The day after the Hokage inauguration ceremony, many national envoys began leaving one after another.
The envoys from the great nations did not depart. Instead, they chose to remain, likely to negotiate certain confidential matters with Konoha.
Judging from the recent actions of the four great nations, Wind, Earth, Lightning, and Water, they would soon begin walking the path of establishing ninja villages as well.
Yesterday's ceremony had almost certainly given the envoys from those four great nations a terrifying shock.
If they did not establish ninja villages, being eliminated by the times was a future all four great nations could already foresee.
The exchanges between the great nations did not affect Yayoi. On the second day after the ceremony, like several other countries, he made preparations to leave Konoha and return to the Land of Night.
Konoha was still newly founded, with everything waiting to be built. At present, aside from its military side, every other foundation was extremely weak.
Education, commerce, medicine, and other fields were still blank slates. None of them had formed a proper system or framework yet.
This was Konoha's greatest gap, but it was also where the Land of Night held an advantage.
The Land of Night had been formally established for nearly ten years. Under Yayoi's step-by-step efforts, many basic fields had already achieved considerable results. In the era to come, he had a certain head start.
There was another point that gave Yayoi some peace of mind. Konoha had not shown any desire for outward expansion. It merely occupied the richest Land of Fire and seemed to also bear the important duty of balancing the order of the ninja world.
In a sense, this was a good thing.
An era with tense circumstances but a relatively stable environment, where the strongest were willing to step forward and maintain peace, was undoubtedly an era suited for rapid development.
According to the original plot he knew, as long as the general trend did not change, the First Great Ninja War would not officially break out until more than ten years after Konoha's founding.
In other words, whether the Land of Night could catch up to the Five Great Nations would depend most crucially on the next decade or so.
While others were anxious, he could rely on his foresight and take great strides in development.
"I feel like the ninja world from now on will be completely different from before."
Inside the carriage, after a day of settling her thoughts, Kichō, who had witnessed the entire Hokage ceremony, was still deeply shaken by yesterday's inauguration. Her heart could not calm down for a long time.
The impact of that overwhelming historical tide pressing down was swifter and more suffocating than anything else.
For someone like Kichō, who did not know the future development of the plot, that was only natural. But even for Yayoi, a man with foreknowledge who knew many things about the future, he had still felt restless and uneasy at yesterday's venue.
People found it difficult to imagine things they had never seen.
One nation, one village.
That was something unfamiliar, something people had never even dared to imagine.
It made people realize for the first time that ninja and ninja clans could actually be linked and bound together in such a way.
In ancient times, there had existed the first ninja to understand the essence of chakra. People called it Ninshū.
The earliest Ninshū was not about family and family. It was about individuals connecting with other individuals through chakra.
Then, as the era changed, the first ninja who mastered chakra began to act as family units.
Thus, the conflicts of ninja rose from the level of individuals to the level of clans.
Now, the curtain was falling on single ninja clans. Battles between ninja would no longer be between person and person, clan and clan, but between nation and nation.
"It is all right, Kichō. I am here."
He held Kichō's shaken body tightly in his arms and comforted her softly.
Her hands were colder than usual, clearly showing that she had not fully recovered from yesterday's suffocating pressure.
When a fragile individual faced such a flood of history, they could only submit and pray. Aside from that, there was no other way.
So Yayoi knew he could not collapse. No matter how difficult it was, he had to grit his teeth and endure.
Aside from him, no one in the Land of Night had the qualifications to stand at the very front of this great tide and lead everyone forward through thorns and brambles.
That was the capacity and courage a ruler of a country, and a husband, should possess.
It reminded him of a very reasonable old saying: no emperor ever founded a dynasty without merit.
As a ruler, if he could not do this, power would fall into a vacuum, his rule would collapse, and the people would no longer believe in him. In the end, he would become a complete failure.
"Mm..."
Kichō nodded lightly and leaned into Yayoi's embrace, breathing softly as she enjoyed this brief moment of peace and warmth.
"When we return... I will sell the clothes and ornaments I bought before."
After a long while, Kichō's muffled voice sounded.
"Why would you say that?"
Yayoi froze slightly.
"Because the country will need a lot of money for its development, right?"
Kichō broke free from Yayoi's embrace and sat up straight. Her pure white eyes carried a serious and determined look.
"..."
Yayoi did not know whether to laugh or sigh.
Although Kichō's political instincts were quite sharp at times, she did not seem very familiar with national economics.
That was understandable. She was still very young. It was impossible for her to think of everything from every angle, and her sensitivity toward money was not high.
"You really are foolishly cute sometimes."
Yayoi lightly tapped her pale, delicate nose, as if teasing her innocence.
Under Kichō's puzzled gaze, Yayoi answered in a steady and powerful voice.
"Those are proper expenses for you as the shogun's wife. Besides, have you not done very well? By communicating with the wives and daughters of those civil officials, you helped stabilize their hearts. As for money, you do not need to worry. Let me put it this way: there are many things I might lack, but money is not one of them."
Rather, from a very early point, he had known that this kind of era would arrive. For that reason, Yayoi had prepared many preventive measures in the Land of Night.
One of them was how to save money and how to spend it.
He had also prepared several feasible plans in advance for matters such as civilian livelihood, military affairs, diplomacy, and so on.
Facing the age of one nation, one village, aside from the Five Great Nations, no country would be more stable than the Land of Night.
Like the Five Great Nations, the Land of Night now had the qualifications to sit calmly on the high platform and watch the show unfold.
The ones who truly had to struggle desperately were those small countries with weak resistance to risk.
Moreover, the Land of Night had already undergone its transformation long ago. Its ninja and samurai had already grown accustomed to the Land of Night's system. The one nation, one village model belonged to the Five Great Nations and had little to do with the Land of Night.
The reason Yayoi had fallen silent was entirely because he had been frightened by Konoha's military power during its founding period.
It was not because he was worried the Land of Night's system could not compare with those of the Five Great Nations.
And yet, was he the only one who had been frightened?
The envoys and ninja of the other four great nations had likewise been deeply shaken.
"Is that so?"
After listening to Yayoi's explanation, Kichō also began to suspect that she might have been taking things too simply.
Thinking about it that way, her little bit of spending rising to the level of a national issue was entirely the result of panic clouding her judgment.
"Besides, if you do not buy more beautiful clothes, would our private life not become too dull? I still want to see more of your different beautiful sides, Kichō."
Yayoi rubbed his chin and quietly shifted the topic to something private.
"My husband, you really are..."
Looking at Yayoi, whose attitude had completely relaxed, Kichō was once again amazed by how optimistic and strong his heart was.
It was as if nothing in this world could truly defeat him.
This is the husband I love most.
Kichō felt an inexplicable sense of emotion and pride rise in her heart.
Although they had known each other for less than half a year, if this man truly failed one day, she would willingly die with him.
◎
At the same time, in Konoha.
Within the two great clans located at the core of the village, the Senju and the Uchiha, an expected split was taking place inside the Uchiha clan.
"Izayoi, do you truly intend to leave the clan?"
An Uchiha elder over sixty years old, with long gray-white hair, looked at the young girl before him. She was only thirteen, with a childish face, yet she had already awakened the two-tomoe Sharingan. He sighed deeply.
"Of course. Just thinking about living together with the Senju makes me physically sick. Elder Kogaku, are you going to stop me?"
The girl named Izayoi spoke her true feelings to the clan elder. The gloom on her face meant there was no room for compromise.
This girl was none other than the Uchiha girl who had once crossed paths with Yayoi several months ago when he captured the Seven-Tails: Uchiha Izayoi.
After receiving news from Yayoi that the Uchiha and Senju had joined forces, she had rushed back to the clan without stopping. What she saw upon returning was the alliance between the Uchiha and Senju.
Although she caused a huge scene, no one took a little Uchiha girl like her seriously.
The Senju clan head, Senju Hashirama, had even patted her head and laughed heartily, "Gahaha," saying childish things like, "From now on, both sides no longer need to fight and kill each other," and, "The Uchiha and Senju will be one family."
She had been so angry that she kicked him in the knee on the spot, nearly creating a diplomatic incident.
Thanks to Hashirama himself not taking it seriously, he merely smiled and said, "If letting you hit me a few more times can bring us peaceful coexistence, then go ahead and punch me as much as you like, little girl."
Afterward, her foot swelled up.
Was the body of the Senju clan head made of steel?
Without a doubt, the Senju clan head had treated her as an ignorant child.
Izayoi believed that the Senju, as the victors, had not settled accounts with the Uchiha, but instead invited the Uchiha into an alliance. There had to be some unspeakable conspiracy behind it.
She refused to believe that Senju Hashirama, the Senju clan head, was a man who simply laughed easily.
He had to be a sinister man hiding a blade behind his smile.
After all, what kind of ninja was that naive?
But no matter the reason, Izayoi had no intention of remaining in this ninja village called Konoha.
She would rather starve or freeze to death outside than live in a place where the Senju clan existed.
"If you have already made up your mind, even if I wanted to stop you, it would be hard to do so. I cannot tie you up for the rest of your life and force you to obey. Besides, you are not the only one in the clan thinking this way. You have already contacted those people, have you not?"
Uchiha Kogaku's black eyes seemed to see through Izayoi's thoughts.
His wrinkled, aged face was marked by the passage of time.
As an Uchiha elder in his sixties, he had experienced the long conflict with the Senju clan.
Among the Uchiha ninja from his generation who had lived safely until now, only a few remained.
Some had already let go. But for others, as time passed, their hatred toward the Senju had only grown stronger day by day.
"If you already know, then why ask? No matter what, we will never coexist with the Senju."
Izayoi's childish face fell silent for a moment, then she gave a soft snort.
That was right. She was not the only Uchiha who wanted to leave Konoha.
Although most Uchiha clan members had already compromised with the Senju clan and were willing to coexist peacefully.
Because at this point, whether it was the Uchiha or the Senju, both clans were honestly tired of killing.
The Uchiha had been defeated before, but the clan still retained considerable strength. They could have moved away entirely, waited for new powerful figures to be born, and then competed with the Senju clan again.
But because they were tired of war, and because the conditions offered by the Senju were good, a large number of compromise supporters appeared within the Uchiha.
As a result, the radicals who wanted to continue fighting began to be pushed aside, suppressed, and silenced.
As a member of the radical faction, Izayoi would rather be killed than surrender to the Senju.
Her parents, sisters, close friends, and relatives had all died at the hands of the Senju. The hatred carved into her bones made it impossible for her to coexist peacefully with them.
Even if she did not seek revenge, she could never accept living together with the Senju.
Against that background, the radicals began secretly joining together and decided to leave Konoha, far away from the Senju.
"Are you here to stop me, Elder Kogaku? Or is this Madara's decision?"
As the representative of the compromise faction, Uchiha clan head Uchiha Madara had once been the ninja Izayoi respected the most.
But now, he was the person Izayoi despised most.
Likewise, Madara was also viewed with hostility by the radicals. In their hearts, the clan head known as Madara was already dead.
"Madara-sama does not care about this."
"Hah, of course. That man is probably off mingling with the Senju now."
Izayoi revealed a mocking smile.
The clan head she once had to address respectfully could now naturally be called "that man."
Failure was not frightening.
Cowardly compromise was the true shame.
"Perhaps. But the clan members truly are tired. Not only the Uchiha. Those clans that joined Konoha have also grown fearful and numb from long years of killing and hatred. They are afraid that one day, they will die and their clans will be wiped out."
Kogaku's words were spoken with the weight of age. He neither affirmed nor denied her stance, merely stating the facts he knew.
When he was young, he had been one of the most radical Uchiha ninja.
As for now, for the stability and continuation of the clan, he could also put down hatred.
These months of peace had allowed him, an old man who had fought all his life, to understand the value of peace.
"Hmph. Weak excuses. If you are not here to stop me, then I am leaving. Everyone is waiting for me."
Izayoi sneered. She was growing somewhat impatient with this old man's rambling.
Although this old man had been the close friend of her late grandfather, and had taken care of her in many ways in the past. Her ninjutsu, taijutsu, genjutsu, including the way to use the Sharingan, had all been taught by him.
He was both a close elder and a teacher-like existence.
"...May I ask one more thing? After you leave, how do you intend to live?"
Just as Izayoi was about to leave, Kogaku suddenly asked.
"How else? We will naturally find new employers and work for money."
Izayoi answered without thinking.
"...In that case, take Meira with you."
Kogaku's gaze flickered.
"Uncle Meira?"
Izayoi frowned.
Uchiha Meira.
This man was an elite of the Uchiha. His Sharingan had been trained to the very peak of the three-tomoe level.
He was currently the ninja in the clan with the greatest hope of awakening the Mangekyō Sharingan. At the same time, he was also Kogaku's personal guard.
In the previous war against the Senju, he had not appeared on the battlefield. Instead, he had remained behind as one of the defenders responsible for protecting the clan.
"The times are different now. If you still cling to old ways of thinking, you will die very quickly."
Izayoi wanted to refute him, but when she saw Kogaku's suddenly stern eyes, her lips moved twice before she could only nod and agree.
If she did not agree to Kogaku's condition, Izayoi suspected she would not even be able to walk out of the clan.