Yamanaka Inoichi let out a long breath. "Don't worry about Chujiu."
"Before going to the battlefield, that kid said that as long as we won the war, he and Orochimaru would be invincible."
"The fiercer the attacks against them, the faster the Third Hokage's downfall."
"Our three Ino-Shika-Cho clans don't need to take the initiative in anything. We just need to follow the Third Hokage's rhythm."
"Someone will step forward and fight the Third Hokage until the skies darken and the earth dims."
Shikaku Nara muttered, "So that's it. I overthought things, examined them too closely, and that kept me from getting straight to the heart of it like Chujiu did..."
"I'm no match for Yamanaka Chujiu. Not even close."
Choza chuckled. "It's fine. Chujiu is a child of our three clans. That's enough."
"Let me make one correction."
Shibi Aburame said weakly, "It should be the four clans of Ino-Shika-Cho-and-Bugs. I also agree with Yamanaka Chujiu's judgment and proposal."
Yamanaka Inoichi: "..."
Shikaku Nara: "..."
Choza: "..."
Shibi Aburame: "Yes, I'm still here..."
"Ah! Sorry!" x3
"It's fine, really..."
"I'm used to it..."
If the changes within Konoha could be called undercurrents surging beneath the surface, then what Kumogakure's peace envoy did was nothing short of a world-ending disaster for the Third Hokage.
Inside Konoha's embassy, the leading Kumogakure Ninja produced a secret order from the Fourth Raikage.
"Our defeat in this war was due to Konoha's army having complete command of battlefield intelligence. That is not something spies could accomplish. Konoha must have developed a new secret reconnaissance technique, or perhaps a new Kekkei Genkai."
"Using our status as peace envoys, we are to investigate Konoha's battlefield intelligence capabilities within the village and attempt to obtain that ability."
A clearly older Kumogakure Ninja asked, "Like the kidnapping