The familiar Forest of Death.
The familiar dilapidated house.
Creak—
Hyūga Hiyasu pushed open the wooden door that looked like it was about to fall off its hinges and couldn't help but complain,
"I mean, fine, if we have to hold meetings here, I get it—nostalgia and all. But can we at least fix it up a little? The Second Shinobi War is already over, and I still have to sit in a dump like this for meetings?"
Inuzuka Ryoha, Uchiha Kamito, and Senju Hideki had just opened their mouths—
Aburame Shiken unsealed something.
An entrance appeared on the worn-out floor.
"Come on, let's talk inside."
Aburame Shiken gestured.
Inuzuka Ryoha: "As expected of Shiken—always thorough."
Uchiha Kamito: "Beneath a shabby exterior often lies something magnificent. Surely there isn't some idiot who doesn't understand something that simple, right?"
Senju Hideki: "I'm not like certain people. While someone else questions Shiken, I just trust him."
Hyūga Hiyasu: Don't think I don't know what you three were about to say. Also, Hideki, that was disgusting.
The five of them entered underground.
The entrance above closed automatically.
Deep underground, it wasn't dark at all.
Firefly-version kikaichū—ever heard of them?
Sofas, a TV, a fridge, beds?
Aburame Shiken: No one comes here anyway. It's not a problem if I rest here occasionally, right?
"Damn, this is a meeting place?"
Senju Hideki sighed in amazement.
It felt even more comfortable than his own home.
"Mmm, nice. Cool, too."
Inuzuka Ryoha casually grabbed a soda from the fridge and took a sip.
"So, how about we play? It'd be a waste not to enjoy a place like this."
Uchiha Kamito pulled out a scroll, grinning.
"Seconded."
"Seconded."
"Seconded."
Aburame Shiken: Danger.
As everyone knows, never let your close friends hang out at your home—you'll regret it.
"Ahem. Did you all forget we actually have business to discuss?"
Business?
We've ever handled anything serious?
The four of them all looked equally confused.
Aburame Shiken: Damn it, why did I queue up with these four? This is like going through a tribulation.
He pointed at Uchiha Kamito.
"His sister is pregnant."
That should make things clear.
"Congratulations!"
"Congrats, congrats!"
"Kamito's going to be an uncle!"
"What's there to congratulate? The one being born is my eldest nephew—future menace. I'm still thinking about how to raise him so he doesn't go down that path."
"Beat him. Problem kids just need a beating. Beat him from childhood and he'll naturally behave."
"How crude. Raising children requires love. Love can transform everything."
"You need to grow up with the child. Companionship is what children need most."
...
Four unmarried grown men passionately discussing parenting, each sounding like experts—despite three of them being single.
Where are you even getting this experience from?
Aburame Shiken's face darkened.
"Stop. At age three, Uchiha Itachi was taken to the battlefield by his father and witnessed the brutality of shinobi warfare. That experience awakened his Hokage-level mindset, making him view the world from that perspective."
"So do you understand the key point?"
Aburame Shiken looked at them excitedly. I've spelled it out this clearly—you have to get it now.
"As long as young Uchiha Itachi doesn't go to the battlefield, he won't walk that path. I'll go keep an eye on him right now!"
Uchiha Kamito was thrilled. Finally—finally, I've found the solution!
Bang—
Aburame Shiken smashed his fist onto Kamito's head.
"There are still three years before the Mist Village goes to war with Konoha. If you count properly, that's four years, you idiot!"
The other three stared at Aburame Shiken, who now radiated the aura of Uzumaki Kushina, trembling.
Why does this feel like fear coming from a mother?
At times like this, someone has to break the tension.
"If the Mist Village joins the war, then the Third Shinobi War will definitely break out. And given their habit of waiting, they won't be the first to act. So the war will likely start one or two years earlier than expected. That means our preparation time effectively begins the moment Mikoto became pregnant."
Inuzuka Ryoha spoke quickly.
Senju Hideki and Hyūga Hiyasu quietly gave him a thumbs-up.
As expected of Ryoha—reliable as ever.
"So, Shiken, if you have a plan, just say it. We'll follow your lead anyway."
Concise and straight to the point—that's Senju Hideki for you.
Aburame Shiken's face twitched.
When did my teammates become like this?
I remember back then, we used to have lively discussions.
We'd make plans together, cover each other's weaknesses—so why am I the one making all the decisions now?
Still—
Now that things had come to this, he could only lay out his plan.
"First, we need to go offline for a while."
"Offline?"
"Fake our deaths?"
"Die?"
"Shiken, you want us dead?"
Bang bang bang bang—
A four-hit combo.
"Stop twisting my words. I've realized there's a flaw in our plan. While we're steadily growing stronger, Konoha is becoming nearly invincible."
"Isn't that a good thing?"
"When a tree stands too tall in the forest, the wind will destroy it. Standing out too much is never a good thing."
Senju Hideki: "Then we just keep getting stronger, right? As the saying goes, to forge iron, you must be strong yourself. If we face them head-on, they might not even be able to beat us."
"If Konoha stays weaker and the Five Great Villages remain balanced, the final outcome is all five joining forces against the early-stage boss Yakushi Kabuto, Obito as the Ten-Tails Jinchūriki, the mid-stage boss Madara as the Ten-Tails Jinchūriki, and the final boss Ōtsutsuki Kaguya."
"But if Konoha becomes too strong, then it'll be the five of us leading Konoha against the other four great villages plus the Akatsuki, Yakushi Kabuto, Obito as the Ten-Tails Jinchūriki, Madara as the Ten-Tails Jinchūriki, and Ōtsutsuki Kaguya."
"If you had to choose, which would you pick?"
Aburame Shiken asked sincerely.
"How about we just take out Obito and Kabuto first?"