The Land of Rain.
Once gloomy, damp, and desolate land now appeared completely transformed.
Hanzo stood atop a high-rise, gazing at the city expanding wildly before him.
Elevated roads stretched onward, while new waterways, energy pipelines, and ecological zones were continuously reshaped by the roots of the World Tree.
Vibrant, almost fantastical buildings rose one after another.
This was no longer the impoverished, war-torn Land of Rain he remembered.
Instead, it was a new world being entirely rebuilt into a Pokémon Nation according to Shiroishi's logic.
On the streets, children chased after Piplup.
In front of shops, Psyducks stood dazed, holding drinks with tilted heads.
Trainers patrolled the roads, accompanied by Spearow and Machop, carrying out their duties.
Even high above the city, flocks of Pidgeot could be seen cruising.
In just a few months, the number of Pokémon within the Land of Rain had reached an astonishing scale.
Although most were still in their juvenile forms, as the assimilation of World Tree Chakra progressed,
they would awaken more traits and skills, much like Ninja Beasts.
Hanzo looked down at the latest ecological report in his hand—a newspaper.
Registered Pokémon species in the Land of Rain: 302.
Foreign ecosystems requiring development: 547 species.
(Necessary to establish ecological zones in other nations.)
A deep sense of awe stirred within Hanzo.
"Now it seems... the Land of Rain truly is isolated from the rest of the Shinobi World."
The outskirts of the Land of Rain were now encircled by the Life Belt transformed by Xerneas, while above, Yveltal tore through the sky, forming a Dark Isolation Layer.
With a power almost "mythical" in scale,
Shiroishi had forcibly reshaped the Land of Rain into an independent utopia.
With this thought, Hanzo descended from the building and entered the new city district.
On the bustling streets, pedestrians and Pokémon mingled and moved about,
creating a scene so lively it bordered on surreal.
He even spotted a former Rain Ninja, now a Trainer trainee, holding a Red-White Ball and instructing ordinary students on how to throw it at a nearby Oddish.
Noticing Hanzo, the former subordinate paused. "Lord... Hanzo."
His tone still held respect.
After all, nominally, Hanzo was the first chairman of the Pokémon League.
But everyone knew it was merely a courtesy title granted by Shiroishi.
The true decision-makers resided within the World Tree.
Hanzo now held no real authority.
Yet he felt no anger, only a soft sigh.
His gaze fell upon the Red-White Ball.
"So this is... the Sealing Scroll they've introduced?"
The subordinate nodded. "Yes, it completely replaces traditional Sealing Techniques. Anyone can use it easily."
Hanzo took the Red-White Ball.
Pressing the button lightly, the mechanism clicked, expanded and contracted, lights alternating.
The internal Chakra structure of the sealing formula was far more complex than any conventional logic in the Shinobi World.
"...I see."
He then glanced at the temporary price sign beside them:
Red-White Ball Price: 350 Ryo
Hanzo's breath hitched for a moment.
"So... cheap?"
"Lord Shiroishi has streamlined the factory production, and one million units have already been manufactured."
One million.
This number exceeded Hanzo's expectations.
Compared to the past Land of Rain, the current Land of Rain seems to possess exceptionally strong industrial capabilities?
In the past, only a few elite ninjas could use Sealing Scrolls.
Now they have become ordinary commodities that anyone can purchase.
"Several new species of Pokémon have been developed, allowing for large-scale industrial production of Red-White Balls."
This was also recorded in the newspapers.
Hanzo slowly opened his eyes, gazing at the Pokémon, Trainers, Red-White Balls, and the roots of the World Tree running through the streets.
This was not the world he knew.
Nor was it a world he could stop.
He was truly eliminating the ninja system—Shiroishi wasn't merely changing the country.
He was altering the course of the Shinobi World.
Inside a massive factory in the Land of Rain.
The interior of the Pokémon Factory was unimaginably vast.
The ceiling soared dozens of meters high, resembling a giant metal dome.
Various mechanical tracks crisscrossed, with assembly lines extending from the upper levels down to the ground like steel veins.
What was most astonishing wasn't the machinery itself, but the Pokémon moving between them.
Magnemites hovered in the air, emitting stable blue psychic currents,
maintaining precise synchronization throughout the entire factory.
Magnetic fields propelled cargo containers loaded with batteries, while a group of Pikachus provided power behind them.
Another batch of Magnemites formed neat queues on the tracks, emitting buzzing electrical sounds.
Scizors handled metal plate cutting with precision resembling advanced robotic arms;
Tiny bell-like Pokémon floated at the center, their striking sound waves continuously providing rhythmic signals to the factory,
ensuring perfect coordination in every production segment.
Deep within, a fully automated assembly line glowed with crimson light.
Red-White Balls were being produced in an endless stream.
Mechanical arms descended, coatings sprayed, sealing arrays activated, Chakra cores loaded, pressure tests conducted, and balls rolled out.
Red-White Balls, batch after batch.
Sliding off the end of the assembly line like raindrops.
Orochimaru walked alongside Shiroishi through the factory's main passageway.
Orochimaru's pupils slightly contracted—though he had witnessed all kinds of Forbidden Techniques, technologies, monsters, and Ninja Beasts in this world...
The scene before him still evoked an unfamiliar tremor within him.
"Truly astonishing..."
Orochimaru's gaze fixed on the entire row of floating Magnezone.
"This place... this scale... and it's only been such a short time?"
Behind him, several Magneton formed orderly queues,
their rapidly rotating magnetic fields creating sharp humming sounds, almost like performing a metallic symphony.
Shiroishi stood with his hands behind his back, expression calm yet resolute:
"The current Land of Rain can no longer be considered a traditional Shinobi World nation."
He looked up at the glowing Pokémon in the air:
"This is a nation belonging to Pokémon, a new ideal land."
"The Ninja Beast system of the Shinobi World is too backward, too cruel. The Pokémon system is more stable, more civilized, and better suited for the future."
He pointed at the flowing production line before them:
"This is the foundation of the new world. Sealing Techniques, Ninja Beast research, industrial systems... all have been reconstructed."
Orochimaru closed his eyes,
carefully sensing the Chakra and electromagnetic waves flowing through the air.
He raised his hand, and a freshly manufactured Red-White Ball gently landed in his palm.
Shiroishi said calmly, "Perhaps in the future, the people of the Shinobi World will grow restless."
Orochimaru chuckled, "You think they're afraid—afraid of all this changing the rules of the Shinobi World, afraid of a civilization they cannot control, afraid that the future will no longer belong to ninja."
After a moment of silence, Orochimaru suddenly laughed, "Heh... I actually find it quite interesting."
Shiroishi gazed into the distance at the World Tree Root Veins:
"The Land of Rain is only the beginning."
In the factory, Red-White Balls continued to roll down.
The pulse of a new era was beating here.
"However, what I want to discuss today is the construction of Ecological Zones in other countries."
The concept for the Ecological Zone construction was derived from the wild area model of ZA.