The blond-haired Hokage, starting from before Hinata's wedding.

Page 8

The atmosphere between the two gradually heated up, and an ambiguous atmosphere filled the entire ward, creating a romantic ambiguity.

Finally, the two reluctantly released their mouths due to the feeling of suffocation. Kushina gasped for breath, her chest rising and falling slightly with her rapid breathing. Her beautiful eyes shone with a hazy and alluring light, and her delicate and charming face was flushed with shyness, making her look exquisite and alluring.

Qiu Xiaoming, on the other hand, looked completely satisfied and delighted. Kushina was his goddess, and he was very happy to be so close to her.

"Godmother, I like you!" Qiu Xiaoming gazed at Kushina with burning eyes and serious expression.

Kushina had just recovered a little when she heard what Qiu Xiaoming said. She was stunned for a moment, then lowered her eyes and remained silent.

"No, we can't let things continue like this!" Kushina shook her head violently, pushed away Qiu Xiaoming who was suppressing her, and stood up.

"Godmother..."

Before Qiu Xiaoming could say anything more, Kushina interrupted him, saying, "You get some rest, I'm going back now."

After saying that, Kushina fled the ward as if she were escaping.

"Sigh!" Seeing Kushina running away in such a panic, Qiu Xiaoming sighed. He knew that his road to winning back his godmother was going to be long and arduous!

When Kushina returned home, she was still in a daze.

She gently touched her red lips, where the lingering warmth of Qiu Xiaoming's kiss still remained, and the image of kissing Qiu Xiaoming flashed through her mind.

Kushina's pretty face turned even redder. She covered her burning face, looking annoyed. Why hadn't she resisted?

Is it really because she hasn't been kissed by a man in so long that she's so eager to be close to a man?

But, the problem is, he's Qiu Xiaoming!

Kushina shook her head in frustration, trying to clear her mind of the jumbled thoughts, but she couldn't shake them off.

The heart palpitation she felt when Qiu Xiaoming kissed her lingered in her mind, refusing to dissipate for a long time.

Kushina's heart was pounding, and her cheeks were burning hot.

Did that brat do it on purpose when he accidentally barged into the bathroom that day? Was that strange smell in his room really caused by him thinking about what happened that night?

Thinking of these things, Kushina's pretty face turned even redder, and even her ears turned pink.

Kushina sat on the sofa with her legs crossed on the coffee table, her whole body limp and sprawled on the sofa as if she had no bones.

"Damn brat!" Kushina cursed inwardly, then lay down on the sofa, staring blankly at the ceiling.

Gradually, Kushina fell asleep.

Meanwhile, in Qiu Xiaoming's hospital room, he was also reliving the scene of kissing Kushina, and the smile on his lips grew wider and wider.

[Ding! Intimate Paradise Mission: Accompany Ino for a shopping trip to relax. Time remaining: 2 hours. Reward upon completion: 100 Affection Points.]

The system notification sounded again.

Ino? An hour? I'm in the hospital right now!

"Qiu Xiaoming, you can be discharged now." Just then, Xiaoying pushed open the ward door and walked in, saying, "You don't have any major problems anymore. There are a lot of patients in the hospital now, so you should make room for me quickly."

"Uh..." Qiu Xiaoming was still thinking about how to complete the mission when Xiaoying came to kick him out.

"What are you spacing out for? Hurry up," Sakura urged.

Xiaoying dared not let Qiu Xiaoming stay here any longer, as he would definitely tease her from time to time, especially since this was a busy hospital.

"Ah, oh," Qiu Xiaoming responded, then asked, "Are you just going to leave like this?"

"What else? Should I see you off?" Sakura rolled her eyes.

"Hehe, can we have a goodbye kiss?" Qiu Xiaoming stepped forward and hugged Xiaoying, looking like he was asking for a kiss.

"You'd better hurry up and leave, a patient will be coming in soon," Xiaoying gently nudged Qiu Xiaoming and said.

However, Qiu Xiaoming ignored Xiaoying, cupped her face, and kissed her fiercely.

"Hmm..." Sakura had no choice but to close her eyes and enjoy the kiss Qiu Xiaoming gave her, since she really liked Qiu Xiaoming's kiss.

After a while, Xiaoying blushed and pushed Qiu Xiaoming away, glaring at him with embarrassment and anger, and said coquettishly, "Aren't you done? Have you kissed enough?"

"I could kiss her for a lifetime." Qiu Xiaoming smiled mischievously, then leaned forward and kissed Xiaoying.

Sakura gave Qiu Xiaoming a shy glare, but didn't dodge, letting him continue kissing her.

After an unknown amount of time, Qiu Xiaoming was finally kicked out of the ward by Xiaoying.

Chapter 16 Ino's Melancholy

Qiu Xiaoming left the hospital but didn't go straight home because he had a mission to complete: to go shopping with Jingye to relax.

[Ding! Icha Icha Paradise Mission: Rescue Hinata. Time remaining: 72 hours. Reward upon completion: 2000 Affection Points. Mission failure: Hinata will be taken by Otsutsuki Toneri.]

The system notification sounded again, causing Qiu Xiaoming to pause in surprise.

This was the first time the system had reminded him of the penalty for failing the task.

[Ding! Friendly reminder: Otsutsuki taking Hinata is not a system task punishment!]

The system notification made Qiu Xiaoming frown and ponder. Losing Hinata wasn't the punishment for the mission?

After receiving this mission, Qiu Xiaoming had a thought of abandoning Ino's mission and immediately going to Naruto to ask to go and rescue Hinata.

Although Ino's mission only has a one-hour time limit, it's not something that can be done in a moment with a kiss or a touch.

Accompanying her shopping to relax might take quite a while.

"Xiaoming, you're discharged from the hospital!" Just as Qiu Xiaoming was about to give up on the mission, a pleasant voice came from behind him.

Qiu Xiaoming turned around and looked at Ino, who was standing behind him, wearing a purple crop top and a purple mini skirt, smiling at him.

Ino dressed as usual, revealing her mature and sexy temperament.

"Ino-nee, what are you doing here?" Qiu Xiaoming asked, startled.

Upon hearing this, Ino gave her a charmingly coquettish look and said, "I work at this hospital too!"

"Uh, right, I forgot about that." Qiu Xiaoming patted his head and smiled awkwardly.

"Hehe!" Ino chuckled softly, then asked, "How are you now? Have you recovered?"

"Yes, it's nothing serious." Qiu Xiaoming nodded gently.

"It's good that you're alright, then you..."

"Jingle Bell……"

Before Ino could say anything more, the phone suddenly rang.

"Excuse me, I need to take this call." Ino smiled apologetically at Qiu Xiaoming, took out her phone, and pressed the answer button: "Hello, this is Ino."

Listening to the voice on the phone, Ino's face grew increasingly gloomy. Finally, she said indifferently, "Okay, I understand. I'm hanging up."

"Sorry, I had to take a call." After hanging up, Ino smiled apologetically at Qiu Xiaoming and said, "Are you about to go back? Then I won't bother you any longer."

"Um, Ino-nee, is something wrong?" Qiu Xiaoming had naturally noticed the gloom on Ino's face just now, and after hesitating for a moment, he asked.

"It's nothing, just some trivial matters." Ino smiled calmly, without showing much emotion.

"Oh." Qiu Xiaoming responded softly. Since Ino was unwilling to tell him the reason, he didn't press further. "Sister Ino, I'll be going now."

"Wait!" Just as Qiu Xiaoming was about to turn around and leave for the Hokage Building, Ino suddenly called out to him.

"What's wrong?" Qiu Xiaoming turned around and asked with some confusion.

"Will you come with me for a walk?" Ino said with a light smile.

"Want to go shopping?" Qiu Xiaoming hesitated.

"Yes." Ino nodded.

"Alright then, I don't have anything to do today anyway." Qiu Xiaoming nodded in agreement.

He had originally planned to go to the Hokage Building to find Naruto, but now that Ino had offered to go shopping with him, he naturally wouldn't refuse.

After all, he was originally tasked with accompanying Ino to go shopping and relax.

If Ino hadn't brought it up, he naturally wouldn't have either, prioritizing completing Hinata's mission. But now that Ino had brought it up, he couldn't refuse.

After all, hurting a beautiful woman's heart is not something he would do.

"Alright, let's go for a stroll over there." Ino smiled, then naturally took Qiu Xiaoming's arm and pulled him toward the other side.

Ino took his arm, which startled Qiu Xiaoming. The soft touch made him feel a tingling sensation all over his body. At the same time, the fragrance emanating from Ino made Qiu Xiaoming swallow hard.

"Ino-nee, where shall we go?" Qiu Xiaoming swallowed hard, trying to control his emotions and pretending to be nonchalant as he asked.

"Just wander around," Ino replied with a smile.

The two wandered aimlessly through Konoha Village, not saying a word to each other. Qiu Xiaoming didn't know what to say either.

"Um, Ino-nee, is something bothering you?" Qiu Xiaoming finally couldn't stand the awkward atmosphere and couldn't help but ask tentatively.

"No, I was just feeling pretty bored, so I thought I'd go for a walk," Ino said, shaking her head and smiling.

"Is it because of Sai-ge?" Qiu Xiaoming paused and asked cautiously.

Ino paused, then fell silent.

After a long silence, Ino sighed and said, "If only he could be as understanding and caring as you are... Sigh."

Sai grew up in Root and didn't have much experience with relationships or social interactions.

Although things have changed a lot in the past few years, I'm still like a clueless greenhorn when it comes to relationships, not knowing how to handle them.

Ino used to like Sasuke, but after she realized that it was impossible for Sasuke to be with her, she gradually faded her feelings for Sasuke.

In the end, she chose Sai, who was as aloof as Sasuke, hoping to get the feeling of being in love with Sasuke from him.

She succeeded.

She knew that Sakura's married life was no different from not being married at all, since Sasuke wasn't by her side.

Sakura sometimes subtly reveals that she envies Ino and Sai's married life.

Little did Sakura know that her married life was not much different from Sakura's.

At most, Sai was just by her side.

But what’s the use of this?

Sai is just as uninteresting as when he's with her; aside from some daily conversations, he shows virtually no emotion.

"Today is the anniversary of when we officially became a couple. I changed my work schedule to rest early, but he just called me and said he was busy today and couldn't spend time with me..." Ino took a deep breath and slowly explained the reason.

"Well, I'm afraid it's because of my sister-in-law's matter. He probably really can't get away from it," Qiu Xiaoming said, scratching his head in a comforting tone.

"Is that so... Hehe." Hearing Qiu Xiaoming's words, Ino forced a smile, her eyes filled with bitterness and loneliness, and continued, "If it were just this year, I would let it go, but he does this every year, he doesn't even remember this."

"Besides, it's just a few hours to have a meal and go shopping. Don't we have that much time?" Ino said with a self-deprecating laugh.

Chapter 17 Going to the Lovers' Restaurant in Sai and Ino's Place

Over the years of their marriage, Sai has never taken anniversaries seriously, not only the anniversary of their relationship, but also their wedding anniversary and so on.

Of course, Ino did try to remind Sai, but Sai's dense mind simply didn't understand and couldn't grasp Ino's intentions at all.

"Ino-nee, don't be angry. Sai-nii must have been delayed by something urgent." Qiu Xiaoming felt a pang of pity when he saw Ino's appearance and quickly comforted her.

"Is that so?" Ino forced a smile, a bitter and desolate expression on her face.

"How about this, Ino-nee, you treat me like Sai-nii today and celebrate our anniversary together?" Qiu Xiaoming gritted his teeth, mustered his courage, and looked up to say earnestly.

This is a chance to get close to Ino. If you miss this opportunity, who knows when you'll have another chance?

Upon hearing Qiu Xiaoming's words, Jingye was taken aback.

"Alright! Since you're willing to spend our anniversary with your old mother, I can't refuse, can I?" Jingye composed herself, winked her left eye at Qiu Xiaoming, and said with a smile.

"Yes!" Qiu Xiaoming nodded heavily.

"Let's go shopping." Jingye took Qiu Xiaoming's arm and walked excitedly into the mall.

"How is it? Does this outfit look good?" Ino picked out an outfit and held it up against herself before asking.

"Hmm, not bad." Qiu Xiaoming said perfunctorily. It wasn't that he wanted to be perfunctory, but the clothes that Jingye had chosen were far inferior to the clothes that Jingye was wearing.

It's worth noting that Ino was wearing a crop top and a super short skirt, which perfectly accentuated her figure.

But I changed into this outfit...

It's not bad, but it always feels like something's missing.

"Tch, that line again. Can't you be serious for once? Don't end up like Sai!" Ino pouted and said with dissatisfaction.