At this moment, the sword hanging at the waist of the green-haired man named Aoi was none other than the infamous Sword of the Thunder God. Of course, the name was mostly just to scare people; in reality, it wasn't a particularly powerful weapon. It certainly couldn't be classified as a "Divine Artifact".
At best, it was a potent chakra weapon.
The fact that it was snapped in half in the original story was the best proof of this. While that was partly due to Aoi's limited personal strength, it was enough to prove that the weapon itself wasn't fundamentally overpowered—it was simply famous because the Second Hokage had once used it.
However, it was indeed exceptionally suited for ninja with Lightning Release chakra. In terms of conducting lightning, it possessed a unique power.
This was why, although the Hidden Leaf had issued a bounty and sent personnel to hunt Aoi down, they had never truly gotten serious about it. If the Sword of the Thunder God were truly that important or terrifying, things would have been different.
If nothing else, a guy like Danzo Shimura absolutely would not have sat idly by while such a weapon was lost to the outside world.
However, in the eyes of ordinary ninja, the sword was quite intimidating, both in reputation and power. For a guy like Aoi, equipping this weapon boosted his personal strength enough that he could barely be considered on par with a Jonin.
It was precisely for this reason that Suien was wary of Aoi; the extra glances he took when Aoi approached were the best proof of this caution.
---
"So it was just a misunderstanding? That's for the best. By the way, how are preparations for the plan coming along? Our Rain Village has gone all out to answer Suien-san's invitation this time. I truly hope Suien-san won't let us down. Otherwise, the consequences for both of us won't be very pretty," Aoi said.
Although Aoi appeared to be smiling, the naked threat in his words caused Suien's expression to shift. Suien revealed a grim look of his own and snorted coldly.
"You don't need to worry about that, Aoi-san. Everything is under control. Now, we are simply waiting for the right moment".
"Oh? Is it going that smoothly? It seems Suien-san's methods are truly superb. Then I can rest easy. Once the plan is successfully completed, I trust Suien-san will honor the promises made previously," Aoi replied.
Aoi didn't care in the least about the dissatisfaction Suien was deliberately showing. He would do exactly as much work as he was paid for. This was the rule of the ninja villages, and the nature of ninja themselves. As the commander of the Rain forces this time, Aoi naturally needed to triple-check the terms.
"Relax. As long as I successfully ascend to the position of Leader of the Hidden Waterfall, all the conditions I agreed to will be met without issue!" Suien waved his hand broadly, speaking with apparent arrogance.
"Then I'm relieved," Aoi said, nodding with a look of satisfaction. "We will proceed according to the original plan. Allow me to congratulate Leader Suien in advance!".
Aoi smiled slightly, using a tone that sounded like flattery.
"Heh, I'll take your word for it, Aoi-san." Suien narrowed his eyes, his voice carrying a subtle, indescribable undertone.
---
Following that, the two discussed and supplemented a few tactical details locally. After repeatedly confirming the operation's time, location, and most critical objectives, Aoi left the area at high speed, taking his dozens of subordinates with him.
It wasn't time to launch the total assault yet.
This was partly because preparations weren't fully sufficient, but more importantly, the "lure the tiger from the mountain" phase of Suien's plan—the most critical part—hadn't been realized yet.
The Hidden Waterfall Village was, after all, the top-tier existence beneath the Five Great Ninja Villages. It possessed a force of three to four thousand ninja. While most were usually distributed across the country on patrol or executing missions in other nations, there were still nearly a thousand ninja remaining in the village.
If they were foolish enough to launch a direct attack, the spit alone from that many ninja would be enough to drown them.
Therefore, before the real operation began, a group of people had to be transferred away. Not all of them—that would be unrealistic and detrimental to the plan—but Suien needed to move a large portion of those loyal to Shibuki.
As for the remaining Waterfall ninja who weren't necessarily close to Suien but wouldn't blindly follow Shibuki either? That would be enough.
Shibuki had virtually no prestige in the Hidden Waterfall Village. Suien knew this better than anyone. If Shibuki possessed even half the prestige of the previous leader, Suien's plan would be impossible to execute.
But now?
"I told you, I would definitely make you regret this, Shibuki... and you, you old ghost Satoru!".
Watching Aoi and the others leave temporarily, Suien's eyes revealed a look that was incomparable in its coldness and malice. This former high-ranking official of the Hidden Waterfall had completely descended into obsession.
---
"Lord Suien, is it really okay to ally with the Rain Ninja? After all, we still have to..."
After Aoi led the Rain Ninja away, the horse-faced Waterfall ninja who had arrived with Suien earlier approached quietly. After hesitating for a moment, he looked at Suien with worry and asked the question.
This wasn't a new concern. It had appeared the moment they learned their boss intended to ally with the Hidden Rain.
Although this faction of Waterfall ninja under Suien was dissatisfied with Shibuki's leadership and wanted to push their own boss to the top—so they could gain more power and higher status—colluding with external forces was still very likely to cause discontent among some of them.
It always felt a bit like "selling out the country for glory". No normal person could accept that easily.
The situation in this life was completely different from the original story. Suien hadn't truly defected from the Hidden Waterfall in the sense of leaving alone; instead, he was attempting to seize the throne, and he had a group of subordinates supporting him.
In fact, it wasn't just the issue of allying with the Rain. There was also the issue of the defection itself.
The subordinates led by the horse-faced ninja couldn't understand it. Wasn't this kind of "defection" just alerting Shibuki and his group? Was it really necessary to do this?
They could have just seized power directly once preparations were complete. By staging a defection now, hadn't they created a problem regarding their status? It seemed like purely asking for trouble.
But little did they know, Suien hadn't wanted to do it this way either. He had been forced by the situation, and to some extent, he had made an error in judgment previously.
However, Suien could never say those words out loud.
Sometimes, as a "leader," even if you made a mistake, you had to grit your teeth and stick with it, never admitting fault. Could Suien really admit in front of his subordinates that he also felt his choice to defect was a mistake?
To do that would be stupidity on top of stupidity.