Chapter 124: The Strong Cannot Be Copied and Kakuzu's Arrival
The development of the Eastern Archipelago aside, the Third Raikage had a lot of trouble to deal with upon his return.
He was very pleased with Dana's work as the Acting Raikage, his only complaint being the mountain of paperwork he had left behind.
Dana had also told his father about the Communication Snails. The Third Raikage was amazed by their miraculous abilities and had immediately wanted one for himself. Since the first phase of testing had gone smoothly, Dana had equipped all of the Cloud's high-ranking leaders with one.
The new version of the snail shell had a switch in the center of the spiral. The little slug would only transmit the user's words when the switch was pressed, like a walkie-talkie. It was a simple physical switch; the actual recognition was still handled by the little slug's intelligence. And the various ninja were distinguished by their registration numbers. A little slug could easily remember twenty or thirty numbers and their corresponding partners. Any more than that, and it would get confused. But for now, it was more than enough.
The first batch of over a hundred partners consisted mainly of the heads of the various departments and the leaders of the ninja clans. They were all very interested in this new toy, and that night, many of the old men stayed up all night chatting.
Of course, Dana hadn't given them the snails for idle gossip. The main purpose was to improve the efficiency and coordination of the various departments.
After stepping down as the Acting Raikage, Dana's schedule had freed up. He would go to Shikkotsu Forest to train every few days, and he even had time to have dinner with Hiroto and Kayo.
"Dana," Hiroto said, flipping a piece of meat on the grill, "when is the specialized ninja school going to open? I think I heard about it last year, but it still hasn't started."
Dana timed it perfectly and, in the brief moment that Hiroto had flipped the meat, sprinkled some salt on it. "Everything else is ready," he said, "but it's hard to find teachers."
Kayo poured him some tea, and then, under her brother's resentful gaze, poured him a cup as well. "Aren't there a lot of teachers at the Ninja Academy?" she asked.
"It's not that simple," he said, shaking his head. "The purpose of the specialized school is to train Jonin, and even the elite among the Jonin. There are only a few people in the village who are qualified to be teachers, and they can't be full-time. The village is still discussing whether to bring back the master-apprentice system in the specialized school to solve the teacher shortage. But that would go against the very purpose of establishing the school."
Hiroto, one of the first students to enter the advanced ninja school, had been studying there for three years. The purpose of the advanced school was to train Chunin, and his skills had long since surpassed that level. But he enjoyed the life of studying and earning money and had been waiting for the specialized school to open.
Especially after the "Night of the Purple Moon," he had seen how strong the top-tier ninja were. Sakumo Hatake's speed and sharpness, Hiruzen Sarutobi's mastery of the five elements, the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki's overwhelming power...
He had almost died in the Four Violet Flames Formation. But the immense pressure had not discouraged him. Instead, it had made him realize the gap between himself and the top-tier fighters. Lately, he had been very focused on improving his skills. He had learned all he could at the advanced school, but he hadn't been slacking off. He had been training hard.
"By the way, Dana," he said, "back in the Land of Fire, I met someone who could also use the Rasengan. He had golden hair and was about our age. Kayo said he was a friend of the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. His name was Minato. Do you know him?"
"Minato Namikaze," Kayo supplied.
The Rasengan was a jutsu Dana had taught him. He had suspected at the time that the golden-haired youth knew Dana.
"I know him," he said with a grin. "But I didn't teach him the jutsu. I guess great minds think alike."
Maki, who had been silent all this time, wrapped a piece of grilled meat in lettuce, dipped it in sauce, and held it out to him. "Young Master," she said, "try this."
Kayo almost broke her chopsticks.
"By the way," she said, "why are you here?"
"Where the Young Master is, I am," Maki said with a smile, after feeding him.
"This is me and my brother treating Onii-chan Dana to barbecue. I don't remember inviting you."
"Oh, so it's your treat?" Maki said, her smile never wavering. "How rare. Waiter, another twenty orders of the special beef!"
Kayo was petrified.
Dana ignored the situation on either side of him. "By the way," he said to Hiroto, "how was your first real combat experience?"
"It was intense," Hiroto said after a moment of thought. "Even putting aside the fact that we were near Konoha, the people we fought later were all top-tier fighters. I really almost died there. It's a good thing you went and caused a ruckus in the village, forcing them to lift the barrier and come back."
"I realized that every top-tier fighter has a different style," he continued. "The Fourth Hokage was all speed and sharpness. The Third Hokage's wide-range combination ninjutsu changed the very terrain inside the barrier. And Blue Bee-senpai's tailed beast cloak and chakra."
"That's right," Dana nodded. "No two strong fighters can be copied."
"One day," Hiroto said with determination, "I will find my own path."
"I believe in you," Dana encouraged.
"By the way," Hiroto said, "I've been meaning to ask."
"What is it?"
"Why are the three of you sitting on one side, and I'm sitting on the other?"
Outside the Hidden Cloud Village, a tall figure was walking along the road. He was dressed in ninja gear and was constantly scanning his surroundings with his green eyes. The passing merchants all gave him a wide berth.
Kakuzu shook his head in disappointment. He hadn't found anyone with a bounty on them. It seemed there would be no bonus today. But the thought of the big business that was about to take place filled him with a fiery excitement.
He arrived at the gate of the Hidden Cloud but did not enter immediately. His strange attire had already attracted the attention of the guards. A Cloud ninja approached him. "Who are you?" he asked. "What's your business?"
"I'm here to see Yotsuki Dana," Kakuzu said.
"A lot of people want to see Lord Dana," the guard said with a smile. "Who are you?"
After being hailed as the number one new star of the ninja world, many people had tried to commission him for missions, but he had no time to be running around for clients.
"My name is Kakuzu," he said. "If you tell him that, he'll know. And you can tell him two words: 'Chomei'."
Half an hour later, Dana and his team appeared at the gate. The guards were stunned. This guy had actually managed to summon Lord Dana.
Kakuzu saw the ten men behind him and was reminded of some unpleasant memories.
Dana didn't waste any time. He threw two large iron chests at him.
Even with his strength, Kakuzu was caught off guard and stumbled. The chests were incredibly heavy.
He was surprised. This weight...
He secretly opened a corner of one of the chests, then quickly slammed it shut, his face filled with anger. "How could you just give them to me like this?!" he hissed. "What if someone sees?!"
His voice grew smaller and smaller, and his small eyes darted around, as if afraid of being seen. He then pulled Dana into a small grove of trees and finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Dana's mouth twitched. Kakuzu, afraid of bad guys?
"It was too heavy," he said. "You protect them yourself. Now, can we make the exchange?"
"You're paying me so early?" Kakuzu asked, curious. "Aren't you afraid I'll cheat you?" He himself had been afraid of a trick and hadn't brought the "goods" with him directly.
Dana and the ten men behind him expertly took out their mahjong masks and put them on. "No," he said. "Lead the way."
Kakuzu swallowed.