In the world of shinobi, the Land of Rain is arguably the most chaotic region in existence, whether in times of peace or war.
Leaving peacetime aside, during the Second and Third Great Ninja Wars, this place was a complete quagmire of disorganized combat. If one were to vote for the nation that suffered most from the flames of war, the Land of Rain would likely win by a landslide—a fate dictated entirely by its geography.
The surrounding powers are complex. To the north, south, and east, the Land of Rain shares borders with the Land of Wind, the Land of Earth, and the Land of Fire. These are the Three Great Nations whose Hidden Villages the Hidden Rain generally cannot afford to provoke, yet habitually does anyway.
To its other sides, the Land of Rain borders smaller nations like the Land of Birds, the Land of Rivers, and the Land of Grass. These nations generally cannot defeat the Hidden Rain—especially a place like the Land of Rivers, which lacks a Hidden Village entirely.
However, whenever the Great Nations strike at the Rain, these small neighbors are all too happy to join in and take a piece.
In terms of raw strength, the Hidden Rain is a "small" village, but under the leadership of its current head, Hanzo of the Salamander, its collective power is the highest in the world outside of the Five Great Hidden Villages. They can easily crush other small nations, but a massive chasm still separates them from the Big Five.
Hanzo is a man of both immense strength and wild ambition. He is deeply dissatisfied with his and his village's standing. His activity in the world wars can be seen as a bid for the status of "Kage"—an attempt to force the world to recognize the Hidden Rain as an equal to the Five Great Villages.
Such a feat is nearly impossible. To most, Hanzo's ambition is mere delusion. The "Five Kage" represent the absolute pinnacle of nearly a hundred thousand shinobi worldwide. The leader of a minor village, regardless of strength, is never addressed as "Kage."
Even if a reckless leader claimed the title, the Great Nations wouldn't recognize it, and likely, even their own shinobi wouldn't buy into the lie.
Hanzo failed in the Second World War. And looking at the Third, he is on the verge of failing again.
The Border between the Hidden Leaf and the Land of Rain.
The rain falls incessantly; the atmosphere is far from cordial. It is a torrential downpour—the kind that happens every other day in this country.
Deep within a dense forest stands a remarkably thick tree. From the outside, it looks no different from its ancient neighbors. In reality, it is hollow.
This is a hidden outpost. Currently, three Leaf shinobi are hunkered down inside. Suddenly, the camouflage covering the entrance is pulled aside, and a fourth ninja steps in.
This is one of the Leaf's reconnaissance units: Squad Hagoromo. It has been seven days since Hagoromo and his companions arrived at the front.
"No danger after all. The trap was just triggered by a wild rabbit," Asuma said as he stepped into the hollow. He carefully reset the camouflage at the entrance before lifting a plump grey rabbit in his hand. It was a fatty; their next meal was about to get a serious upgrade.
The interior of the tree was surprisingly spacious and well-hidden. Since the squad discovered it, it had become one of their primary operational bases.
Ultimately, Squad Hagoromo had followed the Hokage's orders to the front for reconnaissance. Even though they lacked a specialized sensory ninja and had to rely on their legs, the mission was non-negotiable.
They weren't entirely blind, however. Hagoromo possessed a decent mid-range detection capability, but for long-distance scouting, he was largely useless. Even using a summon to fly was futile here; his natural vision had limits, and in the perpetual downpours of the Land of Rain, naked-eye visibility was abysmal.
Another member, Aoba Yamashiro, had some long-range scouting ability through his own summoning techniques, but it was far from reliable. To ensure the mission's quality, the squad had to constantly scramble across the designated sector.
Reconnaissance and infiltration are among the most dangerous duties. In ordinary human warfare, scouts are the elite of the elite. Shinobi scouts are the same; they must be able to see the enemy while also possessing the combat power to survive the discovery.
This is why the Hyuga clan is perfect for this: they see far, they have X-ray vision, and they are lethal in a fight.
Hagoromo's squad, however, consisted of a Genin Genjutsu specialist (Kurenai Yuhi), two fresh Chunin (Aoba and Asuma), and a fresh Chunin captain (Hagoromo). They were young and, by traditional standards, in over their heads.
The fact that the Third Hokage was willing to put his own son in such a high-risk squad near enemy territory spoke volumes about his commitment to the war. If he was willing to die for the village, his son was no exception.
The hollow tree was stocked with supplies: rations, medicine, and tools. After each sweep, they returned here to rest. They had several such caches scattered throughout their sector to ensure that being discovered at one location wouldn't leave them empty-handed.
Outside, the rain hammered against the canopy, the sound of water hitting mud filling their ears. The temperature was dropping. Inside, they kept a small fire going. The smoke was heavily filtered and dispersed into the storm; unless someone was standing right on top of them, they wouldn't be found.
And if someone did get that close, the squad's perimeter alarms or Hagoromo's personal senses would pick them up first. That was how the rabbit had ended up as dinner—if Asuma had been reckless enough to go hunting for fun during a border mission, he'd be better off moving to Mars; the ninja life wouldn't be for him.
"Check your gear and douse the fire. We're moving out immediately," Hagoromo said, ignoring Asuma and his rabbit.
Today's mission was high-risk. According to the orders, they were to move parallel to the border before making a sharp ninety-degree turn to cut directly into the Land of Rain.
They wouldn't be going deep, but they were officially entering enemy territory.