The War Is Over

The Land of Rain's sky was perpetually shrouded in dark clouds, and rain would fall without warning, much like the nation's fate—hopeless, leaving only tears.

Years of war had left the roads pockmarked and unrepaired. When it rained, they turned into small ponds, ripples spreading with each raindrop, distorting the reflection of the sky.

Drip, drip, drip—!

A dense shower of water droplets fell in the forest, hitting the surface of a pond. A dark shadow flashed through the broken reflection.

Sand Ninjas leaped forward, with Pakura at the arrowhead, advancing at high speed.

Two Chunin lagging behind looked young, likely promoted recently. One glanced at the Jonin in the distance and whispered, "Hey, Xian, did you really defeat the Cloud Ninja ambush party?"

The ninja named Xian rolled his eyes and puffed out his chest. "What else? You should have seen it. Don't underestimate them, but Lord Hoshino said that true ninjas strike at the elite. He subdued over a hundred ninjas with just a clap of his hands, scaring their elite Jonin so much they didn't dare to fight him!"

The previous questioner looked skeptical. "How is that possible? That's a bit too strong. And what you're saying is different from what Yang Tai said. Were you hiding in the back, too scared to know what happened?"

Xian's face flushed. "Who, who was hiding? Although I was forced to stay in the rear to protect the medical ninjas, I saw everything clearly when they were fighting."

As soon as he finished speaking, suppressed laughter erupted from around them. Clearly, their conversation hadn't been as private as they thought.

"Yeah, Xian, you just love to show off. Look at me, did I mention killing a Jonin? No, right? Such achievements are too ordinary for a genius like me."

A ninja leaped beside the two, shaking his head with an air of 'nothing special.'

"To be killed by Doma, that Jonin's most glorious moment is unclear, but I probably understand his most humiliating moment."

"Who, Teacher?" Doma's face turned red from the teasing. He turned around, wanting to retort fiercely, but upon seeing his former Genin teacher, he immediately shrank back.

This triggered another wave of laughter.

"Alright Doma, you can be happy about that, but remember not to become like the Jonin you killed."

"Never! As long as we follow Lord Hoshino, we will be invincible!"

Youth is a time of idolizing the strong, especially witnessing the rise of a powerful figure. Their impression of that person would be deeply etched in their minds.

Hoshino Maki was that strong figure in the hearts of the reinforcement troops.

Following Doma's words, the atmosphere fell into an awkward silence.

They had fought over ten battles with Lord Pakura against the Cloud Ninjas, suffering considerable casualties on both sides. Even with Sunagakure's advantage in medical ninjas and Lord Pakura's ability to pressure two elite Jonin, it couldn't compensate for the overall difference in strength.

They all had comrades who died in this war. They envied and regretted the great victories experienced by Xian and Doma.

If only the great victory had come sooner...

Sunagakure was small, and many ninjas knew each other.

It wasn't just the group around Xian; almost everyone in the reinforcement unit was being asked about the counter-ambush battle. Everyone's account differed, and the stories grew more outrageous with each retelling, like Hoshino Maki killing Pashira with three punches.

Pakura frowned. She disliked this man. From the first moment she saw him at the hospital, she knew he would cause trouble. After all, ordinary ninjas wouldn't deliberately do things to gain fame.

But she hadn't expected him to dare to leave the unit and go to the enemy camp alone!

When Pakura learned of the reinforcement unit's victory, her thoughts aligned with Pashira's: they had to annihilate the Cloud Ninja forces. But Hoshino Maki had ruined it all!

Thinking about it, a fire seemed to burn in her chest.

"My Lord, we are approaching the Thunderstorm Gap."

Pakura landed before the Thunderstorm Gap, a necessary path to the Cloud Ninja base. The entrance was extremely narrow, only wide enough for two or three people to walk abreast, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack.

"What time is it?"

"Five-thirty."

Raindrops pinged against her armor. Pakura waved, and several sensory ninjas stepped forward to scout ahead.

"Wait!"

Pakura raised her hand, narrowing her sharp eyes. Through the curtain of rain, a black figure flickered in and out of sight.

The person held an oil-paper umbrella, walking at an unhurried pace as if strolling through their own garden. As the figure drew closer, the eyes of the reinforcement troops lit up, revealing genuine smiles. "It's Lord Hoshino!"

The approaching figure lowered the umbrella, his handsome face offering a faint smile to the dense crowd before him.

"The Cloud Ninjas have retreated. The war is over."

The sun was setting, and a sliver of mercy appeared in the dark clouds covering the Land of Rain. Twilight descended, turning into streaks of golden sunset that pierced through the Thunderstorm Gap and fell behind Hoshino Maki.

Standing against the light, Hoshino Maki seemed to radiate a glow. In the sky after the rain, a faint rainbow arched.

In Sunagakure legends, wishing upon a rainbow brought good fortune. Some young ninjas, seeing a rainbow for the first time, couldn't help but cross their fingers, place their hands over their hearts, and silently make a wish.

Their wishes, along with the image of the person before them, became memories that would influence their lives.

Pakura walked expressionlessly towards Hoshino Maki. They stood facing each other.

"Lord Pakura, I am Hoshino Maki."

Hoshino Maki extended his hand as he spoke.

Pakura did not take his hand. Instead, she stared directly into his eyes.

"Do you know that as the highest-ranking officer in the unit, leaving without authorization is a violation of discipline?"

"When on the battlefield, a commander's orders may be disregarded. I simply chose the option most beneficial to the village."

"When on the battlefield, a commander's orders may be disregarded?"

Pakura quietly muttered twice. Her face, which had been cold moments ago, instantly bloomed into a smile that outshone a hundred flowers. She nodded, took a step forward with a smile, and hooked her arms around Hoshino Maki's neck.

Hoshino Maki sensed a hint of danger from her smile and quickly retreated half a step, but he was still held by her slender, fair arms around his neck. Those arms didn't look strong, but they made it difficult for him to break free. Immediately after, his abdomen was hit hard by a punch.

"Ugh."

Hoshino Maki couldn't help but bend over and gag.

"Then do you know that generals who disobey orders will definitely be held accountable when they return to court? Take him away and hand him over to the Elder Council for disposal!"

Pakura turned her head, returning to her icy beauty demeanor from before.

"My lord, are you alright?"

After Pakura left, a few young medical ninja from the reinforcement troops dared to step forward to check on Hoshino Maki.

"I'm fine. Here, this is candy from the Land of Lightning. I stole it."

Hoshino Maki straightened his back, showing no sign of his previous pain. He winked playfully and produced a handful of candy from his sleeve, distributing it to them.

He knew Pakura would use him to establish her authority. Otherwise, how could a ninja from a civilian background become a commander?

But Hoshino Maki wasn't one to suffer in silence.

Hmph, women. Everything will be settled once I become Kazekage.

"Do you guys want some?"

Hoshino Maki turned around and produced another handful from his sleeve.

The two Jonin guarding Hoshino Maki found it both amusing and exasperating. They could only wave their hands.

They were supposed to be guarding him, but they weren't fools. How could they treat him like a prisoner?

"Take it. Give it to your kids at home. Things from the Land of Lightning are quite rare where we are."

Hoshino Maki insisted on giving it to them. The two men were silent for a moment, then quietly said thank you.

Only they knew what they were thanking him for.

Sunagakure Hospital

"Lord Hoshino is truly too kind~"

"Yeah, he rushed to treat patients right after returning from the front lines. I was worried he'd be exhausted."

"If you bothered Lord Hoshino less, his health would be much better."

"Hmph! You're blaming me? Don't think I don't know. Ever since he came back, you've been wearing black stockings every day. Who knows what you're up to."

"Pah! What right do you have to say that? Who was it that pretended to drop something every time they went to Lord Hoshino's room, bending over and wiggling their hips? What a little slut."

"..."

At the reception desk, two young nurses were quietly bickering, unaware of a small figure slipping into Hoshino Maki's room along the wall.

"Lord Hoshino."

"Mei, you don't need to be so careful."

Hoshino Maki put down the book in his hand and said with a smile to the person who entered.

Mei pouted. Lord Hoshino had no idea the thrilling struggle she had gone through to get this rare moment of private time.

"My lord, the public trial is the day after tomorrow. Why don't you run away?"

Mei said with some worry. She didn't understand why Lord Hoshino was so leisurely when disaster was imminent, as if the tidal wave of rumors outside was just a drizzle to him, not worth caring about.

Hoshino Maki shook his head. "I believe everyone will understand my intentions. If Little Mei really wants to help me, why not help me gather information on these people?"

As Hoshino Maki spoke, he took a piece of paper from the drawer and handed it to her.

Mei didn't even look at it, tucking the paper into her pocket. She patted her small chest and said with her head held high, "Don't worry, leave it to me!"

As she was leaving, the little nurse also made a "You can do it!" gesture to Hoshino Maki. "Lord Hoshino, you don't need to be afraid. We will always support you!"

Hoshino Maki smiled and nodded. He wasn't afraid at all, because this was his plan!

The Assembly Hall was a hemispherical building with two levels of stone seats surrounding a pure white circular marble platform in the center.

As the largest venue in Sunagakure, it was last used to find the Third Kazekage, and before that, during the Ninja World War. This showed how significant the trial of Hoshino Maki was for the village.

Early in the morning, except for the Anbu and the ninja responsible for defense, all the Jonin and leaders of the major clans had arrived at the scene.

This public trial, while seemingly a judgment on Hoshino Maki's unauthorized actions, was actually a clash between the two major factions of Chiyo and Chōjūrō.

It was still just a clash because neither side had formally entered the fray.

Chiyo did not want to conflict with Chōjūrō, but until Sasori was found, her partner Hoshino Maki could not be in trouble.

Even though many of the problems were self-inflicted.

Chōjūrō, on the other hand, had to take the initiative.

If he wanted to become Kazekage, he would inevitably clash with Chiyo, who was once again interfering in village affairs. It was better to take this opportunity to publicly declare his stance and his determination to become Kazekage in front of the entire Sunagakure leadership, so as to avoid appearing indecisive and lacking in spirit to potential partners.

This was ostensibly a public trial, but officially termed a briefing session. "Public trial" was just the private name for it.

Hoshino Maki wasn't shackled. He wore a long white windbreaker with the signature stand-up collar of the Hokage world. He was chatting with his guards, looking less like a prisoner awaiting judgment and more like a composed contestant about to enter a match.

The mechanical clock ticked, the hour hand nearing 9 o'clock. The Elders entered from the side, and everyone in the hall rose to greet them.

The elder leading them was short and slightly hunched, yet everyone present showed even greater respect upon seeing her.

"Please, sit."

The Elders approached the twelve white jade seats in the front row. As Chiyo's low voice sounded, everyone sat down.

"It's Lord Chiyo!"

"I didn't expect Lord Chiyo to come out of seclusion. This matter must be serious."

"Lord Chōjūrō too. Sigh, there's always turmoil in the village~"

"..."

Though the murmurs were quiet, the Elders were no ordinary people and naturally heard some of it, their expressions varied.

Compared to Chiyo's calm composure, Chōjūrō, despite his expressionless face, showed his inner turmoil through a slight frown.

Chiyo's sudden action had caught him completely off guard. He couldn't help but worry that she would join forces with Rasa and support him in becoming the Fourth Kazekage.

After all, Chiyo had a good relationship with the Third Kazekage, and Rasa was the Third Kazekage's disciple. In the ninja world, where master-disciple relationships were highly valued, they should be excellent partners.

Thinking this, Chōjūrō's gaze shifted, sweeping over Rasa and Chiyo.

As the clock struck the hour, Pakura signaled to the Elder Council and was the first to step to the center of the hall. Her gaze swept over the seats on both levels before she spoke:

"This briefing session is primarily to discuss Hoshino Maki's actions during his tenure as the overall medical commander. He detached from the reinforcement unit and, without the Elder Council's approval, unilaterally interfered in military affairs against the Cloud Ninja, resulting in the safe withdrawal of a Cloud Ninja force that should have been annihilated. Now, I invite Hoshino Maki to explain the aforementioned issues."

After speaking, Pakura glanced at Hoshino Maki with her beautiful eyes before taking a seat not far away.

Hoshino Maki sat alone, slightly to the side near the entrance, with two ninja guards behind him.

He stood up and adjusted the hem of his clothes, quietly asking, "Do you think what I did was right?"

The two guards had maintained stern faces and remained silent since the meeting began. Hoshino Maki smiled without speaking. As he walked to the center of the round platform, one of them spoke via ventriloquism, "Actually... sigh, never mind."

"First, I want to correct one point. At the time, at the Cloud Ninja base, I saw the future Fourth Raikage, 'A'. I'd like to ask, Lord Pakura, can you handle him?"

Hoshino Maki's words shocked everyone present. Although 'A' hadn't yet done anything to make a name for himself in the ninja world, being called 'A' already spoke volumes.

Pakura's face turned ashen. She wanted to say they might have a chance if they teamed up, but her pride wouldn't allow her to say such a thing at this moment. She could only assume she would fight him alone.

"No... I can't."

Pakura spat out the two words through gritted teeth.

Why didn't you tell me this information before?!

If she had known 'A' was at the Cloud Ninja base, she definitely wouldn't have spoken of annihilating the Cloud Ninja. Now, she seemed short-sighted.

This frustration built up in her chest, causing even the tightly bound Mitsuki to puff up slightly.