The smell of blood can't be suppressed anymore (Help! Please keep reading!!!)

Serpentine coils of pitch-black clouds writhed above the lakes of the Rain Capital.

Raindrops hammered the river's surface, scattering flecks of foam, as though heaven and earth alike were weeping.

A fierce wind drove the downpour; the black flags at the harbor stretched taut, and the moored vessels groaned under the strain.

Bang!

Inside the rust-caked harbor watchroom.

A withered old man locked the window, pulled on a pair of cotton ear-muffs, and curled up in his chair with a flask of heated sake, ending his nominal "shift" early.

"Anyway, in this godforsaken weather, no idiot's gonna show up."

He cast a weary glance toward the distant Rain Capital, its towering steel structures flickering in and out of view through the raging storm.

Besides, given the Rain Country's current state, even nations that had once established trade relations dared not do business here anymore.

This old fossil, charged with overseeing ship berthing, was nothing more than a "formality" now—no need to stay alert all night.

As luck would have it, someone else had the same idea.

Woo—!!

A flute's note, deep and resonant as a blue whale's song, gradually cut through the black stormy night.

"Whoa, it's huge!"

Through the curtain of rain came Yahiko's excited shouts.

His upturned orange pupils clearly reflected the enormous shadow.

With the roar of splitting waves, the shadow bore down from the river.

It was a colossal ship, painted the same color as the stormy night!

In moments, it sliced through the onrushing waves and came to a steady halt before the harbor, not far from the shore where the group stood.

Woo—!!

Yun Chuan put his fingers to his lips and let out a sharp whistle, as if answering the giant vessel.

"Time to board."

Seeing a ladder lowered from the ship, he glanced at the few youngsters beside him and said, "Our ride's here."

Without another word, Yun Chuan led Yahiko and the others unhurriedly up the gangplank.

Five figures in black raincoats stood shoulder to shoulder on the deck, gazing at the many ships moored in the harbor.

"Wow!"

Yahiko shaded his eyes with his hand, hopping about like a monkey as he looked down at the harbor from above. "There are still this many ships here..."

He had never seen the spectacular sight of nearly a thousand vessels docked at once.

"Live off the mountain if you're by the mountain, live off the sea if you're by the sea—adapt to local conditions."

Yun Chuan slowly extended his hand; raindrops splashed against his palm, and he squinted with a smile. "The Rain Country's environment is harsh, but it has its merits too."

The Rain Country sat at the center of the largest continent in the ninja world, bordering the three great nations of Fire, Wind, and Earth, as well as the three small nations of Grass, Bird, and River.

The borders between the Earth and Wind Countries and the Rain Country were marked by towering mountain ranges—meaning the Rain Country had high mountain barriers to its southwest, northwest, and due west.

Together, they formed a funnel-shaped basin, with its only opening facing east toward the Land of Fire.

Compared to the frigid sea north of the Frost Country, the ocean southeast of the Land of Fire was temperate—one of the ninja world's regions with abundant ocean currents and moist air.

The rich granaries of the Land of Fire testified to that ocean's influence on the climate.

Thus, when the northwest monsoon blew inland from that sea, it always carried vast amounts of warm, humid air.

But the mountains of the Earth and Wind Countries were too high, blocking the moist sea winds, forcing the water-laden air to rise, condense into heavy orographic rain, and fall over the Rain Country, causing concentrated precipitation.

As a result, most of the Earth and Wind Countries were covered in barren rock and desert, with annual rainfall not even a tenth of the Rain Country's.

It was this extreme geography that had created this "weeping nation."

The abundant rainfall gathered into several surging rivers, flowing like arteries toward the surrounding countries.

"So, developing river transport is a natural advantage for the Rain Country."

After this brief explanation, Yun Chuan seemed a bit resigned and couldn't help but sigh. "Still, it can't compare to the Land of Fire in the end..."

It seemed that even Hashirama Senju, naive enough to give away tailed beasts to other great nations, wasn't a complete fool.

Of course, it might have been Tobirama Senju's idea—Yun Chuan didn't have high hopes for Big Hashirama's intelligence.

"..."

"..."

"...Ah." Yahiko nodded thoughtfully. "So that's how it is?"

Konan turned to him, surprised. "Yahiko, you understood?"

"Of course I did." Yahiko lifted his chin matter-of-factly. "If we flatten the mountains between us and the Wind and Earth Countries, it'll stop raining!"

You clearly didn't understand at all!

You think you're just leveling some random grave mound?

"Hahahaha!"

Right then, a hearty laugh suddenly rang out from inside the cabin.

Before the startled Yahiko could even turn his head, he felt someone pat him on the shoulder.

"Don't worry, kid."

The man behind him grinned like a sly old fox, his tone dripping with schadenfreude. "You'll all learn this basic geography later on, hahaha."

"Huh? I, I can still get off the ship right now... mmph!"

Yahiko couldn't hold it together either and was about to let out a bratty howl, but Jiyun, expressionless, reached over and clamped her hand over his mouth.

Konan turned around, gave a slight bow to the man behind Yahiko, and said with an awkward yet apologetic tone, "Sorry, Yahiko has caused you trouble."

It was an old man with a full head of white hair, his frame not at all stooped, a cheerful smile still on his face.

"Haha, no need to be so polite. You're all children brought back by Lord Yun Chuan—from now on, we're family."

The old man waved a hand casually, then looked at Yun Chuan, who was smiling silently, and his demeanor turned markedly respectful. "Apologies, Lord Yun Chuan, I'm late today."

He didn't make excuses for his tardiness, only genuinely felt sorry for it.

Even if he was only a few minutes behind schedule.

"Uncle Plum Rain." Yun Chuan gave a helpless little smile. "Weren't you supposed to be shipping goods to Water Country today? There's no need to come pick me up specially."

"How could that be a bother? Everything I have today, I owe to you."

The old man called Plum Rain shook his head, his expression souring a bit. "Besides, there's some trouble over in Water Country too..."

Jiyun suddenly cut in from the side, her tone flat: "Does that pay well?"

Uncle Plum Rain snapped back to attention, studied Jiyun's little face as if recalling something, then broke into a kindly smile and said modestly, "Probably a bit more than what ordinary ninjas earn in bounties."

Then he shook his head again, his voice turning bitter. "But old-timers like us are just duckweed. One gust of wind, and we vanish into the water. If it weren't for Lord Yun Chuan..."

On land, countless Mountain Bandits made a living by robbing caravans.

On rivers, there were naturally Water Bandits too, who lived by plundering merchant ships.

Tap tap tap!

"Brother Yun Chuan!"

A little girl who had just learned to walk, wrapped in a loose cloth robe, stumbled over. She held up a bowl to Yun Chuan and said in a milky voice, "Drink water."

"Thank you, Little Rain."

Yun Chuan smiled and patted the girl's head, then took the bowl and downed it in one gulp.

But after setting the bowl down, his gaze slowly drifted into the distance.

"Really now, that stench of blood just can't be held back."

In his deep blue pupils, a ship of nearly the same size sat anchored on the river, its hull seeming to be shrouded in a faint red mist, looking for all the world like a ghost ship.