Chapter 330: Strategic Planning and Future Plans

[Name: Byakuya]

[Age: 22 years old]

[Current Affiliated Organization: Akatsuki Organization]

[Chakra Attributes: Lightning, Water, Earth, Wind, Fire, Yang, Yin]

[Ninjutsu: Substitution Jutsu, Basic Kunai Throwing Technique, Advanced Wind Style Ninjutsu, Mastery of Water Style Ninjutsu, Advanced Paper Style, Mastery of Wood Style, Disguise Jutsu, Spore Jutsu, Mayfly Technique…]

[Kekkei Genkai: Basic Wood Style, Basic Yin-Yang Style, Magnet Style]

[Bloodline: Ashura, Indra]

[Personal Evaluation: Peak Kage Level, capable of easily crushing most shinobi, but stands little chance of escaping when facing truly formidable opponents.]

Byakuya glanced at the system panel and silently closed it.

To him, the system panel served as a reference and couldn't accurately quantify his actual strength. Before defeating Hanzō of the Salamander, his strength had been evaluated as Kage-level.

Now, as someone nearing the title of the "God of Shinobi" of his era, his strength was still marked as Kage-level.

Over the past decade, it seemed his training had been in vain—he still hadn't reached the Super-Kage stage. But does the system even acknowledge such a stage?

Byakuya had some doubts but quickly brushed them aside.

The system appeared to be telling him that, despite his overwhelming panel stats, he wasn't truly powerful. During the early years of the shinobi world, power levels progressed slowly. Even advancing from Genin to Chūnin was an arduous task.

Yet, in just three days during the Fourth Shinobi World War, Naruto and Sasuke advanced from Kage-level to the Six Paths level.

Compared to those two, who the Sage of Six Paths essentially gave a cheat, his current strength was nothing to brag about.

Moreover, the criteria for Kage-level within the shinobi world itself were very vague. A regular person who only knew ninjutsu and taijutsu could be Kage-level, while a shinobi possessing Ōtsutsuki bloodline powers could also be Kage-level. All of them were labeled as legendary S-ranked ninjas.

After exhaling deeply, Byakuya opened the rest of the intelligence scrolls.

They contained development reports for the Akatsuki's subordinate organizations, such as Amegakure (Village Hidden in the Rain) and Kusagakure (Village Hidden in the Grass), as well as updates on the war fronts involving Konohagakure (Hidden Leaf) and Iwagakure (Hidden Stone).

Byakuya wasn't particularly interested in the development reports.

Ever since Amegakure and the Akatsuki organization ran smoothly, he had stepped back from organizational management. If he had to handle everything personally, he'd have collapsed at his desk long ago.

These tedious matters were better left to Yahiko.

After all, among the Akatsuki elites, Yahiko was the only one who wasn't Kage-level. For the sake of the organization's growth, Yahiko had to shoulder the burden.

Fortunately, Yahiko was naturally suited for administrative duties and diplomatic activities.

Whenever Byakuya met with domestic merchants, they always seemed to tremble in fear. He couldn't quite understand why.

Was it because he had ordered the assassination of a Daimyō or eliminated a few deep-rooted financial conglomerates?

These merchants' mental fortitude really needed improvement.

After finishing the development reports, Byakuya turned his attention to the war intelligence between Iwagakure and Konohagakure.

Since Jiraiya and Tsunade had joined the conflict, the intensity of the war between Konohagakure and Iwagakure had noticeably escalated, with signs of transitioning from localized military skirmishes to full-scale war.

However, Byakuya didn't think it would escalate much further. The battlefield between Konohagakure and Iwagakure would likely drag on for a long time but wouldn't expand further. After all, the conflict between the two villages hadn't reached a life-or-death stage yet.

If their mutual aggression caused their forces to weaken significantly, it would inevitably invite attacks from other major shinobi villages, particularly Kumogakure (Hidden Cloud Village), which was separated from both Iwagakure and Konohagakure by the sea.

Kumogakure had suffered considerable losses during the last war, even losing their Two-Tails Jinchūriki.

However, their core combat strength remained largely intact. The village still boasted the formidable duo of the Fourth Raikage and Killer Bee, as well as a significant number of elite jōnin.

Although Kumogakure hadn't yet intervened in the conflict, they were undoubtedly closely monitoring the situation in the shinobi world and could enter the fray at any moment.

Amegakure's true enemy was also Kumogakure. Seizing the opportunity created by the war between Iwagakure and Konohagakure, Amegakure had begun secretly trading arms and supplies. Beyond this, the village was working on exerting a more subtle influence over the shinobi world.

Similarly, Kumogakure had its ambitions. Recently, they had been active in the member nations under Akatsuki's control, attempting to annex smaller villages and turn them into satellite states.

If not for the continuous presence of Kakuzu, Hidan, and others in the smaller nations, Kumogakure might have succeeded in its infiltration efforts.

After reading through all the intelligence reports, Byakuya sank into deep thought.

He began considering Akatsuki's next steps. The organization's ultimate strategy was undoubtedly to collect all the Tailed Beasts and weaponize the Ten-Tails.

However, the order in which the Tailed Beasts were collected required careful planning.

Currently, the One-Tail from Sunagakure was already within Akatsuki's grasp, ready for extraction at any time. The Two-Tails and Seven-Tails Jinchūriki were also under Akatsuki's jurisdiction.

This left six Tailed Beasts remaining to be collected.

Among them, the Eight-Tails from Kumogakure was untouchable for now. Killer Bee had a close bond with the Fourth Raikage. If Killer Bee were to go missing, it would undoubtedly alert the Raikage.

Although Byakuya was confident he could defeat the Fourth Raikage, his ambitions extended far beyond the Eight-Tails alone.

If Kumogakure could be brought under Akatsuki's control, his power would grow exponentially. Thus, Akatsuki couldn't make a move on the Eight-Tails for the time being—at least not under Byakuya's direction. The plan to hunt the Eight-Tails would have to be shelved for now.

As for the Four-Tails and Five-Tails Jinchūriki from Iwagakure, they were also off-limits for the moment. These were formidable Jinchūriki who had once forced Jiraiya and Minato Namikaze into retreat during a combined effort.

Akatsuki currently lacked the manpower to confront them. It would have to wait until Kisame Hoshigaki joined their ranks.

The Nine-Tails Jinchūriki from Konohagakure didn't even warrant discussion. Naruto, as the "Child of Prophecy," was far more significant than simply being a Jinchūriki. He would undoubtedly be the last target of the hunt.

Having ruled out these options, Byakuya's only remaining choice was Kirigakure (Hidden Mist Village).

Kirigakure was notorious for producing rogue ninjas. In the original timeline, it gave rise to formidable defectors like Zabuza Momochi, Jūzō Biwa, and Kisame Hoshigaki. Even the village's leader, the Fourth Mizukage, had been a puppet controlled by Obito.

In this timeline, Obito had similarly taken control of the Fourth Mizukage.

To collect the Tailed Beasts from Kirigakure, Akatsuki would inevitably have to deal with the Fourth Mizukage.

Thus, hunting the Tailed Beasts from Kirigakure wouldn't be particularly difficult. The problem lay in Byakuya's relationship with Obito, which was far from amicable. Although Byakuya had used brute force to secure his position and status within Akatsuki, he rarely issued commands to Obito.

For the most part, Byakuya and Obito operated independently.

Byakuya had issued a few orders to Obito, and Obito had shared little information about Kirigakure's operations. All the intelligence Byakuya currently possessed came from his prior-life memories and reconnaissance conducted by his Wood Clones.

Before hunting the Three-Tails and Six-Tails from Kirigakure, Byakuya needed to find a way to wrest control of Kirigakure from Obito. But how to implement this plan required careful thought.

If he tried to force Obito to relinquish control of the Fourth Mizukage, Obito would undoubtedly refuse.

Moreover, the hunt for the Tailed Beasts had to remain covert. If Akatsuki's plans to collect the Tailed Beasts were exposed prematurely, the organization, no matter how powerful, wouldn't be able to withstand an assault from the remaining major shinobi villages.

If Akatsuki's development faltered, Byakuya's growth would also slow, leaving him unprepared to deal with the extraterrestrial threats that would emerge in the later stages of the shinobi world.

Thus, to fully integrate Amegakure's power under his control, Byakuya needed to carefully devise a strategy and identify a suitable candidate to serve as the next Mizukage.