Hanzo of the Salamander was renowned throughout the Ninja World, one of the very strongest.
That alone was a miracle.
Over the years, countless powerful figures had risen to fame in the Ninja World, yet those at the very pinnacle were usually from the Five Great Villages, with the Five Kage as their foremost representatives.
Hanzo was different. He was the only ninja from outside the Five Great Villages who stood on equal footing with the Five Kage. Within Amegakure, his prestige even far surpassed theirs.
Of course, the title of Demigod was still mostly circulated within Amegakure. Major villages like Konoha often regarded it as nothing more than Amegakure flattering itself.
But regardless, Hanzo's strength was beyond doubt. Under his leadership, vast swathes of Land of Fire territory had been seized in just a few days.
In the ninja world, small nations were tragedies. Compared to the great nations, their territories were smaller, their resources scarcer, and even their ninja talent was utterly crushed by the great nations. If they did not still serve as buffer zones, more than half of today's small nations would probably have vanished.
Yet small nations had their dignity too. They wanted to live better as well; that was human instinct. Thus, they were even more determined to seize hard-won opportunities.
Hanzo believed that this was the best opportunity...
For a nation to develop, territory was the foremost necessity. Only with sufficient land could it obtain enough resources, produce enough food to support a larger population, expand its sources of wealth, and build up powerful military forces.
The Land of Rain lacked these conditions. Shrouded by rain all year round, even survival was incomparably difficult, let alone growth and prosperity. If it wanted a future, it had to fight for it and seize it