After Shimura Danzō was rushed away for emergency treatment, the Hokage's office returned to its usual quiet.

Standing by the window, Hiruzen Sarutobi gazed at the setting sun, packing fresh tobacco into his nearly burnt-out pipe. Smoke curled into the air, obscuring his expression.

Danzō's words had struck a nerve.

The Land of Whirlpools was gone.

And Konoha had lost its most stable source of jinchūriki candidates.

If something were to happen to Uzumaki Kushina, finding a suitable replacement in time would be nearly impossible.

Lady Mito's warnings still echoed in his ears—suppressing a jinchūriki's emotions too much would only lead to instability. The risks far outweighed the benefits.

And for a female jinchūriki, childbirth was a particularly dangerous hurdle. The tradition of passing the tailed beast from mother to child was fraught with unpredictable dangers.

If Konoha had more Uzumaki proficient in sealing techniques, they could assist during childbirth, ensuring the stability of the seal and preventing any incidents with the Nine-Tails.

At the very least, in the worst-case scenario, Konoha wouldn't be left scrambling to find a new jinchūriki.

Besides...

"War, huh..."

Hiruzen let out a long sigh.

The tensions between the great villages were growing sharper by the day. It was only a matter of time before another war broke out.

The Land of Fire, with its abundant resources, fertile land, and thriving economy, had always been a prime target.

And Konoha still hadn't fully recovered from the scars of the Second Great Ninja War.

If things reached a point of no return, the power of the jinchūriki would be indispensable.

...

For a standard ninja squad, traveling from Konoha to the southern coast of the Land of Fire took about two days.

From there, the journey across the sea to their mission destination would take another two days.

Given the time-sensitive nature of the mission, Namikaze Minato, ever the responsible one, had unconsciously picked up his pace the moment they left Konoha's gates.

Even though Shinno knew that Sunagakure wouldn't abandon their search for the 'missing' Third Kazekage, there was nothing he could say to Minato to explain.

So, with no other choice, he simply sighed and kept up.

Both of them were experienced Konoha jōnin. Maintaining their strength for unexpected battles while pushing forward without rest, they skipped nighttime stops entirely—water when thirsty, soldier pills when hungry.

By the time they reached the southern port at around 9 PM on the second day, they were exhausted.

They boarded a small sailboat reserved for Konoha shinobi.

After confirming that the boat's captain and the two sailors weren't suspicious, Shinno set up multiple warning seals and traps around their quarters.

Meanwhile, Minato summoned two small toads from Mount Myōboku—one inside, one outside—to stand guard.

Only then did they allow themselves to rest, quickly falling into a deep sleep to recover their energy.

The waves were calm, and the gentle rocking of the boat wasn't enough to cause discomfort. If anything, it made for surprisingly good sleeping conditions.

By the time Shinno woke up, it was already late morning, the cries of seabirds dragging him out of slumber.

After freshening up a little, he found Minato—who had a definite "model housewife" vibe—bringing over two massive bowls of seafood rice soup.

Freshly caught seafood, expertly cleaned and cooked, with no trace of fishy smell—only a hint of sweetness from the ocean.

The rice, soaked in broth, melted in the mouth with a burst of flavor.

Such a delicious meal naturally earned Shinno's full approval.

Minato, flustered by the praise, smiled bashfully, making his already gentle aura even more pronounced.

Once they were full, they casually sat on the deck, taking advantage of the rare moment of leisure during their mission.

"...Shinno, I heard you and Kushina are getting married?"

Minato, shading his eyes with a hand, gazed out at the vast sea.

Shinno, mid-drink, nearly choked.

Where the hell did that come from?!

He wasn't even in a relationship yet—how had the rumors already escalated to marriage?!

"Who told you that?"

"Huh? Yesterday morning at the jōnin standby station, Dinza-san said Kushina ran out of money and used the ten million ryō you gave her as a wedding gift to cover her debts... Uh, isn't that right?"

"...And how exactly did Dinza know I gave Kushina ten million?"

"Well, uh... Nara Suzaku, who manages the finances for the jōnin standby station, saw your name on the deposit slip."

"...That still doesn't prove it was a wedding gift."

"Um... Haichi-san also said you two are living together now. Sharing the same place at night and all..."

"!!! Do you guys have nothing better to do?!"

For a moment, Shinno seriously considered whether Danzō's suspicion toward him might not be so unreasonable after all.

Just look at Konoha! What the hell were the jōnin even doing?!

And worst of all—Yamanaka Haichi?! That bastard actually spread gossip about him and Kushina?!

Did he have any idea what kind of rumors he was fueling?!

Did he not care about upper management's paranoia?!

Wait a second—

Shinno suddenly thought of Nara Shikaku and immediately connected the dots.

That guy must have already guessed what the higher-ups were thinking. So he deliberately had the Ino-Shika-Chō clan members spread these rumors to ease any suspicions.

In other words, they were helping him—quietly clearing the way for his relationship with Kushina.

A bunch of meddling bastards.

"...Ahaha, well, y'know, the jōnin standby station gets pretty boring. People just talk about whatever comes up."

Minato chuckled awkwardly, scratching the back of his head.

"You guys have never been on the receiving end of Kushina's iron fists, have you?"

Shinno sighed.

Though Haichi and the others meant well, if Kushina ever found out about this...

For someone who acted carefree but was actually incredibly shy, being teased like this would be a nightmare.

Hopefully, Haichi and the rest wouldn't get beaten too badly.

"Yeah, no, not really."

Minato grinned.

His relationship with Kushina was pretty good too.

Though, there was a time when she started calling him "Konoha's Little Maiden" after hearing some nonsense from Shinno. That had been annoying.

Still, she had never actually hit him.

Shinno, on the other hand—

Because he kept teasing her, he got punched. A lot.

"You know... have you ever considered the possibility—just a possibility—that Kushina doesn't hit you because she thinks if she did, you'd cry for hours? And then she'd have to comfort you?"

"???"

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Pls Drop some Power Stones

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