join p atreon.com/KeyofStars for advance chapters | Every 100 powerstones = 1 extra chapter | Report issues @discord.com/GVBdncd9Wr
"That's it?" Kukaku's eyes widened, as if she couldn't believe what she had just heard.
"That's it." Aozaki Reiji shrugged, indicating that things were that simple.
"That shouldn't be!" Kukaku muttered to herself.
"Could it be that my female intuition is wrong? She clearly should have improper thoughts about you."
"That girl is quite shy." Aozaki Reiji scratched his face.
"I see, so you agreed?"
"That's right, I agreed." Aozaki Reiji nodded, then asked, "What, not happy?"
"It'd be strange to be happy about something like this, but it's not like you don't know her identity... just don't mess it up."
Kukaku rolled her eyes in exasperation, clearly full of resentment.
"The head of the Kasumioji Family... the power of the Kasumioji Family, the current Shiba is no match for it."
"Does great power matter? At worst, I'll send them to accompany the Tsunayashiro Family..."
Aozaki Reiji lowered himself to look at Kukaku, who was lying in his arms, and said proudly.
It only takes one slash to cut down Gyōkaku Kumoi, and only one slash to destroy the entire Kasumioji Family. Does great power matter?
"Are you willing? That girl will be sad." Kukaku raised the corner of her mouth, looking at Aozaki Reiji as she spoke.
Kukaku understood Aozaki Reiji quite well; after all, they had shared a bed for decades, and there were almost no secrets between them.
Having known him for so long, Kukaku knew that Aozaki Reiji often appeared ruthless and cold.
But he would still show affection towards certain people, and this was also when Aozaki Reiji's humanity was most evident.
"Just don't let her know, resolve it secretly." Gently stroking Kukaku's beautiful hair, Aozaki Reiji said softly.
Kukaku's expression couldn't help but freeze; this man's concern for people was categorized individually, not by groups.
The people he cared about were the people he cared about, and others related to them were not necessarily on his mind.
Other people were just a part of his affection for certain individuals.
Let alone the Kasumioji Family, even if one day Aozaki Reiji had to make a life-or-death choice between himself and his elder brother, Shiba Kaien.
He would probably choose himself immediately, without even a moment's hesitation.
He was willing to indulge his elder brother's usual "waywardness" because of his own existence, but this did not mean bottomless tolerance.
His elder brother had been beaten up many times; it was just that this "waywardness" had not yet reached the point where it would cost him his life.
"So... this is nothing to worry about." Aozaki Reiji said patiently.
"Then what are you going to do next? You can't really just want to be friends with her, can you?" Kukaku asked.
"Of course, I want to gradually train her courage. I still want her to be a bit more willful with me." Aozaki Reiji said.
"You really are a bad man." Kukaku snorted with a laugh.
"Thank you for the compliment, my dear wife." Aozaki Reiji said shamelessly.
"Who did you learn this thick-skinned attitude from? I really shouldn't have fallen for a guy like you in the first place."
Kukaku, who was exasperated but amused, could only grumble in a huff.
"I learned it from your Shiba. I've truly inherited Uncle Isshin's teachings."
Looking down at Kukaku in his arms, Aozaki Reiji gently kissed her lips.
At this moment, any flowery words seemed superfluous; the purest expression of emotion was the best sweet talk.
"That's it? You think you can just get away with that?" Kukaku lightly licked her lips, pouted, and had an unhappy expression written all over her face.
"Who do you take me for? If Yoruichi and the others found out, they'd think I'm inferior to them!"
"Does this also have to be a competition?"
Recalling that lively and adorable cat, Aozaki Reiji couldn't help but laugh wryly, looking somewhat helplessly at the extremely competitive Kukaku in front of him.
"Of course, it is... You don't know how arrogant Yoruichi is in front of me, relying on her excellent Hakuda."
Kukaku muttered complaints under her breath.
"Isn't that because you usually neglect your training? Look at you, how can you be so frail and weak?"
Aozaki Reiji sighed helplessly, then gently lowered his head and kissed her delicate, cherry-blossom-like lips again with deep affection.
This woman's talent was actually very high; she might not be much worse than Yoruichi.
It was just that she usually didn't pay much attention to training, dedicating all her efforts to researching fireworks.
But even so, her Reiatsu was almost reaching the level of a Vice-Captain.
"Having you isn't enough... Anyway, you're also a cauldron..."
Kukaku looked at Aozaki Reiji in front of her, her face flushed, and said softly with shyness.
Aozaki Reiji heard her words, and the corners of his mouth curved slightly upwards. He looked at her with a half-smile and teased:
"Oh? It seems someone's mouth isn't quite honest yet. They need a good lesson."
When Kukaku heard his words, the blush on her face deepened.
She looked at Aozaki Reiji with a suspicious expression and asked coquettishly, "Oh, what are you going to do?"
Aozaki Reiji did not answer her question. Instead, he reached out and gently stroked her face, his eyes filled with tenderness and love.
Then, he slowly leaned close to her ear and whispered, "My lady, it's late... it's time for us to rest."
The sounds of conversation in the room gradually faded.
.....
"Young Miss, where have you been? You really made this old man worry to death."
Looking at Kasumioji Rurichiyo walking out of the garden, Kumoi finally breathed a sigh of relief.
This was the source of his power, and it was not yet time to abandon it.
Kasumioji Rurichiyo was accompanied by two guards, which gave her a sense of security.
"This young lady came to find Reiji-dono."
"Then did you see him?" Kumoi asked cautiously.
"I did!" Rurichiyo put her hands on her hips and said excitedly, "We're friends now!"
"Friends?" Kumoi muttered to himself, his brows furrowed tightly. This was not a good sign.
"As this young lady's friend, Reiji can freely enter and exit the Kasumioji Family from now on."
Kasumioji Rurichiyo smiled and nodded.
"Absolutely not!" Kumoi cried out anxiously, even forgetting to maintain the proper master-servant decorum in front of others.
"Granting such a dangerous individual such privileges is far too risky. Please, Young Miss, think twice before acting!"
"But this young lady has already agreed."
Rurichiyo glanced at the anxious Kumoi and replied casually.
She herself wasn't sure why she suddenly had such confidence, but just thinking of that man, her heart felt a sense of peace.
"Reiji-dono also said that if Mr. Kumoi doesn't agree, he can go find him himself, and he naturally has a way to make you change your mind."
"A way? What way? Does he intend to break apart this old man's old bones?" Kumoi thought to himself.
Kumoi sighed helplessly. With Aozaki Reiji involved, he knew he couldn't make the decision on this matter.
join p atreon.com/KeyofStars for advance chapters | Every 100 powerstones = 1 extra chapter | Report issues @discord.com/GVBdncd9Wr