"How many people are there, and who is leading them?"
Homura Mitokado asked anxiously.
"About a thousand, but the leader is Hanzo!" the Hyuga ninja replied.
Hanzo is leading the team!
Uchiha Gen said slowly, "Elder Homura, it seems the ace spy in Root is in danger."
"Hanzo might have suspected something long ago."
"This standoff between the Hidden Rain and the Hidden Stone is real, because only a thousand Rain ninjas came while the main force is still facing the Stone."
"But it is also fake, because Hanzo definitely intended to take this opportunity to bring his elites here personally."
"He is acting as the fisherman while we and the Sand have just finished our battle."
Among the heroes of the world, none who can leave their name behind and stand at the peak are simple.
Especially a fierce man like Hanzo of the Salamander, who rose from the grassroots of a small country to reach the pinnacle of the ninja world.
With the strength to compete with the current Five Kage, his power, temperament, and intelligence are all top-tier.
Right now, Konoha has just fought a grueling battle with the Sand's main force and suffered significant losses.
If they don't rest and reorganize in time, Hanzo's surprise attack might truly cripple the Konoha army while snatching the spoils of war.
"The wounded haven't been settled yet, but the ninjas whose combat power remains intact have regrouped."
"Should we stay and fight Hanzo head-on to preserve our spoils, or organize a steady retreat to preserve our strength?"
Homura Mitokado once again looked toward Orochimaru for advice.
"Can we even retreat?"
"If Gen hadn't reminded us in time, our only choice now would be to organize a retreat for the main force while leaving an elite team behind to cover the rear."
"But Hanzo is among the enemies, and Elder Homura is seriously injured."
"Relying on just the three of us, we have no absolute certainty of stopping Hanzo," Orochimaru spoke indifferently.
Uchiha Gen's heart stirred at this moment.
The three of them staying behind to cover the retreat and fight Hanzo?
Could this be the battle that made the Sannin famous in the original timeline?
In the original history, the Sannin couldn't defeat Hanzo, but the battle was earth-shattering.
It caused Hanzo to appreciate their talent, choosing to let them live and bestowing the title of the "Legendary Sannin" upon them before forming an alliance with Konoha.
That version always seemed to give Hanzo too much credit, adding to his legendary aura.
Where would a serious ninja get "appreciation for talent" from, especially for an enemy?
Hashirama Senju was an exception; he really did show mercy to Kakuzu.
In Gen's view, "appreciation for talent" was just a pretext.
The real reason Hanzo chose to stop and ally with Konoha was Konoha's strength.
The power shown by the Sannin made him realize that if he cooperated with Konoha, their combined force would be enough to expel the other two villages from the Land of Rain.
After that, he appeared before Konoha as a victor and a powerful ally.
He possessed the confidence to maintain the Land of Rain's independence by using Konoha's influence against the other Great Nations.
This secured a long-term peaceful environment, giving him time to stabilize his country, train ninjas, and select successors.
From the perspective of the original timeline, Hanzo's move was actually quite successful.
It allowed the Land of Rain to avoid the cruelty of the Third Great Ninja War and extended the peace for a long time.
But Hanzo also failed, as he was unfortunately dragged into the plans of Madara and Black Zetsu regarding Nagato.
He became the first "boss" to pressure Nagato, meeting his end early and failing to leave his mark on the later story.
But now, the direction of the story seems to be shifting slightly because of the changes I've brought?
"You mean we should stay here and fight a defensive delaying action against the Rain ninjas?" Homura Mitokado asked again.
However, Orochimaru shook his head.
"If we stay here, once the Salamander's poison gas is released, there will be heavy casualties."
"The optimal choice is to gather our high-end combat power and take the initiative to attack."
"This way, we can divide the battlefield and dispatch a force strong enough to block Hanzo."
"Even if we are exhausted after one battle, the Rain ninjas only have a thousand men."
"As long as we can stop Hanzo, the outcome is still uncertain."
"Take the initiative to attack, huh—"
Homura Mitokado looked at Orochimaru and asked, "How much certainty do the three of you have?"
He was currently injured, and while he hadn't lost his combat ability, the main burden of facing Hanzo would fall on the three who were in better condition.
"The certainty of winning isn't high, as Hanzo is too strong."
"But the certainty of not losing is over sixty percent."
"Even if the battle goes poorly, we have the ability to stall him."
"Once the main force has finished reorganizing, it won't be difficult to organize a retreat."
Orochimaru's voice was calm, but there was a hint of heat in his eyes.
Whether it was him, Tsunade, or Jiraiya, their strength had already reached a minor bottleneck.
They were experts close to the Kage-level and were still young.
After another few years, it wouldn't be difficult to take the next step.
But if there were enough pressure to serve as a whetstone, the training effect would be far more useful than daily cultivation.
Every top expert in the ninja world has been tempered through a hundred battles and countless life-and-death struggles.
Hanzo is the undisputed pinnacle of this era.
As an enemy who won't hold back, he is the best whetstone for them.
Fighting him will show them the gap between themselves and a peak expert, revealing which weaknesses they need to fix.
"Then, I'll leave it to you! I will open a gap on the frontal battlefield," Homura Mitokado said solemnly to the three.
Even if he was injured, his foundational strength was still there.
While he couldn't compare to the monsters at the top, he was more than enough for those below him.
"No time to lose, we'll set out first!"
Tsunade withdrew her hand, which was glowing with green light, from Homura.
She looked high-spirited, and a hot fighting spirit surged in Jiraiya's eyes as well.
"Let's go!"
Orochimaru's raspy voice rang out, and three figures vanished instantly with the crack of a Body Flicker Technique.
"Let's go as well."
"If we can crush the Rain's army in the shortest time possible, it will be the greatest support for Orochimaru and the others," Homura Mitokado sighed.
"This was the result of an error in intelligence."
"But fortunately, we reacted quickly enough at the last moment and still have a chance of winning."