Bonus for 500 PS, next bonus at 600 PS.
◇◇◇◇
The signs of Ame launching a war against the outside world became increasingly obvious, and Konoha continuously dispatched ninja into the Land of Rain to gather intelligence.
As this went on, the friction between the two sides grew larger and larger.
They even started to get angry.
"Ame is showing off. Hanzō's goal is to warn Konoha."
"According to intelligence gathered by the Anbu, Root, and spies, Ame, under Hanzō's leadership, is no longer weaker than our Five Great Shinobi Villages. Once war breaks out, the Land of Fire will definitely be the first to suffer the baptism of war."
"So I suggest that we nip the danger in the bud and absolutely not allow Ame to grow stronger and declare war on Konoha."
Danzō slammed the table, roaring:
"Hanzō sending people to encircle and annihilate Konoha's ninja is a warning to Konoha. Hiruzen, at a time like this, are you still hoping Hanzō will calmly sit down and negotiate with you?"
Konoha's intelligence gathering on Ame was endless, and this action seemed to anger Hanzō, the leader of Ame.
Under Hanzō's command, Ame ninja began to encircle and annihilate Konoha's people.
They even ignored Konoha's requests for negotiation.
Were they really going to start a war?
And Konoha would be the one to actively initiate the war.
This was not the result Hiruzen wanted, but circumstances forced his hand.
Last year, the Land of Rain only appeared somewhat aggressive, seemingly wanting to make a move on the Land of Grass.
And as an ally of Konoha, Konoha naturally couldn't stand by and do nothing.
When Anbu and Root ninja entered the Land of Rain, coupled with intelligence transmitted by spies, it all undoubtedly told Hiruzen one fact.
That was, Hanzō wasn't interested in the Land of Grass. What he valued was the Land of Fire.
If your Ame wants to touch the Land of Grass, my Konoha won't allow it, let alone if you, Hanzō, want to target the Land of Fire.
Do you really think you're one of the Five Great Nations' shinobi villages?
This was also why Danzō was so furious.
Hanzō was looking down on them.
Negotiation requests were ignored.
"Once Konoha declares war on Ame, the flames of war will inevitably sweep across the entire ninja world. Have you all considered these consequences?"
Danzō believed Konoha should strike first and not let the war burn onto the Land of Fire's territory.
Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado, on the other hand, felt Danzō's words were reasonable. If Hanzō refused to recognize reality, then Konoha would simply have to remind him of his place.
Even if Konoha was willing to maintain peace through negotiation, Ame was not, and Hanzō simply ignored them.
"Does Konoha not declaring war on the Land of Rain mean that the flames of war won't spread to other countries?"
Danzō sneered, looking at Hiruzen and saying:
"Hiruzen, don't forget that since the First Great Ninja War, the strength of all the shinobi villages has recovered. It's not just Ame that shows signs of launching a war. Other shinobi villages are the same."
"If Konoha does nothing, we will only be passively beaten."
"Do you choose to strike first, or do you only retaliate after being hit?"
Hiruzen frowned.
He hadn't made up his mind yet.
Because once war broke out, the situation could spiral out of Konoha's control at any moment.
As the helmsman of Konoha, he didn't want to see such a situation arise.
One wanted to fight, the other wanted to negotiate.
Hiruzen and Danzō were at an impasse.
Finally, Koharu Utatane, a member of the Elder Council, put forward her opinion.
"Hiruzen, even if Konoha doesn't actively declare war on Ame, we still need to guard against Ame's movements. The flames of war absolutely cannot burn into the Land of Fire."
"Therefore, I suggest dispatching troops to be stationed at the border to prevent Ame from launching a surprise attack into the Land of Fire."
"I agree."
Homura Mitokado cast his vote for Koharu Utatane.
If they didn't want to rashly start a war, then they should dispatch ninja troops to be stationed at the border to prevent Ame from disregarding etiquette and suddenly attacking the Land of Fire.
"Hmph!"
This was clearly not the result Danzō wanted. He wanted to directly launch a war, not just be on guard.
Unfortunately, Hiruzen disagreed with launching a war, and Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado, who were originally on his side, changed their stance, which made Danzō very displeased.
Lighting his pipe, Hiruzen took a few deep puffs, and after careful consideration, he finally made a choice.
"If that's the case, then issue a conscription and dispatch troops to be stationed at the border."
Sending a large ninja army to be stationed at the border was also a form of invisible provocation and defense, but provocation was better than outright declaring war.
As the order was issued from the Hokage's office.
The announcement quickly spread throughout Konoha.
Conscripting ninja to be stationed on the front lines. Was this going to be war?
For a time, the entire Konoha was filled with the atmosphere of war.
The Second Great Ninja War was coming.
Ame's strength at this time was truly formidable, coupled with the infinitely inflated demigod Hanzō.
With even the slightest disturbance, a war between Konoha and Ame was bound to break out.
Konoha's movements would also attract the attention of other shinobi villages, and the major shinobi villages that had been recuperating for many years would not miss this opportunity for external expansion.
In many people's eyes, the Land of Fire was always the one that got hit, then passively retaliated.
Little did they know, the party that actively initiated the Second Great Ninja War was Konoha.
The atmosphere of war grew heavier, and everyone in the village was constantly discussing matters of war.
As Konoha's ninja forces were stationed at the border, the Land of Rain's reaction was even more intense than Konoha's. A similar large ninja army was stationed at their border, creating a confrontational feeling with Konoha.
Furthermore, Ame was vigorously encircling and annihilating Konoha ninja who had entered the Land of Rain.
Besides Konoha ninja, ninja from the Land of Wind and the Land of Earth were also included.
Hanzō seemed to want to forge the Land of Rain into an impenetrable fortress, strictly prohibiting ninja from other countries from entering the Land of Rain.
This was a groundbreaking first for the Five Great Shinobi Villages.
The high and mighty Five Great Shinobi Villages felt provoked, provoked by a minor shinobi village.
Now, not only did Konoha have issues with Ame, but even Suna and Iwa began to feel displeased with Ame.
In the Land of Wind, the Kazekage's office in Suna.
The Third Kazekage, hailed as the strongest Kazekage, felt this was an excellent opportunity.
"I think this is an opportunity for our Suna to break out of our predicament. We should help Konoha."
"Kazekage-sama means to actively provoke war?"
Chiyo, who held great power in the village, and her brother Ebizō, also attended the meeting.
The Land of Wind was poor, and next to it was the rich Land of Fire.
As the leader of Suna, the Third Kazekage dreamed of taking a piece of fatty meat from the Land of Fire.
"Yes, provoke a war, but not a war between Suna and Ame, but a war between Konoha and Ame."
Since neither of you is moving, just staring at each other, then my Suna will give you a push.
Help you ignite the flames of war.
Chiyo understood the Third Kazekage's meaning, so she stood up and said:
"If that's the case, then I'll handle this matter."
At this time, both Konoha and Ame were on edge. It wouldn't be difficult to ignite the flames of war.
"Then this matter is entrusted to Chiyo."
The Third Kazekage nodded, agreeing to Chiyo's request.
Konoha and Ame could afford to wait, but Suna couldn't. Suna urgently needed to launch a war to plunder resources from other countries to strengthen itself.
The Daimyo had protested more than once about the excessively high annual allocation of funds to Suna.
With not many sources of income, yet supporting a considerable number of ninja, Suna would eventually be unable to sustain itself.
The Third Kazekage was very clear that the village was out of money.
The Daimyo couldn't continue to allocate funds, unless war broke out, at which point, to maintain his rule, the Daimyo would have to provide money to the village.
Under Chiyo's leadership, some Sand ninja followed her into the Land of Rain.
The stalemate continued. Neither Ame nor Konoha fired the first shot.
What no one expected was that during this sensitive period, a group of ninja wearing Konoha headbands attacked villages and committed arson and murder in various places within the Land of Rain.
"Konoha!!"
When the Anbu delivered the collected intelligence to Hanzō, it directly ignited the rage in his heart.
Ever since Ame's military strength began to develop, Konoha ninja were always gathering intelligence within the Land of Rain, and Hanzō had encircled and annihilated them batch after batch.
Then Konoha submitted a negotiation request, which Hanzō directly ignored.
You send people to cause trouble on my territory, and then you want to negotiate with me?
What kind of logic is that? Should a small shinobi village be bullied by Konoha and then not be able to fight back after being bullied?
So Hanzō decisively ignored Konoha's negotiation request and continued to encircle and annihilate Konoha's ninja.
After being encircled, Konoha actually dispatched a large army to be stationed at the border. What did this mean?
A provocation to my Ame, or a provocation to me, Hanzō?
Konoha's various actions were all sending one message: I am going to declare war on your Ame.
During the standoff between the two armies, Konoha ninja infiltrated the Land of Rain and attacked its villages, directly snapping Hanzō's already taut nerves.
Ame declared war on Konoha.
The news instantly spread throughout the ninja world, astonishing people in all countries.
Since the establishment of the Five Great Shinobi Villages, this was the first time one had been declared war upon by a small shinobi village, and the one declared war upon was Konoha, known as the strongest of the Five Great Shinobi Villages.
In response to Ame's declaration of war, Konoha also chose to respond.
Konoha declared war on Ame, dispatching Danzō as the frontline commander-in-chief to attack Ame, with Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru all among the army.
(To be continued.)
◇◇◇◇◇
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves
(Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)
◇ If you enjoy the story, please consider leaving a review, it helps a lot!
◇ Don't forget to add the book to your library.