Iwagakure's Movements

"What kind of look is that? Teacher Namikaze Minato asked Uchiha Aoba to help keep an eye on you; isn't that appropriate?"

Kakashi crossed his arms and sneered, "A chronic latecomer like you needs someone to watch over him. I don't want to wait forever every time we have a mission."

"I'm not late every single time."

Uchiha Obito tried to argue his case. He was deeply resistant to the idea of Uchiha Aoba supervising him and pleaded with Namikaze Minato, "Teacher, could you reconsider?"

"How about someone else? What if you let Nohara Rin watch over me instead?"

Namikaze Minato looked at him speechlessly; he could practically hear the clicking of the abacus beads in the boy's head.

Besides, was he really just asking for Nohara Rin to supervise him?

Out of consideration for his student, he didn't want to call him out.

Uchiha Aoba, however, had no such reservations. He scoffed coldly, "What kind of nonsense are you thinking about?"

"Everyone here knows exactly what you're after."

"Isn't it just that you want more time alone with Nohara Rin?"

"If you had just said so directly, I might have respected you more. What's with all this beating around the bush? Are you still a man of the Uchiha Clan or not?"

"Show some spirit! Don't embarrass yourself!"

"It's just a simple request."

Upon hearing this, Uchiha Obito's face turned beet red. He waved his hands in a flustered panic, "Aoba, you guy, don't talk nonsense! When did I ever have such intentions?"

After saying this, he glanced at Nohara Rin, who was listening to their conversation with a flushed face of her own.

Seeing that she didn't show any signs of resistance or offer a rebuttal, he couldn't help but scratch his head and grin foolishly on the spot.

Looking at that expression, it was as if he had already picked out names for their future children.

Uchiha Aoba, Namikaze Minato, and Kakashi exchanged glances and shook their heads with a chuckle.

They truly didn't know what to say about Uchiha Obito's situation.

As for Nohara Rin.

To say she was completely unaware of Uchiha Obito's feelings for her would be a lie.

A girl's intuition is naturally more delicate than a boy's.

In Uchiha Aoba's view, perhaps Nohara Rin had been waiting for Uchiha Obito to confess, as very few girls take the initiative in such matters.

Of course, there was another possibility.

Nohara Rin had harbored a girlish admiration for Kakashi since childhood, leading her to mistake her feelings for him while treating Uchiha Obito as a close friend.

This created a very strange love triangle between the three.

In short.

Uchiha Aoba always maintained the attitude of a spectator regarding these matters, and with a desire to stir the pot, he would drop hints to Uchiha Obito, urging him to take action.

Watching the various emotions—panic, confusion, excitement, shyness, hesitation, and worry—flicker across the boy's face, Uchiha Aoba could only say it was spectacular, truly spectacular!

Just as he was about to say something more, a messenger hawk flew overhead, letting out a sharp, urgent cry that instantly turned his playful expression serious.

Namikaze Minato had the same reaction. As one of the village's top leaders, he knew exactly what the urgent cry of a messenger hawk signified.

There was no time to think; the priority was to reach the Hokage Office immediately.

He quickly commanded, "That's all for today. Kakashi, Obito, and Rin, you all head home. As for you, Aoba, come with me."

Watching Namikaze Minato leave with Uchiha Aoba using the Body Flicker Technique, Kakashi frowned. As a Jonin, he naturally understood the importance of the messenger hawk.

After a moment of thought, he could guess that something significant had likely occurred.

However, he didn't speak up, especially for the sake of Uchiha Obito and Nohara Rin, who were unaware of the situation. Until the speculation was confirmed, it was better not to say anything.

Hokage Office.

After Namikaze Minato and Uchiha Aoba met with Sarutobi Hiruzen, they moved to the adjacent conference room.

By now, almost everyone who could be considered a high-ranking official in the village had arrived.

First were the members of the Elder Council.

Shimura Danzō, Utatane Koharu, Mitokado Homura, and Torifu Akimichi.

Next were the heads of the various clans.

Uchiha Fugaku, Hyuga Hiashi, Shibi Aburame, Nara Shikaku, Choza Akimichi, Yamanaka Inoichi, and others.

As for the Sannin, who were also high-ranking officials of the village, none were present.

Tsunade, suffering from severe psychological trauma following the successive deaths of Senju Nawaki and Dan Katō, had left the village temporarily with Shizune to wander the ninja world.

Jiraiya, after joining forces with Orochimaru to defeat Sunagakure, had been dispatched to the Iwagakure front as a commander.

Finally, there was Orochimaru.

He was currently obsessed with his scientific research into the mysteries of the human body and, having already received word that he had no hope of ascending to the position of Hokage, he flatly stated he would not be attending.

Naturally, this left Sarutobi Hiruzen feeling quite dissatisfied and disappointed.

In his view, even if Orochimaru could not become Hokage, he was still his student and, more importantly, a member of the village.

To skip the meeting was truly a lack of perspective.

Regarding this, Sarutobi Hiruzen cast a subtle glare at Shimura Danzō, who was feigning ignorance on the sidelines.

As Hokage.

Did he really think he was unaware of the schemes those two were cooking up in the shadows?

It was just that the external enemies had yet to be dealt with, and there were still many areas where Shimura Danzō's intelligence network was needed; otherwise, he would have long since staged a repeat of the "you regret, I shadow" spectacle.

Enough of that.

Seeing that everyone had taken their places, Sarutobi Hiruzen cleared his throat and began: "I imagine you all have your own guesses as to why I've called you here today."

"I can now tell you quite clearly that the situation is exactly as you have surmised."

"After the war between Iwagakure and Kumogakure concluded, and following a period of adjustment, they are now reinforcing their troops on our front lines. It seems that old geezer Ōnoki intends to swallow us up in one go."

Sarutobi Hiruzen's statement was devoid of any fluff, cutting straight to the point.

As soon as he finished speaking, the sound of murmurs and discussion immediately erupted throughout the conference room.

War.

If they had a choice, no one wanted to experience war.

However, if Iwagakure thought they could treat Konoha the same way they treated Kumogakure, they had clearly miscalculated.

Konoha was no pushover.

Even if they had exhausted a massive amount of manpower and resources by fighting two fronts in this war.

A starved camel is still bigger than a horse.

Since Iwagakure wanted to decide the outcome with a single battle, then Konoha would see it through to the end.

As the conference room gradually returned to silence, Uchiha Aoba, standing behind Namikaze Minato, looked directly at Uchiha Fugaku. The moment their eyes met, he gave a subtle nod.

Uchiha Fugaku was stunned for a brief moment, but he immediately understood Uchiha Aoba's intent.

And so, before anyone else could speak, he tapped the table to draw everyone's attention and said, "The Uchiha Clan is willing to dispatch 50 clan shinobi to the Iwagakure front."

"To accept the command of Lord Jiraiya and Lord Minato."