Chapter 270: Masahiko Senju
One wave had barely settled before another rose.
Time reached the forty-seventh year of Konoha, and the village, having just celebrated the New Year, became lively once again.
Masahiko never expected that the Konoha Elder Council would actually propose marriage to the Land of Whirlpools on behalf of Minato, asking to marry Kushina Uzumaki.
By the way, after Hiruzen stepped down from the Hokage position, he filled the Elder vacancy left by the death of Hikai Hyuga in battle. The current Konoha Elder Council consisted of the trio: Hiruzen, Danzo, and Kagami.
"Are they in that much of a hurry?" Masahiko felt helpless. "But seeing as the betrothal gifts you sent are quite substantial, I won't cause any trouble."
The Hokage of Konoha Village proposing to the Princess of the Land of Whirlpools was a much grander occasion than when Kenji and Aika got married. Back then, Konoha had a hundred things waiting to be rebuilt, and whatever they sent couldn't move the Daimyo of the Land of Fire.
Now, the betrothal gifts alone were worth about... twenty Asuma bounties.
Over in the Land of Whirlpools, Nanako agreed very readily and hurried over with Konoha's betrothal gift delegation. Minato and Kushina were mutually in love, so she had no reason to refuse.
As soon as Nanako arrived in Konoha, she sought out Masahiko to discuss... the issue of the dowry.
"They still want a dowry?!" Masahiko looked incredulous. "We are marrying Kushina into Konoha and even letting her be the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. Does Konoha actually have the nerve to ask us for a dowry?"
Nanako looked helpless. "Teacher, keep your voice down. It is not Konoha asking us for it, but since Kushina is marrying here, we can't let her look too shabby..."
Masahiko sighed, looking indignant. "No wonder Konoha sent so many betrothal gifts. It turns out they want to earn it back. It seems I need to find something for them to do; they do nothing but scheme all day..."
The current Land of Whirlpools could be described as rolling in wealth. Although it couldn't compare to the Land of Fire, it was far richer than a mere ninja village like Konoha.
Nanako looked helpless. "Teacher, I still want to hold my great-grandson in my lifetime..."
"What is the rush! You still..." Masahiko stopped mid-sentence. Looking at Nanako's head full of white hair, he couldn't quite bring himself to finish.
"Forget it... do as you see fit," Masahiko said. "You can add the money Konoha owes me from the Third War into the dowry. From the looks of it, they aren't planning to pay it back anyway."
"Yes, Teacher."
Watching Nanako leave, Masahiko calculated inwardly, "Nanako... she must be over seventy by now..."
Without Masahiko causing trouble, the wedding preparations went very smoothly.
Nanako loved her granddaughter Kushina to the bone. She gave a dowry so large that even Masahiko felt his heart ache, but she didn't bat an eye.
On Minato's side, Jiraiya, being a rough man, understood absolutely nothing about this. He asked Tsunade to help out; after all, she had the experience of organizing Nawaki's wedding.
Watching Tsunade busily running around for Minato, Masahiko also breathed a sigh of relief. If competing for the position of the Fourth Hokage had caused Tsunade, Jiraiya, Minato, and Nawaki to harbor grudges against each other, that would truly have been a joke.
When everyone works toward the same goal, the progress of the wedding preparations goes very fast.
In the end, Masahiko made the final decision and chose a good date, scheduling the wedding for March 1st of the forty-seventh year of Konoha.
Many people expressed confusion as to why March 1st was a good date, but Masahiko just smiled faintly and didn't explain.
"Am I going to tell you that March 1st is the start of the school year, and Minato and Kushina's wedding will give the kids at the Ninja Academy an extra day off?" Masahiko laughed inwardly. "I wonder how many school-weary kids will be moved to tears of gratitude when the time comes."
Thus, Minato and Kushina's wedding was held on March 1st.
Masahiko had attended many weddings, and each time he had different feelings.
Back with Hashirama and Mito, he felt he had witnessed history; with Kenji and Aika, he felt he had uncovered the mystery of Tsunade's blonde hair; with Nawaki and Mikoto, he felt he had "changed the world."
And now, with Minato and Kushina, it was a mixed feeling of excitement and awkwardness.
The excitement was because this "golden boy and jade girl" couple still got together, and afterward, he could patiently wait for Naruto's birth. The awkwardness was because he had practically watched Kushina grow up, giving him the unspeakable, complex emotions of a father watching his daughter get married, even if she was marrying Minato.
"Heh, I am just a great-grandfather..." Masahiko shook his head. "At a time like this, Jinsen probably feels it even more deeply."
Masahiko looked at Jinsen, who was exchanging pleasantries with Hiruzen and the others. He also carried some of the majesty of a Daimyo of the Land of Whirlpools about him.
The wedding was very lively. Just looking at the venue being the Konoha Stadium, one could imagine how grand the scale was and how massive the number of participants was.
Spending over a month decorating the huge Konoha Stadium to look "exquisite" was no easy task either.
The officiant for the wedding was Nanako, who had volunteered for the job. This made Masahiko too embarrassed to interfere; he still needed to save some face in front of his disciple.
The details of the wedding need not be elaborated on. Without Masahiko's participation, it was just a standard "Naruto World Wedding."
However, Masahiko watched with great interest. After all, it was Kushina and Minato, the "model Hokage couple." There was no such wedding in the original story.
The wedding lasted quite a long time. It started before noon and continued until the sky grew dark. Kushina and Minato received blessings from people of all kinds of statuses.
It wasn't until the very end, when Masahiko stepped forward to give his blessing, that the wedding was considered concluded.
The crowd watched the newlywed couple depart, and Masahiko also gained 20 Witness Points.
"After this, it is just waiting for Naruto."
Thinking of the slight blush on Kushina's face just now, Masahiko couldn't help but laugh...
Masahiko's life returned to peace once again. He wandered around Konoha with nothing to do every day, hoping to scrounge up some Witness Points, but gained nothing. Nothing happened during this time... The only somewhat important event was Neji's birth in July, but the births of these plot characters never brought him any Witness Points.
"Is it because I have to witness and participate?" Masahiko smiled bitterly. "If I have to participate... how the hell am I supposed to participate in that!"
It wasn't until the end of Konoha Year 47 that Kushina's belly still showed no signs of movement, but news from the Senju clan disrupted Masahiko's peaceful life once again.
Mikoto Uchiha was pregnant again.
Calculating the days, Masahiko shivered. Were this couple going to cause trouble again and pop out a Sasuke?
Hurrying to the Senju clan compound, Masahiko found Nawaki.
"I heard Mikoto is pregnant again. What name are you planning to give the child?"
Nawaki laughed mischievously. "If it is a girl, we haven't decided yet. But if it is a boy... you definitely won't be able to guess!"
Masahiko's face darkened. "You are not going to name him Sasuke Senju, are you?"
Nawaki was stunned. "Sasuke... Oh, the Third Hokage's father? That is quite close, actually."
Masahiko breathed a sigh of relief. "It is not?"
"If it is a boy, I want to name him Masahiko Senju. Mikoto agreed too," Nawaki said with a smile.
"What?"
Masahiko looked completely bewildered, taking a long time to recover his senses.
Nawaki, are you taking revenge on me for not supporting you to become the Fourth Hokage?
☆☆☆
-> 30 Advanced chapters Now Available on Patreon!!
-> https://www.pat-reon.co-m/c/Hollowborn
(Just remove the hyphen (-) to access patreon normally)
If you like this novel please consider leaving a review that's help the story a lot Thank you