When the main Iwa-nin force arrived, Hajime only offered brief resistance. He maneuvered through the Daimyō's residence in the Land of Birds for a while, then decisively retreated. Leaving the estate, he feigned a withdrawal eastward, giving the impression that they were fleeing back toward the Land of Rain.
However, by that evening, just as it seemed they were about to be surrounded from both front and rear, Hajime suddenly doubled back. With terrifying stamina akin to having seven mouths, he tore through the Iwa-nin formation and forcefully broke through, heading straight back toward the Daimyō's residence.
The Iwa-nin turned around and gave chase again.
They pursued, and Hajime fled.
After arriving once more at the Daimyō's residence, Hajime then led his team south.
At dawn the next day, he launched a direct incursion into the Land of Wind.
At the same time, the first wave of Iwa-nin forces had already spread across the Land of Rain.
In Amegakure, Hanzō was momentarily stunned when he received the news.
He had launched his campaign targeting the Land of Rivers, and he never imagined that the first to take action wouldn't be Konoha or Sunagakure—but Iwagakure instead.
Steady as ever, Hanzō immediately began gathering intelligence to figure out Iwa's true intentions.
It wasn't until Hajime entered the Land of Wind that Hanzō finally extracted information from a captured Iwa-nin:
It turned out that someone had sent forces into the Land of Birds and even briefly taken control of the Daimyō's residence there.
Upon hearing this, Hanzō's expression darkened.
He'd been set up!
There was no question—those weren't his people.
Then who could it have been?
Sunagakure? Or Konoha?
As the thought crossed his mind, one shadowy face immediately surfaced in his memory.
Danzō!
"Bastard!"
Hanzō ground his teeth.
Just like that, his entire plan was thrown into chaos.
He had originally been most wary of Konoha and Sunagakure—especially the former.
Never in a million years did he expect Iwagakure to stab him in the back first.
Now, if he were to pull troops from the direction of the Land of Fire to deal with Iwa, wouldn't Konoha seize the opportunity to strike?
Hanzō was certain—they absolutely would.
In fact, this whole incident might be Konoha's doing, designed precisely for this outcome.
Lowering his gaze, Hanzō quietly weighed the pros and cons.
He couldn't move the forces guarding against Konoha.
Then what about pulling back the forces from the Land of Rivers?
But Hanzō was reluctant.
He was this close to claiming the Land of Rivers. Just a little more time and it would be his.
If he succeeded, he could control both the Land of Rain and the Land of Rivers, giving him the leverage to contend against Iwa, Konoha, and Suna.
Yes.
Even before acting, Hanzō had anticipated that once he made a move, the Three Great Villages would respond.
So he had mentally prepared for this.
But clearly, plans can't keep up with changes.
With just one move, Danzō had placed Hanzō in an impossible dilemma.
After pondering in silence for a long while, Hanzō opened his eyes and made his decision.
"Kuroame, pass the order: have the Rain-nin withdraw back to the village."
"As long as the Iwa-nin don't attack the village, don't engage them."
"Also, you're to lead a squad to the Land of Rivers and assist Chikao. Make sure we take the Land of Rivers by the end of this year."
Though Kuroame had some doubts, he nodded without hesitation. "Understood!"
…
"Hanzō is actually pulling back his forces?"
On the border of the Land of Wind, Hajime was a bit stunned when he received this intel around noon.
That doesn't add up.
Hanzō should still be in his prime. His combat strength was at its peak, and the title of "Demi-God" wasn't just for show.
And yet he'd backed down from Iwagakure? And even withdrew the forces guarding against Konoha?
That was very unusual.
This wasn't the same as the Third Great Ninja War era.
Hajime remembered that Hanzō once fought three elite ninja villages alone, and even clashed with the samurai of the Iron Country—General Mifune had nearly lost his life to him.
"To retreat at this moment… what will Iwa do?"
Hajime pondered.
If he were Ōnoki, would he be able to resist the temptation to seize the Land of Rain while it was vulnerable?
If not—
Then Sunagakure might still prioritize the Land of Rivers for now.
But Konoha…
Konoha would never allow Iwa to get away with it.
If Iwagakure takes the Land of Rain, then the Land of Grass becomes vulnerable.
At that point, the Land of Fire would lose all its natural buffers.
Should war break out in the future, the battlefield would be brought straight into the Land of Fire itself.
That was something neither the Fire Daimyō nor Hiruzen Sarutobi would ever accept.
As Hajime continued to analyze the situation step by step, he gradually understood Hanzō's strategy.
"One, he wants to take the Land of Rivers first and establish a stable base."
"Second, he's deliberately avoiding a direct clash with Iwagakure, instead trying to draw Konoha into the fight—forcing Konoha and Iwa to clash first."
Hoshita silently pondered: "Hanzō's first cost in this strategy is the devastation of the Land of Rain… but that land clearly isn't as valuable as the Land of Rivers."
"Even if he trades the Land of Rain for the Land of Rivers, it might still be worth it."
"What's more, it's likely he hasn't truly abandoned the Land of Rain. He's spent years building up its foundation—it'd be foolish to throw it away so easily."
"Once Konoha and Iwa exhaust themselves, and he secures the Land of Rivers and holds off Sunagakure, he can turn around and retake the Land of Rain…"
Damn.
Hanzō really isn't someone to be underestimated.
Hajime couldn't help but glance toward the direction of Iwagakure.
...
Iwagakure – Tsuchikage Tower, Conference Room
The upper echelons of the village were all present.
Information from the Land of Rain had just come in.
Hanzō had withdrawn his forces, and it was now known that the Rain-nin who had infiltrated the Land of Birds were most likely impostors from another village.
Ōnoki's face was stormy.
He'd been played!
Now that the situation in the Land of Birds had stabilized, should they withdraw?
At that moment, the senior leaders were engaged in a heated discussion.
"This is a perfect opportunity. If we take the Land of Rain, we can then move into the Land of Rivers. That would make our village the most powerful in the entire ninja world!"
"Konoha and Suna definitely won't sit by and do nothing. If we push forward, we'll definitely end up going to war with them."
"That whole Land of Birds incident was clearly orchestrated by Konoha! Are we just supposed to let it go? We lost several jōnin because of it!"
"Sunagakure likely won't confront us directly. Their main focus should still be the Land of Rivers."
"Exactly. Right now, we have a clear advantage in the Land of Rain. Giving that up would be far too weak-hearted."
…
Ninety percent of the Iwa high command supported continuing the assault.
Even if the Land of Birds incident wasn't Rain-nin's doing, it had to be now.
That narrative was what justified their presence in the Land of Rain.
How could they abandon such a perfect excuse for war?
Not to mention—they already held the upper hand.
Ōnoki swept his eyes across the room. After a couple of coughs, the chatter fell silent and everyone turned to him.
"The lives of our comrades must not be wasted in vain."
"Our village also needs more missions."
"The plan to attack Amegakure remains unchanged. In addition…"
Ōnoki said grimly, "Find the ones responsible for the Land of Birds incident. I don't care if they're Rain-nin, Konoha-nin, or Suna-nin."
...
Konoha – Hokage Office
Sarutobi Hiruzen furrowed his brow as he read the intelligence coming from the Land of Rain.
Konoha had not only dispatched Root operatives, but also ANBU to gather information and monitor the movements of both Amegakure and Iwagakure.
But the way things had developed was clearly outside of their expectations.
The plan had been to let Iwa and Rain tear each other apart first—but now Rain had backed down.
Danzō said in a low voice, "Hiruzen, that Ōnoki bastard… he absolutely won't let this opportunity slip away."
"We can't let Iwa take the Land of Rain."
"That bastard Hanzō might be willing to abandon the Land of Rain—but we can't."
Sarutobi set down the intel sheet and nodded. "I understand."
"Where is Hajime's group right now?"
Danzō replied immediately, "At the border of the Land of Wind."
Sarutobi nodded again and said, "Then have them strike from behind Iwa's forces, and coordinate with our main front!"
A hint of satisfaction flickered in Danzō's eyes, and he nodded. "That will indeed allow them to be used to maximum effect."
Sarutobi stood up. "Then it's decided—we go to war."
"Danzō, lead the Root division into the Land of Rain first to gather intel. The advance force will depart within three days."
Danzō gave a firm nod, and in the next moment, his figure vanished.
After Danzō left, Hiruzen Sarutobi continued issuing orders.
One after another, ANBU operatives carried out his commands—including a directive to recall Jiraiya, who was traveling abroad.
...
December 5th, Year 36 of the Konoha Calendar – Night
Land of Birds Border
A Root ninja swiftly entered the wooden cabin. "Captain, orders from Lord Danzō."
Seated cross-legged, Hajime reached out and took the paper, quickly scanning through it. A smile crept onto his face.
The restraints had finally been lifted!
He had been enduring the pressure of being hunted by Iwa-nin for days, and he had plenty of pent-up frustration to vent.
Seeing Hajime smile, the Root ninja couldn't help but ask, "Captain, is Lord Danzō ordering us to withdraw?"
Hajime shook his head. "No."
"The village has decided to go to war. Our forces will soon enter the Land of Rain, and our mission is to coordinate with the main battlefield by harassing Iwa's rear lines."
"From this moment on, we are no longer masquerading as ninja from other villages—we are elite operatives of Konoha's Root Division."
"Crow, go inform the others. Let them rest well tonight. The battles to come will be far more intense than anything we've faced so far."
The Root ninja with the codename Crow stiffened, then nodded firmly. "Understood!"
After Crow left, Hajime turned his gaze to his Status Bar Panel.
It was just about to refresh.
Though truth be told, he was a little reluctant to part with the status called "Chatterbox".
Its firepower was insane.
Without it, he felt his offensive capabilities would definitely take a hit.
"I wonder if future states will be something like All-Seeing Eyes, or even Three Heads and Six Arms…"
His thoughts drifted.
Midnight came quickly.
The status panel refreshed right on schedule.
> Current Status: Wolf's Heart, Dog's Lungs
> Note: Literally. Your heart is like a wolf's—powerful and aggressive. Your lungs are like a dog's—granting superior endurance and lung capacity.
> Refresh Countdown: 167:59:55
Hajime's face darkened instantly.
That's just rude!
Sure, he aspired to be Root's leader—but that was after pushing Danzō into becoming Hokage, wasn't it?
Sure, he wanted to be the kind of man who could become Hokage someday.
But Danzō can't keep playing the role of "Fake-Kage" forever—he had to step down sooner or later, right?
So how does that make him "wolf-hearted and dog-lunged"?
Slander!
Absolute slander!
Hajime nearly jumped to his feet.
As for the small boost granted by this new status, he didn't care in the slightest.
He wasn't about to actually transplant a literal wolf's heart or a dog's lungs into his body just to solidify the effect.
Shaking his head, Hajime reined in his emotions and took a moment to reassess himself:
Wood Release Techniques,\
Dual Tomoe Sharingan,\
S-Rank Hypnotic Genjutsu,\
S-Rank Wind Release,\
Mastery of Kenjutsu,\
and powerful regenerative ability.
All of this combined firmly placed him at the level of an elite jōnin, perhaps even quasi-Kage level.
He recalled the time he had used Wood Dragon Jutsu while controlling the Eight-Tails Jinchūriki.
Wood Release had enormous potential still waiting to be tapped.
He couldn't yet dream of True Several Thousand Hands, of course…
But with Sage Mode support, he definitely needed to master Wood Golem Jutsu.
"Once I master Wood Golem Jutsu, I'll definitely have a solid footing at the Kage level."
Hajime thought to himself.
Of course, by "Kage level," he was referring to the standards of the Five Great Shinobi Villages.
That said—
Even now, the potential of Wood Release was clearly visible to him.
Without something like the Nine-Tails as an external chakra source, reaching the heights of Hashirama Senju was impossible.
"…But still—could my current body handle the Rinnegan?"
The thought surfaced uncontrollably in Hajime's mind.
(End of Chapter)
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