Kahn's ultimate goal was naturally to overthrow Ozai's rule.
Although Iroh had already prepared himself ntally, he was still sowhat shocked when he heard Kahn say the plan aloud.
Such an audacious plan was sothing many people would not even dare imagine.
Yet Kahn had not only dared to imagine it, he had also been advancing it steadily in secret, to the point where it was already nearly halfway realized.
Iroh agreed with Kahn's proposed decapitation strategy, acknowledging that it was indeed well suited for Kahn and Azula to carry out.
"However, removing Ozai is only the first step."
"After dealing with him, we must first secure the palace, then take control of the entire capital."
"On that point, Azula and I may need so help."
Kahn raised the issue directly.
Many of the Royal Guards responsible for defending the palace had already chosen to pledge loyalty to Azula.
Among the remaining guards, so were loyal only to the Fire Lord's throne, not to Ozai himself.
They were the neutral faction.
There was no need to pay too much attention to those neutrals.
As long as Ozai was taken down first, they would naturally judge the situation and act accordingly.
Therefore, to secure the palace, they only needed to restrain Ozai's staunch loyalists.
Kahn was confident they could accomplish that.
But quickly taking control of the entire capital was another matter.
Their manpower was still sowhat insufficient.
Iroh accepted that part of the task without hesitation.
"Since matters have reached this point, Zuko and I no longer need to continue searching for the Avatar."
"Next, Zuko and I will find an opportunity to escape."
"After that, I will find a way to infiltrate the capital and rendezvous with you."
"As long as you succeed inside the palace, you can leave the capital to ."
Hearing Iroh say that, Kahn felt reassured.
Azula's character, cunning, and strength were all exceptional, but her foundation was still too shallow.
With soone like Iroh acting as a stabilizing force, they would feel far more secure no matter what problems arose.
So Kahn smiled and said,
"Co back soon."
"If possible, we can all have a proper reunion then."
"I wonder how tall Zuko has grown by now."
"And I also hope Azula and Zuko can go together to bring Ursa back."
"That way, Ursa will surely feel much better."
"Do not be careless."
"Stay vigilant."
"Once this matter is over, we will have plenty of ti to spend together."
Iroh reminded Kahn not to lower his guard and even suggested preparing for failure, ensuring nothing went wrong.
However, Iroh also agreed with the latter part of Kahn's words.
"Indeed, that is how it should be."
"And I do not believe Zuko would want to miss that opportunity either."
After all, not long after being exiled, Zuko had once thought of going to Hira'a to search for Ursa.
Now that Ursa had finally been found, he naturally would not want to miss the precious mont of reuniting with his mother.
But Iroh could not return to the capital imdiately.
After escaping, he would still need ti to contact his old subordinates.
Whether it was the forces currently in rebellion or those still enduring in secret, this plan absolutely could not be completed without their strength.
So the two discussed it for a while and decided that Kahn would first bring Zuko back.
Iroh would go alone to gather manpower, then return to the capital and rendezvous with them before the plan began.
That way, Zuko could see Ursa, while Iroh would have more freedom to act alone.
As for when to announce the truth of Ozai's usurpation, after discussion, they decided to save that step until after Ozai had been taken down.
Iroh and Zuko's upcoming escape would already be enough to rattle Ozai's nerves.
Announcing the truth too early would only fully alert him, push him to extres, and possibly even provoke a full-scale civil war.
That would be disadvantageous to them.
In other words, the key to this operation once again fell on Kahn and Azula.
Taking down Ozai was the decisive prerequisite for the success of every later step.
The entire plan would not move forward until Ursa had fully recovered her mories, which ant next season.
That amount of ti was neither long nor short.
The exact start date would depend on the situation later.
After setting the general plan, Kahn left the Spirit World and lay on his bed, his mind unable to settle for a long ti.
What ca next would be a truly grand spectacle.
—
On the third day, Kahn finally saw Azula again.
Her expression was the sa as usual, revealing no sign of whether the information from that day still affected her.
"You—"
He was about to ask with concern, but Azula seed to know what he wanted to say and cut him off.
"I don't want to think about that woman right now."
"If you don't want to ruin my mood for the entire day, shut up."
Understood.
Kahn obediently shut his mouth.
It seed best not to ntion Ursa's na until at least next season.
Still, Azula's reaction gave him so relief.
At least from her current state, her emotions were no longer as extre as before.
So he sealed away all topics related to Ursa in his mind and instead discussed the plan he had worked out with Iroh the previous night.
"Escaping?"
"Heh."
"At a ti like this, they're quite decisive."
"I wonder what they were doing earlier."
Azula crossed her arms, neither approving nor rejecting the plan, rely mocking Iroh again.
Just as most people believed, when Ozai usurped the throne, Iroh had possessed absolute power and could have driven Ozai out with ease.
Yet things had still fallen to their current state.
From that perspective, Ozai mocking Iroh as cowardly was not entirely without reason.
Part of Azula's negative impression of Iroh also ca from this.
"But Great-Grandfather is coming back too, is he?"
"I hope he doesn't get in the way when he returns."
"Otherwise, I won't go easy on him."
Regarding Zuko's return, Azula was equally rciless.
"If it really cos down to it, we can just hand him over to Father."
"Maybe that would even raise our chances of success."
Although she said that, Kahn could tell Azula did not despise Zuko nearly as much as she pretended to.
So he teased her as well.
"No need for that."
"I think giving Zuko to Mai in exchange for her cooperation would be a better deal."
"I have to say, that's a good idea."
Azula's lips curved, as if she had thought of sothing amusing.
"If Mai heard that news, she would probably jump for joy like Ty Lee."
"But speaking of that, you've reminded ."
"Since things have reached this point, I should bring my sisters fully into our team as well."
Mai and Ty Lee were both useful allies.
And as long as they joined, their parents would not be able to stay out of it either.
Leaving Ty Lee aside for now, Mai's father seed to be fairly trusted by Father, so there should be so room to maneuver.
Azula's calculations were already ringing loudly in her mind.
Then she suddenly seed to rember sothing and added,
"Oh, right."
"When are Iroh and the others acting?"
"Probably very soon."
Oops.
I accidentally got carried away yesterday.
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