Wedding

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At the end of Konoha Year 37, the wedding of Nawaki and Mikoto was drawing near. Akio had thought he could quietly continue living as Konoha's humble "guardian," but unexpectedly, another task found its way to him—Tsunade came knocking.

"Great-grandfather, I need a favor."

Akio froze, his expression shifting dramatically. He was still disguised as the humble shop owner.

"What great-grandfather? My name is Hagoromo. Yes, that's right—Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo."

Tsunade rolled her eyes. "Then, Sage of Six Paths Grandpa, could you help me with something?"

"Give me a break..." Akio muttered under his breath, feigning ignorance. "What matter brings you to this old man?"

Sighing, Tsunade replied, "With Nawaki and Mikoto's wedding approaching, I'd like to ask you to carve two statues of them."

"Oh… that's all?" Akio scratched his head. He hadn't thought about that. But with Tsunade's reminder, a sudden mischievous idea struck him—if he carved the two of them making a heart shape with their hands, it would be hilarious.

"No problem. Leave it to me!"

"I'm counting on you, Great-grandfather," Tsunade said, turning to leave. Akio hesitated for a moment, then sighed.

"Tsunade… when did you figure it out?"

She glanced back with a smile. "The first time Orochimaru and I came to buy a carving from you. Don't worry—we only told Sensei. Not even Jiraiya knows."

"You told Hiruzen? You might as well have told Jiraiya—I'd have at least realized I was exposed." Akio spoke slowly, then exhaled deeply and waved her off, leaving Tsunade with a puzzled look.

"Of all people, she had to tell Hiruzen..." he muttered, shaking his head. "Half the reason I stayed here was to keep an eye on him in case Danzo stirred up trouble!"

"No wonder things have been so peaceful these past eighteen months. Guess I'll just continue being a quiet sculptor."

In the blink of an eye, more than half a month passed. Konoha celebrated a New Year, and just as things had settled for two days, the village burst into excitement again.

Nawaki and Mikoto's wedding had a much greater impact than Akio had anticipated. The union of the Senju and Uchiha clans drew the attention of many. The arrival of the Daimyō of the Land of Fire didn't surprise him—after all, in terms of seniority, Nawaki was technically his grandnephew. But what did surprise him was the appearance of the Daimyō of the Land of Wind, accompanied by the Third Kazekage.

Naturally, the Daimyō of Uzushiogakure and its Grand Elder—Akio's shadow clone—also made an appearance.

Akio had long since completed the heart-shaped couple statues and placed them at the entrance of the Senju compound. Since Mikoto was marrying into the Senju clan, the wedding was held on their grounds, as tradition dictated.

Due to the limited space, most civilians were turned away. Akio, in his identity as the humble sculptor, was the only "civilian" permitted inside thanks to his widely praised carvings.

"Well, I suppose this serves as some advertisement for my online shop," he sighed. "Though once this wedding's over, I plan to take a break and check in on Uzushio's progress. Shadow clones just can't compare to the real deal."

About an hour remained before the ceremony. Representatives from various countries and clans arrived one after another, presenting gifts to Nawaki and Mikoto before taking their seats.

The seating was arranged into two sections. The left side was for clan representatives—seated from front to back in descending order of clan power. They didn't seem to mind this practical arrangement. As a "civilian," Akio took the last seat on the far end of that row.

Seated beside him were a few notable civilian shinobi… such as Jiraiya and Orochimaru.

"You old fossil—how'd you sneak in?" Jiraiya smirked.

Akio gave a helpless look. Both of his identities had managed to develop something like a rivalry with Jiraiya. Still, he knew the Sannin was only teasing—otherwise, he'd have already gotten a punch.

"Didn't you see the statue at the gate?"

Jiraiya paused, his face lighting up in admiration. "I knew it was your work! Hey, how about you make one for me and Tsunade too?"

"Idiot…" Akio hadn't even replied before Orochimaru cut in for him. The two of them immediately started bickering in hushed tones.

Meanwhile, the seats on the right side began filling with heavy hitters.

At the head of the row sat the most powerful shinobi in the world—or so he claimed—Uzumaki Akio, Grand Elder of Uzushio, said to be over a hundred years old, a living witness of shinobi history… Akio's shadow clone.

Behind him were the three Daimyō, followed by the Hokage, Kazekage, Mito, the Konoha Elders, and of course, the relatives of Nawaki and Mikoto.

Naturally, a wedding needed a host—and the choice of that person left Akio completely stunned.

"What the heck? How did Tsunade end up as the wedding host?" he muttered, feeling like chaos was inevitable.

As the wedding drew near, Akio couldn't shake an uneasy feeling.

"Hiruzen, disable Konoha's sensory alarm system for now," his voice whispered in the Hokage's ear.

Hiruzen, mid-conversation with the Third Kazekage, paused. Glancing first at Akio's clone, then at the shop owner Akio, he nodded and signaled for an ANBU operative.

Five minutes later, he nodded again, a subtle signal that everything was ready. Akio's expression grew serious as both his real body and shadow clone expanded their sensory fields to cover the entire village.

"No anomalies."

He let out a faint breath of relief and canceled the sensory field, waiting quietly for the ceremony to begin. Of course, he activated his sensory perception every five to ten minutes—just in case someone tried to disrupt or attack.

Unexpectedly, the wedding was remarkably peaceful. Tsunade's hosting was surprisingly standard, and the blessings from various nations and clans seemed sincere. No dramatic scenes—no Fugaku storming in to steal the bride. Only the two Akios sat there feeling tense.

Despite his worries, the wedding wasn't boring. On the contrary, it was a lively and memorable affair. The festive atmosphere was palpable, but Akio's mind wasn't on any of it.

It wasn't until the ceremony concluded, and the newlyweds began thanking the guests, that Akio finally snapped back to reality.

"That's it? It's over? What about the disruption? Where's Akatsuki?" The fact that something he saw as world-shaking had passed so smoothly left him almost disoriented.

"I must be going crazy…" he laughed bitterly, lost in thought.

"Maybe the Akatsuki aren't as determined to 'correct the timeline' as I thought… or maybe it's just me, secretly hoping someone would show up to ruin the wedding." He sighed inwardly. His obsession with this had practically driven him mad.

"Oh well. Peace is better anyway." The two Akios exchanged a glance and finally relaxed.

Now that Mikoto was Nawaki's wife, what could possibly cause her to "divorce and remarry"? The story's course had already shifted—it was too late to revert anything. Besides, Akio had never even heard of divorce existing in the Naruto world…

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