At the end of Konoha's fifty-fourth year, the ninja world had entered the second year of a new era.
In the history classes of future ninja academies, some would mark the unification of the ninja world by the Land of Fire as the beginning of this new era. However, most would consider the year Kain became the daimyo as the true starting point.
The development of the Land of Fire was clearly visible—roads were being constructed, bandits and robbers eliminated, and landscapes reshaped.
The first major reform was in agriculture.
A dedicated department was established to oversee agricultural production, manage grain varieties, and guide farming practices.
The Land of Fire, already a major grain producer, saw production increase nearly eightfold after the reforms took hold. The phrase "Ninja Granaries are overflowing" was no exaggeration.
Industrial infrastructure also surged forward, driven by the direct involvement of ninjas.
Earth Style users could construct roads dozens of times faster than ordinary workers. Once ninjas stabilized and leveled the terrain with Earth Style, laborers would pave the surfaces with asphalt.
Alongside roads, railway construction began, though at a slower pace and in limited areas.
Konoha's ninja forces were overwhelmed with mission requests, creating a backlog due to the limited number of available shinobi.
Nawaki and Hyuga Hiashi were particularly troubled by this. Eventually, Hiashi took initiative and allowed a large number of Hyuga branch house members to register officially as Konoha shinobi.
He then used this act as leverage to persuade other clans. While the Ino–Shika–Chō trio and the Sarutobi clan remained neutral, several other clans agreed to send additional family members to join the village.
The Uchiha clan contributed fewer members, still preferring their traditional role as the village's guard force.
Though Kain—the new daimyo of the Land of Fire—had been missing for over a year, his policies remained in place.
Most had yet to be fully implemented, but their foundations were solid. In his absence, his wife Kushina acted as regent, overseeing the administration.
Before leaving, Kain had handed over full authority to Kushina, instructing her to act only as a supervisor.
With assistance from the Red Queen's data analysis and forecasting, any underperforming minister whose results deviated significantly from the expected standards could be easily identified and dealt with.
Thanks to the support of Aya and others, Kushina's workload remained manageable. Aside from occasionally teasing young Naruto, she spent most of her time quietly overseeing the internal affairs of the Land of Fire.
Before his death, the former daimyo had commanded his guardian ninjas to swear allegiance to Kain. Now, those same loyal protectors served Kain unwaveringly. In his absence, they followed Kushina's orders without hesitation.
However, Kushina rarely called upon their services. Only when punishing corrupt officials or dealing with rogue nobles across the country did she dispatch the guardian ninja—and even then, her kind-hearted nature meant she forbade unnecessary killing.
More often than not, the guardian ninja's role was simply to punish and deter.
If it were Kain, those officials would have had their homes ransacked and been exiled on the spot.
During such a critical and intense period of reform in the Land of Fire, their interference was intolerable. Anyone watching might think they had Rinnegan to save themselves from the consequences.
In addition to punishing corrupt officials and nobles, the guardian ninjas were also tasked with protecting Naruto. Whenever Kushina had to leave to handle affairs, Naruto was typically surrounded by no fewer than twenty elite ninja.
As for Kushina herself, she needed no protection. Even without relying on her alchemical items, the perfect Jinchūriki's tailed beast cloak alone made her nearly untouchable—there were few techniques in the ninja world capable of piercing it.
The Land of Fire's economy continued to flourish, and this inevitably affected neighboring countries. Civilians from other nations who chose to emigrate to the Land of Fire were granted official civilian status.
They not only received financial subsidies but were also provided with housing and employment opportunities.
Even if Kain spent all the accumulated wealth of the Daimyo's estate and the Kain Chamber of Commerce in a single year, the Chamber could earn it all back without difficulty.
However, this rapid economic growth was not welcomed by the surrounding smaller nations.
The Land of Waves, the Land of Tea, and half of the Land of Hot Water had already been nearly overrun by the economic reach of the Kain Chamber of Commerce.
Even as the Land of Hot Water realized that its domestic economy was collapsing, it lacked both the vision and the strength to respond effectively.
The Lands of Grass and Rain remained relatively independent, with their respective hidden villages driven by ambition.
Though they noticed an increasing number of civilians defecting to the Land of Fire, their only recourse was to close their borders—there was little else they could do.
The Land of Rain, in particular, faced worsening circumstances. Hanzo was troubled day and night.
He had personally killed one of the Akatsuki leaders, yet the organization persisted. Instead of being destroyed, Akatsuki had simply gone underground.
Even though the group remained hidden in the Land of Rain, it still surfaced occasionally for activities, which enraged Hanzo. It appeared the Akatsuki was receiving external financial support as well.
Worse still, Rain Shinobi consistently lost more battles than they won against Akatsuki.
"Akatsuki... Rinnegan..."
Every time Hanzo thought about the organization, it felt like a thorn in his throat.
And Danzo—Hanzo had grown increasingly frustrated with him. Danzo had been perfunctory in his efforts to investigate the Akatsuki and had already asked for funding twice. Hanzo's patience was at its limit.
"Danzo... you too?"
"Danzo... you too!"
After much deliberation, Hanzo made up his mind. He summoned a Rain Shinobi and ordered him to leave for the Land of Bears immediately, with instructions to invite Danzo to the Rain Village.
Hanzo suspected that Danzo had been deliberately trying to draw the attention of the Rinnegan, so this invitation was based on new intelligence regarding the Akatsuki leader's whereabouts.
"The Akatsuki leader's hideout? Hanzo found it first? Why is it located in a canyon near the Wind Country's border? It's a bit off from the coordinates guessed by Genmo... but still plausible."
After reading the intel sent by the Rain Shinobi, Danzo felt uneasy.
Though Hanzo held the advantage in terms of military power, Danzo knew his own chances of obtaining the Rinnegan were diminishing.
He understood how serious the Akatsuki threat was to the Rain Village and didn't fully trust Hanzo. The information was probably real—but it needed to be confirmed.
"Fox, take six squads and scout this area. Don't alert the enemy."
After dispatching his scouts, Danzo led a small contingent to Rain Village—only five squads, totaling twenty men. The bulk of his forces had been sent ahead in secret, ensuring that Hanzo would not be alarmed.
The Kingdom of Bears was only a day's journey from the Land of Rain. After Danzo and his group arrived at the Rain Shinobi Village, they were promptly invited in.
"The defenses are really tight," Danzo thought, sneering inwardly as he noticed the increasing number of Rain Shinobi stationed along the path.
The Akatsuki organization had grown stronger over time, and this filled Hanzo—the man who had killed its former leader—with fear. The presence of the Rinnegan among their ranks made him even more uneasy, turning what should have been an asset into a looming threat.
The title "Demigod of the Ninja World" now felt laughably hollow.
When Danzo arrived at Hanzo's chambers, he noted that the four ninja guarding him had changed again, but he paid it little mind. Sitting down, he went straight to the point:
"Hanzo, when do we act?"
Hanzo's voice came dully from behind the shoji door.
"Anbu is still confirming the Akatsuki leader's location. Once the intel arrives, we'll move immediately to surround and eliminate them. This time, there must be no survivors."
Danzo frowned. "Will it really take that long? Why not move out and gather intel en route? That way we can still reach them in time—"
"Danzo, did you only bring twenty people this time?" Hanzo interrupted abruptly.
Danzo's brow furrowed. He wasn't sure why Hanzo asked, but he still replied, "Twenty ninjas are enough. They're skilled in combination jutsu. In a surprise attack, that mob from Akatsuki won't stand a chance."
As he finished speaking, a sharp pain suddenly shot through Danzo's abdomen. It felt like his organs were being twisted together.
Simultaneously, the four Rain Shinobi in Hanzo's room collapsed, blood leaking from their mouths and noses—dead. Danzo's own Root ninja began showing the same symptoms.
"Master Danzo... it's salamander poison..."
A Root ninja managed to utter those words before succumbing to the toxin. Danzo glanced at a nearby vent and realized that poison gas had been seeping into the room all along. But it was too late.
Clenching his jaw against the pain, Danzo quickly pulled out an antidote and leaped away to inject himself.
But he had forgotten one thing.
Hanzo, the so-called Demigod of the Ninja World, stood just beyond the shoji door.
"Flash Blink!"
The door shattered in an instant, a gleaming blade slicing through the air. In a single swift motion, Hanzo severed Danzo's arm—the one holding the antidote—shattering his last hope.
"Why? I'm your ally! We're supposed to be dealing with the Akatsuki together!" Danzo shouted in disbelief.
Hanzo's eyes were cold. "Danzo, do you really think I didn't see through your schemes? You were only after the Rinnegan. You've been using me and the Rain Shinobi all along.
If I were to believe a liar like you, I might as well sell your head for 500 million ryō through the underground exchange. At least they honor their contracts.
Trading four Rain Shinobi for your trust? Worth it.
You survived the ninja wars, but you've gotten foolish."
With that, Hanzo raised his sickle and brought it down in one clean strike, severing Danzo's head.
As it flew through the air, Danzo's final thoughts were filled with bitter regret:
"The old man… hasn't saved Konoha… hasn't become Hokage… I can't die yet…"
Once the salamander poison had mostly cleared, Hanzo summoned his men to collect Danzo's body and head. The 500 million ryō bounty could accomplish a great deal—help wipe out the Akatsuki, and strengthen the Land of Rain.
But carrying such a massive amount of money through the underground network wouldn't be safe.
After some thought, Hanzo decided to take Danzo's body directly to the Land of Fire. After all, the bounty had been publicly issued by the Fire Daimyo—something known throughout the ninja world.
"Baby, it's time to eat!"
Tsunade smiled as she looked at the delicious dinner set before her. Though it looked plain on the surface, the taste was extraordinary.
Cooking, like anything, could be honed. Back in the day, her attempts had made Nawaki grimace in pain, but now she was confident—this time, she would surprise him.
After waiting for a while without hearing a reply, Tsunade felt a bit dissatisfied, thinking her silly daughter had lost track of time while playing.
Children over the age of two should already be learning to read, but Tsunade was raising her daughter alone, and this was her first time being a mother—so everything was trial and error.
Thankfully, Nono visited often to help out; otherwise, Tsunade really wouldn't have been able to manage.
Thump, thump.
Tsunade walked barefoot up to the second floor. She was just about to call out when she opened the door—and froze.
Inside the room, holding her daughter, stood someone she hadn't expected to see. She stood there stunned for a few moments, processing the scene before her emotions finally caught up.
Though her heart was filled with joy, Tsunade stepped forward with an angry expression and scolded:
"You bastard—you still remember how to come back!"
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