Moreover, if it were an elder from the village, he wouldn't have heard of this name.
"Yes, the people in this group are all young, under twenty, with the youngest seemingly only thirteen. There are rumors that their leader, Yahiko, is a student of that Sannin, Jiraiya."
Kanzo thought of something and spoke up.
"Jiraiya?"
Hanzou was slightly surprised.
This was a young ninja's name that could stir his memories.
In the last Ninja War, among the Konoha Ninja Squad stationed in the Hidden Rain, one of the three who resisted him until the end bore the name 'Jiraiya'.
At that time, he admired these three for their remarkable abilities at such a young age and for enduring under his power until the end, so out of admiration, he spared their lives and, in the end, bestowed upon them the name 'Sannin'.
"Yes, a ninja as famous as Orochimaru and Tsunade, who is currently leading the Konoha Squad, fighting against the Hidden Rock in the Land of Grass."
"Speaking of which, those three kids have grown significantly since that battle."
Hanzou showed a faint smile, seemingly in a good mood.
But then he saw the desolate village at the foot of the mountain, littered with corpses of ordinary villagers of the Land of Rain, and he sighed softly.
These villagers didn't die as collateral in the battle; they starved to death right here.
Due to the corruption and incompetence of the Daimyo and nobles, a large amount of supplies meant to sustain the common people of the Land of Rain were almost all offered to the Hidden Sand.
He was partly to blame for this.
Before the war, his strategy of not resisting and not holding the line allowed ninjas from the major countries to rampage here unchecked.
"Has Konoha sent a reply?"
Hanzou, clearing away his sadness, asked Kanzo.
"Yes, Lord Hanzou. Konoha has given their approval, and they are willing to unite with us and want to sign a joint document with our Hidden Rain."
Kanzo stepped forward and said.
Hanzou let out a cold laugh: "A so-called joint document is just a piece of waste paper. At a time like this, the Hokage is still playing these word games."
The alliance documents between major countries can easily be reneged, let alone those between a major and a minor country; those documents will be constantly amended by the major country.
As for the reasons, they can simply find any excuse beneficial to them after the amendments.
This is a common trick of the major countries; only when it involves their own interests do they adhere to the spirit of the contract.
Therefore, Hanzou didn't believe a single word on the joint document submitted by Konoha, seeing it only as something that would dirty his eyes.
"The fight with the Hidden Sand will be a protracted war. Tell Konoha that the Hidden Rain's reserves are insufficient and they need to provide supplies."
Hanzou said this.
"Yes."
Seeing Hanzou's firm resolve, Kanzo nodded and respectfully left.
After Kanzo left, Hanzou continued to stand in the rain for a long time before slowly returning to the camp to prepare for battle.
◎
Meanwhile, at the Hidden Sand's high-level meeting.
Advisor Chiyo, resolutely amidst opposition, stated sternly, "The Hidden Rain is not a concern, Hanzou is the strong one. Even if his body is not as it used to be, and his power has somewhat declined, as long as he participates, even alone, he will surely be the center of the whirlpool."
The other high-level Jonin were skeptical.
It's not that they underestimated Hanzou's strength; being recognized as a Demigod during the Second Great Ninja War is not a self-proclaimed exaggeration, but openly acknowledged by the Ninja Realm.
The problem is if too much force is committed against Hanzou, it will be hard to suppress Konoha, and the hard-earned advantage would crumble.
"But no matter what, Hanzou is just one person."
"His name is an insurmountable mountain in today's Ninja Realm, the pinnacle for ninjas. I agree with my sister's view. If Hanzou is not contained, controlling the subsequent battles will be difficult. It's a necessary approach."
Another senior advisor, Ebizo, also voiced support for Chiyo.
Like Chiyo, he was part of the older generation of ninjas who had faced Hanzou directly, knowing his strength.
Both advisors advocated prioritizing the elimination of Hanzou rather than focusing on Konoha, naturally attracting considerable attention from the high-level Jonin.
After all, Chiyo and Ebizo's dedicated service to the Hidden Sand over the years is well recognized, and their actions are surely in the overall interest of the Hidden Sand.
Therefore, the Hidden Sand leadership, initially intent on confronting Konoha, hesitated for a while before leaning towards the views of the Chiyo siblings.
◎
At the beginning of April, in spring, the Land of Rain was still raining.
With the adequate supplies provided by Konoha, the Hidden Rain began its first battle with the Hidden Sand.
The Konoha Squad stationed in the Land of Rain, under Orochimaru's leadership, also launched a counterattack against the Hidden Sand, attempting to extinguish the long-standing arrogance of the Hidden Sand.
Faced with the joint assault from the Hidden Rain and Konoha, the Hidden Sand, after a period of panic, also began to take a solid and steady approach, not rushing to settle the victory in one go. They retreated multiple times, setting up obstacles, causing fatigue among the ninjas of the Hidden Rain and Konoha.
"So cunning."
Orochimaru frowned, looking at the positions where the Hidden Sand constantly retreated on the map.
It must be noted that after a full year of draining resources, a lot of the Land of Rain's supplies were consumed by the Hidden Sand, coupled with the Hidden Sand's pre-prepared resources, they were now qualified for a prolonged war.