With Senju Haruto's current strength, killing these Uchiha was hardly a challenge.
But in his eyes, there was no need to personally take their lives.
Besides, this time Konoha wasn't just facing the forces of the Hidden Cloud — the Hidden Mist's military might was also on the move.
If it weren't for his presence, the Konoha of today wouldn't have the power to withstand a war of this scale.
It wasn't even an exaggeration to say that if he didn't possess Wood Release, the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, might never have found the resolve to abandon the "sacrifice Hiashi" approach — that old, bitter path — to secure peace.
In times when manpower was lacking, the Uchiha's strength should be used to its fullest.
After all, all Haruto wanted from them were their Sharingan. As for how they died, or where they died… that didn't matter.
After reaching an understanding with the Uchiha, Haruto immediately ordered them released, providing them with food and water to restore their strength.
"But thinking about it," Haruto murmured to himself, "even in the Fourth Great Ninja War, when the Five Great Villages gathered every available fighter, they only managed to field an army of eighty thousand."
"And this war's scale is nowhere near that level."
His eyes narrowed slightly as he began analyzing the situation.
Back then, Uchiha Obito — posing as Madara — had collected seven tailed beasts, exerting a threat to the Five Great Villages far beyond anything this current conflict could match.
No matter which side you looked at now, each would be keeping a substantial portion of their forces in reserve.
Even Konoha hadn't mobilized all of its Anbu or Root.
The major clans had also left fighters behind to guard the village in case the Hidden Stone tried a surprise attack.
Even counting the Uchiha's manpower, Konoha was fielding only about two thousand shinobi for this campaign.
And because of geography, the Cloud and Mist forces would never be able to merge into one army.
In fact, attacking Konoha separately was far more effective than concentrating their troops in one place.
Which meant Konoha's two thousand shinobi would have to be split as well.
Of course, this was only the initial deployment. If the war dragged on without a conclusion, more forces would be sent.
"Given the Raikage's personality, though, I doubt A will let Killer Bee leave the village right now," Haruto thought.
The death of the Third Raikage had left a deep mark on A — a wariness that lasted all the way into the Fourth Great Ninja War.
If Naruto and Bee hadn't insisted on joining the front lines back then, A might never have understood what Minato Namikaze's words truly meant.
Cloud would certainly need to keep some strength in reserve.
Still, that was just Haruto's speculation. Whether Bee would appear on the battlefield or not, he couldn't be sure.
"Forget it — I'll head to the command center first."
Drawing in a deep breath, Haruto decided not to dwell on it and made his way to the temporary command post.
Alongside Kakashi and Yamato, Hyūga Hiashi, Aburame Torune, Yamanaka Kaze, and several others were already gathered there.
"Haruto," Kakashi greeted, his tone clipped but respectful. Though he held operational command, his position was technically still that of deputy commander.
"The Third Hokage isn't here?" Haruto asked, scanning the room and noting Hiruzen's absence.
"He'll be arriving shortly," Kakashi explained.
"I see." Haruto nodded. That was just like Sarutobi Hiruzen — no matter how much he talked about trusting the next generation, when it came down to critical moments, he would personally step in to make sure nothing went wrong.
"I've already heard about the Uchiha situation," Kakashi said, lowering his voice. "Do you really trust them?"
Everyone present knew about the Uchiha's attempted coup.
In their eyes, the clan was little different from missing-nin now.
"With me there, what's the problem? I'll personally lead that unit," Haruto replied without hesitation.
"That's true," Hiashi spoke up immediately. Without Haruto, he'd already be a corpse. His trust in Haruto was absolute.
"I and the rest of the branch family will follow your lead," Hiashi added, stepping forward.
At that moment, the door to the command post swung open, and all eyes turned toward the entrance.
The newcomer was none other than the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Holding his pipe in one hand, he swept his gaze over the assembled shinobi. On the way here, he had already been briefed on the latest developments — including Haruto's release of the Uchiha and his provision of food and water to restore their strength.
Hiruzen's purpose here was simply to observe. Unless there was a clear flaw in their deployment, he had no intention of interfering.
"Hokage-sama," Kakashi greeted crisply, followed by the others.
Once Hiruzen gave his nod of approval, Kakashi began relaying the current intelligence.
The Cloud's route of attack was now certain.
Though the Land of Lightning shared a border with the Land of Fire, their advance could only come from one direction: through the forest above the Valley of the End.
"Konoha has clashed with the Cloud countless times over the years," Kakashi continued. "The village has an established set of countermeasures for them. The bigger question is the Mist."
When he mentioned the Mist, his voice shifted subtly.
Haruto caught the change, knowing exactly why.
Konoha and the Hidden Mist hadn't fought many wars, but there was one matter that had always haunted Kakashi — Rin's death.
Because of its location, the Mist was a true island nation, sharing no land border with the Land of Fire.
If they wanted to attack, they would have to launch an amphibious landing.
To the east of Konoha lay a chain of mountains forming a natural defensive wall — easy to defend, hard to attack.
"That's why I think it's unlikely the Mist will try to land there," Kakashi said, forcing himself to set Rin's memory aside.
His finger slid down the map.
"If I'm right, the Mist will most likely land near the forests by the Fire Temple."
Haruto's gaze followed his gesture.
It was the first time he had seen such a detailed map of Konoha. The Fire Temple was flanked on one side by dense forest, and on the other by steep mountains.
In other words, natural terrain severely limited the Mist's possible landing points.
And just then, a familiar voice echoed in Haruto's mind:
Please proceed to the forests near the Fire Temple to sign in. A successful sign-in will grant a reward.