Hearing Ryōsuke's words, Tsunade naturally felt less worried.
Since the Ten-Tails lacked the chakra of the other Tailed Beasts, it would definitely be significantly weaker.
That meant it should be much easier for Ryōsuke to handle.
However, considering Ryōsuke had collected so many Tailed Beasts, she wondered if he had exposed his identity. If his identity had been leaked, the situation would be incredibly dire. Anxiously, she asked, "Ryōsuke, no one discovered your identity, right?"
Ryōsuke replied calmly, "Probably not. I just happened to run into Ōnoki from the Stone Village along the way and subjugated him while I was at it."
Hearing the first half of his sentence, Tsunade was just about to sigh in relief, but the second half left her completely shocked.
What was this guy saying? Ōnoki of the Stone Village—wasn't that the Third Tsuchikage?
That was someone from her grandfather's generation.
And Ryōsuke had actually made him submit.
This guy really was recklessly bold.
She didn't doubt his capability for a second; he had surely used all sorts of coercion. Even a powerhouse like Ōnoki couldn't possibly be a match for Ryōsuke.
"Ryōsuke, what exactly are you trying to do?"
Ryōsuke looked a bit displeased.
"There's no need to overreact. Ōnoki is a ninja from an enemy village to begin with. The fact that I didn't wipe him out means I'm being quite merciful."
"As for making him submit, it's to unify the shinobi world, of course."
Tsunade's expression turned extremely grim.
Even after binding herself to this man, was she still unable to rein him in?
Such a goal was even more shocking than Uchiha Madara's ambitions back in the day.
The scope of his objective was simply too massive.
"I don't agree to this. It will cause massive casualties across the shinobi world. The village will be dragged into the flames of war, and countless people will die."
Ryōsuke had already anticipated her refusal. He smiled and said, "Why not? As my wife, you naturally have to follow my lead. Otherwise, you'll be getting an injection."
Tsunade grew angry. This guy was always threatening her like this.
Her body trembled slightly at the mention of an 'injection', but this time, she couldn't back down.
"Give me an injection if you want, but I will absolutely never agree to this! I will definitely stop you."
"You wouldn't want our child to be born into a warzone either, would you?"
Ryōsuke looked at the agitated Tsunade, amused that she had even brought their unborn child into the argument.
"Alright, alright, don't get worked up."
"Speaking of children, don't you want our descendants to live in a golden age of peace?"
"The current world is far from peaceful."
"The resources of this world are absolutely enough for everyone to live well."
"The reason wars break out is because the world is divided into numerous countries, and these countries constantly fight over interests."
"Major wars erupt every dozen years or so."
"If this situation isn't fundamentally changed, there's no telling when the next war will strike. Only by unifying the shinobi world and establishing a true order can we lay the foundation for a thousand, or even ten thousand years of peace."
Tsunade was astonished by Ryōsuke's reasoning.
Although it was radical, it wasn't without merit. She had never considered things from such a perspective.
Among the many countries in the shinobi world, even if some factions were currently on friendly terms, conflicts would inevitably arise over interests.
Clashes between people were simply unavoidable.
However, Ryōsuke's approach offered an excellent solution, and the blueprint he painted for the future was highly appealing.
Still, she had to point out the reality.
"The others in the village will absolutely never agree to this."
Not everyone possessed massive ambitions like Ryōsuke.
The Leaf Village and the Land of Fire had finally enjoyed a few years of hard-won peace. Absolutely no one wanted to start a large-scale war right now.
In fact, everyone was somewhat weary of conflict.
They had no desire to invade other countries, much less embark on a path of war for the sake of so-called shinobi world peace.
They just wanted to live their own lives in peace.
Ryōsuke actually agreed with Tsunade's viewpoint. The adult world was entirely driven by interests.
And the benefit of a 'thousand years of peace' was likely something the vast majority of the village couldn't even fathom.
Those who possessed such foresight were in the minority, after all. If he wanted to accomplish this, he naturally needed them to be willing participants. But there was no need to worry; he still had his methods.
He directly activated his Rinnegan.
An inexplicable sensation made Tsunade's heart tremble.
Her face paled in shock.
Ryōsuke's eyes...
The purple pupils, along with the ripple-like patterns, looked exactly like the legendary eyes of the Sage of Six Paths.
The aura Ryōsuke gave off right now was incredibly strange, almost as if he had become a completely different person.
"Could those be... the Rinnegan?"
Ryōsuke nodded.
"That's right."
Driven by curiosity, Tsunade leaned in closer to inspect his eyes, finding it hard to believe.
How was this possible?
"How were you able to awaken these eyes? These are the eyes of a Sage."
The more she observed them, the more identical they seemed to the legends.
"Ryōsuke, don't tell me you've already become a Sage?"
Ryōsuke thought for a moment, then nodded.
"If you mean a Sage, then I suppose I am."
Right now, the various abilities granted by his Rinnegan truly made him akin to a Sage. Not only could he fly, but he could also teleport over vast distances. As massive as the shinobi world was, there was nowhere he couldn't go. He even possessed incredibly potent healing abilities—bringing the dead back to life was entirely possible.
Of course, resurrecting someone who was truly dead required a bit of technique.
The Rinnegan was just that overpowered.
Tsunade was astonished that these were actually the eyes of a Sage. She didn't think Ryōsuke would lie to her; he had been quite accommodating toward her lately.
Was this guy planning to use these eyes to command the entire Leaf Village?
She didn't know whether she should support him or reject him now, especially since she was the only one capable of swaying his decisions.
Would Ryōsuke's ambitions bring peace to the shinobi world, or would they pose a massive threat?
Unifying the shinobi world was something no one had ever achieved before.
Ryōsuke looked at the hesitant Tsunade.
He sighed helplessly and said, "Actually, when I went to the Waterfall Village to collect the Tailed Beast, I happened to run into the Akatsuki. Those guys are also gathering the Tailed Beasts."
"If I hadn't arrived in time, the Waterfall Village would have likely been completely wiped out. The scene would have been an absolute bloodbath."
"The power of strong ninjas is simply too overwhelming; they can slaughter the weak at will."
"Even though it doesn't concern our Leaf Village, such atrocities are truly a blight on the world."
"If we can unify the shinobi world, all of it will fall under the jurisdiction of the Leaf Village, and tragedies like that will rarely ever happen."
Tsunade finally understood. So that was the reason.
Ryōsuke had witnessed the senseless slaughter in the shinobi world, which sparked this ambition.
*Sigh, the shinobi world really is like this,* she thought.
The Land of Fire was protected by the Leaf Village.
Civilians in other small countries or minor hidden villages only faced slaughter when they encountered powerful enemies.
This was a common occurrence in the shinobi world.
If Ryōsuke wasn't doing this for his own selfish ambitions, but rather for such a noble aspiration, she was actually somewhat inclined to support him. He was her partner, after all; she really ought to stand by him.
She looked up at Ryōsuke.
"I do want to support you, but I don't know how the others will react."
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