"Your real plan, Sasuke?"
Had the plan before this been fake? Uchiha Fugaku stared at Sasuke, confused.
"My real plan is to have the Uchiha Clan head to the Land of Grass. But with several hundred people traveling together, they'll move slowly. A trip that would normally take one day could take two, making it much easier for Konoha's ninjas to catch up with them!"
Seeing the confusion on Uchiha Fugaku's face, Sasuke explained calmly.
At that, Uchiha Fugaku, Shisui, and Itachi all nodded. Some members of the Uchiha Clan were ordinary civilians, and they certainly couldn't move as fast as an elite ninja unit.
Even if they left a day early, they could still be caught!
"But this problem is easy to solve now. Once they hear the spy's report, the Konoha High Command will surely send ninjas to set ambushes along the two routes through Rock Forest and Jiaodao Bridge. That means there won't be many ninjas left to pursue us."
After thinking it over, Sasuke continued.
"No wonder you didn't expose the spy on the spot and even deliberately leaked a false plan. You were trying to solve this problem!"
After hearing Sasuke's explanation, Shisui suddenly understood.
"Sasuke, you may be oversimplifying things! Some ninjas are exceptionally good at tracking. If they find no Uchiha Clan members on the road to the Land of Waterfalls, they'll realize they've been tricked. Then they'll widen their search, and even if the Uchiha Clan is already on the way to the Land of Grass, they'll still catch up with us."
Just then, Itachi, who had been silent, spoke up.
At that, Sasuke furrowed his brow. Itachi had a point.
In Konoha, members of the Inuzuka Clan, the Aburame Clan, and even the Yamanaka Clan had exceptional tracking and search abilities. If they joined the pursuit, Sasuke's deliberate leak would be pointless.
"To ensure the Uchiha Clan can leave safely, we'll have to send two squads along the road to the Land of Waterfalls to act as decoys. But then those two squads would be in great danger..."
After a brief pause, Sasuke finally spoke.
The decoy mission could easily be a suicide run, with an ambush ahead and pursuers behind.
The two squads would also have to hold off Konoha's pursuers for almost a whole day to buy the Uchiha Clan time to escape.
That demanded a lot from the squad members. If they were too weak and Konoha's ninjas wiped them out in just a few hours, the decoy mission would fail.
"Sasuke, I already promised I'd do it, so I can lead one of the squads on the decoy mission!"
Shisui knew how dangerous it was, but for the sake of the Uchiha Clan, he was still willing to go.
"I can lead the other squad!"
As soon as Shisui finished speaking, Itachi spoke up as well.
As long as his parents and his beloved little brother could leave Konoha safely, Itachi didn't fear death!
"Shisui, Brother, you..."
Looking at the two people closest to him, Sasuke didn't know what to say.
Sasuke knew perfectly well that Shisui and Itachi were the best choices to lead the decoy squads. But the mission was too dangerous, and he hadn't dared—or wanted—to ask them.
"Sasuke, there's no need to say anything else. The greater our abilities, the greater our responsibility. We made our choice long ago!"
Knowing Sasuke didn't want him and Itachi to take on the mission, Shisui patted his shoulder and smiled.
Seeing Sasuke's reluctance, Uchiha Fugaku spoke too. "Don't worry, Sasuke! Shisui and Itachi are the finest ninjas in the Uchiha Clan. With their abilities, they'll make it back safely."
After hearing Uchiha Fugaku, Sasuke thought it over and stopped objecting. "Dad, at the clan meeting, I said we would leave after midnight. Please have trusted clan members notify everyone that we'll leave tomorrow at midnight instead!"
With the spy in mind, Uchiha Fugaku nodded, already knowing what to do next.
Once everything had finally been arranged, Shisui smiled and looked at Sasuke. "Sasuke, I have to say, you're incredibly clever. You came up with a way to get the Uchiha Clan out of danger."
"If the whole plan succeeds and the Uchiha Clan leaves Konoha safely, you'll be its true hero!"
"Not really. I just stumbled onto the idea..."
Sasuke rubbed the back of his head, a little embarrassed, and spoke quietly.
Truthfully, Sasuke didn't want to stand out. But Uchiha blood flowed through his veins, and protecting the Uchiha Clan was a responsibility he couldn't shirk.
In a brightly lit room in the Hokage Office Building, Sarutobi Hiruzen, Danzo, Utatane Koharu, and Mitokado Homura sat behind a long wooden table.
In front of them crouched a figure. Under the lamplight, the man was revealed to be the scar-faced Uchiha clan member who had just attended the clan meeting.
"Bohuo, you can release the Transformation Technique now."
Sarutobi Hiruzen fixed his gaze on the figure and spoke calmly.
Bohuo nodded and immediately returned to his true appearance. He looked more handsome than he had in disguise.
"Bohuo, tell us what you heard at the Uchiha Clan meeting!"
Perhaps eager to learn what had happened, Danzo spoke in a low voice at once.
"Yes!"
Without hesitation, Bohuo quickly recounted the meeting from memory. He repeated Sasuke's plan without leaving out a single detail.
"Sasuke is only six years old. How could he come up with such a good plan?"
After hearing Bohuo's account, Sarutobi Hiruzen thought of Sasuke, whose face always seemed to wear a confident smile. His eyes filled with disbelief.
"And he awakened the Sharingan at six. If he keeps growing, the Uchiha Clan will produce another Madara Uchiha!"
At the same time, Utatane Koharu sighed.
Danzo abruptly stood up and muttered, "Forget that brat for now. It seems Itachi, that traitor, has decided to side with the Uchiha Clan. We need to make a battle plan."
Danzo had originally planned to use Itachi to destroy the Uchiha Clan. He never expected Itachi to report the intelligence Danzo had given him back to his clan. It infuriated him.
"If the Uchiha Clan wants to flee to the Land of Waterfalls, we can set ambushes along both routes, then attack from behind once they're on the move. That way, we can wipe out the Uchiha Clan at minimal cost."
After a brief silence, Mitokado Homura suddenly thought of a plan and spoke at once.
"Mm, that plan sounds good."
Danzo nodded and muttered.
Danzo had originally wanted to attack the Uchiha Clan directly in the village. But a clash between the two sides would damage the village and harm its people, so he decided Mitokado Homura's plan made more sense.