After Hanzō entered Amegakure Ninja Village, Masashige, who was currently its supreme commander, immediately came out to greet him. "I knew you would succeed," Masashige said happily. "Your strength surpassed Besa's long ago. You should have been the leader of Amegakure Ninja Village all along."
"Ah, if Besa hadn't been so stubborn, I wouldn't have resorted to this. Even if I wanted to become the leader, I would have done it through the proper channels," Hanzō said with a soft sigh.
"But Besa was the one who wanted to attack you. He had no one else to blame. You've always had Amegakure Ninja Village's interests at heart, while Besa cared about nothing but clinging to his own power," said Masashige.
"People do change," Hanzō said, seemingly reflecting on something. Then he shook his head and told Masashige, "Whatever happened, he was still Amegakure Ninja Village's former leader, and he made his contributions. Once everything is over, find him a good place to be buried."
"Lord Hanzō, you're far too kind. If it had been Besa, would he have arranged a proper burial for you?" Despite his words, Masashige accepted the scroll from Hanzō and decided to respect his orders.
"How are things in the village?" Hanzō asked as he walked.
"Very good. Plenty of people in the village already supported your ideas, Lord Hanzō. Most of those who hadn't taken a stance were simply intimidated by Besa's authority. Once they learned that his rule had collapsed, they immediately pledged their support to you. Almost all of Besa's remaining diehard loyalists have been dealt with. Only a handful escaped," said Masashige.
"Let them go. Stabilizing the village is our priority now. There's no need to waste our energy on a few people who don't matter. They can't stir up much trouble