Land of Iron, Konoha Annex.
Because the Five Kage Summit concluded perfectly, there would be a reception banquet in the Land of Iron tonight, so everyone would not be leaving for now.
According to the normal reception process, they would return tomorrow.
Second floor, tea room.
Shisui voluntarily took on the task of brewing tea, while Kakashi and Uchiha Jin sat directly by the tea table, drinking tea and admiring the snowy scenery outside.
It must be said, the atmosphere was pleasant.
Although the environment in the Land of Iron was not good, and the living conditions of the common people were poor, if one were to view it purely for leisure, the scenery here was actually quite beautiful.
Amidst the falling snow, having tea brewed over a stove was quite a pleasant experience.
Once the Ninja World was truly brought under his control, this area could be developed into a snow house scenic spot, allowing the rich and idle to come and play.
Even he could come here for a vacation when he was free.
Hmm, very good!
Thinking of this, Uchiha Jin picked up the steaming tea, looked at the increasingly fierce snow outside, and his mood strangely began to improve, even a faint smile appearing at the corner of his mouth.
And just as Uchiha Jin was contemplating, Kakashi next to him couldn't help but speak.
"Hokage-sama!"
"Although Konoha seems to have gained the most from this Five Kage Summit, it has also made Other Ninja Villages wary."
"Will this have any impact on your subsequent plans?"
Kakashi tried to speak.
As a core high-ranking official of Konoha, he knew that Uchiha Jin's overall plan had only just begun.
This chaotic situation was initiated by Konoha itself.
And their Hokage-sama intended to rely on the increasingly chaotic situation to engulf the entire Ninja World. Eliminating the Daimyo and nobles was just the first step; the core plan was to completely annex the Other Four Great Shinobi Villages.
According to Uchiha Jin's scheme, Konoha should have 'laid low' behind the scenes and then struck at a crucial moment to decide the outcome in one battle.
But what about today?
Uchiha Jin's actions had nothing to do with 'laying low'; in fact, they would push the entire Konoha into the eye of the storm!
This was clearly contrary to Uchiha Jin's plan, which naturally made Kakashi quite puzzled.
After all... with Uchiha Jin's actions today, the Kage of the Other Four Great Shinobi Villages had clearly begun to fear Konoha.
And on the other side.
As Kakashi spoke, Shisui's gaze also turned towards them.
Obviously.
He was also very interested!
Shisui had matured a lot, especially with Uchiha Jin's ascension to power. As a genius of the Uchiha Clan, he naturally entered the core leadership.
While his mindset changed, he also became more humble and diligently grew in silence.
No choice!
The events of that year had dealt him a huge blow. After his worldview was completely shattered, now that he was on the right path, he naturally had to mature as quickly as possible and be able to stand on his own for Uchiha Jin in the future.
And, regarding this.
Uchiha Jin, who was drinking tea and enjoying the snowy scenery, seeing Kakashi and Shisui's gazes, finally put down his teacup and said with a smile.
"You two are very good!"
"It seems that you both have grown quickly during this period and now know how to think."
"This is a good thing, keep up the hard work."
"As for why I did this, it can only be blamed on that good-for-nothing Hiruzen Sarutobi!"
"In a sense, I am cleaning up Hiruzen Sarutobi's mess!"
"During the period when that old man governed Konoha, the entire Konoha was almost always weak externally, but directly aggressive internally, which led to a very poor image of our Konoha in front of Other Ninja Villages!"
"You two, think carefully!"
"Throughout the Second and Third Great Ninja Wars, Konoha was almost always the victorious nation."
"But as the victorious nation, Konoha paid so much in blood and sacrifice back then, yet what did it ultimately gain?"
"Even until the destruction of Old Konoha, the condolence payments and war commission fees for the Third Great Ninja War were never truly distributed to the Ninja."
"You must know that Konoha was the victorious nation, yet it couldn't even get any war reparations, and couldn't even distribute internal commission fees and war commission fees. Can you imagine what kind of image the Old Konoha had in the eyes of Other Ninja Villages?"
"This is actually one of the reasons why Konoha was besieged every time a Ninja War started."
"Although Konoha's resources are indeed abundant, and Other Ninja Villages all want a piece, Hiruzen Sarutobi's weakness was also a core reason."
"This point must change!"
"You must know that my 'laying low' is different from Hiruzen Sarutobi's weakness. My 'laying low' is to achieve the greatest victory with the smallest cost at a critical moment; 'laying low' is merely one of my methods."
"Temporary forbearance is for the ultimate goal!"
"But thanks to that idiot Hiruzen Sarutobi, Konoha simply cannot 'lay low' now. If I don't act tough today, Other Ninja Villages will think I am weak and easily bullied, because the 'Konoha filter' from Hiruzen Sarutobi's era was too strong."
"I must forcefully break Other Ninja Villages' preconceived notion of Konoha being weak, let them know that Konoha under my, Uchiha Jin's, command is absolutely not something they can manipulate or take a bite out of at will."
"So my toughness today is for better 'laying low' in the future!"
"I want Other Ninja Villages to not dare to target Konoha during Konoha's upcoming period of dormancy."
"..."
Uchiha Jin spoke eloquently.
Kakashi and Shisui in front of him were both people he wanted to cultivate vigorously.
Especially as he would eventually engulf the entire Ninja World, he would need countless geniuses and capable individuals to help him govern it. Thus, Uchiha Jin was truly short on people.
Since both of them wanted to improve, Uchiha Jin naturally had to help.
For his ultimate goal, he wished for as many talents as possible, so when he explained, he naturally broke it down and fed it to them.
Honestly, it had a significant effect!
At the very least, Kakashi and Shisui truly took everything to heart and began to quietly comprehend it.
"This is—too complex!"
"The more I learn now, the more I feel my own insignificance."
"Especially when it comes to the competition between Ninja Villages, I never thought that every single action contained so much profound meaning behind it."
Shisui sighed upon hearing this.
He used to think that he was the only one in the entire Uchiha Clan who could transcend the shackles of the clan and think from the Village's perspective.
But what about now?
The deeper he understood, the more he felt his own insignificance!