Seeing Hanzo preparing to return, Anya and Kakuzu stepped out from the shadows.
Hanzo showed no surprise at their appearance and coldly snorted, "What? The two rats hiding in the darkness finally decided to come out."
"Rats?" Kakuzu's eyes narrowed as he stepped forward to confront Hanzo.
"What? Want to fight?" Hanzo charged toward Kakuzu with intense murderous intent.
Anya wisely took several steps back.
Their monstrous killer intents clashed midair like clashing blades—air thickened, pressure built, and invisible sparks seemed to fly as they stood deadlocked for a moment.
This greatly surprised Hanzo. After all, since the war began, the number of ninjas who had died by his hands probably already exceeded a thousand. Yet now, his murderous intent couldn't even overpower this sudden stranger. Who exactly was this person? How many people had he killed?
After maintaining this deadlock briefly, Hanzo proactively retracted his killing aura and asked solemnly, "Who are you? What is your purpose for spying on me in the shadows?"
Kakuzu didn't respond but instead turned his head to look at Anya.
Anya cheerfully stepped forward, saying, "We've long admired Lord Demigod's legendary reputation and came specially to witness it ourselves. Indeed, it's extraordinary. With just yourself, you've sent Sunagakure's ninjas retreating at every turn."
Receiving the compliment with a blank expression, Hanzo replied, "You've got quite the silver tongue, kid."
After finishing his smile, Anya became serious again, stating, "Lord Hanzo, however, your opponent has figured out the time gap needed for your toxin replenishment. The upcoming battle might become difficult."
"What? You specially came out here just to mock me?" Wearing a mask, Hanzo's gaze turned fierce. It didn't take much imagination to guess how terrible his expression must be right now.
Of course, Hanzo focused more attention on Kakuzu, whom he considered threatening. In his mind, Anya's words were clearly instructed by Kakuzu.
Anya shook his head, saying, "We naturally wouldn't be so bored. Actually, we mainly came to help you."
"Help me? With just the two of you?" Hanzo's tone sounded somewhat amused, obviously thinking that Anya was telling a joke.
Even Kakuzu shot Anya a glance filled with doubt and suspicion. Getting dragged into a national war wasn't what he'd been hired for. However, due to a tiny bit of trust he held for Anya, he restrained himself from speaking out loud.
Unfazed, Anya countered, "Forgive my frankness, but isn't the entire Rain Village resting on your shoulders alone?"
That question struck Hanzo like a thunderclap, shaking his confidence to its core, because he had no answer to offer.
Indeed, during the two previous battles, although he initially had the upper hand, as the fights progressed, Konoha had their Sannin while Sunagakure had Chiyo and her puppets. Neither village's Kage had personally intervened yet. This already spoke volumes.
After a prolonged silence, Hanzo finally asked, "How exactly do you plan to help me?"
Anya explained his improvised idea, "Very simply—we'll act as your emissaries to form alliances with other ninja villages."
"Alliances?" slightly surprised, Hanzo continued asking, "Alliance with which villages?"
"Just eliminate the ones that don't fit."
"Anya calmly reasoned, 'First, we can rule out Sunagakure. Leaving aside the fact that you're already at war with them, their geographical location is simply too poor — almost entirely desert territory, offering no real benefits for an alliance. Next, eliminate Konoha as well; after all, your battle has just ended. Even if you wanted to propose an alliance, they might not trust you anyway. Among the remaining three great villages, Kirigakure has always been isolated and closed-off, so we can temporarily set it aside. That leaves only Iwagakure and Kumogakure.'"
Hanzo shot back without hesitation, "Iwagakure will never ally with me. Its strength goes beyond anything you can imagine."
"Hmm?" Anya didn't even blink at being found out. It seemed like this guy knew some important inside information. Was Iwagakure really that powerful? He hadn't felt that way. After all, the Tsuchikage's position could be eliminated with little effort. Out of curiosity, Anya asked tentatively, "Could you elaborate a bit?"
Hanzo shook his head. "No. You haven't yet earned my trust. However, your suggestion did offer me a new idea. If you can bring me an official alliance proposal from Kumogakure, I'll tell you everything you want to know."
Clearly convinced by Anya's earlier argument, Hanzo had already made up his mind. His next ally would be Kumogakure, one of the Five Great Ninja Villages.
Anya didn't push further and simply nodded, saying, "Alright then, I'll take my leave first."
As he watched the two figures gradually disappear into the distance, Hanzo's eyes reflected deep thoughts.
Not long after they had left, Kakuzu coldly spoke up, "Kid, are you planning to change our destination again? Thinking about paying Kumogakure a visit?"
Anya smiled faintly and said, "Of course not. Showing up there would be like a walking ghost walking into a lion's den — they're not dumb. If I dared to show up there, I'd probably be captured by the Anbu."
"Then what was the point of chatting with Hanzo for so long? You're just wasting time," Kakuzu said, clearly annoyed.
"In wartime, intelligence always comes first. Just a casual chat like this doesn't waste much time at all," Anya replied casually. "It's a shame Hanzo kept his lips so tight. He only mentioned it briefly. But if what he said is true, then Iwagakure is hiding far more strength than anyone suspects."
Suddenly, Kakuzu spoke with firm certainty, "Kid, you're a ninja from Konoha, aren't you?"
Anya didn't even blink at being found out. After all, he had never intended to hide his identity. Smiling, he said, "Oh? Was I really that obvious?"
Seeing that Anya didn't deny it, Kakuzu instead relaxed slightly and casually responded, "Exactly as you said just now — it's simple elimination."
Well, looks like elimination works better than I thought.
Curious, Anya asked, "But whether you know which village I'm from should make no difference to you, right?"
"It makes no difference at all," Kakuzu agreed, "but speaking of Konoha, it reminded me of the very first Konoha ninja I ever fought."
He paused — that battle had changed his life forever.
"Who was it? And who won the battle?"
"Keep walking." Kakuzu cut off the conversation bluntly, clearly done with this line of talk.
Leaving the territory of Sanshouo Hanzo's area behind, the two quickly entered a vast desert. Unlike the ever-rainy Sanshouo Hanzo's area, here you wouldn't find any arable land or pastures for raising livestock. The environment was brutally harsh—no ordinary person could hope to cross such an expanse of desert to reach the village, so commerce naturally couldn't thrive here. Even basic supplies like water, food, and spices had to be transported over long distances by ninja using giant Puppets. Maybe that's also why Sunagakure cultivated the greatest Puppet masters in the Five Great Countries—purely shaped by its harsh environment.
The two dashed across the desert until Sunagakure Village was finally within reach. Kakuzu stopped and smirked, "Alright then, how're we sneakin' in this time?"
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