In the attic, Hanzō was still kneeling on the tatami, holding a copy of Scroll in his hand.
Yahiko The three of them were left alone, standing like minions.
This is not the first time that the two sides have met. That year, Konoha Sannin and Demigod fought. Yahiko and others who were on the edge of the battlefield were involved in that war.
If Nagato hadn't suddenly erupted, they might have cooled down by then.
It was only after that day that Yahiko learned about Nagato's special ability: when the blood volume fell below a certain level, the combat effectiveness soared from fighting against the fifth scum to the point of shattering the detector.
Of course, this ability is not unique to Nagato. Far away, Asgard, a man holding a small hammer, also had a similar passivity.
It's just that the man is in daddy-missing mode.
"So, why did you come to see me?"
After a while, Hanzō finally spoke, but his eyes were still fixed on Scroll, with no intention of letting go.
The contempt is self-evident.
But Yahiko was not angry. He stepped forward with good temper and said, "I hope Master Hanzō can stop waging war. Land of Rain can no longer withstand the torture."
Hanzō frowned slightly, but said nothing.
Yahiko gritted his teeth and knelt on the ground, pleading. "Please, I don't want to see Land of Rain fall into war again, I don't want to see the people suffer from the war, and I don't want to see countless children become war orphans.
Please! "
Hanzō finally withdrew his gaze and focused on the yellow-haired boy.
"Then, if I stop the war."
"Then, quell the war in Land of Rain, develop people's livelihood, and solve the entrenched Rogue Ninja forces... We, Xiao, will do our best to help you!"
Yahiko said a lot in one breath. These were issues he and Nagato and others discussed privately, and they were difficult problems that Land of Rain could see and touch.
Hanzō was a little disappointed, he didn't hear what he wanted to hear.
The reason why he met Yahiko was because he thought these people came with Konoha's intentions.
Therefore, Hanzō calmly asked again, "Then what?"
"Then..." Yahiko was speechless for a moment. "Isn't this enough?"
"Do you think it's enough?" Hanzō glanced at Yahiko and said meaningfully, "Do you know the defeat agreement signed by Konoha and me?"
"I've heard a little bit about it."
Not many people knew about it before, but with the convening of Five Kage Summit, the agreement signed between Konoha Second Great Ninja War and the defeated countries gradually spread.
Hanzō put down Scroll in his hand and said in a deep voice, "In the agreement, we have to pay back Konoha for two hundred years just for the compensation. This is just the tip of the iceberg."
"Before this, the six largest mines in Land of Rain are all developed by Land of Fire; the taxes paid by Land of Fire for import and export goods must be negotiated with Land of Rain; the scope of tasks of Hidden Rain Village ninjas cannot exceed the territory of Land of Rain..."
"Under these heavy shackles, do you still feel it's enough?"
Yahiko was stunned. He did not expect that Konoha would be so restrained by Land of Rain. According to teacher Jiraiya, Konoha has always been a good village.
Yahiko has always been yearning for it.
"But that's..."
"That can't start a war, right?" Hanzō looked directly at Yahiko, with a hint of majesty in his voice.
"How can we get rid of the shackles without starting a war? Even Hidden Sand Village and Hidden Stone Village can only resort to war to shift domestic conflicts. Do you think we, a mere Land of Rain, can have a better solution?"
"But these... aren't they the consequences caused by your activation of Second Great Ninja War?" Yahiko retorted.
"Bold!" Kazama, standing in the corner, scolded.
The atmosphere in the room suddenly became tense.
Hanzō waved his hand, stopped his subordinates, and faced Yahiko and said calmly, "Do you think Land of Rain is the source of all the troubles?"
Hanzō chuckled and stood up.
"Once upon a time, I was as naive as you, thinking that by completely unifying Land of Rain, this country would be able to move toward peace and prosperity.
But I was wrong.
Land of Rain is located at the junction of three major countries. The land area is too small and lacks the necessary living space and sufficient natural resources.
If you want to develop, war is the only way to solve the problem of living space.
Land of Wind, Land of Earth and Land of Fire, we basically cannot afford to offend these big countries.
But if we are talking about small countries, Land of Birds, Land of Rivers and Land of Grass are not our opponents.
But when I make the slightest move, the surrounding big countries will start to beat and interfere with Hidden Rain Village.
In order to break through this shackles, I decided to participate in Second Great Ninja War.
But later you all knew that Land of Rain was defeated and signed a series of unequal treaties. "
Hanzō sighed. If it was his first attempt to invade a small country, then Second Great Ninja War was his second attempt.
But all failed.
"Since then I have understood that Shinobi World is the real source of all evil, Five Great Nations, Senju Hashirama, not me Hanzō!"
"Senju Hashirama established One Country One Village System. Since then, Shinobi World has formed a political structure headed by Five Great Nations.
There are sporadic small countries mixed in between Five Great Nations. This is done deliberately by them, just to leave a buffer between big countries and to suck the blood of small countries.
As vested interests, these major powers will not allow this geopolitical landscape to change.
And Land of Rain wants peace and development, but it is always wishful thinking! "
Hanzō's tone was low and his sentences were sharp. This is the tragedy of small countries. Their destiny is never in their own hands.
Yahiko was speechless.
He had never considered this before. He thought that when Land of Rain was at peace, the country would naturally become rich and powerful.
As long as people can understand each other, true peace can be achieved... These once-deep beliefs seem to be crumbling.
Hanzō sat down again, glanced at the three people and asked, "I ask again, Yahiko did you come with Konoha's intention?" "
"Hanzō-sama, what does this mean?"
"Aren't you three disciples of Jiraiya?"
"We are disciples of Teacher Jiraiya, but coming here today has nothing to do with him or Konoha. We come here according to our own will." Yahiko was a little distracted, but still answered truthfully.
Hanzō was a little disappointed and immediately lost interest in talking.
Xiao is nothing, an organization with less than a hundred people, Hanzō doesn't take it seriously at all.
The reason why he took time to meet Yahiko was because he wanted to convey his thoughts to Konoha through Yahiko:
Land of Rain can not fight, or even surrender directly, but the agreement signed by Second Great Ninja War must be completely erased.
But now it seems that he is simply overthinking.
"That's all I'm saying. I don't want war."
Hanzō picked up the tea cup, took a sip, and said casually, "You are the disciples of Jiraiya. Instead of wasting time here, why not persuade Konoha to cancel the agreement with Hidden Rain Village?"
"The current frontline commander is Konoha Lightning, and he is the disciple of Orochimaru. With the relationship between Orochimaru and Jiraiya, he may listen to you, but not necessarily?"
Yahiko is gone, taking Nagato and Konan with him.
The satin-like red hair covered most of Nagato's face, and Hanzō didn't notice anything unusual.
As he said, Xiao was too young. If he didn't think that Yahiko and others were carrying the instructions of Konoha, he would not have received them at all.
As for Yahiko and others, Hanzō has no intention of taking action. He is just a child of three and a half years old, and he still has a certain amount of courage.
"Sir, they have left." Kazama pushed open the door and half-knelt on the ground.
"What do you think of today's incident?" Hanzō asked.
Kazama thought for a while and said, "It should really have nothing to do with Konoha. Yahiko... is just naive."
Hanzō frowned. "Do you sympathize with them?"
Kazama quickly lowered his head and denied. "Absolutely not. I just feel that these people are always Land of Rain's ninjas, and they may not be unable to be used for their own purposes."
"You dare to come here with just three people. Your courage is really good." Hanzō sneered, "But he is too naive politically, and he is still Jiraiya's disciple... I don't dare to use it."
Kazama knelt on the ground motionless, but his back was already wet with sweat.
He had really sympathized with Yahiko just now, and felt that it was really difficult for Xiaoya, who was running around for Land of Rain. Who would have thought that Hanzō would hear it just by saying a few nice words.
Hanzō looked at Kazama with some boredom. Although he was becoming more and more majestic, he had not yet been so harsh.
"Just keep an eye on me. Young ninjas like to face problems with an innocent heart, and they often do things with passion and regardless of the consequences.
But it can also be easily exploited by a very small number of people with ulterior motives. "
Kazama felt awe-struck. "What do you mean?"
"If any suspicious persons are found to be providing material support to Akatsuki," Hanzō said with a smile on his face, "Let Watanabe lead his men to loot the materials."
Watanabe is Hidden Rain Village Rogue Ninja, but in fact he is still loyal to Hanzō.
The forces of Land of Rain are too complicated. There are ninjas from neighboring small countries and ninjas from Five Great Nations.
Hanzō is the leader of Land of Rain, but precisely because of this, he is often unable to make a move and there are too many eyes staring at him.
Therefore, he secretly cultivated a force that was dedicated to doing underworld work and plundering Five Great Nations's businessmen, as well as the mineral deposits that originally belonged to Hanzō but were ceded.
"My subordinates know." Kazama accepted the order and then withdrew.
Watching his subordinates leave, Hanzō did not look at his own Scroll, but fell into a trance.
Will you win this time...?
Or will it push Land of Rain into a deeper abyss?
(Daily card text, just one update (?˙ー˙?))