Uchiha's personal opinion

As the United Company flourished throughout the Land of Rain, the Fire Gate Shogunate Ninja Army, originally stationed mainly in the eastern part of the Land of Rain, also spread to various places, and even took over border defenses for a time when Hanzo the Salamander was hired to fight.

Furthermore, with over a thousand ninjas now working for the United Company, the Amegakure village is already deeply integrated with the organization. Therefore, in Amegakure's view, the leader's obsession and concerns are completely unnecessary.

—For the shogunate, the benefits of annexing the Land of Rain are far less than the benefits that the current economic control can bring, so naturally there is no intention to annex the Rain Village.

As for the Rain Ninja's choice, it can only be described as "water flows downhill and people move uphill," and the only reason to blame it is that the Land of Rain is too poor.

"You draft the document..."

Hanzo the Salamander finally let go of his pointless inner struggle.

"Firstly, the United Company Charity Federation and related personnel are permitted to move freely within the Rain Country, but they are not allowed to enter local government agencies at will."

Yutian immediately took out a piece of paper and wrote it down.

The first part of the statement was to completely lift the ban on the charity federation, while the second part was just a slight attempt to save face.

If the shogunate wanted to obtain the secrets of the Land of Rain… no! The Land of Rain holds no secrets for the shogunate!

"Secondly, we request that the Charity Federation establish a branch office at the headquarters in Yuren Village as needed, so that relief efforts can be coordinated nearby in the future."

Yutian was somewhat surprised upon hearing this, feeling that the leader had taken a rather big step. However, upon reflection, he realized that this was actually no different from his own long-held belief that "if you can't beat someone, join them." He then gladly wrote down the decree.

Moreover, if the Amegakure branch of the Charity Federation were to be established, Amegakure, as a long-standing "friend of the Shogunate," might also benefit from it...

"Thirdly, a letter was sent to Daming Prefecture to discuss the matter of registering the land and appointing officials..."

After saying this, Hanzo the Salamander got up and walked to the back of the palace.

Amada was stunned and stood there for a while before happily compiling the leader's will into a beautifully written document, which he then widely publicized within Amada Village.

In an instant, cheers erupted throughout Rain Village.

Indeed, the pride and resilience of the Rain Ninja have always remained.

Just like their adoration of Hanzo the Salamander, this "will of rain" will accompany them throughout their lives.

Even so, who would refuse the selfless help from Umeng?

The ninja army of the Fire Gate Shogunate stationed throughout the Land of Rain, whether it was the various new ninja tools they were equipped with, the generous gold coins they received as rewards, or even the canned meat from the Land of Grass that they were tired of eating, were all the envy of the Rain Ninja.

Although most Amegakure ninja wouldn't abandon their village for better treatment, since even their own leader intended to change course, everyone "had no choice" but to follow the trend of the times and devote themselves to the great cause led by the shogunate.

"Ninja Village..."

Even from atop the tower, Hanzo the Salamander could still hear the cheers from the ninja village.

His feelings were a mix of emotions, indescribable and inexplicable.

But he also knew very well that from now on, he could finally unload the "giant boulder" that had been weighing on his mind.

Chapter 411 The Stubbornness of Iwagakure

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"

Akatsuchi had barely arrived in the southern capital of the Land of Earth and hadn't even had time to settle in or conduct any special investigations when he received a request from the Iwagakure Army stationed in the Land of Birds.

But as soon as he opened it, Chitu flew into a rage and roared on the spot.

Ashura was somewhat confused.

Although he had countless reasons to disapprove of what Akatsuchi and the Iwagakure members had done, in all fairness, as a senior elite Jonin, Akatsuchi should not have experienced such intense emotional fluctuations.

This does not meet the basic quality requirement of a person in a superior position who should remain calm and composed even in the face of a collapsing mountain.

"The independence of the land, its people, and even its vassals is the most precious gem of the Land of Earth and the Hidden Stone Village!"

Akatsuchi was still angrily reprimanding the weary messenger ninja.

The newcomers, including Ashura, looked at each other in bewilderment, not understanding what was going on.

Judging from this reaction... it doesn't seem like a shogunate invasion!

So why is it that the topic of "jade" comes up?

So everyone's eyes turned to the document that Chi Tu was waving around, spitting and cursing as he did so.

"...Captain Akatsuchi?"

Perhaps he was so angry that his throat was dry from yelling that Chitu didn't stop until nearly half an hour later, but he was still standing with his hands on his hips, panting heavily with anger.

Only then did his confidant dare to step forward and cautiously ask a question.

"Take it!"

Chitu naturally understood his meaning, and slapped the document in his hand onto his confidant's chest in an annoyed manner.

"This……"

The trusted ninja picked up the document and glanced at it briefly, then his face showed surprise.

He then passed the document around for everyone to read, and it eventually ended up in Asura's hands.

"United Company Charity Federation... Southern Land of Earth Disaster Relief and Relief Action Plan?"

Ashura felt that the shogunate's writing style and wording were a bit strange, as if they were out of place in the ninja world, but this did not prevent him from understanding the contents of the documents.

In short, this organization, calling itself the Charity Federation Action Team, is going to the southern region of the Land of Earth to provide relief to civilians who have been driven to despair by the recent flash floods. It's worth noting that this so-called action team is entirely composed of ninjas…

Ashura understood why the Red Earth reacted so strongly.

Although they hadn't spent much time together or communicating along the way, Ashura still managed to keenly observe the differences between the Iwagakure ninjas and the Konoha ninjas, or rather, the Shogunate ninjas.

The biggest difference is that the Iwagakure ninjas are a group that has taken "self-instrumentation" and "personality suppression" to the extreme.

Whether they are ninjas of the upper, middle, or lower ranks, their ninjutsu templates are exactly the same, their body shapes and hairstyles are absolutely identical, and their indifference to external affairs or their disregard for their own lives are all the best portrayals of the "Will of Stone".

In other words, Iwagakure's utility as a character has been taken to the extreme.

Therefore, compared to the Konoha ninjas, although they may appear simple and robust in some aspects, they are more inclined to cling to outdated and rigid rules.

And extreme indifference towards ordinary people...

Ashura also noticed that the document from a Konoha subordinate agency mentioned the plight of the most discriminated-against mountain savages in the Land of Earth...

He still vividly remembered the horrific incident where two Iwagakure ninjas, tasked with "collecting grain," slaughtered a herd of savages in order to steal two sheep.

Ashura glanced discreetly at the two Iwagakure ninjas who were clamoring for an attack on Konoha.

Then he noticed that Akatsuki was observing the expressions of his subordinates.

"That's disgusting..."

Hidden behind the mask of the Dark Guard, Ashura curled his lip in disdain.

Is this an attempt to observe which of one's subordinates are on the same wavelength as oneself? If any outliers are discovered, they will likely need to be "re-educated."

"Go back and tell your Jonin in charge!"

Feeling quite pleased with himself, Akatsuchi reprimanded the sweating messenger ninja: "Tell him to guard the border properly and not let a single Konoha ninja cross the border, otherwise Iwagakure will not tolerate a traitor!"

"Yes, sir..."

The nervous messenger ninja wiped away his sweat and nodded vigorously.

"Go quickly!"

Akatsuki snapped at him irritably.

"Yes Yes Yes……"

The messenger ninja breathed a sigh of relief and prepared to leave.

"I'll go to the south first."

Ashura suddenly said.

"...Isn't the Great Luo Jonin going to investigate with us?"

Chitu was somewhat surprised.

"It won't take long."

Ashura said.

"...I want to see what kind of conspiracy Konoha is brewing."

Seeing the puzzled look on Akatsuki's face, Ashura casually added a comment.

"That's okay too!"

Akatsuchi nodded. "Then I'll trouble the Great Rider Jonin to help interrogate those 'non-Iwagakure' who severely lack the Will of Stone!"

The messenger ninja's body trembled even more violently.

For these Iwagakure ninja, being 'not from Iwagakure' is a very serious accusation, and they might even be ordered to commit seppuku!

But in reality, the Iwagakure ninja stationed in various places didn't think that much. They just wanted to let Konoha's charity team come in to distribute supplies, and then confiscate the supplies from the civilians after these foolish and rich guys left. What bad intentions did they have?

Ashura nodded, then patted the trembling messenger ninja on the shoulder, signaling him to lead the way.

……

During the journey south, Ashura deliberately slowed down his pace, ostensibly to accommodate the less capable messenger ninjas, but in reality, he was observing the situation in the Land of Earth along the way.

Due to the extremely heavy rainfall since August, severe flooding has occurred in the Land of Rain and the areas north of the Land of Wind.

The Land of Rain is characterized by floods, while the Land of Earth and the Land of Birds are characterized by frequent and severe flash floods.

"Why is the disaster so severe, yet the local nobles have not provided any relief?"

Ashura asked the question seemingly unintentionally.

"These savages are not citizens!"

The respectful messenger smirked, "They refuse to submit to the daimyo's rule and voluntarily live a life of wandering among the stone forests, neither paying taxes nor farming, thus offering no benefit to the country!"

"By the way, there's another legend: in ancient times, these savages were actually servants of the monsters that were being fought, but now they've all been scattered."

When these "glorious deeds" were mentioned, the messenger ninja immediately began to excitedly boast to his "Anbu leader" about all sorts of rumors and gossip.

However... in Ashura's eyes, who uses memories from ancient times, these so-called "savages of the Land of Earth" are nothing more than a mountain tribe at that time. If you want to go into detail, the central region of the Land of Earth was once their nomadic land!

But even if it's a case of the victor taking all, it shouldn't come to this!

Ashura felt that if they really wanted to, these savages would be completely unable to withstand the invasion of the Iwagakure ninja, but it seemed that the Iwagakure were intentionally keeping these people alive...