[Read up to 60+ Chapters in advance on P atreon at: p-atreon.com/Knockturn_Alley]
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Who knew how much time passed?
Eventually, she stood up and hurried to the bathroom, grabbed a toothbrush, and began brushing furiously to get rid of the lingering taste.
"Haaah…" Kanzou let out a long, heavy breath.
Thankfully, he now had the Sage Body; its rapid recovery was the only reason his body wasn't overwhelmed.
[Ding! Degraded Uzumaki Kushina into crawling and made her serve with her mouth, reward: Four Symbols Seal + 30,000 Evil Points]
'Four Symbols Seal… and thirty thousand Evil Points on top of that?' Kanzou couldn't help but grin inwardly.
Obtaining the Fūinjutsu itself wasn't a big deal; he had already planned to make Kushina hand it over one way or another, but getting it as a reward made the victory sweeter.
Moreover, since the Fūinjutsu was obtained directly through the System, Kanzou instantly mastered it.
And mastering a Fūinjutsu isn't as simple as just learning the said Fūinjutsu; it also requires a deep understanding of the theoretical knowledge behind it.
In other words, this reward wasn't just the Four Symbols Seal itself… it was far more than that.
And then there were the thirty thousand Evil Points…
'Fufu… Uzumaki Kushina really is a treasure trove,' he mused.
As Kanzou was mentally counting his gains, he felt a gentle touch on his shoulder. Turning slightly, he found Mikoto standing behind him, her delicate hands beginning to massage his shoulders.
She had seen everything.
Once again, she felt jealous…
"How did Kushina-chan's service feel, Kan-sama?" she asked quietly.
"She doesn't compare to you, not even close," Kanzou replied, his gaze sincere.
The service Mikoto gave last night… it was much… much better than the unskilled Kushina.
Hearing him, Mikoto's face flushed bright red, "I… I see…"
She was very happy to hear that Kanzou liked her service more than Kushina's… and for a moment, she wanted to immediately kneel down between his legs and serve him with her mouth…
It's just that… Kushina was still around, so she didn't do that. Just stood behind him, carefully massaging his shoulders as they waited for Kushina to return.
A few moments later, Kushina finally emerged from the bathroom. The moment she spotted Mikoto standing behind Kanzou, panic flickered across her face.
"When… when did you get back, Mikoto-chan?" she asked, clearly shaken.
Kushina was anxious, worried that Mikoto might have seen what happened earlier.
If her most humiliating moment had been witnessed by Mikoto, she felt she'd rather be dead.
Not to mention… she didn't know how to face Mikoto if she had learned the truth.
Kanzou had already warned her that if Mikoto learned the truth, she'd have to take the blame… and admit to her that it was she who seduced Kanzou… so now, she felt very afraid.
"I just got here, Kushina-chan. Why? Is something wrong?" Mikoto asked gently.
Then, noticing the faint streaks of tears on her face and the puffiness around her eyes, Mikoto put on a look of concern. Walking up beside Kushina, she tilted her head and asked, "Looking closely… I can see tear stains on your face. Were you crying earlier? Did something happen?"
Though her tone remained soft and caring, it wouldn't be wrong to say that it was only a facade.
Beneath the surface, a storm of emotions raged within her as she looked at Kushina.
Indeed, Mikoto was consumed by a complicated mix of emotions…
Part of her felt guilty for what Kushina was going through, even holding herself responsible for her suffering.
Yet another part of her felt a twisted satisfaction in seeing Kushina in pain.
Jealousy was gnawing at her, and a small, ugly part of her wanted to see Kushina suffer even more.
Even though Kushina was her friend, the ugly, possessive part of Mikoto's heart even wanted her to disappear. She felt that Kushina was stealing Kanzou's attention away from her.
'If Kushina-chan didn't exist, then Kan-sama would only look at me… only use my body to satisfy himself.' Mikoto thought darkly.
'If Kushina-chan didn't exist…?' For a fleeting moment, she even wished to be rid of Kushina, believing that only then would Kanzou's gaze remain solely on her.
As those dark thoughts surfaced, a trace of killing intent threatened to escape her… but just then, Kanzou, who had stood up, placed his hand on her back and gently patted her.
'Kan-sama…' Mikoto panicked, realizing her thoughts were turning in an ugly direction. She quickly forced herself to calm down, steadying her mind.
'No… I can't think like that. Kan-sama seems to be fond of Kushina-chan. If I get rid of her, won't that only make him unhappy? He might even come to dislike me…' she told herself.
Terrified of being disliked by Kanzou, Mikoto resolved to push away the ugly idea of getting rid of Kushina.
Unaware of the dark thoughts festering in Mikoto's heart, Kushina was moved by her show of concern… and at the same time, she let out a quiet sigh of relief. 'If Mikoto-chan really just arrived,' she thought, 'then she couldn't have seen it.'
Kushina never suspected Mikoto of lying. After all, what wife would lie about such a thing?
Yet the very fact that she felt relieved Mikoto hadn't discovered the truth only deepened Kushina's guilt. Mikoto was showing her such care and concern, and what was Kushina doing in return? Betraying her friend's trust.
A hot shame flooded Kushina, and she felt like she wanted to disappear.
Fortunately, she didn't know what was really going on in Mikoto's heart, who for a moment had even entertained the thought of killing her… if she did, she might have exploded…
But since she didn't, in the face of Mikoto's concern, feeling guilty, she could only apologize in her heart, and shake her head, "No… nothing happened to me…" then quickly turned to Kanzou, "Uchiha Kanzou-kun… about what we talked…"
"Kushina-chan, the technique still requires more refinement before it can be used…" Kanzou said plainly.
A dismissal.
Kushina opened her mouth and argued, but seeing Kanzou's cold, dismissive eyes, she knew it would be pointless.
'This visit was for nothing.'
She had been humiliated by Kanzou once again, and he still had no intention of letting Minato go.
Her eyes turned red with frustration.
Right now, she wanted to fight Kanzou.
No, she had always wanted to fight him.
But every time she thought of striking back, Kanzou's threat echoed in her mind; he would use Minato as a hostage.
Her hatred for him grew stronger with every passing moment, so intense that she could no longer contain it even if she was in Mikoto's presence. Suddenly, her chakra erupted like a volcano, surging out of her in a violent burst that cracked the floor beneath her feet.
"K-Kushina-chan, what are you?" Mikoto murmured, taken aback by the sudden eruption of chakra.
Unaware of the true nature of the Nine-Tails' chakra and not knowing that Kanzou had already placed the beast under his control, she assumed Kushina was beginning to lose control of it. And that could only mean trouble.
But in truth, it wasn't the Nine-Tails' chakra at all; it was hers. Pure, blood-red, and overflowing with rage.
In fact, Kushina had indeed been trying to draw on the fox's power, even willing to surrender herself completely if it meant freeing the beast and killing Kanzou to vent her hatred and take her revenge.
Yet, for reasons she couldn't comprehend, the Nine-Tails, who always sought to seize control, refused to respond.
'Nine-Tails… why won't you take over when I'm giving you the chance?' she shouted inwardly, angry at the fox.
"..." Silence. No reply came, leaving her confused and helpless.
Still, she stepped forward, intent on striking him down with her own chakra, even if it meant burning away her life force to do it.
Yet before she could act, Kanzou, his Mangekyō Sharingan already active, met her gaze. In the next instant, her body went still. The surge of chakra faded as her eyes rolled back and she collapsed to the ground.
"D-Damn you, bastard…" she muttered weakly, her voice fading as consciousness slipped away.
"It looks like Kushina-chan's about to break," Kanzou murmured, gazing down at her.
There's a limit to how much a person can endure, and Kushina was standing right at that edge. Moments earlier, she had seemed ready to risk everything, even her own life, if it meant taking him down with her.
Fortunately, Kanzou had cast his genjutsu at just the right moment; otherwise, things could have turned ugly. The cracks on the floor were still a nuisance, but nothing too serious to worry about.
"This… is she going to be alright?" Mikoto asked, bending down to check on Kushina's condition. Worry flickered in her eyes as she added, "And the Nine-Tails, won't the beast try to break free?"
"It won't," Kanzou replied calmly, crouching beside her. "After all, it's under my control."
Mikoto blinked, clearly taken aback. "Huh? The Nine-Tails… is under your control, Kan-sama?" She hadn't expected to suddenly hear that he had completely subdued the tailed beast sealed within Kushina.
Kanzou nodded. "Yes."
"Won't that be too much of a burden for you?" she asked, concern lacing her tone. It wasn't the fact that he had tamed the Nine-Tails that troubled her; it was the strain such a feat must place on him.
The thought of him bearing that kind of pressure unsettled her.
Kanzou shook his head slightly. "If it's the current me," he said evenly, "there's no problem."
"I see…" his words relieved Mikoto.
"Yes," Kanzou said with a nod as he lifted Kushina and gently placed her on the sofa. Then, turning to Mikoto, he instructed, "Mikoto, return to the kitchen and continue preparing breakfast. I'll take care of things with Kushina in the meantime."
Mikoto hesitated, her lips parting slightly. "Kan-sama, we… should—"
She wanted to say that they had already gone too far, that they should stop tormenting the girl any further.
But the fear of spoiling Kanzou's fun, and of earning his displeasure, kept her silent.
In the end, she looked at the unconscious Kushina, whose torment wouldn't end anytime soon, with pity and nodded quietly. "I understand." Following his instructions, she turned and left the room, returning to the kitchen.
Still, she remained alert, ready to return the moment something went wrong.
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Drop Power Stonessssssssss!
[Read up to 60+ Chapters in advance on P atreon at: p-atreon.com/Knockturn_Alley]