Disclaimer: Naruto and all of its character belong to Masashi Kishimoto. I own nothing but the original characters I make.
Chapter 143: New Plan
Kushina returned this time expecting to see her beautiful sister in law, but what greeted her instead were two figures towering above her. In just a few days, her sister in law had somehow grown taller than her, and she could not wrap her head around it no matter how hard she tried.
She had met her brother after the war and had proudly bragged about his unusual height to others, even gossiping about it with her sister in law as though it were the most amusing thing in the world.
But now even her sister in law had grown taller too.
"Brother," said Kushina with a pout. "Tell me how can you both grow taller?"
Although she sounded blunt, the same question had quietly been on the minds of many others as well. Both the Uzumaki and Uchiha Clan had noticed the abnormal growth of Raiken and Mikoto, a change that had begun just before Raiken fought against the Raikage. Naturally people were curious, but whenever anyone asked, Raiken would simply dismiss it with the same answer.
"It was an after effect of copying the Third Raikage jutsu."
And it worked, because the Third Raikage stood at 2.05 meters and was a powerfully built man, so the explanation was believable enough that no one pressed further. But now Mikoto had undergone the same change in a single night and if it were not for Raiken standing as Clan Leader and Mikoto being the granddaughter of Uchiha Hikaku, they might have been pressed to tell the truth. As things were, only Kushina was bold enough to question him directly.
Raiken and Mikoto exchanged a glance before both of them smiled at each other.
"It was because of the Third Raikage jutsu," said Raiken.
"Third Raikage," repeated Kushina. "Does that mean I can also grow taller?"
"Yes," nodded Raiken.
"But that still does not explain how sister Mikoto grew taller in just one week," said Kushina.
"You are right," smiled Raiken. "I have a technique that alters the body and makes it suitable enough to use the Lightning Chakra Armor and Hell Stab."
What he did not mention was that when he used the livestreaming mall jutsu, he had also adjusted the way the change would affect Mikoto body. Rather than building the kind of thick and heavy frame that came naturally with that level of power, he had shaped it so that her figure leaned closer to that of a supermodel, with a thin waist, defined muscle, and lean arms that were strong without being overbearing. It had worked better than he expected and had even enhanced her natural beauty in ways he had not anticipated.
"I want it too," said Kushina without any hesitation.
Raiken did not answer right away. He simply looked toward Mikoto, and as his wife, she already understood what that look meant.
"Kushina, there is a downside to this kind of body," said Mikoto gently.
"What downside?" asked Kushina, genuinely curious because everything she had seen so far looked like nothing but an improvement.
"Would you want your future husband to be shorter than you?" asked Mikoto.
That made Kushina pause. As a girl she had always carried that quiet fantasy of a husband who stood taller than her, someone whose presence made her feel safe just by standing beside her. Her thoughts drifted without warning toward Minato, and for a brief moment she found herself imagining him suddenly becoming shorter than her, that sunny face of his looking up instead of across.
After spending months on the same team and going through missions together, she had come to see just how capable Minato truly was. He was warm and always smiling even when things were at their most difficult, and that was not something she had ever admitted out loud to anyone.
Suddenly realizing she had been daydreaming in front of her sister in law, she snapped herself out of it with a sharp slap to her own cheek.
PAP!
"What are you doing?" asked Mikoto, startled by her sudden action.
Even Raiken tilted and looked at Kushina with an expression that said he was not entirely sure what he had just witnessed.
"Nothing," answered Kushina quickly. "I am ready to become taller."
Mikoto glanced at her husband with a look that carried everything she was thinking without needing a single word. Raiken let out a quiet sigh.
"Kushina, you are still young. Wait until you are at least 18 or 19 and in the meantime I will teach you the Lightning Chakra Armor and Hell Stab," said Raiken.
"No, I want to grow taller too," said Kushina stubbornly.
"Not yet. Your body needs to be mature enough first," replied Raiken firmly.
Kushina knew better than anyone that once Raiken made a decision, no amount of pouting or begging would move him even slightly. She held his gaze for a moment longer than necessary before finally letting out a breath and giving a small reluctant nod.
BLACK ZETSU POV
Seeing the situation in the elemental nations, Zetsu or Black Zetsu can only look at it with frustration.
For the past century he had carefully building up the hatred between the Uchiha and the Senju, turning them into enemies so that the tension between the descendants of Indra and Asura would eventually force the awakening of the Rinegan. But it had taken far longer than he had calculated and not a single descendant of Indra had managed to awaken it until Madara came along.
Madara had been the first from the line of Indra who had genuinely reached out for peace, and ironically he had also been the one to awaken his own Rinegan. But the eyes had come too late, only surfacing when his body had already grown too old and too worn to make full use of them. So Black Zetsu had needed a new vessel for the eyes, a younger body capable of carrying that power to its fullest potential.
But now, with how the war had turned out and the Uchiha Clan growing stronger than ever, his plans were becoming increasingly difficult to hold together.
He knew he needed to eliminate the new Otsutsuki bloodline before any of their descendants could awaken the Rinegan, because if that happened it would unravel everything he had spent centuries building and they would need to fight with the other user of Rinegan. But doing so was not as simple as it once might have been, not when the Uzumaki Clan had developed something capable of detecting their presence within Konoha.
The bodies most suited to wielding the Rinegan came from either the Uzumaki or the Uchiha bloodline and both clans were now more guarded than ever.
So Black Zetsu shifted his focus elsewhere. Rather than moving against them directly, he began searching for someone with the kind of mind capable of creating something that had never existed before, a jutsu that could restore youth to an aging body. He was certain such a thing was possible if the right person was found.
If Madara could be given a body that was stronger and younger, then collecting the tailed beasts would become a far simpler matter, and the plan that Black Zetsu had devoted centuries of patience toward could finally move forward again.
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There is 30 advanced chapter on my patreon.
Chapter 169: Speech Marriage
Chapter 170: Hunt Madara
Chapter 171: Absolute Peak
Chapter 172: I Come To Bargain
Chapter 173: Madara Peak
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