Starting with rogue ninjas, building the insect kingdom.

Chapter 230 Hanzo's obsession with the existence of the Land of Rain runs too deep.

After the three left, the masked ninja returned to the tent, removed his mask, and revealed a young face—it was none other than the second-generation strategist, Amatsu.

He stood aside, looking at Hanzo the Salamander, who had been watching the three leave from outside the tent, and asked in confusion, "My lord, are we just going to let them go like that?"

Hanzo didn't answer, but simply watched silently until the three figures completely disappeared into the rain before he slowly spoke: "What else?"

"My lord, I truly do not understand. They are nothing but a bunch of ignorant and arrogant children. With them causing such a ruckus, where is the morale of the army?"

In my opinion, they should be arrested and locked up for a few days to calm down, or simply driven out of the Land of Rain to avoid causing trouble here.

"If we chase them away, will they never come back?"

"They'll come back," Hanzo the Salamander said with absolute certainty. "Even if you drive them away, they'll still stay here because there's a war here. Whether it's tomorrow or the day after, they won't give up so easily."

Yu She frowned: "Why are you so sure, sir?"

"Because Yahiko isn't someone who gives up easily."

He entered the tent, sat cross-legged at the low table, and gestured for Yu She to sit as well.

Yu She sat down as instructed, but still looked puzzled: "My lord, if I may be so bold as to ask, why do you value them so much? Those three are just..."

"What are they? Just a few arrogant kids?" Hanzo sat there imposingly, slowly saying, "Ayase, what do you think our Land of Rain lacks right now?"

Yu She wanted to answer that they lacked manpower, money, food, and weapons, but after thinking about it carefully, he couldn't bring himself to speak.

These things can be cultivated gradually, and they are not afraid of this war, after all, they have a solid ally behind them.

"We lack none of that," Hanzo of the Salamander answered for him. "With me here, Amegakure has no shortage of money, food, or allies. But what it lacks most is the next generation!"

Hanzo stood up, walked to the tent entrance, looked at the rainy night outside, and his voice carried an indescribable emotion.

"I am fifty-three years old this year. Although the secret medicine keeps my body in peak condition, your life will eventually come to an end, and some things do come at a price."

Of course, he wasn't talking about body-strengthening elixirs; those things are theoretically tonics and wouldn't cause any harm to his body.

However, he had experienced hundreds or even thousands of battles decades ago, accumulating far too many hidden injuries. Although these injuries had been healed by secret medicine, the lifespan lost in the past could not be made up for.

Even if he has no more hidden injuries and is fully healed, he can only live for a dozen years at most, given his current physical condition.

But after his death, who will take over the Land of Rain, and who will take over the Hidden Rain Village?

Given his current situation, there is no one, no matter how much he develops education or how many people he searches for ninjas across the country, he still cannot find a genius who can be trained into a top-tier expert.

Although the Land of New Rain and the Land of Takiyu are allies, he knew that he would die sooner or later, and there would be no successor. At that time, the only outcome for the two countries would be that they would be annexed by the Land of Taki.

Because Kakuzu of the Land of Waterfall is not a kind person, and the strategist Shiraki, who has not shown his face much, is not someone to be trifled with.

Hanzo the Salamander harbored a deep-seated conviction: he did not want his Land of Rain, like the former Land of Grass, to be completely wiped out from the world.

If he could, he wanted the Land of Rain and his name to endure forever, even if he were no longer alive, he wanted his country to continue to be passed down.

This is the obsession of a powerful nation, and the intense obsession of a citizen of the Rain Kingdom!

Suppressing his emotions, Hanzo the Salamander walked back to the low table and sat down, his fingers lightly tapping the surface.

"All three of them are geniuses in the ninja world. Yahiko, although he is terrible at everything else, he has a natural leadership quality."

That quality that inspires spontaneous following among those around you and commands trust from strangers—that's something you can't teach; it's innate.

"Lord Hanzo, I don't deny that they are geniuses, but their ideas are too naive! No matter how talented they are, they are not worth nurturing."

Hanzo the Salamander suddenly laughed and said, "Naive? Who hasn't been naive at some point? Do you think I was born Hanzo the Salamander? Do you think I never believed that words could change everything?"

Yu She was stunned. He had never imagined that this demigod, who was renowned throughout the ninja world, had such a past.

Hanzo the Salamander picked up his teacup and drank it all in one gulp: "Military skills can be learned, political maneuvering can be practiced, and understanding of war can be honed through experience. These are not problems."

"The real question is whether one has the heart to take on all of this, and—and the strength to take on all of it."

"So to put it bluntly, it's because I'm not talented enough, and my skills aren't good enough." Yu She lowered her head and complained to herself, immediately grasping the key point.

Alas, it seems that in this world, strength is what truly matters. No matter how capable or resourceful someone is, it's all just empty talk in the face of power!

At this moment, Yu She lamented in his heart, why wasn't he a genius? If he had even the slightest chance to become a Shadow-level expert, he would have dared to jump out and say, "I can, I can bear all of this!"

Unfortunately, he struggled to even become a Jonin, as the missions he carried out relied heavily on his intelligence, with very few methods of direct combat.

He might be able to win against an ordinary Jonin with his intelligence, but against a top-tier expert, all his scheming would be in vain.

After a long silence, he collected his thoughts and asked, "Does Your Excellency intend to train them?"

Hanzo the Salamander nodded: "Refinement is one aspect, but more importantly, let them see with their own eyes what real war is like."

"Jiraiya taught them a lot, but Jiraiya was, in the end, an idealist. What he taught was like a fairy tale, too idealistic."

I want to show those three that peace isn't something you can talk about, it's something you have to fight for.

Mutual understanding? Ha, wait until they witness the true cruelty of war, until they discover that some people are impossible to communicate with, and that it's all about life and death. I'd like to see if they can still talk about mutual understanding then.

At this moment, he had completely forgotten what Shisei Aburame had said, because he desperately wanted the Land of Rain to continue.

Therefore, someone had to take over his position, and Yahiko, Konan, and Nagato were gifts from heaven.