As for a solution to this, wouldn't it be possible to use systemd to build a targeted init script? Use the expertise embedded in systemd to bring up the system

As for a solution to this, wouldn't it be possible to use systemd to build a targeted init script? Use the expertise embedded in systemd to bring up the system you're targeting, recording how it does that and then removing systemd, leaving the artifacts? Why keep this huge monolithic system running in the background after it has served its purpose? Also, with ai, would it be possible to redraw the lines within systemd between the separate domains/concerns, then redistribute the functions back to where they conceptually belong? Then you can refine those changes to make them more standardized and universal instead of interdependent and centralized.