"What?!" All the Jonin present were stunned. Kirigakure attacked Konoha?
This was something the executives present never expected.
" Lord Orochimaru, is this a message from the village?" a Jonin asked hurriedly.
The Kirigakure's attack on Konoha is no small matter; it will have a huge impact on the battlefield in the Kumogakure Village.
Kōki was also startled by the news, because he remembered that Kirigakure's attack on Konoha was supposed to be near the end of the Third Shinobi World War, and now it was only in the middle, yet Kirigakure had already made their move.
This completely disrupted the history of the Third Shinobi War.
This was completely bad news for him, a time traveler who relied on future intelligence for personal gain.
"That's right. We just received news from the village that Kirigakure has begun to gather its forces, preparing to cross the sea and land in the Land of Bears. From there, they will use the Land of Bears as a base to attack the border of the Land of Fire. Judging from their schedule, they should arrive in the Land of Bears in about ten days."
The expressions of the ninjas present changed again. It was too fast; the Kirigakure Village had acted far too quickly this time.
The speed at which thousands of combat troops were transported from the Land of Water to the Land of Bears in ten days far exceeded the expectations of the ninjas present.
It's important to know that the Land of Water is located in the ocean, far from any mainland, and consists mostly of islands in the ocean.
It is quite far from the Shinobi World Continent. Normal merchants would take a month to travel there, and even though ninjas travel faster, it would still take more than ten days.
Now, the fact that the Land of Water's team was able to reach the Ninja Continent in just ten days is astonishing to the ninjas present.
However, they knew this wasn't the time to be surprised by the enemy's speed; the more important thing was how to deal with it afterward. So, one of the ninjas asked Orochimaru with an anxious expression, " Lord Orochimaru, what do we do next?"
Orochimaru remained calm and composed, saying, " The Lord Hokage hopes we can resolve the Kumogakure as quickly as possible, or at least gain the upper hand if we can't, and then send some ninja to Land of Bears. He will also transfer some ninja from the village to the border to defend against the Kirigakure forces. Therefore, for us, the most urgent task is to gain the upper hand on the battlefield."
Everyone understands the principle, but how to implement it is the key. The Jonin are not fools; they are well aware of the strength of Kumogakure, which they cannot defeat in a short time. Therefore, gaining the upper hand on the Kumogakure battlefield is a very difficult task.
Just when the ninjas were at their wits' end, Kōki suddenly spoke up from the crowd.
" Lord Orochimaru, I learned a secret technique in Shikkotsu Forest that will help me defeat the two Jinchūriki of Kumogakure on the next battlefield and bring victory to Konoha."
However, my technique requires some time to master, and once I unleash this secret technique, my attack range will be enormous, so I need my combat troops to create some space for me to fight."
Kōki spoke up after much deliberation. He figured that since he had already decided to resolve the war in the Shinobi World as soon as possible, now was the perfect time.
Judging from the current situation, Konoha still holds a slight advantage, but once Kirigakure leaves the field, the situation will definitely change dramatically.
Putting aside the changes to the strategies of other ninja villages, simply continuing to drag Konoha deeper into the quagmire of war and subjecting Konoha to even greater war pressure is already a bad thing.
It is even more likely that this will reignite the ambitions of the previously dormant Sunagakure to attack Konoha.
By then, the situation in Konoha will only worsen, and his desire to conduct experiments quickly will be delayed.
Therefore, he needs to act swiftly and decisively, defeating Kumogakure with overwhelming force to intimidate Sunagakure, who might harbor disloyal intentions, before gradually dealing with Iwagakure and Kirigakure.
Only in this way could his Six Paths plan have the environment to be implemented.
After Kōki finished speaking, the surrounding ninjas all looked at him with surprise; they couldn't understand, or rather, they were suspicious.
They couldn't believe that Kōki, already so powerful, could possess a secret technique that could drastically enhance his strength.
Orochimaru's eyes lit up when he heard Kōki's words, especially when he learned that he had learned a secret technique from Shikkotsu Forest; his expression became quite excited.
If he wasn't mistaken, what Kōki was referring to was the unique secret technique of the Three Great Sage Lands — Sage Mode.
This is a secret technique that even he couldn't learn.
Back then, he heard that there was a powerful secret technique in Ryūchi Cave that could greatly enhance a ninja's strength.
They found the White Snake Sage in Ryūchi Cave and expressed their desire to learn Sage Mode.
However, when the White Snake Sage told him that his physique was completely incapable of cultivating Sage Mode, and that forcibly cultivating Sage Mode would only lead to his death, he gave up the idea.
However, he still couldn't forget about Sage Mode and kept thinking about alternative ways to avoid Sage Mode dangers and reduce Sage Mode difficulty in order to utilize Sage Mode.
However, he had only been conducting this research for a short time when he was pulled into battle. It can be said that Sage Mode was a regret for this Ninjutsu fanatic.
But today, he was extremely excited to hear that Kōki had actually mastered Sage Mode.
He thought this might be an opportunity to learn about Sage Mode.
After all, he had only heard of the power of Sage Mode, but had never witnessed it firsthand. This left him without a concrete understanding of the future prospects of Sage Mode, which could easily lead his research astray.
If there were a control group, things would be different; he could conduct the experiment in that direction.
Orochimaru probably never imagined that Kōki's Sage Mode is different from ordinary Sage Mode. If he were to study Kōki's Sage Mode, he might never be able to arrive at a satisfactory answer.
But Orochimaru isn't thinking about that now; Sage Mode is what he's most curious about.
" Kōki, have you truly mastered the secret technique of Shikkotsu Forest?"
Although Kōki didn't seem like the type to boast, Orochimaru still wanted to confirm it, since besides satisfying his own curiosity, he also had a responsibility to the Jonin.
Because Kōki requires a large enough space to maneuver, this means that a large part of Konoha's defense will require Kōki to act alone.
If Kōki makes a mistake, it could create a huge gap in the defense line, threatening the camps behind. Therefore, he must find out the truth.
"Yes, Lord Orochimaru, I have indeed mastered Sage Mode. I can demonstrate it now if needed." With that, he prepared to condense Sage Mode to show Orochimaru.
Before he could even demonstrate, Orochimaru Teuchi.
"No need, I trust you. Your secret technique is more worth using in the upcoming battle. Alright, let's renegotiate our battle plan now."
Now that Kōki, a powerful fighter, has joined the fray, the rest of the plan needs to be changed.
Although the surrounding Jonin had their doubts, seeing Orochimaru's confidence in Kōki's secret technique, they nodded in agreement. They knew that Orochimaru would not joke about war.