Uchiha Kai's mouth twitched.
Yes.
Maybe at first he hadn't been too worried, but the moment he saw Minato Namikaze's expression, the odds of disaster instantly skyrocketed in his mind.
Sigh…
With a helpless sigh, rubbing his temples, he finally spoke.
"Brother Minato, you—"
"The way you're acting makes me even more worried. Your expression tells me you've already let your guard down."
"Rin… most likely, something will happen."
Minato froze, dumbfounded.
But after thinking it through carefully, he realized that Kai's words… actually made sense.
Even though his heart was still worried, he had unconsciously started to relax a little.
But still—he didn't think anything could really happen.
After all, Rin's protection was solid.
She carried his Flying Thunder God kunai, and Kushina was by her side as well…
He truly couldn't believe anyone could abduct Rin under such protection!
And besides—
Even if Kushina were somehow defeated, he could instantly teleport to her side!
But…
He also knew Uchiha Kai's character. Kai wasn't someone who panicked for no reason. For him to come straight to Minato after parting ways… that meant he had discovered something Minato himself had overlooked.
Frowning, Minato asked,
"Kai-kun, tell me."
"What exactly is going on?"
Uchiha Kai didn't hesitate.
He directly laid out Hiruzen Sarutobi's and Nara Shikaku's plot in full detail.
At their current level of trust, there was no need for half-measures.
After explaining, he sighed, then added,
"The man you met at my house just now—"
"Nara Kōji!"
"I can't say too much, but what I can tell you is this: he's one of the true core figures of the Nara clan."
"His status is no less than Nara Shikaku's. He just rarely shows his face — he's part of the clan's hidden foundation!"
"Shikaku is only the front-facing spokesman."
"I've struck a deal with the Nara clan, and this intel came as a bonus from them."
Minato was stunned speechless.
Yes.
Never had he imagined people's hearts could be so dark.
Good heavens!
Because they couldn't touch him, they targeted Rin instead?
As Rin's teacher, he knew her very well.
Kind and pure, always unwilling to trouble others.
If Shikaku really confronted her this way, Rin would very likely choose to end her own life.
"Damn it! Bastards!" Minato roared. "How can they do this?"
"If Rin is cornered by Shikaku alone, she might really…"
"No! I have to stop this!"
He panicked, instinctively reaching out with his senses to his Flying Thunder God markers.
But before he could act, Uchiha Kai blocked him.
"Brother Minato, don't rush."
"Even if you rush, it's useless. In Nara Kōji's own words — half of the Ino-Shika-Cho are already leaning toward the Uchiha."
"That means Shikaku is desperate. He must show concrete action to prove his loyalty to Hiruzen."
"So most likely… he's already made his move."
"If you rush over now, it won't change anything."
"You can stop Rin once — but you can't stop her for life."
"You can't possibly guard her 24 hours a day, can you?"
"This is an open plot! Even if you know, you can't brute-force it away. To truly change it, using force would be the stupidest option."
"You have to persuade her. You need to seize Rin's weak point."
"Do you know what Rin cares about most?"
Yes.
This was what gave Uchiha Kai a headache.
This trap wasn't easy to break!
Minato's expression darkened as he sighed, abandoning his reckless impulse.
He knew Kai was right. This matter had to be handled carefully.
But Rin's weak point? What she cared about most?
He… didn't know.
Her parents had been ordinary civilians, long dead.
She'd grown up an orphan, with little to tie her down.
Her only close bonds were with Obito and Kakashi.
But just two friends — was that enough to keep her from sacrificing herself?
Sigh…
Another helpless sigh escaped Minato as he shook his head.
Uchiha Kai fell silent as well.
Yes—he had brought up the problem, but he didn't have a ready-made solution either.
Just then—
Kakashi and Obito, who had been training in the courtyard, noticed the grim expressions on their faces and naturally hurried over.
And so—
After hearing everything, both fell silent.
For a moment, the courtyard was heavy with gloom.
After a pause, Kakashi managed to stay calm, but Obito couldn't hold back and began shouting.
Uchiha Kai's patience snapped.
"Obito, shut up! If you've got an idea, speak it. If not, then stay quiet and stop disturbing everyone's thinking!"
"I…" Obito felt wronged, but still nodded. "Fine!"
He backed down.
Normally, he would've argued with Kai.
But now?
With Rin's fate on the line and everyone wracking their brains for a solution, he dared not stir trouble.
Still, in his heart—
His resentment toward Hiruzen Sarutobi only deepened.
Once, his dream had been to become Hokage.
But now?
That dream was dead.
Hiruzen's cruelty only disgusted him.
Silence!
The entire courtyard fell into dead stillness.
Everyone sat in dark contemplation.
Ten minutes later—
Uchiha Kai sighed.
Looking at the faces before him, his mouth twitched.
These supposed "main characters" of the story — maybe they were decent in ability, but when it came to schemes?
Pathetic.
Barely better than the average Uchiha.
Counting on them? Forget it.
After a long silence, he finally spoke.
"Enough."
"Clearly, no one has a good plan."
"In that case, I do have one crooked idea. I doubt you'll reject it."
Almost instantly—
Hearing Kai's words, Minato and the others lit up with excitement.
Obviously.
They had run out of options.
This was an open scheme — not something brute force could fix.
If Uchiha Kai had an idea, they would gladly seize it.
"Kai-kun, tell us!"
"We'll follow your lead — as long as Rin can be saved!"
"Yeah, Uchiha Kai, if you've got a way, say it! Whatever it takes to save Rin, I'll do it!"
"…"
Kai narrowed his eyes.
Looking at their eager faces, his lips twitched again.
After a moment of hesitation, he sighed.
"First, let me be clear: this is just a crooked tactic."
"It's a bit underhanded, so whether you go through with it is up to you."
"Since Rin has no weak point…"
"Then we create one."
"Obito!"
"Do you want to save Rin?"
"It's time for you to step up!"
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