"Mm. If true, this is, then a distraction and a trap are the Clone Wars themselves. Convenient it is, for Palpatine, yes? Already indispensable, he makes himself." 

"Master Yoda... I would hesitate to arrest anyone on such a thin suspicion, let alone the Chancellor."

"Indeed. It is not my gift, but as I understand, the nature of a shatterpoint is not necessarily clear. Maybe her presence in the galaxy alone will change it."

"Or maybe we can cut the head off the snake today and put an end to this war."

"We are, I should note, not certain that it is him.  He merely fits the profile far too well.  But that does not mean that we cannot reexamine the past for things that might be evidence, or look to confirming things in the future.  You said the Apprentice told you that the Darth was controlling the Senate.  I don't know how that happened, but could you not ask him?"

"He may be unwilling to answer. He is the leader of the Confederacy."

"He told you in the first place.  Besides, it's something to try, not something to hinge our hopes upon.

"...You should keep a closer watch upon the Chancellor.  It would not be a lie to say there's a credible threat of his assassination known to the Order."  She grins, though her presence is sour.  She has never liked doing this.  She has just needed to, more than her discomfort matters - and it looks like she still must.

...In fairness, even if the Sith can completely delude their senses in the Force - a terrifying thought - they would still need to know what to pretend. She isn't sure a real Sith Lord could convincingly fake that kind of discomfort, or even know they should.

...Come to think of it, she's never felt anything like that from Palpatine. 

"Difficult indeed, to spy upon the Chancellor, and glad we were of it until today. Few there are, close to him. Take it on yourself to kill him, you would, hmm?"

He supposes they could ask Anakin. 

"If it falls to me, I would - though I think that it's perhaps best that I be tasked with taking down the Apprentice simultaneously, seeing as there are many more problems getting someone close to him and that the Apprentice running rampant over the galaxy would be just as bad.  Maybe worse, given what he's been pulling behind him.  The galaxy does not need a Czerka with an actual army attached running amok because a Sith Lord stopped sitting on them."

"...I didn't say 'spy on'.  Yes, obviously, this could be used that way - but merely forcing the Chancellor to be the Chancellor at all times, because there's a Jedi he can hardly refuse being guarded by, because of his public mask, is useful in and of itself."

"We could handle Dooku by himself, if not for the darkness in the Force. But it could disrupt the Master's plans."

"Interested I am, in many things. Another champion in this war, we cannot turn away. But why believe you, hmm, that find and kill Dooku you could? A powerful Jedi, was he."

"...He's a head of state.  If I couldn't find somewhere he'll be, I'd check myself for a concussion.  He has public appearances.  Getting close enough to him to strike is concomitantly more difficult, but that's something I'm rather good at."

"And being a powerful Jedi does not truly obviate the advantage of surprise.  Nor saturation fire."

"Don't underestimate Dooku. He was good, and he's not stupid. He can still use the Force as well as ever, we think. The Republic's tried decapitation strikes before."

"Mm. The Republic, under Palpatine, tried to kill him it has?"

"Would we not have noticed if the Chancellor were sabotaging the war effort?"

"We can investigate that, at least, especially if we post someone close to him."

"I'm quite sure Dooku is good at what he does, if he's not dead yet.  He was not, however, trained in an environment where backstabbing someone was actively encouraged by the instructors."

"I do most definitely agree that getting someone close to Chancellor Palpatine is imperative.  If he's not the Sith Lord, there's no way the Sith Lord will let him live, as well."

He does wonder what records they have of the Sith from so long ago. There has been an effort by the Educational Corps to research the Sith, of course, but it was mostly focussed on their most recent appearance, a thousand years ago. It's understandably not very reliable. 

They probably don't have very much. He wonders if that was a coincidence. 

"All right. We send word to the Chancellor that his life may be in danger and offer him a guard. Then as Jedi, not Republic intelligence, get Dooku's movements, and dispatch... Darth Mourne... to capture or destroy him. All in favour?"

It's shocking, but every day since Geonosis has been shocking. 

"Aye."

There's no way this isn't some kind of cunning plot.

"Nay."

Perhaps this is the will of the Force. 

Or perhaps it is a trick. But if so, not one that goes against their purposes. They can spare one Jedi, and sharing intelligence on Dooku does little harm. 

"Aye."