Naruto: Clan Simulation and Bloodline Evolution from Scratch

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*****

This situation could be either big or small, depending on how it was handled.

Making a big scene could indeed resolve everything, but doing so would give the offender, Shimura Tai'er, the perfect excuse to claim they were deliberately smearing the Shimura clan's name over a trivial matter.

He might even rally his relatives and friends to cause trouble for the shopkeeper. By then, this shop might truly not be able to keep running.

Having lived two lives and experienced three simulations, Ximen Zhen naturally understood how shameless and fearless some people could be.

Especially certain clan heirs who used their surnames as shields for misdeeds—ordinary people could hardly stand against them.

Konoha did have a police force, but neither Konoha nor the entire shinobi world operated under a true rule-of-law society. Commoners didn't even have the chance to appoint legal representatives or face off against shinobi in court.

Even if the Hokage's office occasionally championed justice to maintain public opinion, most of the time, they were just representatives of various clan interests.

This wasn't about morals or principles—it was simply how the shinobi world worked.

In the third simulation, Ximen Zhen had once risen to become a Wind Shadow Advisor, so he understood this deeply.

Thus, to resolve the current trouble, he had to play by the rules of clan politics.

Then, Ximen Zhen beckoned the two girls over.

As they leaned in, he whispered a few things in their ears.

The girls looked surprised but nodded quickly and left to carry out their respective tasks.

Ximen Zhen, meanwhile, headed to his usual stationery store to buy some calligraphy scrolls, then returned home.

Tenten was already waiting for him, holding the restaurant's account book.

Not long after, Ino came back too, carrying an old-fashioned camera.

"I found my two friends! You guys should meet them too!" she said excitedly the moment she entered.

Shikamaru and Chōji were then dragged in behind her.

Both wore deadpan expressions and clearly didn't want to be there. But being forcefully pulled along by Ino, they had no way to refuse.

When they heard they were coming to Ximen Zhen's house, both had panicked slightly, thinking Ino had brought them to confront him for exposing her.

"I'm Nara Shikamaru. This guy eating chips is Akimichi Chōji," Shikamaru said lazily.

"We've already heard about what happened, so you don't need to explain the whole Ino–Shika–Chō trio thing, right?"

After seeing Ximen Zhen nod, Shikamaru continued, "So, what do you want from the three of us?"

Shikamaru's face looked relatively calm, but for some reason, Chōji seemed very guilty under Ximen Zhen's gaze.

What had he done?

Tenten followed Ximen Zhen's gaze and locked eyes with Chōji. The boy yelped in panic.

"Okay, okay! I admit it! Ino, whatever you want me to do, I'll do it!"

"Wait, Chōji! Shut up already—" Shikamaru tried to stop him, but it was too late.

Ino, who had been pretending to be indifferent, immediately became alert. She grabbed Chōji by the ear and asked coldly,

"So? What exactly are you apologizing for?"

"Spill everything, and maybe I'll forgive you halfway."

Chōji, grateful for the partial forgiveness, confessed everything—how he and Shikamaru had roped Ino into deceiving Ximen Zhen.

Shikamaru looked extremely embarrassed. Tenten was still a bit confused, but Ximen Zhen was already looking at the trio with an amused expression.

So that's why Ino came to his house.

Ino, on the other hand, was full of regret. As soon as Chōji spilled the mission, she knew she had failed.

As a shinobi, how could she let the mission target hear about the mission details?

Ximen Zhen had trusted her—he'd even let her chakra enter his body. That kind of trust was usually reserved for tightly knit squads like the Ino–Shika–Chō trio.

And yet she had deceived him.

Ximen Zhen must hate me now...

The thought made Ino's heart ache. She even felt like crying.

Suddenly, a hand landed on her shoulder, startling her.

She turned around and saw Ximen Zhen's sly smile. He even winked at her.

A warm feeling welled up in Ino's heart. Could there still be hope between them?

Ximen Zhen was talented, easy on the eyes, shared her sense of humor, and came from a good background. She definitely wasn't ready to give up on someone who could be relationship material.

"Ahem."

Ximen Zhen cleared his throat, drawing everyone's attention before speaking:

"Let's pretend we didn't hear anything just now."

"As for your mission, I'll cooperate and help Ino complete it. After all, I do want to train chakra myself."

"I just need the three of you to do me a small favor. Deal?"

Shikamaru and Chōji exchanged glances. Shikamaru spoke up,

"Let's hear it."

Half an hour later, the two boys left with their arms around each other, visibly in a good mood.

And for good reason.

The mission failure crisis was smoothly resolved, and Ximen Zhen had agreed to help Ino finish it.

Even better—both Chōji and Shikamaru received a permanent 20% discount coupon for the barbecue restaurant. Sure, the Akimichi clan owned a barbecue place themselves, but even Chōji appreciated some variety in flavor.

All Ximen Zhen had asked of them was to take a photo with Ino while holding a sign—and he promised not to involve their families or clans.

Shikamaru had initially been wary of Ximen Zhen's character, but with Ino vouching for him, he had no choice but to comply.

Besides, Chōji didn't dare defy Ino, and Nara men never picked fights with women.

"I'll have the photo developed and enlarged tomorrow. I'll hand it over then," Ino said, carefully storing the camera.

She seemed hesitant, wanting to apologize to Ximen Zhen.

But he beat her to it.

"You two haven't eaten yet, right? How about I cook something?"

"Wait, you can cook?" Tenten asked, surprised. She hadn't tasted his cooking before.

Ino quickly chimed in, "I had the honor of tasting Ximen-kun's cooking yesterday. It was absolutely delicious. Tenten, you can't miss out!"

Ino could sense that Ximen Zhen didn't want to say certain things in front of Tenten, so she focused on building rapport with her instead.

An hour later, the three of them had eaten their fill. Tenten even licked her lips and said,

"If I'd known you cooked this well, why did we even bother eating out?"

"If you like it, you're welcome to eat here after every training session with me," Ximen Zhen offered casually.

Tenten immediately agreed but quickly averted her eyes when she noticed Ino giving her a teasing look.

After cleaning up the dishes, they saw some elderly folks arriving to play in the yard.

"I'll be going then," Tenten said. "There are some things I still need to discuss with my family."

"What about you, Ino? Want to come along?"

To Tenten's surprise, Ino shook her head.

"I want to stay."

(End of Chapter)