Nara Shikaku

Sarutobi Hiruzen would certainly hand over the Earth Grudge Fear manufacturing technology to Danzo.

As for Kaminazuki proliferating the Earth Grudge Fear himself, he had neither the time nor the interest; it was better to hand it over to the village in exchange for immediate combat power.

As for the idea that giving the Earth Grudge Fear to Danzo was an act of aiding the enemy...

Don't be ridiculous, there is nothing Danzo can actually hold onto.

Think back to when he painstakingly created the Wood Style user Tenzō, only to have Sarutobi Hiruzen swoop in and snatch the fruit of his labor.

The reason the Third Hokage kept him around, aside from their past ties, was primarily because the man lacked the ability to ever break free from his control.

Having had the experience of taming the Earth Grudge Fear, no matter how powerful a version Danzo managed to create, Kaminazuki was confident he could seize it back.

The Explosive Tags were not important; what mattered was having a pretext to let Danzo...

No, the Explosive Tags were still important; they were quite valuable, after all.

The next day.

"Kaminazuki, aren't you going to say goodbye to your family before you leave?"

At the village gate registration office, a boy with a Pineapple Head said with a wry smile.

Nara Shikaku, son of the Nara clan head, was also the teammate Kaminazuki had selected for this squad.

Kaminazuki signed the document and replied indifferently: "I've already had a similar scene once before; don't you know about aesthetic fatigue?"

"You've left the village before, but I haven't..."

He had wanted to have a proper farewell with his family...

"Stop the nonsense and come sign."

Shikaku signed helplessly, his expression as bitter as if he were signing a deed of indenture.

He could have dragged out his graduation for another half a year, but Kaminazuki had stormed into the academic affairs office and submitted his graduation application without authorization.

As someone with connections, special arrangements were made, and by the next day, Shikaku had become a member of Kaminazuki's squad.

--

Shikaku walked along the forest path with his head drooping, looking listless, and gazed up at the heavy leaden clouds in the distance.

"Why go to the Land of Rain? As a disciple of Lord Orochimaru, surely there are safer places to go?"

Kaminazuki, dressed in a tight-fitting black outfit, stepped over the muddy dirt road, specks of mud landing on his ankles.

He frowned and asked deliberately: "The Land of Rain is just a small country; what danger could there be?"

Shikaku knew this was a feigned question, but he replied anyway.

"The Land of Rain is located at the intersection of the three great nations, and there have been no fewer than ten recorded conflicts there recently."

"That cannot be explained away as small-scale friction."

"Both we and Iwagakure are cutting off each other's supply lines; this is standard blockade tactics, intended to prepare for a large-scale offensive."

"The signals from the Land of Wind are even more obvious. The Third Kazekage has appeared on the border line. His public excuses are unimportant; the deployment of his puppet troops expresses his intention to intervene in the war."

"Hanzo, who left the Land of Rain, has returned..."

"Even a Hanzo who defeated the Land of Iron cannot expel the ninjas of the three great nations."

"He cannot hold his ground in the face of a war between great powers; the Land of Rain will become the battlefield for total war."

"In other words... the main battlefield of the Second Shinobi World War."

Shikaku's voice had no fluctuation from beginning to end, as if he were stating a conclusion rather than a speculation.

Drip-drop...

The drizzling rain fell, sliding down his cheeks and into his collar.

A strange smile hung on the corner of Kaminazuki's mouth: "The Second Shinobi World War, is it..."

"When do you think the war will start, how long will it last, and which side will emerge victorious?"

Shikaku raised an eyebrow: "You aren't surprised at all? Is there news from the front that I don't know about?"

"No, it's because I can foresee the future," Kaminazuki said truthfully.

Shikaku would rather believe that Kaminazuki, like himself, had deduced the situation from known information than believe such nonsense.

Fortunately, after more than half a year of contact, their group had long since grown accustomed to Kaminazuki's occasional ramblings.

"The war will start as early as this year, or perhaps it has already begun."

"A relatively optimistic estimate is that the war will end within three to five years. The contradictions accumulated after the First Shinobi World War will be alleviated, and there will likely be a ten-year period of stability afterward."

Kaminazuki thought for a moment; it didn't differ much from his own memories.

"You mean... the Third Shinobi World War will happen in a dozen years or so?"

He was well aware of Shikaku's intelligence; in terms of raw numbers, it was second only to his son Shikamaru, but when it came to command and strategy, Shikamaru was no match for Shikaku.

Simply put, Shikamaru excelled at "winning a battle," while Shikaku excelled at "winning a war."

Kaminazuki hadn't expected that even before the Second Shinobi World War had begun, he would be able to predict the start of the third.

"It's quite easy to find the pattern, isn't it..."

Shikaku's shoulders shrugged, looking as if he were laughing, or perhaps sighing: "Considering the economy and other factors, the time span is based on the growth of a generation."

"Until someone like the First Hokage appears again, it will always continue like this."

He tilted his head back to let the rain fall on him, his expression somewhat somber.

"If I'm lucky enough to survive, the war my child participates in should be the Fourth Shinobi World War."

"Hmm... if it's a daughter, I wouldn't really want her to become a ninja. If she could marry into a noble family, that would be ideal. I think the house of Chunagon Yoshito is a good choice; she wouldn't have to participate in top-level decision-making, and also..."

"You're drifting too far."

Kaminazuki interrupted his reverie, saying: "You're having a son, who knows, he might even become Hokage."

"Haha, is that a future you've foreseen, Kaminazuki? Thank you for your kind words."

"Hokage, huh..."

Shikaku rubbed his chin: "Given our family's temperament, if my son were to become Hokage, something truly extraordinary must have happened to the village..."

A Yuan Tiangang of the shinobi world, are you...

If I let you keep deducing, I won't even know the plot anymore...

I originally just wanted to bring along an external brain, but staying with someone too clever really does lack a bit of fun.

Kaminazuki quickened his pace: "Keep up."

Shikaku pulled up his collar, covering half his face and leaving only his half-closed eyes visible.

Watching Kaminazuki's hazy silhouette in the rain, he lowered his head slightly.

The key to ending this cycle of war...

Kaminazuki, will it be you?

--

Three days later, the Konoha temporary camp in the Land of Rain.

"You arrived quite quickly, Kaminazuki..." Orochimaru shifted his gaze toward Shikaku, smiling faintly: "Nara Shikai's son, his name is Shikaku, right?"

"Lord Orochimaru." Shikaku bowed respectfully.

Nara Shikai was the current head of the Nara clan and the Chief of Staff for Konoha's eastern theater, responsible for dealing with the threats from Kumogakure and Kirigakure.

Since the founding of Konoha, the Nara clan had been almost synonymous with the position of strategist; they were Konoha's most useful brains.

Shikai's planning had played a key role in rescuing Kushina during the situation in the Land of Whirlpools.

So this is the partner you've chosen; you have a sharp eye...

Orochimaru looked at Kaminazuki, a hint of relief in his eyes.

The wise and calm Nara clan was exactly what was needed to neutralize the volatility of the Uchiha.