"Attack the Mizukage?"
The next day, members of Seiki's small team all exclaimed in surprise.
Their voices carried a mix of astonishment, excitement, and enthusiasm—only fear was absent.
Even if their enemy was one of the Kage from the Five Great Hidden Villages, someone truly at the peak of the shinobi world whose words could decide the fate of small countries, they would never even consider doubting Seiki's judgment.
Moreover, their youthful arrogance gave them little reverence toward so-called great figures. As prodigies themselves, they believed even village leaders were only superior because of their age.
The only person deserving of their respect and admiration was Seiki!
Seiki narrowed his eyes, lightly tapping his fingers on the table. "It's perfectly normal for a ninja to die in battle, and I have no desire to carry hatred beyond the battlefield. However, Mist has gone too far this time—they actually dared to turn Rin into a tailed beast weapon! If Rin hadn't sacrificed herself, our village might've suffered tremendous losses!"
Everyone nodded furiously. Though they didn't care much about right or wrong in grand affairs, they simply felt anyone who hurt their friend deserved punishment!
After all, sweet and kind-hearted Rin was much more likable than that arrogant Kakashi and clueless Obito.
"That's right! We absolutely cannot let Rin's sacrifice be in vain!"
"Mist must learn the cost of harming someone dear to us!"
"It's just the Mizukage anyway—we don't have anything to fear!"
Kakashi was touched—but even more amazed.
All because of his senior's words, they were willing to confront a Kage without hesitation. What level of admiration and trust did that represent? Such unity and cohesion would make any other team envious.
"Well, I can do that too!" Kakashi thought inwardly. His respect and faith in his senior were just as strong as theirs—if his senior wanted to seize the Hokage position by force, he'd follow him without hesitation.
Pleased with their reactions, Seiki nodded and continued, "Regarding this operation, I've already consulted with Hokage-sama. His response is the village won't provide any support, nor will we be stopped. In short—we're completely on our own!"
They felt secretly surprised. Considering how Hokage-sama had been willing to negotiate peace with Rock even while nearly wiping them out, the only reason he agreed to this mission must come down to both his anger at Mist and his confidence in Seiki.
"Now then, if no one objects, let's begin planning the operation!" Seiki paused briefly before speaking again. "First, we need to find a way to lure the Mizukage out. With him hiding within Mist's army, there's no way we alone can defeat him!"
"Lure him out?" Guy pondered deeply. "What if we spread news saying Three-Tails has revived?"
"The Three-Tails barely died days ago—are you serious about resurrecting it so quickly?" Asuma shot him a skeptical glance. "Can't you at least try to sound believable when you lie?"
Guy protested, "Then why don't you try making something up?"
"Gladly," Asuma replied. He thought for a moment before clapping his hands together. "I got it—spread rumors that Kakashi is dissatisfied with the village's inaction and stole the Scroll of Seals to defect. Maybe that'll tempt the Mizukage out?"
Kakashi was momentarily speechless. "How did this suddenly fall on me? And your suggestion is clearly even less credible!"
"What else can we do?" Asuma helplessly replied. "The Mizukage is very cautious; ordinary temptations have absolutely no appeal to him!"
Everyone looked conflicted. The Mizukage wasn't like the Raikage, a reckless hothead charging at the frontlines all the time.
"If there's no way to lure him out, then let's approach this from a different angle—like diverting Mist's main forces!" Seiki mused. "Later, I'll use genjutsu to control several Mist shinobi and provoke conflicts with Cloud Village, escalating things until Mist dispatches their troops elsewhere!"
Kakashi asked, "But what if they only send out part of their forces?"
Seiki responded, "Then after Mist sends out a portion of its forces, we'll invite Jiraiya-sama to lead Leaf troops on a few patrols along the border, forcing Mist to deploy their remaining strength for defense as well. The threat from two villages should be enough to leave their Main Camp vulnerable."
Mizuki immediately agreed. "I think that works!"
Shizune and Kurenai clenched their teeth in frustration. Why so fast?!
"Yeah yeah, I agree too!"
After everyone gradually expressed agreement, Seiki slightly nodded. "Then next, we consider the second issue—how to defeat or even kill the Mizukage?"
"The Mizukage has always been cautious. Even on the battlefield, he keeps his Kage Guards constantly surrounding him. While individually they're just average jonin-level, together they're skilled in combined techniques, creating formidable combat power when coordinated properly!"
"Moreover, each village carefully considers coordination between the Kage Guard unit and their respective Kage during selection, since even a Kage cannot possibly cover every angle themselves. This is where the importance of the Kage Guards really shows!"
Kakashi pondered aloud, "So our task would be intercepting the Mizukage's Kage Guards?"
"Not only that." Seiki solemnly shook his head. "Although I'm confident facing the Mizukage himself, if he chooses to flee, it'll be difficult for me alone to prevent his escape. Therefore, several of you—perhaps even more—will need to take turns setting up barriers!"
Everyone's expressions turned grave. Although they'd grown significantly stronger, their enemies weren't merely Bloody Mist Swordsmen anymore. If the Mizukage truly wanted to escape, a single barrier wouldn't contain him for long.
In other words, they must prepare to rotate barrier duty.
"Besides the Kage Guards, we must also consider potential Mist reinforcements arriving," Seiki continued seriously. "Of course, our operation shouldn't last too long—the Mist's main force probably won't return quickly—but even individual fighters from Mist could still be dangerous enough to keep us on high alert!"
"How strong could Mist still be right now?" Asuma muttered. "The Three-Tails is dead, and the Six-Tails Jinchuriki probably hasn't recovered yet. What powerful force could they possibly show besides the Seven Swords of the Bloody Mist... cough, the current Two Swords duo?"
"Hmph! If we really meet them again, it'll be time to settle old scores!" Kurenai said while rubbing her small hands.
Guy excitedly nodded. "Exactly! We're completely different from before!"
"Don't underestimate Mist!"
"Considering the Six-Tails' powerful vitality, even if not completely healed, the Six-Tails Jinchuriki can still demonstrate considerable strength," Seiki warned. "Besides the Jinchuriki, Mist's Water Mirror Yagura is also a formidable opponent!"
"Yagura—the one who can summon a mirror image as strong as his opponent using the Water Mirror technique?" Shizune exclaimed.
"Is that technique really that powerful?" Asuma questioned doubtfully, "If he copies someone like Seiki, what chance do we have?"
"Then we must eliminate the Mizukage before their reinforcements arrive!" Mizuki coldly stated. "Better yet, my abilities haven't been exposed yet. I'll pretend to make a mistake and lure the Mizukage into breaking through the chakra barrier from my position!"
"The Yin Release?" Inuzuka Reki's eyes lit up. "Without prior intelligence, even the Mizukage might fall victim to your skills!"
"Won't that be too dangerous? Our opponent is a Kage after all!" Sen Hyuga said uncertainly.
"There's nothing to worry about. No matter how strong he is, he can't go beyond the limits of chakra's nature!" Mizuki calmly replied.
"Don't forget me—I should also be able to help!" Kakashi gently touched his left eye.
Guy asked curiously, "What use will the Sharingan be? Are you planning to control the Mizukage with genjutsu?"
Kakashi closed his left eye, and when he opened it again, the tomoe had transformed into a wheel-shaped pattern with tomoe swirls. "This is the final gift Rin gave me—a miraculous ray of light that awakened the evolution of my Sharingan!"
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