Chapter 21: Decision

Kai's tone was icy, and there was no hint of joking. His eyes had unknowingly turned blood-red, and the three tomoe in his Sharingan were slowly spinning.

Rin Nohara was completely stunned by this. She couldn't believe that someone from her own team would do something like this.

What made it even more unbelievable was that Aya, who seemed to treat her well, also activated her Byakugan.

The atmosphere became incredibly tense, and Kenta maintained his harmless demeanor, though his eyes lingered dangerously on Rin Nohara.

The matters of their team were their own, and it was best not to expose their secrets.

Kenta was not doing this for the team but purely for himself. Keeping Rin alive was a risk.

Especially if Aya and Kai really fought, many things would become irreparable.

However, Kenta believed they wouldn't end up fighting unless Aya was out of her mind.

As expected, Aya finally restrained herself. Without the Sharingan, she could have dismissed Kai.

Despite the clan rules, Aya didn't see much future in someone who couldn't even use their kekkei genkai.

But now it was different. Kai with the Sharingan was someone Aya didn't want to face.

Especially since Kai had dodged Minato's fatal attack, Aya didn't believe her speed could match that.

"Tell us your plan," Aya said, reluctantly deactivating her Byakugan. "You'd better have a complete plan and not just lead us to our deaths."

"I won't survive if you don't," Kai replied, deactivating his Sharingan. That feeling had been quite exhilarating. "I've already said, what we can think of, Iwa-nin can too. According to the map, the place with the fewest people is a trap. Once Kakashi goes in, reinforcements will arrive."

"So?" Aya looked at the map calmly. "Are we going to follow Kakashi to die?"

"But don't forget, if we choose another place to break through, they can reinforce there too. And those other places are even harder to break through. We're too few in number," Kai said coldly.

Indeed, even though Kai couldn't find hidden details on the map, based on its layout and Aya's intelligence, he had deduced a lot.

Iwa-nin wouldn't be so foolish to leave a weak point easy to break through. This was clearly a trap. Either they were waiting to surround and capture them, or it was bait.

Kai didn't believe Iwa-nin would risk it, given the current state of the war. It was likely guarded by strong ninjas ready to reinforce other areas or ambush Konoha ninjas who took the bait.

Normally, ninjas would use a decoy to attack other points, but Kai decided to take a gamble and go through this weak point.

Though it was a gamble, if successful, it would be a smooth path to Kannabi Bridge.

Kai didn't like gambling, but this time he had a trump card. Kakashi had given him Minato's kunai, allowing him to summon Minato at the right moment.

"Are you worried it's deliberate?" Though Kai hadn't voiced his thoughts, Aya and Kenta seemed to grasp it.

"Not worried, but it's very likely," Kai nodded. "So, I plan to take extreme measures."

"But following Kakashi like this, isn't that going to get us killed, Captain?" Kenta asked, scratching his head, but when he saw Kai create several shadow clones, he understood immediately. "You plan to send shadow clones as decoys?"

"So that's it," Aya nodded. "Rear assault ninjas conserve chakra, so using high-cost jutsu isn't typical. Sending shadow clones to attack a point, drawing reinforcements, and then hitting during the confusion caused by Kakashi's lone assault. Hmph..."

Kai smiled. Though he despised these smart individuals, they were indeed easier to work with on missions.

Looking at Rin Nohara, who still didn't understand the situation, Kai shook his head. She might be a qualified ninja with resolve, but she wasn't clever.

After understanding the plan, Kai and his team each created several shadow clones, which then ran in different directions.

The real Kai and the others followed behind Kakashi. Creating chakra-equivalent shadow clones was a significant drain on their energy.

But Kai noticed that Kenta and Aya immediately took soldier pills to restore their chakra as much as possible during the mission.

Even Kai did the same. As veterans of the battlefield, they knew how to manage their resources.

Though it was a small amount, even a bit of chakra recovery was better than having none at critical moments.

Iwa-nin probably anticipated this, but they didn't expect someone to take such a gamble.

After taking the soldier pill, Kai moved out first, controlling his breathing and steps to keep pace with Kakashi while recovering as much chakra as possible.

"Hope you don't get us killed," Aya followed, saying, "I've been on the battlefield for seven years; I don't want to fail now."

"I've been here six years," Kai replied calmly. "Kenta has been here the longest, eight years, right? If we didn't share the same resolve, we wouldn't have come this far. Though I hate you all because we're similar, we must cooperate now, or none of us will return."

Kenta nodded silently, his usual fake smile gone.

Aya, after a moment's thought, nodded too, agreeing with Kai.

Rin Nohara, weak and confused, couldn't grasp their conversation or their relationship.

Under the bleak night sky, the five figures moved swiftly through the forest.

(Chapter end)