A spy? A spy is exactly who I'm marrying!

"You want to... marry me?"

Xia Yu thought he had misheard and asked again.

Uzuki Yugao averted her eyes, her head bowed low. "...Yes."

Whether from shyness or something else, Yugao kept her head lowered, not daring to look Xia Yu in the eye.

"Just now, you accidentally bumped your way into my heart..."

"..."

"Eww~"

That line nearly knocked Xia Yu flat!

Good grief!

Xia Yu had spent years navigating romance and had delivered countless sweet nothings, but this was the first time he had heard something so suffocatingly cheesy.

It would have been one thing coming from someone in the pleasure district, but hearing it from the pure and untarnished Uzuki Yugao was downright bizarre and absurd!

Something was wrong!

How had a perfectly fine, strong woman become so much like a courtesan??

Although Xia Yu could never tear himself away from a peerless beauty, and turned away none who threw themselves into his arms, he was no fool.

A kunoichi with an established partner had suddenly changed her image, approached him, and said things with no basis whatsoever. There probably wasn't any affection involved, only something fishy!

Xia Yu did not immediately agree to Yugao's proposal. Instead, he kept studying her with a strange look for a very, very long time.

His stare left Yugao flustered, her confidence gradually slipping away.

Why is Xia Yu reacting like this? This isn't how it should go. Has he not taken the bait?

Indeed, she had approached Xia Yu not because she genuinely wanted to marry him, but to complete the mission the Third Hokage had assigned her.

Yugao had never undertaken an espionage mission requiring this particular kind of sacrifice.

Not wanting to disappoint the Third Hokage, Yugao, who was a complete blank slate in this regard, had spent over two weeks preparing, asking friends from all walks of life about Xia Yu's personality, preferences, and so on...

In the end, she had reached a conclusion: Xia Yu was an out-and-out lecher, with absolutely no room for debate.

So Yugao had spent several days undercover at a hostess bar, deliberately observing the behavior and words of those who worked in the pleasure trade and learning the art of seduction from them. Once she had learned, she put it into practice, dressing flamboyantly and wandering the streets just to encounter Xia Yu.

Today, she had finally encountered him.

The opportunity was too precious to miss. The moment she saw Xia Yu, she walked straight toward him.

Perhaps because she was too nervous, she accidentally collided squarely with him...

Uzuki Yugao's mind went blank, but she quickly recovered, frantically recalling the things she had heard people in the pleasure district say. That had led to the scene just now.

"You accidentally bumped your way into my heart..."

The moment those words left her mouth, Uzuki Yugao inwardly rejected them.

Even she felt sick at what she had just said.

But there was no other choice. Completing the mission mattered most.

Although she had accepted that reality in her mind, her body could not.

Two tears of unwillingness slipped from the corners of her eyes.

She did not even notice the tears appearing.

But Xia Yu etched the sight of the weeping beauty deep into his eyes.

So that's how it is...

Xia Yu understood.

Uzuki Yugao's completely uncharacteristic behavior, her overly provocative clothing, and the fact that her work placed her in the Anbu directly under the Third Hokage...

She's most likely been sent here as a spy...

Perhaps this is what they call blind loyalty...

For the mission, to satisfy her superior, she'd sacrifice everything...

Heh...

My dear Lord Hokage, since you want to put on a show, I'll see this performance through to the final curtain...

So she's a spy? A spy is exactly who I'm marrying!

She's delivered herself to my doorstep. Why wouldn't I take her in!

Not only will I take her in, I'll win her heart, too. I'll make the spy you sent fall deeply in love with me!

"Yugao, I accept. From today onward, you're my wife!"

With that, Xia Yu pulled Uzuki Yugao into his arms without hesitation.

Uzuki Yugao's face paled in alarm, her body instinctively resisting despite herself. But she quickly came to her senses and immediately pretended to be sweet and dependent, nestling into Xia Yu's embrace.

How could those details escape Xia Yu's eyes? He had felt that instant of resistance from Uzuki Yugao perfectly clearly.

Heh... I was right after all. Yugao really isn't sincere.

Xia Yu once again confirmed his suspicions inwardly.

"Come on, let's go home! Tomorrow, I'll hold a grand wedding with you and Kurenai, and let everyone in Konoha feel our family's happiness~"

"A... wedding?"

"Of course~ You're marrying me, so naturally we're having a wedding~"

"B-but..." Uzuki Yugao was visibly flustered. "Xia Yu, I... I don't like drawing too much attention. Could I skip the wedding...?"

"Huh? Are you kidding? You're one of the people getting married, my wife~ A wedding is a joyous occasion. How could the wife not attend?"

"But...!"

Yugao wanted to say more, but held herself back, leaving the words unspoken.

She had not figured out how to say it.

Uzuki Yugao had originally intended to marry Xia Yu quietly, sacrificing a year of her time to learn everything about him, then leaving immediately once the mission was complete.

Without anyone being any the wiser.

Gekko Hayate, the man she loved, would never find out either.

But with the way things were developing, if everyone really learned about this, she could only be Xia Yu's woman for the rest of her life...

Oh no... What's with this guy! Does he have to make such a big ceremony out of it?

Could Xia Yu be a man who cares not just about beauty, but about ceremony, too?

Damn it, what should I do...?