Chapter 3: A Tentative Plan

Kei didn't acknowledge them and quickly left the village without even greeting Minato and Kakashi.

It wasn't that Uchiha Kei disliked Minato or Kakashi—in fact, he quite liked them—but this mission made him too anxious to be happy.

Imai Kenta and Hyūga Aya felt the same. After a brief glance at the four-person team, they quickly followed Kei.

To attract the attention of the Iwa-nin, they had to separate from Minato's team. Otherwise, their squad would interfere with the mission.

They quickly ran out of Konoha Village and headed towards their task. Sunlight filtered through the tall trees' dense leaves, casting dappled shadows on the ground.

Three small figures darted through the branches of the trees, creating fleeting shadows in the dim light, barely noticeable even to the most sensitive birds in the forest.

Before setting out, Kei had already devised a strategy: reach the mission site quickly and hide.

Having a member of the Hyūga clan in their team was a great advantage for Kei. They could scout the enemy's position and plan their next move.

However, Kei was well aware of the difficulty of this mission. He couldn't refuse it, but he also didn't want to die, so he needed to think of other solutions.

After about three days, they finally crossed the border and entered Kusagakure. However, Kei did not lead them to join the main force.

This decision puzzled both Kenta and Aya, but as wartime ninjas, they had to obey Kei's orders as the team leader.

"Let's rest for a while," Kei said, stopping in a forest within Kusagakure and sitting down to recover his strength.

They needed to be in top condition at all times to face any imminent battles.

"Byakugan, activate!"

Without Kei's prompt, Hyūga Aya activated her Byakugan to check the surroundings. Knowing their current situation and concerned for her own safety, she didn't dare be careless.

"No danger," Aya said softly after a brief scan, deactivating her Byakugan.

Kei nodded. "We've reached the Land of Grass and are close to the mission area. It's time to discuss our next steps. Do you want to survive?"

Kenta and Aya were taken aback by Kei's blunt question. They didn't expect him to be so direct.

They exchanged glances and wisely chose to remain silent.

Surviving from the Ninja Academy to the battlefield and living until now meant they weren't fools.

With their intelligence, they understood the real purpose behind the village's mission—to serve as cannon fodder to delay the Iwa-nin.

There were many ways to ensure survival. The best would be to linger on the Fire Country and Grass Country border, skirmishing until the war ended. They both understood this.

However, they could think this and even do it, but they couldn't say it out loud!

This was politics.

Kei's direct question left them no choice. Saying such thoughts would ruin their future.

Kei merely smiled, watching them silently. How could he not know what they were thinking?

He had considered many methods along the way, but had rejected all of them.

Kenta and Aya might survive by doing nothing at the border, but as the team leader, Kei couldn't do the same.

If they simply coasted through the mission, Kei would return to the village in disgrace, possibly even accused of delaying the war effort.

Even though Kei knew the Iwa-nin wouldn't hold out much longer regardless, others wouldn't see it that way.

Konoha's leadership always needed a glorious image, even if their orders sacrificed many ninjas.

To divert attention and blame, they often found scapegoats or unlucky individuals to brand as cowards or comrades' killers.

Alternatively, they used someone's achievements to draw attention, turning the deceased into "heroes who contributed to the village."

If Kei admitted to such thoughts and acted on them, he would only aid the higher-ups in Konoha, who already disliked the Uchiha clan.

Kei wouldn't do that and wouldn't let his teammates think or act that way either.

Regardless of what they truly thought, Kei needed to eliminate certain possibilities. No one wanted to die, but Kei especially didn't want to be the scapegoat.

"What's wrong, you two? This simple question shouldn't take so long to answer," Kei said, leaning against a tree with a mocking smile, his hand already in his ninja pouch, prepared for action.

Honestly, Kei hoped they would voice their thoughts. Given his current strength, he could eliminate one of them at some cost and then escape.

Though Kei doubted they would dare voice their thoughts or act on them, his cautious nature forced him to prepare for the worst.

After a long silence, Kenta and Aya exchanged glances before Aya gritted her teeth and said, "Captain, you must know what this mission truly means, right?"

"Of course," Kei replied with a mocking smile. "That's why I'm asking your thoughts."

"We should complete our mission," Kenta said with a harmless smile. "But we should be more cautious and utilize our Byakugan advantage."

"Oh? Good idea," Kei said nonchalantly, lowering his guard.

Indeed, they wouldn't dare act because that would be betraying Konoha, far worse than any practical thoughts they might have.

They knew Kei had survived this long because of his skills.

All three of them had lived while their teammates changed, indicating their capabilities.

This time, they all sighed inwardly: a troublesome encounter with similar characters.

Three cunning individuals together meant a test of who was more ruthless and who had a stronger will to survive.

"Since that's the case, let's find a suitable position and do what we need to do," Kei said with a smile. "Kenta is right. We should use the Byakugan wisely. Let's reach the target area and rely on Aya."

"No problem, but what about afterward?"

"Find sparsely populated areas and launch surprise attacks. There are other teams as well, aren't there?"

(Chapter end)