That day, Hanzo announced to the many Hidden Rain ninja that they would soon enter a state of war to resist the invaders from the Land of Wind, and that Konoha Village would act as a staunch ally to Hidden Rain Village, committing both manpower and resources.
As for the possibility of the Land of Rain being drawn into war, any Hidden Rain ninja with a bit of foresight understood that the Land of Rain used to be a poor, small country, and the ninja it trained had to possess such a sense of crisis.
After the reforms, this sense of crisis in the Land of Rain only increased, because the more they gained, the more they feared returning to the days of having nothing.
Although they knew their enemy was one of the Five Great Nations, the Hidden Rain ninja were surprisingly not that scared. It wasn't that they were overly confident in their own strength—though that was certainly a factor, as Hanzo held a god-like status in their hearts—the real reason was Hatake Sakumo's analysis of the battle situation.
To boost morale, Hatake Sakumo stepped forward to explain to everyone, first informing them of the enemy's outward strength but inner weakness.
Despite the enemy being one of the Five Great Nations, the Land of Wind was actually like a starved camel; even if it was still bigger than a horse, its actual strength was nothing special.
To prove its credibility, Hatake Sakumo also informed everyone of the losses suffered by both sides when Konoha ninja clashed with the enemy in the Land of Rivers.
He, of course, selectively highlighted the positive aspects, primarily to instill confidence in the Hidden Rain ninja, stating that once Konoha's forces arrived, the situation could be controlled and no serious consequences would arise.
Secondly, he assured everyone of Konoha Village's support, stating that a letter had arrived, indicating that a large number of Konoha ninja would be deployed to the Land of Rain battlefield to jointly defend the peace of the Land of Rain, and would absolutely not allow the invaders from the Land of Wind to run rampant and do as they pleased!
If the Land of Wind's outward strength and inner weakness weren't enough to completely reassure the Land of Rain, then Konoha Village's support truly gave them confidence in victory.
Throughout the ninja world, Konoha Village was recognized as the strongest ninja village, and with the strongest ninja village supporting them from behind, what did they have to fear?
As for worrying that Konoha Village wouldn't exert effort, the current Hidden Rain Village had no such thoughts.
Over the years, had Konoha Village's aid to the Land of Rain been scarce? Everyone had witnessed it firsthand.
As a village from another country, to help another country so much, how could the Hidden Rain ninja possibly suspect any ulterior motives—oh, the former leader did have suspicions, but that was a thing of the past.
Thus, all the ninja of Hidden Rain Village were full of confidence and motivation at this moment.
Following Hanzo's orders, they immediately began to act.
The village was about to enter a state of war, and the first to move were the Hidden Rain Village's intelligence personnel, who would go to gather information on the enemy to facilitate the village's command.
Hatake Sakumo also gathered the Konoha ninja currently in the Land of Rain, informed them of the situation, and assigned their duties based on each person's abilities.
Those skilled in combat were assigned to combat personnel, those skilled in intelligence gathering to intelligence personnel, those skilled in medical arts to medical ninja, and those skilled in logistics to logistics personnel.
Asuna and Mizuki naturally belonged to the combat personnel.
Out of consideration, Hatake Sakumo assigned them to his direct squad.
Although it was a form of care, it meant they would carry out missions under Hatake Sakumo's direct supervision, and as their captain, his missions were typically those with greater responsibility.
Although they lived in peacetime, Asuna and Mizuki were not naive girls.
During their internship missions in the Land of Rain, they had encountered enemies that needed to be dealt with more than once.
The gradually prosperous Land of Rain was by no means peaceful; merchants were sometimes targeted by thieves, and even after ninja village purges, some still preyed on them.
Hatake Sakumo said that there might be shadows of other countries behind this, because merchants affiliated with Konoha and the Land of Fire encountered more trouble, while merchants from other countries encountered less.
If it were a coincidence, it would be too much of a coincidence; at least Hatake Sakumo himself didn't quite believe it.
Therefore, after arriving here, Asuna knew that she had been drawn into the competition behind the ninja world, and after choosing this profession, she knew what she would face, so she wasn't entirely unprepared.
In battles with enemies who sought to disrupt trade activities, Asuna gradually gained rich combat experience.
Of course, according to Hatake Sakumo, real battles were not small-scale, but larger, more brutal conflicts that involved more people.
Hatake Sakumo himself had not participated in any wars; he had only heard about them from his father.
Asuna and Mizuki also learned about those battlefields of blood and fire from their parents.
Now, as they were about to face it themselves, even Hatake Sakumo felt a hint of unease.
At night, Asuna and Mizuki were in their room, trying on the newly arrived combat ninja gear.
This was a new type of ninja gear redesigned based on the ninja attire from the First Great Ninja War, incorporating the latest scientific research achievements developed within the village.
"Asuna, does it fit well?" Mizuki asked Asuna, who was beside her, as she put on her ninja gear and moved her body to check for any discomfort.
"Hmm, it's fine." Asuna looked at the ninja gear on her body.
Although her face was expressionless, she was quite satisfied in her heart.
It was very comfortable to wear, and moving around wouldn't affect her best skill, speed.
In fact, the design seemed to be tailored to enhance her abilities.
This was also where Konoha Village's equipment design was more user-friendly.
Considering the diverse abilities of ninja, each ninja's specialty would be modified to a certain extent.
Although it couldn't compare to ninja gear specifically developed for a single ninja, it was at least better than standardized gear.
"I think the designers in the village have pretty good taste; this ninja gear looks quite cool," Mizuki said with a smile, sizing up Asuna.
"I heard that Father personally oversaw it," Asuna said.
"He said that ninja gear represents the Konoha ninja, and as such, it shouldn't look shabby; it must be well designed."
"Oh, so that's how it is." Mizuki suddenly understood, looking at the ninja gear on her body and clicking her tongue in admiration.
Compared to past ninja gear, Konoha's ninja gear was made by considering various combat factors to achieve the optimal proportion.
It bore the symbols of Konoha and Uzumaki.
The former, needless to say, was the most important symbol of a Konoha ninja, while the latter was due to the alliance with the Land of Whirlpools.
Of course, as the Uzumaki clan integrated into Konoha, this symbol would likely become the unique family crest of the Uzumaki clan, leaving only the Konoha symbol.
What was most appealing was that Konoha's female ninja gear, unlike traditional designs, did not serve to entice enemies—a vestige of the Warring States period, where female ninja lacking strength relied on their natural beauty and intelligence, often for intelligence gathering missions, hence the seductive designs.
The new Konoha female ninja gear, however, focused on embodying the identity of a warrior, making girls appear heroic rather than alluring.
Female ninja who received the new education, as long as they were ambitious, would never be content with missions that involved selling their bodies.
Therefore, the reform of female ninja gear, to some extent, also reflected this demand, or perhaps subtly promoted the elevation of female ninja's status.
As a girl, Mizuki really liked this attire.
The ninja gear she had at home now seemed overly seductive by comparison.
She couldn't help but thank Fumori Masaki, feeling that this Third Hokage was indeed the one at the forefront of the village.
The two of them checked their equipment, putting it on to see if it fit and if it was easy to retrieve.
They would soon face the battlefield, and they had to be in their best condition, ensuring their equipment wouldn't hinder their movements.
"Speaking of which, Asuna, are you feeling nervous? About the upcoming battle?" Mizuki paused her movements and asked.
Asuna's movements also paused slightly, but she quickly recovered, naturally adjusting her ninja tools, and said, "Of course I'm nervous; that's only natural."
Looking at Asuna's expressionless face, Mizuki thought to herself that it didn't show at all.
However, Asuna had always been like this.
In all these years, Mizuki had never seen Asuna display obvious emotions.
During their first assassination of those thieves, Asuna seemed as if she had been through countless battles, only saying, "When I first saw blood, my hands almost went limp," after the battle ended.
And even when she said this, her expression still held no conviction.
"Indeed," Mizuki let out a soft sigh.
"Although I've imagined countless times in my heart how I would be like Father, establishing merits on the battlefield and earning everyone's respect, after hearing Brother Sakumo's stories of the battlefield, I also feel a hint of fear, thinking that the battlefield might not be what I imagined."
"The battlefield is not a good place," Asuna said.
"My father said that no matter what kind of war, many lives will be lost.
Its positive meaning is for the civilians who survive; for those who participate in the war, there is no glory to speak of."
Mizuki looked a little stunned, not expecting the Third Hokage's view on war to be like that.
Then, she heard Asuna say, "Life is the most respectable thing, and wars that plunder life are not praiseworthy.
At least for those involved, if one truly feels joy from war, then they are not far from madness and will sooner or later become a menace."
"For example, Kinkaku and Ginkaku of Kumogakure?" Mizuki thought for a moment and said tentatively.
Kinkaku and Ginkaku, as examples of warmongers who suffered a backlash, had been in ninja academy textbooks for many years, serving as negative examples taught by teachers and known to all.
Asuna nodded slightly and said, "People must learn to revere life, even if they have to do it, they must understand this point.
This way, they will not allow their souls to fall into depravity—my father has taught me this again and again, and I also believe it is correct."
"If everyone in the world thought this way, perhaps there would have been no wars long ago." Mizuki shook her head and sighed, "This war by Sunagakure, I find it very unreasonable.
Their lives have already improved through trade with the Land of Fire, so why risk angering the Land of Fire to start a war? Do they think they can win?"
Asuna herself didn't know how to answer this, but she could at least be sure of one thing: Sunagakure's hope of victory was very slim.
This was not arrogance, because Hatake Sakumo had meticulously analyzed the war situation between the two countries.
As long as Konoha Village didn't make any major mistakes, a steady and sure approach would be enough to defeat the Land of Wind; it was merely a matter of the cost.
And she didn't believe the village leaders would make significant strategic errors.
If Asuna knew the strategic plan formulated by Konoha Village, even if her military literacy as a warrior wasn't very high, she could still discern its ruthlessness.
As long as the strategic objectives could be successfully achieved, the Land of Wind would be at the mercy of Konoha Village.
The two of them talked while adjusting their equipment.
This was the state they felt was optimal, so they took off their ninja gear, ate a little, chatted for a while—mainly predicting the battles they would face after departure—and then went to sleep.
When Hidden Rain Village's state of war had initially begun and its troops had assembled, Hanzo received a letter from Uchiha Kagami, stating that he would personally lead his forces.
Although Hanzo had never met Uchiha Kagami, he knew that he was one of the commanders in the previous Great Ninja War, and his abilities were beyond doubt.
Furthermore, he was from the Uchiha clan, so Hanzo attached great importance to him and planned to personally lead his troops to meet him.
Mizuki knew that her father also served as a commander in this war, but she didn't expect him to come to the Land of Rain personally.
She was very excited, not having seen her father for a long time.
Asuna, however, felt a bit lonely.
Although it was her own choice, she hadn't seen her family in a long time either.
As the Hokage of Konoha Village, Fumori Masaki couldn't leave casually, and her mother and sister were not in combat roles, so the possibility of them going to the front lines was very low.
Afterward, Hanzo led the Hidden Rain ninja towards the border, and Hatake Sakumo also led the Konoha ninja squad to the border.
Since Uchiha Kagami was coming, he would no longer be the highest authority on the battlefield, and he would need to hand over his duties to Uchiha Kagami.
Of course, even if he couldn't be the supreme commander, with Hatake Sakumo's abilities, he would still be a senior commander in the forces.