Advance

Amegakure.

Once hailed as the strongest village below the Five Great Ninja Villages, and the most prosperous core of the Land of Rain, the streets under the rain were deserted, and more than half of the shops along the way had signs saying they were temporarily closed.

The news of Hanzō's death could not be concealed. All sorts of rumors spread wildly in the village: that Hanzō was assassinated by Konoha's Anbu, that he was killed by the Daimyo's men, that a Rain Ninja betrayed and assassinated Hanzō. The rumors grew like weeds among the villagers.

Although the numerous rumors differ greatly, they all share one thing in common: Hanzō is dead.

Amegakure lost its biggest protector in decades.

Their world has collapsed!

The Hanzō was a true god in Amegakure, but now that their 'god' is gone, an eerie atmosphere has begun to permeate the village.

The Rain Ninja were also plunged into unprecedented chaos.

Hanzō not only died himself, but also lost many of his confidants and elites outside the village. They were wiped out by Senju Zen and Uchiha Genso, including Hanzō's chosen successor.

Even someone as powerful as Hanzō, as time passed and years went by, had to face reality and begin to cultivate a successor for the future of Amegakure.

Unfortunately, he did not expect that the successor he had painstakingly nurtured would die outside the village with him, and even earlier than himself.

The Rain Ninja who remained in the village were leaderless, with no one capable of truly holding the reins of power. As a result, after some infighting, the Rain Ninja simply split into three parts.

The strongest group adheres to Hanzō's will and is the Hanzō Amegakure carefully cultivated over the years. They are a group of people who strive to make Amegakure the sixth largest ninja village in the Shinobi World. The sixth largest ninja village here is not below the Five Great Ninja Villages, but on par with the Five Great Ninja Villages.

Even now that Hanzō is dead, these die-hards still refuse to turn back. Even though they know that Hanzō's wish has long since become a mirage, they still won't give up until they hit a brick wall.

The remaining two groups were divided. One group advocated remaining calm and observing the situation first, since they still didn't know if Lord Hanzō had been killed. The other Akatsuki Organization, which was causing trouble everywhere. The third group simply left the village and became members of the Akatsuki Organization.

This only added to the confusion among the Rain Ninja.

The chaos was so great that even the Border Defense Force withdrew to the villages, and the vast Land of Land of Rain lost the protection of the Rain Ninja. Instead, the Akatsuki Organization took over the task.

"In short, the Rain Ninja are in bad shape right now."

Konan gently introduced the current situation of Amegakure.

At the former site of Black Tail Mountain, 1,200 Konoha Ninja rested and met up with the Akatsuki Organization, bringing the total number of the two groups to over 2,000.

Konan brought 800 members of the Akatsuki Organization. It wasn't that the Akatsuki Organization only had that many people, but rather that there were still many elderly, weak, women, and children in the organization's various strongholds who needed protection. It was impossible to draw all their forces away, and at the same time, they also drew forces to take on the task of guarding the border.

Of course, the real reason was the assistance of Konoha ninjas. They were just there to help out, and the number of them was irrelevant; it was just a symbolic gesture.

Yahiko and Konan were well aware of this.

There was no sense of humiliation from being weaker than others. In Yahiko's view, it was worth it to reduce the number of sacrifices his comrades would make! Face was now less valuable to him than human life.

Katsuki on the edge of the cliff, Mizuki could see the gruesome wounds on the steep cliff face. Back then, Konoha, Stone Ninja, and Sunagakure fought a fierce battle around Black Tail Mountain. This was also the first step in Katsuki's rise to fame. On the plain in front of him, he single-handedly killed the One-Tail Jinchuriki and embarked on the road to the peak.

At this moment, the scene evoked emotions, and I couldn't help but feel a little sentimental.

Time flies! When I participated in Second Shinobi War, I was just a kid who had just graduated from the Ninja Academy. In the blink of an eye, I've reached the age to settle down and start a family.

Like that guy Nawaki, he's already married to a woman who's also from the Senju Clan.

"Not doing well? Perfect! It's the perfect opportunity to kick a man when he's down and train my men!" Katsuki smiled. The more chaotic the Rain Ninja was, the easier it was for him. His 1,200 men were all disciples of various clans. If too many were lost, he wouldn't look good when he returned to the village.

His mission this time was not only to help the Akatsuki Organization seize power and take over the name of Amegakure, but also to take good care of the people under his command.

"Sigh! I always feel like a nanny." With a sigh, Katsuki stroked her chin, watching the figures moving on the hillside as if she were looking at a group of large 'babies'.

"Rokuro, pass down the order: prepare to advance. This time, we'll go straight into Amegakure. Kill anyone who stands in our way; we don't need prisoners."

The menacing order was relayed. Those still remaining in Amegakure were mostly die-hards, tough nuts to crack even the Akatsuki Organization couldn't handle. Katsuki's solution was to break these tough nuts, and he was certain that Yahiko didn't intend to recruit them.

Then let's just charge straight in.

Rokuro Kaguya took on the role of adjutant, helping Katsuki command the thousand-strong ninja army and quickly relaying Katsuki's orders.

In half a minute, the two thousand ninja troops set off, breaking through the thin veil of rain, and advanced towards the direction of Amegakure.

"Nawaki, aren't you excited? This time we're going to storm Amegakure's stronghold! I remember during Second Shinobi War, you were clamoring to wipe out Amegakure."

Even while rushing around, Katsuki still had the leisure to chat.

"That's it! There's nothing to get excited about. With Hanzō dead, to be honest, Amegakure is completely meaningless." Nawaki pursed his lips, his expression calm, showing no sign of excitement.

"Indeed! The Hanzō Hanzo... What a pity, I never got to fight such a legendary figure."

Katsuki couldn't help but feel a pang of regret. Hanzō had once been a benchmark figure in the Shinobi World, and the title of demigod was enough to show how powerful he was. Unfortunately... he still couldn't withstand the power of time and bloodline.

"Huh? It's starting already!"

She let out a soft gasp, a glint of light flashing in Katsuki's eyes.

As the commander, Katsuki did not charge at the very front of the marching column, but rather stood at approximately the neck. However, with his enhanced eyesight, his ability to see far into the distance was not much different from that of the Byakugan, and he could vaguely make out the conflict that had broken out at the very front of the column.

War broke out.

The Kakkō from the Explosive Tag illuminated the dim world.