"But over the past year or so, you've all done very well. You haven't started any wars. That's very good."
Only then did a faint smile appear on Ōnoki's face. "As you say, Lord Torikaze. How would we dare disobey your orders?"
Torikaze looked at him with satisfaction. "The main reason you sought war was to obtain resources for development. I can understand that."
"But war isn't the only path to development. The people of the Shinobi World don't like war. Other than bringing benefits to important figures like yourselves, it brings nothing but immense suffering to the people of the Shinobi World."
When Ōnoki heard this, he considered it carefully and realized that was indeed the case. He had always viewed matters from the Tsuchikage's perspective, yet had forgotten to see things from the perspective of ordinary people.
That was why he had launched wars without restraint. With a single word from him, countless families had been torn apart and destroyed.
Over the past year or so, he had truly come to understand that feeling.
The deterrence Torikaze brought to Iwagakure was like a sword hanging above his head, keeping Ōnoki constantly on edge.
He had always waited for Torikaze to arrive, yet also feared that he would.
And when he saw Sunagakure developing at astonishing speed, with the entire village changing by the day, Ōnoki could only sigh repeatedly.
"Lord Torikaze, I understand now. War will only bring pain to the Shinobi World, and development does not have war as its only path. To put it bluntly, I was simply too greedy."
When he was young, Ōnoki had been a man of great ambition. Filled with love for Iwagakure, he had worked hard to become the Tsuchikage, hoping to make Iwagakure better and better.
But as it gradually