The shinobi world was once controlled by numerous different factions and neutral inhabitants. This early in time chakra was known and used by those who trained as samurai however the shinobi profession did not exist. These samurai used chakra strictly as a body strengthening tool and nothing more. No modern forms of ninjutsu or genjutsu were known as the samurai devoted their training to swordplay and not to advancing chakra abilities.

The most dominant force in the land was an empire governed by a single shogun. This empire was centered in the area that now contains the Hidden Hill. This empire sought to expand their control to the entire continent using their armies of samurai.

Inhabitants of the region lived normal lives for the most part however every now and then some would be born with very high innate levels of chakra. These usually manifested themselves in uncontrollable ways which led to wide scale destruction in the areas they were in. Fear and panic would follow as little was known about chakra at the time and these people posed threats to all. So the Shogun ordered that all who showed signs of high levels of chakra be detained and imprisoned. Some were captured early, others ran and had to be hunted down, and some even turned themselves in but all were caught and imprisoned in the center of the empire.

Rather than leaving them to rot or simply executing them the Shogun envisioned a use for these people. They were isolated in a large complex in the countryside and told to train themselves to control their abilities. No samurai would train outcast souls like this so instead they were forced to learn subterfuge and guerrilla warfare tactics. Thus the first shinobi were born.

Years past like this and the shinobi progressed. They were not allowed to leave the complex. Not allowed families, ambitions, goals, or anything resembling a normal life. They lived and died as prisoners from the day they were caught to the day they died. However this forced method of training produced great results. Unlike the samurai they were told to completely master and control their chakra. Those who progressed well would teach those after them and thus the lessons were past on.

Soon the first forms of ninjutsu and genjutsu were discovered as well as chakra affinities and eventually second affinities. These discoveries they melded into their combat tactics making them their own. Samurai would continue to dismiss these new ways as inefficient in regular front line combat, leaving the shinobi with a very unique role in the shogunate. The first squad was sent out to deal with a group of rogue samurai who had deserted the empire and were attacking caravans in the hills. The regular army was having difficulty tracking them down. The group of four senior shinobi were dispatched with low expectations. Many felt that their abilities were more suited as parlor tricks than actual combat maneuvers. Still these shinobi were expendable and so they could send endless waves of them at the enemy if the need arised. When the shinobi returned much earlier than expected, having wiped out the enemy forces with little difficulty, it changed the way the empire would do combat forever.

Shinobi battle squads were formed and sent out for a variety of missions after that. With each mission the samurai of the empire would lose more and more of their value. Shinobi were proving unstoppable in small scale battles. They also took no income and were completely expendable so the Shogun saw less and less use for regular samurai. The empire’s borders expanded greatly, its enemies having no way to compete with the shinobi forces.

When the first among the shinobi unlocked kenkai genkais things changed again for the empire. The Shogun recognized the uniqueness and strength of these powers and he did not want to lose them when the shinobi died. So after much deliberation it was decided that these shinobi would be elevated above the rest. Allowed to move out of the shinobi complex and have families. As expected the children of these shinobi would prove to also have the same abilities of the parent. The first shinobi clans were formed.

The Shogun pit these clans against eachother. Giving praise, honor and rewards to those who completely their missions the most efficiently. The clans struggled desperately to gain whatever rewards they could. Despite the elevation shinobi were still considered lower than common citizens. Their children were born and raised as shinobi and would live and die in service to the empire in the same fashion as their parents. This would prove to be a sore spot for the shinobi. Where once they were all individuals that struggled together with others who were captured, now their own children were born into this way of life. Children who would never experience freedom or own their own lives. It was a fact that did not sit well in their minds.

In regards to the expansion, the clans made short work of whatever remaining opposition the empire had. The Shogun now controlled the entire continent, all bowed to his will. However instead of bringing peace to the land this only sparked infighting between the high nobles of the empire. They demanded access to the shinobi clans and pitted them against eachother in their own personal vendettas. The Shogun allowed the practice as it not only pleased his supporters but kept the shinobi active and sharp while the rivalries between the clans would prevent any from joining together in revolt.

This was the theory at least. It did not stop the clan leaders from one day meeting in secret. They discussed their future as shinobi, and that of their children. They agreed that they could just sit by and let their children live their entire lives never knowing freedom. The Shogun relied too heavily on his free source of military strength to ever allow things to change. The only option remaining to them was a planned coup. Thus the shinobi set to work making arrangements. Eventually the day came, and over the course of one night every shinobi in the empire rose in unison as they overthrew the Shogunate. There was little resistance, shinobi were too deeply entrenched into the empire’s defenses. Many noble families employed only shinobi to defend them. These were all wiped out without mercy. The Shogun and his family itself were assassinated in the same night. By morning not a single remaining official of the Shogunate was left alive. The work was bloody and the shinobi took no chances. Never again would they succumb to a life of slavery.

The days following the mission were full of confusion and panic. The common people did not know what to make of the sudden change in power. Some feared the shinobi and ran away with their families while others stayed and submitted themselves to shinobi rule. The clans however had a hard time adjusting. Many still felt resentment not only to the common people but to the other shinobi clans. Old rivalries would not be so easily dismissed. Instead the clans split and went separate. Each making a home in what would eventually become the different Hidden Villages. Those shinobi who had no clans remained in the area where the Shogun was and eventually formed the Hidden Hill. Each village has their own unique story to the trials they faced as they formed their village.

The history of the land goes back to a time where no major regions or countries existed and instead the land was filled with independent villages and shinobi clans. The shinobi were hired to protect the villages from bandit groups and other rogue shinobi but for the most part there was peace across the land.

This changed when the continent was hit with a series of earthquakes. They went on continuously for days having devastating effects. Rivers dried up, hills were ripped apart and whole valleys sunk into themselves. Many of the settlements were left in tatters, their source of water or resources taken from them. These people were forced to set out in search of new areas in which to start over. This invited a lot of turmoil as clans and villages fought amongst eachother for suitable locations to inhabit.

One day a piece of land was discovered that seemed to flourish much more than those around it. The grass was greener, the soil fertile, plenty of wood and water was nearby, the location seemed ideal for a community. This wasn’t what excited people though. The land itself exuded a pure form of chakra. It seeped from every living plant and animal, filling the air. When breathed in it seemed the chakra had a natural regenerative effect on people. They felt less tired and wounds and broken bones healed faster. Perfect as a defensive location. Rumours of this area would spread and soon more clans would spread out searching for similar “chakra lands”.

They were found all over the continent, some in obscure places that would normally not be suitable for life (land of inferno). However they would not prove easy to secure. Numerous clans would fight over the rights to these lands, sparking long, bloody feuds between them. Eventually one by one these lands would be claimed though and thus the Hidden Villages were formed.

Studies were done into the cause of the chakra emission. Clans hoped to reproduce the effect and use it to their benefit but few no concrete results were found. None of the Hidden Villages would be willing to share the knowledge they gained and thus it made progress move at a crawl. There are those who have grown worried over the presence of the lands. Living creatures can only hold so much chakra before having to rest and recover but these lands never stop releasing their healing chakra. The question is raised as to what is powering it and at what cost?

Shinobi clans have been fighting eachother for dominance for generations. As one clan is eliminated, other new ones sprout up to replace them. It seemed unlikely that there would ever be an end to the bloodshed. That is until one day when various clans around the continent were each met by a mysterious cloaked figure. The man met with each clan leader, sometimes welcomed other times forcefully, and offered the leaders an opportunity to reach new unheard of heights of power. In return he only asked that they grant him a simple favour some time in the future once they’ve established themselves as a dominant force in the land.

Most clans were weary of the man but eventually came to accept his offer. The power he bestoyed on them would be that of the Genkai Kekkai. These new found abilities helped the clans wipe out their opposition and claim whole regions for themselves. The Hidden Villages would form from these. One village in every section of the world, having complete dominance over the lesser clans in the area. As the clans expanded out further, wars broke out and each Hidden Village refused to give way to another. Each claimed a right to dominate and so these wars would go on for generations, rivalries forming that would last even to present day.

The single exception to this would be the Hidden Hill area. The clan there rejected the cloaked figure of his offer and sent him away. Upon hearing the news that other clans had received the gift of Kekkai Genkais, the clan chose to go into seclusion to devote themselves to training. There they stayed for years until the day arrived when the shinobi from a neighbouring Hidden Village arrived to claim their land. It was then they Hidden Hill shinobi emerged to meet their would-be conquerors. To the surprise of their attackers they met them not with Kekkai Genkais but with a third unleashed chakra affinity. The shock of it was enough to give them the advantage and force the attackers back into retreat. News of this revoked attack spread across the land and soon other clanless shinobi flocked to the area to join this clan. The Hidden Hill Village was formed in earnest from then on.

Years past and the villages secured their boundaries. It was around this time that rumours emerged that the clans were being visited by a familiar cloaked figure. One who had not been seen in years, not since the first day Kekkai Genkai were introduced. The rumours say that he was asking for his payment now. A payment that would change the course of the land.