If the world had been in peril when Siddhartha Gautama was alive could he have gone in a different direction?

In his position as a prince, if the world was in imminent peril, do you think that he would have done all he could to save humanity from harm, become king, etc, rather than focus on the path of enlightenment and becoming Buddha, which could be done later? Kinda like the bodhisattva choosing to save everyone before oneself.