Ever since the Heaven-Earth-Man Rankings of the Shinobi World appeared, just as Shimura Danzō had said, the Shinobi World had immediately fallen into turmoil.
Before, the scheming had been limited to the upper echelons of the major powers, an invisible war fought in the shadows. But with the appearance of the three rankings, the festivities had spread to the middle and lower ranks of the shinobi.
Incidents of shinobi picking fights and settling scores had become commonplace. Even ordinary civilians sensed that something was wrong, and had a vague premonition that the shadow of war was drawing near.
As the saying went, "Master the arts of war and letters, then sell your skills to the emperor."
When an opportunity to make a name for yourself quickly and earn the favor of powerful figures was laid bare before you, and all it took to claim those rich rewards was defeating any shinobi on the rankings, how could shinobi who had barely read a book resist such temptation?
Without a doubt, Konoha was the most affected.
As Konoha's mission requests rapidly increased, so too did the number of attacks on its shinobi. Caught off guard, they not only earned little from their missions but also suffered considerable losses, which left Sarutobi Hiruzen furious.
Under these circumstances, Shimura Danzō devised a plan, and Konoha launched a special propaganda campaign targeting Kirigakure: they would make the conflict between Ren and Hozuki Shingetsu public.
Following Hozuki Shingetsu's usual methods, they used plays and films, along with storytellers, to vividly reenact how Hozuki Gengetsu had used "despicable" methods to steal the Mizukage position from Ren. They then told the story of how Ren had endured humiliation and bided his time, before making a triumphant return after Hozuki Gengetsu, the villain, met his just end in battle.