"Lord Hokage, the envoys from Iwagakure in the Land of Earth and Kumogakure in the Land of Lightning have arrived."
Fujiwara Chima, carrying a stack of files, spoke to Yu, who was eating grilled meat.
"This can wait. Have them stay in the conference room for now," Yu said after thinking for a moment.
Then he shifted over and said to Fujiwara Chima, "Come eat with me!"
Hugging the files, Fujiwara Chima lowered her head and sat down beside Yu.
Yu deftly brought Fujiwara Chima a set of bowls and chopsticks, then picked some meat from the grill and placed it in her bowl.
He handed her the chopsticks.
"You don't have to be so reserved around me. We're the best of friends," Yu said with a smile.
"Mm!"
Fujiwara Chima nodded, set down the files, and began eating slowly with her chopsticks.
Yu was always finding all sorts of topics to discuss with Fujiwara Chima, and he often made her laugh.
But their conversations never included work. He could now keep his work and private life completely separate.
When he wasn't working, he absolutely refused to let work disrupt his life. And since this was something he'd already expected, there was even less reason to rush.
Besides, they were the ones who'd come to him, so there was no need for him to seem overly eager. Enjoying a good meal was more important.
The meal lasted for over an hour. Good food was one of the few things in this world that brought him happiness, so he wanted to take his time and savor it.
Yu left the restaurant, which was called Volcano Stone Barbecue, feeling completely satisfied.
"Chima, did you know your family's restaurant came here from a country tens of thousands of kilometers away? All the ingredients