"Th-That... wasn't wise either?"
As he listened to Chiba's softened tone, the hesitation in Yu Ze's eyes slowly faded, replaced by confusion. Unable to hold it back, he spoke.
Th-This was the best solution I could think of...
How... how was it unwise?
Looking at things now, this should be the best approach! Could it be better to maintain things as they were and let others attack them? With a nation's protection and the name of a ninja village, those rogue ninja and mercenaries would surely have their reservations. And a ninja village would receive support from the nation, so life would definitely get better! As he spoke, this thought flashed through Yu Ze's mind.
"Of course it isn't wise. What does getting a nation's recognition amount to? The national recognition you mean should be recognition from the Land of Grass, right? But look—during this Ninja World War, what did the Land of Grass's recognition accomplish? Didn't Kusagakure still get beaten into hiding everywhere, ultimately even becoming mercenaries for a major nation? And look at the major ninja villages. What did having major nations supporting them accomplish? Didn't they still suffer grievous losses in the Ninja World War, even becoming the primary targets of attack? Even my village, Konoha, which calls itself the strongest ninja village in the ninja world, had to tread carefully. One misstep, and the village would be destroyed and everyone killed. Don't you think your idea is far too naive?"
Hearing Yu Ze's words and seeing that he was still somewhat unconvinced, Chiba sighed and continued in a gentle tone.
This...
Hearing Chiba's words, Yu Ze froze, not knowing what to say.
"Furthermore, the founding of every ninja village requires sufficient foundations, as well as someone strong enough to hold up the entire village during war