On the battlefield in the Land of Rain, Hanzo of the Salamander burst onto the scene at the head of Amegakure's forces. With his poisonous mist, Ibuse drove Iwagakure's army straight back.
Iwagakure's specialty was fielding troops in overwhelming numbers, sweeping across the battlefield through numerical superiority and massed Earth Release formations.
This approach, unleashing a deluge of ninjutsu through sheer numbers, had made Iwagakure unstoppable on the battlefield. But against a devastating battlefield weapon like Hanzo of the Salamander, it suffered a crushing setback.
Hanzo of the Salamander's poisonous mist was perfectly suited to opponents who clustered together like that. A single cloud could engulf them all.
Iwagakure was not skilled in using poisons or treating them. Continuing the fight would only increase its casualties without gaining it anything.
In the end, the Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki, decided to withdraw his troops from the Land of Rain and hold the Land of Earth's border.
Having successfully driven back the Land of Earth, Amegakure's forces enjoyed a tremendous surge in morale. They became even more convinced that following Hanzo of the Salamander was the right choice, and that only he could change their situation.
Fresh from their great victory, Amegakure's army turned its sights on Sunagakure of the Land of Wind and Konoha of the Land of Fire.
Those two fronts, however, did not go nearly as smoothly.
The reason was simple. Sunagakure's Chiyo was an expert in poisons, and she soon developed an antidote to Hanzo of the Salamander's poisonous mist.
On Konoha's side, Princess Tsunade—the Third Hokage's student, Hashirama Senju's granddaughter, and the princess of the Land of Fire—joined the battlefield. With her mastery of medicine, she quickly found a way to counter Ibuse's poison.
Despite these setbacks, and despite Hanzo of the Salamander's poisonous mist proving less effective than it had against Iwagakure, the Land of Rain's ninja stood united under his leadership, determined to drive these invaders from the great nations out of their homeland. Under his command, they displayed astonishing fighting strength, remaining fiercely courageous even against the elite troops of Konoha and Sunagakure.
With Sunagakure and Konoha also fighting each other, Hanzo of the Salamander actually seemed to hold a slight advantage despite facing both at once.
Reading the intelligence Kakuzu had sent back, Tetsuya gained a new understanding of how the Second Shinobi World War was unfolding.
Suddenly, Tetsuya's eyes lit up. He raised an eyebrow and asked Izuna beside him a question.
"Izuna, now that things have reached this point, how do you think the course of this war will change?"
Hearing Tetsuya's question, Izuna gave it serious thought.
"I think that, although Hanzo of the Salamander from the Land of Rain seems to have the advantage right now, and it's certainly impressive for a small nation caught between greater powers to have two great nations on the back foot...
"The disadvantages of being a small nation are still there. I doubt Hanzo of the Salamander's advantage will last long.
"The Land of Rain can't supply Hanzo of the Salamander and his forces for a prolonged war. After all, their country is only so big, and its production capacity is limited.
"Besides, they only have the advantage now because Wind, Fire, and Earth had already been fighting for a long time, exhausting a great deal of manpower and resources.
"Once Sunagakure and Konoha recover, they'll reach an agreement to first eliminate this interloper. Then the two great nations of Wind and Fire will decide the ultimate victor on the Land of Rain's territory. After all, with the war having gone on this long, dragging it out won't benefit anyone. Deciding the final winner as quickly as possible is the right choice."
Izuna's analysis was quite sound. After all, during the Warring States Period, his role within the Uchiha Clan had been to serve as Madara Uchiha's strategist.
Izuna had been responsible for devising strategies and drawing up broad plans. All Madara Uchiha had needed to do was lead the Uchiha Clan with his overwhelming strength, then take its members into battle to carry out Izuna's tactics.
"Your analysis is very good. But have you considered that Konoha and Sunagakure won't join forces?"
"Konoha and Sunagakure won't cooperate? Why are you so sure?"
Izuna was puzzled.
"Hanzo of the Salamander from the Land of Rain is disrupting their plans. His presence serves neither Konoha's interests nor Sunagakure's."
Tetsuya explained.
"These great nations all share one flaw: they never take small nations seriously. Even though Hanzo of the Salamander and his forces first defeated the Land of Earth and now have the advantage on the battlefield against both of them, they still won't take him seriously.
"To them, Hanzo of the Salamander is nothing more than a vicious dog trailing behind a lion to scavenge its scraps. Even if he seems to have them pinned down right now, they don't care.
"It's like during the Warring States Period. Would your Uchiha Clan or the Senju Clan have paid any attention to a small Shinobi Clan struggling to survive between the great clans?"
"Small Shinobi Clans had only one choice: become vassals of the great Shinobi Clans. Just as our Chiba Clan became a vassal of the Senju Clan during the Warring States Period."
"By the same logic, they believe these small nations have only one choice: become vassals of their great nations."
Izuna looked at Tetsuya and suddenly spoke.
"If you'd lived in our era, I think the Chiba Clan might never have become anyone's vassal."
"There's no point in saying that."
Tetsuya smiled, shook his head, and continued.
"Let's get back to the Shinobi World War. Whether it's Konoha or Sunagakure, the only opponent they truly care about is each other. Each believes the other is its only real rival.
"After all, their conflicts with Amegakure and their fronts against it are all within the Land of Rain. But their fronts against each other extend across several places.
"They've inflicted far too many losses on each other. Before the war ends, shaking hands, making peace, and forming a temporary alliance is unlikely.
"It's only Amegakure. Once they defeat their real opponent, they can gather their forces and sweep it aside easily. There's no need to worry too much about it."
"So, according to you, this war will end with Sunagakure and Konoha settling their fight first, and then the eventual winner dealing with Amegakure. Is that right?"
"Exactly. And Konoha will be the final winner. Still, defeating Hanzo of the Salamander head-on probably won't be easy, even for Konoha."
Tetsuya spoke with absolute certainty, as though everything he described was bound to happen.
Izuna did not entirely believe him. Although Konoha was stronger than Sunagakure overall, it had been fighting on multiple fronts since the start of this Shinobi World War. Not only had it fought the Land of Wind and the Land of Earth on the main fronts, but war had even broken out with the Land of Lightning on its flank.
After so many battles, a large portion of Konoha's fighting strength had already been depleted. If it came down to an all-out fight, whether Konoha or Sunagakure would emerge victorious was still an open question.
In Izuna's view, eliminating the troublesome Hanzo of the Salamander first was the most sensible choice. After all, as long as the Rain Ninja remained, their interference would be difficult to bear even if Sunagakure and Konoha wanted to settle the outcome between themselves.
"What? You don't believe me?"
Seeing that Izuna was not entirely convinced, Tetsuya smiled.
"Just wait. I'm sure we'll hear something before long."
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