Humans are inherently selfish creatures. And he was no exception.
He could paint his actions as righteous or noble, but he knew the truth: at his core, it was just selfishness.
He was so selfish that simply because he hated this village, he wanted to burn it to the ground.
And he didn't think there was anything wrong with that.
Why do the Five Great Nations go to war?
No matter how grandiose their excuses, the underlying essence is exactly the same as his—it's all selfishness.
He is selfish toward others because he is selfless toward himself.
The Five Kage are selfish toward other nations because they are selfless toward their own villagers.
Ultimately, selfishness has never been a bad thing.
Everything has two sides. Firmness and gentleness combined, Yin and Yang united—that is the truth of the world.
"If you have a solution, say it. If it's feasible, we will definitely support you."
Shin Kawai's words interrupted Gisei Shiraishi's train of thought.
Snapping back to reality, Gisei saw everyone looking at him and began to lay out his plan.
"Actually, I've already considered the concerns you mentioned, so I've prepared three plans."
"The first plan is to pacify the internal situation before resisting foreign aggression. To fight external enemies, we must first stabilize the hearts of our own people. Concentrating all our power into one hard strike is the only way to victory!"
"Aren't you worried that your clansmen won't approve of you? Then we find a way to make them approve."
"I intend to establish a clan school to cultivate the future of the clan. As for those clansmen whose thinking is already set, we will start holding regular gatherings, speeches, and propaganda to promote 'human-oriented' thinking."
"This is the best way to stabilize internal morale and counter the invasion of the Third's 'Will of Fire'."
"The second plan is to stabilize the external situation before pacifying the internal. We make friends with forces outside the village and use them to strike at the Third, while simultaneously provoking conflicts within the village to trap him in difficulties both inside and out."
"I don't think I need to say much about the third plan. As long as the first two steps go smoothly, the Third won't be able to beat us no matter what."
After Gisei finished speaking, the expressions on everyone's faces became quite interesting.
The patriarch of the Ishikura clan suddenly stood up, pointed an accusing finger at Gisei, and scolded, "Do you know what you are saying? This is treason!"
Gisei raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean, Clan Head Ishikura? I don't recall saying anything about betraying the country."
"Befriending forces outside the village—if that's not treason, then what is?"
Gisei narrowed his eyes, sizing the man up. This guy had been acting off since their very first meeting, and now he was spouting this nonsense. Was he really not a mole for the Third?
He glanced at Shuichi Takemoto, who just shook his head at him.
"Befriending forces outside the village is only a tool for us to seize power. Once we are in power, they will naturally become our enemies again. Do I really need to explain such a simple concept?"
Gisei's tone was sharp. He had originally thought swaying these clan heads would be a sure thing, but he didn't expect to hit a wall this stupid.
"No matter what you say, I will absolutely not approve of this method. Even if you become Hokage this way, the village's power will be severely weakened. What will we use to resist foreign enemies then?"
Gisei mentally reached out to Shiro, asking if there was any way to sense Clan Head Ishikura's thoughts.
"No, the butterfly seed was just implanted. It doesn't have its own consciousness yet and cannot communicate."
Shiro's answer was a little disappointing, but it was just a minor setback.
"Then, does Clan Head Ishikura intend to just sit here and wait for death?"
"I believe a coup d'état is not feasible. If a war breaks out, we can quickly quell the chaos, and then return to force the Third to abdicate. That is the safest method."
Quickly quell the chaos of war?
What was going on inside this guy's head? Gisei's expression turned ugly as he looked toward the other clan heads who hadn't spoken yet.
He suddenly noticed that these guys were all averting their gazes slightly, and a realization gradually dawned on him.
Were they still thinking of protecting their own skins?
They wanted to use him to fight for the Hokage seat, while they just fanned the flames from the safety of the back row.
Even if people died on the battlefield, it would be the regular clansmen, not them.
A coup d'état is no joke; they would have to put their own lives on the line. If it failed, they would inevitably be wiped out completely.
That was not a risk they were willing to take.
They would only support him competing through "legitimate" means. A radical coup was obviously not something they would accept.
Veins bulged on Gisei's forehead. He never expected that he had still underestimated human selfishness.
These guys talked about "doing it for the clan," but wasn't it all just for themselves? They were simply more selfish than he was.
At least he still had thoughts of protecting his clansmen; these people, on the other hand, likely regarded their clansmen entirely as property.
If they ran out of money, the clan could just reproduce. Once there were more people, they could spend more. As long as they were clan heads, there would always be endless money to burn.
Even if the clan really declined, they would certainly still live very well.
Perhaps, to appease them, the village would even offer them considerable benefits. And those benefits would definitely stay clutched in their hands, while the regular clansmen probably wouldn't see a single ryo.
What could people like this possibly use to fight the Third? He had actually mistaken pigs for people.
Thinking of leading a team of pig teammates to fight an ace squad?
Was he too naive, or were they just too stupid?
And these people actually agreed to Takemoto's proposal and accepted his restraints?
Wait. The drawback of the butterfly seed is that it devours lifespan, but there are many benefits. Could these guys be eyeing his family's secret technique?
Gisei's face turned green at the thought.
He definitely couldn't kill them right now, and they knew he didn't dare to kill them.
So he had been played?
Gisei suppressed the urge to go berserk, staring coldly at these people without saying a word, waiting for their reply.
"A coup d'état is indeed too radical," Clan Head Kamikawa said, breaking the silence. "If the Hokage wants to weaken us, he won't make it look too ugly. If we catch him red-handed, he will have to step down even if he doesn't want to."
"I agree with Clan Head Kamikawa's view."
"A coup d'état is the last resort. Gisei, I think your first plan is quite good. Can you explain in detail what you mean by 'human-oriented'?"
Gisei gritted his teeth. "You just want to take the benefits and push all the risks onto me?"
"What are you saying? As long as it's not a coup d'état, we will support whatever you do!"
"Speaking of which, isn't Danzo trying to provoke a war? Why don't we arrange for someone to kill him first, to give the Third a warning?"
"That's a good idea. If the Third remains obstinate and still wants to start a war, we can spread rumors in the village to make it impossible for him to step down gracefully."
Gisei completely lost his temper and could only look at Takemoto.
Takemoto shook his head, signaling him to be patient.
Gisei shrugged helplessly. Just a moment ago, he had some hope for this alliance, but now he had completely seen through their true faces.
They only thought about benefits and pushed him out to take the fall.
If he really believed their words, he probably wouldn't even know how he died. It was just too much of a trap.
Support him fighting for Hokage? Their real thought was probably: If you can win, great. If you can't, whatever.
They just wanted to lift up his banner and wave it a few times to show a "tough stance" to the Third.
Because of this tough stance, maybe the Third wouldn't dare to pressure them too hard and would toss them a few crumbs to shut them up.
Sure enough, politics didn't suit him—because he still wasn't selfish enough.