Naruto: Imitation Ninja

Upon hearing Kushina's words, a huge question arose in Xing Liu's heart...

The other person had come to seek you out before preparing to propose?

But clearly, I, as the brother-in-law, and Saki-chan, as the little sister, are here—why would they come to find you before proposing?

When Kushina saw the confused expressions on Xing Liu and the others, she didn't immediately explain the reason. Instead, she asked Xing Liu a strange question: "Do you know how the villagers call you?"

Huh? What does how the villagers call me have to do with this?

However, hearing Kushina ask this question, Xing Liu became curious about how the villagers viewed him, so he turned toward Saki-chan behind him. He found that she simply shook her head with a smile, indicating that she didn't know.

Seeing that Saki-chan also didn't know the answer, Xing Liu became even more curious about how they were evaluating him.

So, he circled back and had to ask the woman in front of him, who was grinning mischievously at him.

"So, how exactly do the villagers evaluate me? What does this have to do with why the man came to find you, an unrelated person, instead of seeking us, who are directly related to Saki-chan's fiancé?"

"Hehe, it actually doesn't mean much at all. I just happened to meet that person by chance, and then, by another coincidence, gave them a little advice."

"And you and Saki-chan rarely step out of the house. Where would they have gone to find you two?"

Kushina's words were true. After all, Saki-chan's family rarely allowed her and her sister to go out and expose themselves. The time they met Xing Liu in the gambling hall was the first time they had ventured outside by chance.

As for why the other person couldn't meet Xing Liu, that was simple. Xing Liu's apartment was surrounded by Konoha high-ranking officials' dormitories, with various ninja on duty. The man was just an ordinary person—there was no way he could get in.

But whether this person's luck was good or bad was a matter for debate. They couldn't find Xing Liu, but they managed to run into Kushina, who was shopping for vegetables at the market.

At first, the person didn't know the connection between Kushina, Xing Liu, and Saki-chan, and just treated her as a friend to confide in about their troubles.

Kushina hadn't realized that the "female protagonist" they were speaking of was actually Saki-chan's older sister, and simply gave the person advice to ease their worries.

Thus, through this back-and-forth interaction, a marriage born from coincidence was formed.

"..."

After Kushina finished explaining, Xing Liu didn't know what to say. If his first meeting with Saki-chan at the gambling hall had already been a huge coincidence, then what did this so-called destined marriage mean?

He had never imagined that someone could take "coincidence" to such an extreme...

Forget the fact that it was a stroke of luck for the person to meet someone related to the female protagonist of his story in the vast sea of people. Just the fact that so many coincidences lined up for the person to win the beautiful girl's heart... couldn't some of that luck be shared with others?

But this was just how things were. Still, he couldn't shake the feeling that Kushina hadn't told him something more important.

Just as this thought crossed his mind, Kushina suddenly brought up that very issue.

"Little Xing Liu, don't you want to know how the villagers are evaluating you now? Just take a stroll through the market early tomorrow morning, and you'll know~"

"To be honest, when Minato received this information, he was quite pleased. After all, this lazy person, who had been slacking off for so many years, had finally done something that matched his abilities."

Saying this, Kushina suddenly gave Xing Liu a knowing look with a mischievous smile.

"It's getting late. We, as elders, should leave so you two lovebirds aren't stuck with us as your third wheels."

"Yes, yes. You should've seen the expression on Big Brother's face when he came back just now..."

"I've never seen anyone master the art of speed-changing expressions so well."

Hearing his two "elders" tease him like this, even with how thick-skinned Xing Liu was, he couldn't help but feel his face heat up.

So, in the moment he raised his hand, the two "elders" teasing him were swiftly escorted out of the house.

"Ah, finally, some peace and quiet..." Xing Liu sighed deeply.

"I really don't know how they manage to talk so much. This makes it hard for someone like me with social anxiety to join in~"

"If you're social anxiety, what does that make me?"

Upon hearing Xing Liu's words, Saki-chan gave him a beautiful eye-roll, making him realize he'd have to figure that out for himself.

"Big Brother, have you eaten? We still have some hotpot leftover from earlier. Want some?"

"Gurgle—" Before Xing Liu could respond, his stomach already protested to Saki-chan.

"Ha, I already know the answer~" she laughed and stood up to get the ingredients ready, "Big Brother, you can go take a bath while I finish preparing."

Speaking of bathing, an immature thought suddenly popped into Xing Liu's mind.

He quietly crept up behind Saki-chan and tightly embraced her: "What do you think about this: we go take a bath together, and then come out and cook dinner?"

Upon hearing such a lewd suggestion from Xing Liu, even Saki-chan, no matter how innocent she was, understood what he meant.

So, under Xing Liu's "sincere" invitation, Saki-chan reluctantly allowed him to lead her into the bathroom to clean it.

...

"This little girl's stamina is still as poor as always~"

"I'll have to help her train properly starting tomorrow. Otherwise, life will be tough later on..." Xing Liu glanced at Saki-chan, who had fallen asleep in the **, then quietly returned to the bathroom to take a cold shower.

After a while, Xing Liu returned to the room, and upon seeing Saki-chan in his arms, he couldn't help but laugh.

"To meet you during the best years of my life—this is the greatest fortune of my life."

HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR GUYS!