At night, Yakumo came over to find Aoba, wanting to learn new ninjutsu, but was interrupted by Hinata, who was glaring with her white eyes.
Just as the two of them were stuck in a standoff, a knock came from outside the room.
"It's you?"
Aoba opened the door and saw Kazahana Koyuki standing at the doorway in pajamas.
"You came to find me so late, what do you want?"
"Let me in first, I have something to tell you guys," Kazahana Koyuki looked around nervously, a little sneaky.
Aoba was puzzled in his heart, not knowing what medicine she was selling in the gourd.
But he still stepped aside, since she couldn't possibly threaten him anyway.
"Come in."
Kazahana Koyuki walked into the room, and when she saw Hinata and Yakumo, she froze a little.
Then her gaze secretly swept over Aoba, and she muttered under her breath, "Two girls together at night, how improper…"
The three present all heard it loud and clear.
Yakumo and Hinata instantly flushed red, while Aoba's face was full of black lines, "If you have something to say, hurry and say it, don't waste time."
Kazahana Koyuki quickly came back to her senses, her eyes sweeping across the three of them before finally landing on Aoba.
"Among you, you should be the one who calls the shots, right?"
Aoba nodded.
Kazahana Koyuki stood in front of him, her expression turning serious, "Name a price. How much money to hire you to take me off this ship?"
"Hm?", The three of them looked at her with surprise.
Kazahana Koyuki continued, "Your goal is money, right? As long as you can take me away from here, I'll pay you the commission."
Aoba's face tightened, "Miss Yukie, we've received professional training. There's no way we'd abandon a commission for money."
Yakumo and Hinata also nodded seriously.
Kazahana Koyuki's expression shifted slightly, but she still didn't give up, "Is it that Sandayu paid you too much? I can promise you, no matter how much he paid, I'll give you double."
"Miss Yukie, if you only came here to say that, then please go back," Aoba bluntly issued the eviction order.
Hearing that, Kazahana Koyuki bit her lips hard. Her originally bright red, glossy lips even turned a little pale.
"This is kidnapping! I never agreed to go to the Land of Snow, it was you who forcibly dragged me away."
"You aren't shinobi, you're just a group of criminals."
Aoba stayed silent.
Yakumo grew a little annoyed hearing this. She looked at Aoba and said, "Aoba, she's too noisy. Why don't we just hypnotize her? That way, no matter what we say, she'll listen."
After speaking, she even revealed an evil smile.
"You… what are you planning to do?", Kazahana Koyuki's expression instantly changed, and she instinctively covered her body, retreating two steps.
In the middle of the night, being hypnotized inside a boy's room. Her mind was already imagining some unhealthy scenarios.
Aoba twitched at the words, then knocked Yakumo on the head, "She's our protection target. Be nicer to her."
"Oh," Yakumo covered her head and answered, while Hinata couldn't hold back her laughter on the side.
"Hinata, are you laughing at me?"
Of course Yakumo heard her, and she squinted her eyes at her.
"I'm not," Hinata immediately looked away, pretending to admire the somewhat cramped room.
Seeing that the two of them weren't going to fight, Aoba looked back at Kazahana Koyuki, his expression carrying a hint of apology, "This matter really is unfair to you."
"Then will you take me away from here?", Hearing that, Kazahana Koyuki's eyes lit up. At this moment, she thought that although the guy in front of her was a bit bad, unexpectedly, he was a good person.
But Aoba shook his head, "Although I sympathize with your situation, a commission is a commission. That's a separate matter."
"Our commission is to protect you. We'll just fulfill the commission and won't help you do anything else."
"Unless you can persuade your manager to give up this commission."
Hearing that, Kazahana Koyuki's eyes, which had just lit up, dimmed again.
She had already asked Sandayu, but that guy, for some reason, insisted on taking her to the Land of Snow.
And she couldn't reveal the truth.
"You don't even know what you're about to face," Her voice was full of despair.
"Then please tell us, what will we face next?", Aoba's tone was serious.
But Kazahana Koyuki's expression had already lost all change, leaving only coldness, "You'll die in the Land of Snow. You'll meet an opponent impossible to defeat."
Kazahana Koyuki didn't understand shinobi. In her eyes, the Kazahana Doto she had seen as a child was already a nightmare that no one could overcome.
"Looks like your situation really is quite dangerous."
"In that case…"
"But since we've accepted this commission, we won't give it up easily. Even if we die, we'll die in front of you," Aoba calmly cut her off.
Kazahana Koyuki was already numb. She stared blankly at Aoba's calm face, "I said you might die, aren't you afraid at all?"
"You're our protection target. Even if we die, we'll protect you."
Kazahana Koyuki opened her mouth, looking at his stubborn face, utterly exasperated.
'These shinobi aren't afraid of death, but I am.'
'And for just a commission, to put their lives on the line, is that worth it?'
She had never seen a shinobi who'd really put their life on the line for a commission.
"You'll regret this!", After gritting her teeth and saying that, Kazahana Koyuki slammed the door in anger and left the room.
"Aoba-kun, just now couldn't you have directly told her that we already know her true identity?", Once Kazahana Koyuki left, Hinata asked curiously.
Before Aoba could answer, Yakumo jumped in first, patting Hinata's shoulder while shaking her head with an exaggerated air.
"Hinata, you don't get it. If we don't do it this way, Aoba wouldn't be able to increase Princess Koyuki's favorability, right?"
"Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to win her over."
"So that's how it is, I understand."
Hinata nodded earnestly, then lowered her head, saying in shame, "Then aren't we just causing trouble for Aoba-kun?"
"You two are enough already," Aoba cut off the two girls' tea-like tea banter and explained, "There's no need to say anything. The commission is to protect Fujikaze Yukie."
"We just need to honestly complete the commission. No need to interfere in other things."
As for helping Kazahana Koyuki restore her country, Kazahana Doto would definitely show up on his own.
"Heh," After hearing that explanation, Yakumo just sneered, "And you can guarantee you're not interested in Kazahana Koyuki at all?"
"…No!"
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