The path to peace

Although Hashirama's body was severely depleted, his Secret Techniques kept him looking no different from when he was healthy, and his strength remained at its peak. However, every time he used large amounts of Chakra, his already short remaining lifespan dwindled further, bringing him closer to death.

After fighting the Nine-Tails, Hashirama discovered that his Wood Release Secret Techniques could indeed suppress a tailed beast's power, but truly restraining one still required the Uzumaki Clan's Sealing Jutsu. For that reason, he had no intention of capturing the tailed beasts alone. He would act together with the others in the village.

During the meetings, Hashirama repeatedly discussed the capture of the tailed beasts with the Ninja Clan heads, drawing up plan after plan. To the Ninja Clans, capturing those legendary beasts was an incredible undertaking. After hearing that Mito could use the Nine-Tails' power, some began entertaining the idea of keeping all the tailed beasts in the village, disagreeing with Hashirama's proposal to distribute them among the other countries.

Tobirama, however, declared that this was unfeasible. Although members of the Uzumaki Clan could indeed withstand having tailed beasts sealed within them, Mito herself had pointed out that even among the Uzumaki Clan, only particularly gifted individuals could suppress a tailed beast completely. Using its power against its will demanded even greater talent.

Quite apart from anything else, simply asking members of the Uzumaki Clan to become jinchūriki—the term for people who had tailed beasts sealed within them—would not be easy. Unlike the other Ninja Clans, the Uzumaki Clan was not a member of Konoha. As far back as the Warring States period, they had founded their own country overseas and were recognized by the world as its rulers.

Better to lead a small nation than serve in a great one. Although the Land of Whirlpools founded by the Uzumaki Clan was only a small country isolated overseas, they preferred governing themselves to becoming part of Konoha Ninja Village, which operated under the Land of Fire. They had no desire to fall from rulers of a country to mere members of a ninja village.

Thus, Konoha Shinobi Village had only established diplomatic relations with Uzushio Ninja Village in the Land of Whirlpools. Officially, Konoha Shinobi Village had no authority to give Uzushio Village orders. Since the Senju Clan were their distant relatives, throwing their weight around would be even more inappropriate. Their consent was necessary before any of their people could become vessels for tailed beasts.

Even if Uzushio Village truly agreed to send clan members to serve as vessels, they would encounter the problem Mito had mentioned. Not everyone could suppress a tailed beast completely, let alone use its power as Mito did with the Nine-Tails. As a princess of the Land of Whirlpools, Mito possessed exceptional lineage and natural aptitude. How could an ordinary Uzumaki clan member compare?

In Tobirama's view, jinchūriki who could not contribute to their fighting strength were useless and would only make the other countries wary of Konoha. Originally, Konoha might only have needed to face one or two countries. If they claimed all nine tailed beasts, however, the Four Countries would likely join forces and attack Konoha Ninja Village together.

Konoha Ninja Village might have been full of talented people, but the other countries were hardly lacking. If the two godlike figures, Hashirama and Madara, were excluded, Konoha Ninja Village was only somewhat stronger than the other Shinobi Villages. They had no fear of facing one, or even two, but against a joint attack by the Four Countries, even with Hashirama and Madara both present to guarantee victory on individual battlefields, they might not be able to protect everyone else. The two of them might emerge unscathed while Konoha Ninja Village was all but destroyed.

Moreover, Madara was already dead, and Hashirama had little time left. Capturing the tailed beasts would shorten his lifespan even further. Under these circumstances, keeping every tailed beast for themselves would only antagonize all the other countries.

Therefore, Tobirama believed Hashirama's proposal to distribute the tailed beasts and balance their strength was the better choice. As long as no single side became too powerful, it would not become a target for every other country, making the situation easier to handle.

Tobirama's argument was well founded, and the ninja clans had no desire to court their own destruction. After considering it carefully, they concluded that monopolizing the tailed beasts would indeed bring them trouble without any benefits, and accepted the distribution plan. The proposal would also be submitted to the Land of Fire Ruler for approval.

Every clan head in the village was working toward Hashirama's tailed beast capture operation. Only Kazemori Masaki and Kagami Uchiha, who were clan heads but still very young, were spared such a difficult assignment. At most, they handled matters in the rear. The actual captures would be left to the older, experienced ninja.

Kazemori Masaki knew that distributing the tailed beasts was inevitable, and he agreed with Tobirama's judgment that it was the best approach at this point. Of course, another option was not to distribute them at all. But since Konoha Ninja Village already possessed the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, the other countries would certainly take the initiative to capture tailed beasts themselves. Better to let Hashirama do it and have Tobirama make them pay a hefty sum, helping maintain the country's stability.

Still, Kazemori Masaki understood that this peace could never last long. Every country currently harbored ambitions of swallowing up the others, and their appetite for battle remained strong. Ambitious men were bound to rise, and war was inevitable.

Kazemori Masaki felt that Hashirama's idea of balancing power did have some merit. Balance could only be maintained when everything was in equilibrium. Once one side crossed the line, that harmony would inevitably break, creating danger. The problem was that balance alone could not bring about peace; other supporting factors were necessary. Society was a complex whole, after all. Achieving peace through just one or two methods was impossible.

Both Madara Uchiha's Infinite Tsukuyomi and the idea of a man named Nagato in the future, who would use an Ultimate Weapon to make the world suffer, were attempts to resolve all conflict once and for all. In Kazemori Masaki's view, even those who began with honorable intentions often strayed from the right path while pursuing shortcuts, ultimately taking a crooked road.

Leaving aside the Infinite Tsukuyomi that Madara envisioned, Kazemori Masaki disagreed with Nagato's idea—or rather, he agreed with only part of it. Making people experience suffering could indeed teach them the value of peace. Under the threat of the Ultimate Weapon, people would stop fighting, restrained by its power. But the question was—who would restrain Nagato?

If Nagato's plan truly went ahead, the world he built would be no different from the one Princess Kaguya had ruled a thousand years earlier, and her fate might well become his future. This form of rule depended too heavily on an individual's morality. Kazemori Masaki did not believe that the morals of someone free of all restraints could remain unchanged forever.

Perhaps combining Nagato's idea with Hashirama's would produce something more workable, something that might even ensure a longer-lasting peace.

Of course, Kazemori Masaki could not yet intervene in such matters. He would at least have to become Hokage before he could freely tackle the problems between countries. For now, his main concern was the First Shinobi World War.

What Kazemori Masaki was considering was Sage Art. Hashirama had said that Kazemori Masaki's Sage Art differed from that of the Three Sage Art Training Grounds. How to develop his own way of using it was the question he needed to study.

As far as Kazemori Masaki knew, Mount Myōboku's Sage Art primarily involved incorporating it into ninjutsu and mobilizing natural energy to attack, while Ryūchi Cave's Sage Art mainly involved infusing natural energy into inorganic matter and manipulating that matter to attack. He knew nothing about Shikkotsu Forest's methods, but guessed that they involved infusing natural energy into the body to stimulate life.

The Senjutsu of the Three Sage Art Training Grounds had been developed through many years of accumulated experience. Practicing their Senjutsu would produce corresponding characteristics. Although these were merely different ways of using Sage Art, their distinctive styles were unmistakable. According to Hashirama, Shikkotsu Forest's Sage Art did not possess the abilities of Ryūchi Cave's or Mount Myōboku's.

Kazemori Masaki's Sage Art had arisen naturally. Unlike that of the Three Sage Art Training Grounds, which bore distinctive patterns in how it operated, his Sage Art carried no one's imprint yet. In theory, he could use senjutsu chakra however he pleased, developing Sage Art with a style uniquely his own.

Out of curiosity, Kazemori Masaki had tried using Mount Myōboku's Frog Kata, which employed natural energy to attack. He had assumed that without knowing Mount Myōboku's Sage Art training methods, he would be unable to use it. To his surprise, however, he had picked it up quite easily.

This gave him another idea: perhaps he could also try Ryūchi Cave's approach. That attempt ended in failure, but Kazemori Masaki was not discouraged. He had failed not because he was incapable of using it, but because he was unfamiliar with it. As he grew older, subtle changes had also occurred in his mental state. Usually, he had only felt that his control over natural energy was becoming more refined, but now he discovered that it had other remarkable applications.

If Kazemori Masaki's guess was correct, he should be able to use the Sage Art of Mount Myōboku, Ryūchi Cave, and Shikkotsu Forest, rather than being limited to just one.

(End of chapter)