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Kaito's voice roused everyone from the near-stupefied state their shock had induced.
Seeing that he had regained their attention, he continued, "Now then, you have all seen the proposal. Apart from the moon, there will be nine other satellites requiring personnel to defend them. I ask that you all allocate the responsibility amongst yourselves."
For a moment, everyone simply looked at one another, no one willing to speak first.
"I see," Kaito said. "In that case, I will take the liberty of making the assignments myself."
Disregarding the minor internal struggles he knew were playing out in their minds, he spoke decisively.
"The moon, as the central nexus of the planetary defense barrier, will be jointly defended by myself and the yōkai of Mount Ōeyama."
Noting the subtle shifts in expression on a few faces, he added, "Of course, the land allocations that have already been determined will not change. What I am referring to now are the personnel required for defensive posts against potential enemies."
Sure enough, he saw several representatives from smaller factions visibly relax.
"As for the other nine satellites," Kaito continued, "each of the Five Great Shinobi Villages will be responsible for one. The remaining four will be allocated thus: the Land of Iron will take one, and each of the Three Great Sage Regions of the summoning creatures will take one."
His gaze swept over the assembled group. "Does anyone object?"
"Kaito-kun."
Shion, standing at the edge of the crowd, raised her hand to get his attention. When he looked her way, she spoke. "What about our Land of Demons? Though our nation is indeed weak, we too wish to contribute and lend our strength."
"Amitābha." A monk from the Fire Temple stepped forward, placing his palms together. "Though we are men who have left the worldly life, we are also willing to dedicate our power to the protection of this planet."
"Miss Shion, Venerable Monk, please do not be anxious. For you, I have separate arrangements."
Kaito smoothed down the wide sleeve of his robe, then clasped his hands behind his back.
"I had intended to explain this later, but I may as well clarify now. In my plan, once the Ten Kings of the Ten Courts of the Yomi Hell have all ascended to their thrones, the ten satellites orbiting the home planet, including the moon, will be named after these Ten Courts and their Kings. Upon these ten satellites, shrines and temples will be established to commune with the Ten Kings, utilizing the power of these true hellish deities to construct the protective barrier. Naturally, the shrine established on the moon will be dedicated to King Enma, Lord of the Fifth Court and Ruler of Yomi."
He nodded towards Shion and the monk.
"When the time comes, I will be responsible for the rites and communion with the Ten Kings. The duty of tending to and guarding these shrines and temples, however, will be entrusted to the shrine maidens and the monks."
"Amitābha, this humble monk understands." The monk performed another Buddhist salute.
"I will convey this to the Abbot. However, I believe there will be no issue with fulfilling your request."
"Kaito-kun." Shion spoke with some hesitation. "I think you are aware that currently, I am the only shrine maiden remaining in the Land of Demons. I'm afraid…"
Kaito smiled. "To my knowledge, while the shrine maidens of the Land of Demons follow a single lineage, like the venerable monks of the Fire Temple, they maintain connections with shrine maidens from other nations' shrines, do they not?"
"I see." Shion nodded in affirmation. "The other shrine maidens do not possess the prophetic power inherited by the maidens of the Land of Demons. If all Kaito-kun requires is their assistance in maintaining the shrines, then that should pose no problem."
"Then, it is settled."
Kaito nodded with satisfaction.
"For now, let us conclude here. I have troubled you all to gather today. I believe everyone needs to relay this information back to the home planet, so please provide me with a definitive response as soon as possible."
The assembly gave their assent to his request and then began to disperse.
Kaito turned around, his gaze falling upon the satellites that had already traveled some distance in their orbit around the moon.
The sound of footsteps approached.
"It seems you have full authority to decide these matters?"
He turned his head to see Namikaze Minato, who had not yet departed.
"After all, Konoha was the earliest village to choose cooperation with you," Minato said, also looking towards the distant satellite. "Moreover, my teacher Jiraiya promised you that in matters concerning the fight against the Ōtsutsuki, Konoha would follow your command."
"Heh, that's true."
Kaito narrowed his eyes, looking once more at the starry tracks slowly turning in the vast expanse of space.
"Soon." After a long moment, he sighed.
"You mean the enemy?"
Hearing this, Minato's spirits lifted.
"The crisis is indeed slowly approaching."
Kaito's eyes remained fixed on the stellar orbits. In the blink of an eye, his black pupils transformed into blood-red Mangekyō Sharingan, within which a rotating pentagram pattern swirled.
"This particular crisis is not overwhelmingly great."
He blinked again, and his eyes returned to their normal black color. Then, he shifted his gaze away from the star tracks.
"However, this will serve to prove that my words are not false. It will completely shatter any lingering sense of wishful thinking those individuals may still harbor."
"The crisis is not overwhelmingly great?" Minato pondered. "It seems the number of enemies attacking this time is not large, still within our capacity to handle?"
"Indeed."
Kaito's expression turned solemn.
"However, the prior disappearance of Princess Kaguya has already caused this crisis to arrive ahead of schedule. If we completely annihilate the attacking enemies this time, the next crisis will likely not be so easily managed."
"So…"
He looked at Minato.
"What do you think? Should we aim for complete eradication this time, or would sealing be preferable? After all, merely sealing them might buy us more time before the next crisis arrives."
"I'm afraid the calculation isn't that simple."
Minato responded without hesitation.
"While many would choose the option to buy time if they heard your words, if it were my decision, unless absolutely unavoidable, I would not wish to leave a crisis we could strive to eliminate for future generations to face."
He suddenly smiled. "Besides, I don't see you taking on any disciples. A hundred years from now, there may never again appear an Onmyōji as powerful as you, correct?"
"That's right! Whatever Ōtsutsuki come, let's just beat them all! Delaying won't solve the problem completely, dattebayo! We have to face what needs facing with courage!" Naruto's enthusiastic voice suddenly rang out.
Kaito and Minato turned to see several youths who had gathered nearby.
"Sasuke, Neji, Suigetsu, Karin."
Kaito's gaze swept over the youths other than Naruto.
"What are your thoughts on this?"
"Whoever dares to invade our planet, we just fight back!"
Sasuke declared, his fighting spirit burning as he gripped the hilt of the sword at his waist, tiny golden arcs of electricity dancing between his fingers.
"After all, given the current situation, aside from confronting the Ōtsutsuki, it seems hard to find any battles that would truly interest me!"
Observing Sasuke's brimming confidence, Kaito gave an noncommittal smile.
However…
He glanced again at the sword in Sasuke's hand.
That's…?
He's grasped the basics already?
He nodded inwardly, then looked at the other three youths.
"On this point, and it's quite rare for me to say this, I agree with Naruto's view."
Neji stated his position.
"Hey, Neji, what's that supposed to mean?"
Naruto, however, was irritated by the implication in his words.
"Huh? You're actually asking for my opinion?"
Suigetsu scratched his head when Kaito's gaze landed on him.
"Since I've long since decided to follow Sasuke as my captain, I'll just act according to the captain's orders."
"I… I'll listen to whatever Sasuke-kun decides."
Finally, Karin lowered her head with an affected "shyness."
"Ehhh… Karin, your expression is off!"
Naruto exclaimed bluntly.
"Let me, the great one, demonstrate the proper way for you!"
"Wha… What?"
Karin adjusted her glasses, a dangerous glint flashing in her eyes behind the lenses.
"Harem Jutsu!!!"
"..."
"..."
"..."
"Watch me~"
A scantily-clad "Naruko" began to demonstrate the correct posture for bashfulness.
"YOU IDIOT!!!"
Karin exploded in fury, her hair practically standing on end as she punched him.
Naruto was sent flying by the blow, the transformation dispelled, tumbling head over heels until he rolled to a stop right at Minato's feet.
"Naruto…"
He looked up to see his father's darkened face and immediately realized his mistake.
"Crap, I forgot Dad was here too!"
He scrambled to his feet and tried to make a run for it.
"Naruto… where do you think you're going?"
Minato's hand instantly clamped down on his shoulder, his voice low and ominous as he leaned close to Naruto's ear.
"Don't forget, your mother is expecting us for lunch."
"Dad! I'm sorry!"
Naruto executed a flawless and immediate dogeza, prostrating himself on the ground.
"Please don't tell Mom, I beg you!"