Uchiha's personal opinion

Uchiha Tokumitsu's strategy was quite simple to put it bluntly—

That means the three great powers have ulterior motives and are trying to interfere in the internal affairs of the Land of Fire!

Chapter 199 The Logic of Domination.

The reason why the rule of the daimyo and noble families was stable was because they had a large number of ninjas with extraordinary chakra power as their ultimate military force. When faced with internal strife that the samurai and the imperial army could not quell, the daimyo and noble families would spend a lot of money to hire ninjas from the ninja villages to fight, and easily defeat and destroy the rebels.

It can be said that the reason why the rule of the daimyo and nobles was so stable was because the one village, one country system incorporated the best ninjas who were originally scattered throughout the ninja world into a privileged class and centrally managed them.

In this way, any force or organization attempting to resist or overthrow the rule of the daimyo loses the opportunity to come into contact with the strongest military force, and naturally loses the possibility of overthrowing the daimyo nobles by force.

However, with the efforts of Uchiha Tokumitsu, the once-impregnable system of one village and one country began to crack.

The emergence and widespread use of the 'bond' model signifies that ninjas who wield military power are beginning to seek sources of funding beyond daimyo grants and mission income.

The new source of funding will naturally cause some subtle changes in the stance of the Ninja Village.

For example, they might rely on bonds to assert their authority and use them as leverage to try to gain greater concessions and benefits.

……

After sending the letter, Uchiha Tokumitsu temporarily ignored the so-called statements and notes from the three major powers, and instead accelerated the pace of clearing out the southern islands of the Land of Water, demanding that the victory in the war on the southern islands be converted into real gold income in a short period of time.

Simply put, we need to hurry up and take action to get things done.

At the same time, he instructed the three Kirigakure clans to recruit some reliable ninjas from among the prisoners to supplement their respective column ninja armies.

In addition, the four detachments of the Eastern Border Defense Force, which had been assigned to conduct feint attacks and harassments on the eastern islands before the war, also voluntarily ended their feint missions and assembled in the Kinki region of Daimyo Prefecture, where Uchiha Tokumitsu was located.

Although Hanzo of the Salamander was provoked into battle by Tokumitsu Uchiha, he still needed to be strong enough to defeat the still-powerful Kirigakure headquarters, especially the big boss Uchiha Madara hidden behind them. He absolutely needed to go all out.

In addition, Uchiha Tokumitsu issued a special order as the first decree for the shogunate to rule the southern islands.

That is the debt forgiveness law.

He announced to all the people of the Water Country in the southern islands that any debts they had incurred from nobles or any taxes they owed would now be wiped clean and would not be pursued or demanded.

Meanwhile, the massive amounts of grain hoarded by the daimyo and nobles were taken over by the shogunate's ninja army, and under the instructions of Uchiha Tokumitsu, they began to open the granaries and distribute the grain on a large scale in order to win over the hearts of the people.

In addition, the Uchiha ninjas of the Red Guard were instructed to control some ordinary people and spread the word on various occasions that the Uchiha clan planned to confiscate the property of nobles and distribute the land to everyone.

As for whether these measures would succeed, Uchiha Tokumitsu didn't really care.

For him, this was just a massive experiment.

Yes, it was just an experiment.

This is a social experiment!

A social experiment that attempts to undermine the ruling foundation of the daimyo and nobles by subverting the existing social system.

Although such experiments may cause some trouble for the subjects later on, this absolutely does not diminish the enthusiastic support the Shogunate's ninja army received as a result.

……

The Rain Ninja army, led by Hanzo of the Salamander, did not advance at a particularly fast pace.

Because Yu Ren was terrified of poverty, he had to stop and loot every place he went, so the journey of just a few dozen miles took him two days.

When Yagura learned of the Rain Ninja's marching efficiency, he was first taken aback, then burst into laughter, and said to his attendant, "I thought Hanzo of the Salamander was a hero, but I didn't expect him to be a piece of trash who couldn't even control his subordinates."

"Although Hanzo the Salamander is renowned, he is still far inferior to Lord Karatachi..."

His attendants also quickly chimed in with flattery.

Yagura's reputation did not improve after he joined the Mizukage. The Kirigakure clans under his command still vividly remembered his abandonment of the two clans that had supported him during the massacre, and they were often resistant to his rule.

However, the usually arrogant and autocratic Yagura, contrary to his usual behavior, ignored his subordinates' thoughts and his actions became relatively strange.

Since the massacre of his clan, he has rarely appeared in public.

Some people even noticed that Yagura Karatachi often spent entire days in the Mizukage Building, wondering what he and the Third Mizukage were plotting all day.

"Lord Gojiki, we have spotted Rain Ninja ahead!"

A Hidden Mist ninja rushed in to report.

"Hehehe..."

Yagura, the clown, let out two sinister laughs and said, "You've finally arrived..."

The group of Kirigakure Jonin under his command also turned solemn.

Although they didn't take Hanzo the Salamander seriously, the Kirigakure Jonin actually regarded him very highly.

In particular, the intelligence regarding Hanzo the Salamander's only action in the Land of Water was a top priority that the Kirigakure Intelligence Department repeatedly analyzed.

The salamander's deadly poison is a huge advantage in team battles, and Kirigakure happens to lack effective countermeasures. They can only rely on Yagura Karatachi, who is a Jinchūriki, to hold it off, allowing Kirigakure's ninja army to surround and annihilate its subordinates, and finally slowly surround and strangle Hanzo the salamander himself.

Although this tactic is old-fashioned, it is the only effective combat plan that Kirigakure can offer in the short term.

"The left and right flanks should deploy swiftly to break the ninja army's encirclement!"

Yagura Karatachi ordered, "We must annihilate the Rain Ninja in this battle, and then march south to fight the Uchiha bandits!"

"As ordered!"

All the Kirigakure Jonin responded in unison.

"...What about the daimyo and nobles in the ninja army?"

One of the Kirigakure Jonin in charge of camp affairs hesitated for a moment before asking, steeling himself.

"Send them away!"

Although Yagura was displeased, he still gave a rational answer.

"I obey your command..."

The Hidden Mist Jonin breathed a sigh of relief.

For some reason, he was filled with trepidation about the upcoming battle, but with Yagura's words, he could use the pretext of escorting the daimyo to lead his trusted subordinates away from the camp and escape the battle.

Even though the daimyo has lost his own capital, he is still a hot commodity wherever he goes, and he can fetch a good price even if he is sold.

……

At this time, Hanzo the Salamander and his Rain Ninja Army had also arrived at the outskirts of the Kirigakure Ninja Army's base.

In this battle, a total of one thousand Rain Ninja soldiers accompanied Hanzo the Salamander.

Although the number of people was small, it was also because Hanzo of the Salamander did not have high expectations for their usefulness. If it weren't for wanting to experience the difference in strength between the Kirigakure headquarters ninja army and his own Amegakure ninja, Hanzo of the Salamander would not have planned to take them out.

Compared to the Uchiha Ninja Army or the Konoha Ninja Alliance, even though the Rain Ninja had the same uniforms and equipment, the difference in combat power was still enormous.

Hanzo of the Salamander hadn't thought much of it at first, but after witnessing the might of Uchiha Tokumitsu's Red Guard and the Allied Shinobi Forces on the battlefield, he couldn't stand his own shinobi army anymore.

The reason why he was so easily provoked into battle by Uchiha Tokumitsu was more or less because he was still somewhat unwilling and wanted to prove his ninja army's worth in front of others.

"Lord Hanzo, the Hidden Mist Ninja Army has left their camp and gone to battle!"

The Rain Ninja scout rushed to Hanzo the Salamander and knelt down on one knee to report.

"Rally!"

Hanzo the Salamander nodded slightly, striding forward with his kusarigama in hand. "Without my next order, you are not to leave the battle lines and attack!"

"As ordered!"

The accompanying Rain Ninja Jonin immediately responded.

In this battle, Hanzo of the Salamander planned to replicate the tactics he used during the Second Shinobi World War when he raided Sunagakure.

That was to break through the Mist Village's defenses all by himself!

"Check the gas masks!"

"Inspect the throwing ninja tools!"

"Take the antidote!"

Urged on by the Jonin in charge of each division, the Rain Ninja quickly sprang into action.

Hanzo of the Salamander remained expressionless as he listened to the commands given in the same manner as those given by the Uchiha ninja army.

He couldn't say whether his own ninja army's "learning speed" or assimilation speed was good or bad.

But one thing is certain: with equipment of the same quality as that of the Leaf Village ninjas, the Rain Ninjas have indeed improved their combat strength considerably compared to the past.

"Summoning Beast: Salamander Ibuki!"

Hanzo the Salamander slapped the ground with one hand, summoning the summoning beast, Ibuki the Salamander.

He then leaped onto the head of the salamander, carrying the kusarigama, and looked towards the distant Kirigakure ninja army attacking in a trident formation.

"My little warriors! Just watch as I defeat the enemy!"

With a loud shout, Hanzo the Salamander urged his giant salamander to charge towards the approaching Kirigakure ninja army.

"Alas!"

It was Hanzo the Salamander who was fighting alone, which greatly surprised Kirigakure.

"court death!"

A Kirigakure Jonin with a mouthful of sharp shark teeth gritted his teeth and shouted, "How dare a mere ninja leader from a small country be so audacious..."

Before he could finish speaking, a dark light emerged from the ground and cleaved him in two at the waist.

"This……"

The Kirigakure ninja army, which was on a rapid advance, was also taken aback.

Wearing a gas mask that obscures his expression, Hanzo the Salamander leaps out from underground and charges at the astonished Kirigakure.

Yagura, the tachibana manga artist, also found it hard to believe.

He glanced at Hanzo the Salamander charging into battle alone, rubbed his eyes, and then looked at the giant salamander still charging towards his side, as well as another Hanzo the Salamander proudly standing on the head of a salamander...

Yagura felt that the world before him was somewhat unreal.

In particular, Hanzo's tactic reminded him of a long-forgotten memory: during the ambush in the Land of Whirlpools, Sakumo Hatake twice used "Thousand Years of Death" to kill a ninja swordsman.

"Such a villain who has absolutely no sense of the dignity of a strongman..."

The "Hanzo the Salamander" in front of us charged into the ranks of the Hidden Mist Ninja Army. After slashing several people, he was dispersed by a barrage of ninjutsu. However, he was just a water clone that was all too common.