Dark clouds covered the sky and rain fell in a steady stream.
Countless towers rise upward below, and a large number of steel pipes are intricately arranged, forming an extremely unique architectural style.
The reason why the building is built like this is also related to the special environment of Land of Rain.
Since Land of Rain rains most days of the year, the amount of accumulated water is very large. If the water is not drained out in time, it will easily submerge roads and buildings, increasing the burden on people's lives.
These unique steel pipes are used for drainage and are distributed in various places in the village.
And here is Amegakure, a ninja village in the mist.
"It's raining today too..."
On the terrace of a tall tower in the center of the village, a young man with long light yellow hair and a gas mask stood in the rain, looking up at the silver threads falling from the sky.
Then he withdrew his gaze, stretched out his hand, and let the raindrops fall on his palm. He watched the water droplets falling and splashing on the skin of his palm. There was not much emotion in his dark pupils, but he was just feeling something with his heart.
"Hey, you are here, Hanzo."
There was a sound of footsteps behind him, and the voice sounded very cheerful, which was completely different from the dull and rainy atmosphere around him.
Hanzo turned his head and saw a middle-aged man in his forties walking over.
Wearing a black rainproof cloak that comes standard with Hidden Rain shinobi, and Hidden Rain shinobi Forehead Protector on his forehead, with orange-red hair like overgrown weeds, he looks as wild and unruly as a beast.
"Chief."
Hanzo took half a step back and bowed slightly to the middle-aged man to show respect.
However, when faced with the honorific Hanzo, the middle-aged man with orange hair not only showed no joy on his face, but instead showed a rather troubled smile.
"Being elected as the leader of the village at this time, I really don't know whether to be happy or sad. It feels like I was deliberately pushed out as a target by everyone in the village."
The middle-aged man is very self-conscious and his tone is full of self-deprecation.
In terms of strength, he is not the strongest Amegakure.
Not to mention Hanzo who was standing aside at this moment, there were at least two or three people among Hidden Rain Village and Jonin who could surpass him in strength.
However, the final result of High-Level Meeting was that he, who did not want to be the leader at all, finally took the position of Hidden Rain Village's boss.
"That's because the people in the village trust your leadership, leader, to bring the village to a higher position."
Hanzo said sincerely.
The man in front of him may not be the most powerful ninja in Amegakure, but he is currently the most suitable ninja to become the leader of Hidden Rain Village.
What Amegakure lacks now is not a powerful ninja, but a leader who can appease the people and unify the fragmented state of the village.
"I'll just take it as a compliment." The middle-aged man smiled and then changed the subject, "Speaking of which, your contribution this time is also very outstanding. With a small number of troops, you were able to break into Land of Grass, and defeated Hidden Grass Village's main force, saving many people. What do you think, do you want to work here with me? With your ability, you are more than enough to be the minister of Anbu."
After Konoha formed the Anbu organization, ninja villages in various countries also imitated similar organizations one after another, and Amegakure also formed Anbu.
It's just that the abilities of the ninjas inside are really mixed. At its peak, there were only about thirty people, and only a few Jonin supported the scene.
As for combat effectiveness, compared with Anbu of Five Great Shinobi Nations, it is even more unsightly.
But even so, Anbu is directly under the leadership of the village leader.
The middle-aged man's words are almost equivalent to telling Hanzo--Hidden Rain Village that the position of the next leader will be decided by you.
Hanzo frowned and did not immediately agree, as if he was thinking about something.
The middle-aged man patted Hanzo on the shoulder and continued, "Please consider this matter slowly and don't rush to answer for now. But there is one thing Hanzo you must be prepared for. I hope you can serve as my escort and go to Heaven-Earth Bridge in Land of Grass to sign an armistice agreement with Kusagakure."
"Armistice? What's going on?"
Hanzo was stunned for a moment, his face suddenly turned ugly, and he began to question him rudely.
He finally led his men to advance to Land of Grass, defeating the main force of Hidden Grass Village, and preventing them from looking at each other.
The current situation is very good for Hidden Rain Village, but at this time, we have to negotiate peace with Hidden Grass Village and sign an armistice agreement?
The middle-aged man looked at Hanzo's face and said seriously, "This matter is not ours. The leader of Kusagakure asked for help from Iwagakure. Iwagakure has already agreed. He even dragged Land of Night together to put pressure on him and asked us, Hidden Rain Village, to come over for peace talks."
"..."
Hanzo The coldness in his eyes flashed away.
Seeing the middle-aged man's serious expression with a hint of weak pleading, the anger that had been building up suddenly dissipated.
In the end, Hanzo could only nodded stiffly.
"I know... I'll join in."
He originally thought that the village senior officials had transferred him back from the Land of Grass frontline battlefield to entrust him with some important task, but what he didn't expect was an armistice peace negotiation with Kusagakure.
More anger and humiliation than unwillingness.
What do those bastard big countries think of the results that Hidden Rain Village finally obtained?
Shoe inserts?
The middle-aged man naturally saw the strong unwillingness and indignation in Hanzo's heart, and sighed helplessly, feeling vaguely uncomfortable in his heart.
How could he not know that the big country planned to use this opportunity to squeeze the small country? How did the Hidden Rain Village leader before him die?
It was because he was not obedient enough that he was suppressed by the great powers.
"Songkang-sama."
At this moment, a figure fell down, causing a splash of rain.
"What's the matter?"
The middle-aged man, also known as Songkang, looked at Hidden Rain shinobi who suddenly appeared here.
"Hidden Sand Village's envoy asks for an audience."
"..."
Songkang was stunned for a moment, then touched his chin, his eyes suddenly became meaningful.
"Hanzo, come with me to meet the envoy of Hidden Sand Village."
Songkang turned to look at Hanzo.
Hanzo nodded in agreement.
He was not a stupid person, and he instantly realized that the arrival of Hidden Sand Village's messenger at this time was probably related to Iwagakure and Land of Night's sudden intervention in Amegakure-Kusagakure War.
◎
December.
The land of Land of Grass is plunged into freezing temperatures. Although there is no snow falling, the sky is gray and there is no trace of light.
In the forest covered with snow and howling in the cold wind, several dark shadows moved quickly until a light that was not too bright appeared in front of them. The ninjas who were running forward finally saw the end of the forest.
As soon as they came out of the forest, they suddenly saw a wide and solid reinforced concrete bridge.
Below the bridge is a huge rift valley a hundred meters deep, filled with white cold mist, and the sound of rushing water at the bottom of the rift valley can be heard.
On the red pier, the three characters "Heaven-Earth Bridge" are clearly engraved.
"This is Heaven-Earth Bridge. The location of the negotiation is in an abandoned shrine ten kilometers away."
The middle-aged man who spoke had messy orange-red hair and a cheerful smile on his face. He was the new leader Songkang who was elected by Amegakure not long ago.
Beside him were five Hidden Rain Village Jonin headed by Hanzo.
Including him, the ninja leader, there were six people in total.
Hanzo Seeing the bridge in front of him, he subconsciously stretched his hands behind his back and quietly held the handle of the sickle, as if he was ready to fight at any time.
"Oh, don't be so nervous. It's just a negotiation. The worst result is just to be a little more angry."
Seeing Hanzo's posture as if facing a formidable enemy, Songkang tried his best to speak in a comforting tone, so that Hidden Rain shinobi, who was following him, would not tense up all the time.
Hanzo hesitated for a moment, then put down the palm holding the handle of the sickle and took a deep breath.
As the victor in the war, they had to take the initiative to come to the enemy's territory to discuss peace talks. This gave Hanzo the illusion that he and Hidden Rain Village had lost.
However, he and Hidden Rain Village are obviously the winners of this war.