bookbashuk Chapter 368 3 Days
Chapter 368 3 Days
Chapter 368 Three Days
"I'm serious." Chi Quan looked up at him, her eyes unwavering. "I've thought about this for a long time. Ever since the ambush. I thought I could scare them off with equal retaliation and make them back down. But I was wrong. They're being pushed along by others. It's not a question of whether they want to fight or not; it's that they have to fight. Helian is pushing them, the old nobles of the Fire Kingdom are pushing them, and there are others pushing them too."
"So you're going to use 20,000 lives to block it?"
"I want to end this with twenty thousand lives." Izumi's voice didn't rise, but every word was heavy. "Shikamaru, war isn't a fight. A fight ends with a winner and a loser. War is about crippling the enemy; they'll keep coming. Once, twice, three times. People will die every time. Twenty-three in Kushida Village, maybe two hundred and thirty next time, maybe two thousand three hundred the time after that. Which number is bigger?"
Shikamaru remained silent.
Chi Quan lowered his head and looked at the Rain Crack Basin on the map, which was circled several times in red.
"I didn't want to either," he said, his voice much softer, "but there's no other way. They've already set foot on the land of the Fire Kingdom, captured its people, and raised the banner of 'Kill them all on the border.' I can save twenty-three, but not two hundred and thirty. I'm not a god, I'm just a man. I only have one knife."
The ward remained quiet for a long time.
When Shizune pushed the door open and came in, neither of them spoke. Chi Quan had shoved the map back under the pillow. Shizune gave them a suspicious look, put down the medicine, and left.
After the door closed, Shikamaru said something.
"You're telling me this not because you want me to help you, but because you want me to cover for you."
Chi Quan nodded.
"right."
"Because you know that if you take this plan to the Hokage Building, Lady Tsunade won't agree to it."
"She won't agree," Chi Quan said. "So she can't know. At least not before the plan is implemented. She's the Hokage; she's responsible for the entire village. She can't approve this plan. But without approval, the war won't stop."
2
Shikamaru looked into Izumi's eyes. There was no madness, no fanaticism, no "I must save the world" light in those eyes. There was only a tired, heavy expression, like a stone that had been carried for a long time and was finally being put down.
"When do you plan to do it?" Shikamaru asked.
"When the allied forces move again, they'll have suffered losses in Kushida Village and will retreat to regroup. The next time they come, it won't be a small-scale skirmish; it will be their main force."
"Your wound—"
"I can't wait for the injury to heal."
Shikamaru closed his eyes for a moment.
"What if I pretend I don't know anything in the Hokage Building?"
Chi Quan said, "Then you are an accomplice."
Shikamaru opened his eyes and looked at Ikezumi.
"I know."
Shikamaru opened his eyes, snapping out of his reverie.
The conference room lights were still on, the topographical map was still spread out on the table, and Tsunade was still sitting opposite him, watching him. Kakashi had opened his eyes at some point, and the one eye that was exposed showed no signs of sleepiness, only a deep, heavy light.
"Is that all he told you?" Tsunade asked.
Shikamaru nodded.
"Where did he go?" Tsunade gestured with her chin toward the door behind her. "He's waiting next door. Tell him to come in."
Shikamaru stood up, walked to the door, and pushed it open.
Chi Quan sat in a chair in the next room, a knife across his knee, wearing his dark Jonin vest. The bandage on his left arm was still there, but the sling had been removed. His face was still pale, but better than a few days ago, with a little color in his lips.
-
Chi Quan stood up and followed Shikamaru into the conference room.
He sat down in the empty seat, resting his sword against the table leg. Shikamaru returned to his own seat. Kakashi walked over from the wall and sat next to Shikamaru without saying a word.
Tsunade looked at Ikezumi.
"Shikamaru said you're going to bury 20,000 people."
Chi Quan did not correct that number.
"Rain-Cracked Basin." He reached into his pocket, pulled out the map he had drawn himself, unfolded it, and laid it next to Tsunade's official topographic map. The two maps side by side showed that Chi Quan's drawing was not accurate, but the key information was all there—the length and width of the valley, the slope of the mountain walls on both sides, the height of the groundwater level, the thickness of the soil layer, and the orientation of the rocks.
Tsunade looked down and compared the two pictures for a minute.
When did you go to see it in person?
"Early this morning."
Tsunade's eyebrows twitched. It was the third night since he returned from Kushida Village, early this morning. The sling on his left arm had just been removed, and the wound on his abdomen was still bleeding.
"Did you go alone?"
"one person."
"Aren't you afraid of being discovered by the coalition forces?"
"No. I used my branding to sense the surrounding water reaction, and there were no large allied forces within a ten-mile radius. There were only a few scattered soldiers, which I avoided."
Kakashi spoke up from the side, his voice neither loud nor soft, carrying a lazy tone.
"I've been to the Rain Rift Basin. The terrain is indeed suitable for sealing off the road with earth-based techniques. The mountain walls on both sides have been weathered for thirty or forty years, and the rock layers are already brittle, so they can be blasted down without much force. But if you only use earth-based techniques, it won't seal off properly. There are underground rivers below, and the water will seep in, washing away the soil and rocks."
Chi Quan looked at Kakashi.
"Therefore, I need to use some water to divert the water from the underground river and keep the soil dry. Dry soil and rocks have high friction and are not easy to fall apart when piled together."
Kakashi tilted his head.
"You can use water escape techniques?"
"Won't."
"Then who will draw the water?"
"Kui."
Tsunade raised her head.
"Hisai? That researcher who defected from Kirigakure? He's not a combat type."
"He doesn't need to fight," Chi Quan said. "He only needs to use the Earth Escape Technique to pump away the water from the underground river at the same time. It doesn't need to be a large amount of water; just enough to lower the underground water pressure so the soil won't be pushed up. He can do that. I asked him, and he said he could."
Tsunade leaned back in her chair.
"Who else did you contact?"
Chi Quan took out a piece of paper that had been folded many times from his pocket, unfolded it, and placed it next to the map.
It was a list. Handwritten, the handwriting was tight, as if the hand was exerting force when writing it.
Shikamaru tilted his head and glanced at it.
There are nine people on the list.
Aburame Shiro—the Insect Master—is responsible for deploying sensory insects around the basin to ensure that the main force of the allied forces can only be activated after entering the basin.
The Mountain Wind Clan is responsible for using perception magic to confirm the number of people in the basin ten minutes before activation; the activation will not proceed if the number is less than 15,000.
Hyuga Hido, a member of the Hyuga clan, possesses the Byakugan and is responsible for confirming that there are no Konoha personnel in the basin thirty minutes before the operation begins.
The Kagura Sealing Team is responsible for adding a layer of seal at the entrance after Earth Release is activated to prevent the earth and rocks from being dug out.
Hisai Yansui Research Institute is responsible for the underground river water diversion project.
Shikamaru – Responsible for battlefield intelligence assessment and retreat route planning.
The Kiba-Inuzuka clan is responsible for patrolling around the basin to prevent small allied forces from flanking out from the sides.
Akamaru - Same as above.
And the last name.
Chiquan.
Shikamaru looked at the name without saying a word.
Tsunade saw it too.
"You put yourself last."
"My job is to lure the Allied forces into the basin," Chi Quan said. "The intelligence received by the Allied western front commander is that Chi Quan is operating in the western border, alone, and still recovering from his injuries. They will pursue me. As long as I appear within twenty miles east of the basin, they will definitely chase me."
Kakashi said, "Because they suffered two losses at the hands of the pond, they will definitely use all their strength to grab it the third time."
"Yes. They will bring their main force here, at least 20,000 men. Most of them will be low-ranking ninjas, while the high-ranking ones will stay behind to command."
Once the main force enters the basin—
'
"What are you going to do?" Tsunade interrupted him. "If you lure them in, how will you get out yourself?"
Chi Quan remained silent for a second.
"I have three pre-set retreat points in the basin. Thirty seconds before activating Earth Release, I will run to the nearest retreat point. The retreat points are marked with the Flying Thunder God Technique seal beforehand. It's not the real Flying Thunder God, but a one-way teleportation array that I had the Fourth Hokage's former subordinates make for me. It can only teleport outwards, not inwards. The range is only 500 meters, but that's enough."
Tsunade's brows furrowed even more.
"The Fourth Hokage's former subordinate? Who?"
"Fuji Syusuke. He's retired and lives in the Eastern Territory. I went to see him, and he agreed."
7
Kakashi's expression changed.
"Fuji Syusuke? The sealing master who assisted the Fourth Hokage in sealing the Flying Thunder God Technique?"
"Yes. He's been retired for eighteen years, but his skills haven't gotten rusty. He says he can finish the teleportation array in three days."
Tsunade stood up, walked to the window, and turned her back to everyone.
The conference room lights shone on her back, making her white Hokage robes appear somewhat dazzling. Outside the window was the night view of Konoha, dotted with countless lights from homes. The distant mountain shadows were dark and indistinct.
She stood there for a long time.
Then she turned around.
"Chiquan."
"exist."
I do not approve of your plan.
Chi Quan remained silent.
"But I won't stop you." Tsunade's voice was low, each word seemingly squeezed out from between her teeth. "I won't give you any official Konoha mission orders, I won't give you any resource allocation orders, and I won't leave any record of this plan in the Hokage's official documents. You did it; it was your personal action. If any problems arise, Konoha will not admit to knowing."
Shikamaru frowned.
"Lady Tsunade—"
"Shut up." Tsunade looked at him. "You think I don't know you're helping him? You think I don't know you've been involved in this plan? Shikamaru, you're Konoha's strategist, you know what this kind of plan means. Twenty thousand lives. Not twenty thousand ants, but twenty thousand people. They have parents, children, homes. You're burying twenty thousand people underground, no matter which country's ninja they are, that number will follow you for life. Ikezumi, are you prepared for this?"
Ikezumi looked at Tsunade.
"It's done."
Tsunade stared into his eyes, as if searching for something—hesitation, fear, regret, whatever. She found nothing.
"Kakashi." Tsunade's voice trailed off.
"exist."
"You have nothing to do with this plan. You didn't hear anything, you didn't see anything."
Kakashi glanced at Izumi, stood up, walked to the door, opened it, and went out. As the door closed, his figure disappeared into the shadows of the corridor.
Tsunade sat down again.
"Shikamaru, you're in charge of intelligence. But your name can't appear on any written documents. Kiba too. Everyone else." She looked at Izumi. "This plan, from beginning to end, has only one person—you. Only you. No one else exists. Do you understand?"
Chi Quan nodded.
"I heard you clearly."
Tsunade pushed the two maps and the list back.
"Take it away. Don't let me see these things again."
Chi Quan folded the map and the list neatly, then put them back in his pocket. He picked up the knife leaning against the table leg and stood up.
Shikamaru also stood up.
As the two reached the door, Tsunade suddenly said something.
"Chiquan."
Chi Quan stopped walking without turning around.
"Come back alive."
Chi Quan stood still for two seconds.
"Um."
He opened the door and went out.
Shikamaru followed behind him. The corridor was dark, with only a few emergency lights still on. The sound of their footsteps echoed in the empty corridor, one steady, the other slightly lighter.
When they reached the top of the stairs, Chi Quan suddenly stopped.
"Shikamaru".
"Um."
"You didn't tell Lady Tsunade the whole story just now."
Shikamaru looked at him.
Chi Quan turned around, and the light from the emergency light at the end of the corridor fell on his face, illuminating half of his expression.
"This plan is not just about burying 20,000 people."
Shikamaru leaned against the wall, his hands in his pockets.
"I know."
"you say."
Shikamaru remained silent for a few seconds.
"You must use the lives of these 20,000 people to lure Helian out."
Chi Quan did not deny it.
"Helian isn't with the Allied Forces. He's behind them. He's among the old nobles of the Land of Fire, in a manor somewhere in the East, or in the mountains of the West. He's pushing the Allied Forces to attack Konoha, not because he wants to attack Konoha, but because he wants to complete his blood transfusion amidst the chaos. He needs Chi Quan to be injured, weak, isolated, and surrounded. When the Allied Forces corner Chi Quan, Helian will appear. He will personally complete his ritual."
Shikamaru continued.
"So your plan has two layers. The first layer is to use earth magic to bury the main force of the allied forces, cutting off Helian's military support. The second layer is to use yourself as bait, waiting for Helian to show himself. He thinks you are the trapped prey, but you are the knife. When he gets close, that's when you strike."
Chi Quan was neither right nor wrong.
He simply stood there, knife in his right hand, hanging at his side, the tip of the scabbard lightly touching the ground.
"The lives of 20,000 are the price. Helian's life is the objective," Chi Quan said. "If we only bury 20,000 people, and Helian escapes, then those 20,000 lives will have been wasted. If we only kill Helian, the allied forces will simply find a new commander and continue fighting. So both must be accomplished simultaneously."
Shikamaru asked, "What about time?"
"The Allied forces on the western front are regrouping northeast of Kushida Village. Intelligence says they will advance westward again within three days. This time there will be no civilians, no warnings, and no bargaining. They're here to fight."
"Three days."
"Three days."
Shikamaru straightened up from the wall.
"I need to do more than what's on the map."
Chi Quan looked at him.
Shikamaru continued, "The missions on your list are real, but not all of them. What you really want me to do is erase all traces of this matter in Konoha if the plan fails, if the Earth Release isn't sealed, if Helian doesn't show up, or if you don't come out. The list, the map, the Flying Thunder God mark, everyone's testimonies. No one can be allowed to prove that Konoha knew anything about it."