Lightning Country
Climate: The weather of the Land of Lightning tends to vary not only where in the country you are, but how high up the mountains you are. Typically, the air is relatively cool and the sky filled with clouds. They commonly experience powerful thunderstorms with thunder so strong that it has been known to shake villages. The higher a village is into the mountains of the country, the more likely they are to experience snow storms. Regardless however, most villages experience snow storms of some kind, the strength of which vary depending on the location.
Landscape: The Land of Lightning is well known for being covered in tall mountains on which many of its villages are located. Most of these mountains are located near the center of the country while the rest of the country tends to level out. Many rivers tend to flow down the mountains and into the sea creating a good access to water for all of the villages within the mountains. There also seems to be multiple hot springs located within the mountains. The country itself is located on a peninsula in the north-east corner of the continent.
Size: The Land of Lightning is the fourth largest country out of the 5 major countries.
Kumogakure
Inoffensive Democracy
Besides the Raikage himself, there is a council that is made up of 12 other members of the village to assist him in making decisions and guiding the city. They work in tandem to ensure that the village of Kumogakure and its country run as smoothly as possible.
Of these 12 council members, 6 of them are non-shinobi who have been elected to the council. These 6 members act as representatives who are there to make sure that the Raikage and the rest of the village is always aware of the needs of the people. During times of potential war or crisis, they are the ones who the Raikage relies upon to keep the citizens of the country informed and to help them prepare themselves for whatever may come.
The other half of this council is made up of high ranking shinobi, always A-ranked and above, who are there to assist the Raikage in selecting the duties of his shinobi and to ensure the safety of the country. During times of potential war or crisis, they are the ones who he/she relies upon most in terms of tactical planning and war efforts.
Though he may have a council to guide and assist him, the Raikage has the most weight when it comes to any decision that needs to be made. It is only when a decision is deemed to be too extreme by the council's unanimous decision that his/her decision can be overruled/vetoed. This however rarely occurs or needs to be done. In most cases, the council and Raikage are in agreement with all decisions made.
Everything is done to ensure the happiness of the citizens. Citizens of Kumogakure have a great deal of freedom throughout the village and country, as seen by their ability to join the Raikage's council. Those who choose to defect from the village, aka Missing Ninja, are frowned upon. However there are only a few people that Kumo wants to kill. Most of the time they would send people out to talk and try to reason with the people that left, wanting them to come back to the village, if this is possible at all. Only those who have commit the most gruesome of crimes are hunted to death.
Foreign Affairs: In most cases, Kumogakure is a neutral country. They are an isolated bunch that keep to themselves in the mountains but still keep tabs on things that are happening outside of their country. If war were to ever break out between two countries, Kumogakure would most likely be the final country to enter that war. Usually, the country will never enter a war unless that war begins to endanger the country or its people.
Life in Kumogakure
Located in the vast mountain ranges of the country, the village of Kumogakure is spread throughout the top of one of the tallest mountain ranges in the country. The buildings and platforms are built into the sides of these mountains and are all usually connected by strong walk ways/bridges. Many of the buildings are made of either rock, which is uncommon, or steel which is much more common due to the villages abundant supply or metal.
Upon the tallest mountain sits the Raikage's tower. Made out of steel and stone, it is made so that the tower itself is able to look upon the entire village from all angles. Caverns are dug deep into the mountain itself for both secret meeting areas for village officials, panic zones for times of crisis, and as a way for one to quickly make his/her way to the other side of the mountain.
The main income of Kumogakure comes mostly from the metals and other ores that they dig out from the many caves within the mountains. This metal is harvested and then sent out to other villages and countries, usually for a decent price. These ores are used all around the village especially when it comes to building new houses and other structures.
As far as shinobi go, they tend to have jobs that involve a great deal of physical labor. One mission may have them helping a farmer water his/her crops while another may involve helping a citizen rebuild his/her home after it was destroyed. This isn't to say that assassinations or other violent missions do not happen, but labor type missions are more common especially for lower ranking ninja.
The village of Kumogakure has very few, if any, secrets that they withhold from the public. In many cases, the villagers are given notice of the actions that the administration makes regarding the village. Only in times where it would be dangerous to release information would certain information be withheld from public viewing.
In Kumogakure, everything is done to ensure the happiness of its citizens and for the most part, they are all very happy. Everyone in the village show a great deal of respect and kindness to one another and often times they go out of their way to help each other out. If a person was ever too poor for shelter or food, it wouldn't be long before somebody has taken them in. So you really don't need to worry about life in Kumogakure; more often than not everything will be just fine.