Naruto held her gaze for a moment, offering no further questions or reassurance.
He had long since made her central to his plan.
"All right."
The corners of Hikari's mouth curved almost imperceptibly, then her expression settled again.
"What do I need to prepare?"
"Just be ready to leave at any moment."
As for personnel, Naruto had no intention of bringing a large force.
A surprise attack, decapitation strikes, a display of overwhelming power-quality mattered, not quantity.
He already had candidates in mind:
Uchiha Hikari was a vital part of his core fighting force.
Until he mastered senjutsu, Susanoo-Clad Kurama, or even Susanoo-Clad Nine-Tails, would be necessary and efficient means of breaking through strong defenses and delivering devastating blows against any stubborn resistance or unexpected developments.
Hikari was also a formidable fighter in her own right.
Then there was Karin.
Naruto wanted her to witness Kusagakure's destruction with her own eyes.
He knew of the inhuman treatment Karin and her mother had suffered in Kusagakure, the humiliation and pain of being treated as "blood bags" and tools.
Bringing her meant letting her take part in this revenge herself, watching the Grass Ninja who had enslaved and hurt her and her mother face judgment and their end before her eyes.
She was someone who had thought of revenge even under Infinite Tsukuyomi!
A fox made of golden energy raced across the land.
Kurama was thoroughly disgruntled. His first full Tailed Beast Transformation, and they were using him as transportation.
In the latter half of the night, the three arrived outside Kusagakure.
Looking at the familiar village in the distance, Karin finally unleashed the emotions she had suppressed all night.
Kusagakure!
The place that held every nightmare of her childhood, all her mother's blood and tears, and had inflicted endless suffering