"Yahiko, they are very happy to have rain."
"Yes, every place has its own suffering. What is painful for us may not be so for others."
Yahiko felt a sudden touch of emotion as he watched the cheering scene in the distance.
He looked out at the vast desert.
"Do you think this area can become a new oasis in the future?"
"Of course it can!"
Konan nodded earnestly.
With continuous rain, new soil, and countless tree seeds, flowers, and grasses drifting over, this area could definitely become an oasis.
In the future, the northern part of the Land of Wind could become a fertile territory.
Yahiko seemed to have an epiphany.
He turned his head, and a figure had already body-flickered over.
Kyohiko had arrived!
"How is it?"
"It's raining, and there are signs of flooding. Fortunately, you had them dig the channels in advance to control the direction of the rainwater."
"Yes, very good. It seems I chose the right location."
Kyohiko nodded lightly.
The opening led out to a low mountain, which just happened to block the passing water vapor and turn it into a downpour.
The pouring rain made the distant scenery appear gray and misty.
"Kyohiko, how much can this water change the Land of Wind?"
A single river cannot cover the entire dry desert.
Yahiko could imagine that this river could bring considerable help to the Hidden Sand Village and the Land of Wind, but how much could it help?
He was very curious.
"Water is the source of life. A stable river can create oases along its banks, and the soil washed away from the mountain can become fertile land for this canyon area."
"This entire area will become different in the future."
Kyohiko answered.
Although the desert was vast, it was not suitable for human survival. Yet the Land of Wind had given this desert to the Hidden Sand Village, with no room for development around it.
At this time, a river with a stable output could transform the ecosystem along its path.
The entire northern part of the Land of Wind will change because of this!
Even.
The recent awkward position of the Hidden Sand Village in the Land of Wind could also be alleviated to a certain extent.
A hint of envy flashed in Yahiko's eyes.
"What about the Hidden Rain Village?"
"That depends on the subsequent effects. You can continue to observe, but I don't think it's a good idea to keep smashing mountains."
Kyohiko advised, "Appropriate transformation can benefit both sides, but excessive transformation may lead to a backlash from nature."
"Alright."
…
The Land of Rain now had even more rain in this region.
More than half a month later.
"How is it?"
"Not too bad."
Hanzo took out a scroll and handed it to Yahiko.
During this time, he had not left the Hidden Rain Village and basically stayed within a range where Hanzo could provide support.
Even.
Currently, Hanzo has basically handed over the internal affairs of the village to Yahiko and Konan, letting them help him govern the village.
The current Hidden Rain Village was visibly improving.
Hanzo, on the other hand, was fully dedicated to external affairs and controlling the ANBU, focusing all his energy on training ANBU ninjas.
The intelligence network of the Hidden Rain Village has now been re-established.
However.
In the short term, their main goal was still to observe the changes in the Land of Rain.
This was related to…
Whether they could get this expense reimbursed by the Daimyo of the Land of Rain, or obtain a larger investment by cooperating with Konoha and the Hidden Sand Village.
After all, from the current situation, after their cooperation, the Hidden Rain Village and the Land of Rain are definitely the beneficiaries.
Yahiko carefully looked at the data.
Then, a look of joy appeared on his face.
"Hanzo-sama, look!"
Yahiko pointed to several pieces of data, "The sunny days in some border areas have arrived ahead of schedule!"
"Hmm?"
Hanzo quickly took it.
Then, a deep joy appeared on his face.
Yes!
In the Land of Rain, the areas near the northern part of the Land of Birds, the Land of Earth, and the Land of Fire have all cleared up ahead of schedule.
This was an incredibly big event in the Land of Rain, which had a relatively regular climate!
"His guess was right!"
"Currently, it's as if a large part of our rain has gone to the northern part of the Land of Wind, so we have less?"
Hanzo straightened out his thoughts.
His face was filled with joy.
"Yahiko, quickly write a report. I will send someone to the Daimyo. Let's report the 'good news' properly!"
"Yes!"
…
At the Land of Wind Daimyo's residence.
"Rasa, is everything you said true? You're not trying to deceive us to get funding, are you!"
The Daimyo looked suspiciously at the words written on the scroll.
He recognized all the individual characters, but when combined, why were they so hard to believe?
Konoha helped smash open a mountain in the north, so the north now has a lot of rain, forming a river.
Damn it.
Is this something a human can do?
One of the nobles couldn't help but ask, "Rasa, how many people did Konoha send to help? How many people did we dispatch?"
"Replying to your lordships, Konoha only sent one person, Ryoho Kyohiko. We did not participate in the mountain-opening. We only built the riverbanks to prevent the water from causing floods."
Rasa replied respectfully.
The nobles looked at each other, while the Daimyo of the Land of Wind sat in his chair, not answering for a long time.
If Rasa wasn't deceiving them, then how powerful was this young genius from Konoha?
Previously, no matter how much Rasa and the Hidden Sand Village said, they couldn't understand. But opening a mountain, and doing it so easily with just one person…
Doesn't that mean the other party could easily destroy their capital?
For the first time, they realized that a ninja could be so powerful.
Rasa kept his head down.
"If you don't believe me, my lords, you can send a trade caravan north from the Land of Rivers, through the Land of Rain and the Land of Birds, and see for yourselves."
"This area is now under our joint jurisdiction, so there will be no safety issues."
The reason he didn't hide Kyohiko's involvement was to clear his village's name for their defeat—
It wasn't that the Hidden Sand Village was too incompetent, but that Konoha was too powerful!
This way, both the Hidden Sand Village and the Land of Wind had a way to save face, and everyone could continue as before.
Even.
With better sales channels, the nobles' support for the cooperation would also increase.
The only problem was—
They were even more dependent on Konoha!
It could be said that for the Hidden Sand Village, swallowing these benefits from Konoha now was like drinking poison to quench thirst. If they didn't drink, they would truly die of thirst.
Rasa could see many things clearly.
But.
The current Hidden Sand Village had no choice but to follow this path.
Even if it was a dead end, they couldn't be too concerned!
The Daimyo of the Land of Wind pondered for a long time and looked at the nobles beside him.
"Let's talk to the Land of Rivers. If we can get our merchant ships to go north through the river, it will be beneficial for us."
"Yes, Daimyo-sama!"
…
In the Hidden Stone Village, Onoki's Tsuchikage career has recently encountered a considerable challenge.
He increased the investment in ANBU spies in the Hidden Rain Village and the Hidden Sand Village. The intelligence he received made his vision go black.
The current Hidden Sand Village and Hidden Rain Village are even more deeply tied to Konoha!
The alliance of their three ninja villages may not have as many ninjas as the Hidden Stone, Hidden Cloud, and Hidden Mist, but the three can unite their forces.
And their side?
Therefore.
Even though Zetsu was instigating, saying that the war could start, Onoki hesitated instead.
If a war really broke out, the Hidden Stone Village would be the first to take the most brutal hit!
Can they fight this?
They can't!
Kitsuchi was helping to organize documents on the side and asked, "Father, have you been troubled by something recently?"
"What, you want to help me think?"
Onoki glanced at Kitsuchi without much interest.
This guy…
Relying on him was worse than looking forward to a future granddaughter.
He sighed softly.
"Get out, don't disturb my thinking!"
"Yes, Father."
Kitsuchi smiled awkwardly and obediently left.
A few seconds later, Onoki's eyebrows raised. Under the floor, a familiar figure appeared.
"Zetsu, what is it this time?"
"Tsuchikage-sama, my master knows your concerns, so he sent me to dispel them."
Zetsu chuckled softly, "When the war starts, our men can be the vanguard."
Onoki was shocked upon hearing this.
Madara's men as the vanguard?
Good heavens!
The sun is rising from the west!
Onoki couldn't help but smile, "Is Madara-sama willing to take action?"
"At the right time, my lord will definitely take action. The vanguard will be our one hundred thousand ninjas."
Zetsu replied.
He paused for a moment, then continued, "In addition, we are willing to help control the Tailed Beasts, allowing you to utilize this power more perfectly."
Onoki's eyes flickered, and he said, "What do we need to pay?"
"A single Tailed Beast is not very useful. Our plan is to gather the six Tailed Beasts together and attack Konoha all at once!"
Zetsu replied.
After hearing this, Onoki pondered for a moment and said, "Konoha also has the ability to destroy our village. Isn't such an action a bit extreme?"
War is fine.
But.
Directly using the Tailed Beasts to bomb Konoha's home base completely eliminates any room for maneuver.
"This is war, not a child's game. Everyone should give their all. Besides, our main goal is not to destroy Konoha."
Zetsu paused for a moment, then revealed his true purpose, "Our goal is to force out Konoha's Tailed Beast Jinchuriki!"
"Tailed Beasts?"
Onoki was taken aback for a moment.
Then, he somewhat understood Madara's plan.
"You plan to collect all the Tailed Beasts?"
"Ryoho Kyohiko is too powerful. Combined with the willingly merged Nine-Tails, he even surpasses the Senju Hashirama of the past."
Zetsu said seriously, "We must unite all forces. The nine Tailed Beasts are our only hope!"
Onoki thought for a long time but couldn't find any flaws in Zetsu's words.
Kyohiko is indeed very strong!
Opening a mountain with one technique.
Such power further confirmed the origin of the Valley of the End back then.
Therefore.
What Onoki was considering was, can the nine Tailed Beasts really contend with Kyohiko?
Is that too naive?
"Of course, there are other arrangements."
Zetsu replied.
Onoki nodded, motioning for him to continue.
Zetsu replied, "We will first deal with Jiraiya. He is the teacher of Namikaze Minato and Ryoho Kyohiko. Attacking him can mobilize Konoha's people."
Onoki's gaze was deep.
Besieging Jiraiya.
That's a way, but it needs to be well-planned.
Just as he was thinking…
"The Third Raikage has already agreed to act together."
"Alright!"
…
In the north, Jiraiya looked at the connected rivers and couldn't help but smile, "Mui, everyone's future will definitely be better!"
"I hope so!"
Mui sighed softly.
The Hidden Grass Village now has no other options.
They can only follow this path to the end.
Now, what he's more worried about is—
"If Onoki and the others launch an attack at this time, can you protect us?"
"I will do my best to protect you. Moreover, our ninjas can definitely provide support at the first moment!"
Jiraiya earnestly guaranteed.
Mui was noncommittal.
He tentatively believed Jiraiya's guarantee.
However, he was not very confident that Konoha could provide support "at the first moment."
The Land of Earth is adjacent to their Land of Grass.
Once a war breaks out, the well-prepared Hidden Stone Village will definitely attack before them.
At that time, how can Konoha provide timely support?
They can't possibly station a ninja unit directly in the Land of Grass, right!
The ninjas of the Hidden Grass Village were also worried about this.
Jiraiya thought for a moment, leaned closer, and said, "We have space-time ninjutsu that can instantly support the front lines, so your worries are unnecessary."
"Flying Thunder God?"
"No, another revised version."
Jiraiya replied.
Saying this, he didn't continue the conversation.
He had said all he could.
If the Hidden Grass Village still couldn't trust them, he couldn't do anything—
Konoha has many ninjas who have mastered the large-scale Flying Thunder God formation technique.
But.
Now is a critical moment, and war could break out at any time. Konoha couldn't possibly demonstrate it specifically to gain the trust of the Hidden Grass Village.
This would waste a large amount of chakra, making it unusable when it was truly needed.
"I understand."
Mui naturally wouldn't force the issue.
He just wanted a promise, a statement, and Jiraiya's answer was even more surprising than he had imagined.
A revised version of the Flying Thunder God technique.
An instant support ninjutsu.
In other words, if Konoha wanted to, they could also turn "support" into an instant attack.
Faced with such a Konoha, their Hidden Grass Village could only cooperate.
He already understood how to persuade the elders in the village.
…
In Konoha, Yamato, dressed in a strange armor, put his hands together.
Under his feet, trees grew one after another, enveloping him.
A giant wooden golem stood up, supporting itself on the ground.
Wood Golem Technique!
"Very good. Next step, use the Gate of the Great God."
"Kyohiko, you're going too far!"
On the ground, the Nine-Tails clone roared angrily.
Kyohiko coughed lightly and said, "Forgive me, Kurama, this is the last time!"
"I'd be a fool to believe you!"
The Nine-Tails clone roared.
Its chakra has now been unsealed.
Even with only thirty percent of its chakra, it was still incredibly powerful. The immense chakra spread out, almost breaking the surrounding barrier.
However.
The next moment, the wooden golem's palm came down.
Before it even reached, the Nine-Tails clone felt a wave of dizziness.
And then…
It fell into a deep sleep.
"Alright, you can remove the armor."
Kyohiko sensed it.
The Nine-Tails has fallen asleep.
Obviously.
It was a success!
In the armored state, Yamato successfully mastered the Wood Golem Technique and the Gate of the Great God.
"Will this be enough?"
"Yes, this is your limit. You can't suppress anything stronger, and you might even trigger a backlash due to the large output of chakra."
Kyohiko woke up the Nine-Tails clone.
The Nine-Tails clone snorted coldly but obediently shrank back, throwing out a harsh word before letting the matter go—
What else could it do?
If it could win, it would have fought long ago!