Konohagakure (Second Dawn)

, or Konoha for short, is one of the five great ninja villages, and said to be the mightiest of the five. As such, it is one of five villages with a Kage as its leader, known as the Hokage. On a mountain overlooking the villages from the north exists the Hokage Monument. The village resides in the Land of Fire. Although Konoha, much like the country in which it resides, has been peaceful for the past sixteen years, and has grown accustomed to that peace, it remains one of the most powerful villages in existence, and has great military power and influence.

The Birth of Konohagakure and Madara's Revolt
Before Konoha was founded, shinobi were merely individual clans working as mercenaries for various daimyo. Of the countless ninja clans, the Uchiha clan and the Senju clan of the forest were the strongest at the time. After much bloodshed, the Senju clan offered a truce with the Uchiha. Despite their leader, Madara Uchiha's, protests, the clan overruled him, and he reluctantly agreed. Thus the Hidden Leaf Village was born. Soon, other countries began to adopt this system, leading to the birth of other villages, and peace was attained. However, when the leader of the Senju clan, Hashirama Senju, was chosen to be the leader of Konoha, Madara decided to challenge him for the sake of his clan. No Uchiha, however, would help him, for they despised him for trying to reignite the flames of war. Betrayed by everyone, Madara left the village so that he could challenge Hashirama by himself.

During their legendary battle at the Valley of the End, Madara was defeated, presumed killed, and was thereafter lost to history. Hashirama's younger brother, who became the Second Hokage, formed the Konoha Police Force, and gave it to the Uchiha clan supposedly as a symbol of trust; in reality, it was so that Konoha could easily keep an eye on the Uchiha, and keep them out of Konoha's governing. Many of the Uchiha clan members, who figured out this gesture's ulterior motive, began to rebel like Madara had. However, it was too late; the Senju clan became superior in the entire village, and the Uchiha clan was discriminated and secluded, just as Madara had predicted. It was this grudge that led to the Uchiha clan's attempted coup d'état decades later, and, eventually, their demise.

Landmarks

 * 44th Battle Training Zone
 * Hokage Monument
 * Hokage Residence
 * Ichiraku Ramen Bar

Trivia

 * The hiragana あん (an) is painted on the entrance gates of the village (one hiragana on each door). This means hermitage or retreat. In Kanji, the character is 庵.
 * Masashi Kishimoto stated, "Yes, there is [a model for Konoha]; it's my hometown."
 * Konohagakure has one Akatsuki representative, Seireitou Kawahiru, who is the leader.