The mood of the door
Upon receiving the order, Tobirama Senju, like a high-precision war machine fed with absolute command, immediately went into full gear. His efficient, almost ruthless, organizational and planning abilities were on full display. Without hesitation, he meticulously selected ten of the most elite from the clan's vast roster of ninja. Each of these ninjas was a battle-hardened ace, their hands stained with blood. They were masters of stealth, assassination, lightning strikes, and coordinated operations. More importantly, their loyalty to the Senju clan had been tested countless times in blood and fire, making them absolutely reliable.
This urgently assembled special operations team, codenamed "Shadowfang," was quickly assembled and put together. They might not have been familiar with each other, but they all understood the importance of this mission and the unwavering family will it represented: an unbreakable will.
Meanwhile, Tobirama's brain functioned as a highly efficient intelligence processing center. Through various channels, both overt and covert, fragmented intelligence, both true and false, began to flow into him: the recent frequency of material movements within the Uchiha clan, unusual personnel movements, fragmented discussions regarding route selection, even comprehensive analyses of historical marriage routes and border topography... The Uchiha clan's secrecy surrounding this marriage was top-notch, but just as even the densest web has cracks, for a tactical master like Tobirama, these fragmented bits of information were more than enough for him to piece together a meticulously logical puzzle.
He spread out a massive map of the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Lightning, outlining, marking, and deducing with different colored pens. Based on the possible directions indicated by intelligence, combined with terrain, distance, safety, and the Uchiha's potential deception tactics, he roughly mapped out three routes most likely to be taken by the wedding procession. He devoted considerable effort to sand table simulations for each route, taking into account the terrain characteristics, possible checkpoints, and suitable ambushes, and began to formulate several ambush and contingency plans of varying degrees of detail.
With terrifying calmness, he assessed every variable: the potential combat power of both sides, the impact of light at different times of day, the potential for weather changes, even down to the rock solidity of each ambush point and the optimal angle for placing detonators. His mind was like the most sophisticated instrument, calculating at high speed, eliminating all emotional interference. His logic was clear and cold, pursuing a single outcome: maximum efficiency, minimum risk, and the most lethal strike.
However, humans are not machines after all.
Beneath that seemingly impeccable, frozen rationality, there is always a trace of indescribable emotion that cannot be explained by logic, like an undercurrent in the deep water, quietly surging inadvertently, trying to interfere with his absolutely calm judgment.
This kind of distraction could be suppressed during the intense work of the day. But in the dead of night, when he was alone in the intelligence room filled with the smell of ink and paper, facing the maps covering the desk and intelligence scrolls filled with cold words, that fleeting fragment of memory, forcibly isolated by reason, would always suddenly intrude into his mind.
The cold, bright moonlight, the towering, icy walls, and the girl quietly poking out from behind them. Her long, jet-black hair flowed like a waterfall, and her eyes were equally dark, but unlike the Uchiha he'd seen, filled with arrogance, hostility, or the sinister nature of the Sharingan. Those eyes held a clear wariness, yet hidden deep within them was a hint of... a clear, almost naive curiosity, and a faint melancholy that seemed unbecoming of her age. And that brief, almost absurd conversation about "bad guys"...
He didn't even know who she was until the detailed intelligence scroll was placed in front of him -
Name: Uchiha Aoi
Identity: Uchiha Madara's younger sister
Notes: Long residing in the Left Minister's residence in the Fire Nation's capital, he was recently secretly brought back to the Uchiha clan. He possesses a unique physique and is suspected of possessing acute chakra sensitivity, but no record of systematic ninja training has been found. He possesses a quiet personality and rarely ventures out.
Madara Uchiha's younger sister. She had long lived in a secular household of the powerful, almost isolated from the ninja world. No wonder... the look in her eyes was so different from the Uchiha he was familiar with.
This identity, this intelligence, should have only strengthened his resolve to disrupt the marriage. Striking the Uchiha clan, severely damaging Uchiha Madara, his brother's nemesis and the source of his endless trouble, should have been a cause for joy, even pleasure. Weakening the enemy strengthens oneself; this is the fundamental logic of war.
But... why? Why, deep down, instead of feeling the expected joy, he felt an inexplicable, indescribable... irritation rising up in his heart? This emotion was so unfamiliar that he couldn't analyze or categorize it, like a sudden, unprovoked ripple on a calm lake, disrupting the absolute order within him.
Especially when his eyes accidentally glanced at the words "Marriage target: Yeyue Ai (son of the Yeyue clan leader)" and "Destination: Land of Thunder" on the intelligence report, his irritation intensified. A vague but unpleasant image would uncontrollably surface in his mind: her, wearing a white wedding dress, walking towards the Yeyue ninja, a man she had never met before, known for his brutality and strength, stepping into that strange country with its constant thunder and harsh environment, and from then on...
"absurd!"
Tobirama suddenly closed his eyes and stretched out two fingers to press hard between his eyebrows, as if to physically expel these inappropriate, weak thoughts from his brain. He took a deep breath and tried to use his strong willpower to forcibly cut off these useless and even dangerous emotional fluctuations.
She was an Uchiha. An enemy. A crucial element posing a potentially enormous threat to the strategic security of the Senju clan. A target he must eliminate to ensure the future safety and well-being of the Senju clan. What did her fate, her happiness, have to do with Tobirama Senju? This world was inherently filled with helplessness and sacrifice. From birth, everyone was burdened with a position and a destiny they could not choose. Sympathizing with the enemy was cruelty to one's own people. He understood this truth better than anyone else.
When he opened his eyes again, they had regained their usual ruby-like coolness and indifference. He rationalized his brief moment of unease to the mental strain of intense focus on the mission's paramount importance, combined with his instinctive, pure disgust for such a sordid marriage that used living people as political pawns. Yes, that must be it.
After sealing all irrelevant emotions beneath the ice, he refocused his attention on the tactical map before him. After repeated considerations, deductions, and comparisons, his finger finally firmly placed on a canyon area on the map called "Valley Path."
The terrain here is extremely difficult, with nearly vertical cliffs on either side, bare and jagged, making it difficult to climb. The road in the middle is narrow and winding, at its narrowest point barely wide enough for a single carriage. This is one of the main roads leading to the Land of Thunder, and an ideal location for an ambush—easy to hide in, extremely difficult to escape, and equally convenient for swift evacuation after a successful attack, disappearing into the mountains.
His final battle plan, simplified to the utmost, was remarkably ruthless and effective: Using a vast array of pre-prepared detonating tags and earth-style ninjutsu, he created widespread chaos and rockfall, precisely separating the front and rear of the wedding procession, preventing them from reaching each other. Meanwhile, the "Shadow Fang" team, using camouflage and speed, advanced swiftly from the cliffs on either side, ignoring the outer guards and heading straight for the central objective—the magnificent bridal sedan. Target: Uchiha Aoi. Approach: Kill her on the spot, or quickly abduct her depending on the situation, but the ultimate goal was to make her "disappear." The entire operation demanded lightning speed and scalpel-like precision. Once secured, there was no lingering fight; instead, they retreated at full speed along the predetermined route, thoroughly clearing the battlefield, leaving no trace of survivors, bodies, or ninjutsu or tools that could point to the Senju.
The time of action was set at the moment when the wedding party completely entered the middle of the canyon, the deepest and most passive moment.
At the final intelligence briefing before the operation, Tobirama faced ten team members, their eyes sharp and their murderous aura as deep as the abyss, and gave his final instructions. His voice was steady, clear, without a trace of emotion, as if he were simply describing tomorrow's weather.
"The operation will begin when the target group enters the middle of the canyon. I will personally lead the assault on the core. Remember the most important principle: swift victory, leaving no survivors."
"Yes!" Ten people responded in unison, their deep voices echoing in the secret room with cold determination.
Tobirama nodded expressionlessly, waving his hand for everyone to go back down for a final equipment check and status adjustments. He remained alone, his gaze once again fixed on the "Valley Path" tightly marked with a red circle on the map.
Deep within his heart, that subtle, almost imperceptible tingling sensation, like being pricked by a tiny needle, stubbornly surfaced again. But before it could even spread, it was completely frozen and buried by a thicker, harder, colder layer of rational ice.
He was simply carrying out a mission. A necessary and crucial one.
For the future and interests of the Senju clan.
That's all.
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