Starting with rogue ninjas, building the insect kingdom.

Border of the Land of Rain, Konoha garrison camp.

Danzo Shimura sat upright in the main seat of the tent, holding a newly delivered intelligence report in his hand, his face cold and sinister.

"The Land of Rain's grain production increased by 30% compared to last month, 2,000 hectares of new wasteland were reclaimed, and the number of children with ninja talent increased by 70% compared to last year..."

With a loud slam, he slammed the intelligence report onto the table.

"Hiruzen, what are you thinking?"

He stood up and paced back and forth in the tent.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's recall order was on the desk, the ink still wet. The council of elders was about to be established, and he was to return to the council immediately.

When the war was intense, Hiruzen did mention forming an elder council to distribute power among the major families in exchange for them revealing their hidden strength.

At the time, Danzo thought it was just a temporary measure, but he didn't expect Hiruzen Sarutobi to actually do it.

Once the council of elders is established, his power will be instantly divided, and he won't be able to keep even his current power, let alone become Hokage.

No, we absolutely cannot go back like this. At least, we need to do something before we go back.

"Someone come here!"

The curtain was lifted, and two Root ninjas silently stepped inside.

"grown ups."

Danzo sat back in his seat and said in a low voice, "Send the order to summon all Jonin for an immediate meeting."

A quarter of an hour later, the camp was filled with ninjas.

Danzo looked around and slowly said, "The Land of Rain is recovering. With its food supply, population, and economy, it won't be long before they are completely established. By then, it will be much harder to touch them."

"Lord Danzo, do you mean...?" a Jonin asked tentatively.

"Cut off their supply lines," Danzo said coldly. "There are several cities on the border of the Land of Waterfall that have been supplying the Land of Rain with goods. Food, cloth, medicine, and farm tools all go through there."

He stood up and walked to the hanging map, pointing to several towns and cities.

"Here, here, and here—these three border towns are the hubs for the transfer of supplies. Burn down the warehouses, destroy the grain reserves, and kill anyone who dares to resist."

The camp was deathly silent.

After a long silence, a Jonin couldn't help but say, "Danzo, those cities are inhabited by civilians. There are no ninjas, no armed forces. They are simply merchants selling supplies to the Land of Rain. Also, Elder Danzo, do you have the Hokage's orders?"

"Shouldn't we be packing our things and heading back now?"

Danzo turned his head, his single eye fixed on the Jonin, and said, "So what?"

He walked step by step toward the ninja, his voice calm, yet sending chills down one's spine.

"Whether they are ninjas or not, anyone who helps the Land of Rain recover its vitality and national strength is our enemy. Mercy to the enemy is cruelty to ourselves."

"But Konoha has already declared a ceasefire..."

"Ceasefire? Hiruzen's declaration of a ceasefire doesn't mean the enemy will actually stop."

"Do you think Hanzo the Salamander will be content with just conquering the Grass Country? No, he'll want more. And if we don't nip it in the bud now, he'll strangle us in the future!"

The ninja lowered his head and remained silent, indicating he would not participate. However, he was instead bound and imprisoned. Seeing no one objected further, Danzo began assigning tasks.

"Group A is responsible for Fallen Leaf Town in the far east. Group B is responsible for White Stone City in the middle. Group C is responsible for Green Harvest Town in the west."

He added, "Remember, leave no survivors. Don't leave anything that could prove your identity. Take off all your headbands and disguise yourselves as wandering ninjas or bandits. If all else fails, throw a few Iwagakure headbands at them—let the Land of Waterfall cause trouble for Iwagakure."

"yes!"

The Root ninjas filed out, while only a few ordinary Konoha ninjas stood still, looking at each other, their faces pale.

Thinking of the consequences of that Jonin's resistance, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and go against his principles to carry out the mission.

After everyone had set off, a young ninja mustered his courage and asked, "Are we really going to attack civilians?"

His team leader sighed, "If you have a better idea, you can tell me."

The young ninja opened his mouth, but ultimately said nothing.

"Carry out the order. This is for the future of Konoha, for our descendants."

The Jonin brainwashed himself, silently reciting the Will of Fire in his mind, and finally suppressed all his emotions before leading the team to set off.

That night, fires broke out simultaneously in three border towns.

Flames shot into the sky from Fallen Leaf Town, illuminating half the night sky. Screams, cries, and pleas for mercy mingled together, but were scattered by the howling wind.

Men in black moved through the streets, their knives dripping blood. They were silent, efficient, and ruthless—without the slightest hesitation.

"No, my child, please..."

A woman, clutching her baby, knelt on the ground, desperately kowtowing. A flash of light, and mother and child fell to the ground simultaneously.

"Is everything ready at the warehouse?"

"Alright, pour kerosene over everything, not a single grain will be left."

"withdraw."

The resistance at Shiroishi Castle was slightly fiercer. As it was a castle, there were city guards, some swordsmen, and a few old Takigakure ninjas stationed there to keep watch. However, they were facing elite Root ninjas.

In just a few moments, the bodies lay scattered on the ground, and the news did not even get out.

"Sir, there are still survivors here!"

A Root ninja dragged a teenager over.

The boy was covered in blood, one arm twisted at a bizarre angle, yet he gritted his teeth and remained silent.

"Did you find out anything?"

"He said he was just a lowly soldier sent from the Land of Waterfall to garrison the area, and that he knew nothing."

The team leader, a Jonin, glanced at them, then closed his eyes and brought his sword down with a swift motion.

These are all enemies, all enemies. If he doesn't die now, it will be their descendants and their relatives who die in the future.

The boy fell, his eyes wide open, dying with his eyes still open.

Qinghe Town is the smallest town, with only a few dozen households, but it stores almost all of the cloth and silk.

They were all silkworm farmers and silkworm mothers, responsible for weaving cloth and textiles for the Rain Kingdom. They watched as their families grew richer and their lives gradually improved.

Unexpectedly, that night, when the ninjas surrounded them from all directions, most of them were still asleep when their throats were slit, leaving no one alive, men, women, or children.

Afterwards, the silkworm-raising house was set on fire, and the mulberry trees on the mountain were also burned to the ground.

Only an old man guarding the mountain was suddenly awakened. He knelt on the ground, wailing, and even tried to rush over to extinguish the flames.

"This is the fate of the whole village! The fate of the whole village..."

A Root ninja walked past him and casually slashed, causing the old man to fall into the flames.

When Naoto received the message, it was already the next morning.

All three towns were burned down, and civilians were killed. These were civilians; they hadn't even participated in the ninja battles.