So, Mikoto and Itachi joined the shopping group.
Mikoto and Kushina walked arm in arm, chatting animatedly. Rin also joined the conversation from time to time. Kiyosuke and Itachi walked together.
"You're really pitiful, accompanying your mom shopping at such a young age," Kiyosuke said, full of sympathy for Itachi.
Itachi, on the contrary, smiled and said, "It's okay. Taking a walk is good for mom. Shopping isn't a big deal for a ninja, is it?"
One of the shadow clones laughed and said, "That's because you haven't seen how terrifying girls can be when they shop. Shopping is ingrained in their DNA. You'll know when you have a girlfriend in the future."
"Speaking of which, Itachi, what kind of girl do you like?"
This question stumped Itachi. He shook his head and said, "I don't know."
"You'll know in the future," Kiyosuke laughed heartily.
Itachi, in turn, asked curiously, "What kind of girl do you like, Mr. Kiyosuke?"
Hearing this, Kushina, who was chatting with Mikoto and Rin, immediately perked up her ears and asked with a smile, "Yeah, Kiyosuke, what kind of girl do you like? I'm really curious!"
No, all I see in your eyes is gossip!
Rin thought for a moment and said, "He probably likes cute girls. I remember during the Chunin Exams, Kiyosuke invited a girl from Sunagakure on a date, but it was set for ten years later."
"Why ten years later?" Mikoto and Kushina asked, puzzled.
Kiyosuke said proudly, "A girl can change astonishingly in ten years. It's like a plain turning into a mountain. I like mature big sisters!"
He said it without hesitation!
Kushina looked at Kiyosuke with an increasingly profound gaze and said to Rin, "Rin, you should stay away from Kiyosuke in the future."
"Huh?"
Mikoto looked at Kiyosuke, then at her bewildered son, and decided to take Itachi home and keep him away from Kiyosuke.
"Hey! What's with that look as if I'm a scumbag?" Kiyosuke exclaimed when he saw Kushina's look.
"Sure enough, Kiyosuke, you must have been influenced by Jiraiya - sensei too much. Kiyosuke, after my child is born, you and Jiraiya should stay away from him. You'll surely corrupt my child!"
"Why? I just said the type of girl I like!"
"Exactly!"
"Why?"
The shadow clones started to protest, "Even if you dislike me, don't compare me to that guy Jiraiya - sensei!"
He always felt that being compared with Jiraiya would make him lose something.
"Seems like you have some self - awareness. Kiyosuke, I didn't expect you to have such sinister thoughts not long after graduating. You'll surely grow up to be a man like Jiraiya - sensei. No, Minato should also stay away from you two."
Goodness, have I reached the same level as Jiraiya already?
The three women, Kushina, Mikoto, and Rin, laughed. Only Kiyosuke and his shadow clones were comforting each other on the side.
Itachi blinked his eyes, thinking Mr. Kiyosuke seemed really amazing.
Was his dating schedule already planned until he was twenty?
Kiyosuke was feeling rather tired now, but there was nothing he could do.
Kushina and Mikoto started talking about their children. "Mikoto, do you think our children will be together in the future?"
"Who knows? Maybe. But there has to be one boy and one girl," Mikoto smiled. "After all, they can't fall in love if they're of the same gender."
"As long as there's love, gender isn't an issue," one of the shadow clones whispered with a laugh.
But Mikoto and Kushina were both highly skilled and of course heard it. Their faces darkened. Kushina turned around, her smile becoming even more "nuclear - friendly," and her hair started to float, which was terrifying. "Kiyosuke, what did you just say? I didn't catch it. Could you say it again?"
"Haha, I was just joking, just joking!"
Kiyosuke laughed it off and gave the shadow clone a look. The shadow clone immediately understood and shut up.
What he said was the truth. Sasuke and Naruto were always acting so close, making Sakura seem like a third - wheel.
But if he said it now, he'd be beaten up by both the "Red Hot - Blooded Habanero" and the wife of the Uchiha clan leader. It wasn't worth it...
He accompanied the three women for another half - day of shopping. The number of things they bought increased, and so did the number of shadow clones, two more to be exact.
They would look at something they liked, try it on, put it down, then grit their teeth and buy it. Back and forth, Kiyosuke felt more exhausted than from training.
Itachi finally believed what Kiyosuke said. Girls shopping was really terrifying!
"How is it? Is it extremely terrifying?"
"Ah, yeah." Itachi didn't know what else to say. Kiyosuke just patted him on the shoulder and said, "You have a long life ahead of you. It won't just be your mom. In the future, there will be female classmates, girlfriends, a wife, and maybe even a daughter. Hehe."
"Ah..."
Itachi, who hadn't awakened the Sharingan yet, seemed to have glimpsed that future. But he smiled and said, "That wouldn't be so bad. Staying with family all the time is nice."
"Indeed, it is," Kiyosuke sighed and quickened his pace to catch up with Kushina and the others.
They had lunch at a barbecue restaurant. In the afternoon, Kushina got tired from shopping and went back to rest.
After putting all the bags on the table, Kiyosuke decided that he shouldn't show up in front of Kushina easily in the future. After all, the Anbu's protection work was supposed to be done secretly. There was no reason to be in the open.
Although it was boring, this was what a real Anbu ninja should do.
With this thought in mind, Kiyosuke said to Rin, "Rin, I'm going to the backyard to train. Call me if you need anything."
"Okay," Rin nodded. She watched Kiyosuke walk into the backyard, sit cross - legged, and a sage - like mask appear on his face. Soon, the backyard of Minato's house began to change. A large amount of Sage chakra centered around Kiyosuke and started to cover the backyard.
Rin sat on the sofa, reading a medical book borrowed from the hospital, studying intently.
In the evening, Minato came back. Seeing Rin engrossed in the book, he didn't disturb her. He entered the room. Kushina was still sound asleep. He smiled and looked out of the window.
He was startled, rubbed his eyes, and confirmed what he saw.
"It was fine when I left in the morning. Did Kiyosuke do this?"
He walked out of the room and came to the backyard. He stepped on the ground that was level with the corridor but suddenly stepped into empty air.
"What the?"
As a user of the Flying Thunder God Technique, Minato had extremely developed reflexes. He quickly reacted and steadied himself. Looking at his foot that had sunk into the ground, he began to think. Under his feet was soil, which he could clearly sense, but what was this layer on top?
His backyard, which was originally nicely decorated, had now turned into a dense forest. Mist shrouded the forest, and he couldn't see the wall at the back of his house or the street beyond the wall at all.
So... where did my backyard go?