Aftermath: The Winds of War

Hanma slowly walked back to the stands, clutching two balls of water as he washed the dust and bloodstains from his body.

That was one good thing about being a ninja. Even if one lacked combat power, one could still bathe, light fires, and, with enough Chakra, even do some construction.

On the stands, the Jonin looked at the training ground before them, now reduced to scorched earth, and smiled wryly.

Those three undoubtedly all possessed the ability to command armies in a village war.

With such large-scale destructive power, each of them was a strategic-level existence.

The Third approached, patted Hanma on the shoulder, and said with feeling, "I never expected you to have grown this much. Kagami must be very pleased as well."

Hanma looked at him in surprise. Was this a reminder that he could also be considered part of the Hokage's faction?

He smiled, but replied steadily, "Thank you for Konoha's cultivation, and thank you for giving me this chance to be willful."

The Third said no more and turned to arrange the remaining matches.

Minato could no longer contain his excitement. He jogged over, grabbed Hanma's hand, and shook it again and again.

"Sensei, I never knew you were this strong!"

"Sensei, what was that Lightning Release technique you used? Can I learn it?"

"Sensei, when are you going to train me?"

The stars were practically spilling from Minato's eyes as questions poured from his mouth. At that moment, Hanma was his god!

Hanma rubbed the little blond head and asked, "Didn't you see your teacher's final tactic? That was the true essence!"

Minato curled his lips. "The Jonin already said it was a child's trick. Only you, Sensei, could make it look useful."

Hanma chuckled. "Then do you know there's a ninjutsu that lets you travel freely through space? It's even faster than my Body Flicker Technique."

Minato's eyes widened as he asked nervously, "What technique is that? Can I learn it?"

Hanma burst into laughter. "Not only can you learn it—it was prepared specifically for you!"

"This time, your teacher earned two forbidden technique slots. I'll pick that technique for you and give it to you.

How about it? Pretty generous, right?"

Minato cheered with delight, while warmth filled him at the thought that someone had been thinking of him all this time.

Most of the surrounding Jonin caught their breath. What incredible luck. Ordinary Jonin mostly used standard B-rank ninjutsu; possessing even one S-rank forbidden technique counted as having a deep foundation.

This little brat would receive such treatment right after graduating from the Ninja Academy. Becoming Hanma's disciple truly came with privileges.

Quite a few people's eyes shifted as they set their sights on the still-vacant positions in Hanma's squad, hoping to get their children or clansmen a ride along with him.

Hanma took out a Sealing Scroll, retrieved a coat, and draped it over himself.

Yūhi Shinkō and Hyuga Tenzo came over.

"Congratulations." "Congratulations."

Hanma smiled and waved his hand, exchanging the usual pleasantries.

--

The matches continued in the field.

Because of the earlier battle, the entire training ground was in ruins, with acidic slime left behind by Katsuyu everywhere. The environment was extremely harsh.

If anything, it more faithfully recreated the conditions of a real battlefield.

After several rounds of competition, with Jiraiya not participating, Orochimaru and White Fang won without much difficulty.

However, the civilian ninjas were already convinced. Being given a chance to compete was a fine beginning in itself.

The observing Jonin had already dispersed, leaving Hanma, Orochimaru, White Fang, the Third, and Danzo behind.

The Third Hokage put his pipe to his mouth, lit it, and took a deep drag.

"War should be about to begin. It's unavoidable."

Hanma nodded knowingly. The timeline was about to enter the Second Shinobi World War.

However, the Second Shinobi World War was not particularly intense. It could even only be considered a local conflict.

The main reason was that Hanzo of the Salamander had attained great mastery in his cultivation and felt that his strength overshadowed the Shinobi World. He wanted to do something.

Hanzo was unwilling to remain confined to the tiny Land of Rain. He wanted to lead Amegakure into a resounding war and turn the "Five Great Ninja Villages" into the "Six Great Ninja Villages."

Hanzo chose to annex the surrounding small nations, but his targets—the Land of Grass, the Land of Rivers, and the Land of Birds—were vassal states of the Land of Fire and the Land of Wind, and they would not allow him to act as he pleased.

After the previous war, Sunagakure had been economically drained by Konoha for twenty years. Conditions within the village had worsened by the day, and the militant faction had risen, hoping to use this opportunity to strike back at Konoha and change the situation.

Thus, the three sides dragged the smaller nations into the conflict and fought with the Land of Rain as the main battlefield.

White Fang's expression turned solemn as he asked in a low voice, "Third-sama, none of us have fought Hanzo before. Do you know anything about him?"

The Third took a deep breath of smoke and said, "Hanzo is famous for his Ibuse. Legend says it possesses an unstoppable venom."

"His mastery of Water Release is extremely deep, and he has Body Flicker Technique and swordsmanship refined to perfection. He is very difficult to deal with."

"In short, his combat power is sufficient for him to bear the title of Kage."

Hanma nodded. As an avid fan of Hokage in his previous life, he had high expectations for Hanzo.

According to the settings in Secret of Earth, Hanzo was a Water Release grandmaster who could move freely through water, and no one could surpass his mastery of Water Release.

For that era, the benchmark for a Water Release grandmaster should have been the Second Hokage, which showed just how powerful Hanzo's Water Release was.

Even when facing Impure World Reincarnation later on, he could break free on his own and retain his consciousness, faintly surpassing the Second Kage of the various ninja villages.

And when facing Nagato's Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, even at over sixty years old, he had managed to escape. Only afterward was he captured by the Six Paths Pain and beaten to death.

Unfortunately, Kishimoto the god gave him no page time in the later stages and glossed over him in a single stroke. But Hanma was in a real world.

Hanma tried to recall the guidebooks he had read before and asked, "What I'm curious about is, how old is he this year?"

The Third gave Hanma a surprised look, then recalled, "He should be around the same age as Ōnoki of Iwagakure. About fifty."

Hanma nodded. Fifty years old—the peak age for a ninja. The two reincarnated gods in the Battle of the Valley of the End had also been that age.

"But you must not underestimate him. I fought him when I was young, and even then, his Body Flicker Technique could match Hanma's extreme speed."

Danzo also spoke up. "The intelligence brought back by my Root says that his Ibuse possesses a deadly poison with no cure. We currently have no way to deal with it."

Orochimaru had remained silent the entire time, but suddenly said, "Sarutobi-sensei, assign the combat missions."

The Third smoked his pipe, his gaze heavy as he slowly gave his orders. "In this war, we will be facing Amegakure and Sunagakure. The burden is heavy."

"White Fang, I appoint you commander-in-chief of the forces against Sunagakure. Your swordsmanship has a restraining effect against Sunagakure's Puppet Masters."

"Understood."

"Orochimaru, I appoint you, Jiraiya, and Tsunade as a special brigade. You will serve as commander-in-chief and face Hanzo. You must be extremely careful."

"Yes, Sarutobi-sensei."

"Uchiha Hanma, I appoint you commander-in-chief of the Hunter-Killer Unit. Eliminate all enemy scouts and support disadvantaged battlefields at any time."

"Understood, Third."

"In any case, make your preparations. We cannot strike first; that would greatly affect public opinion against us."

"Wait for Hanzo's invasion. Once we issue a defensive announcement, we will strike decisively!"

"Gentlemen, the village's peace and the children's smiles must now be protected by us!"

"Yes, Third!"

Everyone shouted in unison.