Chapter 381: Starting with the World's Greatest Dowry...
"She brought a dowry?"
Dana blinked, wondering if forcing open the Seventh Gate had finally fried his brain. Was this a post-battle hallucination? A neurological side effect?
He verified the report multiple times, yet he remained utterly baffled.
A dowry for whom? ...Wait, it couldn't possibly be for me, could it?
Until today, he hadn't even known if this Yotsuki Teru was a man or a woman.
Maybe she took a liking to someone else in the Cloud?
If that were the case, Dana was prepared to give the man responsible a Medal of Honor. He had pioneered a new frontier for the village: the "Honey Trap" strategy—defeating the enemy without a single blow and making them defect voluntarily. What a legendary achievement! That would save the village so much trouble.
Dana would even personally officiate their wedding. Though it would be a small step for two people, it would be a giant leap for the ninja world—one step closer to purging the lingering rot left by Madara Uchiha and Black Zetsu.
If this person remained hidden, she would always be a thorn in the Federation's side.
Moreover, she was a suspected "lost bloodline" of the Yotsuki Clan. If she truly intended to swear fealty, Dana was all for it.
Through the Communication Snail, Dana issued an order for sensory ninja to escort her to the Cloud Spire, maintaining high vigilance for any suspicious movements. Then, he went back to work. Between managing the new Federation and the aftermath of the war, he hadn't left his office in the Spire for what felt like an eternity.
About half an hour later, the person was brought before him.
Dana looked up as a woman with a cold, regal expression entered the room.
She wore no makeup, her skin was as pale as fresh snow, and she stood tall and slender. In a word: beautiful.
From the moment she stepped inside, her eyes never left Yotsuki Dana.
Her icy expression remained unchanged, so Dana didn't read too much into it. He set down his pen and spoke. "You are Yotsuki Teru?"
To accommodate Dana's height, his custom-made desk and chair were massive, giving him an imposing, authoritative presence that commanded the room.
The woman nodded.
"How do you prove it?"
The woman thought for a moment and extended her hand. A sharp wooden spike erupted from her palm.
"Wood Release: Cutting Sprigs Jutsu." The hallmark of the First Hokage's power.
Dana nodded. She was empty-handed, and he saw no sign of a "dowry," but that wasn't his primary concern.
"Madara Uchiha and Black Zetsu have been captured. It is good that you've seen the light. Your surname—does it come from your father's side? Or your mother's?"
"Neither," she replied. "It comes from you."
Just then, the door was shoved open as the Third Raikage stomped in. Looking refreshed and energetic, he bellowed, "Dana! I heard a lost member of our Yotsuki bloodline has returned? Where is she?!"
The Raikage's eyes scanned the room and landed on the elegant young woman. Immediately, she dropped into a formal dogeza (prostration).
"Father-in-law above, I am Yotsuki Teru. This is our first meeting; please guide me!"
Yotsuki Dana: "..."
Third Raikage: ".....Am I hallucinating? Why does this scene feel so familiar?"
Half an hour later.
"I see," the Third Raikage said with a sigh. "You've been through a lot... it's been hard on you."
While uttering these perfunctory words of comfort, he kept glancing sideways at Dana, his eyes flickering like a strobe light.
The message was clear: Are you a block of wood? Get over there and comfort the girl!
Dana stared back with dead fish eyes, his expression screaming: Old Man, what the hell is this? Are you serious right now?
The Raikage's pupils darted up and down like ping-pong balls: The meat has jumped into the pot itself! What more do you want?!
Dana ignored his father's theatrical eye movements and cleared his throat. "So... you're saying you've already removed the Cursed Seal Black Zetsu planted on you?"
Teru nodded. Her expression was naturally frigid, though her eyes burned with a strange fervor during battle. Only now, facing Dana, did a slight blush creep onto her cheeks.
"I found someone to perform a heart transplant for me."
"A heart transplant?"
That wasn't a surgery just anyone could pull off.
According to Teru (formerly Kaguya Tsuki), she had been secretly posting requests in the underground exchanges for years. eventually, a "certain green-eyed ninja who wished to remain anonymous" (Kakuzu) used his bizarre ninjutsu and practiced hands to swap her heart.
Thus, she escaped the shackle placed upon her life.
Perhaps the surgery itself didn't trigger the seal, or perhaps it was because Black Zetsu was currently trapped inside the Amber Purifying Pot. either way, the process had been smooth.
However, these were only her words. Dana intended to have her thoroughly examined to ensure no Zetsu remnants remained. She might not even know they were there, and Dana wasn't about to give Black Zetsu a single opening.
"We'll perform a check later to confirm there are no lingering traces of the seal."
Teru nodded obediently, offering no objection.
In fact, her attitude was so transparently honest that Dana was almost unsure how to handle her. She even recounted every "evil" deed she had done in the capital alongside Black Zetsu, detail by detail. She acted as if she were completely at his mercy; Dana suspected that if he ordered her to be locked up right now, she wouldn't even resist.
Judging her past actions, they weren't overly excessive. Part of that was her own restraint—after all, she had defected specifically because of her obsession with Dana. She had been very careful never to kill Cloud ninja.
In the end, she was just a pawn for Madara and Zetsu. If it wasn't her, it would have been someone else. Dana had no interest in avenging the late, unlamented Raihara Yukihiro.
With the explanations out of the way, they finally arrived at the most awkward topic.
"What did you mean... by 'dowry'?"
Three days later.
Led by Yotsuki Teru, the Cloud-Thunder Federation discovered a secret base hidden deep underground.
This was the main lair of Madara and Black Zetsu. Now that both were sealed, only Teru possessed the authority to open the barriers.
Interestingly, with Black Zetsu gone, Teru had become the only person in the ninja world capable of commanding the White Zetsu.
Federation staff discovered a staggering amount of treasure inside:
Over a dozen pairs of Three-Tomoe Sharingan.
Remains of numerous legendary powerhouses.
Ancient texts and scrolls from eras long past.
The Six-Tails Jinchuriki (Utakata).
Tens of thousands of hibernating White Zetsu clones.
And finally... the Gedo Mazo (Demonic Statue of the Outer Path).
The Sharingan were the Uchiha clan's accumulated legacy, stolen by Madara when he defected decades ago. Of course, to a man of Madara's level, these were just consumables; he didn't care much for them.
A powerhouse's logic is just different, Dana thought. Madara didn't feel the need to stud his entire arm with stolen eyes.
Dana consulted Fugaku Uchiha on the matter. The final decision was that the Federation would keep and manage the eyes, but the Uchiha clan's input would be "seriously considered" when they were used.
After all, the person who stole them was their own "beloved" former Clan Head, not the Federation. Now that Madara was the world's greatest villain, the Federation was the one shouldering the burden of his crimes. Naturally, the spoils belonged to the state. These Sharingan would be strictly numbered and classified as public property, distinct from the Uchiha clan's private eyes.
The second item—the remains of powerhouses—was Black Zetsu's collection spanning centuries. Some were recently gathered for Edo Tensei use, while others were remains of the Six Paths bloodline Zetsu had subconsciously hoarded over the years. Coupled with the ancient texts, they held immense research value. Some scrolls even contained lost secret techniques that even Black Zetsu found impressive enough to record for a rainy day.
As for the tens of thousands of White Zetsu, only Teru could command them. Her authority was granted by Black Zetsu, though even she couldn't explain the logic behind it. These clones, while seemingly sentient, didn't care that she had betrayed their creator; they only recognized the "Admin" tag Zetsu had given her.
Finally, there was the Gedo Mazo.
In the deepest level of the base, the Third Raikage muttered, "What a sinister thing. Moving something this big back won't be easy."
The hideous statue floated in the massive space, its hands raised to the sky in a meditative pose. If not for its horrific appearance, it might have possessed a certain Zen-like quality. One of its nine eyes was already open, signifying that the One-Tail Shukaku had been extracted and sealed within.
Beneath the statue, countless White Zetsu were connected by mysterious tubes, slumbering in the dark.
Dana nodded. "Nagato can try to use the Rinnegan to summon the Gedo Mazo directly. But as for these White Zetsu... Yotsuki Teru will have to command them to move back on their own."
The Third Raikage glanced at Dana. "You mean Teru... Since I, the Clan Head, have nodded, the girl's name is Yotsuki Teru from now on."
The Third Raikage was a pragmatist. He had zero issues with Teru changing her surname. Adding Wood Release and the Dead Bone Pulse to the clan's bloodline? Why not? Even if the Kaguya Clan came to demand her back, he wouldn't give her up. This girl was staying in their family pot.
Taking her husband's surname is perfectly normal, right?
Looking down at the sea of pale white bodies below, the scene felt like a horror movie. How to deal with the Zetsu clones would be up to the researchers.
Even now, Yoshitoki was already weaving through the crowd of clones, happily poking one with a tentacle and then another. He looked like a kid in a candy store.
The Third Raikage murmured, "This is quite a dowry... probably the most generous in the history of the ninja world."
Dana rolled his eyes.
Whatever you say, Old Man. The only thing more generous would be someone gifting me a full Ten-Tails.
That would be too much. You could write a whole novel about that.
"Ninja World: My Wife's Dowry is the Ten-Tails"... yeah, that would probably be a hit.