Minato Namikaze and Aburame Ryoma

"You're finally back!"

Obito looked furious and heartbroken.

He had arrived three days ago!

He had planned to duel Uchiha Aoya then, but heard that the guy hadn't returned after completing his mission and no one knew where he'd gone.

Obito refused to give up and waited. He waited until midnight, almost falling asleep, but Qingye still hadn't returned...

He waited again the next day, and still no sign of him.

Just as he was about to give up, he finally saw Uchiha Aoya!

"Let's go, duel me!" Obito said, exasperated.

Qingye blinked and glanced at Kakashi and Nohara Rin, who had rushed over upon hearing the commotion. He gave them a greeting.

Minato Namikaze's team had finally arrived.

Fortunately, he had used the rest time after his mission to hide outside for two days.

Once he got a new loan, he wouldn't panic even if a war broke out immediately.

"Obito, don't be like this," Nohara Rin said to Qingye with an apologetic smile, looking helpless.

Qingye cast a questioning glance at Yūhi Kurenai, who had just arrived. He saw Kurenai looking a bit awkward and explaining in a low voice:

"It was my fault for talking too much."

"I told Rin earlier that you killed a Jonin from Iwagakure. Obito heard it and has been clamoring to challenge you ever since."

Qingye had specifically warned Kurenai and Hyuga Himon not to spread the word about him killing the elite Jonin with Explosion Release, Gari.

"Don't mind him, that idiot is just asking for trouble," Kakashi Hatake said nonchalantly, resting his hands behind his head.

"Hey, Kakashi, whose side are you on?!" Obito glared angrily.

It was one thing for this guy to be at odds with him usually, but now he wasn't even giving him face in front of other teams!

Kakashi pouted and said nothing.

Obito glared at him fiercely, then turned his attention back to Qingye, confidently clenching his fist. "Come duel me. I'm completely different from who I was in the Ninja Academy!"

How is he different?

Kakashi rolled his eyes, thinking to himself.

He still hasn't awakened his Sharingan, has he?

Qingye smiled and said, "Oh right, I heard you passed the Chunin exams, Obito. Congratulations."

Obito froze, trying to control his lips. "You know too? Heh, I told you, I'm very different now. Come duel me quickly!"

"You super big idiot!" Kakashi finally couldn't help himself. "Can't you understand human language? You just passed the Chunin exams, and now you want to challenge someone who can kill a Jonin? Can you be a little more sensible?!"

Even he only had one recorded kill of a Jonin so far.

With Obito's current skill level, wasn't he just handing himself over to be beaten!

"Obito, forget it."

"Rin, don't pull me. I've waited for days, and I have to settle this today!"

Back in the Ninja Academy, he was constantly being put down by Kakashi.

In the Uchiha clan, he was constantly being put down by Uchiha Aoya, Uchiha Tekka, and others.

Now that he had been taught by Teacher Minato for so long, even if he had just passed the Chunin exams, it didn't mean his combat ability was lacking!

And, most importantly!

When Rin had heard Yūhi Kurenai mention that Uchiha Aoya had killed a Jonin from Iwagakure, her expression at the time... Ugh, I want Rin to look at me with that same expression!

The more Obito thought about it, the more he couldn't help himself. Today, he had to defeat Uchiha Aoya in front of Rin!

Seeing that he couldn't refuse, Qingye finally accepted. "We can spar, but out of respect for you, Obito, I won't hold back later."

"I couldn't ask for more!"

Obito was full of confidence.

The two teams, a total of six people, headed to the training ground together.

As soon as the match began, Obito furiously started forming hand seals, preparing to use the Great Fireball Technique.

Whoosh!

Before he could even react, he saw Qingye disappear from his sight. Immediately, his right arm was pulled behind his back and pressed against it, while a cold glint appeared in his eyes.

A kunai was now held at his throat.

"You..."

Obito was still dazed. He managed to twist his head slightly and saw Qingye behind him.

"So fast!" Nohara Rin exclaimed.

Kakashi Hatake, standing nearby, narrowed his eyes slightly.

Meanwhile.

Konohagakure Commander's Tent.

Shikaku Nara and Minato Namikaze were meeting an acquaintance who had just arrived.

"Shikaku Nara, what's going on?"

Aburame Ryoma, wearing a black cloak and small sunglasses, questioned rudely, "How did you, the genius strategist, arrange this? Three strongholds lost in just two days!"

Shikaku Nara had nothing to say and could only remain silent.

He still hadn't figured out what was happening.

The ninja guarding the three strongholds, three Jonin squads, were all wiped out!

But there was no news of Iwagakure Ninja infiltrating through those three locations. He was starting to doubt if Iwagakure Ninja were even responsible for this.

But if not Iwagakure, then who?

It couldn't be Danzo, could it?

But Konohagakure was in a critical period of war right now. No Konoha Ninja would engage in infighting at such a time and drag the village down, right?

Not even Danzo!

But if not Danzo, then who?

"I will do my best to investigate this matter later. The most important thing now is to find a way to remedy the situation," Shikaku Nara said gravely.

"Remedy, ha!"

Aburame Ryoma sneered, "According to our intelligence, Iwagakure will launch a full-scale assault the day after tomorrow. How do you plan to remedy it?"

"What?! Is the information reliable?" Minato Namikaze urgently asked.

"Are you questioning the intelligence capabilities of our Root Ninja?" Aburame Ryoma retorted rudely.

This left Minato Namikaze and Shikaku Nara speechless.

Sending spies to other villages to gather intelligence was indeed Danzo's specialty.

There was a moment of silence in the tent before Shikaku Nara sighed and walked to the map, pointing to the location of Kannabi Bridge. "We have no choice but to execute this plan..."

After hearing this, Minato Namikaze couldn't help but frown. "Just blowing up a bridge, will that make the Iwagakure army give up their attack?"

This seemed unrealistic.

"That is one of the objectives," Shikaku Nara said, his expression unchanged. "The other point is to coordinate with the battle on the main front. If the squad tasked with blowing up the bridge makes good progress, it might even draw the Iwagakure Ninja on the main front back to reinforce."

These words practically made it clear that they were looking for someone to be a scapegoat!

They would be deep behind enemy lines, coupled with the possibility of Iwagakure Ninja returning to reinforce.

They would be surrounded and trapped. Even if they succeeded in blowing up the bridge, they wouldn't be able to return alive!

Just as Minato Namikaze was about to retort, Aburame Ryoma interrupted directly, "It's feasible, but one squad is too difficult. They probably won't even be able to infiltrate to Kannabi Bridge. It's best to send out a few more squads."

Addressing Minato Namikaze, Aburame Ryoma wasn't polite either. "The renowned Yellow Flash, Minato Namikaze, if you're going to object, you'd better provide your alternative plan."

Minato Namikaze was dumbfounded.

The situation here was too dire, what else could he do?

With continuous reinforcements from both sides, Iwagakure now had an advantage of nearly a thousand ninja over Konoha!

"Then it's settled."

Aburame Ryoma pushed up his sunglasses. "I heard that Uchiha Aoya's squad has been performing very well recently. Having them participate in the bridge demolition seems most appropriate."