Kumogakure's Strategy

After the battle ended, Rin glared indignantly at Yūto and Obito. "You two were far too reckless! What if you'd gotten hurt?"

Obito scratched his head, his face full of guilt. "Sorry, Rin. I'll definitely follow orders next time..."

Yūto suppressed his disappointment, forced a faint smile, and bowed to Rin. "Sorry for making you worry."

But inwardly, Yūto lamented that he had clearly planned to get himself killed, only to survive again...

After finishing her lecture, Rin smiled again and put her hands on her hips. "Still, it was thanks to how well you worked together that we completed the mission so smoothly!"

Obito immediately perked up, scratching his head with a goofy grin. "Hehe, I only did better than usual because you were there, Rin!"

Hearing Obito's words, Kakashi immediately delivered a merciless jab. "Dead last, I don't think you defeated a single enemy back there."

"Damn you, Kakashi!"

Rin watched helplessly as the two began arguing. They were always like this, getting into arguments over the smallest things.

Yūto watched them, his expression barely changing, but inwardly he was making plans.

Next time, I have to find a chance to act alone. Otherwise, these teammates will just get in the way...

For several days straight, Yūto encountered no battles worth mentioning.

Kumogakure's forces seemed wary of the Uchiha's fearsome reputation, sending only small-fry squads to harass them. Not even a single decent jonin appeared.

Utterly disappointed, Yūto simply stopped trying.

He napped in the shade during patrol missions, halfheartedly tossed a couple of shuriken when he encountered enemies, and even deliberately yawned loudly on the battlefield.

Unable to stand it, Obito came over to remind him, "Senior, the Elder will scold you for slacking off like this!"

Yūto lazily rolled over. "Yeah, sure, sure. You're right."

The Kumogakure camp.

Dodai stared at the battlefield situation marked on the sand table, his expression grim.

Inside the tent, several Kumogakure jonin stood with their heads lowered. The atmosphere was somber.

"In just three days, the Uchiha Clan has routed seven of our reconnaissance squads."

Dodai tapped his finger heavily against the edge of the sand table. "Even more troublesome is Minato Namikaze. His Flying Thunder God Technique lets him appear and disappear without warning. Our defensive lines might as well not exist before him."

A one-eyed jonin gritted his teeth. "We have to deal with one side first. Otherwise, we can't fight this war."

Hearing the jonin's words, Dodai fell into thought. Minato excelled at speed, and no one on Kumogakure's side could currently keep up with him.

To defeat Minato, they had to find a ninja who could match his speed.

As it happened, Kumogakure's Raikage candidate, A, also excelled at speed. If they could transfer him here, then...

Dodai narrowed his eyes. "Send word. Urgently summon A and Killer B to reinforce us."

He slammed his hand down, shattering a corner of the sand table. "They'll keep Minato occupied. Once he's been lured away..."

Everyone's gaze sharpened. Dodai sneered. "We'll send in the entire army and surround and kill the Uchiha!"

Several days later, A and Killer B arrived at the Kumogakure camp, travel-worn.

A flung aside his cloak and immediately demanded of Dodai, "Dodai, you'd better explain why you transferred me from the Iwagakure front!"

Dodai slapped the battle reports down on the table. "See for yourself. Minato Namikaze destroyed twelve of our strongholds in three days. He's almost torn open our defensive line single-handedly."

As A leafed through the reports, his pupils abruptly contracted. A note on one page recorded how the Yellow Flash had killed eight jonin in an instant.

"Big bro, this guy's pretty interesting, yo~"

Killer B kept a rhythmic beat with his lilting words, but his eyes behind his sunglasses grew solemn.

Dodai traced the shape of a gorge on the sand table. "You two have to keep Minato Namikaze occupied. Once he's lured into Takekuri Gorge..."

A's Lightning Release chakra crackled in his fist. "Send me over with the Heavenly Transfer Technique. I'll finish him in three minutes."

Dodai shook his head. "The key is to split the battlefield. Once Minato Namikaze is pinned down, we can devote all our strength to wiping out the Uchiha."

A snorted. "Then we should make it quick all the more!"

A pointed at Takekuri Gorge on the border of the Land of Tō. "Just send three elite squads to feint an attack on Konoha's flank. Minato will definitely go to their aid."

Dodai shook his head, rejecting the idea. "Too obvious. Konoha's forces include members of the Hyuga Clan. They can scout from a distance. This Lure the Tiger Away from the Mountain strategy won't fool him."

He pointed at the cliffs on either side of the gorge. "This is where he turned the tables and surrounded our forces last time."

A frowned and offered another suggestion. "Then use Lightning Release: Lightning Illusion: Lightning Pillar to create false signals and make it look as though the Raikage has come in person."

"That won't work either," Dodai interrupted. "Lord Raikage is too powerful, and his fearsome reputation has spread throughout the Shinobi World. If Minato Namikaze discovers him, they'll hole up in their camp instead."

He tapped the edge of the sand table. "Besides, genjutsu of that level consumes too much chakra."

Just then, a gleam flashed across Killer B's sunglasses. "Stupid big bro, why not have the logistics troops pretend to transport sealing scrolls and expose a weakness at Takekuri Gorge, yo?"

Dodai's eyes lit up. "Brilliant! Once Minato Namikaze discovers that the logistics troops are carrying a vessel used to seal the Eight-Tails, he'll definitely intercept them himself."

He immediately summoned a staff officer. "Prepare false intelligence and a decoy force at once. Make it look as though they're really transporting the Scroll of Seals!"

After they finished discussing how to lure Minato away, Dodai stared at the marker for the Uchiha forces on the sand table. "Now all that remains is the Uchiha."

A was the first to break the silence. "Once we kill Minato Namikaze, I'll lead the troops in a frontal assault. You take your men around to flank them!"

"No," Dodai cut him off bluntly. "The Uchiha's Fire Release is too powerful. A frontal assault would result in greater losses than expected."

He pointed at several scorched black markers on the sand table. "Last week's skirmish already proved that."

A frowned and offered another suggestion. "Then use genjutsu to interfere with their vision and launch a surprise attack in the confusion."

Dodai shook his head, rejecting it. "The Uchiha's Sharingan excels at seeing through genjutsu. That would work against ordinary ninja, but against them, it would only waste chakra."

He turned to Killer B, who was playing with his sunglasses. "B, what do you think?"

Killer B tilted his head. "Eight-Tails says we could flatten the battlefield with a Tailed Beast Bomb, yo."

Then he added, "But it'd blow up our own people too~"

Dodai fell silent. He had thought Killer B might have a good plan.

While everyone was silent, the jonin Shiroi suddenly stepped forward. "I have a plan."

He drew three arrows on the map. "We can pretend we're no match for them and scatter as we retreat."

Dodai narrowed his eyes slightly. "Explain in detail."

"The Uchiha have always been arrogant," Shiroi explained, pointing at the sand table. "When they see us routed, they'll definitely split up to pursue us."

His fingers suddenly closed into a fist. "Then we'll concentrate our elite troops and wipe out one of their groups in Thunderclap Valley."

Hearing his plan, A immediately grew displeased and shouted, "That's too conservative! We should wipe them all out!"

"It'll work," Dodai suddenly decided. "We'll follow Shiroi's plan."

He looked northeast. "Once the Yellow Flash is lured to Takekuri Gorge, immediately begin the feigned rout against the Uchiha."

Shiroi dropped to one knee. "I'll go prepare the decoy troops right away."

Dodai looked at the Uchiha marker on the sand table one last time. "Even if a single victory can't completely crush Konoha, severely weakening the Uchiha will still give us the upper hand. Total victory isn't our objective this time!"