The Terumi family was busy preparing for the upcoming wedding, while Kiyosuke and Mei Terumī could only stand aside, watching in a daze.
Kiyosuke said, "Just now, I was surprised for a second… so it was fake?"
"You idiot! Why don't you just make it real?!" Mei rolled her eyes at him, her tone teasing and seductive. This clueless man—looks like she'd have to take the initiative herself!
"Oh, oh." Kiyosuke nodded dumbly, making Mei laugh. She slipped her arm around his neck and smiled brightly.
"Please take good care of me from now on, dear."
"As you command, my beloved wife!"
The two of them pressed their foreheads together, laughing softly. After all these years, they were finally going to be together.
The wedding date was quickly decided. Tsunade and Jiraiya soon confirmed the day of the ceremony.
"This is exhausting. First, I had to help Naruto with his engagement, and now I've got to help Kiyosuke with his wedding. Why isn't Orochimaru doing this?" Jiraiya grumbled, looking thoroughly worn out.
"You know Orochimaru. Even if he were still alive, he probably wouldn't come to help with something like this. He'd rather spend the time running experiments," Tsunade said with a shake of her head. No one knew Orochimaru better than they did.
After finishing their discussions with Lady Terumi, Tsunade and Jiraiya left the Terumī estate. At the same time, Kiyosuke stepped out with Mei beside him.
"Wait for me to come and marry you," he said softly.
"Mm." Mei nodded, her smile radiant and full of bliss.
"Alright, alright, enough of that. You'll be married in a few days—save the flirting for then," Tsunade said, feeling as if she and Jiraiya had just been force-fed a handful of dog food.
"Haha, let's get going then."
Kiyosuke parted from Mei and set off with Tsunade and Jiraiya, leaving Kirigakure behind and heading back to Konoha to prepare for the wedding.
"The ceremony will be held in Konoha," Tsunade said as they traveled. "You can bring four people with you when you come to pick up the bride."
"Got it. I'll take Kakashi and the others," Kiyosuke replied with a grin.
Obito and Asuma had already been competing to be his groomsmen anyway. Between them and the others—each with near Kage-level strength—no one would dare cause trouble at this wedding.
"By the way," Jiraiya asked, "is your new house finished?"
"I asked Yamato and his team to handle it," Kiyosuke replied.
Before leaving, he'd entrusted Yamato with building the new house. It wasn't purely wooden in structure, but there were still parts that required Yamato's Wood Release. His skill in construction was impressive—if Yamato ever quit being a ninja, he could easily become a real estate tycoon.
Thanks to Yamato's help and Kiyosuke's generous funding, the construction progressed quickly. Workers had been pulling overtime, and by now, the three-story house was nearly complete. A few more days and the structure would be done—then it'd just need furnishing and decoration.
If things didn't move fast enough, Kiyosuke thought, he could always get Naruto and the others to lend a hand.
When they finally returned to Konoha near dusk, Kiyosuke stood outside his nearly finished home and nodded in satisfaction.
A three-story duplex, complete with a balcony and backyard, all in traditional Japanese style. The interior was still bare and unpainted, but the spacious layout made him smile.
"Alright, next comes the interior work!"
Stretching lazily, Kiyosuke returned to his current home. He planned to sell it soon—apparently, the buyer wanted to turn it into a bathhouse.
With Konoha's hot spring district booming, there was never enough supply to meet demand.
Being quite the hot spring enthusiast himself, Kiyosuke had already installed a connecting pipe system, arranging with the buyer to extend his private spring to the new house.
That way, he could still enjoy his hot baths at home.
Naruto and the others had already moved out, leaving the place quiet and empty.
Sighing softly, Kiyosuke ate dinner, bathed, and went to bed.
...
The next morning, Kakashi was assigning missions to his team. Sasuke had already awakened his Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan, and his strength now surpassed Naruto's—but missions still had to be done.
"Alright," Kakashi said, looking at the mission sheet, "today's task is… hmm… helping Kiyosuke with his house renovations."
"Eh?!"
Naruto's eyes went wide.
"Kiyosuke-san is renovating his house, and it's a mission?!"
"Not really," Kakashi said dryly. "He just asked me to pass along the message. Now, move out."
He knew exactly what Kiyosuke was up to—looking for free labor. Still, at least he'd probably treat them to lunch.
"Let's go!"
Naruto charged out energetically toward Kiyosuke's new house, with Sasuke and the others following.
On the way, they ran into Asuma leading the Ino–Shika–Chō trio.
"What a coincidence, you too?" Kakashi asked.
Asuma took a drag on his cigarette. "That guy's got free labor lying around—of course he's going to use it."
"Good point."
When they arrived at the construction site, they found Kiyosuke already there, wearing a newspaper-folded hat. He handed out matching hats to everyone—Guy's team, Hinata, Naruto, all of them.
"Perfect timing. Here, take these," Kiyosuke said, handing the folded hats through Sakura. "Alright, listen up! Kakashi's team will paint the rooms. Guy's team handles the outer walls. Asuma's team and mine will prep materials and handle logistics. Got it?"
"Roger!"
"Alright then—let's get to work!"
"Yosh!"
The twelve young ninja got to work enthusiastically. They mixed cement for the walls, dried it using Fire and Wind Release, applied plaster, and laid tiles. The process was fast and efficient—unsurprising for shinobi.
At noon, Kiyosuke treated everyone to a meal at the barbecue restaurant. Thanks to Chōji's legendary appetite, the bill stung a bit, but he managed.
By evening, the house was completely done—walls painted, doors and windows installed, wiring connected, floors laid, and furniture moved in.
The freshly built home stood proudly before them, looking every bit as perfect as if it had taken months to complete.
Yamato had used special materials to reinforce the structure, ensuring it would stay solid for years—even if Kiyosuke somehow blasted it during training.
...
A few days later, it was nearly time for the wedding, and the preparations reached a fever pitch.
Kiyosuke had to personally arrange the venue, the banquet, the officiant, his own formal wear—it felt more stressful than an S-rank mission.
To help, he brought in Asuma, who already had experience getting married.
"Relax, relax," Asuma said, patting his shoulder. "I was just like you back then. Deep breaths, come on—breathe!"
But as the day approached, Kiyosuke grew more and more anxious. He couldn't sleep at all—every time he closed his eyes, he saw Mei Terumī's face.
Watching the pale, sleepless Kiyosuke, Asuma sighed and gave Obito a look.
Moments later, Obito brought over a cup of tea.
"Here, drink this. It'll help you relax."
Without a second thought, Kiyosuke gulped it down.
Thud!
He collapsed instantly, fast asleep.
"How much sedative did you put in that?" Asuma asked flatly.
"Enough to knock out a tiger," Obito replied.
"If he doesn't wake up and misses his own wedding, we're dead men."
"He'll kill me first!"
"..."
"..."
They stared at each other in silence as cold sweat began to trickle down Obito's forehead.