Kushina also heard the noise and turned her head, just in time to see Sarutobi Hiruzen's smiling face.
"Oh? Hokage-sama."
"Ohhh, Kushina, so Minato is actually on a date with you, huh."
Hearing the word "date," a faint blush spread across Kushina's face, but she didn't object.
Sarutobi Hiruzen naturally sat down on a chair by the table, putting on the air of an experienced elder.
"Ah, youth really is wonderful, tsk tsk."
"Minato, you can do it, this old man supports you."
"No wonder you wouldn't let me in earlier. So this is why."
Minato scratched his head. If possible, he really didn't want Hokage-sama to come in at all. Wasn't this just ruining his date?
For the sake of happiness, Minato planned to quickly send his Hokage-sama away.
"Hokage-sama, what did you come here for?"
"Hmm, nothing too serious. It's just that the village's reputation of you has been really good lately, so I came to chat."
How could Gekko Chizan not know what Minato was thinking? But once a god comes, it's hard to send him away!
The night was still young—what's the rush?
At this moment, Pakura returned.
She saw Gekko Chizan holding a crystal ball sneakily, looking very curious, and walked over to him.
But without the Telescope Technique, Pakura couldn't see what Gekko Chizan was seeing, so she couldn't help but ask:
"Hey, Chizan, what are you looking at?"
"Hehe, I'm watching Minato and Kushina."
"Huh? Why can't I see it?"
Gekko Chizan turned to Pakura with a sly grin.
"Want to see?"
"Mm."
Gekko Chizan grabbed Pakura's hand, then once again injected chakra into the crystal ball.
At the same time, he linked her chakra with his.
"Relax. Let my chakra connect with yours. Follow the flow of my chakra."
Pakura nodded, letting Gekko Chizan's chakra guide her.
As the chakra flowed, her vision focused on the crystal ball. Soon, the figures of Namikaze Minato, Kushina, and the Third Hokage appeared.
"See it?"
"Mm. But what are they doing? A meeting?"
"...Look again. What kind of meeting happens in his house? And what's with those candles on the table? Kushina in an apron?"
Hearing her man's words, Pakura suddenly realized—this wasn't a meeting, it was at Minato's home?
A candlelight dinner? Then what was Hokage-sama doing there?
She looked at Gekko Chizan suspiciously, only to see a wicked grin on his face. Instantly, she understood and exclaimed in shock:
"You're not stirring trouble, are you?"
"Hehehehe..."
Pakura turned back to the crystal ball.
She saw the Third Hokage slowly stand up, walk over to Minato, and pat his shoulder.
"Do you know why this old man never uses kunai or other weapons?"
Minato stared blankly at his Hokage, not understanding his meaning at all.
Unconsciously, his gaze fell on the specially crafted kunai hanging on the side.
Sarutobi Hiruzen spoke leisurely:
"Minato, you must remember, romance will affect your blade-drawing speed."
"Because a person's energy is limited, this old man never uses blades."
"I use a staff! Do you know Enma?"
"If one comes, I'll whack one. If two come, I'll whack a pair."
Minato: ????
Kushina: ????
What in the world was this about?
Sarutobi Hiruzen grew more and more animated.
"You know Enma, right? Want to learn it?"
"You're my student's student. I think Jiraiya's summoning isn't suited for you at all."
"Why don't you make a contract with Enma instead? Using a staff looks way better!"
At that moment, Clone No. 3 made his move. The white-haired Jiraiya strode right into the house.
"Hey, Minato, I knocked forever, why didn't you open the door?"
"Hm? Old man, what are you doing here?"
Clone No. 3 and Clone No. 2 exchanged a glance, then in perfect sync said, "None of your business."
"So, Minato, think about what I told you."
"Toads aren't good. Really, not good at all."
Clone No. 3 Jiraiya instantly looked displeased.
"Minato, don't listen to this old geezer's nonsense. What's wrong with toads?"
"Toads are big, strong, can spit water, spit oil, and they're massive in size!"
"What's not good about that?"
"Oh? Candles here too, huh."
Jiraiya gave his rebuttal, then walked to the dining table. Seeing the dishes Kushina had cooked, he stroked his chin.
"Tsk tsk, Minato, you're something else. Even a candlelight dinner?"
"But what's with this old man here?"
Clone No. 2 grew annoyed and shot back:
"Hmph, this old man is Hokage. You think you can tell me where I go?"
"But you—what are you doing here at Minato's house at this hour?"
"Could it be...?"
The two clones went back and forth, bickering so much that Minato and Kushina's heads were spinning.
Watching from the side, Gekko Chizan was laughing so hard he nearly fell over.
This was his prank anyway. As for Minato's dinner? He could forget about eating it tonight.
Finally, the noise from the two clones made Kushina explode.
"You two!"
"If you want to argue, can't you do it outside?"
"Get out!"
The next second, pots and pans came flying. Clone No. 2 and Clone No. 3 bolted out the door.
Their mission was already accomplished anyway—sticking around any longer would risk exposing themselves.
If not now, when?
Minato completely collapsed. Looking at the wrecked living room and Kushina with her red hair flying, he felt utterly defeated.
What kind of night was this?
First Fugaku came borrowing things, then Hokage-sama spouted nonsense about women affecting sword speed, then his teacher barged in stirring chaos.
He just wanted a romantic candlelight dinner! Why was it so hard?
Pakura stared at the devastated Minato, speechless, while beside her Gekko Chizan was laughing so hard he was rolling.
[Ding! Host has successfully ruined Namikaze Minato's candlelight dinner, while also drawing hate onto Sarutobi Hiruzen and Jiraiya. Special reward: speed +5!]
Attribute gained, Gekko Chizan finally started calming down.
Little did he know—though he ruined Minato's candlelight dinner, Kushina actually felt guilty after throwing the pots and pans.
Now, the blond and the redhead were heading to a yakiniku shop, even more affectionate than before.
The ruined candlelight dinner didn't make them angry—instead, it brought them closer. This was what Gekko Chizan hadn't expected.
"Pakura, don't look at me like that."
"Come on, let me take you out to eat."
Pakura gave him a glare, but since it was already late and neither of them had eaten, she didn't refuse.
Gekko Chizan chuckled, put his arm around his beloved wife, and led her toward the yakiniku shop.