"Since that's the case, let's rest for tonight..."
However, before Hozuki Gengetsu could finish speaking, explosive tags detonated in the camp again!
Damn it, will this ever end?
Hozuki Gengetsu stood up angrily and shouted, "What's going on?"
Were they being provoked again? Did they really think the Mist ninja would foolishly send out forces like before? What a joke. Did they think Hozuki Gengetsu was brainless? Or that all Mist ninja were brainless?
"What happened?" Hozuki Gengetsu asked coldly as a Mist ninja entered.
"Unknown. It's shadow clones again. As soon as we send people to intercept, they dispel," the Mist ninja reported.
The same trick. Did they really think Kirigakure would fall for it again? Hah! What a joke. Let them blow things up all they want. Damn it, they couldn't possibly believe such a small country had endless resources for explosive tags!
"Ignore them. Rest for tonight," Hozuki Gengetsu ordered. They had just landed and were immediately dragged into battle.
Before they could even secure a victory, they were bombarded with explosive tags, suffering heavy losses. Exhausted, they needed to rest and prepare for tomorrow's battle.
No matter what, Uzushiogakure would be destroyed. Did they really think Hozuki Gengetsu was made of paper? That he had no temper?
Even if he faced criticism or removal from office upon returning to Kirigakure, he would crush Uzushiogakure, establish a colony, and restrain the Land of Fire. He would prove his strategy was correct and show that only under his leadership could Kirigakure prosper.
After all, he was the Second Mizukage! He had seized the position from the guards of the First Kage Summit. Hozuki Gengetsu was no pushover.
How could a tiny country possibly withstand him?
...
"It seems Hozuki Gengetsu has gotten smarter," Uzumaki Jun said regretfully. This time, they didn't send ninja to intercept. Though he had expected this, he still felt a little disappointed.
If only they could slowly whittle them down.
"And they want to rest?"
Did they think the Uzumaki clan would allow that? Did they think they could sleep peacefully on Uzushiogakure's land? What a joke.
Did they think Uzushiogakure had no pride? This was their territory. They wouldn't let the enemy sleep soundly.
Besides, when it came to staying up all night, the Uzumaki clan feared no enemy.
"Send shadow clones with explosive tags," Uzumaki Jun ordered after some thought. "No need to be too frequent. Set them off at intervals to disrupt the Mist ninja and prevent them from sleeping."
"Yes."
The Uzumaki ninja below acknowledged.
"Also, have those who aren't on duty rest. Ignore everything else," Uzumaki Jun said. "But maintain perimeter security."
"Rotate shifts regularly to ensure everyone stays alert."
Another aspect of guerrilla warfare was mental exhaustion. In this regard, the Uzumaki clan had the advantage. They weren't strong in much else, but they had boundless stamina.
"Yes!"
With everything arranged, the clan leader and the elder approached, their smiles unwavering since the annihilation of Kirigakure's cannon fodder.
"Aren't you going to rest?" the clan leader asked with a smile.
"Later," Uzumaki Jun replied. "I want to see what Kirigakure does next. Besides, my real body is already sleeping. This is a shadow clone."
Seeing that Uzumaki Jun had already made arrangements, the clan leader and elder said nothing more. Though young, no one underestimated him.
He was a mature child. They sighed regretfully—this was the result of their own poor decisions, trusting the wrong people.
Fortunately, Uzumaki Jun was here. Otherwise, they wouldn't have known what to do.
Who would've thought Kirigakure would send so many ninja? If they had charged recklessly as before, Uzushiogakure would have been destroyed.
Though this war strategy was somewhat underhanded...
It felt satisfying. Did they really think they could invade Uzushiogakure so easily?
The clan leader sat beside Uzumaki Jun, sighed, and gazed at the sky wistfully. "I wonder what path Uzushiogakure will take after this..."
Indeed, the end of the war was only the beginning.
To others, the Uzumaki clan was a piece of fat meat, vast lifeforce, incredible sealing techniques, chakra capable of suppressing tailed beasts. All of this was tempting.
Even if they won this time, what about the next? Or the time after that?
Others would surely strike again. This time, it was just Kirigakure. Next time, it might be two major villages joining forces. And with Konoha, their so-called ally, lurking in the shadows, who knew when they might stab them in the back to claim their inheritance?
Hearing the clan leader's words, Uzumaki Jun looked up at the sky. During his time here, he had also pondered how to develop Uzushiogakure. In this chaotic world, only a strong nation could ensure survival. But...
It wouldn't be easy.
Why did the Shinobi World Wars happen?
The official answer was the lack of trust and communication between ninja.
History had taught them that isolating themselves from the masses was unsustainable. It would only weaken their vitality and productivity.
Only by rooting themselves among the people and serving them could the nation develop and society achieve peace. Therefore, ninja must integrate into the productive forces.
Because they had long been detached from the masses, ninja developed a sense of superiority, leading to indifference toward life and, consequently, war.
Of course, another factor was profit. Training ninja required money. If they didn't kill, where would the money come from?
Farming? Don't be ridiculous. Ninja only knew how to wield blades, not hoes!
"If Uzushiogakure wants to develop, it must start over completely," Uzumaki Jun said after some thought.
Seeing that the clan leader and elder didn't interrupt but instead encouraged him to continue, he added, "For example, Uzushio Village should be abolished." A tiny land with a ninja village, a population of just over a hundred thousand—it was a joke.
The clan leader and elder frowned but still didn't interject.
Though they didn't understand Uzumaki Jun's reasoning, the one-village-one-country system had been proposed by the God of Shinobi. Hadn't he ended the Warring States Period?
If the ninja village was abolished, where would ninja come from?
"Establish a new system. Train ninja under the nation's name,"
Uzumaki Jun said. It wasn't that Hashirama's one-village-one-country system was bad after all, it had ended the Warring States Period.
But it had also escalated conflicts from individual skirmishes and small-group battles into full-scale wars between nations. Once such wars broke out, they became large-scale ninja battles. Though the scale was controlled, more people died.
Moreover, once ninja formed groups, class divisions emerged. Over time, problems would multiply. Thus, the most suitable system for Uzushiogakure now was an imperial system.
Only by centralizing power could Uzushiogakure develop. Ninja should be trained as soldiers, instilled with ideological education from childhood to understand that power existed to protect the people and the nation.
Additionally, ninja must not be detached from the masses. Ninja education must be popularized so that ninja would no longer be mystified but accepted by the people.
At the same time...
"Uzushiogakure must absorb refugees. The population is too small to develop properly."