"Why?"
Ino had originally just wanted to finish talking about business quickly and then leave. Hearing this, she was instantly startled.
She was Aoba's official girlfriend now, and even the future Hokage's secretary.
'What kind of matter needs to be kept from me?'
"Well…"
Shion pressed her lips together, not knowing how to explain.
Seeing her obvious guilty look, Ino's gaze immediately sharpened.
"I'm not allowed to hear it?"
"Well…"
A blush appeared on Shion's face again. If Ino were present for what she was about to say, it would feel a bit strange.
Aoba pressed his lips together as well when he saw her expression. He had a feeling he already knew what she wanted to say.
He had no intention of hiding anything from Ino, so he spoke directly.
"Shion, if you have a request, just say it. Ino isn't an outsider."
"I…"
Shion's face flushed red. She glanced at Ino, who was staring at her like a tiger watching its prey, and said a little nervously,
"I want to ask Aoba to help pass down the power of the miko line."
The corner of Aoba's mouth twitched slightly.
He had really guessed it right.
"Hmm?"
But Ino, who had just been glaring fiercely, now had a huge question mark floating over her head.
She had thought Shion wanted some kind of political marriage with Aoba, but what she heard was about passing down miko power.
'Is she asking Aoba to guide her in training or something?'
'If that is the case, there is no need to stop it.'
Since she couldn't figure it out, Ino simply asked directly.
"How do you pass down the miko's power?"
By now even Shion's earlobes had turned red, but this kind of thing had to be explained clearly.
"The power of the miko line is something the next miko is born with. So… passing down the miko's power means… it means having a child…"
By the end, her voice was as soft as a mosquito's buzz, but both Ino and Aoba heard her clearly.
After a brief pause, Ino quickly understood.
If passing down the miko's power required having a child, then Shion meant she wanted to have a child with Aoba.
After all that talk, she was still setting her sights on Aoba.
Thinking this, Ino's expression turned resentful again.
Saying she wanted to have a child with her boyfriend right in front of her, as his girlfriend, was going a bit too far.
"..."
"Ahem! Shion, since you've seen the prophecy, you should know about my relationship with Ino, right?"
Aoba coughed lightly, drawing both their attention back.
"I know."
Shion clenched her miko robes with both hands and looked seriously at Ino.
"Ino, I know about your relationship with Aoba. I even know that Aoba has many girlfriends. But I have a reason I have to do this."
"The miko's power must be passed on!"
Ino was completely stunned by Shion's sudden seriousness.
"If passing down the power means having a child, you don't have to choose Aoba specifically, do you?"
Shion shook her head, "Besides inheriting from the mother, the stronger the father's power is, the stronger the miko's power will be."
"I don't know if Moryo will be reborn hundreds of years from now. But if he is, I don't want the miko line to still have to use their own lives to seal him."
"If the child is born from Aoba and me, then defeating Moryo in the future would definitely be easy."
At this point, Shion suddenly leaned forward and grabbed Ino's hands. Her strange eyes were filled with hope as she looked at her.
"Ino, I'm not here to break you up. I'm here to join you. And I only want one child with Aoba! To change the fate of the miko line!"
She had many reasons for doing this.
First, Aoba was strong enough. Whether it was facing the oppressive Undead Army or Moryo, he had given her enough sense of security.
Second, the miko line truly had this need.
She had to have a child with someone powerful.
Then there was Aoba himself. No matter if it was strength, looks, or other abilities, he was outstanding.
At least in the scenes from the prophecy, she had indeed been very happy.
And finally, since there were already so many people, adding one more shouldn't matter, right?
She wasn't asking for any title. She just wanted a daughter to inherit the miko's power.
"?"
After hearing everything, Ino's face was full of question marks. She was completely stunned.
'What is this supposed to be?'
'Offering a huge reward for a daughter?'
She had never expected Shion's thinking to be this outrageous.
But looking at Shion's firm eyes, and understanding her reasons, she really didn't know how to oppose her.
After all, before coming to the Land of Demons, she had felt sad about the fate of every miko.
"I don't care anymore. You talk to Aoba. I'll wait outside!"
Not knowing what to do, Ino chose to avoid it.
She pulled her hands free from Shion's and ran outside in a flash, leaving the space to the two of them.
Her stance on this kind of thing had never been firm to begin with.
Otherwise, she would have strongly opposed it when Hinata, Yakumo, and Karin joined before.
In fact, if Shion hadn't tried to dig into her corner right in front of her, then even if they really had a child and she found out later, she would probably just sulk a little and then get over it after being upset for a bit.
"Aoba…"
With Ino gone, only the two people involved were left.
Shion looked at Aoba with hopeful eyes.
"..."
Aoba couldn't help but laugh helplessly.
He felt that she probably thought he wouldn't refuse, so she had planned to deal with Ino first.
After all, his reputation in the ninja world did make him seem like that kind of person.
But no matter what, Shion didn't look anywhere near old enough to have a child.
"Aoba, the Queen of the Land of Snow is also your girlfriend, right? So adding me shouldn't matter, right?", Shion said weakly.
"Ahem! Shion, look into my eyes first."
Aoba was momentarily at a loss for words, so he simply looked straight into her eyes.
Shion obediently looked back.
Their gazes met.
Then a large amount of obscure and complex information entered her mind.
Yet as it entered, she somehow understood it all.
"This is…"
Shion's mouth opened slightly in surprise.
"This is a ninjutsu that allows long-distance communication."
Aoba explained, "Having a child is too early for you right now. And we've only known each other for two days. There's no need to rush."
Shion hadn't expected there to be such a magical ninjutsu in the ninja world. Realizing that he hadn't rejected her, she immediately smiled.
"Then Aoba, you're not allowed to find me annoying in the future."
"As long as you don't chat with me in the middle of the night."
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