Chapter 467: Man proposes, God disposes

The war between the Sand Village and Konoha could not be hidden from the eyes and ears of other forces in the ninja world.

One was that it couldn't be hidden, and the most critical point was actually that Konoha didn't think about hiding it at all, but directly chose to make it public.

After all, the war between Konoha and the Rain ninjas had not yet subsided, and the news of the Sand Village’s defeat could also put a certain amount of pressure on Hanzo of the Salamander.

Sure enough, the news that the Sand Village elder Chiyo took the initiative to seek "peace talks" with Konoha’s White Fang soon reached the nearby Land of Rain.

"Drip, drip, drip..."

It was still rainy weather; in such humid and cold weather, I am afraid any ninja from a foreign country would find it unbearable.

But for the Rain ninjas who grew up in the rain curtain for generations, they felt particularly close to such weather.

Land of Rain, in a secret valley, the atmosphere was vaguely somewhat oppressive.

Countless ninjas wearing black rubber raincoats knelt on the ground, all facing one direction, their expressions serious.

In the air, except for the sound of raindrops falling, there was no other movement.

A Rain ninja raised his head slightly and looked forward, the expression in his eyes vaguely somewhat worried.

Not long after the last night raid operation, this was the second time Hanzo of the Salamander had gathered large-scale combat power, and the news of the Sand Village’s defeat was now known to everyone within the Rain ninjas.

How could they not know that the reason the Rain ninjas could maintain the situation was that the Sand Village had restrained a large amount of Konoha’s combat power on the Land of Wind battlefield.

And now, the Sand Village’s defeat meant that Konoha was likely to further free up its hands and send more combat power to the Land of Rain.

Not long ago, the Rain ninjas had just suffered a great defeat, and now the bad news of the Sand Village’s defeat came again; for a time, the morale within the entire Rain ninja force was extremely low.

And at this juncture, Hanzo of the Salamander suddenly gathered all the Rain ninjas; there was no need to speak, his thoughts were already obvious.

The Rain ninjas, who had been forced into a corner, seemed to have only one last option left besides surrender—to fight to the death with all their might!

At this moment, many Rain ninjas had already made such a determination in their hearts.

"Step, step, step."

Under the rain curtain, a man with long ink-green hair walked over; his footsteps were unhurried, appearing particularly heavy in such an environment.

Every step he took seemed to step on the hearts of all the Rain ninjas.

Hanzo of the Salamander walked to a high platform; this high platform happened to be located directly in front of all the Rain ninjas.

Standing on the high platform, Hanzo of the Salamander looked down at all the Rain ninjas below with calm eyes.

At this very moment, let alone the Rain ninjas, even Hanzo of the Salamander himself felt extremely oppressive.

Even he did not expect that the Sand Village side would be the first to fail to hold on.

Thinking of the old woman he had fought before, Hanzo of the Salamander couldn't help but feel anxious for a moment after learning this news.

Why was she so energetic when fighting him, but became a "soft-footed shrimp" when facing a nameless Konoha junior?

But anger was anger, what could he do?

How could Hanzo of the Salamander not know that placing hope on others was originally an act of the weak.

But knowing this was not the kingly way, what could he do?

Konoha was powerful, far beyond Hanzo of the Salamander’s imagination.

This was a foundation deposited over dozens or hundreds of years, not something that one or two "demigods" could forcibly turn the tide on.

Compared to the five major ninja villages, the Rain ninjas were originally just a minor stream.

With the Rain ninjas’ meager size and combat power, being able to reach this step today was already a miracle.

Hanzo of the Salamander himself had already done his best; how could this matter be blamed on him?

It could only be said that the saying was good: man proposes, God disposes.

This failure was not a crime of war.

Actually, last night, hearing the news of the Sand Village’s defeat, it was not that Hanzo of the Salamander had not thought about a way out.

But he did want to "retreat," but where should he retreat to?

Thinking carefully, the Rain ninjas didn't even have the capital to surrender.

After all, the Sand Village was one of the five major ninja villages, with a deep foundation; whether it was the Tailed Beast or the Third Kazekage himself, who had not appeared on the battlefield, it was enough to explain the problem.

Even if they lost, the Sand Village could lose with dignity, and Konoha would not dare to treat the Sand Village too harshly, at most asking for some war reparations.

And the Rain ninjas?

If he also sought "peace talks" like Chiyo, what kind of fate would await him and the Land of Rain next?

Don't forget, the original intention of Hanzo of the Salamander launching the war was to lead the Land of Rain toward independence.

If he really surrendered like Chiyo, I am afraid that for all eternity, the Land of Rain would never be able to turn over.

Thinking of this, a sense of powerlessness emerged in Hanzo of the Salamander’s heart again.

Although he thought this way in his heart, his face was still extremely serious.

Things had reached this point, there was no point in saying more, only by completely letting go and fighting could there be a glimmer of a chance to breathe... He naturally also knew that the hope of fighting with all his might was actually extremely slim.

But some things, even if they knew they couldn't be done, had to be done. Living on one’s knees was clearly not in Hanzo of the Salamander’s choices; only "dying on one’s feet" could be considered to fit Hanzo of the Salamander’s identity as a "demigod of the ninja world" and a generation of heroes.

As of now, Hanzo of the Salamander was about to make the final mobilization for the Rain ninjas to launch the final counterattack.

"Everyone, I think everyone understands the situation."

"The Sand Village has already surrendered to Konoha; it is foreseeable that the situation will only become more severe."

Hanzo of the Salamander scanned the Rain ninjas below, his expression very solemn.

Hearing Hanzo’s words, the Rain ninjas looked at each other; although they had thought that Hanzo of the Salamander would announce the current situation, they didn't expect Hanzo of the Salamander to be so direct.

"So now, our only glimmer of life is that we must win quickly."

"Before Konoha’s reinforcements arrive, take the initiative to open up the situation and defeat the Konoha ninjas in front of us!"

"So I have decided to use the entire strength of the Rain ninjas to launch a general attack on Konoha!"

Hanzo of the Salamander said with a calm expression, his tone carrying an irrefutable determination.

"This..."

Hearing this, the Rain ninjas were discussing it for a while, and many Rain ninjas even had expressions of resistance.

Actually, this matter was not difficult to understand; although the Rain ninjas’ fighting will was not bad, coupled with Hanzo of the Salamander’s constant presence, the Rain ninjas did not flinch when facing ninjas from major countries.

The reason the Rain ninjas still found it difficult to confront ninjas from major countries head-on was actually because of their lack of strength.

And before this, the Rain ninjas’ battles against ninjas from major countries were mainly based on assassinations and small-scale battles.

This was not because the Rain ninjas didn't want to finish it in one battle, but because they simply didn't have the ability.

Facts proved that compared to combat power and basic quality, the Rain ninjas were still far inferior to ninjas from major countries.

But no matter how strong the fighting will of the ninjas was, after continuously fighting against the three major ninja villages of the Sand, Stone, and Konoha, it was difficult not to feel tired and weary of war.

If they could beat Konoha head-on, the Rain ninjas would have already gone up; why bother waiting until now?

And now the situation was not good, and they still had to attack strongly; wasn't this seeking their own death? Therefore, the Rain ninjas were naturally restless, and the anti-war sentiment began to permeate within the Rain ninjas.

Furthermore, the Rain Ninjas had just suffered a crushing defeat, and with morale currently low and no hope in sight under the present circumstances, anti-war sentiment began to spread among them.