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Chapter 217: Annexing the Land of Rain [47]
Chapter 217: Annexing the Land of Rain [47]
As a powerful ninja in her own right, Konan would typically have her chakra completely sealed as a captive. However, Feng Ye only sealed ninety percent of her chakra, intending to utilize her abilities for his purposes. This decision left a potential security risk.
To mitigate this, he kept her 'work' location right next to the Fire Shadow's office, effectively placing her under his personal surveillance. After all, there was no safer place than here.
The newly rebuilt Rain Ninja Village collapsed once more, causing turmoil in the already unstable ninja world.
Rock Ninja Village and Sand Ninja Village promptly dispatched scouts into the Land of Rain, deploying troops along the borders, ready for battle.
Soon enough, the Sand Ninja Village's scouts learned the details of the Rain Ninja Village's downfall—crushed by the Fifth Fire Shadow of Konoha. They also discovered that Konoha was sending troops into the Land of Rain.
"That guy..."
Upon receiving this intelligence, the Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, fell silent for a moment. Recalling Feng Ye's terrifying power during his invasion of the Sand Ninja Village, he chose to order a full military retreat.
He had no intention of engaging in the affairs of the Land of Rain any longer.
While the fall of the Rain Ninja Village left the Land of Rain in ruins, and there were potentially significant gains to be made by invading, it would also likely result in a direct confrontation with Konoha, and he did not wish to invite Feng Ye for another 'chat' in his village.
If the tailed beasts were the ultimate deterrence of the great ninja villages, then in his eyes, the Fifth Fire Shadow of Konoha, Flagwood Feng Ye, was an existence that transcended even those beasts.
On the other hand, the Rock Ninja Village had no plans to withdraw easily.
While the Third Tsuchikage did not want to escalate the war with Konoha further, he could not let go of the opportunity right before him, as his assistant had previously died in the Land of Rain. Now that the Rain Ninja Village had collapsed and the Land of Rain was in ruins, he swiftly led an elite force into the country.
The battle for the Land of Rain raged on for about three months.
First, the Konoha ninjas occupied the Daimyo's mansion in the Land of Rain, coercing the Daimyo to surrender to the Fire Country. They began deploying ninja units to take control of the Land of Rain.
For the former Rain Ninja villagers, Konoha implemented a policy of assimilation. Those willing to submit were temporarily placed under Konoha's command but kept under strict surveillance.
Those who resisted or attempted to rebel were dealt with individually.
There was also a group of Rain Ninjas who chose neither to submit to Konoha nor fight them. They became rogue ninjas and freelancers, scattering across the Land of Rain.
This group had the most significant number of ninjas, all seeking to plunder some wealth and then flee the country to live out their lives in luxury elsewhere, hidden from their pasts.
Konoha's response to this group was to hunt them down without exception.
Feng Ye's approach was highly aggressive.
He deployed over six thousand Konoha ninja troops to the Land of Rain, more than twice the original number of Rain Ninjas. They occupied all the critical towns and cities in the Land of Rain.
Sarutobi Hiruzen would never have dared to attempt such a move, as it would leave Konoha vulnerable to attacks or ambushes from other great ninja villages. But Feng Ye was unafraid.
He had the Flying Raijin Kunai in the Land of Rain.
No matter the situation, he could arrive in an instant.
As for the concern that deploying six thousand troops left Konoha's other defenses weakened, that worry was also unfounded, as Feng Ye's presence alone rendered numbers meaningless.
With Konoha's large-scale actions, the chaos in the Land of Rain was swiftly brought under control within three months.
The reason was simple.
With the collapse of the Rain Ninja Village, many of its ninjas turned rogue, pillaging various towns and villages. In contrast, the Konoha ninjas stationed in the Land of Rain acted as a protective garrison, safeguarding these settlements.
While the people of the Land of Rain were fearful of both sides, as time passed, they began to lean towards Konoha, witnessing the Konoha ninjas solely executing their duties of defending the towns and eliminating rogue assailants. This act of 'protection' gradually earned the hearts and minds of the locals.
Furthermore, as Konoha controlled the Daimyo of the Rain, all forms of propaganda within the Land of Rain portrayed the country as having surrendered to the Fire Country, becoming its vassal, and highlighted how the Fire Country would henceforth be responsible for the safety and peace of all its towns and villages.
This messaging, disseminated throughout the Land of Rain, effectively diminished resistance over time.
Of course, to truly annex a nation, more exchange and integration were necessary. Due to the climatic disparities between the Fire Country and the Land of Rain, large-scale migration and amalgamation between the two nations would not occur swiftly, making this process inherently protracted—likely spanning several years or even decades.
For now, initial stability had been established. As long as this level of control was maintained, and no unforeseen events transpired, the trajectory would remain unchanged.
...
Konoha.
Fire Shadow's Office.
A young female ninja, around seventeen or eighteen years old, stood before Feng Ye's desk. After delivering her report, she carefully placed a bag on the table.
"Fire... Lord Fifth, this is a gift I brought for you... Um..."
"Is it from the Land of Rain? Thank you."
Feng Ye offered her a gentle smile. "Well, I'm already well-informed about the situation. You may return and submit your full report to the intelligence department."
"Yes."
The girl's cheeks flushed as she glanced at Feng Ye and cautiously exited the office.
Feng Ye gazed at the meticulously crafted gift bag, adorned with adorable sticky notes, and sighed. "They've started sending gifts now? At this rate, I won't be able to walk down the street without being bombarded."
He recalled the previous day's shopping trip with Kurenai, where they had received more gifts than they had purchased, leaving Kurenai with a strained smile for the rest of the day.
There were also countless invitations for home-cooked meals and visits.
And even more outrageously, invitations for rest!
What were they thinking?!
"Seems like it's getting hard to handle, huh?"
Kakashi, standing by the side organizing documents, glanced at Feng Ye. "I thought you'd be enjoying this forever, big brother. It's time to exercise some restraint; otherwise, your body might not be able to take it in the future."
Listening to his words, one would hardly guess that this person was only fourteen years old. Feng Ye signed a document and shot Kakashi a glance. "When are you planning to bring a girlfriend home?"
"Ah... Well... Um..."
Kakashi's fingers rested on his chin.
(End of Chapter)
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