After accepting his appointment, Hyuga Arin immediately headed for the Land of Bears, the front line against Kirigakure.
At his side were still Uchiha Fugaku and Uchiha Jin.
Only Uchiha Yashiro had been reassigned to another battlefield.
The three led a massive force forward at high speed.
Countless shinobi followed behind them, their figures flickering through the forest.
"Another war has broken out..."
Jin's expression darkened.
Normally, he was the carefree type, but even he couldn't be happy about war.
"As long as we protect Konoha, that's enough."
Fugaku spoke with unwavering seriousness.
No one liked war.
But for Konoha's sake, they were willing to sacrifice everything.
That was Uchiha Fugaku's resolve.
"War? Hahaha!"
"It's finally here!"
Arin burst into laughter like a complete madman.
Fugaku and Jin both fell silent.
There were, in fact, people who enjoyed war.
The man before them was one such example.
"Lord Arin," Jin finally asked, "don't you long for peace at all?"
"Jin!"
Fugaku immediately rebuked him.
"No matter."
Arin waved dismissively.
As they sped through the trees, the wind whistled continuously past his ears.
"For now, I honestly don't long for peace."
He answered with surprising honesty.
"But I'm not some war fanatic who spends every day praying for conflict."
No, you definitely are.
Both Uchiha silently thought the same thing.
Back on the Kirigakure front, who was it that constantly encouraged them to provoke the Mist?
Wasn't it Arin himself?
Completely unaware of their thoughts, Arin continued gazing ahead.
It was as if his vision pierced through countless obstacles, reaching all the way to Kirigakure itself.
"The ninja village system is fundamentally destined to produce war."
"But the First Hokage created the village to pursue peace," Jin argued.
"Hashirama-sama founded Konoha precisely because he longed for peace."
Even now, there were still countless Uchiha who idolized Hashirama Senju.
After all, their former clan leader, Uchiha Madara, had been Hashirama's greatest admirer.
Arin nodded.
"That's true."
"At the time, society was limited by its era."
"Ninja clans operated independently and served nobles."
"There were too many ninja groups competing for too few missions."
"Constant fighting."
"Constant killing."
"Children were forced onto battlefields."
"Ordinary civilians rarely lived past thirty because of endless conflict."
"And under those circumstances..."
"The only way to stop it was to unite all ninja under a single banner."
He paused.
"Hashirama's mistake was that he built Konoha..."
"...and then submitted to the Daimyō."
There wasn't the slightest hesitation in his voice.
The statement was politically explosive.
"Lord Arin!"
Fugaku suddenly spoke.
"Your thinking has strayed onto a dangerous path!"
"That's the same ideology held by the rogue ninja Uchiha Madara!"
As a devoted supporter of the Will of Fire—
A man who could one day allow his own son to kill their entire clan—
There was no way Fugaku hadn't been deeply influenced by Konoha's ideology.
"But it's the correct path."
Arin turned and smiled at him.
"Let's say some random civilian suddenly stood above you and ordered you to kill another shinobi."
"Would you do it?"
"That's different."
Fugaku immediately objected.
"How is it different?"
Arin countered.
"They possess noble blood."
"Hahahaha!"
Arin couldn't help laughing.
After a few moments, he looked directly at Fugaku.
"And where exactly is that noble blood?"
"Can it awaken the Byakugan?"
"Can it awaken the Sharingan?"
Fugaku's expression flickered.
"Their bloodlines are inherently sacred."
Even he didn't fully believe his own words.
"Sacred?"
"According to whom?"
"Them?"
Arin sneered.
"They're no different from ordinary civilians."
"The only distinction is that they've been granted authority over you."
"They need shinobi because we protect their wealth and lives."
"We secure their lofty status."
"They fear shinobi because we also possess the power to take everything from them."
"When we're strong, they need us to wage wars."
"When we're weak, they can control us more easily."
Fugaku and Jin both fell silent.
This line of reasoning was dangerously persuasive.
Especially to the Uchiha.
"So..."
Jin hesitated.
"Are you saying the wars of the ninja world are caused by the nobility?"
"For the most part, yes."
Arin nodded.
"The Second Great Ninja War was essentially the result of noble interests."
"The Five Great Villages were becoming increasingly powerful."
"Then suddenly we were told that other nations coveted the Land of Fire."
"But after the war, did the Land of Fire lose any territory?"
"No."
"Did the victorious nations demand land as compensation?"
"No."
"So were they really fighting for land?"
In reality, territory did matter.
More territory meant more taxes.
More wealth.
But if territory were truly their objective—
Why didn't the Land of Wind focus on expanding elsewhere?
Why didn't the Land of Water develop its countless islands?
As for the Land of Lightning...
No one even bothered discussing those troublemakers.
Of the Five Great Villages, four fought largely because of national interests.
Only Kumogakure seemed to start wars because it simply wanted to.
The relationship between the Raikage and the Lightning Daimyō was notoriously terrible.
Despite being relatives.
They were truly a nation of professional agitators.
Fugaku desperately searched for a counterargument.
Yet he couldn't find one.
Because Arin's explanation aligned too well with Uchiha instincts.
Even his own heart resisted arguing against it.
"What if we simply killed all the Daimyō?"
Jin suddenly asked.
"The ninja world would descend into complete chaos."
Arin answered honestly.
"Then eventually someone would unify the entire world."
"And only then would lasting peace emerge."
Of course—
A few centuries later, someone else would inevitably start another revolution.
But it would still be better than the current system.
Jin fell silent.
He wanted immediate peace.
Not worldwide chaos.
"Unless..."
Arin continued.
"...you possess power equal to Uchiha Madara."
"If everyone is forced to submit to you, then unification happens much faster."
He had just offered a solution.
Jin sighed deeply.
"In the end, it all comes down to strength."
The conversation had returned to the same conclusion.
Strength.
They lacked enough of it.
But that wasn't true for Arin.
He rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
That old man Madara was nearing the end of his road.
Once he disappeared, the entire ninja world would essentially be Arin's playground.
If he truly wanted to—
He could bring peace very quickly.
The problem was that he didn't want peace just yet.
If peace arrived now...
Where would he farm experience?
Would he have to start hunting the Ōtsutsuki?
He hadn't even reached Six Paths level yet.
The army continued advancing rapidly.
After several days of travel, the borders of the Land of Bears finally appeared in the distance.
Arin suddenly felt that perhaps...
He should start cultivating a few future monsters himself.
If the ninja world continued following the original plot of Naruto—
There simply weren't enough Super Kage-level enemies to farm.
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