Chapter 228: Returning to the Village
Dana watched as the four redheads—Nagato, Kushina, Kayo, and Hiroto—disappeared across the sea, thinking to himself that this affair had finally come to an end.
With his own butterfly effect constantly flapping its wings, the current fate of the Uzumaki clan was far better than in the original timeline. meanwhile, some people who shouldn't have died so early were already gone.
Those who died had different reasons. The Third Hokage died a worthy death. Jiraiya was killed in a fair one-on-one duel.
As for Danzo... could you say he courted death himself?
actually, after more than a decade since his transmigration, his footprints in the ninja world were becoming more numerous, and the changes were becoming drastic. Now, it was uncertain whether Naruto Uzumaki would even be born.
Through his observations earlier, Dana noticed that Kayo seemed keen on matchmaking her brother Hiroto with Kushina.
Add to that the "Desperate Lovers" storyline foundation with the mysterious transfer student Nagato... Should Minato Namikaze just go straight to the Fire Temple and become a monk?
Most of the 300 Spartans of the Cloud had already departed for the village. They were the elite of Kumogakure—the backbone of its mission execution force—so they couldn't stay idle for too long. Only a small portion remained on the island.
The next day, the mining team for the Eastern Archipelago arrived. Since this island had been exposed once, Dana decided to mine all the Chakra Metal ore here and in the surrounding waters immediately, then use Earth Release to reshape the terrain to avoid future trouble. Even though the secret probably hadn't been discovered, he didn't want to take chances.
Who knows? Some observant person might sneak back later.
The mining team worked for three days straight to clear out all the deposits on the island and in the nearby shallow waters. The ore distribution was quite scattered, and although Dana didn't do the digging himself, overseeing the operation under the blazing sun left him parched.
After restoring the terrain with Earth Release to cover their tracks, Dana hurried back with the remaining personnel.
Because they had to accommodate the speed of the others, it took a full day to return to the village. According to the gate guards, the Third Raikage had returned two days earlier than him.
Dana didn't rush to find his old man. instead, he went first to the Heavenly Transfer Technique Research Base located on a high mountain in Kumogakure. He returned the scrolls containing the delivery pods, as the research base needed the used pods for data analysis.
For this trip to the Eastern Archipelago, they had used the new model of delivery pods. The outer shell was made of the lustrous white alloy doped with Chakra Metal, eliminating the need for Dodai's "Rubber Wall" to cushion the impact. Additionally, there was a lever-like structure inside the pod. This lever was actually an integrated sealing scroll mechanism. Once pulled, the rear mechanism would activate automatically, sealing the pod back into the scroll.
At the time of launch, Dana and the others only knew that a group was chasing the Nine-Tails toward the Eastern Archipelago. They knew the direction but not the exact destination. So, they set a straight flight path. Dana used his "Pulse" Vision to scan continuously during the flight to decide where to "bail out," coordinating with the Third Raikage and Blue Bee via Communication Snail.
This method of free-falling from thousands of meters was incredibly badass, but it also tested one's strength severely. Ordinary people still had to land honestly inside the pods.
"Dana-sama, how did it feel this time?"
A female researcher took the scroll and asked for feedback.
Dana recalled the experience. "The design is ingenious. Pulling the lever puts the scroll right in your hand, avoiding the awkwardness of fumbling for a scroll in mid-air."
The female researcher pushed up her glasses helplessly. "The design doesn't officially support jumping out in mid-air... Not many people can withstand that kind of landing, anyway."
Leaving the research base, Dana headed to the Raikage Office in the administration building.
"Damn it. I left for two days thinking I could take a break, but now there's just more work piled up..."
"Raikage-sama, did you think that just because you weren't in the office, new work wouldn't be generated?"
Inside the office, the Third Raikage had returned to his daily routine, buried behind a desk grading documents.
sometimes, Dana wondered if the reason every Raikage liked to smash their desks was because of the excessive resentment accumulated during work.
"Oh, Dana's back. Are things in the Eastern Archipelago settled?"
Dana nodded and gave a brief report. "What happened with Onoki and Sakumo Hatake in the end?"
The Third Raikage laughed. "What else could happen? Onoki was just there to scavenge for scraps. Seeing no advantage to gain, he naturally left. As for the Hokage... starting a war within another village's sphere of influence put Konoha in the wrong from the start. Plus, their local strength wasn't superior. This old man naturally 'persuaded' them."
The Third Raikage thought for a moment. "That little Nine-Tails girl... feels useful. I heard she settled in the Land of Hot Water? No one should trouble them in the short term, but long term is hard to say. You can have the Uzumaki siblings contact them more. Maybe there will be a chance to absorb them into the village later."
Dana nodded on the surface, but he had other plans.
Regarding Madara and Zetsu, Dana was the only one in the entire Cloud Village who knew the full picture. Even the Special Strategy Division and Nagato's teacher, Masakazu Hanma, didn't know the true purpose behind their orders; they simply executed them.
This incident had inexplicably tied the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki to Nagato. Absorbing them into the village right now wasn't wise. However, contact was still necessary and not entirely without benefit.
At the very least, through their situation, Dana could infer how far Madara and Black Zetsu's conspiracy had progressed.
"I gave Kayo and Hiroto a week of vacation. They went to the Land of Hot Water with the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. I believe as fellow clan members, their bond will deepen."
"That's good," the Third Raikage said. "I won't be back for dinner tonight. Go home and eat with your mother. Arashi (Qi) is back too."
Dana was surprised.
"Speaking of which, I haven't seen that guy in a while."
"He just completed a Super S-Rank mission."
Back home, Dana changed out of his sea-salt-smelling clothes and soaked in the clan's bathhouse.
"Young Master, it's only been a few days, but you've gotten so tanned."
Maki Minabe massaged Dana's shoulders. It wasn't an easy job because Dana's physique was different from ordinary people; his muscles were extremely hard. Maki had a layer of fine sweat on her forehead.
Dana enjoyed the massage. "Can't be helped. The sun on the ocean is poisonous. Speaking of which, hasn't any senior developed a Sunscreen Ninjutsu?"
Maki laughed. "If such a ninjutsu existed, I imagine it would be very popular among kunoichi."
"Like coating the skin surface with a layer of chakra? ...Thinking about it, that sounds like a ninjutsu with high development difficulty."
Most people didn't have that level of chakra control.
"Well, there's no need to cover the whole body, is there? Who would get sunburnt everywhere..." Maki's face turned redder.
Dana glanced back. Over the last two years, Maki had become increasingly charming.
After bathing and changing, refreshed, Dana went to the dining room. However, he didn't see Yotsuki Arashi, only his mother.
"Eh? Where's Arashi? Didn't the Old Man say he was back in the village?"
His mother, Satomi, looked very happy, touching her cheek with a smile. "Oh my, you father and son are so careless. Don't you know? The clan arranged a blind date (Omiai) for Arashi. He should be having dinner with Aiko-chan at a restaurant right now. In the blink of an eye, my son has reached the age for matchmaking... My heart feels so complicated."
Dana: "PFFT!!!!"