The smoke of war was moments from igniting.
Rain Village, though vastly outnumbered, realized it could not assassinate Emperor Jircniv directly.
Under Hanzo of the Salamander's orders, they immediately returned to their old specialty—assassination.
Elite jōnin and special jōnin teams slipped in and out of Imperial ranks, targeting officers one after another, shattering the Empire's morale before the two sides had even formally clashed.
Rain's string of clean, surgical kills left even Fluder unable to protect everyone.
A large number of mid- and high-ranking officers fell in rapid succession.
Three Knight-Captains died.
Nimble, the last loyal member of the Four Knights, was also assassinated.
Lady Lenessia, the final survivor among the Four Knights, defected in fear of death.
The losses forced Jircniv to order an all-out decisive battle on the open plains.
But Hanzo, who had only gained confidence through assassination victories, had no intention of throwing his precious shinobi into a front-line meat grinder.
He dissolved his formations, reverting fully to stealth warfare—poison, ambush, infiltration—tormenting Jircniv to the point of collapse.
Yet the Bloody Emperor was no fool carved from clay.
With the help of Fluder's 3rd-Tier Magic: Astrologia — Information Scrying, he pieced together the exact structure of Rain Village's assassination squads.
He then ordered Imperial knight legions to pretend to pursue Rain Village openly, drawing Hanzo's attention toward the main army—
while secretly mobilizing counter-assassination squads to hunt Rain's jōnin teams.
The effect was immediate.
For the first time since the invasion began, Rain Village suffered major losses.
More than thirty jōnin squads were ambushed; thirteen jōnin were killed outright.
Nearly eighty chūnin squads, reinforced with outside shinobi, were completely wiped out.
This brutal blow stunned Hanzo.
A third of his elite jōnin, gone in a single day—
and almost ten percent of his chūnin as well.
His three thousand Rain-nin, once arrogant and eager, were now shaken to the core.
"Damn you, insects!"
Even through the toxin-filter mask covering his face, a faint purple poison mist leaked out as Hanzo exhaled in fury.
Nearby shinobi felt their scalps tingle—
even a jōnin who inhaled that mist would lose half their skin if not their life.
"Strategic command! Get in here!"
A Nara strategist—one Rain Village had paid a fortune to hire from Konoha—stepped forward and bowed under the crushing pressure.
"Rain Shadow-sama, our current priority is to regroup.
The Empire merely caught us off guard.
In terms of true fighting capability, we still hold the upper hand."
Hanzo forced his rage down and studied him.
"Speak. How do we regain momentum?"
The strategist understood immediately:
This was a test.
If he passed, he kept his position.
If he failed, he would be sidelined—and return home humiliated, shaming both himself and the Nara Clan.
He took a breath and began:
"Rain Shadow-sama, the Supreme Leader once taught the military the four tiers of strategic warfare."
Everyone straightened, including Hanzo.
The strategist continued, proud to recite words that all major shinobi leaders now treated as doctrine.
"'The highest form of warfare is strategy.
Next is diplomacy.
Then comes open battle.
The lowest form is attacking fortified cities.'"
Hanzo nodded slowly, comparing the framework to their current situation.
The strategist pressed on:
"Rain Shadow-sama avoided the two lowest strategies—direct battle and siege—
and instead chose assassination to erode the enemy's morale.
That is worthy of a true Kage."
Hanzo allowed himself a small, satisfied breath.
The strategist then delivered his central point:
"Rain Shadow-sama, the Empire's Court Wizard, Fluder, has strength equal to a shinobi Kage.
Among us, only you possess the power to defeat or kill him quickly."
He continued:
"To break this stalemate, we must abandon subtlety and act openly.
Gather all elite jōnin.
Strike directly at the Emperor's location.
Kill him—and the war ends instantly."
A second strategist interrupted:
"It is not that simple.
Fluder can use teleportation magic.
If we slip for even a moment, the Emperor will escape."
"And the Emperor has increased his personal guard.
We can't even pinpoint his current position."
The room murmured in agreement.
Only Hanzo stayed calm, waiting for the Nara strategist to finish.
The strategist smiled knowingly.
"Teleportation magic has counters.
And we need not know where the Emperor is…
if we strike where he must appear."
He tapped the map.
"Outmaneuver what the enemy expects.
Strike where they must defend.
If we seize the Empire's greatest vulnerability, the Emperor and Fluder will come to us."
He raised his voice:
"Look here—
The Empire has seventy thousand soldiers massed on this line.
Including support personnel, over one hundred thousand mouths must be fed."
"One large city cannot support such consumption.
Their supply lines—the grain depots—are their lifeline."
He spoke with crisp confidence:
"If we seize their food stores, the Imperial army will either:
—collapse from starvation,
—or devour itself in internal conflict."
"In either case, the Emperor will be forced to appear.
When he does, we hold all the advantages—
and the Empire becomes tomorrow's conquered kingdom."
Hanzo clapped lightly, approval clear in his eyes.
"Well said.
We may not know where the Emperor hides—
but the Emperor knows exactly where we are."
He rose, his presence filling the tent.
"Enemy hidden, we in the open?
Then we march with righteous force.
We either force the Empire to split its army…
or sit still and await its own destruction."
"Prepare to move.
We strike the supply depots."
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