"I just don't get it! Why do we have to team up with those shameless, stinking snakes from Ryuchi Cave? This is a total disgrace for Mount Myoboku's holy status!"
On the westernmost edge of the Ninja World, in the Savage Lands, a ninja frog lying on its back on some coastal rocks was ranting out loud, "How could we possibly benefit from sticking with them?"
"Stop talking nonsense! If the elders hear you, you're gonna be in deep trouble!"
Another ninja frog quickly jumped in to stop him.
"Let a frog talk! It's not like the world's gonna end or anything... Fine fine, I'll shut up."
The first frog finally gave in when he saw the murderous glare from his companion. Though the others remained silent, they were clearly very unhappy inside too.
After all, for these ninja frogs who had grown up surrounded by rich natural energy at Mount Myoboku, even going to the relatively energy-poor Mainland—Ninja World—was already quite unbearable. Now they were stuck in this barren wasteland with absolutely no natural energy at all.
Known as the Savage Lands, this area lies further west beyond the westernmost point of the Ninja World mainland—a dead sea scattered with desolate rocks.
Legend says that during ancient times, this region, along with what was once called Wind Country, used to be fertile lands full of life. Before the term Ninja World ever existed, the world was a paradise teeming with living creatures, and the ninja frogs of Mount Myoboku were merely one intelligent species among countless others—powerful indeed, but not yet claiming the title of Holy Land.
Everything changed when extraterrestrial beings arrived, causing massive upheaval across the world.
Natural energy rapidly declined, followed by countless White Zetsus hunting down every sentient species except humans. Then came the rooting of the God Tree, and the land itself began to wither away, losing its ability to produce natural energy.
No one knows how many centuries passed before the time when the Sage of Six Paths and his followers rose up against their invaders, sealing away the alien beings.
But during this rebellion, one continent could no longer withstand the strain—it crumbled into pieces, forming today's Savage Lands.
The once-thriving continent sank beneath the waves, leaving only a few hills rising above the ocean's surface. Over thousands of years of seawater erosion, these remnants hardened into nearly indestructible rocky outcrops. Perhaps due to lingering effects from that ancient war, the entire area remains completely lifeless—not even marine creatures like fish, shrimp, or crabs—or even microscopic life like plankton or amoebas—can be found!
So, just imagine how intense the psychological pressure must be for staying in a place like this.
But that wasn't even the worst part—after all, hardship could always be endured.
What really upset the frogs was having to coexist with their ancestral enemies: the ninja snakes of Ryuchi Cave!
And even that might've been bearable, considering both sacred places—Mount Myoboku and Ryuchi Cave—had officially ended hostilities and restored peace. But the problem was, the snakes sent by Ryuchi Cave were behaving totally inexcusably!
"Darn it! Those cursed snakes are killing each other again!"
Suddenly, the air filled with an awful stench of blood. A ninja frog sniffed the air and pulled a grimace, muttering curses under its breath.
"Tsk tsk..."
Other frogs also grumbled continuously, sighing heavily, morale plummeting to rock bottom.
The White Snake Sage of Ryuchi Cave, after meeting with Great Sage Toad of Mount Myoboku, honored his promise by sending fifty thousand Ninja Snakes to assist in the defense of the Savage Lands. He also placed Lady Shichima, one of the Sanjinki of Ryuchi Cave, in command of the detachment.
At first, hearing the news left the Mount Myoboku toads feeling uneasy, but they still welcomed the Ninja Snakes' arrival.
After all, fifty thousand Ninja Snakes was an incredibly powerful force. Even if Mount Myoboku counted every single toad—including those without sentience like the Stone Toads—it couldn't muster such numbers.
So, even though the toads figured Ryuchi Cave had probably padded their numbers, they still sank into despair once they saw what kind of Ninja Snakes these actually were!
Out of the fifty thousand so-called Ninja Snakes, at least forty-nine thousand were regular venomous snakes! Although their poison was fast-acting and deadly, they remained ordinary snakes nonetheless!
Forget about sentience or communication skills—these snakes didn't even have a trace of *Chakra* energy around them. They were practically no different from any wild snake found in the wilds!
To top it off, these common poisonous snakes weren't even used for defense or battle. Instead, they served as snacks or pastime entertainment for the larger Ninja Snakes!
The talking Ninja Snakes would casually slither into the snake pile whenever they pleased, grab one of the smaller snakes, and eat until their mouths were dripping with blood before curling up contentedly for sleep!
What's worse, due to their lack of intelligence, these snakes regarded the toads of Mount Myoboku as large prey sources. So it wasn't rare for them to try hunting and even devouring the Ninja Toads!
Since they were fundamentally incompatible, both sides decided to part ways. Henceforth, the Ninja Snakes of Ryuchi Cave and the Ninja Toads of Mount Myoboku divided the area into two separate zones to avoid interfering with each other as much as possible.
Yet despite this arrangement, the bloody stench caused by the Ryuchi Cave Ninja Snakes eating one another often spread over to the territory of the Ninja Toads, making the toads feel nauseated every time they caught the scent.
"You guys can stay here if you want! I'm leaving!"
After vomiting several times, one Ninja Toad finally couldn't take it anymore. It climbed out of the seawater and hopped off into the distance.
Although this action clearly looked like abandoning its position, none of the other toads said anything.
For toads accustomed to the pure natural energy of Mount Myoboku, this environment was simply too unbearable!
"I can't take it anymore! Can't take it!"
Soon after, a few more toads grumbled loudly, got up, and jumped away in frustration.
"Sigh…"
The remaining toads sighed deeply as they stayed on guard.
They had no idea how much longer they could hold on in this hellish environment.
However, as the Ninja Frogs gradually withdrew from their defensive positions, the originally well-constructed defense line quietly revealed a noticeable gap. This gap resembled a narrow fissure, positioned exactly at the boundary between the defense zones of the Ryuchi Cave Ninja Snakes and the Mount Myoboku Ninja Frogs. It became a temporary gray area—one side ignored it, the other overlooked it—ultimately turning into a weak spot in the entire defensive system.
Yet this crack in the defenses was still within visible range, so neither the Ninja Snakes nor the Ninja Frogs took it seriously.
After a long journey, Hizashi Hyuga, accompanied by his loyal subordinates, finally arrived at the newly built Ninja Force camp on the western borderlands of the Land of Wind.
Following the same camp principles established during the Ninja Clan Capital Corporation era, the camps scattered along the coastal lines of the Mainland - Ninja World maintained a zoned layout design. The living quarters, Ninja Tool manufacturing zones, storage areas, and frontline watchposts were all fully equipped. Furthermore, to prevent the stationed ninja from becoming overly bored, the builders spared no expense in constructing multiple gardens around the premises.
In addition, since the expedition to Mount Myoboku required crossing the sea over a long distance, piers, ship repair yards, and small docks were also constructed along the coastline. With more than two thousand Shogunate ninja and two thousand Suna mercenary ninja now stationed there, the camp remained quite lively.
"This is my camp."
Looking down at the bustling crowd below while standing on the cliff behind the camp, Hizashi's heart was filled with complex emotions.
Moving from the fertile and prosperous eastern regions of the Land of Fire to this desolate beachside land, such a transformation was certainly unsettling.
Well, there's no use crying over spilled water—might as well roll up my sleeves and get to work.
After all, Hizashi had, intentionally or unintentionally, allowed his trusted subordinates to conduct covert activities in the past.
Before long, the camp's supervisor instantly appeared before him using Body Flicker technique.
"Good day, Commander Hizashi! We've been eagerly awaiting your arrival!"
Appointed as the supervisor responsible for constructing the camp, Mitotou Takahiro was once an old subordinate of Hyuga Soushu. However, he did not take advantage of his seniority to act high-handedly toward Hizashi, nor did he appear excessively obsequious. Instead, he maintained a completely professional and formal demeanor.
After all, his status was firmly established; although he hadn't risen to a high rank due to lower combat capabilities, merely being part of the First Directly Commanded Units alone was sufficient to maintain his prestigious position within the Ninja Clan Capital Corporation and even the Shogunate system.
"Good day, Jonin Takahiro."
Hizashi replied quite politely.
He always went by the rule: Don't punch the guy who's smiling at you. Besides, his so-called commander role here would indeed require support from these senior figures.
Moreover, nobody could tell whether Mitotou Takahiro might also be secretly carrying out other hidden missions—such as keeping close surveillance!
"Allow me to show you around. I'm sure the camp could use some of your valuable insights, Commander Hizashi."
Maintaining his strictly professional tone, Takahiro proceeded to lead the newly arrived Hizashi and his entourage into the camp.
After touring the entire camp, Hizashi felt like he'd gotten a fairly clear picture of things.
His task was also very straightforward—stationed at the camp, he served as rear support for the scouting fleet and bore responsibility for the camp's defense.
In other words, even once future expeditions began, he would still only be in charge of logistics from behind the lines.
To be honest, this kind of job was just busywork—hard work with little reward. It was relatively important and came with considerable authority, yet ultimately felt tasteless to hold onto and a shame to abandon.
"Since I'm here now, I might as well settle down and do my job."
After receiving the camp duty assignment chart provided by Mitotou Takahiro, Hizashi Hyuga began placing his subordinates one by one, seizing control over critical areas such as intelligence, document handling, and warehouse operations.
As for those sensitive responsibilities involving military management, performance evaluations, and camp fund expenditures, he deliberately avoided touching them, allowing existing staff to continue their duties unchanged.
This somewhat surprised Mitotou Takahiro, because according to his expectations, Hizashi's first action upon taking office should have been to seize military authority.
"Hizashi, are we really going to just accept things like this?"
After the original camp personnel had left, one trusted Jonin hesitantly asked.
After all, none of them had expected to end up with only these high-sounding but not particularly crucial positions.
Moreover, there was a common trait among the posts assigned to them—they wouldn't lead to any real accomplishments, nor would they bring any blame.
In short, even a trained chimp could handle it.
Such positions were definitely not beneficial for personal growth.
"Don't think too much about it; matters that carry taboos are better left untouched!"
Hizashi replied without even lifting his head: "Besides, settling down calmly is most important."
"Yes sir."
The loyal Jonin officers had nothing further to say.
After all, part of the reason why Hizashi had been demoted to this forsaken place was due to their own recklessness.
With the camp established and the Ninja Force gradually arriving, two distinct ideological trends quietly emerged within the Ninja World.
Some people secretly spread rumors that the Xianren (immortal sages) from the Holy Place couldn't bear to see civilians suffering in the Ninja World, so they intended to personally intervene and restore order to its rightful place. Naturally, this rhetoric directly targeted the Seii Taishogun's Shogunate, since everyone knew the Shogunate existed specifically to defeat the so-called Holy Place.
Yet, to some extent, this rhetoric did mislead certain individuals, especially remnants of forces defeated and dismantled by the Ninja Clan Capital Corporations who showed particular enthusiasm for it.
However, various Hidden Leaf Villages and other ninja villages remained largely indifferent. In their eyes, the so-called Holy Place was nothing more than a gathering ground for powerful summoned beasts. Claiming themselves as Xianren was simply an attempt to elevate their status, so they didn't take these claims seriously.
Meanwhile, another ideological trend called for humanity to expand its living space, uniting efforts toward overseas exploration and expansion to obtain more resources for sustaining human society in the Ninja World.
Of course, this originated from intellectual factions within the Shogunate itself, representing the expeditionary ideology of the Seii Taishogun—the Shogunate would stop at nothing to hunt down and completely eliminate any anomalies, no matter where they hid!
Alongside this human expansion theory came other popular ideologies like Human Supremacy, the belief that non-humans are tools to be used, and the "Revere the King and Expel the Barbarians" doctrine—all of which found ready acceptance among the ninja population.
"The Ninja World has become far too constricting! That's why chaos and warfare have raged since the Ninja World's Warring States period!"
Inside the office of the Tsuchikage in the Hidden Rock Village, Third Tsuchikage Onoki flipped through intelligence reports while sighing, "Redirecting the power of war toward an unknown enemy—Hyuga Soushu really plays his moves well."
During the Shogunate's propaganda campaign, a seemingly fresh ideology advocating unity across the entire Ninja World also emerged.
In other words, the future of the Ninja World requires collective effort from all ninja working together toward expansion.
This is the ninja world's heavenly mandate!
Yet to Onoki, it was clearly Hyuga Soushu's ploy to sway public opinion and seize control over the entire Ninja World.
"Creak"
Just then, his eldest son Kitsuchi entered directly without knocking, pushing the door open himself.
"What absurdity are you rattling off now! How come I knew nothing of this?"
Onoki immediately glared angrily.
"Tsuchikage-sama, we've received a coordination letter from the Shogunate. We believe it's in our best interest to join this expedition."
Kitsuchi ignored his father's scolding entirely, speaking formally instead.
"What coordination letter? Why haven't I heard about this? And how could you decide something like this on your own?"
Instantly, fury flared within Onoki.
"It is the unanimous resolution of the Jonin Unit!"
Kitsuchi declared solemnly, "Also, Kumo and Konoha have already committed their forces to this campaign. Iwagakure must not lag behind!"
"What nonsense are you spouting! Since when did I not know this?"
Onoki exclaimed in shock.
"It is the unanimous resolution of the Jonin Unit!"
Kitsuchi emphasized each word, "This represents Iwagakure's will—the unbreakable Stone Will!"
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