In Minato Namikaze's heart, Minamikawa Yuu had already become a strategic master, possessing outstanding strategic talent.
What was even rarer was that the other party was only eight or nine years old now, with a lot of room for growth.
If he waited for him to grow up in the future, his abilities would likely be even more outstanding.
Thinking of this, Minato Namikaze couldn't help but feel a sense of admiration in his heart.
But in reality, Minamikawa Yuu was not nearly as excellent as he thought.
He could judge these things simply because he was shooting the arrow first and then drawing the target.
After all, he had already seen this plot in his previous life.
If he wasn't afraid of scaring Minato Namikaze, he could even directly tell him that Kumogakure would suffer a huge loss this time, and even the Third Raikage would die at the hands of the Iwa Ninja.
Of course, the current situation had changed somewhat compared to the original.
Whether the Third Raikage would still die at the hands of the Iwa Ninja as in the story was somewhat uncertain.
But in any case, it was certain that Kumogakure would suffer a huge loss.
"What about the Hidden Mist?"
Minato Namikaze continued to ask.
Previously, among the Four Great Nations besides Konoha, Minamikawa Yuu had already talked about three, leaving only the Hidden Mist unmentioned.
Since they had already chatted to this point, Minato Namikaze was also very curious about Minamikawa Yuu's views on the Hidden Mist.
"The Hidden Mist's situation is somewhat similar to the Sand Village, but it is even more serious."
Minamikawa Yuu shook his head and said so.
During the Third Shinobi World War, besides Minato Namikaze's solo battle against the A-B Brothers which brought him great fame, another shocking event occurred.
The famous Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist were defeated by Might Duy, a Konoha Genin, using the Eight Gates technique during a mission, with more than half of them killed or injured.
This was the first time the Eight Gates technique showed its power, and its initial outburst alone achieved astonishing results.
"The internal atmosphere of the Hidden Mist was already tense; I heard that even the various Ninja Clans within the hidden Village have conflicts from time to time."
Minamikawa Yuu spoke: "The Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, as representatives of the Hidden Mist, represented various forces within the Hidden Mist."
"Now, four of these seven have died in battle, leaving only three survivors."
"The internal power balance of the Hidden Mist has been broken."
Among the Five Great Nations, the Hidden Mist was definitely the one with the most dangerous environment.
Although the so-called Bloody Mist Village had not yet fully unfolded at this moment, the seeds had already been sown.
According to the intelligence Minamikawa Yuu possessed, the situation within the Hidden Mist was already very tense at this moment.
Various forces confronted each other, barely maintaining a balance.
In a state of equilibrium, the various parties could barely live in peace with each other and advance or retreat together under the pressure of external forces.
At this very moment, four of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist were kicked to death, leaving only three to return, and the Hidden Mist itself suffered heavy losses in the war.
This undoubtedly caused the internal power of the Hidden Mist to become unbalanced once again.
An internal struggle was about to begin.
"The matter of the Three-Tails a while ago also had a huge impact."
Minamikawa Yuu spoke softly.
He didn't say much about this matter, but Minato Namikaze immediately understood his meaning, and his heart sank at this moment.
He thought of some unpleasant things.
Uchiha Obito, Rin Nohara, and Kakashi were all his students.
A while ago, during the war, Uchiha Obito died, and his body's whereabouts are still unknown.
Rin Nohara was captured by the Hidden Mist, who sealed the Three-Tails inside her body; she was finally killed by Kakashi's own hand.
This matter was not only a huge blow to Kakashi, but also to Minato Namikaze.
But from another perspective, this matter also greatly consumed the Hidden Mist's energy.
The Three-Tails Jinchuriki died, and the Three-Tails sealed inside her body also disappeared with her, about to be reborn.
All of the Hidden Mist's energy was currently focused on the lost Three-Tails, urgently wanting to recapture it.
On this basis, plus the loss of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, the Hidden Mist indeed did not have much energy left to waste on them.
Or perhaps the reason why that Third Mizukage has never appeared in the war is precisely because he was distracted by these matters.
Thinking of this, Minato Namikaze couldn't help but be amazed.
The young man before him seemed ordinary, but with just a few simple words, he analyzed the current situation of the Ninja World very clearly.
It was as if nothing could stump the other party.
This kind of ability is truly stunning.
He thought so in his heart.
In the past, he had also seen many geniuses, including Kakashi, Kurenai Yuhi, and others, who were all very outstanding Ninjas.
He himself was even a genius among geniuses, enough to outshine all other geniuses.
But a genius like Minamikawa Yuu was someone he was seeing for the first time.
Coming to visit Kakashi this time had yielded quite an unexpected harvest.
He thought so in his heart, and then suddenly spoke: "You have already talked about the other Four Great Nations."
"What about Konoha?"
He spoke softly, his gaze fixed on Minamikawa Yuu in front of him: "Regarding the situation within Konoha, how do you see it, Yuu?"
"Within Konoha?"
Meeting Minato Namikaze's gaze, Minamikawa Yuu remained silent for a moment.
After a while, he continued to speak: "Before the great war, the Third Hokage once mentioned that he wanted to hand over the position of Hokage to other young people in advance."
"And this timing would roughly be after this great war ends."
Saying this, he looked up at Minato Namikaze in front of him: "Therefore, the most important thing for Konoha right now lies both on the battlefield and not on the battlefield."
"Oh?"
Minato Namikaze was very curious: "What does that sentence mean?"
"The Hokage selection is about to begin. The most important matter at present is not on the battlefield, but inside the Village."
Minamikawa Yuu had a smile on his face: "But to win this Hokage selection, the most critical place is nowhere else but precisely on this battlefield."
For the Konoha Ninjas at this moment, although the war was still important, it seemed less so compared to the upcoming Hokage selection.
But to win the Hokage selection, the key was also on this battlefield.
Because only those who performed outstandingly on the battlefield and became heroes would have the qualifications to win the subsequent Hokage selection.
In the original story, why was Minato Namikaze able to defeat Orochimaru and become the Fourth Hokage?
In terms of seniority, Orochimaru was the Third Hokage's personal disciple and was close to Advisors like Danzo, while Minato Namikaze was merely Jiraiya's disciple and had no foundation in Konoha politics.
In terms of reputation, Orochimaru was one of the famous Legendary Sannin of Konoha, while Minato Namikaze was just a rising star.
In all aspects, he could be said to be at a disadvantage.
But in the end, he was able to defeat Orochimaru and become the final winner.
The main reason, besides the Third Hokage's decision and Orochimaru's own problems, was that he was the greatest contributor and hero for Konoha in the Third Shinobi World War, helping Konoha achieve victory in this war almost single-handedly.
This brilliant battle result gained him massive prestige, which even the older generation of leaders led by the Third Hokage could not ignore.
With this record and reputation as a foundation, plus being Jiraiya's disciple, which barely counted as being of Hokage lineage, he then had the qualifications to become the Fourth Hokage.