incident where Hizashi sacrificed himself.

Orochimaru dared to play this game precisely because he had the capital to do so.