"Tetsu, what you've written isn't a story, it's a children's fairy tale."
Shun threw the manuscript onto the desk, the sound of paper hitting the surface making Tetsu tremble.
"You only wrote about them establishing the village, but you avoided why they needed to establish it, and you didn't write about their later falling out. Without the root of pain, without the conflict of ideals, how can the people of the Ninja World understand the necessity of unifying the Ninja World?"
Tetsu stood below, his forehead slightly sweaty, but he dared not retort.
Shun rose and walked to the center of the hall, his gaze sweeping over Minato, Orochimaru, Hiashi, and Shikaku, among others, who were present.
He walked in front of Minato and patted his shoulder. "Minato, you are the Seventh Hokage, you must have heard the story of Hashirama and Madara, right? In your impression, what kind of people were they?"
Minato paused, then answered seriously, "According to legend, Hashirama-sama was the God of Shinobi, benevolent and generous, willing to sacrifice himself for Konoha. Madara, on the other hand, was an ambitious man who defected because he was dissatisfied with Konoha's system."
Shun looked at everyone and sighed, "Wrong, the true Madara and Hashirama are far more complex than you know."
His voice was deep, carrying the tension of a narrative, pulling everyone back to that war-torn era. "Senju and Uchiha were enemies for a thousand years. From their ancestors to their fathers, and then to this generation of Madara and Hashirama, the two clans' slaughter never stopped. Madara's four younger brothers, Hashirama's two younger brothers, all died at the hands of the other clan's members."
"When Madara and Hashirama were eight or nine years old, Madara was staring blankly at the river because he had lost two younger brothers. Hashirama had also just lost a younger brother. The two equally lonely children became the best of friends. They once laid on the grass and promised that in the future, they would end the war together and build a village where children could grow up safely. This way, they wouldn't have to worry about whether they would be killed by enemies tomorrow."
Everyone in the hall held their breath. None of them had imagined that these two legendary ninjas had such a tender past.
Tetsu quickly picked up his pen and asked, "Then how was Konoha established?"
Shun's voice became much deeper. "Later, they each became clan heads, and the fighting between the two clans became even more brutal. After a major battle, the Uchiha clan was defeated. Hashirama seized the opportunity to propose their childhood dream. Thus, the thousand-year-old hatred found a turning point, and Konoha was born."
Orochimaru lightly licked his lips, a hint of curiosity in his voice. "Since they were friends, why did they turn against each other later?"
Shun's tone shifted, with a hint of sarcasm. "After Konoha was established, other countries quickly imitated it, building their own ninja villages, and the Ninja World seemed peaceful. But Madara saw through this illusion of peace. He had already foreseen that in the future, conflicts of interest between ninja villages would eventually trigger an even greater war."
"So he approached Hashirama and suggested that while Konoha was at its strongest, they should destroy other countries to unify the Ninja World and completely end the wars in the Ninja World, but Hashirama refused."
Shun's voice carried regret. "He said that the current peace was hard-won, and if war were to be waged, at least 30% of the people in the Ninja World would die. He could not sacrifice present lives for 'future peace.'"
"But Madara understood that the Land of Fire occupied the richest land, and once their generation passed, and Konoha lost the power to deter other nations, the Land of Fire would inevitably become a battleground for wars, and even more people would die then."
"Madara was, after all, the Uchiha clan head, so he wanted to take the Uchiha away, but the clan members had long been accustomed to Konoha's peace and prosperity, and no one was willing to follow him. In the end, he wandered through various countries in the Ninja World alone."
"During Madara's travels in the Ninja World, he saw other ninja villages accumulating strength, so he returned to Konoha again and again, urging Hashirama to unify the Ninja World. But Hashirama always disagreed, and the two fought fiercely multiple times over their differing ideals of peace."
Shun's voice began to grow intense. "The final confrontation was at the Valley of the End. Madara controlled Nine-Tails with his Eternal Mangekyo, and he even encased Nine-Tails in his Susanoo, unleashing Majestic Attire. Hashirama used his trump card, Sage Art: Wood Release: True Several Thousand Hands, summoning a thousand-meter-tall thousand-hand wooden construct, which forcefully shattered the Susanoo and sealed Nine-Tails."
Minato fell into thought and asked, "Was the First Hokage's power really that terrifying?"
Shun looked at everyone's shocked expressions and continued, "Next was a taijutsu duel. Madara's taijutsu was extremely strong, but Hashirama's recovery ability was abnormally outrageous. The two fought for three days and three nights, until Hashirama was finally pushed to his limit."
"He tricked Madara with a Wood Clone. Madara thought Hashirama was going to surrender and wanted to pull him up, but he didn't expect Hashirama to ambush him from behind. He stabbed Madara in the back with a long sword."
"At that moment, Hashirama's face was cold as he said, 'Madara, for peace, for the village, even if it's a friend, a brother, or a child, I can kill them without hesitation.'"
"Before Madara died, he said with endless sorrow, 'Hashirama, you've forgotten why we established the village, you've fallen into darkness.'"
After the story was told, silence filled the hall.
Tetsu's mouth hung open, and the pen in his hand dropped to the floor. He had never imagined that the story of Madara and Hashirama could be so dramatic, with both the brilliance of ideals and the cruelty of reality, a hundred times more exciting than the script he had written.
Minato clenched his fists, his eyes filled with shock. "So, there was such a past behind the legend. Was Hashirama-sama's choice right or wrong?"
Shikaku slowly spoke, "There is no absolute right or wrong, only different stances. Shun-sama wants to tell the Ninja World through this story that fragmented peace is only temporary, and only unification can truly end war?"
Shun nodded, his tone firm. "Exactly. I will write this story as a novel, draw it as a manga, and make it into a movie, so that everyone in the Ninja World can see it. Let them know that the regrets of Madara and Hashirama, because of not achieving complete unification, led to the three Great Ninja Wars."
Orochimaru licked his lips, excitement flashing in his eyes. "If this story spreads, the situation of the Ninja World will likely change."
Shun smiled and nodded. "The most authentic stories are the easiest to move people. Tetsu, you know how to write it now, don't you?"
Tetsu quickly nodded, picking up his pen excitedly. "I know. Your Excellency, I will revise it immediately and make sure to write this story to its fullest."