Uchiha Jin narrowed his eyes slightly.
He was not an arrogant fool who wouldn't listen to reason. Even though the Senju Brothers had now offered their advice, he did not feel his authority was being challenged.
He understood clearly in his heart that everyone had his best interests at heart!
Or, to put it more directly, it was for the good of their Konoha!
Moreover, to be honest...
The Senju Brothers' attitude towards him had improved by several levels compared to before.
Senju Hashirama no longer called him 'that Uchiha brat' with every breath, and Senju Tobirama no longer spouted 'those evil Uchiha' incessantly. Clearly, his actions since ascending to the position of Hokage had completely won the recognition of these two former Hokage!
Not to mention, the two of them were actually being quite tactful in their approach now.
They did not criticize or oppose him publicly, but chose to offer their suggestions only after the meeting had concluded.
Therefore, faced with these two sensible 'former Hokage of Old Konoha' who were not trying to challenge his authority, he, Uchiha Jin, naturally had to be as magnanimous as possible.
After a brief moment of contemplation, he slowly spoke.
"The time has come!"
"When Heaven bestows a gift, to refuse it invites calamity; when the moment arrives, to not act invites disaster."
"Actually, you two former Hokage-sama, you are both bound by traditional thinking."
"The right time? What is the right time?"
"If we truly wait until Konoha is completely prepared, then the Other Ninja Villages will also have fully stabilized their own countries."
"If we start a war then, with the entire Ninja World affected by chaos and the people only wanting to live in peace, will they still be willing to accept Konoha's rule?"
"So don't underestimate our enemies. Konoha is changing, but so are our enemies!"
"At the very least, in my view, now is the best opportunity."
"The disappearance of the daimyo and nobles previously caused chaos across the Ninja World. Now, during the process of the major Ninja villages consolidating power, because they don't understand governance, the people are suffering a second wave of hardship."
"Originally, the people welcomed the Ninja villages, as they had been suffering terribly under the previous neglect and exploitation by local Officials and bandits."
"But the actions of the major Ninja villages did not truly end the chaos; instead, they allowed it to intensify further."
"It can be said that at this very moment, the people of various regions are at their most distrustful of the Ninja villages."
"But, what about now?"
"The Other Ninja Villages have already begun to learn their lesson and even want to emulate Konoha's methods."
"Our enemies are now learning!"
"If we really wait for the enemy to successfully grasp Konoha's essence and establish a complete, sound system within each major country, making the people accustomed to the management of the major Ninja villages, if Konoha wants to reignite the flames of war then, do you all think the people would welcome us?"
"This is also why I chose to act now—precisely because the major Ninja villages have not yet fully succeeded, and the people in various regions currently do not trust them."
"Right now, the Land of Fire under Konoha's control is very stable. So, if Konoha brings peace at this point, at the very least, the people of other nations will not resist Konoha's rule."
"Next, the second point!"
"That is, the Akatsuki Organization's actions have done Konoha a great favor."
"Not only did they take away the Tailed Beasts from the major Ninja villages, plunging their strength to its lowest point, but their series of actions also delivered a heavy blow to the major Ninja villages, especially Kumogakure, which ranks second among the Five Great Ninja Villages in strength!"
"Kumogakure has been plowed over by the Akatsuki Organization at this moment, with countless elite Ninjas dying in their own village, and even their own Hokage has been completely killed."
"It can be said that as long as Konoha makes a move, Kumogakure can be taken down very easily."
"Sunagakure is even less of a concern. Their country is too poor, which led them to brazenly seize the millennia of accumulated wealth of the daimyo and nobles when they died, disregarding the consequences."
"Retribution is inevitable; it's only a matter of time!"
"While Sunagakure seemed to have feasted without getting their hands dirty before, it also gave Konoha a reason to move against them!"
"Is Sunagakure so desperate for money? Could they be the ones who killed the daimyo and nobles?"
"As for Iwagakure, they are also not a significant concern!"
"We must not forget this Akatsuki operation. While Kumogakure's losses were severe, Iwagakure, which was also attacked by Akatsuki, suffered no losses aside from Ōnoki's minor injury."
"Is that normal? I don't think so!"
"Considering that the Akatsuki member Deidara is a disciple of Iwagakure's Ōnoki, coupled with Iwagakure's minimal losses this time, can we not suspect a connection between Iwagakure and the Akatsuki Organization?"
"So, considering all these reasons, in my view, the time has come!"
"Unification is imperative!"
Uchiha Jin's momentum was overwhelming.
He had waited a long time for this moment, and naturally, there had been no shortage of covert scheming.
Now, with favorable timing, geographical advantages, and popular support all in his hands, he certainly would not easily let go of this opportunity before him.
Meanwhile, on the other side...
The Senju Brothers and Sakumo Hatake, upon hearing Uchiha Jin's words, could not help but draw in a sharp breath of cold air.
Before, they hadn't thought much of it. They always felt that while Uchiha Jin was doing well and there seemed to be a glimmer of possibility for 'unification,' it was still just a faint possibility.
After all, the Five Great Ninja Villages had existed for so long, and their internal cohesion had reached an unprecedented level.
Even with all of Uchiha Jin's preparations, truly unifying the Ninja World still seemed a very distant goal.
It was too difficult!
But now, after hearing Uchiha Jin's explanation, they realized that, unbeknownst to them, all the essential elements needed to unify the Ninja World had actually been gathered by Uchiha Jin?
Considering the chaos across the Ninja World and the people's desire for peace...
And the fact that the major Ninja villages, in their attempt to copy Konoha's homework, had caused internal chaos within each village, which indeed required time to adjust...
Finally, the Akatsuki Organization!
They had to admit that the Akatsuki Organization was truly a sharp blade!
Uchiha Jin seemed not to have targeted Akatsuki directly, yet he had managed, through his understanding of them, to make them willingly integrate into his plan and shoulder the biggest blame for him.
Such methods were terrifying!
Senju Hashirama and Sakumo Hatake remained silent, but Senju Tobirama spoke up with keen interest: "Hokage-sama, would you be so kind as to elaborate on your plan?"
"If the Other Ninja Villages are willing to join the Allied Shinobi Forces, what exactly does Konoha plan to do next?"
"If these villages refuse to join, what does Hokage-sama intend to do?"
At this moment, Senju Tobirama's face was full of curiosity.
He was far too interested!
As an old schemer himself, he genuinely couldn't figure out what Uchiha Jin was planning to do.
At the very least... he couldn't do it himself.
So naturally, he wanted to learn a thing or two.