The wedding ceremony of Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki had already begun.
Jiraiya, Hiruzen Sarutobi, and Biwako Sarutobi, as elders of Minato and Kushina, began officiating the wedding.
First came the purification ritual. All the guests stood in reverence as sacred words were recited to cleanse their spirits.
After the purification came the offering ceremony.
They presented delicacies to the gods—a ritual showing reverence to the divine.
Minato and Kushina received the food offerings from Hiruzen and Biwako and placed them before the spirit tablets of the deities.
Next came the offering of blessings. Jiraiya chanted the sacred prayers before the spirit tablets while all the guests stood in silent prayer, expressing wishes for Minato and Kushina's happy union.
Then followed the sake-swapping ceremony.
Jiraiya offered sacred sake to Minato and Kushina. The couple exchanged cups before the gods, vowing to become husband and wife.
Smiling gently, Minato handed his cup to Kushina: "Well then, from now on, please take care of me, Kushina."
Kushina accepted it, then handed her own cup to Minato with a smile: "Mm, you got it—please take care of me too, Minato."
Minato and Kushina both drank the sake in their cups in one go.
The guests clapped enthusiastically while saying in unison: "Congratulations on your wedding!"
By this point, the wedding ceremony was mostly complete, and the banquet officially commenced.
Shindai picked up his chopsticks and started feasting heartily.
"I haven't eaten since this morning... I'm starving."
Hearing Shindai's quiet grumbling, Pakura—who was still immersed in the warmth of the wedding's atmosphere—gave him an exasperated look.
At such a touching moment, this tasteless person could only think about eating.
After the wedding, Shindai and Pakura originally planned to head home.
However, Jiraiya suddenly appeared and blocked their way, smiling happily at Pakura as he spoke: "Mind if I borrow this kid for a bit?"
Shindai frowned: "Kid?" he repeated, clearly unimpressed.
Wanting something from Shindai, Jiraiya quickly corrected himself: "Uh…handsome young man."
Pakura agreed: "Fine, I'll head back first then."
Shindai nodded: "Yeah, I'll talk with Lord Jiraiya for a bit before heading home."
After Pakura left, Jiraiya and Shindai entered a secluded side street.
Shindai clearly understood what Jiraiya wanted: "It's already done, though...are you really going to inspect it here?"
Thinking back to unpleasant experiences, Jiraiya shivered slightly: "Follow me somewhere more secluded."
As soon as they reached a quiet grove, Jiraiya said eagerly: "Let me see it already."
Shindai dug out a scroll and summoned a puppet.
Just as always, it had a strikingly voluptuous figure—shapely and irresistibly alluring.
But…
"Huh?"
"Wasn't it supposed to look like Tsunade? Why doesn't it look like her?"
Shindai took out another Scroll and summoned an old-fashioned camera.
Grinning widely, Shindai said, "Jiraiya-sama, remember? You promised me earlier you'd grant one request. All I want is for you to take a photo with this Puppet."
Jiraiya frowned slightly. "Take a photo? That's all?"
Shindai nodded. "That's all! After the photo is taken, I'll replace its face with Lady Tsunade's, then you can just take it home."
Jiraiya felt uneasy in his heart, as if there were some conspiracy involved. But really, what kind of conspiracy could there be in just taking one photo?
Jiraiya agreed. "Fine, then let's get started."
"Wrap your arm around its shoulder. Lean in like you're about to kiss it. There, perfect—stay like that."
Shindai pressed the shutter button. The flash went off, and the photo was taken.
Shindai examined the photograph. Spot on!
"Time to swap the face now."
Shindai immediately removed the face and summoned Tsunade's face from the Scroll, replacing it directly.
Jiraiya looked at the Puppet with great satisfaction. "Outstanding! Totally flawless! Looks just like her! This is true craftsmanship!"
Shindai reminded him, "No matter what, don't let Tsunade-sama find out. And if she does discover it, don't rat me out… Actually, scratch that—she'll know it's me anyway. So Jiraiya-sama, you better come up with a good excuse yourself. Don't you dare betray me—or I'll cut you off for good!"
Jiraiya retorted, "Can't you make sure she never finds out? Don't worry, I'll definitely be very careful!"
Shindai handed the Puppet over to Jiraiya. "Then we're done with the handover. I'm going home first now."
Shindai received the 1.2 million *ryo* investment from Jiraiya and Hiruzen Sarutobi the next day. With Jiraiya's Puppet complete, work on Hiruzen's Puppet was put on hold for now.
Since funds were tight, Shindai planned to visit Kannabi Bridge in a few days to investigate the treasure.
After returning from Kannabi Bridge, Shindai would begin working on Hiruzen's Puppet.
As he walked home, Shindai suddenly froze mid-step.
Frowning deeply, Shindai's mind drifted back to something he'd seen.
When Kannabi Bridge was destroyed, he had noticed a peculiar pattern somewhere, which caught his attention.
But the symbol was quickly buried under debris. Yet Shindai had already memorized it perfectly.
Immediately, Shindai took out paper and pen and drew the pattern.
"It kinda looks like a Sealing Formula... Anyway, I'll ask Sister Kushina about it tomorrow. If it really is a Sealing Formula, there might be treasure hidden inside the seal itself."
Today is Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki's wedding day. It felt a bit bad to interrupt their sweet moments together.
At noon the next day.
Shindai arrived at his neighbor Minato Namikaze's house.
Because Minato had just gotten married, he wanted to spend some quality time alone with Kushina, so he asked Hiruzen Sarutobi to cover for him while he took a few days off.
Shindai raised his eyebrows toward Minato and Kushina. "Minato-sama, Sister Kushina, did you two enjoy yourselves yesterday?"
Minato smiled and said, "Of course! This was the most important moment for both of us. Naturally, I'm very happy."
Kushina Uzumaki sweetly hugged Minato's arm and said, "That's right~"
Shindai curled his lips. What was he thinking asking that? He ended up eating couple's food without even trying.
Shindai pulled out a scroll marked with strange patterns resembling Sealing Formulas and handed it to Kushina. "Sister Kushina, since you're an expert in sealing techniques, can you help me take a look? Is this a Sealing Formula?"
Kushina accepted the scroll and began examining it. She tilted her head in mild surprise after the first glance, then sat down on the sofa to study it carefully.
Seeing Kushina's reaction, Shindai thought he must be correct—the special markings were almost certainly Sealing Formulas.
After looking at it for a while, Kushina said to Shindai, "This is definitely a Sealing Formula. In fact, I can recognize elements from our Whirlpool Country's sealing techniques within it. Moreover, it's a dual-layered seal."
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