Konan let out a soft sigh, leaning back in her chair with an extremely complex look in her eyes.
She suddenly felt that the world had become a bit different. Back when she was very young, she felt that an ordinary Genin was a big shot who could easily take the lives of commoners like them.
Later, after following Jiraiya to learn Ninjutsu, she felt that Jonin were the goals they were chasing.
And then...
With her success in developing Paper Release, she discovered that Jonin were actually just so-so, and the only ones she truly feared were Kage-level.
Immediately following that.
With Yahiko's death and Nagato's rise, she found that Kage-level combat power was also just so-so; at that stage, she also had the ability to fight Kage-level powerhouses.
But, what about now?
It seemed like Kage-level powerhouses were becoming common. She used to think Nagato, with his Rinnegan, was an exception, but now with the appearance of Uchiha Jin and Senju Hashirama, she suddenly realized that Nagato wasn't'special' at all; there were plenty of people on his level or even stronger.
And today?
After a conversation with Uchiha Jin, it seemed the boundary between life and death had loosened slightly.
If people can be resurrected after death, does fighting still have meaning?
Meanwhile, on the other side.
Uchiha Jin didn't bother to ponder Konan's thoughts. His whole being radiated a thick sense of laziness; he even occasionally couldn't help but yawn, giving the impression of a miserable laborer who could fall asleep at any moment.
In fact, that was exactly the case!
He had to set aside a fixed time every day for cultivation, carve out time to communicate with the Seven-Story Pagoda, and even set aside a fixed time to accompany Rin Nohara, while also having to find time to deal with various trivial matters within the clan...
On the contrary!
He didn't seem very concerned about the major affairs of Konoha or even the Land of Fire.
As long as it wasn't a major issue or something that required the Hokage himself to act, Uchiha Jin couldn't be bothered to intervene in daily administrative work. Of course, he simply didn't have the energy to intervene anyway.
To him, if he had that time, he'd rather go to the training grounds to cultivate!
...
Time passed slowly.
The entire Ninja World began to become increasingly chaotic, yet only Konoha and the Land of Fire fell into a strange state of peace and harmony. This situation naturally made the Land of Fire's status increasingly unique.
How should one put it?
It was like the Eagle Nation during World War II!
But in the darkness where sunlight couldn't reach, Konoha and the Five Great Military Districts of the Land of Fire also quietly revealed their hidden fangs.
The entirety of Konoha and the Five Great Military Districts operated like a precision instrument. Countless elite Anbu quietly entered other countries, donned the robes of the Akatsuki Organization, and began to wreak havoc. Specifically targeting the Ninjas of the other Four Great Shinobi Villages, they launched what could only be described as a cruel and bloody slaughter.
And on the other side.
Accompanying this frantic slaughter, the number of civilians flocking to the Land of Fire every day was several times higher than before.
The Land of Fire was like a gluttonous Taotie beast, crazily absorbing civilians from various countries. In the blink of an eye, they were absorbed and digested by various industries in the Land of Fire, transformed in the shortest time into power controlled by the nation.
Among them, the farmers provided grain and tax revenue for the Land of Fire.
The workers entering various workshops provided industrial goods for the Land of Fire.
Even countless Rōnin, Rogue Ninjas, Samurai, and other groups were incorporated into various systems such as urban management, criminal justice, and supervision, beginning to contribute to the peace across the Land of Fire.
The construction industry, military industry, pharmaceutical industry...
Precisely because of this endless supply of cheap labor, the entire Land of Fire was like a wound-up machine, becoming more prosperous by the day, almost completely leaving the other four great nations far behind.
Was there anyone causing trouble?
Of course!
Many people dissatisfied with the status quo who wanted to change their social class began to deceive the local populace into inciting various riots.
The Samurai and Ninjas incorporated into the local Public Security, Procuratorial, and Judicial systems also wanted to take the opportunity to cause trouble, engage in corruption, and so on.
But, unfortunately.
If this were an ordinary world, these would indeed be chronic ailments for Konoha.
But the problem was that the Ninja World is a world where martial prowess is respected, and the Ninja groups are the ones who hold the ultimate violence.
Although Konoha didn't have time to cultivate its own forces due to the rapid development and could only temporarily use these messy groups of people.
There was one point, however, that was hard to change!
These people could not enter Konoha's supreme law enforcement system, and the Five Great Military Districts had long since used sensory Ninjutsu and monitoring devices invented by Orochimaru to strictly monitor every part of the Land of Fire.
No matter where a problem occurred, they could strike there in the fastest time.
For those who caused trouble, there was only one word—Kill!
Although the current Konoha had begun to compile various laws, these laws would not be implemented quickly; they were merely preparations for the world after the unification of the Ninja World.
At this stage, the Land of Fire implemented a military management system.
Heavy penalties for chaotic times!
Uchiha Jin had no time to bicker with them. Currently, the Land of Fire needed to develop and encroach upon other countries. He had no time or energy to sort out domestic messes; everything had to unconditionally give way to development and unification.
Meanwhile.
In places unnoticed by the other Four Great Shinobi Villages, many regions near the Land of Fire were secretly being taken over by people sent by Konoha. Although they still flew the flags of the four great nations on the surface, they had essentially been secretly controlled by Konoha long ago.
With a single command from Uchiha Jin, the banners atop the city walls would change, ready to hang the symbol of Konoha at any moment.
And the speed of this encroachment also began to slowly increase!
Correspondingly, whenever Konoha secretly controlled an area, the Akatsuki Organization, under Nagato's leadership, would begin to secretly move away from these Konoha-controlled zones and instead turn to cause trouble in areas controlled by the four great nations.
The current situation was clear: the Akatsuki Organization and Konoha were cooperating.
And the cooperation between the two was quite pleasant!
...
Land of Grass.
In the original Land of Grass Assembly Building, Nagato stood on the second-floor balcony, hands supporting the railing, quietly watching the distant scenery.
Ten minutes later.
Accompanied by a distortion in the void, Obito and Black Zetsu appeared on the spot.
"Nagato, something isn't right!"
"Our Akatsuki Organization's operations are progressing too smoothly—so smoothly that it's making my scalp tingle!"
"Lately, many people have been stirring up trouble across the Ninja World under the guise of the 'Akatsuki Organization.' I've always felt there's something wrong with these guys pretending to be Akatsuki members; they give me the feeling of being organized and premeditated."
"What is their purpose?"
"Also, Konoha's recent development is a bit too fast, even giving me a sense of trepidation."
"I want to hear your opinion!"