Chapter 198: The Will of the Cloud
The three Sand ninja followed Kayo and Konan towards the gathering crowd. The villagers were all running and shouting, a lively scene that left the three of them bewildered.
A short while later, they could go no further. The street was packed with people. A few ninja were maintaining order, not letting the crowd get too close.
From the outside, they couldn't see what was happening. Konan just leaped onto a nearby rooftop. Many other ninja had done the same, and the roofs were covered with people.
Rasa was about to do the same but was stopped by the Cloud ninja who was with them.
"You'd better not."
He nodded, his face grim. In his own village, if a ninja from another village were to be jumping around on their rooftops, it would also cause displeasure, even if they were here on official business.
Sasori was in an awkward position. At his height, all he could see were other people's butts.
Pakura, ignoring his protests, lifted him onto her shoulders. He immediately blushed.
In the distance, a group of ninja in strange yellow helmets were preparing something, constantly comparing blueprints.
"The village's expansion is almost complete," Kayo explained. "Today, they're going to erect the statues of the First and Second Raikage. I hear they're very grand."
Sasori looked ahead. The men in the strange helmets must be the craftsmen. But the area was flat. He couldn't see any grand statues.
"Don't push! You can't get any closer!" the ninja who were maintaining order shouted. "And you guys on the rooftops, be careful! Those are new tiles! Don't break them!"
The whole thing was so official, it made him even more confused. He didn't know where the statues were coming from. Were they going to carve them from scratch? If so, why was everyone so excited? And he didn't see any materials, not even a single block of stone.
Just as he was wondering, the men in front of them split into two groups, forming two complete circles on either side of the main street. This street ran from the south gate all the way to the Raikage's tower in the old village. Behind them was a thirty-meter-high cliff, the dividing line between the old and new villages.
He could see many people standing on the cliff, looking down.
Suddenly, the ninja in the two circles moved at the same time, using some unknown jutsu. A cloud of white smoke, and two massive figures rapidly formed from the ground up, reaching a height that surpassed even the cliff behind them. They finally stopped at over fifty meters.
They were two massive ninja statues, with a bronze-like luster. They were two powerful-looking ninja, clad in armor. One of each of their hands was extended towards the other, forming a giant "gate." Their other hands were both pointing south, as if to guide the village in its conquests.
Facing south, a tiger's gaze over the ninja world.
Many of the older people in the crowd were shouting with excitement, "Lord First! Lord Second!"
Rasa's mind was reeling. He couldn't process what he was seeing.
"They just used a ninjutsu to make it," he said, bewildered. "But what's the point? Without a continuous supply of chakra, these statues won't last for more than a few days!"
Pakura looked at the massive, lifelike, and even intricately detailed statues. This was beyond her understanding of Earth Release. To create two earth pillars of this size was one thing, but statues of this level of detail... it was impossible. The limit was a dog's head.
And with such a massive structure, the ground had not sunk. Where did the material come from?
She didn't think the Cloud would be so foolish as to create something that would only last for a few days. So these statues had to be permanent. This was definitely not a conventional Earth Release.
But shouldn't the Stone be the masters of Earth Release?
The statues of the First and Second Raikage were sixty meters tall. Even the cliff of the old village only reached their waists. Between them was the most important and widest main street in the Cloud, running from the Raikage's tower all the way to the south gate.
Facing south, one of each of their hands was extended towards the other, forming a "gate," a symbol of home. Their other hands were pointing out of the village, a symbol of the Cloud's ambition... no, their spirit of exploration.
The two statues, together, were called "The Will of the Cloud."
Even from the main road outside the village, from a great distance, you could see these two giant statues. You could imagine the shock of the travelers, merchant guilds, and clients who came to the Hidden Cloud when they saw them for the first time.
Wouldn't they be rushing to hug the Cloud's leg?
Wouldn't they be crying and begging to post a mission, to offer up their mission fees?
And the ninja who returned to the village would be filled with a sense of belonging and pride.
The statues were up, and the ninja who were maintaining order no longer held back the crowd. People could now go up and see them up close.
Konan jumped back down. "That's so magnificent," she said. "I have to crane my neck so far I almost fall over."
"And our shop is so close to the statues!" Kayo said excitedly. "The property value is going to go up again! Hehehe!"
The group walked on, stopping every now and then to admire the grand statues. The closer they got, the more they could appreciate their immense size.
Suddenly, Kayo rushed towards a tall figure in a yellow helmet. Konan also ran over, excited.
The man was a head taller than everyone else, wearing a simple tank top, his sculpted muscles gleaming in the sun.
"Do you know him?" Pakura asked, curious.
"The one leading the construction team, with such a perfect, tall build," the Cloud guide said, "it must be him. Lord Yotsuki Dana."
Rasa froze, his eyes fixed on the figure's back.
Dana took off his hard hat, shook his head, and said to Kayo with a smile, "Oh, right. Your family's shop is close to here. And Konan too. What a coincidence."
"Good day, Lord Dana," Konan said with a bow.
He looked past the two of them and was a little surprised to see the three Sand forehead protectors. But since they were standing here so openly, they must be here on official business. He gave them a simple greeting.
Of the three, only Pakura returned his greeting. Sasori was in a daze, and Rasa seemed a little aloof.
He didn't pay them any mind. He turned to Kayo. "Have you rented out the shop yet?"
"Konan and I were talking," she said excitedly. "We might go into business together. Konan's mother is coming to the Hidden Cloud."
Konan smiled shyly from the side. He was the secret owner of "Gokuraku no Yu." It was a little awkward to be talking about her mother quitting and starting her own business in front of him.
"That's great," he said with a smile. "With Lady Kohaku's skills, she'll surely be a success in the Hidden Cloud."
Just then, a commotion erupted at the foot of the First Raikage's statue.
"Don't stop me! I'm going to be the first man to climb to the top of the statue! I'm going to stand shoulder to shoulder with the First Lord! Let me go!"
A dark-skinned, white-haired boy was being held back by several adult ninja, struggling.
Dana looked at the restrained Killer Bee and covered his face. "Drag him out," he said, "and beat him to a pulp."