"Gentle methods? Do you think Kumogakure will accept that?" Danzo said furiously, "It's obvious what they're planning. Gentle methods will only show weakness to the enemy and won't accomplish anything."
"Our peace is hard-won. Before a real war breaks out, I believe we should try our best to contact Kumogakure and avoid war. If Kumogakure insists on starting a war, our Konoha is not to be threatened." Hiruzen said in a deep voice.
"Hokage-sama." Seeing the two arguing, Asahi stood up and said, "I think both you and Elder Danzo have valid points. Kumogakure is clearly looking for a fight; they just don't know Konoha's true strength yet. However, the Kumogakure shinobi have already entered the Land of Fire. If we want to maintain the safety of the Land of Fire, a conflict with Kumogakure is unavoidable."
Considering his age, Asahi would never qualify for a commander position, but if Konoha and Kumogakure went to war, Konoha's medical ninja teams and the powerful individuals who could deter Kumogakure would all rely on Asahi.
In terms of seniority, it wasn't Asahi's turn to speak at such a jōnin meeting, but in terms of strength and status, no one could ignore Asahi's words.
Hearing Asahi's words, Hiruzen frowned slightly. Although Hiruzen always advocated for peaceful resolution of conflicts between the two countries, Kumogakure had indeed entered the Land of Fire's defense line. Hiruzen had not mentioned this point earlier, clearly intending to have 'friendly talks' openly while secretly launching a pre-emptive strike.
In past incidents, Hiruzen had done similar things many times, and those insidious methods were always carried out by Danzo, while Hiruzen maintained his benevolent facade.
Seeing Hiruzen's expression, Asahi smiled and continued, "We might as well issue a statement first, asking Kumogakure to voluntarily withdraw from the Land of Fire, further showing weakness to Kumogakure, so that Kumogakure will take the initiative to attack. Then we can ambush their troops."
Asahi spoke up not to challenge Hiruzen, but to offer his strategy based on Hiruzen's opinion.
If this tactic could be implemented, Hiruzen could still maintain his reputation as a 'peace-lover', but once war broke out, Konoha could quickly seize the initiative and catch Kumogakure off guard.
Furthermore, with Hyuga Hiashi present, Asahi's suggestion also demonstrated that he was not only powerful but also intelligent, strengthening the Hyuga clan's trust in him.
Seeing that everyone was drawn in by his words, Asahi continued, "Of course, in addition to issuing a statement, we must also spread some news to show that our Konoha is still strong. If Kumogakure withdraws from the Land of Fire, then the war will naturally dissipate. But if Kumogakure continues to provoke, or even further invades, we can also use the terrain of the Land of Fire to ambush the Kumogakure shinobi."
Hearing Asahi's strategy, Hiruzen nodded and asked, "To ambush the Kumogakure shinobi, intelligence must come first. If we don't grasp the timing, the Kumogakure shinobi will directly penetrate deep into the Land of Fire. Have you considered this?"
"Regarding intelligence, I can use the Flying Thunder God Technique to transmit it. As long as Kumogakure makes a move, I can instantly transmit the intelligence back to Konoha." Asahi said. "Additionally, after entering Sage Mode, I can observe Kumogakure's movements from a long distance through natural perception, and they will not be able discover me."
"Asahi, can Sage Mode really allow you to monitor Kumogakure from a long distance?" Nara Shikaku asked.
"Yes! In Sage Mode, my perception can cover the entire Konoha, and even further." Asahi nodded, at the same time showing off to the Hyuga clan that his perception ability was not inferior to their Byakugan.
The perception ability of Sage Mode was not considered important intelligence; given Konoha's heritage, it must have been recorded long ago. After all, Senju Hashirama had used Sage Mode, and with Hashirama's character, these things would certainly have been documented.
Since Hiruzen knew some functions of Sage Mode, Asahi's active disclosure of Sage Mode's abilities was not a big deal; instead, it proved that he had no selfish motives for Konoha.
"I also agree with Asahi's strategy, but besides spreading some information, we also need to set up two lines of defense on the border, one overt and one covert," Shikaku said. "The overt line of defense is for luring the enemy, and the covert line of defense is for ambushing. In terms of intelligence transmission, I can cooperate with Inoichi, but for monitoring Kumogakure, we will have to rely on Asahi and the Hyuga clan."
"No problem." Asahi said.
"We have no problem either." Hiashi said.
Asahi's plan could only make Kumogakure confused about Konoha's true strength, but Shikaku's plan was entirely about actively luring the enemy deep and then ambushing them. Although it was only a slight modification to Asahi's plan, it was enough to show his brilliance.
"Hmm. I think that works too." Koharu and Homura exchanged glances before speaking.
"Hmph!" Danzo's rxpression had been dark the whole time. First, he was completely suppressed by Hiruzen, and then Asahi's plan also benefited Hiruzen. After all, on the surface, Asahi was still part of the Hokage's faction. The more outstanding Asahi was, the more everyone would remember Hiruzen's 'teaching and guidance' contribution.
Danzo felt very upset.
"Since everyone has no objections, then we will proceed according to Asahi and Shikaku's plan. Today's meeting will be classified as Konoha's highest secret, and no one is allowed to spread it." Hiruzen finally decided.
"Yes!" The ninjas quickly replied.
"Asahi, Shikaku, the two of you stay behind and discuss how to implement this plan specifically." Hiruzen said.
"Yes!"
The specific deployment of the operation was basically planned entirely by Shikaku alone. Although Asahi had watched some war-themed films and TV shows in his previous life, he only knew some general tactical strategies, but how to deploy them specifically, Asahi was ambiguous.
But Shikaku, worthy of being Nara Shikamaru's father with an IQ of 200, only made a few arrangements, and the entire strategy was already fully settled.
First, it was to lure the enemy deep, overtly condemning Kumogakure, while setting up a 'weak' defense line on the border of the Land of Fire, and then spreading news in the ninja world to prove that Konoha was still very strong and that the Nine-Tails had not caused any losses to Konoha.
But secretly, Konoha sent a large number of ninjas to ambush on the border. As long as Kumogakure attacked Konoha, the overt defense line would quickly collapse, simultaneously leading the Kumogakure army into a pre-set ambush, giving Kumogakure a head-on blow.
In the entire plan, Asahi was to use Sage Mode's natural perception to monitor Kumogakure, and several jōnin from the Hyuga clan would cooperate with Asahi in monitoring.
The surveillance team would monitor Kumogakure's movements 24 hours a day. Once Kumogakure dispatched troops, Asahi would immediately use the Flying Thunder God Technique to transmit intelligence, and Shikaku would then begin to deploy the entire ambush team.
If this plan succeeded, Konoha could at least wipe out Kumogakure's vanguard.
*****
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✓ Killed For 100 Years in Hueco Mundo, Aizen Invited Me To Soul Society!
✓ Naruto: Senmei Asahi
✓ Naruto: Uchiha's Intelligence Dealer
✓ Naruto: The Fifth Hokage Is Naruto's Uncle
✓ Naruto: Who Made Him a Ninja?
✓ Bleach: In My Second Reincarnation, I Became The Ninth Kenpachi
✓ To Love-Ru: Spoiler Route [R-18]
✓ Naruto: The Accidental Incubus [R-18]