Naruto: Starting with Creating a Genius Persona

Chapter 213 Elastic Defense, National Fencing Tournament

Outside the Konoha headquarters, Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado had just stepped out of the camp gate when they encountered the four captains and their subordinates who had arrived.

"Elder Xiaochun, Elder Yan." The four stepped forward and bowed.

"You've come at the right time." Koharu Utatane looked at Minato Namikaze first and smiled slightly, "Minato, you've had a hard time, returning to the village so soon and now you have to come back again."

Minato Namikaze bowed slightly: "Elder, you flatter me. It's my duty."

Koharu nodded, then turned her gaze to Shinichi Higashino beside her. His usually serious face softened with a smile, but his eyes were filled with complex emotions, a mixture of relief, lingering fear, and感慨.

She unconsciously softened her tone and said softly, "Shinichi, I've heard about what you did in the Land of Lightning. You did it very well, very well."

"However, next time you must consider your own safety more. You are still young and have a long road ahead. You don't always have to carry some burdens alone."

Mitokado Homura, standing to the side, smiled and chimed in, "Shinichi, you don't know, Koharu didn't sleep for days after hearing about your operation in the Land of Lightning. She only felt at ease after confirming that you all had returned safely."

Koharu glared at her old friend but didn't refute him. She looked at Shinichi again and continued, "Anyway, now that I see you standing here safely, I can finally put my mind at ease."

This slightly heartwarming scene caused Hiashi Hyuga and Fugaku Uchiha to exchange glances, their eyes flickering slightly.

It was quite unexpected that this advisor elder, known for his sternness, would show such an expression at this moment.

Faced with the two advisors' undisguised concern, Shinichi remained calm and respectfully replied, "Yes, I'm sorry to have worried you two elders."

Koharu nodded, then straightened her expression and turned to Fugaku Uchiha and Hiashi Hyuga, regaining her usual capable demeanor.

"Chief Fugaku, Chief Hiashi, you two have had a long journey."

"The Hyuga and Uchiha are major clans in Konoha. Their fighting strength is crucial for the upcoming war, and we will rely on the two of you."

"Elder, you are too kind. I, Hyuga, will do my utmost."

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"It is also our duty as the Uchiha clan."

The two clan leaders bowed solemnly at the same time.

"good!"

Seeing this, Xiaochun, who was turning around, stopped talking and walked deeper into the camp: "The situation is urgent, so let's skip the small talk. Everyone, come with me to the command post, and we'll discuss the details there."

A moment later, inside the command post.

Several operations staff officers quickly distributed several important documents to the four captains, while General Koharu Utatane walked to the huge map and quickly introduced the current situation.

Currently, key ports and transportation hubs throughout the Land of Waves and its surrounding waters have largely fallen under the control of Kirigakure, which means that Kirigakure's initial strategy of using the Land of Waves as a forward springboard has succeeded.

Konoha was not unaware of this, but they were simply too busy to deal with it at the time.

With its main forces bogged down on the southwest and northeast fronts, especially the northeast front where it faced a massive and aggressive advance from the Hidden Clouds, Konoha had no choice but to commit most of its manpower to the northeast front.

This has resulted in the defense of the southeastern coast being in a state of constant strain. Even knowing that the enemy was advancing step by step, they could only send out small groups of troops to harass and delay them to a limited extent, and were never able to gather enough troops to defeat their intentions in one fell swoop.

Previously, Kirigakure did not seem to be in a hurry to launch a general offensive. Instead, it maintained a continuous pressure posture, forcing Konoha to deploy troops to the southeast. Kirigakure intended to wait for Konoha and Kumogakure to fight to the death in the northeast battlefield before seizing the opportunity to act and reap the benefits.

However, the situation deviated from Kirigakure's expectations. Konoha did not fall into a stalemate or suffer heavy losses on the northeastern front. Instead, it ended with a crushing defeat for Kumogakure. Konoha not only withstood the pressure, but also gained a great morale as a result of the battle, which enabled them to transfer some elite troops back to the northeast to provide reinforcements.

This variable has clearly disrupted the rhythm of the Mist Village. Over the past month, it has been noticeable that the Mist Village's pace of action has accelerated. They are no longer satisfied with simply occupying territory, but have begun to shift towards establishing a solid frontline base and improving their logistical supply lines.

All indications suggest that Kirigakure is making final preparations for a possible large-scale amphibious assault.

"Gentlemen, what are your thoughts?"

After explaining the current situation, Koharu Utatane's gaze swept over everyone present, finally settling on Shinichi, the youngest of the four. Homura Mitokado, standing next to her, also turned his gaze in the same direction almost simultaneously.

Not only the two elders, but also Minato Namikaze, Fugaku Uchiha, and Hiashi Hyuga, after a brief moment of contemplation, all turned their gazes toward Shinichi Higashino.

After all, the young man before them was a genius strategist who had accurately predicted the strategic moves of all parties after the outbreak of war, long before the war even began.

On the southwestern and northeastern battlefields, especially in the textbook-perfect logistical raid blitzkrieg deep into the heart of the Land of Lightning in the northeastern battlefield, he proved that he not only possessed top-notch strategic insight, but also top-notch tactical skills and command ability.

Under the focused gaze of everyone, Shinichi pondered for a moment, his eyes sweeping across various locations on the map. His mind raced, analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of both sides and possible tactical maneuvers. He then asked, "Elder Koharu, has our reconnaissance team recently discovered any core nodes or main routes of the Mist Village's logistics supply system?"

Everyone nodded in agreement.

The Hidden Mist is an expedition across the sea. Although its forward base has been established after it took control of the Land of Waves, its long supply lines are like its lifeline. Once its core supply nodes located deep within the Land of Waves or on surrounding islands are destroyed, it will be a great threat.

In that case, even the most massive offensive would be difficult to sustain, and might even force Kirigakure to retreat without a fight.

This is undoubtedly the most attractive solution to break the deadlock in the current situation.

Koharu shook her head, her face grave. "No, our reconnaissance and infiltration have encountered great resistance. Perhaps it's because the Cloud Village suffered too many losses in logistics. Their Mist Village's supply depots are extremely well-hidden, and their sea transport routes are unpredictable. Our reconnaissance teams have yet to pinpoint their exact logistical lifeline."

"Is that so...?"

'

Zhen nodded, seemingly unsurprised by the answer. He stood up and walked to the map, lightly tapping the Fire Country's long coastline with his fingertip: "Then, before we figure out their supply weaknesses or find other opportunities, in the initial stage, we can only focus on defense."

"Defend?" A staff officer couldn't help but ask, "Captain Shinichi, the Land of Fire has a long coastline with many beaches, estuaries, and harbors suitable for large-scale landings. If we passively divide our forces to defend them, our strength will be diluted to the limit, leaving gaps everywhere. The pressure will be too great. How can we defend?"

"That's the key point."

As Shinichi slowly moved his finger along the coastline, he said, "Our forces are relatively smaller than those of Kirigakure, so we cannot and should not try to defend every inch of the beach. That would be a bottomless pit, and we would only be led by the nose by the enemy, running ourselves ragged along the long defensive line, and then be broken through by them by concentrating their forces at one point."

"Therefore, what we need to do is not to adopt a rigid defensive posture, but rather a flexible defense!"

"Elastic defense?" This new term surprised everyone present, who looked thoughtful.

"That's right." Shinichi turned around, faced the crowd, and began to explain: "Unlike the positional battles we fought against Sunagakure and Kumogakure before, the battle situation on the southeast coast is unique. Kirigakure has crossed the sea and holds the initiative in the attack. They are facing our long coastline."

"At the same time, the sea provides a natural barrier and space for maneuver, making it difficult to fully detect their gatherings, feints, and transfers. But this is both their opportunity and, to some extent, their constraint."

"In theory, the Hidden Mist Village does indeed have the capability to dispatch small elite units to infiltrate, reconnaissance, or conduct disruptive landings at any point along our long coastline."

"However, please note that this is limited to small-scale surprise attacks. To launch a large-scale, army-style amphibious landing operation capable of tearing through our defenses, penetrating deep into our territory, and ultimately achieving our strategic objectives..."

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"Their landing site will inevitably be severely restricted! This is because it requires stable, efficient, and large-scale logistical support located close to the landing zone!"

"These problems cannot be solved by a few small boats or temporary camps!"

At this point, Shinichi pointed again to the Land of Waves and the surrounding islands controlled by Kirigakure on the map, saying, "The Land of Waves, and a few large islands around it that are under their control and possess the necessary conditions, are their only reliable forward bases and springboards. The starting points for their large-scale amphibious assaults and the main logistics supply routes will inevitably revolve closely around these core nodes!"

"Based on my assessment, aside from Linhai City where we are currently located, there are only a few other areas..."

'

I actually pointed to a few locations on the map.

As everyone followed his fingertip, they pondered for a moment and then nodded in agreement.

"The core of so-called flexible defense lies in abandoning the illusion of trying to hold the entire coastline, acknowledging the initial disadvantage in total troop strength, and shifting the majority of our mobile forces and defensive focus from the long coastline to these key areas most likely to be attacked by the main force."

"In summary, there are four points: forward vigilance, in-depth defense, mobile readiness, and focused counterattacks..."

Shinichi slowly explained his strategic plan, and the eyes of everyone present grew brighter as they listened. Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado, in particular, smiled as if they were thinking of some interesting past events.

"This kind of flexible defense is essentially about trading space for time, using precise intelligence for local advantages, and using maneuverability to gain the initiative to counterattack. We admit that we cannot fight against the Fog Shadows at every point in the early stages, but we can use strict early warning and efficient maneuverability to drag them into our chosen pre-set battlefield and offset the enemy's offensive initiative!"

"The ultimate goal is to delay their strategic progress through one or more decisive counterattacks, under conditions favorable to our side, thus creating opportunities for us to ultimately ascertain their logistical lifeline or find other strategic opportunities!"

The command center was quiet as everyone digested the defensive concept proposed by Shinichi. Then, they all turned to the map, recalling his explanation, as if they were already envisioning scenes of offensive and defensive transitions and mobile annihilation of the enemy.

The concept of flexible defense is not entirely absent from the ninja world.

After all, the ninja's inherent high mobility meant that holding onto one point was often not the optimal solution. Throughout history, there have been many examples of ninjas using their mobility to flexibly maneuver and concentrate their forces to strike the enemy's weak points.

However, it is unprecedented for someone like Shinichi to distill scattered experiences into a well-structured and interconnected system theory, giving clear definitions and supporting points to each step, from early warning, deployment, maneuver and counterattack.

He truly deserves to be called a top strategist!

Everyone sighed inwardly.

Koharu and Homura exchanged a glance, both understanding the meaning in each other's eyes.

"A brilliant idea."

Koharu Utatane slowly began to speak, her sharp gaze sweeping over everyone: "So, based on Shinichi's flexible defense framework, we will now proceed to formulate in detail the deployment areas, early warning plans, maneuver routes, and fortification construction plans for each unit."

"Time waits for no one. We must build our defense system before the Hidden Mist Village completes its final preparations!"

Finally, she turned her gaze to Shinichi and smiled slightly: "By the way, Shinichi, after the meeting, please systematically organize the flexible defense theory you just explained into a complete tactical guidance document, taking into account the specific situation of the Southeast battlefield. Once you have it, give it to me, and I will distribute it to the middle and lower-level commanders of each unit so that they can all study, understand and implement this tactical concept."

"Yes, Elder Xiaochun." Zhenyi calmly accepted the order.

Thus, Konoha's strategic defense guidelines for dealing with the Hidden Mist's offensive were established at this meeting.

After the meeting, the entire Southeast Army Corps began to operate at high speed in accordance with this strategic plan.

Meanwhile, in the distant Land of Iron, at the Red Armor Castle, in front of the Ashina Dojo.

"Teacher, may your military campaign prosper!"

Yamagami Genya bowed deeply.

As the first disciple accepted by Isshin, he is upright and respects his teacher's swordsmanship and character the most. Compared to two years ago, he is now much more robust and has a more refined and reserved temperament.

"Master, on this trip to Kyoto, we must make sure those stagnant fools experience the might of the Ashina School!"

This is Yagyu Tadayoshi. Compared to when he first joined the sect, he is now much more robust, having grown to 2.3 meters tall, making him a veritable little giant.

"Teacher, have a safe journey and take good care of yourself," the Whirlpool couple said.

Shortly after being rescued by Isshin by chance, the Whirlpool couple became Isshin's disciples together.

However, Dao Ce mainly followed Yi Xin to learn medicine. After getting to know him better, he was shocked to discover that in addition to swordsmanship, his mastery of medicine was also unfathomable, making him a true master. This made him admire him greatly, and he studied even harder.

Whirlpool Butterfly has undergone a subtle change from her former gentle image. Since experiencing that life-or-death ordeal, like her future daughter, a certain resilient and even sharp part of her heart has been awakened.

Her diligence in learning swordsmanship impressed the other three male disciples.

Furthermore, she delved into the techniques of throwing various hidden weapons, such as shuriken, kunai, and senbon, and combined them with her innate and unparalleled sensory abilities, chakra manipulation, and the unique power generation methods she learned from Isshin.

This has led to a unique fighting style—swift, stealthy, and precise, like a silent butterfly dance, capable of unleashing a deadly edge in an instant.

During this time, she has made quite a name for herself in Crimson Armor City and the surrounding area, and is known as the Phantom Butterfly!

"Alright!" Yixin waved his hand, interrupting his disciples' further farewell words, then turned and walked towards the gate as if he were just going out for a normal walk.

"Let's go, President." After walking out the door, Isshin said with a smile to Yagyu Souichirou, who seemed to have been waiting for a long time.

"Hmph!" Yagyu Soichiro sneered, "You'd better tone it down this time! Don't be so unorthodox! Do you understand? This is the National Swordplay Tournament!"

"Okay, okay!" Isshin replied dismissively, and before Yagyu Souichirou could react, he strode forward.

"Alright! Let's go, Kyoto!"

It turned out that their trip was to Kyoto, the capital of the Land of Iron, to participate in the national swordsmanship tournament to be held there a month later.

As she walked, a multitude of thoughts raced through her mind.

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