Kirigakure no sato (aka. Village hidden in the Mist)

Country Background:
The Water country is one of the smaller countries in the series, but it has a strong ninja force. This coupled with it being an island grants the country a great defense against outside threats. The greatest threats to the country seem to come from within, constant wars and strife has caused many citizens and ninja to turn against themselves and the country leadership.

Village Background:
Hidden Mist is one of the more powerful ninja villages in the world, allowing its leader to be called a "Kage." As such it is one of the Five Great Shinobi Countries. It is unknown if the country has any current alliances. Mist has drawn the country into many wars in the past. The citizens of the country blamed the constant strife on the powerful clan bloodlines in the region. For that reason they turned against the clans and wiped many of them out. It is unknown if any bloodlines remain active in the service of Hidden Mist.

Graduation Exam Change:
Years before the start of the series, Hidden Mist staged a violent and bloody test to choose who could graduate from their academy. Friends and classmates who had studied together were pitted against each other, with advancement predicated upon one killing the other. However an event happened to change their exam methods. A young man entered the test and killed over one hundred of the students by himself alone. This shocking action forced the village to change their graduation methods. The boy would grow to become one of Hidden Mist's Seven Swordsman... Zabuza. The brutal nature of the graduation style helps paint a picture of the mindset of the village.

Village Leader:
The current leader of Hidden Mist is Mizukage. Nothing is known about the current Mizukage. Approximately 6 years before the start of the series, Hidden Mist ninja Momochi Zabuza lead a group which attempted to assassinate the Mizukage. The attempt failed and Zabuza fled the country. It is unknown if this same Mizukage is in power.

Water People and Items of Note

Hoshigaki Kisame:
A missing-nin from Hidden Mist, Kisame joined Akatsuki. Kisame appears shark-like in appearance, it is unknown if this is a Hidden Mist bloodline or a hidden technique of Kisame's. Kisame was a member of the Mist Seven Swordsman, a legendary Mist group of seven shinobi who wielded large swords.

Mist Seven Swordsmen:
This legendary group of large sword wielding ninja operated out of Hidden Mist. The group has had problems keeping members, with Hoshigaki Kisame, Momochi Zabuza and Kurosuki Raiga all leaving the village to become missing-nins. It is unknown if the group found replacements for these three men.

Sanbi:
The Sanbi Bijuu (Three-Tailed Demon) of Mist was housed in an unnamed ninja. At some point the demon was extracted from the man, ending his life. The Bijuu then roamed the nearby waters free of a host. Akatsuki eventually captured and sealed away the demon.

Zabuza Momochi
In the past, Kirigakure had the practice of pitting Ninja Academy graduates against each other in a battle to the death for a final exam. When Zabuza, not yet a student himself, killed all one hundred of that year's students, the practice was discontinued. Zabuza would thereafter be known as the "Demon of the Hidden Mist." His fame grew over the years, as he became both an ANBU and a member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist. He also killed the Konohagakure ninja Kumade Toriichi. At some point he discovered Haku, a child with a special kekkei genkai and began training him to be the ultimate weapon. In the anime, Zabuza was shown to not have helped in the village's defense against the Kaguya clan. Soon after this, he attempted to kill the Mizukage in a failed coup d'état, and subsequently fled with Haku and some other followers, such as the Demon Brothers.