With the Hidden Stone Village and Kumogakure having ceased hostilities, the Ninja World's attention was now focused on the Land of Rain, just like the previous Great Shinobi War, except this time, the one confident enough to challenge the Five Great Nations single-handedly had changed from Hanzō to Yahiko.
When the major Hidden Villages learned that Konoha had dispatched the elder Homura Mitokado to the Land of Rain, it seemingly confirmed the rumors that Konoha was coveting the Rinnegan.
Furthermore, they discovered that the Yellow Flash and Jiraiya had not returned to Konoha and were likely also in the Land of Rain. Such a powerful lineup indicated that Konoha was absolutely determined to acquire it.
Confirming the authenticity of the Rinnegan, Ōnoki immediately sent Roshi and the Explosion Release unit to the Land of Rain, ensuring that Konoha would not be able to seize the Rinnegan.
The Third Raikage, however, was much more decisive, personally using the Heavenly Transfer Technique to go to the front lines, and then, accompanied by Dodai and the Two-Tails Jinchuriki, headed to the Land of Rain.
The Kumogakure was never one to miss out on acquiring Bloodline Limits, and they were determined to obtain the legendary power of the Rinnegan.
As for Sunagakure, Rasa merely had Baki lead a few Jonin there, solely to attempt to destroy the Rinnegan, as its acquisition by anyone would be detrimental to them.
Regarding the Hidden Mist Village, the Third Mizukage, controlled by Uchiha Madara, to avoid appearing abrupt, had Yagura lead nine Jonin from the Kaguya Clan, Yuki Clan, and Hozuki Clan to the Land of Rain.
Yagura had already begun to suspect that the Third Mizukage was being controlled and had been secretly contacting these three clans, intending to stir up trouble, primarily to confirm whether the Third Mizukage was truly under control.
An Kage being controlled by someone was truly an alarming matter, so caution was necessary. Yagura, using the slogan of abolishing the Blood Mist Village, had managed to rally a large number of people.
Now, the incident in the Land of Rain provided Uchiha Madara with an opportunity to send Yagura and the elites of several clans out. If they died in the Land of Rain, it would be even better.
Yagura merely had suspicions at present, and acquiring the Rinnegan was a legitimate order. Although he knew something was amiss, Yagura still had no choice but to lead his team to the Land of Rain.
To weaken Konoha, at Black Zetsu's suggestion, Uchiha Madara controlled the Third Mizukage to have the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist take the sealed Three-Tails to attack Konoha.
At this time, Konoha's defenses were weak, making it an opportune moment for an attack. If the Hidden Mist Village and Konoha were to fight, the Third Hokage would surely send Uchiha Rei to the Hidden Mist front lines.
At that time, he would have another chance to unite the major Hidden Villages to encircle and eliminate Uchiha Rei. Once Uchiha Rei was dead, no matter how chaotic the Ninja World became, he would still be able to achieve his goals.
The Null Organization behind Uchiha Rei and Ōtsutsuki Isshiki made Black Zetsu feel very insecure, like two venomous snakes coiled and ready to strike.
He had to find every possible way to remove one of them so that he could catch his breath. Otherwise, with the constant bad news, his mind would explode.
The Five Great Ninja Villages had all dispatched luxurious lineups. If they cooperated wholeheartedly, they could even conquer the Land of Rain. Unfortunately, this was a free-for-all where everyone was an enemy.
This was truly an all-star lineup. Once the fighting began, it would be a chaotic battle, far more exciting than the Third Shinobi World War.
Second Body received no instructions and naturally continued her Bloodline Limit transformation every day. Today was the day her Bloodline Limit was nearing completion.
The peculiar tingling and itching were not as unbearable as undergoing two Bloodline Limit transformations simultaneously, and her Chakra and physical attributes were slowly increasing.
Occasionally, Second Body's hair would even stand on end. Pakura observed all of this and naturally understood what was happening, once again marveling at Second Body's genius.
Including her Sharingan, Second Body now possessed three Bloodline Limits, something unprecedented in the Ninja World.
Anyone who married Uchiha Rei would be truly blessed, as their children would naturally inherit so many Bloodline Limits. Unfortunately, Second Body would not allow such a thing to happen.
On the Second Body's side, with the Great Shinobi War and the Land of Rain drawing most of the attention, the Land of Rice Fields naturally became peaceful, presenting an excellent opportunity for expanding influence.
The Great Shinobi War never lacked displaced people. The Second Body had the Eight Trigrams Eight Man Squad build a large city by a lake, absorbing these displaced people.
Then, they distributed improved seeds and established schools for civilian Ninja, laying a good foundation for future reforms, which would then spread from the Land of Rice Fields to engulf the entire Ninja World.
The Lord Daimyo of the Land of Rice Fields was still living a life of debauchery in the Tenshukaku, completely unaware that someone was about to overthrow him. He naturally understood the sudden appearance of the Hidden Sound Village.
He even thought that the Hidden Sound Village leader would, as expected, seek cooperation with him to establish a 'one village, one country' system. Then, with a strong arm, the Lord Daimyo of the Land of Hot Springs would no longer dare to arbitrarily encroach upon his territory.
Second Body had no intention of pledging allegiance to the Lord Daimyo of the Land of Rice Fields. In her eyes, he was merely a pig waiting to be harvested. However, winning the hearts of the people was the priority.
After learning that the Land of Rice Fields' tax system was eighty percent of ten, she once again felt the exploitation of the lower classes by feudal monarchs. If not for the Land of Rice Fields' favorable weather and fertile land, people would likely have starved to death long ago.
Unfortunately, with Ninja suppressing them, a commoner uprising would inevitably lead to certain death. A single squad of Chunin could suppress them all. How could a group of people with hoes defeat professional killer Ninja?
Around this city, named Sound City, Earth Release Ninja had cultivated large areas of fertile land. The city lord was naturally Second Body's Second Body, and it currently housed nearly fifty thousand people.
Sound City collected only sixty percent of taxes, which Second Body still felt was a bit high. However, to avoid drawing too much attention, she let it be.
A small kindness is remembered, but a large one can breed resentment. It was better to leave some leeway. The professional Ninja schools established trained both military Ninja and civilian Ninja.
The schooling lasted six years, with a split after the third year. Military Ninja joined the Sound City Guard, receiving salaries, while civilian Ninja joined various engineering units in Sound City, receiving wages.
Of course, they could also choose to be traditional Ninja, which offered more freedom. They would take missions from the mission guild, and Sound City would deduct forty percent of the mission bounty.
However, they wouldn't receive salaries and wouldn't be required to protect the land. During wartime, they could choose whether or not to participate in war missions.
Such policies naturally attracted many Rogue Ninja to join. Second Body accepted all comers. Currently, the Second Body was still perfecting the legal code, but there was also a security department responsible for public order.
Sound City had departments such as the Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Industry, Police Department, Military Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Justice, Supervisory Department, and Finance Department.
It was managed solely by the Eight Trigrams Eight Man Squad and Reina Uzumaki. Rather than a city, it was more like a city-state, currently thriving.
This was merely a pilot project. If there were no issues, it would naturally be implemented throughout the Ninja World after the revolution, and Daimyo and Kage would all be swept into the trash heap.
It was only due to the chaotic situation in the Ninja World that they could exploit this loophole. If the Five Great Nations had stricter control over smaller countries, Sound City might have been targeted for subjugation.
The Lord Daimyo of the Land of Rice Fields still didn't know that Second Body had already established her own domain within his territory. Anyway, he had Second Body's informants by his side, ready to use genjutsu to control him into abdicating at any time.
It wasn't the right time yet. Primarily, the Sharingan and Wood Release were still not to be revealed, and relying on Paper Release and taijutsu alone would not be enough to conquer the world.
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