The moment the dismissal bell rang, Shin-chan eagerly started packing up his school bag.
"Kakashi." Hugging his bag, Shin-chan ran over to Kakashi's desk. "I can't come train today."
Kakashi looked up at him.
"Why not?"
"I'm going to Toru's house." Shin-chan pointed at Uchiha Toru beside him. "He said his house has lots of chocolate sticks."
Kakashi's brow furrowed slightly.
"Swordsmanship is all about consistency. If you skip even one day, you'll get rusty."
Shin-chan's face immediately fell. "But... chocolate sticks..."
"It's okay," Uchiha Toru said as he walked over and stood beside Shin-chan. "My house has a private training area too. If Shin-chan wants to practice, he can do it there."
Then he looked at Kakashi, hesitated for a second, and still asked, "Kakashi, do you want to come too?"
Kakashi glanced at him, no emotion visible in his eyes.
"No."
He slung his school bag over his shoulder and walked off.
Shin-chan waved at the silver-haired figure's back. "See you tomorrow, Kakashi."
Kakashi didn't turn around. He only gave a light wave of his hand.
On the way to the Uchiha district, Shin-chan talked about chocolate sticks the entire time.
"Toru, do you really have strawberry flavor?"
"Yeah."
"What about milk flavor?"
"We have that too."
Shin-chan's eyes shone like light bulbs.
"Toru, your house is amazing. It's basically heaven!"
Uchiha Toru just smiled and said nothing.
But as they kept walking, Shin-chan noticed the surroundings changing.
The road grew wider. The houses grew larger. But there were fewer and fewer people, and the few who passed by always looked like they were in a hurry.
And the people wearing clothes with the Uchiha fan crest kept looking at him strangely.
Not angry. Not hateful.
More like they were looking at some kind of rare animal.
Shin-chan tilted his head and asked quietly, "Why do they keep staring at me?"
"Because hardly anyone comes to the Uchiha district," Uchiha Toru said softly, lowering his head a little. "People from outside usually don't come here."
"Why not?"
Uchiha Toru was silent for two seconds. "Because... our family is a little different from everyone else."
Shin-chan blinked, not really understanding.
The two little boys kept walking forward, passing through all those curious stares.
Uchiha Toru's house was way bigger than Shin-chan had imagined.
The moment they stepped inside, there was a huge courtyard paved with stone slabs, with an old tree planted in the center.
The house itself was an old-fashioned Japanese-style building, with wooden hallways and paper sliding doors. It looked expensive.
"Wow." Shin-chan's mouth dropped open. "Your house is huge!"
"It's alright, I guess." Uchiha Toru looked a little embarrassed. "I've lived here my whole life, so I'm used to it."
At the entrance, a woman in a kimono stepped out. Her brows and eyes were gentle, and her hair was neatly arranged.
When she saw Shin-chan, she froze for a moment, but quickly put on a graceful smile.
"You must be Toru's friend. Welcome."
"Hello, Auntie." Shin-chan tilted his head up. "My name is Nohara Shinnosuke. I'm five years old."
Toru's mother looked at him and couldn't help smiling. "Hello there. Toru talks about you all the time."
"Really?" Shin-chan immediately turned to Uchiha Toru. "What do you say about me?"
Uchiha Toru looked away awkwardly. "Nothing."
"He says you're a very good person," his mother answered for him. "And that you take good care of him at school."
Shin-chan proudly swayed his head. "Of course. Toru is my best friend."
Uchiha Toru quickly cut in, "Mom, I'm taking Shin-chan to have some snacks."
"Alright." Toru's mother nodded. "I'll go prepare them. Is there anything you don't eat?"
"Nope." Shin-chan raised his hand. "I like chocolate sticks. Strawberry and milk flavor are both fine."
Toru's mother smiled. "Got it. Auntie will remember that."
They had their snack in a large tatami room.
Shin-chan sat cross-legged on the floor. In front of him was a huge plate piled with chocolate sticks in all kinds of flavors, stacked like a little mountain.
"Toru..."
"Yeah?"
"Can I eat them?"
"Of course. They're all for you."
Shin-chan took a deep breath, then reached out and picked up the first one.
Strawberry flavor.
He bit into it.
Uchiha Toru watched him nervously. "How is it?"
Shin-chan closed his eyes and chewed slowly, a blissful expression spreading across his face.
"This is the best chocolate stick I've ever had."
"You said that last time too."
"That's because every time, they're this good."
Uchiha Toru couldn't help smiling. He picked up a milk-flavored one and sat there eating with Shin-chan.
Sunlight streamed in through the window, warm and golden.
After eating for a while, Shin-chan suddenly remembered something.
"Toru, where's your family's training ground?"
"It's behind the house."
"Can I see it?"
Uchiha Toru froze for a second. "You want to train?"
Shin-chan thought about it, then looked down at the chocolate stick in his hand, his expression a little conflicted. "Well... not really. I just want to look."
Uchiha Toru smiled. "Then let's go."
The training ground was an open space covered with fine sand, with several targets set up around it and a few kunai placed in the corner.
Shin-chan stood at the edge, staring at the training area.
"Toru, do you practice here every day?"
"Yeah."
Shin-chan looked at the training ground, then at Uchiha Toru. "That sounds hard."
Uchiha Toru froze.
"Hard?"
"Yeah. You still have to train at home after school, right? Isn't that exhausting?"
"It's not exhausting." Uchiha Toru shook his head. "I like the feeling of getting stronger."
Shin-chan blinked, but didn't say anything.
"Let's start." Uchiha Toru rolled his shoulders a little. "You practice swordsmanship. I'll practice Fire Style."
"So we really do have to train?"
"Well, we're already here."
Shin-chan sighed and started swinging his sword.
One swing.
Two swings.
Three swings.
But as he kept swinging, his eyes slowly drifted toward Uchiha Toru.
At the other end of the training ground, Uchiha Toru formed hand seals.
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
A ball of flame burst from his mouth and exploded in midair, lighting up the entire back courtyard red.
Shin-chan's mouth fell open. He forgot to keep swinging and just stood there staring.
So cool.
Uchiha Toru tried again. This time, the fireball was a little smaller than before. He frowned unconsciously, then tried one more time.
Without even realizing it, Shin-chan had walked over and was standing beside him.
"Toru."
Uchiha Toru stopped and turned his head. "What is it?"
"How do you do that?"
Uchiha Toru blinked. "You want to learn?"
Shin-chan nodded. "Kind of."
"Aren't you supposed to be practicing swordsmanship?"
"That can wait a little." Shin-chan said it like it was obvious. "Right now I want to learn this."
"Sorry." Uchiha Toru looked troubled, and his voice dropped without him realizing it. "That's one of our clan's jutsu. Without the clan's permission, I'm not allowed to teach it to outsiders."
"If he's Toru's friend, then teaching him Fire Style is fine."
An old man stood at the edge of the training ground, dressed in a dark kimono, with graying hair.
~~~
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