Hyuga Aya expressed her understanding.
The two of them then chatted briefly before returning to their rooms to sleep.
The next morning, at dawn, attendants arranged by Fugaku arrived to report in.
At last, Uchiha Kai and Hyuga Aya could finally breathe a sigh of relief.
Yes—
They were still kids themselves, hardly able to manage raising a child on their own.
That very afternoon, Hyuga Hizashi secretly came to visit, hoping to see his own child.
Clearly, he cared deeply for him.
Uchiha Kai didn't refuse.
He even openly stated that he could come see the boy whenever he wished.
After all—
He never intended to raise Neji as his own child. Bringing him into the Uchiha clan in the first place had been Hizashi's decision, a way to spare his son from the "Caged Bird Curse Seal" curse.
Hizashi was very grateful.
He even pledged on the spot that he would soon bring over a group of branch family members.
Time slowly passed.
Kai's daily life became increasingly peaceful.
His bond with Hyuga Aya grew deeper with every passing day.
Of course—
The same was true with Nohara Rin.
The three of them often met, sometimes even going on outings and picnics together.
Unfortunately, those happy days passed quickly.
One sunny morning, Kai lazily got out of bed, ready to bask in the courtyard sun—when the sudden arrival of Namikaze Minato shattered the peace.
"Ah, Minato-nii," Kai narrowed his eyes.
"Looks like Danzo's side is progressing smoothly. So, how do we make our move?"
After inviting Minato to sit and pouring him a cup of tea, Kai smiled faintly.
Yes—he knew.
Unless it was something truly important, Minato would never come visiting.
Things were different now compared to the original timeline.
The Uchiha and the Hokage faction had already completely torn their masks off.
As a key figure in the Hokage's camp, Minato still needed Hiruzen Sarutobi's full support before becoming the Fourth Hokage.
If he got too close to Kai now, who knew how Hiruzen might react?
So if Minato was here, it had to be serious.
And indeed, it was.
At Kai's words, Minato wasn't surprised.
He only smiled, downed his tea in one gulp, and nodded.
"Yes, that's right.
I just got word from the Hokage—Third Raikage A has already begun his move.
Next… it's our turn."
Kai nodded. "When do we leave?"
"Now," Minato replied.
"…Huh?"
Kai froze on the spot.
Good grief!
He had prepared himself mentally, but wasn't this a little too rushed?
Seeing Kai's bewildered look, Minato explained:
"Root operatives can't use the Flying Thunder God.
From the Konoha frontlines to Hidden Cloud Village is far too long a distance—messages rely entirely on a messenger hawk.
At that speed, Third Raikage would've departed yesterday. He might already be in the Land of Lightning.
So, to avoid unexpected complications, we have to move immediately."
Kai blinked, finally understanding.
So that's why it was so urgent!
Knowing this, and since he had already promised Minato, he had no reason to refuse.
He asked Minato to wait at his home, then went to see Aya, gave her a brief farewell, and stopped by Fugaku's house to hand off a few matters before returning.
Looking at Minato calmly sipping tea, Kai's expression turned serious.
"Alright! Let's go."
Minato nodded.
He wasn't one for wasting words. Rising to his feet, he placed a hand on Kai's shoulder and activated the Flying Thunder God.
In the blink of an eye—
When Kai opened his eyes again, they were already in a dense mountain range.
Seeing this, he couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
This jutsu really was amazing!
Minato led him to a cave nestled in a valley.
After setting a few traps, the two sat down cross-legged inside.
"Rest for now, Kai-kun," Minato said with a smile.
"This is a rendezvous point agreed on with Root. We need to wait here for their operative to arrive, and he'll guide us to the next step. Until then, we wait."
Kai had no objections.
This time, he wasn't leading the mission—no need to worry himself.
He'd just follow Minato.
But one thing still nagged at him.
"Minato-nii," he asked.
"Since we're about to go into action, shouldn't you give me the mission briefing?
Aside from knowing our target is Third Raikage, I don't know a thing!"
Yes—
he could stay uninvolved in other matters.
But in a mission like this, even a small mistake could be fatal.
He needed at least the basic details.
Minato looked at him in surprise.
"You don't know?
But wait—that can't be right. Doesn't the Uchiha clan have the Nara clan with them now?
This plan was originally Nara Shikaku's strategy.
You mean your Nara branch didn't brief you?"
Yes—he truly didn't understand.
Everyone in Konoha knew half of the Ino-Shika-Cho had defected to the Uchiha.
So Minato assumed Kai must've been informed.
But Kai just rolled his eyes.
"The Ino-Shika-Cho that joined me aren't the same as Nara Shikaku.
The intel Shikaku has, my Nara branch doesn't know at all."
"…That's… complicated," Minato muttered, clearly bewildered.
But he let it go. There'd be time later to sort it out. For now, the mission mattered most.
Taking a deep breath, Minato began seriously:
"Alright then. Let me explain briefly.
This all starts with the Third Raikage.
You know our Hokage-sama—he dreams of ending the war quickly, so he can retire and put me forward as Fourth Hokage.
But unfortunately—
While Hidden Mist Village , Hidden Stone Village, and Hidden Sand Village have agreed to peace treaties, Hidden Cloud Village's Third Raikage refuses.
So Shikaku suggested: if Raikage won't agree, then let's simply eliminate him. That's how this mission was born.
Of course—we're only support.
The main strike will be carried out by Hidden Stone Village.
They have a blood feud with Hidden Cloud Village. Ōnoki has long wanted to kill the Third Raikage.
If you hadn't killed those three thousand Iwa elite, Ōnoki might've already struck at Raikage himself.
After Shikaku's planning, it was decided that Konoha would secretly send elites to coordinate with Hidden Stone Village.
Meanwhile, Danzo's Root spies are tasked with luring Raikage—convincing him to turn from attacking Konoha, and instead secretly assault Hidden Stone Village.
Iwa and Konoha have already prepared their trap.
Our role—yours and mine—is to be the final safeguard.
If Ōnoki succeeds, perfect.
If not, then we will strike together to finish Raikage ourselves.
And right now, Kai-kun—we're already inside the Land of Lightning!"
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