After more than two months, the Nara clan had completely secured their footing in every major city.
After many nobles had died, some sharp-minded ones began to realize what was really happening.
They abandoned their properties in the Capital of the Land of Fire and moved to cities under the Nara clan's control.
Faced with nobles "fleeing with their whole families," even the Daimyo was powerless.
He wasn't someone who turned a blind eye to what was happening outside his window.
Naturally, he knew what was going on inside Konoha. Otherwise, he would've already joined forces with the other four great nations to pressure Konoha.
But just thinking about how Konoha now had Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara… even if the other four great villages combined their strength, they probably still couldn't defeat Konoha.
So why bother pressuring them and acting like a fool?
Because of Tsunade, he was technically in-laws with the Senju brothers.
As long as he didn't cause trouble, Konoha likely wouldn't go out of their way to kill him, right?
Alright, in short, the Daimyo of the Land of Fire had chickened out. Realizing he couldn't go against the tide, he could only pretend he didn't know anything.
Live and drink today, worry about tomorrow when it comes.
There were still so many beautiful women in the world he hadn't enjoyed, so much good food he hadn't tasted—how could he possibly be willing to die?
"Well~ living as a rich old man doesn't sound so bad."
As the Daimyo of the Land of Fire, he secretly had a massive stash of wealth.
Even if he spent it all by himself, he probably wouldn't run out of money for three lifetimes.
His biggest worry was still… whether the Senju brothers would let him go.
Logically speaking, with Tsunade as a connection and considering Senju Hashirama's personality, he should be safe.
But life is always scary when there's even a one-in-a-million chance.
What if?
Rather than sitting here waiting for death, it would be better to take the initiative.
With that thought, the Daimyō of the Land of Fire felt he had to do something.
"Someone, bring me brush and ink. I want to write a letter to the Hokage."
"Big brother, take a look. This is a letter from the Daimyō."
Just a few days after returning to their own time, the Daimyō's letter had arrived in Konoha.
"What did he write?"
Tobirama Senju chuckled lightly and replied, "He wants to ask us if we want to lure the other four nations' daimyōs into the Land of Fire."
Hearing that, Hashirama Senju froze for a moment. "Is this his way of pledging loyalty?"
"Yeah, seems like our Daimyō isn't completely stupid. He knows what we're doing."
Tobirama gave a flick of his wrist, and the letter was instantly shredded into pieces by a wind blade.
"So, what do you plan to do?"
"Plan? I haven't figured it out yet."
Truthfully, Tobirama Senju hadn't made up his mind.
Even though more than two months had passed, members of the other clans were still undergoing training.
With the village's current talent reserves, they could probably manage to take over just the Land of Fire.
But to occupy the entire continent, and ensure nothing goes wrong? That was definitely impossible for now.
Still, the thought of swallowing all four nations in one strike was a huge temptation—even for someone as calm and rational as Tobirama.
If it worked, it would drastically cut down the time needed for unification.
"Tobirama, don't put too much pressure on yourself. No matter what happens, I'll always stand by your side."
Seeing his younger brother caught in a dilemma, Hashirama patted his shoulder in support.
"I know."
Tobirama Senju nodded.
With his big brother around, he didn't have to worry about fighting power.
Besides, he wasn't weak himself — there were only a handful of people in the entire ninja world who could beat him one-on-one.
Even if he couldn't win, he could always escape using Flying Thunder God.
No doubt about it, the Flying Thunder God Technique was incredibly useful.
Tobirama: As expected of me. I'll give myself a thumbs up.
"Forget it. Let's take things slow and steady."
After thinking it over for a long time, Senju Tobirama gave up on the idea of swallowing the Four Great Nations in one go.
The reason he wanted to unify the ninja world was for peace, wasn't it?
Unifying the world would mean people had to die — but he could at least decide to minimize the casualties.
"As long as you've made up your mind."
"Yeah. Then let's begin Phase Two."
Senju Tobirama had divided the path to unification into three phases.
The first phase was to take control of a few cities in the Land of Fire — subtly laying the groundwork for eventually claiming the whole nation.
The second phase was to take full control of the entire Land of Fire — a stage that required a large reserve of talent.
Originally, Konoha didn't have enough manpower. But once some clever nobles chose to side with them, they just barely managed to fill the gap.
After gaining full control of the Land of Fire, Tobirama estimated it would take at least half a year to fully stabilize things.
In these six months, they could continue training new talents, while also letting the outside world see—governing a nation with ninjas wasn't impossible.
If the other nations' ninjas couldn't resist the temptation and decided to follow the Land of Fire's example, then once the ninja world was unified, there'd be no need to waste time overturning old prejudices.
As for the third phase, that would be the unification of the entire ninja world.
No matter what state the ninja world was in by then, with Hashirama and Madara around, the road to unification would sweep through everything like a storm.
Under Tobirama Senju's command, Konoha took over the entire Land of Fire without any real resistance.
And as for the former daimyo of the Land of Fire, Tobirama didn't make things difficult for him.
After confiscating nearly eighty percent of his wealth, the former daimyo happily retired as a rich man.
Every day, he indulged in pleasures, living a carefree life.
The upheaval in the Land of Fire didn't take long to spread to the other nations.
But what could they do about it?
Were they supposed to form an allied army to attack Konoha and accuse them of rebellion?
Don't be ridiculous.
The former daimyo had already surrendered, and with just those two Konoha monsters alone—who would even want to be the leader of such an alliance?
All they could do was pray at home.
Pray that Konoha's appetite wasn't too big, that just having the Land of Fire would be enough—and that they wouldn't come to mess with them next.
With that mindset, the entire ninja world entered a strange period of peace.
There weren't even any small-scale conflicts.
It was as if everyone had suddenly become saints—speaking gently, acting calmly during missions, afraid that even a small misstep might anger Konoha and bring about their own destruction.
Just like that, the Hidden Leaf once again welcomed a new light screen video.
[Hi hi hi~ Hello, dear viewers! I'm your host, Hayashi Sora.]
[As everyone knows, in the passionate and emotional world of Naruto, every character is born with the mark of tragedy. Their painful pasts tell stories of desires that could never be fulfilled.]
[In the world of Naruto, there's no such thing as "most tragic"—only "even more tragic." Pick any character, and just by telling their life story, they could debut as the main star of a reality show.]
[For the first half of this episode, let's talk about a key figure who appears throughout Naruto.]
[He's skilled, quiet, and carries a high-class vibe. Known as the First Technician of Konoha, the Gender Checker of Haku, the Sixth Hokage, and the chakra-deficient tough guy who can fight anyone to a draw—Hatake Kakashi.]
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