Uchiha Shin's Plan

"What?"

A group of Uchiha clansmen were stunned by their patriarch's words. Even during the most brutal clashes with the Senju Clan, he had never recalled those two; yet now, he was actually summoning them back. Could the patriarch be planning a war of extermination?

Uchiha Zhan hurriedly said, "That won't do, Patriarch. If those two move, trouble will surely arise in the south and the north. It won't work, it just won't."

Uchiha Tajima said coldly, "Do not worry. I have already devised a plan. Go and recall Uchiha Yutaka, who just rushed to the Land of Yuze. Send him to the southern front and assign him two peak Jonin to deter the Chiba, Aburame, and Fuma clans—at the very least, keep them from causing trouble."

Uchiha Yutaka, formerly the Third Elder of the Uchiha clan, possessed strength that, while not yet at the Kage level, placed him among the most formidable of the peak Jonin—a quasi-Kage powerhouse.

"As for the north, it is merely a dozen or so mid-sized clans. Zhan, you take two peak Jonin, replace Dou, and keep watch over those mid-sized clans. You should have no trouble with that. I will not participate in the battlefield against the Hyuga Clan this time; instead, I will remain at the clan headquarters. Should any side require reinforcements, I will arrive immediately," Uchiha Tajima stated methodically.

Uchiha Shin, standing below, nodded slightly. Having reviewed Uchiha Tajima's arrangements, he had to admit that this patriarch possessed real ability. Mobilizing the clan's greatest strength while maintaining deterrence against surrounding clans was a skill not honed in a day or two.

"Very well, the personnel adjustments end here. Let us discuss the war against the Hyuga Clan."

"Patriarch, what scale of conflict are you intending to keep this battle at?" one of the Uchiha peak Jonin asked.

Uchiha Tajima pondered for a moment before saying, "To be honest, given the strength of the Hyuga Clan, if there were no outside interference, a war of extermination would be somewhat feasible. However, that would require us to commit our entire clan's strength, and the process might not necessarily go smoothly."

"The reality, however, is that we cannot ignore the north and the south, which ties up much of our strength. Furthermore, if we commit too many forces against the Hyuga, the Senju would likely be more than happy to strike directly at our heartland. That will not do."

"But if the scale of the war is too small, it won't damage the foundation of the Hyuga Clan, and I fear it would be meaningless."

As he spoke, he fell into deep thought. The Uchiha clansmen below also began to discuss; the loss of Kazama Valley was too painful, allowing the Senju Clan to support the Hyuga without reservation, creating a very unfavorable situation for the Uchiha.

While the others were discussing, Shin whispered to Madara, "Madara, I recall you saying last time that the Hyuga territory contains the most mountainous terrain in the Land of Fire, and that their food production is insufficient, forcing them to buy most of it from the Senju or other clans. Is that correct?"

Madara nodded. "That's right, but why do you ask?"

A cold sneer hung on the corner of Shin's mouth as he whispered to Madara, "If that is the case, I have a plan. I will tell you the plan now; later, you go and state it publicly. Do not say it is my plan—just say it is your own idea."

Madara asked curiously, "If you have a plan, why not just say it yourself? Why go through all this trouble?"

Shin glared at him and whispered with feigned anger, "Where do you get so much nonsense? There are some things that are not appropriate for me to say. Do you understand?"

Madara shook his head decisively.

Shin ignored him and whispered his plan into his ear. Upon hearing it, Madara's eyes lit up, and he nodded with a smile.

Everyone was still debating how to attack the Hyuga when suddenly, a voice rang out: "I have an idea."

The voice sounded like that of a child, yet it was exceptionally confident, clearly audible in the noisy hall.

Everyone looked toward the source of the voice and saw that Uchiha Madara had already stood up. Facing the gazes of everyone present, he remained indifferent and strode forward.

Although he was only eight years old, Uchiha Madara seemed to possess a natural air of dominance; stage fright was something that would never be a part of his life.

The Uchiha clansmen present naturally recognized Uchiha Madara. He and Uchiha Shin were not originally qualified to attend the clan meeting, but the talent they had displayed was so heaven-defying—unprecedented in Uchiha history—and they had even joined forces to kill a Hyuga Jonin, which was why an exception had been made for them to attend.

"Haha, I wonder what idea Young Master Madara has? Speak up and let us hear it; it would be good to have everyone consider it," Uchiha Zhan said with a smile. He did not believe a child could come up with any good ideas.

Madara ignored him completely and turned around. "Father, do you have a map of the Hyuga Clan's territory?"

Uchiha Tajima was also curious and wanted to see what his son had to say. He searched the desk, pulled a scroll from a pile, and had someone bring over a screen to hang it up. It was indeed a map of the Hyuga Clan.

Madara walked to the map and pointed to it. "The Land of Fire is mostly plains, but looking at this map, the Hyuga territory contains the most mountains in the entire Land of Fire. This is our advantage."

Uchiha Zhan and the others looked at the map and frowned. "It's mountainous, which means it's easy to defend and hard to attack. How could that be our advantage?"

Madara sighed helplessly. "Food. Mountains cannot be used to grow crops. Their food production is limited, and they must rely on imports. Do you understand now? We don't need to attack them directly at all."

At this point, some began to understand Madara's meaning. After all, they were not lacking in intelligence; this was a world of ninjas with formidable individual power. Although they were in the Warring States period, they had always focused on frontal warfare, and their development of military strategy was far inferior to the Warring States period of another world—a drawback brought about by individual martial prowess being too high.

Uchiha Zhan also revealed a look of realization and said happily, "If that is the case, then..."

"Then we only need to block the roads leading out, cutting off their food import routes. In doing so, they will inevitably run out of food. When they are sufficiently starved, we can attack directly. Of course, it would be best if they all starved to death," Madara said with a cold sneer.

He did not go into too much detail. Everyone present was a veteran of the battlefield; once provided with this line of thinking, they would naturally complete the battle plan themselves.

Uchiha Tajima nodded in satisfaction from behind. Because the Hyuga territory was mountainous, there were not many major roads leading into their clan lands. The Uchiha clan could easily blockade all the main routes, which would free up more manpower to defend against the Senju.

A peak Jonin stood up and flattered, "Patriarch, the young master is not only a genius in ninjutsu, but also a genius in warfare. Under the young master's leadership, the next generation of our Uchiha clan will surely be able to defeat the Senju and truly stand at the pinnacle of the Warring States."

The others also praised Uchiha Madara in unison. Madara blushed slightly and coughed twice to hide his embarrassment; after all, this idea was not his own, and hearing these praises now felt somewhat awkward.

Shin watched this scene from behind the crowd, sneering inwardly: This is only the first step. In the future, I must help Madara build even more prestige within the clan. Only when his reputation is sufficient will he be able to command the respect to become patriarch directly in the event of Uchiha Tajima's sudden death. I truly hope that day comes soon!