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War.
This is a word that has accompanied Ninja throughout their entire careers, from the moment this profession was born.
Ninja are born for war, and they die for war.
Whether it's ordinary people in this world or Ninja themselves, they have long accepted this reality, as if the power of Chakra was not born for mutual understanding between people, but purely for slaughter.
In fact, this is indeed the case.
Chakra, originating from the Divine Tree and Ōtsutsuki, gave these beings who claimed to be gods unparalleled power, and they indeed traversed the cosmos with this power.
On the contrary, Otsutsuki Hagoromo, the Sage of Six Paths, was the one who, with naive fantasies, sealed his mother and distributed this power to the weak, attempting to dedicate himself to an ideal.
As a result, these weak individuals, under the push of reality, still embarked on the path of the 'Ōtsutsuki'.
Minato's words did not cause much psychological impact on Sawara Kiri and the others; as qualified Ninja, even Kushina, who had been confined in the Village for many years, smoothly accepted the news that the Third Great War was about to begin.
As for Konoha receiving intelligence that other countries were beginning war preparations, it's not that surprising.
Steel, fuel, fabric, sealing materials, bulk grain...
War is not like what P-Club war criminals manipulate on computers, where you can launch immediately after completing a claim; even if Ninja have physical qualities and endurance far exceeding ordinary people, they are still individuals who need to eat, drink, and excrete.
The entire preparation process will most likely last three to six months, and it may even be prolonged due to various economic factors.
Before this time node, there is still room for maneuver.
However, that is other people's business.
Sawara Kiri had long been prepared to clean up the mess.
Incidentally, he also wanted to see what kind of surprises these countries had prepared for him over the past seven years.
The day after receiving this news, Sawara Kiri received word from Tsunade about a high-level Konoha meeting.
Economy, industry, education, military... all plans unfolded in an orderly manner around various contingencies.
Over the past seven years, what Sawara Kiri and his team considered was never just dealing with attacks from the Ōtsutsuki; the Ninja World Flattening Plan, which was kept in the Hokage Office and the Jonin Class General Staff Headquarters, had at least thirty different scenarios deduced.
However, only a very small number of people in all of Konoha knew about this information.
What more people were concerned about was the 'World Chunin Exam' proposed by Iwagakure.
Since the end of the Second Shinobi World War, the Ninja World has not had such a grand event for a long time.
Not to mention, there was also a Four Kage Summit before this.
Many people with keen senses noticed it.
The sky of the Ninja World is about to change.
However, there is still a small portion of people in the Ninja World who are indifferent to the turbulent situation.
Not because they don't want to, but because they no longer have the qualification.
Eastern Land of Fire, Mirror Valley River.
Hidden Mist Refugee Settlement Base.
"Chief, this is today's base construction plan."
"Please approve it."
A tall, capable woman knocked on the door and entered the office, placing a stack of documents on the desk before standing quietly to the side.
Sitting behind the desk was the former Fourth Mizukage, Karatachi Yagura, who had not appeared in the Ninja World for a long time.
At this moment, Karatachi Yagura was sitting in a recliner, looking down at a Konoha Daily.
Hearing his assistant's report, he finally looked up at her, but his vision was exactly blocked by the stack of documents.
Noticing this subtly meaningful small gesture, a wry smile involuntarily appeared on Karatachi Yagura's face, but it quickly faded, as if he hadn't noticed the former Hidden Mist Jonin's slight protest at all.
It has been some time since the Hidden Mist Village completely became a place name.
Karatachi Yagura, who is rumored to have been utterly terrified by Sawara Kiri's power and bowed down in worship, is still the nominal leader of this remaining settlement of tens of thousands of people.
However, his complexion seemed to be much worse than when he was in the Hidden Mist Village; his skin had a pale look from being cooped up indoors for years, as if even the Three-Tails within him could not support his gradually declining life.
He looked as if a young man with the appearance of a twelve or thirteen-year-old had, in a short period, become a middle-aged man with the appearance of a twelve or thirteen-year-old.
Even now, two Konoha Anbu stood behind him.
'If it weren't for the Konoha people still watching here, I would probably have been killed by the furious Hidden Mist refugees long ago, wouldn't I?'
Karatachi Yagura thought with a bitter smile.
This trend was not actually subtle, just like the former Hidden Mist Jonin in front of him, who was looking at him with cold eyes.
No one tried to hide the killing intent that was directed straight at him.
Or perhaps, they were also trying to use this method to avoid a more direct conflict with 'That Person' who truly destroyed Hidden Mist.
The Hidden Mist Ninja who survived that war, as Sawara Kiri had promised, numbered as many as five thousand.
Even including their family members, they did not exceed thirty thousand.
This was the entire population of the current 'Hidden Mist Refugee Settlement Base'.
However, thanks to Konoha's economic and infrastructure support, the lives of the people in this settlement base are not bad, and most people are even better off than when they were in Hidden Mist.
Fertile land, dry air, complete infrastructure, strong trade demand, a transport railway directly connecting Konoha to the center of the base, employment opportunities that can be completed without risking one's life...
In just a very short time, many Hidden Mist refugees began their new lives.
However, there are still many, no, it should be said that the vast majority of surviving Hidden Mist Ninja still buried their hatred deep in their hearts, living each day as calmly as possible without revealing their emotions.
In this situation, Karatachi Yagura felt as if he was sleeping on a pile of explosives that could be detonated at any moment, every single day.
Even he himself didn't know when the anger in these people's hearts would suddenly explode.
And then, lead to self-destruction.
Putting aside some distracting thoughts, Karatachi Yagura looked at the documents in his hand and simply asked:
"How many people did Konoha take away yesterday?"
"One hundred and nineteen people, all children under six years old. After physical examination, all of them have been enrolled in the Konoha Ninja Academy."
The assistant's answer was fluent and natural, clearly indicating that she knew these figures by heart: "Among them, there are also two orphans from the Kaguya Clan, who seem to have been personally designated by 'That Person'."
"The Konoha Genin, Mei Terumī, came to receive those two."
...
Hearing this name, Karatachi Yagura's pen paused involuntarily, his emotions inexplicably complex.
He didn't know if it was relief or a sigh.
What he had done, after all, still had some effect.
The assistant, however, did not consider his mood, and continued calmly: "In addition, the Konoha Ninja who came to pick up this batch of children revealed to our people the possibility of 'changing the town to a city"Once the housing and land allocation, Ninja re-employment, and basic market subsidy policies are fully implemented in the settlement base, it will be officially changed to 'Mirror Valley River City'."
"I heard it won't be long."
"This should be 'That Person's' intention."
She was unwilling to mention Sawara Kiri's name, which was only natural.
Heaven knows how many of her family, friends, and comrades died at the hands of Konoha Ninja.
Karatachi Yagura didn't care.
"I understand."
"I will find someone to implement these temporary policies as soon as possible."
"Yes."
Evidently.
This series of policies was Konoha's way of completely integrating 'Hidden Mist' into this country.
It's just that these Hidden Mist Ninja, who were once trained as war machines and lived by the sword, will have to relearn how to use Chakra for production in various industries.
He didn't think this was a bad thing.
At least, as he had hoped—more Hidden Mist Ninja survived and had the possibility of a stable life.
However, this does not mean that others would think the same way.
Under the supervision of the two Konoha Anbu, Karatachi Yagura, with the help of his assistant, completed a morning's work.
It wasn't until he began to eat that the female assistant quickly walked out of the office.
After leaving the room, she looked at this 'Chief' with a slightly complex gaze, then left without looking back.
Soon after.
The female assistant appeared in a secret room deep underground.
Before she arrived, more than a dozen of her former colleagues—all former Hidden Mist Jonin—had already gathered in this secret room.
"Genzuki, what's his attitude?"
As she entered the room, the man who was at the head of the group impatiently spoke.
The surrounding former Hidden Mist Jonin were visibly restless, but they all suppressed their impatience and waited.
The female assistant, called 'Genzuki', shook her head and said coldly:
"He has no intention of fighting for power for Hidden Mist."
"Don't count on him."
Just as these words fell.
The former Hidden Mist Jonin in the secret room could no longer contain themselves and cursed out loud:
"Karatachi Yagura, that bastard! Traitor!"
"I knew this spineless coward would never be tough; he's already Sawara Kiri's dog!"
"Those Hidden Mist higher-ups were truly blind back then to choose him as the Fourth Mizukage!"
"We should have found a way to kill him long ago!"
"Damn it!"
The hatred brought by brutal slaughter is never easily forgotten by survivors; the pain of their destroyed homeland is branded into the heart of every person like fire, making them restless day and night, and also causing them pain day and night.
The pain in some people's hearts will gradually be let go with the passage of time, allowing them to continue with new lives.
But for others, it will burn more and more fiercely, until they direct this fire onto others, or ignite themselves.
What's more, there are no fools among those who can become Jonin.
After seeing the situation in the settlement base improve day by day, the lives of ordinary people becoming more stable, and children, as new sprouts and fresh blood, being brought into their Village by Konoha in various ways, and the memories of Hidden Mist gradually fading away, scene after scene.
They all knew very well.
The soil that could support their counterattack was rapidly turning into a desert at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Until finally, those memories, and even themselves, would dissipate like dust scattered by a storm.
Resist! Resist?
This word filled their minds almost every day.
However, under the suppression of the name Sawara Kiri, what could they use to resist?
That was a man against whom there was no hope of resistance, even when the Hidden Mist Village was still intact.
Hatred and despair were like two opposing sides of a spear and shield, tormenting their souls as if they were being tortured.
These curses were like a breach in a dam, constantly releasing the pain they had accumulated for a long time.
But when the curses gradually stopped, everyone fell silent.
The silence was so long.
It was a long time later that the Hidden Mist Jonin sitting at the head suddenly spoke:
"Yesterday, I received a message."
"Someone told me that they need our cooperation in their actions."
...
The people around remained silent, but their gazes were all fixed on him.
Just a moment ago, everyone was furious and verbally attacking, from Karatachi Yagura to Sawara Kiri, and then to all of Konoha.
But when someone actually proposed action, the silence came so abruptly, and even their gazes seemed to have weight.
The reason is actually very simple.
To be honest, their current lives, compared to the Hidden Mist period, are actually... not bad?
However, the moment these words left his mouth, he no longer had the chance to stop, and his voice continued:
"That Person means that soon, a group of people capable of rivaling Sawara Kiri will come to attack Konoha."
"We need to assist their actions at that time and follow their command."
"After Konoha is destroyed, their people will help us rebuild the Hidden Mist Village and re-establish our own Village!"
His voice became more and more impassioned, even vaguely fanatical: "I know what you are worried about, and I also know that this action will indeed cause many deaths!"
"But don't you want to return to our country, our Village?!"
"Are you planning to let go of your hatred and spend the rest of your lives in such a useless body, living so miserably?"
"We are Ninja! Hidden Mist Ninja!"
"No matter what, no matter the cost, I want to see the day when Hidden Mist stands tall on this land again!"
...
The people around remained silent.
It was a long time after his voice stopped that someone suddenly spoke:
"Can he really stop Sawara Kiri?"
...
The voice that was impassioned and excited a second ago suddenly seemed like an old cassette tape, stuck in the middle.
That person's voice remained fixed for a long time, then he gritted his teeth and said with difficulty:
"We, we have to do something."
This time, everyone lowered their heads, not knowing whether they were afraid or disgusted with their cowardice from the previous second.
Yes.
They were Hidden Mist Ninja, the last survivors, those who lived by the Will of Water.
They had to do something for the Village that raised them.
This was something that had to be done.
Throughout this entire process, 'Genzuki' just listened quietly, still as indifferent as a doll.
And after this secret meeting ended, a subtle, almost imperceptible undercurrent gradually swept through the entire settlement base, which had just recently settled down.
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