"Then why Iwagakure? In order to maximize our profits, shouldn't we trade with Konoha? Konoha can definitely offer a higher price than Iwagakure."
Hanzo asked with a puzzled expression.
He could now understand why Kirito had acted without consulting him first, but he simply did not understand why Kirito had chosen to trade with Iwagakure.
Upon hearing this, Kirito of course could not say that this was his plot to deepen the conflict between Iwagakure and Sunagakure.
Konoha is surrounded by enemies, and in this situation, he wants to drive a wedge between these enemies as much as possible.
Sending the two elite puppet masters of the Sunagakure, Akashige and Sara, to Iwagakure will undoubtedly greatly irritate the Sunagakure, which is already very hostile towards Iwagakure.
By that time, there will likely be another major battle along the border between Sunagakure and Iwagakure.
In this way, Konoha will face much less pressure from Sunagakure and Iwagakure.
Kirito thought about it for a while and decided to trick Hanzo by asking him in return, "Hanzo, do you know what the core industry of our Land of Rain is?"
Hanzo was silent for a moment, then it seemed that he had thought of something and he suddenly realized, "It's industry."
"That's right. Because of our special local climate, agriculture cannot develop in our Land of Rain, so we have to focus on developing industry. Our industry is dominated by heavy industry, which refines and processes metals. The Land of Earth has always been our biggest exporter of mineral resources, but because of your previous enmity with Iwagakure, normal trade between the two countries has been severely disrupted. With no mineral resources from the Land of Earth coming in, many factories in our country have closed down, and many people have lost their jobs as a result.
Nowadays, our Land of Rain is in a state of reconstruction. The most important thing at the moment is to ensure that the people in the country have food to eat and work to do, so that people's lives can improve. In that case, it is necessary for us to re-establish normal trade with the Land of Earth. I used the two puppet masters from Sunagakure, who are not simple people, to conduct transactions with Iwagakure this time, in order to repair the relationship between our Land of Rain and Iwagakure."
Kirito nodded and explained with reasons and evidence.
He now had a deeper understanding of Hanzo of the Salamander.
As a ninja, the other party was undoubtedly very powerful, and there were not many people in the ninja world who could defeat him.
As a leader, the other party was also quite competent, gaining a large number of followers by personally displaying bravery in leading the troops.
However, as a politician, Hanzo of the Salamander was no good.
His ability in internal affairs was a complete mess. Otherwise, he would not have cut off normal trade between Amegakure and Iwagakure in a fit of anger when the two countries fell out, and implemented a policy of national isolation. He had no idea what serious consequences this would have for the economy of the Land of Rain.
Now the Land of Rain will become like this. On one hand, it is naturally related to the war, and on the other hand, it is also related to the closed-door policy implemented by Hanzo at the beginning.
Many people have lost their jobs, and they don't have the money to buy food. Even if they have money, they can't buy enough food because the food from outside can't be transported in. Social chaos naturally emerged.
In short, Hanzo of the Salamander was a crude warrior with amazing combat capabilities. He was good at killing and burning, but completely useless when it came to internal affairs.
Hanzo was lacking in terms of his ability in internal affairs, but his ability to understand was still fine. When he heard that the policy of closing the country's borders, which he had implemented in order to prevent Iwagakure spies from entering, had caused many people in the country to lose their jobs, his face immediately fell.
He was really blindly arrogant back then. In the face of Iwagakure's enticement, he hoped that Amegakure would accept Iwagakure's support and agree to Iwagakure's request to contain Sunagakure. However, he completely disregarded this and even sarcastically said that Onoki was delusional and had no right to give him and Amegakure orders. This caused conflict between Iwagakure and Amegakure.
As Kirito said later, Amegakure and Iwagakure continued to be hostile towards each other, and normal trade between the Land of Rain and the Land of Earth was severely disrupted. This ultimately led to the closure of a large number of factories in the Land of Rain, a significant increase in unemployment in the country, and a consequent aggravation of the conflict between Amegakure and the daimyo of the Land of Rain, which resulted in a reduction in military spending.
The decline of Amegakure thus began.
He now understands that if the Land of Rain wants to regain its former glory, it is very important to maintain friendly relations with the Land of Earth. Otherwise, once the domestic factories lose their supply of raw materials from the Land of Earth, the domestic economy will inevitably be hit hard.
He never imagined that even the economy of the Land of Rain was subject to the control of others.
At this time, Hanzo began to doubt whether he was qualified to continue to be the leader of Amegakure, or whether it was really a good idea for him to continue to be the leader of Amegakure.
With his current abilities, he doesn't seem to be suitable to lead the Land of Rain to prosperity.
"Masanari, how did you come up with all this?"
Hanzo looked up at Kirito and asked in confusion.
The Hanzo he knew, Hattori Masanari, was actually just as uneducated as him, and it was impossible for him to see the current crisis facing the Land of Rain and say what he just said, which made perfect sense to him.
"It's nothing. After leaving the Land of Rain, I wandered around outside and saw many new things. When I had time, I also read a little, so I gained some knowledge."
Kirito heard this and an expression of emotion immediately appeared on his face. He sighed.
Then, his face straightened and he said to Hanzo in a serious tone:
"Hanzo, in this world, not only is our Land of Rain oppressed by other major powers, but many small countries are the same. The lives of the people there are even worse than those in the Land of Rain. If it weren't for you, a demigod from the Land of Rain, the Land of Rain would have definitely been divided up by the three major powers around it a long time ago.
I came this time to prevent the Land of Rain from suffering such a disaster. Otherwise, when you, Hanzo, grow old or die, the Land of Rain will only be in a worse situation than it is now. Let's work together to make the Land of Rain stronger than before. I need your strength."
After saying this, he extended a hand to Hanzo.
Hanzo saw this and without hesitation, he immediately reached out and shook Kirito's hand. His face showed an expression of excitement as he said, "Yes, let the two of us make the Land of Rain even stronger than before. Masanari, come back and assist me. Amegakure Village needs a wise man with vision like you."
That's right, the Land of Rain cannot become any worse than it is now.
His dream has always been to make the Land of Rain the sixth largest country in the ninja world. If he is unable to fulfill this dream, then he will leave it to future generations.
But before that, he must leave future generations a Land of Rain that is better than it is now.
"He really believes what I said, but I'm sorry, it is impossible for just the two of us to do it."
Kirito looked at Hanzo of the Salamander, who was full of excitement, and sighed as he felt the pain and warmth from his right hand.
What he had just said was actually just a way of talking to make Hanzo not doubt his actions or identity, but he never expected Hanzo to take it at face value.
After all, the Land of Rain borders the three great powers of the Land of Fire, the Land of Earth, and the Land of Wind, and is naturally a buffer zone between the three.
If war breaks out between two of the three major countries, the Land of Rain will inevitably be used as a battleground to prevent the war from affecting the other countries.
Given such a hostile international environment, it is easy to imagine how difficult it is for the Land of Rain to develop, it is practically nightmarish.
Moreover, neither the Land of Fire, the Land of Wind, nor the Land of Earth will allow the Land of Rain to develop and grow. It is in the best interest of these major countries to make the Land of Rain their battleground buffer zone, where it has no ability to resist.
In fact, if not for the appearance of the demigod Hanzo of the Salamander, who used his formidable strength to show Konoha, Iwagakure, and Sunagakure that Amegakure was not to be trifled with, and who dared them not to lightly use the Land of Rain as their battlefield, the Land of Rain might have become what it is now even sooner, and might even have been carved up by the three major countries at an early date, reduced to a puppet country.
Kirito is now in a difficult situation. If he does not agree to Hanzo's demands now, Hanzo will probably turn against him immediately.
However, this is in line with his previous plan to use Hattori Masanari as a front to become a high-level figure in the Amegakure.
So, he immediately put himself in the shoes of a high-ranking member of Amegakure and said coldly, "No problem, I'll go back with you this time, but before I go back, I think it is necessary for Amegakure to complete a purification. Hanzo, what do you think?"
"Good,"
said Hanzo after a moment of silence, his face flashing with expressions of reluctance and hesitation, but he ultimately put on an equally cold face and said coldly.
If the Land of Rain wants to usher in a new beginning, it must start with Amegakure.