It had been several days since Arano Haishōri took office as Tsuchikage. Alongside his trusted adviser, Onoki, he had already begun laying the foundations for change—ambitious reforms meant to restore Iwagakure's former glory. But for every brick they placed, a shadow rose in defiance. Resistance came not only from the elders, but also from clan heads, political veterans, and even some Jonin who felt threatened by the winds of change.
Yet neither Arano nor Onoki faltered.
Their vision was clear: to elevate Iwagakure to a level it hadn't known since before the First Great Ninja War. Even if it meant clashing against the old guard, even if they had to force progress through sheer will… they would see their reforms through.
The most urgent task was improving the village's crumbling infrastructure. Roads, bridges, and buildings were all in disrepair—or worse, never built in the first place—due to the harsh, mountainous terrain that blanketed the Land of Earth. The soil here was stone, not sand or grass. Construction was a challenge, but Arano had a solution.
He would deploy Earth Release–affinity shinobi to reshape the land.
Utilizing their chakra, skilled shinobi could build roads in days that would take laborers months. However, there was a catch. The war had cost Iwagakure dearly; many Earth-nature shinobi had perished. Redeploying more would thin their defenses along the borders—a dangerous gamble.
Still, it had to be done.
Another critical area was education. The Ninja Academy was underfunded and stagnating. Training materials were decades out of date, and students were graduating with barely enough skill to survive a battlefield. Arano ordered scrolls to be redistributed from clan vaults, ensuring every child learned more than just the basics. If Iwagakure wanted elite shinobi, it had to begin with children.
Third came the medical corps. During the war, a single medical-nin often meant the difference between life and death. Arano knew this intimately. Thus, he initiated a recruitment program and increased the budget for medical training. No squad would go into battle without at least one trained healer.
Together, Arano and Onoki believed that by focusing on these pillars—infrastructure, education, and medicine—they could turn Iwagakure into a force feared and respected across all five nations. But they also knew: progress invites enemies. Some would have to be silenced. Others, crushed.
That Night
A violent storm raged across Iwagakure—a rare spectacle in the typically arid mountains. Sheets of rain hammered rooftops and windows. Thunder growled across the skies like a slumbering beast awakened. Yet, despite the chaos outside, warmth flickered within every household. Families huddled together, sharing tea and stories. For many, the storm was not a threat—but a pause. A night of serenity.
But not for all.
A boy, perhaps ten, sat alone beneath a gnarled tree, soaked to the bone. His name was Sakaze. His father had abandoned the village during the Second Great Ninja War. His mother—unknown. With no family and a stigma of betrayal hanging over him, Sakaze had grown up in the shadows, shunned by children and ignored by adults.
Still, he endured.
Rain rolled down his cheeks, indistinguishable from tears. His eyes were closed, his breathing calm. Alone under the canopy of leaves, Sakaze sat silently as if defying the storm itself.
Unbeknownst to him, another walked the rain-slick streets—draped in the plain clothes of a civilian, yet radiating hidden power. It was Arano Haishōri.
The Tsuchikage moved quietly, his hood up, his hands in his pockets. It had been years since he last walked his village like this, unseen and unrecognized. Every corner he passed carried memories: childhood sparring matches, clan gatherings, the ghosts of fallen friends.
His footsteps echoed through empty streets.
As he turned a corner, he spotted a group of children huddled beneath an overhang. Laughing, playing, unaware that the shadow walking past them ruled their village. Arano gave a slight smile and moved on.
The Next Morning – Shōrihana Clan Estate
The hall of the Shōrihana clan was heavy with silence. The air was tense. Kuzuki Shōrihana—their once hopeful candidate—sat in silence, eyes downcast. His father, Shirachi, patriarch of the clan, stood at the center of the room, his voice heavy with restrained fury.
"We all know what happened," Shirachi said. "This election… was stolen."
Murmurs of agreement rippled through the assembled clan members.
They had suspected foul play—and now, they were certain. Elder Onoki had manipulated the Daimyō through bribes, twisting the election in Arano's favor. It was a scandal. A betrayal of the democratic process.
But there was little they could do.
Even Shirachi knew that to act recklessly was to invite annihilation. Arano held power now—backed not only by the Daimyō, but by his own elite forces.
Most frightening of all was the emergence of a new covert unit under the Tsuchikage's direct control: the AB Division. Formed from the most loyal Anbu and personally selected shinobi, the AB were fanatically loyal. Created because Arano suspected infiltration in the regular Anbu corps, the AB's primary mission was to root out spies—Anbu who served their clans above the village.
Even now, they operated in silence, watching from the shadows.
And with Onoki and Han—both with Kage-level strength—on Arano's side, launching a rebellion was suicide.
Shirachi clenched his fists.
"For now, we wait," he said at last. "A time will come. And when it does—we strike."
Elsewhere – The Dorohai Response
The Dorohai clan had received word of the Shōrihana's suspicions. But Kotani Dorohai, their patriarch, refused to act.
"I won't risk civil war," he said. "Not after what we just survived."
Kotani understood what was at stake. A rebellion would tear Iwagakure apart—and open it to invasion from Konoha, Kumo, or even Suna. The Dorohai clan would stay neutral—for now.
Meanwhile – The Haishōri Legacy
Imano Haishōri, elder of the Haishōri clan, felt no such anger. His mood was celebratory.
His nephew—his blood—was now Tsuchikage.
Imano was no fool. He knew how the Daimyō had been swayed. But politics was never clean. What mattered was survival—and after losing nearly their entire clan during the First and Second Great Ninja Wars, the Haishōri could finally breathe.
The clan would live again.
At the Border – Shadows in the Forest
Far from the village, along the border between the Land of Earth and the Land of Waterfalls, a campfire crackled in the darkness.
Four rogue ninja—deserters from Iwagakure—huddled for warmth. Since the war ended, their crimes had caught up with them. With peace returning, the Tsuchikage had turned his eye toward eliminating such filth.
A kunai pierced the air—followed by an explosion.
Smoke filled the clearing. Two of the rogues were already dead. A third struggled to rise—only for the ground to turn to sludge beneath him. A figure leapt from the treetops, launching a searing fire jutsu that consumed him in a blaze of flame.
Only one escaped the initial attack.
But freedom was an illusion.
Four masked shinobi surrounded him—Anbu.
Desperate, the bandit formed a clone and charged, using it to deflect incoming kunai. A second clone let him break the circle, but it was too late.
One of the Anbu was waiting.
Hands flashed through seals. Rocks rose behind the masked shinobi—razor-sharp, chakra-hardened. With a final surge, the projectiles fired.
The bandit barely had time to blink.
Pierced from every angle, he collapsed—lifeless.
The Anbu leader stepped forward, adjusting his mask.
"Another group down," he said. "But this is far from over. We hunt until the last rat is flushed from the dark."
The masked figures vanished into the forest, the wind howling behind them.
Arano had chosen not to use the Anbu for political enforcement. He feared spies within their ranks. Until his AB Division completed its purge, the standard Anbu would be given only public missions—eliminating criminals, patrolling borders, and acting as messengers to other villages.
Secrets were dangerous things.
And in the Land of Earth, secrets were buried deep—under stone, blood… and silence.