In the past few days, Tobirama had been visiting the ninja academy near the village.
Because it involved the ninjutsu of the Land of Whirlpools, he couldn't sit in on the classes, but he was drawn to the focused teaching style.
He began to think about establishing a ninja academy in Konoha as well.
Meanwhile, Madara was exploring the Land of Whirlpools.
Except for the places he wasn't allowed to go, he visited everywhere.
He liked it here.
There were no children afraid of him, and they often came to talk to him.
This brought him a rare sense of satisfaction.
At the same time, he felt a strange sense that perhaps it had been the right choice for the Uchiha to join the Land of Whirlpools.
On the third day in the Land of Whirlpools, Hashirama finally finished building houses for the villagers.
He received their heartfelt thanks and felt very satisfied.
He planned to build houses in Konoha in the same way.
Ren, keeping his promise, went to Konoha with Hashirama to attend the meeting of the Five… or rather Six Kage.
He only brought Akie and the head of the Nara clan with him.
On the way back, Tobirama's expression was serious.
Everything he had seen in the Land of Whirlpools had given him much insight, and he had many ideas he wanted to test in Konoha.
Madara, on the other hand, wore a cold expression.
During the past few days, however, he had smiled at times.
The children here were not afraid of him at all.
Some even challenged him, and when they saw his ninjutsu, they were full of admiration.
It gave him a memorable experience.
These carefree children were exactly the kind of peace he had always dreamed of.
After leaving the border of the Land of Whirlpools, the group stepped out of the barrier.
Only then did the feeling of constantly being sensed disappear.
"Ren, the sensory barrier of the Land of Whirlpools is really strong," Tobirama said, recalling how they had been instantly detected when they entered.
"This barrier includes mine as well as the Nine-Tails' chakra—the sensory barrier of the tailed beast you often hear about," Ren explained, without specifying exactly what the Nine-Tails sensed.
"It seems the tailed beast recognizes you," Hashirama sighed, knowing that the other party's requests at this meeting would likely be impossible to satisfy.
"They don't naturally crave destruction. It's just that no one has ever tried to communicate with them," Ren said with a smile.
By now, the people of the Land of Whirlpools were no longer afraid of the nine-tailed beasts.
"Help me along," Tobirama signaled for the others to stay close to him.
Then, using the Flying Thunder God Technique, they returned to Konoha.
The village was still in the process of rebuilding.
On the road, most people were young adults, and the children were just ordinary civilians.
Their faces lacked the genuine smiles he had seen in the Land of Whirlpools.
Seeing Madara, they showed a fearful expression, completely different from the treatment in the Land of Whirlpools.
"Madara, why don't you bring the Uchiha clan to my place?" Ren said, patting Madara on the shoulder.
"Haha, Ren, don't say that in front of me."
Madara didn't reply.
Hashirama spoke first, but thinking of what he had done in the Land of Whirlpools before, he began building houses for the people.
Seeing Hashirama leave, Madara shook his head in refusal; he would not betray his promise.
"Ren, I'll lead the way. Konoha doesn't have the best conditions right now, sorry." Tobirama led Ren to a house, which was much worse than what they had in the Land of Whirlpools.
"It's fine."
Uzumaki's accommodations when he was young was also not good, so he didn't mind.
Konoha had much to rebuild. Even though several ninja clans joined, it didn't change the trend of ninja clans being the core of the village. Except for civilians, travel was organized by clans.
There, Ren saw the previously refused Shimura and the Sarutobi clan.
The main Hyūga family had also joined. They had been reproducing rapidly, planning to rebuild their branch families, still stubborn as ever.
But due to the branch families' collective defection, they were now one of the weaker ninja clans in Konoha.
With Ren's arrival, the Hyūga went out even less. They didn't want to meet the person who had caused their decline. Unable to fight, they chose to avoid him entirely.
The Six Kage Summit was two days away. Ren decided to explore Konoha first.
The clan areas were clearly divided, with gates guarded by clan members.
Outsiders couldn't enter, which made it impossible for ninja clans in the village to fully integrate.
The roads were rough, and pedestrians moved with difficulty. The Uchiha looked proud.
For now, the ninja clans gathered together to organize the village, all to protect their clan from extinction.
Ren realized how remarkable his actions had been.
There wasn't much to see, so Ren trained at the house Tobirama arranged for two days. Other village matters were left to Nara Shikaichi and Hyūga Akie.
Soon, the day of the Six Kage Summit arrived.
Ren brought the two of them into the venue and, after finding the symbol of the Land of Whirlpools, sat down. Akie and Shikaichi stood on either side behind him.
The Kazekage, Tsuchikage, Raikage, and Mizukage arrived one by one. The Hokage was the last to arrive, accompanied by Uchiha Madara.
As one of the village's founders, he needed to know the content of the meeting.
The other Four Kage only glanced at Ren before shifting their eyes to the Hokage.
"Thank you all for coming from afar. This meeting is organized for the peace of all the ninja villages," Hashirama said, bowing his head slightly to address everyone present.
"We understand peace, of course, but someone monopolizes the weapon of war, and our peace cannot be guaranteed," the Raikage spoke first, his eyes flicking toward Ren.
The other three Kage remained silent, clearly agreeing with the Raikage.
The Land of Whirlpools possessed the Nine-Tailed Beasts, which was completely overwhelming for them, leaving no way to defend.
"Shikaichi, send the information back. Notify the ninja forces and the Tailed Beast squad. Go and wipe out the Land of Lightning. Let its history end here," Ren spoke without holding back.
"Yes," Shikaichi acknowledged, taking note of the order.
"You…" the Raikage wanted to erupt, but Ren's reputation held him back. He dared not act rashly and instead turned to the Hokage, Hashirama.
"Lord Hashirama, it seems this one has no intention of peace."
"Ren, don't do this," Hashirama urged.
"If you want to think I don't want peace, that's fine. Shikaichi, execute the plan quickly. And the other villages—do you all think the same?" Ren's cold gaze fell on the Wind, Earth, and Water Kage.
"No, we certainly yearn for peace. We would never commit robbery like this," the Tsuchikage quickly replied. The other two Kage also firmly stated their positions.
"Ren, this meeting is for peace," Hashirama said, his expression darkening.
"Peace isn't begged for, nor achieved by endless concessions. It's fought for. I'll make it clear—anyone who tries to take even a piece from the Land of Whirlpools will face a war of annihilation," Ren said, closing his eyes, no longer wishing to listen to the rest of the meeting.
"Lord Hashirama, our peace cannot be guaranteed. We are leaving," the Raikage stood first, intending to exit. He didn't want to make any concessions without gaining benefits.
"Wait, Ren. With your strength, you could have given up part of the Tailed Beast," Hashirama pleaded earnestly.
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