'What a great item!' Mizuki was overjoyed.
With the ring on his hand, storing and retrieving items was incredibly convenient — unlike sealing scrolls, which had to be unrolled before use. And with a capacity of 1 cubic meter, it could hold many things.
'Those 30,000 ryō weren't wasted after all.'
Amidst laughter, the four of them walked into Ichiraku Ramen. Same as always — Naruto ordered three large bowls of ramen, while Sasuke and Sakura each ordered one bowl.
'Please, let this be good!' Mizuki prayed.
[ Ding! ]
[ You have granted your disciple Sakura Haruno one bowl of Ramen, triggering a 10,000× Return! ]
[ Congratulations, you have obtained one Super Chakra Ramen! ]
〖 Super Chakra Ramen: Upon consumption, increases chakra capacity by 10 Kakashi Units. 〗
10,000× return? 10 Kakashi units of chakra?
Mizuki's eyes widened, his mouth opening involuntarily as he let out a "hehehe" laugh.
"Excellent!"
The three kids all turned to look at Mizuki, their eyes full of curiosity.
"Haha, well, I just remembered something happy."
At that moment, Teuchi said, "Mizuki-sensei is laughing so happily — looks like something good really happened. In that case, I'll give you a free bowl of ramen. Hope it makes you even happier."
"Thanks, boss. I won't be shy then!"
Soon, the complimentary ramen arrived. Even though Mizuki's stomach was already ninety percent full, he ate voraciously, forcing it down.
Naruto offered to help several times, but Mizuki refused each time. This was 10 Kakashi units of chakra, after all. Never mind a bowl of noodles — even if it were a bowl of shit, he'd eat it while it was hot and wouldn't leave Naruto half a bite.
In the end, he finished the entire bowl, not leaving a single drop of broth. His stomach was about to burst, but the rewards were tremendous.
His total chakra reached 11.3 units — 11.3 times that of Kakashi. Keep in mind, without the Nine-Tails' chakra, Naruto's own chakra was only 4 times that of Kakashi.
The system is truly amazing…
After finishing the ramen, Mizuki said goodbye to the three kids and headed home with his bloated stomach.
When he reached his front door, he found it open with lights on inside. His expression immediately changed.
Just then, a voice came from the kitchen, "Mizuki-kun, is that you coming back?"
Next, Tsubaki emerged from the kitchen wearing an apron.
Mizuki immediately relaxed. He'd been terrified, thinking Hiruzen had sent someone to search his place.
"Tsubaki, what are you doing here?"
Tsubaki immediately pouted, "You haven't come to see me for over half a month. I know you've been busy with missions every day, so I don't blame you for that. But you're leaving the village tomorrow, and you didn't even tell me. Are you planning to break off our engagement?"
Tears began falling from her eyes. She was the picture of a wronged wife.
Mizuki panicked! He'd never dealt with this kind of situation before — what should he do?
"Don't… don't cry!"
Tsubaki looked up, her tear-filled eyes staring into his, "After you leave tomorrow, will you come back?"
Mizuki breathed a sigh of relief, "Of course I'll come back. I'm not the same Mizuki as before — I won't do anything foolish."
Tsubaki, "I heard Hiruzen has been targeting you lately, you…"
Mizuki, "Don't worry. I haven't done anything to betray the village. The Third won't do anything to me. Besides, that was over half a month ago."
Sensing no deception in his words, Tsubaki finally felt at ease.
"Our wedding is in half a month. Will you be able to make it back? If not, we'll have to postpone it."
Mizuki immediately said, "Let's postpone it! This mission is at the border of the Land of Fire. The travel time alone is nearly half a month each way, plus the time to complete the mission — there's no way I'll make it back in time."
Tsubaki pouted, "The Third really is something — knowing our wedding is coming up, yet still assigning you such a time-consuming mission."
Mizuki was actually quite happy, even grateful to Hiruzen for finally doing something good.
The wedding couldn't happen. As he'd said before, living together day and night would make it easier to expose his identity.
Tsubaki didn't ask anything more, which was a huge relief to Mizuki.
"I made some side dishes and prepared sake. Let's have a few drinks together as a farewell."
Mizuki's stomach was bursting, but seeing Tsubaki's expectant eyes, he agreed anyway. A little alcohol wouldn't take up much room.
At the table, Tsubaki poured two cups of sake, one for each of them.
"You haven't left the village on a mission in a long time. Drink this cup, and may you return safely."
Cup after cup — after just three cups, Mizuki felt his head spinning. Then he lost consciousness.
Tsubaki looked at Mizuki slumped over the table, worry in her eyes, "You've changed so much recently. I can barely see a trace of the old Mizuki in you. I just hope my suspicions are wrong."
She helped Mizuki to the bed, then examined him from head to toe. After checking three times, she confirmed that the person before her was indeed Mizuki — the genuine article.
Tsubaki smiled, "I was overthinking it."
But soon, worry crept back in.
"If he really is Mizuki, why has he been so distant lately? When I mentioned postponing the wedding, he agreed immediately without hesitation. He used to beg me to marry him. Has he grown tired of me?"
Just as anxiety gripped her, someone knocked at the door.
"Mizuki, are you home? It's Iruka."
Tsubaki left the bedroom and opened the door to find Iruka standing outside.
"Tsubaki, you're here too. Looks like I came at a bad time." Iruka scratched his hair awkwardly.
Tsubaki said politely, "Iruka, Mizuki had too much to drink tonight and is already asleep. Is there something you need?"
Iruka replied, "He's leaving the village tomorrow on a mission. I had some things to tell him, but since he's asleep, I won't disturb him."
Tsubaki said, "I'm his fiancée. Whatever you need to say, you can tell me and I'll pass it along in the morning."
Iruka was silent for a moment, then sighed, "Tell Mizuki to be very careful on this trip."
Tsubaki's expression changed, "Iruka, do you know something?"
Iruka shook his head, said nothing more, and turned to leave.
Closing the door, Tsubaki's brow furrowed deeply.
"Iruka said to be careful, but a C-rank mission to eliminate bandits poses no difficulty for a chūnin. What does he need to be careful about?"
Suddenly, something occurred to her.
"Could it be that the Third is still targeting Mizuki, and sending him out of the village means…"
Tsubaki didn't dare finish the thought. Looking at Mizuki on the bed, her eyes filled with worry.
Then, realization struck.
"He's been distant with me — could it be because he's afraid the Third Hokage will target me too? That must be it. He loves me so much. Before, he couldn't bear to be apart from me even for a moment. How could he suddenly ignore me?" She cursed inwardly, "Damn Third Hokage, ruining what Mizuki-kun and I have. He should just die already."
It was getting late, and Konohagakure grew quiet. The lights in Mizuki's house went out.
In a haze, Mizuki felt something soft pressing down on him, comfortable and indescribably wonderful…
❊❊❊❊❊
Early the next morning, Mizuki woke up and immediately sensed something was wrong. His clothes were gone, the sheets were messy, and the bedding smelled of hormones.
"What happened last night?"
He tried to remember, but couldn't recall anything beyond getting drunk.
Just then, the bedroom door opened and Tsubaki walked in.
"Mizuki-kun, you're awake."
Mizuki stared at her, "You drugged the alcohol last night?"
Three cups of sake shouldn't have knocked him out.
"Hmph!" Tsubaki seemed even more annoyed than him, "I'm your fiancée, you know. You haven't come to see me for over half a month, and you won't let me get you drunk and force you into bed? Though last night, even barely conscious, you were… more vigorous than usual."
What kind of brazen words were these!
Mizuki's face flushed. Before transmigrating, he'd been single for over twenty years — a virgin for over twenty years.
After transmigrating, he'd lost it… in a drunken stupor?
"No, how could you do this? Don't I deserve any dignity?" Mizuki exploded.
This was his first time! How could it be so casual!
But Tsubaki wore a satisfied smile, "I don't care. You're my husband — we just haven't held the wedding ceremony yet. Since you're my husband, your body belongs to me, and I can play with it however I want."
"You…" Mizuki was speechless.
"Who told you not to touch me for over half a month? It's your fault anyway. Now get up — breakfast is ready."
With that, Tsubaki left the bedroom and closed the door, giving Mizuki no chance to respond.
Soon after, Mizuki sat at the dining table with his head down, sullen.
"Can you cancel this mission?" Tsubaki suddenly asked, her eyes filled with worry.
Mizuki shook his head without elaborating.
Tsubaki pulled out a stack of money, "This is my savings. Take it and buy more ninja tools."
Somehow, Mizuki felt moved, "Don't worry, I won't be in danger."
As soon as he said it, he regretted it. The words sounded exactly like what a husband would say to his wife.
After breakfast, while Tsubaki was busy in the kitchen, Mizuki entered the bedroom and loaded the three boxes of money into his storage ring. After preparing everything else, he was ready to leave.
He opened the door and was about to step out when Tsubaki grabbed him from behind, wrapping her arms around his waist.
Mizuki's body stiffened. He wanted to break free but ultimately didn't move.
"Come back alive. I'll be waiting for you in the village, always."
❊❊❊❊❊
T/N: Comment, give me Power Stones, like and favorite, it all supports me and makes me go foward with this. Appreciate my other stories as well, I guarantee the good work!
If you want to enjoy a large catalog of good novels with excellent translations: MrBlackWing (on that website)
That's it and happy reading! (-‿◦)