Land of Earth,
Rain Village frontline camp.
Hanzo looked at the casualty report in his hands.
"Damn Ōnoki… he actually went this far."
Scorched earth tactics—methods that destroyed entire bloodlines and futures—and yet Ōnoki had used them without hesitation.
Two years.
Hanzo had led his forces through the Land of Earth for two full years.
He had clashed with Ōnoki countless times, but never once found the chance to land the decisive blow.
Ōnoki had resisted Hanzo's fierce assault by sacrificing countless civilians and setting the Land of Earth's economy back decades.
"How are the reinforcements coming?"
"Hanzo-sama, everyone who could come already arrived half a year ago. But there's still the Akatsuki organization. They have over four hundred ninja. We've summoned them many times, but they refuse to come. The people we sent couldn't beat them either. And the civilians in the surrounding regions have accepted their ideals… They don't want war anymore."
"Ridiculous. They're dragging Rain Village down and digging the grave of the Land of Rain."
Hanzo was furious.
This was Rain Village's greatest opportunity ever.
And yet the ones holding them back were their own people.
Rain Village lacked manpower, but Hidden Stone Village wasn't in any better shape.
The position of one of the Five Great Ninja Villages was within reach.
Even becoming one of the Five Great Nations no longer seemed impossible.
Yet the Land of Rain itself still couldn't unite as one.
Over four hundred ninja.
And among them was the Akatsuki leader, someone with considerable strength.
That force alone might become the final straw that crushed Hidden Stone Village.
"Stop the offensive for now. I'm returning to the country personally. The day I come back… will be the day Rain Village ascends to the ranks of the Five Great Ninja Villages."
"Yes, Hanzo-sama."
...
Hidden Stone Village.
"Mom… I'm hungry."
A weak little girl lay in the arms of a mother even weaker than herself.
The mother struggled to stand.
"Be good. Mommy will go find you something to eat."
"Here… eat this instead."
A thin, frail hand suddenly appeared before them.
In that hand was a stale corn bun whose age was impossible to tell.
The exhausted mother looked up.
"T-Third Tsuchikage-sama…"
The moment those words rang out, countless starving people nearby struggled to their feet.
They looked toward their leader.
None of them wanted him to see them in such a miserable state.
Drip. Drip.
Tears streamed endlessly down Ōnoki's face.
His trembling lips finally forced out the question he had always wanted to ask, yet never dared to say aloud.
"Do you hate me?"
"We don't. Rain Village wanted to bully Hidden Stone Village, and we'd never accept that. Better to die standing than live kneeling."
A man with both legs severed and his left arm missing raised his only remaining right hand and shouted loudly while leaning against the wall.
"Better to die standing than live kneeling!"
"Better to die standing than live kneeling!"
"That's not what I mean. I mean the war against Konoha. I was the one who turned Hidden Stone Village into this. It's all because of me. If not for me, how would a mere Rain Village dare set foot into the Land of Earth?"
"So tell me… do you hate me?"
Ōnoki asked again.
This time, everyone fell silent.
"Tsuchikage-sama… we did hate you once. But Sawai-sama once told us something."
"If you ever imagined what Hidden Stone Village would look like after winning that war, then you have no right to blame the Iwa ninja for losing it. You only opened your mouths. They gambled their lives."
After one person spoke, another followed.
"We share fortune together, and hardship together."
"We share fortune together, and hardship together."
"Tsuchikage-sama, lead us back to the Hidden Stone Village we once had."
"Tsuchikage-sama…"
Ōnoki's eyes brimmed with tears.
"Alright."
Ōnoki stayed a little longer before finally leaving.
After returning to the new Tsuchikage office, he could no longer hold himself up.
He collapsed weakly into his chair.
Sawai-sensei… so even before dying, you helped me one last time?
This time, your student may soon come join you and Sensei as well.
"Ryūgan."
"Tsuchikage-sama."
Ryūgan, his head wrapped in bandages, walked in.
"How much food does the village have left?"
"If we ration it carefully, about three days."
"No more rationing. Distribute everything. Tomorrow I'll fight Hanzo in the final battle. Once he dies, the war ends."
"And if—"
"There is no 'if.' Hidden Stone Village will accept only one outcome."
"He dies."
Ōnoki had already made his decision.
No matter what became of him tomorrow,
Hanzo had to die.
"Ryūgan, there should still be some explosive clay left, right?"
"Yes, there's still—"
"Bring all of it to me."
"…Understood."
After walking out of the Tsuchikage office,
Ryūgan closed the door behind him, then collapsed to his knees.
Staring at the tightly shut door before him, he knew that tomorrow, he might never see his Tsuchikage-sama again.
...
Land of Rain.
The moment Hanzo stepped back onto Rain Country soil, there was only one thing on his mind— dealing with the Akatsuki organization that had been holding them back.
Before long,
Hanzo arrived with his men at Akatsuki's base.
"Leader of Akatsuki, get your ass out here!"
Hanzo's roar startled Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan.
"Hanzo? Why is he here? Yahiko, this doesn't look good."
Nagato warned.
"Yeah, I know. Hanzo's definitely here to force us into the war. But we'll never use what we've learned for war."
Yahiko replied.
"Be careful."
Konan reminded them.
"Mm."
The three walked out side by side.
Facing the aggressive Hanzo,
Yahiko stepped forward.
"Leader Hanzo."
"Cut the crap. One question only. Are you joining the battlefield or not?"
"No. Hanzo-sama, war only creates more war. If you invade someone else's homeland through war, one day the children whose homes you destroyed will come back and invade yours. It'll only become war after war after war. Only peace can save the Land of Rain. Only peace can save the ninja world."
"You naïve brat who understands nothing. Where were you when others invaded the Land of Rain? Where were you when the Land of Rain became the battlefield of the Lands of Fire, Earth, and Wind?"
"In this ninja world, things like peace and love are nothing but lies. The brief peace Rain Country enjoys now wasn't earned through peace or love. It was bought with the blood of every Rain ninja who fought desperately without regard for their lives."
"When they died for the Land of Rain, where were you then? Why didn't you come save them?"
Hanzo raised his sickle, pointing it directly at Yahiko.
Yet Yahiko showed no fear.
"Maybe no one in the ninja world has ever tried this before. Maybe everyone sees us as fools. Maybe what we're doing really is wrong."
"But if nobody tries, then how can the ninja world ever know whether it's possible?"
"If we don't do it, then endless war is the only road left. Hatred will keep passing down through generations and bloodlines."
"Must everyone die before war finally ends?"
Yahiko's words struck like thunder.
For a moment, nobody present could tell who was truly right and who was wrong.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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