Uchiha Kai's tone grew grave.
Yes.
If it had been before, he wouldn't have said this much.
Originally, he only needed Minato to remain neutral.
But now—since Minato had chosen to resist, to openly oppose the Konoha leadership—
everything had changed.
After all, Minato was a contractor of Mount Myōboku.
If Kai didn't warn him soon, it was only a matter of time before Myōboku found out.
And as Kai had said, Mount Myōboku was far too strange!
When he read the manga in his past life, it didn't matter.
But now that he was truly in this world…
He had to tread carefully.
Any sentient being inevitably carries desires.
No matter what they did, they always had their own aims.
Take Ryūchi Cave's White Snake Sage—
Its only interest was in testing whether humans could cultivate their senjutsu, and in using those experiments to evolve further.
Those who died in training simply became food for its serpents.
As for Shikkotsu Forest's Slug Sage—
It was just boring.
All it wanted was a spokesperson to bring it into the shinobi world, to watch history unfold and pass the time.
But Mount Myōboku?
Kai couldn't pin down its motives.
And he refused to believe a bunch of toads were truly altruistic saints with no strings attached.
In such circumstances, trust was impossible.
Come on…
they weren't even the same species!
Even if Myōboku wanted to play saint, it was toads they wanted to save, not humans.
Why would they care so much about humanity's "chosen savior"?
Think about it—
in the Fourth Shinobi War, Infinite Tsukuyomi, even Kaguya Ōtsutsuki appeared.
Did any of the sages of the Three Great Holy Lands intervene?
No.
What did that prove?
The survival of mankind, even the fate of the entire shinobi world—
they didn't care in the slightest.
The only thing they honored was the contract.
From another angle, it suggested the Three Holy Lands weren't even in the shinobi world.
More likely, they existed in pocket dimensions or rifts in the void.
"T-that's impossible, right?" Minato's face twisted in shock.
"The sages of Mount Myōboku, they…"
He trailed off.
Yes.
Even he felt something wasn't right.
Because Minato wasn't Jiraiya.
Jiraiya was truly simple-hearted, never one to overthink.
But Minato was different.
He was kind, yes—but he also had a mind of his own.
At first, he thought Kai was being paranoid.
But the more he thought about it, the more sense it made.
Shikkotsu and Ryūchi both had clear agendas.
Only Myōboku stood out—like "true saints," endlessly generous, selflessly seeking a savior.
But… They were toads!
After a long pause, Minato finally nodded.
"Alright. I understand.
What we're planning is too important.
I won't let anyone else know.
I can't fully agree with you yet…
but you're right that until we uncover Myōboku's true nature, I won't breathe a word of this to them."
Yes.
Kai's arguments were logical.
But Minato still had his own principles—he wouldn't blindly believe anyone.
Kai's face remained calm.
He wasn't angered by Minato's caution.
As far as he was concerned, as long as his goals were met, the rest didn't matter.
"Good. No problem," Kai said evenly.
"Oh, and don't forget about the Nine-Tails.
That beast has lived a very long time—
it might know something about the Three Holy Lands.
When you get the chance, ask your wife."
Minato blinked.
But recalling last night's events, he slowly nodded.
Yes. That made sense.
The Nine-Tails had lived for centuries—it just might know.
"Alright, I'll keep that in mind," Minato said with a faint smile.
"Now, let's move. Time's short."
Kai chuckled and nodded.
No more wasted words.
He called over Aburame Ryoma.
Minato then seized them both—
and with a surge of Flying Thunder God, they vanished.
When Kai opened his eyes again, they were in a military encampment.
"This place is…?" he asked.
Minato hesitated before replying with a wry tone:
"The Land of Fire border. Just ahead is the Grass Country."
"…Wait, what?" Kai blinked.
"Wasn't the warfront in the Grass Country itself?"
Minato sighed, shaking his head.
After a pause, he explained:
"It was.
But a few days ago, Hidden Cloud Village forces launched a surprise attack.
And Hidden Grass Village—
the bastards betrayed us.
Their defenses collapsed, leaving only Shikaku to retreat with a handful of men.
I wasn't in Grass Country at the time.
I was holding the line in the Hot Springs Country against Hidden Cloud Village.
By the time I rushed here, the Grass defenses were gone.
Even the Land of Fire's own border forces had been routed.
You've probably heard—two days ago, Konoha conscripted three thousand more shinobi.
That batch was sent here, to reinforce against Hidden Cloud.
The Hokage summoned you because the front line truly can't hold anymore.
If we can't push Hidden Cloud back, the flames of war will reach Land of Fire itself.
The only reason they haven't advanced yet is logistics—
their supply lines are stretched too thin.
Our mission now is to sabotage their transport routes.
Even if we can't defeat them outright,
we mustn't allow their supplies to reach the front.
Next, we'll strike while their foothold is unstable—
crush Hidden Cloud's frontlines completely!
At the very least, we must push the battlefield back into Grass!"
Hiss—
Kai immediately understood.
So that was it.
Hidden Cloud was at Land of Fire's gates.
And their job was to cut supply lines.
If he remembered correctly, wasn't this one of the most iconic battles of the original story?
The Battle of Kannabi Bridge!
Yes… that battle.
But damn it all—
behind Obito's fall into darkness… was Uchiha Madara!
So should he interfere?
Or leave things be?
His head throbbed with the dilemma.
As Kai wrestled with his thoughts, the group arrived at the command tent.
"Kai, let me introduce you." Minato gestured.
"This is the Grass front's commander, Nara Shikaku.
And this is the Fire front's commander, Mimura Hamaki."
After introductions were exchanged, Minato continued:
"Gentlemen, the front is critical.
We don't have time to waste.
Let's discuss—
how to sabotage the enemy's supply lines!"
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