Konoha: Uchiha Shisui's Strategist Alliance

Chapter 98 Gathering Troops at the Mansion

The wind howled, the snow continued to fall, the wind and snow obscured the view, the snow was a foot and a half deep, making it difficult to travel.

As noon approached, Zhishui ordered his men to set up a shed in the courtyard. The wind howled as the shed rustled. The shed in the courtyard was not for protection against the wind and snow, but to prevent anyone from standing on high ground and spying.

More than fifty futons were set up in the hall, making it a bit crowded. The lunch prepared consisted only of rice balls, meat soup, and a glass of wine. There were also some soldier's rations to be saved for the evening. Although the conditions were a bit poor, no one would come here for a meal at this time.

Shisui was dressed in chainmail, with a headband and a short blade at his waist. The insignia of Konoha and Uchiha were displayed on his clothes. He stood in the courtyard, unmoved by the wind and snow, exuding an imposing aura.

"Grandpa, I sent out fifty invitations, and forty-six people have clearly expressed their willingness to come. They are already on their way."

I wasn't familiar with three of them. The last one was Uncle Yizheng. Brother Hui said he took Uncle Yizheng to inspect the clan's protective barrier.

"In addition, Yangzhe sent word that there has been no disturbance near the clan chief's house, and everything is progressing smoothly."

Sima Yi stood beside Zhishui, listening quietly to the information Zhishui brought.

He nodded slowly. This was largely consistent with the information he had received. The arrival of forty-six people was enough to show that Zhishui had the support of the people, and the great undertaking could be accomplished.

"Now that we have isolated him from the outside world and cut off his access to information, he will be alone tonight and there will be no mistakes even if we do not use your eyes."

However, it is always better to be cautious. When you were training the police department, I sent people to keep a close watch on the clan head's residence. After gathering intelligence recently, I found that apart from Itachi going to the western part of the clan territory every day, only the clan head's wife goes out to buy supplies on a daily basis.

However, she hasn't come out since the police training ended, which is rather unusual. The clan leader must have noticed something.

"Aunt Mikoto."

Shisui frowned. Aunt Mikoto was very kind to him, and she was also Itachi's mother, a very gentle person. He didn't want to fight her.

Seeing Zhi Shui's concerns, Sima Yi suggested, "Simply seal off the clan head's mansion and prevent them from appearing openly in the clan's alleyway today, so that they become known to the public."

Since it was a usurpation of power, it was better to resolve it secretly rather than make it known to the world.

"Yes, I understand. I'll have Inahime-senpai lead the men to strengthen the blockade." Shisui nodded and immediately summoned the ninja crows.

Sima Yi suddenly raised his hand to stop him, and earnestly instructed him:

"Let Yatsushiro go. Right now, the roads are blocked by heavy snow and assassins are hiding outside. We can use this as an excuse to speed things up and get the clansmen home as soon as possible. Then we can directly seal off the clan's alleyways. This is something that Inahisa can do."

Zhi Shui understood that Sima Yi did not trust Dao Huo, but he did not refute it and simply agreed.

Shortly after the crow left, the people who had received the invitations began to arrive one after another. After paying their respects to Shisui, they were led by Xuehua and Meihua to the hall, where they each found a place to sit on either side of the door with their backs to the entrance and waited quietly.

They were also dressed in chainmail and headbands, their equipment perfectly in place, their eyes bright, exuding ferocity and determination.

Everyone knew what coming here meant; once they entered this courtyard, Zhishui would never let them leave.

They won't be able to go back until at least tomorrow; they'll stay here until the operation begins or ends.

They have said goodbye to their families, chosen to believe in still water, and come here for what they seek in their hearts.

They came here for various reasons: some for their families, some for their clans, some for their beliefs, and perhaps some even for Konoha.

However, the reasons that led them to believe in still water and entrust their power to it were surprisingly similar.

With hearts set on family and concerned for its members, this sentiment is clear as day and night, and the earth bears witness to it.

Such sentiments are worthy of their trust and servitude.

As agreed, everyone arrived within a few minutes and then knelt on the prayer mat, waiting quietly.

After the last person arrived, Zhishui turned his back to Sima Yi and slowly walked into the hall. The two did not exchange words, and Zhishui went straight to the head seat.

He stood in front of the crowd, and everyone looked up at him.

Without uttering any unnecessary words or gestures, Shisui solemnly surveyed the crowd, his heart pounding, before slowly bowing.

"Thank you everyone!"

Everyone sat up straight, bowed their heads, and exclaimed in unison, "Please, Lord Shisui!"

Then came a suffocating silence. Everyone sat in the hall with their eyes closed, quietly waiting for night to fall. Perhaps they were also enjoying this silence.

The mobilization ended just like that, without any emotional appeal or encouragement. Sima Yi stood outside the door, quietly watching everything, feeling both puzzled and helpless.

But he vaguely knew that this was the Uchiha clan, and Shisui had done an excellent job of mobilizing them.

That's sufficient; we can now confidently leave things here to Shisui.

He turned and left, returning to his study to review his previous actions several times. He then deduced the outcome of the night, and after confirming that everything was correct, he picked up the clan's territory boundary map that Hui had obtained from the Grand Elder and examined it closely.

The barrier around the Uchiha clan's territory only provides protection and concealment; once activated, it can prevent external intrusion and spying.

However, he soon discovered many loopholes in the barrier. These loopholes were quite obvious, perhaps intentional, or perhaps due to a shortage of funds after the Uchiha clan moved to their new territory.

"Yingshu, go find Hui and tell him to send people to guard these places. Also, tell him to be cautious at all times after the barrier is activated, and not to let anyone cross the barrier without my orders."

After Sima Yi finished speaking, he took out eight red talismans and handed them to Ying Shu. He then instructed, "Take these eight talismans with you as well. Have him distribute them to his trusted confidants and place them in the eight directions of the clan's territory to guard against the intrusion. Once the barrier is opened, they will be activated together."

"yes!"

Ying Shu took the talisman, put on the mask, and left immediately.

After he left, Sima Yi sat quietly at his desk, spread out the paper, picked up the brush, hesitated for a moment, and then began to write the three large characters "出师表" (Memorial on Dispatching the Troops) from top to bottom on the right side of the paper.

Thus, several hours passed in the blink of an eye, until the wind stopped, the snow thinned, and dusk began to fall.

Suddenly, Shisui stood up, and everyone opened their eyes. The air suddenly became heavy and filled with a murderous aura.

His expression was calm, and his breathing was steady. When he arrived outside the courtyard, Sima Yi was already waiting there for a while.

"Grandpa, it's almost time."

Sima Yi glanced at the sky and nodded, saying, "Let's begin."

"yes!"

Almost as soon as Shisui finished speaking, Otsu, Inahikasa, and Yashiro, who had received the news earlier, instantly appeared in front of Shisui.

"Inform all elders and clan members eligible to attend the clan meeting that it will be held at Clan Chief Fugaku's residence in one hour!"

"yes!"

"There's one more thing," Sima Yi whispered to Zhi Shui, standing beside him.

Uchiha Itachi.

Shi Shui remained silent. He knew what Sima Yi wanted to say. He didn't want to mention Itachi next to Sima Yi because he had already made up some reasons to secretly invite him over, but there had been no response.

He hesitated. If he left Itachi at home, he worried that Itachi might get hurt or that Itachi might see something. But if he brought Itachi out, he would undoubtedly be using him.

However, the silence lasted only a moment. He took out a bamboo stick from his pocket, on which was engraved the number 'fifty-eight'.

Shisui's eyes changed, chakra attached itself to the stick, and his thumb wiped the bamboo stick, the numbers disappeared instantly, and then he slowly engraved the word "one".

"I will go there myself and bring Itachi back."

(End of this chapter)