Kushina turned at the sound, just in time to see Hiruzen Sarutobi's smiling face.
"Oh? Lord Hokage."
"Oh ho, Kushina, so Minato is on a date with you, huh?"
Hearing the word "date," a light blush crept onto Kushina's face, though she didn't deny it.
Hiruzen casually took a seat at the table, wearing the knowing smile of an experienced elder.
"Ah, youth... how wonderful, tsk tsk."
"Minato, you've got this. I fully support you."
"No wonder you didn't want to let me in—so that's what was going on."
Minato scratched his head awkwardly. Honestly, if he had a choice, he wouldn't have let the Hokage in at all. This was totally ruining his date.
Determined to salvage the evening, Minato tried to get Hiruzen to leave as quickly as possible.
"Lord Hokage, was there something you needed?"
"Hmm, nothing urgent. It's just that everyone's been speaking well of you in the village lately, so I thought I'd drop by for a chat."
Kazuyama Gekkō knew exactly what Minato was thinking—but summoning a god is easy, sending one off? Not so much!
Besides, the evening was still young—what's the rush?
...
Just then, Pakura came home.
She spotted Kazuyama sitting there, cradling a crystal ball with a mischievous glint in his eyes, and walked over curiously.
But without the Telescope Technique, she couldn't see anything inside. So she asked, "Hey, Kazuyama, what are you watching?"
"Hehe, I'm watching Minato and Kushina."
"Huh? Why can't I see anything?"
Kazuyama turned toward her with a sly grin.
"Wanna see?"
"Yeah."
He took Pakura's hand and reinfused chakra into the crystal ball, linking their chakras together.
"Relax. Let my chakra guide yours. Just follow its flow."
Pakura nodded, letting his chakra lead.
As their energy merged, her eyes focused on the crystal ball. Minato, Kushina, and the Third Hokage slowly came into view.
"Can you see it now?"
"Yeah, but... what are they doing? Is this some kind of meeting?"
"...Look again. What kind of meeting happens at someone's house? With candles on the table? And Kushina wearing an apron?"
Hearing that, Pakura finally caught on—this wasn't a meeting. This was Minato's home.
A candlelight dinner? What was the Hokage even doing there?
She glanced at Kazuyama, who was still grinning like a villain. Instantly, realization dawned, and she blurted out, shocked:
"You're not messing with them, are you?!"
"Hehehehehe..."
Pakura turned her gaze back to the crystal ball.
She saw the Third Hokage slowly rise and walk over to Minato, giving him a pat on the shoulder.
"Do you know why I never use weapons like kunai?"
Minato stared at him, totally confused, unsure where this was going.
Instinctively, his eyes flicked over to the special kunai hanging nearby.
Hiruzen spoke slowly.
"Minato, remember—falling in love slows down your blade."
"Human energy is limited. That's why I never use swords."
"I use a staff! Ever heard of Enma? The Adamantine Staff!"
"If one comes, I hit one. If two come, I hit a pair."
Minato: ???
Kushina: ???
What the hell was he even talking about?
Hiruzen got more animated with each word.
"Enma, you know? Indestructible body. Want to learn it?"
"You're my grand-student. Honestly, I don't think Jiraiya's Summoning Technique suits you at all."
"How about signing a contract with Enma instead? A staff looks way cooler!"
...
At that moment, Clone No. 3 entered the scene—white-haired Jiraiya walked straight into the house.
"Hey, Minato! I've been knocking forever. Why didn't you open the door?"
"Huh? Old man? What are you doing here?"
Clone Three and Clone Two exchanged a glance, then both snapped in sync, "None of your business."
"Well, Minato, think about what I said."
"Toads are useless. Seriously, not worth it."
Clone Three—Jiraiya—immediately looked offended.
"Minato, don't listen to this old fossil. What's wrong with toads?!"
"Toads are big, tough, can spit water, spit oil—they're huge!"
"What's not to love?"
"Wait... are those candles?"
Jiraiya clicked his tongue, strolled over to the table, eyed the dishes Kushina had cooked, and rubbed his chin.
"Tsk tsk... Minato, look at you. Pulling off a candlelight dinner, huh?"
"But seriously, what's this old man doing here?"
Clone Two wasn't having it and shot back immediately.
"Hmph, I'm the Hokage. I go wherever I want."
"But you—what are you doing at Minato's house this late, huh?"
"Don't tell me..."
The two clones went back and forth, their banter giving Minato and Kushina a pounding headache.
Kazuyama, watching it all through the crystal ball, burst out laughing.
This was his masterpiece. Minato wanted dinner? Not tonight!
Eventually, the constant bickering pushed Kushina over the edge.
"You two!"
"If you want to argue, do it outside!"
"Get out!"
The next second, pots and pans came flying.
Clones Two and Three bolted on sight.
Mission complete—no need to overstay and risk being exposed.
No better time to run than now!
Minato was completely shattered. His living room was a disaster, Kushina's red hair was flying in the air, and he just stood there in stunned silence.
What even was tonight?
First Fugaku came to borrow something, then the Hokage showed up to preach about love slowing swordplay, then his own teacher barged in and made things worse.
All he wanted was a peaceful, romantic candlelight dinner. Why was that so hard?
Pakura looked at Minato's devastated face and was speechless. Meanwhile, Kazuyama next to her was practically rolling on the floor, laughing.
[Ding! Host has successfully ruined Minato Namikaze's candlelight dinner and dragged Hiruzen Sarutobi and Jiraiya into the chaos. Special reward: +5 Speed!]
With the reward secured, Kazuyama's laughter finally began to settle.
What he didn't know was that even though the candlelight dinner had been wrecked, Kushina felt bad for tossing the cookware.
Now the yellow-haired and red-haired couple were happily heading to a barbecue restaurant—closer than ever, not angry at all. In fact, they seemed even more affectionate.
That was the twist Kazuyama never saw coming.
"Pakura, don't look at me like that."
"Come on, let's go get dinner."
Pakura rolled her eyes at him, but it was late, and they hadn't eaten either.
Kazuyama chuckled, pulled his lovely wife close, and the two of them headed off to the barbecue restaurant.
...
(100 Chapters Ahead)
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