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Let's not talk about how shocked Hiruzen Sarutobi was when he heard the news of Danzo's death. Right now, Hayata Hayato had finally left the borders of the Land of Fire and stepped into a small country wedged between several great nations—The Land of Rain.
One reason he came here was pretty straightforward—he had to get out of the Land of Fire as fast as possible, and this direction happened to lead to the Land of Rain.
The other reason? Because there was a guy here named Hanzo the Salamander, a legendary figure known as a "Demi-God of the Shinobi World." With someone like that around, even Konoha wouldn't dare mess around too much.
At the very least, they wouldn't risk sending in a large group of ninjas. Doing that would basically be asking for war.
Of course, Hayato could've picked another country to run to, but none were as convenient as the Land of Rain. Or at least, that was his thinking.
He looked up at the sky, dark and heavy with rainclouds. A steady drizzle kept falling. Somehow, it actually made him feel a little better.
"Finally made it to the Land of Rain," Hayato murmured to himself.
Now that he was here, the plan was simple—figure out how to survive. But it didn't take long before Hayato realized that living in the Land of Rain was way tougher than he'd imagined.
This place sat right between several major nations, so whenever war broke out, the Land of Rain always got caught in the crossfire. It was practically a battlefield for other countries' wars.
Once Hayato saw it with his own eyes, he realized this place was way more chaotic than he expected. A total mess, really.
Run-down buildings that looked like they'd collapse any minute were everywhere. Groups of scrappy, beggar-like kids roamed the streets. Starving civilians, pale and thin, with blank, terrified stares—it was like they'd already given up on the world.
Seeing all this, Hayato finally understood just how much better life had been back in the Land of Fire, in Konoha. Compared to this... it had been paradise.
He pressed his lips together. Sure, things were bad here, but on the bright side, Hayato realized that being a stranger in the Land of Rain actually helped him stay hidden.
Nobody cared where you came from, or what you were doing. People were too busy surviving to ask questions.
"That solves the whole identity problem. Now I just need to figure out how to live here," Hayato muttered. He was still just a kid, and he didn't know anyone here, but he was confident he could make it.
Despite his young appearance, Hayato had awakened the Hulk's kekkei genkai. Even without fully transforming into the Hulk, his body had already started getting stronger and more muscular.
Under his clothes, his muscles weren't super obvious yet, but his strength and speed had already surpassed normal people. Honestly, even in his regular form, he was probably already at about genin-level strength.
With that kind of power, living in a place full of poor civilians wouldn't be too hard.
"First things first—I need a place to stay."
Taking a deep breath, Hayato wandered through the ruins until he found a half-collapsed old house that looked abandoned. It looked like it could fall apart at any moment, but it was shelter.
He cleaned it up a little, slapped together a makeshift door from some broken wooden planks, and blocked up the windows. At least now he had a place to sleep and stay dry.
He gathered some dry wood and lit a fire inside. The flickering flames gave off a faint warmth, chasing away some of the cold and damp air in the room.
Even though the place was pretty much a wreck, to Hayato, it already felt like his home. That thought alone brought him some peace of mind.
He leaned against the wall, watching the fire dance, and slowly drifted off to sleep.
BANG!
Who knows how long he'd been asleep before the rickety door he built got kicked in from the outside. With a loud crack, it shattered into pieces.
Hayato shot awake at the sound, frowning at the busted door. A flicker of anger passed through his eyes. His first good sleep in days—ruined just like that. He was furious, ready to punch the idiot who did it straight through a wall.
"Hmm? Hey kid, you new around here? Lemme tell you something—this whole area's under the protection of our boss, the Black Tiger Gang. From now on, you gotta pay up every month if you wanna stay here…"
The guy who kicked the door open stood in the doorway, all cocky and casual. He had a black raincoat thrown over his clothes and looked down at Hayato like he owned the place.
"....."