Target: Eastward Advance

When those diehards learned that the Grand Governor's Mansion had wiped out the Land of Rice Fields' army in a mere single day, they were struck as if by a thunderbolt.

Those who had been spouting grand rhetoric only a short while ago about the miserable fate awaiting the Grand Governor's Mansion once the Land of Rice Fields quelled the rebellion were suddenly paralyzed with shock.

They slumped in their homes, beating their chests and stamping their feet, weeping in utter despair.

It was truly a scene of sorrow, reminiscent of the verse: "The displaced weep in the dust of the barbarians, looking south for the royal army for yet another year."

After the weeping subsided, most of them stumbled out of their homes with ashen faces, moving like walking corpses toward the Grand Governor's Mansion to register for their new civilian identities.

They had long been suffering under extremely unfair treatment, and the only thing that had sustained them was the hope they held in their hearts for the Land of Rice Fields.

Now that the Land of Rice Fields' army had suffered a crushing defeat, they began to accept reality and bow their heads to their new lives.

However, a very small minority remained trapped in the dreams of their old country, unable to break free. They ultimately chose to commit seppuku in their homes.

They would rather die than live as subjects under the Grand Governor's Mansion.

For such people, Dongfang Mao naturally had nothing to say; he directly ordered their mansions confiscated and their assets seized.

Their corpses were wrapped in straw mats and tossed into the mass graves outside the city like stray dogs, left to be gnawed on by jackals and pecked at by crows.

The residents within the city now possessed almost no backbone; seeing the fate of those who remained loyal to the Land of Rice Fields and the Daimyo, they felt a chill run through their bodies and began to speak of matters concerning the Land of Rice Fields with extreme caution.

With the liberation of this group within the city, Tsukimiura finally became completely peaceful, and commerce and agriculture began to recover step by step.

However, Dongfang Mao had no time to concern himself with city affairs at this moment.

Inside the Grand Governor's Mansion, Dongfang Mao stood with his hands behind his back, gazing at the large map hanging on the wall.

This was a hand-drawn map of the entire Land of Rice Fields, precise in scale and detailed in content; it not only marked mountains, rivers, forests, and terrain, but also recorded the most representative resources of each region in detail.

His gaze was currently fixed on the upper right of the map, a flash of greed crossing his eyes.

That was the southwest of the Land of Rice Fields, one of the few plains in the country, with fertile soil, abundant grain, and rich resources, producing thirty percent of the nation's total grain output annually.

However, Dongfang Mao suddenly sighed, a trace of regret flashing in his eyes.

The southwest border of the Land of Rice Fields bordered the Land of Lightning, and since he had already caused quite a stir, the neighboring Land of Fire might send troops and ninjas to support the Land of Rice Fields at any time.

Under these circumstances, he naturally could not rashly expand westward to provoke the Land of Lightning and invite unnecessary trouble.

He then cast his gaze toward the east of Tsukimiura; the areas to the east looked rather unsatisfactory on the map, with crisscrossing mountains, treacherous terrain, and barren resources.

But there was a very special place there.

On the map, a vermilion trade route extended eastward from Tsukimiura, winding like a red dragon for over five hundred li, completely piercing through the continuous mountain ranges.

This trade route had been built jointly by the Land of Fire and the Land of Rice Fields, with dozens of prosperous towns scattered like stars along the way.

As the main artery for trade between the two countries, one could see an endless stream of merchant caravans from the Land of Fire throughout the year.

The towns along the route, having long served as stopovers for merchants, were well-developed and densely populated due to the flourishing trade.

If he could fully control this trade route and the towns along it, Dongfang Mao would not only hold the economic lifeline of the Land of Rice Fields in his grip.

He could also pocket the massive profits from this commercial thoroughfare, providing a continuous stream of financial support to maintain the New Martial Army's massive military expenditures and to fund various research projects for the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Works, and others.

Most crucially, a towering mountain range stood at the end of this trade route, acting as a natural barrier that completely isolated the hinterland of the Land of Rice Fields from the east.

There was only one extremely narrow official road between the mountains that could be used for passage, forming a natural pass that was easy to defend and difficult to attack.

If he could capture this strategic point, Dongfang Mao's army could drive straight in, and the wealthy hinterland of the Land of Rice Fields would be completely exposed to his military might.

This pass was like a key; once held in his hand, it could open the door to the heart of the Land of Rice Fields.

Having clarified his strategic thinking, Dongfang Mao immediately determined his next military objective: to march his troops eastward!

As for the potential anger of the Land of Fire that might be triggered by seizing the trade route, Dongfang Mao had already weighed the pros and cons.

Although the Land of Fire was incredibly powerful, its national defense system was overly reliant on the Konoha ninja village.

This Konoha village monopolized over 80% of the Land of Fire's military power.

And right now, Konoha had just experienced the Second Shinobi World War, having been ganged up on by Amegakure and Sunagakure; although they achieved victory, it was a pyrrhic one.

Konoha had sent 80% of the village's elite ninjas, and few had returned; they were severely wounded and currently licking their wounds.

More importantly, the relationship between the Land of Fire and Konoha was not a simple one of sovereign and subject.

Konoha possessed a high degree of autonomy, much like an independent feudal domain.

Even if the Daimyo of the Land of Fire were furious, Konoha would never blindly obey.

At most, they would weigh the pros and cons and send a hundred ninjas to go through the motions.

And for the Grand Governor's Mansion, which had already made some headway in the development of cannons and muskets, dealing with a hundred ninjas was definitely not particularly difficult.

One must know that the gap between ninjas is immense.

There were only a few perverted ninjas with world-destroying power, and some of them were currently just little brats who hadn't even grown their hair out yet.

They had no time to bother with the messy affairs of the Land of Rice Fields.

As for the ninjas below these monsters, they were at most just ordinary people with some special abilities.

If their stamina is exhausted, they will tire; if they bleed, they will feel pain; if their heads are severed, they will die!

Furthermore, the conventional ninjutsu practiced by ninjas only has an effective attack range of 20 to 100 meters.

In contrast, the range of a musket is at least 200 to 300 meters.

As for cannons, they go without saying, boasting a range of roughly 1,000 meters.

Moreover, every member of the New Martial Army now practices the Military Fist, which Dongfang Mao has renamed the "Konoha Whirlwind."

Even if those ninjas were to disregard their own casualties and charge through the hail of gunfire, facing the New Martial Army head-on would be anything but easy.

Combat simulations indicate that a well-equipped 30-man combat squad is fully capable of exhausting a Chunin to death through tactical coordination.

(Zabuza was once beaten down by a few thugs; although he was severely wounded at the time, it proves that ordinary people dealing with ninjas is not an unsolvable problem. Therefore, a fully armed squad trained in taijutsu taking on a single Chunin is not an unreasonable expectation, is it?)

Thus, the wrath of the Land of Fire is currently well within the tolerance of the Governor's Mansion.

One could even say that now is the best opportunity for Dongfang Mao to shatter the current world order and rise to power!

The two great neighbors capable of helping the Land of Rice Fields are both occupied: one, Konoha, has just emerged from the Second Shinobi World War, having been ganged up on to the point of existential doubt.

The other, Kumogakure, was not idle during the Second Shinobi World War either, having fought Iwagakure until they were at each other's throats; their situation is much like Konoha's, as they are currently recuperating.

Externally, they are essentially powerless to intervene.

Most of the other nations are also in a semi-crippled state.

The Land of Rice Fields is temporarily isolated and without aid.

If he does not seize this opportunity to intensify his growth, once the other nations catch their breath and regain their strength, they might very well dispatch elites to eliminate him, this anomaly.

If, by that time, he lacks the power to contend with them, then all his efforts will have been in vain.