LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 69: Chapter 69: Peace
Konohagakure, Hokage's Office
Tsunade, Jiraiya, Shikaku, and Tobirama gathered in the Hokage's office, the tension palpable.
"Those bastards! Who do they think they are, accusing the Second Hokage of orchestrating things from the shadows?!"
Tsunade's furious punch obliterated the desk before her, scattering splinters across the room.
"Tsunade-sama..." Shikaku wiped the sweat from his brow. This makes the third desk this month.
Rumors of Tobirama secretly hiring the Akatsuki to capture the Five-Tails jinchūriki had spread like wildfire. Someone was clearly fanning the flames, but Tsunade refused to believe it could be true.
Tobirama narrowed his eyes, his expression unreadable. After a moment of silence, he spoke.
"Someone's trying to use this to incite hostility toward Konoha. The goal is likely to make it appear that I'm attempting to collect all the tailed beasts, hoping to spark the Fourth Great Ninja War."
"Ridiculous! Why would Second Hokage want to collect the tailed beasts?!" Tsunade snapped, her anger barely contained.
Tobirama allowed himself a small, amused smile. "You're not entirely wrong, Little Tsuna. Collecting all the tailed beasts is indeed one of my goals. That said, I had nothing to do with the Five-Tails being captured."
The room fell silent, the weight of Tobirama's words sinking in.
"Second Gr—uh, I mean, Hokage-sama," Jiraiya corrected himself after a sharp glare from Tsunade.
"Why would you want to collect the tailed beasts?"
Tobirama cast a cool glance at Jiraiya before speaking.
"Looking back at the three wars that erupted within just a few decades, it's clear that my brother's decision to distribute the tailed beasts among the villages was a mistake.
"Hashirama believed that spreading the beasts would balance the power of the villages, deterring them from engaging in wars. But in practice, all it's done is escalate the scale of conflict. Those beasts should never have been given to them in the first place."
Tobirama's voice grew firmer, a rare passion breaking through his typically calm demeanor.
"If all nine tailed beasts were united under one village, they could serve as a deterrent, keeping all the other villages in check. With me here to prevent any rampages, Konoha is in the best position to accomplish this. If we were to gather them, true peace might finally be achievable."
Jiraiya frowned, struggling to find words. He didn't like the idea of peace achieved through sheer intimidation, but he couldn't come up with a solid rebuttal.
Tobirama's lips curved into a faint smirk. The five great nations of my previous world only maintained peace through nuclear deterrence. Tailed beasts are no different—human-shaped weapons of mass destruction.
His philosophy wasn't so different from Nagato's in the end. Unlike the idealistic dreams of mutual understanding espoused by Jiraiya and Naruto, Tobirama knew that such notions were unrealistic. Even in the era of Boruto, the so-called peace was only maintained through the overwhelming power of Naruto and Sasuke.
The others in the room were stunned into silence, unable to argue against Tobirama's logic.
Tsunade, however, couldn't hide her surprise. Second Grandpa has such grand ambitions...
"As for the rumors..." Tobirama said, his tone dismissive. "Let them talk. Without evidence, there's nothing they can do. If any village dares to use such baseless accusations to pressure Konoha, they'll regret it."
With that, he waved a hand to end the discussion. "Tsunade, how's Itachi's recovery progressing? Is he ready for the procedure?"
Tsunade blinked, still reeling from Tobirama's earlier remarks.
"His condition has improved significantly compared to a few days ago. He's ready for the transplant."
"Good. Let's not waste time. We'll perform the procedure today."
Without further discussion, Tobirama and Tsunade left for the hospital to oversee the transplantation of Hashirama's cells into Uchiha Itachi.
Once they were gone, Jiraiya remained rooted in place, lost in thought.
"Jiraiya-sama? Are you all right?" Shikaku asked, breaking the silence.
"Shikaku, do you think it's truly impossible for people to achieve mutual understanding?" Jiraiya's voice was tinged with melancholy.
Shikaku chuckled softly, shaking his head.
"Jiraiya-sama, that idea is far too idealistic. Even if individuals could understand each other, what about nations? Conflicts between nations are ultimately about interests. As long as greed exists, so will war. Hokage-sama's point is valid. Without a powerful deterrent, peace is fleeting at best. When the First Hokage was alive, no village dared to act rashly..."
Jiraiya sighed. "So even the prophecy of the Great Toad Sage might not be enough..."
His thoughts drifted to his long search for the Child of Prophecy—a search that had cost him so much. He had once believed Minato, then Nagato, to be that child. Both were gone now.
"Minato... Speaking of which, I wonder how Naruto is doing in the ANBU these days?" Jiraiya murmured. "I haven't checked on him in ages. What kind of teacher am I?"
Determined to rectify his oversight, Jiraiya set out to see how Naruto had been faring.
Meanwhile, in a hospital room in Konoha, an intense and silent battle was underway...
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