The Joy of Chasing Each Other

After they finished spying.

"Whoosh—!"

Natsu Yuu took Hashirama and Madara with him and flashed back to Konoha, hundreds of kilometers away.

"Hashirama, do you still think that ninjas shouldn't rule a country?"

As soon as they returned, Natsu Yuu got straight to the point and asked bluntly.

"It really is impressive. The Daimyo's Mansion has changed so much. Maybe I really was wrong..."

Hashirama answered candidly. He wasn't so stubborn that he couldn't admit defeat.

Besides, Tobirama had done a good job. The prosperity of the Daimyo's Mansion was right there before their eyes.

No matter how you looked at it, it proved that the Land of Fire would be better off without a Daimyo and those nobles, and that people would live happier lives.

What's more, the scenes of the Daimyo and nobles deceiving him were still fresh in Hashirama's mind.

All of this was subtly changing his beliefs.

Looking back now, perhaps letting ninjas rule a country wasn't necessarily a bad thing...

"Hashirama, I told you a long time ago."

"For most of the weak, what they want isn't understanding or respect. They need a stronger, more decisive leader!"

"Having a capable, resourceful, and determined strongman lead them is absolutely better than letting those fat, useless nobles rule!"

Humans admired the strong.

It was the same for men and women, and ninjas were no exception.

Having a powerful ninja lead them was better than having a greedy Daimyo rule them.

At least the former had little interest in exploiting ordinary people's labor, while the latter would probably covet their wealth and their bodies again and again.

It wasn't as if they could expect Tobirama to devote himself to chasing money, was it?

To him, an entire castle full of gold and silver was less valuable than a