Chapter 126: The Trial
The Seven-Tails was sealed within the eternally comatose Waterfall ninja, the seal reinforced with several additional layers, completely severing the connection between the beast and its host.
Dana and the Third Raikage left together. Blue Bee had to remain in the Sealing Corps' headquarters. It seemed his "sentence" was far from over.
Wait, did I forget something? Oh well, it's not important.
After returning to the village, with nothing better to do, Dana went to the "Special Strategy Division" headquarters.
"Good morning, my lord."
"Good morning, Lord Dana."
The subordinates he passed all greeted him with a bow. Ninja valued strength above all else. Dana's reputation in the Cloud was at its peak. Even those older than him had to address him as "lord," not to mention that this was his own territory.
Some are geniuses. Some are strong.
Those who become strong often lose the "genius" label.
But he, Yotsuki Dana, was both a genius and strong.
He went to his office in the deepest part of the base and had the most recent important intelligence reports brought to him.
The post-war period was a time of rapid development for the Cloud. The "prestige" they had won on the battlefield had to be converted into off-battlefield benefits. And the Cloud was actively using this prestige.
The liaison office in the Land of Hot Water was a prime example. Without the "prestige" accumulated during the war, the other great villages would never have allowed the Cloud to extend its reach beyond the Land of Lightning. But in the post-war environment, no one dared to object.
And after a period of preparation, the offices in the lands of Rice Paddies and Moon were also about to open.
And the clause in the Six Kage Summit agreement, which forbade the other villages from interfering with the Cloud's normal mission activities in their countries, and from preventing their own clients from cooperating with the Cloud, had also, in a way, increased their soft power.
Neither of these clauses were strictly enforced, which was why the defeated Kage had been willing to sign. But it was a publicly announced agreement. Even if it was only ten percent effective, it gave the ninja world the impression that "the Cloud is so strong, they can go wherever they want, and no one can stop them," demonstrating their transcendent status.
Oh, and there was another, even more important clause: the countries were not to interfere with the normal business activities of the Land of Lightning's merchants and organizations.
The other villages were willing to accept this. They were exhausted after the war, and the arrival of the Land of Lightning's merchant caravans would bring a certain amount of mission volume, helping to replenish their coffers.
But what they didn't know was that most of these merchant caravans were just United Iron & Steel, under the guise of private organizations, coming to take over their local markets.
Dana called this the "Sheepskin Plan."
The other villages had never imagined that the Cloud, which had always been a village of mission-takers, would so quietly go into business and become the clients themselves.
So, the non-wartime work of the "Special Strategy Division" was to gather information on the reactions to the Cloud's overt and covert expansion, and to use their ninja power to neutralize any opposition.
For example, if an official was found to be taking bribes and making threats, they would be hit with a genjutsu. If a rival merchant guild was using underhanded tactics, their entire family would be hit with a genjutsu.
As he was reading the reports, a piece of information caught his eye.
In the Land of Water, a battle had apparently taken place in a certain lake. The commotion was so great that the villages for dozens of miles around had heard the explosions. The villagers who had gone to investigate had been driven away by ninja. Because of the commotion, the information had leaked. He was sure this report was not just on his desk, but on the desks of the other villages as well.
He tapped his fingers on the desk.
The only thing in the Mist that could make such a commotion was a tailed beast.
Like the other villages, the Mist's two tailed beasts were unusable. According to previous intelligence, their Jinchuriki research had always been unreliable, and their Jinchuriki had never been seen in public. According to the usual practice, in such a situation, the Jinchuriki was just a prison for the tailed beast. They would seal it into some unlucky person and then have them live in isolation, to prevent them from harming others. Their life was basically over.
But he knew that the Mist's Three-Tails, because of its quiet and inactive nature, was apparently allowed to roam free in a certain lake.
It seemed the Mist was now trying to develop their Jinchuriki. He just didn't know what had given them the confidence.
Dana worked late at the "Special Strategy Division." By the time he got home, the streets were empty.
He was about to go to bed when he ran into his mother, Satomi. She seemed to have been waiting for him.
"You're finally back," she said. "I've been waiting for you. Come with me."
He was confused. She led him to the back room. The moment he entered, his heart sank. The Third Raikage, A, and Arashi stood like two iron towers, one on each side.
His mother's expression also changed. She sat down between them, her face grim.
A family meeting? But why so serious?
After a long silence, no one spoke. Satomi discreetly kicked her husband. The Third Raikage cleared his throat. "Dana," he said, "the New Year is almost here. You'll be fifteen. The Daimyo's letter has already inquired about the engagement. We need to discuss this."
"I understand all that," he said with a sigh. "But why are you all acting like this is a trial?"
"Since I've been back," the Raikage continued, "the clan elders have been asking me about your engagement every day. Dana, the succession of the Takemikazuchi is the clan's top priority. You're not a child anymore. When I was your age, I was already..."
"Ahem!"
Just as he was about to reminisce, Satomi cleared her throat, and he quickly stopped.
"In any case," he said, "time is of the essence. We need to know what you think."
Arashi: "Mm-hmm."
"Wait a minute," Dana said, annoyed. "What right do you have to be on that side, Arashi? You should be on trial with me! You're already twenty!"
Arashi: "Mm-hmm."
"Don't change the subject," his mother said, annoyed. "Arashi's situation is different. He'll probably have a hard time getting married in his life. Today, we're only talking about you."
Arashi: "Hmm... huh?"
"Are you dissatisfied with the engagement?" Satomi asked.
Dana sighed. Though he was almost forty in combined age, he had never been married. When the engagement had been set a few years ago, he had thought it was a long way off and had just been amused by it. But now that it was upon him, his old habit of procrastination was kicking in. He didn't dislike Raihara Natsu, but he wasn't ready.
This is so ridiculous. I'm only fifteen, and I have to think about this? I'd rather be thinking about the future of the ninja world.
Seeing that he was silent, the Third Raikage hinted, "You don't have to worry. The heavy responsibility of continuing the bloodline and producing heirs can't just be borne by two people, right? There are still plenty of opportunities, and a long life ahead of you."
Dana was taken aback for a moment, then realized what he was saying. A license to be a scumbag?
"There's one more thing, Dana," his mother said, her voice dropping. "You have to be honest with me."
She stared at him until he began to feel uneasy. "You and Maki-chan," she said in a low voice, "have you...?"
"Are you serious?" he said. "You're asking me this now?"
The family meeting ended in a noisy argument. Dana was now convinced that he was the only sane person in the family.
The final conclusion was that if he was dissatisfied with the engagement, the Third Raikage would help him break it off, but he would have to get married soon. If he had no one in mind, the clan would arrange it. If he did, they would immediately arrange a proposal.
If he was not dissatisfied with the engagement, then he just had to set a date, as soon as possible.
He knew how eager the clan elders were to see the Takemikazuchi bloodline continue. It was only because of the engagement to the Daimyo's daughter that they hadn't been sending him women. If he agreed to break it off today, there would be a line outside his door tonight. He wouldn't just have a tsubone, he'd have a tsubone train.
Choosing the lesser of two evils, and hoping to procrastinate for as long as possible, he said that he was not dissatisfied with the engagement, but that he needed another year. The end of next year would be fine.
But the wise Third Raikage had seen through it all. He nodded in agreement, but the very next day, he wrote a letter to the Daimyo, stating that the end of next year would be a very suitable time for the wedding.