"I've never heard such a theory before… uniting the majority?"
Hashirama Senju murmured.
"As a shinobi… was I wrong from the very beginning?"
Tobirama shook his head.
"Brother, we weren't wrong back then."
"But now… things have changed."
"That boy, Yefire… is terrifying."
Even Madara Uchiha drew in a sharp breath.
His strength was overwhelming. To him, civilians were insignificant—like ants beneath his feet.
Yet Yefire's words…
Still shook him deeply.
"Civilians, huh…"
Madara said slowly.
"Perhaps they really shouldn't be underestimated."
"But in the end, it still comes down to one thing—"
"There are simply too few shinobi."
"That's right."
Fourth Raikage snorted.
"If the number of shinobi increased tenfold—no, a hundredfold—"
"This world would be completely different."
"You make it sound easy."
Mei Terumi said with a faint smile.
"Only the Senju clan ever married outside their own ranks, didn't they?"
"Other clans only marry shinobi."
"And what was the result?"
"The Senju clan is nearly extinct. Only Tsunade remains."
"Do you really have the resolve to do the same?"
Onoki stroked his beard.
"To increase the number of shinobi while preserving bloodlines…"
"That's no easy task."
Tsunade's expression was firm.
"The Senju clan has never regretted it."
"Civilians are resilient."
"No matter the era, they always find a way to survive."
"Even if one day all shinobi disappear…"
"They will continue to live on."
"And the Senju bloodline… will never truly vanish."
Hashirama laughed heartily.
"Exactly!"
"That's the advantage of intermarriage!"
"Individually, civilians may be weak…"
"But united, they are incredibly strong."
"Their strength cannot be ignored."
"On that point, Yefire is absolutely right."
The Fourth Raikage scoffed.
"In the end, it's still because there aren't enough shinobi."
"If there were more, civilians wouldn't matter at all."
"They're simply too weak."
Jiraiya scratched his head, still shaken.
"No matter how you look at it…"
"I'm really starting to envy my other self."
"He actually said he's not the Child of Prophecy…"
"Be a firm materialist, or your judgment will be affected…"
"…Just hearing that gives me goosebumps."
Orochimaru let out a low chuckle.
"Fascinating…"
"I'm starting to wonder—what would I become in that world if I met him?"
"It might turn into a rather… wonderful journey."
Compared to the intense debates among the veterans—
The younger generation was equally shaken.
"Civilians…?"
Naruto scratched his head.
"I've met some, but I never thought about it like that."
"Isn't it enough to just complete missions?"
"My world only has shinobi."
Sasuke said coldly.
"My only goal is revenge."
"Civilians… do they live the same way we do?"
Hinata asked softly.
"I've only interacted with civilians during missions."
Ino frowned.
"I barely know anything about them… but their power can really be that great?"
Shikamaru sighed.
"Civilians… they're a force we've been overlooking."
"Our perspective has been too narrow."
Unlike the experienced veterans—
The younger shinobi barely understood civilians at all.
Their interactions were limited.
Their understanding… shallow.
Only a few truly grasped the meaning behind Yefire's words.
Deep within a cave—
Konan looked at Nagato.
"Nagato… should we also try to unite civilians?"
"They're clearly indispensable."
Nagato fell silent for a moment.
Then spoke in a hoarse voice.
"That's just Yefire's wishful thinking."
"To unite them would require enormous effort."
"We don't have the time or energy for that."
"Besides…"
"The Nine-Tails is nearly captured."
"A new era of peace is about to begin."
"We can't give up now."
"The path I walk…"
"And the path he walks…"
"Are completely different."
"As for which one is right…"
"That can only be decided in the end."
After a pause, he added quietly—
"The Akatsuki leader of that other world…"
"…is indeed stronger than me."
Nagato had once been a civilian.
Now, he understood some of Yefire's words.
But there was no turning back.
Even if he sensed flaws in his path—
It was already set.
Deep down—
He looked forward to it.
He wanted to see—
What Yefire would do next.
Perhaps…
There would be an answer.
…
Inside the Fire Daimyo's palace—
"Originally, I invited you all here for tea and conversation."
The Fire Daimyo said lazily, fanning himself.
"Who would've thought we'd run into this strange viewing spectacle? How troublesome."
"This viewing thing is annoying enough…"
The Lightning Daimyo gritted his teeth.
"But that Yefire from another world—"
"If he existed here, I'd put a bounty on his head immediately!"
"Calm yourself."
The Wind Daimyo sneered.
"He's just a child."
"Talking about mobilizing civilians for revolution?"
"How laughable."
"The boy is right about one thing."
The Water Daimyo smiled faintly.
"Shinobi are indeed our tools."
"But uniting civilians?"
"They'll never manage that."
"Shinobi are nothing more than brute warriors."
The Fire Daimyo chuckled smugly.
"Unite civilians? How exactly?"
"We control education—only nobles can study."
"We align shinobi with us, isolating civilians."
"We seize their land—"
"So they can never rise."
"They can only depend on us."
"When we're in a good mood, we lower taxes."
"When we're not, we raise them."
"And what can they do?"
"They can only pray every year for lighter taxes."
"Hahaha!"
The Earth Daimyo nodded in agreement.
"I just hope our counterparts in that other world notice this disgusting Yefire soon enough."
"And place a bounty on him—"
"To eliminate him completely."
Behind the scenes—
The true rulers of the shinobi world spoke casually.
To them—
Their rule was absolute.
Even shinobi had become tools.
Who could possibly oppose them?
They scoffed at Yefire.
Yet—
Their eyes never left the screen.
Because—
Yefire…
Had already begun moving again.