"Shanks is as reliable as ever."
From a distance, Shisui and Amado watched. They didn't know exactly what had happened, but they could make a pretty good guess.
"Still, treating the younger ones like this seems a bit too much, don't you think?"
Amado was a scientist, but after spending so much time around Orochimaru, there was no way he was just an ordinary scientist.
He might seem obsessed with research, but if you cut open his heart, it would definitely be black.
"As long as we, the older ones, are leading the way, things won't go too far off track. And even if Haku does find out later, it won't be a big deal."
Shisui still had that warm and friendly smile, but as a member of the Uchiha clan, he wasn't naive. If you cut him open, he'd be just as dark inside.
Back in Roran, he had already outmaneuvered Kabuto.
And Shanks? He might seem carefree, but he was actually extremely sharp. He was always the one pulling the strings—never the one being played.
Looking around, Amado suddenly realized that no one on this ship seemed normal. Everyone was a wolf in sheep's clothing.
"Zabuza might not be able to take part in certain things, but Haku still has a lot of room to grow. The younger ones are the future of the ninja world, after all.
We can't just leave everything to us old folks forever."
Shisui had high hopes for Haku. He had a good eye for people, and even though he hadn't spent much time with Haku, he was sure that Haku's talent and determination were greater than Sasuke's.
Sasuke might be an Uchiha, but the clan's power wasn't anything special in itself.
Of course, Itachi wouldn't let Sasuke grow up without guidance, so Shisui was looking forward to seeing how he would develop.
"By the way, Amado, do you have any kids?"
"No. I have no interest in love. Besides, in times like these, having children isn't necessarily a good thing."
Amado shook his head. Right now, he had no children, and his focus was entirely on researching the New World.
"That's true."
Shisui nodded. Just dealing with Sasuke was already enough of a headache.
Shanks had told Jiraiya about the New World. If everything went as expected, Jiraiya would surely arrange for Naruto to start new training.
That meant Sasuke wouldn't be sitting around doing nothing either. He would definitely stick close to Naruto.
"Forget it. No point overthinking. Let's just see how things unfold in the New World. This is going to be tricky."
Shisui pulled his thoughts back to reality.
The Five Great Nations hadn't reacted yet, but the Land of Wind had already become one of their military training grounds. Once the dragon veins in the sea were activated, the Five Great Nations would immediately send people out to take advantage of it.
But before they could even make their move, pirates had already taken control of many parts of the ocean.
"Why overthink it? As long as Shanks is around, even if something unexpected happens, he'll handle it.
Besides, even if Shanks doesn't care about these small things, it's not like he doesn't know what's going on."
Amado shrugged indifferently. He was smart, but most of his brainpower was reserved for scientific research.
Shanks and Shisui's dreams didn't matter to Amado at all, and he didn't need to care about them either.
From his interactions with Shanks, Amado had only one thought—rather than worrying about Shanks, they should be worrying about themselves.
No matter what happened to Shanks, he could handle it on his own. But if something happened to Shanks, they wouldn't be able to bear the consequences.
Besides, Amado had already started researching cloning technology.
If he ever died, he could just clone himself back.
With someone like Shanks around, his fragile body wouldn't last long. If he didn't give himself a few extra lives, he wouldn't even dare to leave the house.
When Shisui heard Amado's words, he just smiled.
Shanks was incredibly strong and smart, but that was exactly why Shisui had to work hard to catch up.
"Changing the world is difficult, but the hardest thing is changing people's hearts.
Shanks' plan was an open strategy, perfectly calculated from the very start.
The so-called One Piece—the Divine Tree treasure of the Land of Wind—had drawn in all the pirates and ambitious figures of the world, gathering them in the Land of Wind."
"And now, with two Dragon Vein eruptions in the Land of Wind, the entire ninja world was watching.
The Five Great Nations had turned all their attention to the Land of Wind.
In a few months, when the Dragon Veins appeared at sea, the soldiers of the Five Great Nations would have grown much stronger.
As long as the nobles and daimyos had any sense, they would be able to negotiate with the ninja villages."
Shisui analyzed Shanks' plan.
After spending so much time around Shanks, Shisui's political thinking had grown sharper.
More importantly, he had learned to look at the world from a much bigger perspective and observe every step of Shanks' strategy.
Shanks had once said that he wasn't that much stronger than others—he was just standing on the shoulders of giants.
But even standing on those shoulders wasn't something just anyone could do.
Not everyone could see the world with such a broad vision.
Even someone like Nara Shikaku couldn't completely free himself from the influence of Konohagakure and the Land of Fire.
But now, Shisui was beginning to see parts of Shanks' plan.
"If the daimyos and nobles were bold enough, they could join forces with the ninja villages to take down all the pirates.
But in the end, Shanks was still Shanks. If the nobles and daimyos actually did that, Shanks would probably be thrilled.
At least it would prove that they had the guts to be rulers."
"But that's just wishful thinking."
Shisui understood human nature too well—there was no way the daimyos and nobles of the ninja world could pull that off.
Forget them—even the ninja villages wouldn't have the courage to do it.
Shanks had used the "treasure" of the Land of Wind to keep the Five Great Nations occupied.
And when the time came for them to enter the Land of Wind to claim the power of the Dragon Veins, they would have to pay a price.
All this back and forth would take a long time.
But things at sea were different—there was no time to waste.
Pirates didn't care about waiting. If they were unhappy, they would just take their fleets and charge in.
Political strategy? Pirates might have some sense of it, but they had no use for it.
Who goes out to sea to become a pirate just to play politics?
Everyone at sea was a rebel.
Back then, when they were at the bottom, they had to hide their crimes, afraid of getting caught.
But now? Now they had nothing to lose.
They had already gambled away their entire family fortunes, built up over decades or even centuries—who had time for politics anymore?
That was the difference between pirates and the nobles of the Five Great Nations.
Pirates had money—real money.
After all, they had been running illegal businesses for years. Their fortunes weren't a joke.
Take the Land of Moon, for example.
A prince from that tiny island nation could casually spend billions of ryo.
He could even drop ten billion just to buy a circus.
If some people saw that, they would probably die from anger.
That's why no one should underestimate the wealth of merchants.
After dealing with Gato, even Shisui had come to understand just how rich these people were.
They had money, resources, and ambition.
There was simply no comparison.
The appearance of the Dragon Veins in the Land of Wind had basically tied down all the forces of the ninja world.
The five great nations had all fallen into a delicate political balance.
Even if they wanted to break free, they had no way to resist.
Meanwhile, in Konohagakure, Nara Shikaku read over the message sent from the Land of Fire's daimyo and sighed, rubbing his forehead in frustration.
Then, he turned his gaze toward Shikamaru, who was napping lazily.
"Shikamaru, stop slacking off. Did I ask you to come to the Hokage building just to sleep?"
Hearing his father's voice, Shikamaru reluctantly opened his eyes. He pointed at them, showing the red veins from exhaustion.
"Lord Shikaku, I'm only thirteen years old, and you're making me deal with all this..."
Shikamaru had never felt this much pressure before. There was no way to relax in a place like this.
"Heh, didn't you always say your intelligence is enough to handle any situation? Since you're so smart, you might as well help me out."
Shikaku smirked. His son was indeed a genius, but that very intelligence allowed Shikamaru to slack off whenever possible, never putting in more effort than necessary.
"I'm just a kid. How am I supposed to deal with someone like Shanks?
Besides, isn't that your job, Lord Shikaku?"
Shikamaru really wanted to just give up. Taking on Shanks? That was insane. And it wasn't like his father couldn't see through Shanks' plans.
But that guy never relied on tricks or deception—he was always upfront about what he was doing. Even if you saw through him, it wouldn't change a thing.
"War doesn't care if you're a kid, Shikamaru. It won't go easy on you."
"And… if something happens to me, Konohagakure will need someone to hold things together.
Even if we can't stop Shanks, at least seeing through his plans in advance might give Konohagakure a sliver of hope in these chaotic times."
Shikaku spoke with a grave expression. Shanks had personally stepped onto the stage—things were no longer as simple as before.
"That's the difference between you and Shanks, Father."
A sharp glint flashed in Shikamaru's eyes. Ever since stepping into the Hokage building and gaining access to more intelligence, he had come to understand exactly what the title of "Four Emperors" truly meant.
Strength, intelligence, and presence—none could be lacking.
For thousands of years, the ninja world had never seen a man like this. Not even history books or legends could find a figure to compare him to.
"Shanks has already moved beyond the limits of a single village or a single country.
And you, Father… even if you were somehow smarter than Shanks, as long as you're still bound by this position..."
Shikamaru looked at his father, then shifted his gaze beyond the Hokage building.
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