The massive control console behind the steel chair shrieked.
Red warning lights flared across the ruined laboratory. The extraction device was still drawing massive amounts of power from the ship’s engines. Without Doto's armor to regulate it, the system was rapidly overloading.
"The reactor is redlining," Kakashi warned, his Sharingan tracking the chaotic flow of chakra through the ship's wiring. "If that console blows, it takes the entire mountain with it."
Kenji sighed, wiping a streak of Doto’s blood off his cheek. He looked completely annoyed by the noise.
He glanced over at Yukie, who was still staring at Doto's crushed armor on the floor.
"Princess," Kenji called out, his voice cutting through the alarms. "Plug the rock in. I didn't rip a guy out of his armor just to get blown up five minutes later."
Yukie blinked, snapping out of her daze.
She hurried over to the main console. In the center of the flashing red lights was a hexagonal indentation perfectly matching the crystal around her neck. She yanked the cord over her head and slammed the stone directly into the slot.
Instantly, the shrieking alarms died. The red lights turned a calm, brilliant gold.
A massive, echoing hum vibrated through the floorboards of the airship, traveling all the way down into the bedrock of the mountain.
"Look!" Naruto yelled, pointing out the jagged, blown-open hole in the hull.
The howling blizzard abruptly stopped.
The thick, grey clouds that had suffocated the Land of Snow for a decade broke apart, letting a blinding ray of pure sunlight pierce through.
The geothermal generators buried beneath the country roared to life. Across the mountains and the valleys below, the permafrost shattered. Thick white steam billowed into the air as thousands of tons of ice violently melted away. The frozen rivers cracked and rushed with fresh water.
Within seconds, vibrant green grass and bright wildflowers aggressively forced their way through the thawing earth.
Spring had returned.
Team 7 walked to the edge of the blasted hull. Naruto's jaw dropped as he watched the green spread across the valley. Sasuke stared at the changing landscape, genuinely impressed by the sheer scale of the technology. Kakashi let out a quiet sigh of relief, lowering his headband over his eye.
Kenji leaned against a steel pillar, crossing his arms. He wasn't looking at the flowers. He was looking at a floating blue screen.
[System Notification] [Main Quest Complete: The Land of Spring]
Reward: 50,000 EXP.
Kenji smirked, swiping the screen away.
Heavy footsteps echoed down the metallic hallway. Sandayu and the rest of the surviving film crew burst into the laboratory, completely out of breath. They had followed the trail of destruction Kenji had left through the lower decks.
"Princess!" Sandayu cried, tears streaming down his face as he saw the golden light flooding the room and Doto’s dead armor on the floor. "You did it! The ice is gone!"
The crew rushed forward, surrounding Yukie in a massive, cheering embrace. She laughed, tears of genuine relief finally falling down her cheeks. The nightmare was over.
Through the crowd of cheering people, Yukie looked up. Her dark eyes found Kenji standing alone in the shadows, leaning against the pillar.
He didn't smile. He just held her gaze.
Yukie’s breath hitched. She looked away quickly, a deep flush spreading across her cheeks that had nothing to do with the warming weather.
Three Days Later
The capital had been entirely transformed.
With the snow gone, the Kazahana Castle stood tall and pristine, surrounded by vibrant green forests and rushing waterfalls. The air was warm, and the citizens had flooded the streets for a massive, multi-day festival.
The courtyard was packed with thousands of cheering people.
At the top of the grand balcony, Koyuki Kazahana stood before her country. She wore the traditional, heavy silk robes of the Daimyo. A delicate, beautiful golden crown rested on her head. She delivered her inaugural speech with perfect, unwavering confidence. She looked regal, untouchable, and flawless.
Down in the VIP section of the courtyard, Team 7 watched the coronation ceremony.
"Man, she really looks like a Queen," Naruto grinned, crossing his arms behind his head. "Hard to believe she's the same lady who kept trying to run away on the ship."
"She is a Queen, idiot," Sakura muttered, watching the balcony.
Kakashi nodded slightly. "The mission was a success. She's stepped into her role."
Kenji stood a few feet away from the rest of his squad, leaning against a stone pillar with his hands stuffed in his pockets. He was completely bored by the political speech and the cheering crowds.
But as the ceremony reached its climax, Koyuki paused.
She looked down from the balcony, her dark eyes scanning the VIP section until they locked directly onto Kenji. The authoritative Queen vanished for a fraction of a second. She offered him a small, subtle smile, her gaze heavy with an unspoken promise.
Kenji’s lips quirked upward into a knowing smirk.
The crowd erupted into a final, deafening cheer as Koyuki finished her speech. The daytime ceremony was officially over.
Kenji pushed off the stone pillar. He didn't stick around for the food, the celebrations, or his team. He turned his back on the courtyard and walked quietly inside the castle.
The mission was over. Now, all he had to do was wait for the sun to go down.