In the following months, Ren and Akie appeared together everywhere, much to the irritation of the elders of the Uzumaki clan.
Marrying outsiders could easily dilute their bloodline, but they could not stop Ren.
The Land of Whirlpools was also flourishing rapidly.
During this time, it welcomed the Yamanaka clan, the Nara clan, and the Akimichi clan.
The strength of the Land of Whirlpools was growing fast.
Meanwhile, the war between the Senju and Uchiha clans had reached a fever pitch.
Tobirama had taken care of Madara's brother, and Madara inherited his brother's eyes, becoming an Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan.
Now, he was in an intense battle.
Back in the Land of Whirlpools, the streets were filled with the laughter and play of children.
Thanks to Ren's sensory barrier, patrolling had become unnecessary.
Seeing the village thrive brought a wide smile to Ren's face.
It was as fun as playing Civilization.
He no longer interfered with the ninja academy.
The current teachers had their own teaching methods, coming from the Uzumaki, Hyuga, and Nara clans.
The teaching resources were top-notch.
Most importantly, Ren implemented public ownership.
Each secret technique was no longer exclusive.
Although some uniqueness was lost, the ninja's strength was genuinely enhanced.
In a relatively luxurious building,
"Report."
"Come in." Ren sat at his desk.
"This is intelligence passed back from those gathering information outside," Akie said, handing him the information with a serious expression.
"Oh? The Uchiha and Senju war ended? They reconciled and established a village together." Ren understood. Konoha was about to appear.
"Yes. They chose a location not far from our Land of Whirlpools. A conflict over territory is likely."
"Afraid of war?" Ren asked with a smile.
"Of course not," Akie shook her head decisively.
"Then it's fine. Don't worry. Leave the war to me." Ren was unconcerned.
In the past few months, he had slowly gained the trust of the Tailed Beasts and obtained their chakra.
Now, the Tailed Beasts were free to enter and exit the barrier at will.
He was still trying to master the Six Paths power, but it wasn't working yet.
Even so, there was no enemy in the ninja world who could match him now, and unlike Hashirama, he wouldn't bow low or step back for negotiations despite his immense strength.
During his time in the Land of Whirlpools, he had grown stronger and naturally became a thorn in others' eyes.
But after Ren arranged a few tailed beasts to wipe out the threat, no one dared disturb him again.
The Land of Whirlpools was vast, and Ren was thinking of asking Hashirama to build him a house.
"Lord Ren." A Hyuga patrol member rushed in.
"Speak slowly."
"Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara have come to visit. We just sensed their presence at the border," the man hurriedly said.
"Bring them in." Sleepy or not, Ren didn't waste words. Sharing intelligence took time, and if only a few visitors were coming, it would be fast.
"So this is the Land of Whirlpools? The roads are solid and peaceful." Hashirama looked around excitedly.
He had established his own presence and wanted his village to feel like this too.
Uchiha Madara silently observed everything.
This place was different from Konoha.
Although Konoha was a village, each ninja clan looked out only for themselves.
Here, children from the Hyuga, Uzumaki, Nara, and other clans played together.
The villagers laughed and talked freely, united by the Land of Whirlpools rather than by their clans.
This was a feeling Konoha could never give him.
Konoha existed, but the loyalty of the clans was limited. Few were willing to truly give themselves for the village.
"Who are you? Why are you visiting the Land of Whirlpools?" A young Hyuga girl asked, stepping forward.
"We are from Konoha. Ren is also my in-law," Hashirama explained, squatting down.
"Lord Ren's relative? How can I believe that?" The girl looked doubtful at first, then sensed something was off.
"Does this count?" Hashirama used a Uzumaki sealing technique to prove his connection to the Uzumaki clan.
"Oh." The girl quickly ran off and returned with a few sticks of candied hawthorn.
"I'm sorry for misunderstanding you. Please accept this as an apology."
"Thank you." Hashirama accepted the child's kindness.
Tobirama also accepted it, but inwardly felt incredulous.
Even in Konoha, there was the Hyuga clan, but children never left the clan's territory, let alone receive this kind of treatment.
"I don't need this." Madara said coldly, not paying much attention since he could scare the other person away anyway.
"Big brother, please take it." The little Hyuga girl smiled gently.
"Aren't you afraid of me?" Madara asked. Being in Konoha, helping a child, and still being feared made him feel a little self-conscious.
"Big brother, are you a bad person?" the little Hyuga girl asked. The school had taught her not to judge people by appearances.
Madara shook his head.
"Then I am not afraid. Please accept my apology." The little Hyuga girl came closer and handed him the candied hawthorn stick. This time, Madara didn't refuse.
"Yuko, what are you doing? We found something fun, come play with us." A child from the Uzumaki group called to the Hyuga girl.
"I'm coming right away. Big brothers, have fun!" The little Hyuga girl said and quickly joined the group of children.
"Tomorrow we can go back to class and show off these things." The Uzumaki child was very excited.
The children chatted happily and soon left.
"This is nice, Madara." Hashirama was happy to see a child get close to him. In Konoha, Madara usually didn't get this kind of treatment.
"Hmph, go see Uzumaki Ren quickly." Madara said, eating the candied hawthorn stick. He didn't dislike children, but he had grown used to being feared and didn't dare approach them.
He had started to take an interest in Ren, wondering how he managed to keep different ninja clans at peace and made them proud of their nation.
Konoha was just a village, fragile and easily broken.
"Class?" Tobirama was a little curious.
The street vendors and the farmland outside the village amazed them. They hadn't expected the Land of Whirlpools to develop this much.
Soon, the three of them met Ren in the reception hall. He was still young but carried the aura of a leader.
"Hashirama, Tobirama, Madara, long time no see. Please, sit down." Ren gestured for them to take a seat.
Akie poured tea for a few of them, then stepped aside, giving them some time.
Members of the Nara clan walked in and began taking notes on the side.
"It's like this," Hashirama said directly, "I founded Konoha with Madara, and I want to invite you to join the Five Kage Summit."
Madara didn't speak. In his view, there was no need to compromise with the leaders of other villages.
"What do you want me to do? Hand over the tailed beasts? If that's the case, tell them this—if they want to be destroyed, let them try. If they dare, I'll dare too." Ren knew exactly what the Kages were thinking.
Madara instinctively nodded. He strongly agreed with Ren's approach: gentle as spring wind to his village, fierce as blazing sun to his enemies.
Seeing that Ren was already preparing to send them off, Hashirama didn't press the matter and instead said, "Then join the Five Kage Summit. The meeting will be held in Konoha."
"Alright, I can do that, but you have to do me a favor first." Ren thought for a moment before replying.
After hearing Ren's request, they stayed in the Land of Whirlpools for a few days.
Soon, on the village's open ground, wooden houses sprang up one after another. In no time, a whole street appeared—efficiency was truly remarkable.
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