The Land of Rain was perpetually drenched in torrential downpours, with hardly any clear days. As a result, the entire nation's atmosphere was gloomy and cold; smiles were absent from the faces of its people, who walked in the rain cloaked in straw capes and conical hats, or stayed indoors.
While ninjas in other villages could move about freely, those in the Hidden Rain Village continued to live in mutual suspicion, just as they always had.
The leader of the Hidden Rain Village was named Besa. During the Warring States period, he was an excellent assassin. After establishing the Hidden Rain Village, he ascended to the position of Second Leader due to his seniority and remains the current wielder of power.
He was a thoroughly traditional ninja, always wary of people from other countries. Consequently, the policies adopted by the Hidden Rain Village were entirely geared towards isolation and conservatism.
One day, Besa received a letter from the Hidden Leaf Village. It was from the Hidden Leaf Village's new leader, who had been in power for nearly a year—the Third Hokage, Fumori Masaki. The letter began with a gentle greeting, inquiring about Besa's health and so on.
It was rather incredible for the leader of the head of the Five Great Ninja Villages to extend such a cordial greeting to the leader of a small ninja village, but this was precisely the impression the Hidden Leaf Village gave.
In his letter, Fumori Masaki stated that, given the harsh environment of the Land of Rain, and out of concern for the spirit of Ninshu, the Hidden Leaf Village hoped to form an alliance with the Hidden Rain Village.
They proposed mutual cooperation, which would benefit both the Hidden Leaf Village and the people of the Land of Rain, and hoped Besa would give it careful consideration.
"Look, they say it so grandiosely, but in reality, they just want to exploit our Hidden Rain Village," Besa sneered, addressing his confidant.
"The leader's foresight is wise. The Hidden Leaf Village is ambitious and cunning. No matter how pleasant Fumori Masaki's words are, it's impossible for him to genuinely care for the people of our country.
If we truly form an alliance with the Hidden Leaf Village, all of our village's intelligence might fall into their hands. Then, wouldn't it be effortless for the Hidden Leaf Village to annihilate us?" the confidant immediately replied, analyzing the situation eloquently.
Besa nodded in satisfaction, appreciating his confidant's ability to discern his intentions, and then said, "But there are some people who always think others genuinely want to help the Land of Rain, completely disregarding the village's safety, hmph!"
Everyone present was Besa's confidant and also a high-ranking official of the Hidden Rain Village. They were all firm supporters of Besa's faction.
When they heard Besa speak of "some people," they immediately thought of the Hidden Rain Village's strongest ninja—Hanzo.
Hanzo's stance was to cooperate with the Hidden Leaf Village for the benefit of the country. In the past, he was somewhat secretive about it, but after the Chunin Exams, he no longer concealed it.
This was because his intentions were directly exposed by the Hidden Rain Jonin who had accompanied him. Consequently, he began to act without restraint, and under his instigation, in addition to his original faction, some people in the Hidden Rain Village now also supported his ideas.
From Besa's perspective, this situation was unforgivable. Traditional ninjas placed great importance on personal authority; the family head's opinion represented the entire family's view.
Although a ninja village was different from a family, in Besa's mind, the ninja leader was the head of the entire village, and Hanzo's actions were akin to dividing the family—a grave crime punishable by execution!
However, because Hanzo's strength was exceptional, and the Hidden Rain ninjas who followed him also constituted a portion of the village's power, a direct confrontation would likely result in a lose-lose situation.
Besa could not accept this either, so he had dragged it out until today without taking any measures against Hanzo.
Besa looked at the letter from the Hidden Leaf Village, remained silent for a moment, then placed it by a candle flame. The fire quickly climbed the paper, and he casually tossed it to the ground.
The Hidden Leaf Village's alliance request slowly turned to ashes under everyone's gaze.
"No one is to speak of this. Let's pretend this matter never existed," Besa told the others.
The others nodded. They knew that if this matter got out, Hanzo would likely use it to sway others in the village. Those Hidden Rain ninjas who felt grateful for the Hidden Leaf Village's medical aid would then side with Hanzo.
At that point, where would Besa's authority as leader be?
"However, the Hidden Leaf Village is definitely still eyeing us. Ultimately, it's because that guy Hanzo made the Hidden Leaf Village believe he could be swayed, that traitor," Besa said bitterly. "We can't indulge him any longer. We must find a way to get rid of him."
"But Leader, Hanzo isn't so easy to kill. He had a salamander's gallbladder implanted when he was young, making even his breath poisonous. His swordsmanship makes even elite samurai feel inferior. Some say his Water Release can rival the Second Hokage of the Hidden Leaf Village," someone said hesitantly.
"Yes, that's why I tolerated his existence before, but now I can't anymore," Besa said expressionlessly, looking at all his confidants. "Go back and think of any suggestions to eliminate Hanzo. Send them to me immediately once you've thought of something."
Upon hearing this, everyone knew Besa was truly planning to act against Hanzo. They exchanged glances, then nodded in agreement and left one by one.
One of the confidants, after leaving, first returned home and stayed for a while, then went out again and strolled through the village streets.
Soon, a Hidden Rain ninja walked towards him. The two exchanged an imperceptible glance, then brushed past each other. If someone possessed the insight of a Sharingan, they would have noticed that in that instant, the confidant had slipped a note into the other Hidden Rain ninja's hand.
Not just once, this Hidden Rain ninja then passed it to another Hidden Rain ninja, and after several transfers, it reached Hanzo.
Seeing the contents of the note, Hanzo's expression darkened slightly, then he quickly burned the note. Once the note had completely vanished, he sat down as if drained of all strength.
—It seemed that day was finally coming. Although he had long disliked Besa, he hadn't yet made up his mind, but the other party had already decided to act.
Hanzo thought silently. After learning of this, his wavering resolve finally solidified. Long ago, someone from the Hidden Leaf Village had warned that if Hanzo kept hesitating, the Hidden Rain leader might make the first move.
Although he hadn't made up his mind at the time, he had still begun preparations, even turning Besa's confidants to his side.
After the two sides fell out during the Chunin Exams, Hanzo had already begun preparing an escape route, establishing secret communication methods with those he trusted to ensure Besa wouldn't detect them.
Now, relying on the turned confidant, he had received news of the Hidden Leaf Village's alliance request and Besa's intention to eliminate him, which made him feel incredibly fortunate.
If he had been completely unprepared, even someone as strong as him might have fallen midway.
After all, Besa was once the Hidden Rain Village's most skilled assassin. In a direct confrontation, Hanzo alone could take on three of him, but in a covert ambush, Besa alone could threaten Hanzo's life.
However, Besa was still in the dark, while Hanzo knew his objective. The disparity in their intelligence would, to some extent, directly determine the outcome.
As for how to deal with Besa, Hanzo currently had no plan. After all, Besa was the legitimate leader of the Hidden Rain Village and commanded the greatest power.
If he acted recklessly, not only might he fail to eliminate Besa, but he would also have to defect from the village, becoming a pariah, hunted by everyone.
Fortunately, Besa also needed a meticulous plan to prevent a significant decline in the Hidden Rain Village's strength while eliminating Hanzo, so Hanzo still had time.
Both sides were playing their own games. On the surface, when they met, they maintained a lukewarm attitude, neither intimate nor resistant.
But in their hearts, they both wished to crush the other, only refraining from a full confrontation due to other considerations.
Several days later, a mission from the capital arrived at the Hidden Rain Village, specifically requesting Hanzo to be in charge.
Besa, at this time, wanted to stabilize Hanzo, so he did not make things difficult for him in his daily work and allowed Hanzo to accept the mission.
Upon receiving the mission, Hanzo went to the residence of the noble who had commissioned it. Hanzo knew what kind of missions these nobles would entrust—nothing more than assassinating or eliminating individuals they considered obstacles.
In a place like the Land of Rain, most of these tasks had little technical complexity, and he wondered why they needed him.
Arriving at the noble's house, Hanzo inquired about the mission details, but the noble smiled and told him not to rush. After a while, he led Hanzo into a private room.
Just as Hanzo thought the noble was about to reveal the mission, he saw someone emerge from the inner room. He recognized this person; it was the Daimyo of the Land of Rain.
Because of the salamander's gallbladder, Hanzo's breath was poisonous, so he always wore a mask. Even so, his astonishment was visible on his face behind it.
Who would have thought that the ruler of a nation would secretly appear here?
"Long time no see, Hanzo," the Daimyo said in a very friendly tone. "You must be very surprised, but actually, the real mission client this time is me."
"You are the one commissioning the mission?" Hanzo asked, puzzled.
"Yes, because I don't want anyone else to know the specifics of the mission," the Daimyo nodded, glancing at the noble beside him. "He doesn't need to worry. Frankly, this mission has been agreed upon by all of us. All that's missing are the people from your Hidden Rain Village."
"What exactly is the mission?" Hanzo sensed that what the other party was saying was extremely important and asked cautiously.
"I've decided to cooperate amicably with the Hidden Leaf Village, but that Besa in your village is unappreciative, always wanting to seal off the borders, it's really…" The Daimyo shook his head, looking at Hanzo, and said, "Therefore, the mission I'm entrusting to you is to eliminate Besa. From now on, you will be the leader of the Hidden Rain Village."