A Genius in Culinary Arts

After school, Shin-chan, as usual, walked beside Kakashi.

The sunset cast long shadows of the two of them.

After walking for a while, Shin-chan noticed the route was wrong and asked curiously, "Aren't we going to training today?"

"No."

"Why?"

Kakashi was silent for two seconds: "My dad is on a mission."

Shin-chan blinked: "On a mission?"

"Yeah, an emergency mission." Kakashi's voice was calm. "It's not certain when he'll be back."

Shin-chan looked at Kakashi's profile. Although his expression couldn't be seen through the mask, for some reason, Shin-chan felt that Kakashi seemed a little different today.

They walked for a while longer.

Kakashi suddenly stopped and turned to look at him.

"Why are you following me?"

Shin-chan was stunned for a moment and scratched his head.

"I don't know."

"..."

Kakashi was silent for two seconds, then turned and continued walking forward.

Shin-chan stood in place, blinked, and then took a step to follow.

Kakashi didn't ask again.

The two walked one after another, passing through several streets, and entered a noisy place.

"The market?" Shin-chan was a little dazed.

At this time, Kakashi had already walked to a vegetable stall, squatted down, and began to pick vegetables.

"Uncle, how much is this?"

"Five taels for a bunch."

"And this bunch?"

"This one's wilted, I'll give it to you cheap, four taels."

Kakashi picked up the wilted vegetables, looked at them, then put them down and chose another bunch.

"I'll take this one." Kakashi handed the vegetables to the stall owner, took money from his pocket, counted it, and handed it over.

The whole process was smooth and natural, not like a five-year-old child at all.

Shin-chan's mouth hung open, and he couldn't close it for a long time.

"Kakashi... you... buying groceries?"

Kakashi took the change and looked back at him.

"What else would we eat?"

"..." Shin-chan followed Kakashi to the fish stall.

Kakashi squatted down, looked at the fish in the basin, and pointed with his finger.

"This one."

The fish stall uncle scooped up the fish, wrapped it, and handed it to him.

Kakashi took the fish and paid.

Shin-chan's mouth opened even wider.

"You... you can pick fish too?"

Kakashi glanced at him, said nothing, and continued walking forward with the vegetables and fish.

Shin-chan dazedly followed, his mind still processing the scene he had just witnessed.

Buying groceries.

Picking vegetables.

Picking fish.

Paying.

Kakashi?

Finally, they stopped in front of a house. Several bamboo plants were growing by the entrance. This was the Hatake Household that Shin-chan had visited a few days ago.

Kakashi pushed the door open and walked in. Shin-chan hesitated at the entrance, unsure whether to follow.

Then his stomach rumbled, betraying him.

Kakashi turned to look at him.

Shin-chan chuckled, patting his stomach.

Kakashi was silent for two seconds, then stepped aside.

"Come in."

Shin-chan quickly followed him in.

Kakashi entered the kitchen, placed the vegetables and fish on the cutting board, and began washing and chopping the vegetables.

Shin-chan propped himself up at the kitchen doorway, watching with wide eyes.

Kakashi's chopping movements were swift and precise, his knife skills excellent. He then gutted the fish, removed the innards, washed it clean, and placed it in the pan.

He lit the stove.

Poured in the oil.

Added the fish.

Fried it.

The entire sequence of actions was smooth and fluid.

Shin-chan's eyes grew wider and wider.

"Kakashi, you can cook too?"

Kakashi replied without turning his head, "If you live alone, you'll starve if you can't cook."

Shin-chan fell silent, remembering how it was at home. Every day, he would just wait for Miya to call "Dinner's ready," and then he'd sit at the dining table with the food already served.

He had never considered that someone would need to cook for themselves.

Not long after, the food was served.

Pan-fried fish, stir-fried green vegetables, miso soup, and rice.

Just a few simple dishes, but they smelled incredibly delicious.

Shin-chan sat at the dining table, looking at the food before him, and swallowed.

Kakashi sat opposite him and picked up his chopsticks.

"Eat."

Shin-chan had been waiting for this sentence for a long time. He immediately picked up his bowl, took a piece of fish, and put it in his mouth. His eyes instantly widened.

"Delicious!"

Shin-chan picked up another piece of greens.

"This is delicious too!"

Then he took a sip of Miso Soup.

"The soup is delicious too!"

Kakashi watched him, his expression a little complicated.

This guy... is it really that good?

Shin-chan buried his head in his rice, his mouth full, and mumbled, "This is much tastier than what Miya makes."

Kakashi froze for a moment: "Miya?"

"My Mother."

Kakashi didn't say anything else and lowered his head to continue eating.

Outside the window, the afterglow of the Sunset gradually dimmed.

After finishing the meal, Kakashi stood up and started to clear the dishes.

Shin-chan sat on his chair, rubbing his round belly, and watched Kakashi stack the bowls one by one. He suddenly felt a little embarrassed.

"I'll help too."

After saying that, he jumped off the chair and reached for the plates on the table.

Kakashi glanced at him, wanting to say it wasn't necessary, but Shin-chan had already picked up two plates and walked towards the kitchen.

Then.

"Crack!"

A plate slipped from his hand and shattered into pieces on the floor.

Shin-chan looked down at the fragments on the ground, blinked, and said, "Ah, it dropped."

Kakashi's eyebrows twitched: "Leave it there, I'll clean it up."

"It's okay, it's okay, I'll pick it up."

Shin-chan squatted down and reached out to pick up the fragments, but another plate also fell.

"Crack!"

Another crisp sound.

Shin-chan looked at the pile of shards on the ground, then looked up with an innocent expression.

"That plate seemed a bit slippery."

Kakashi took a deep breath, lifted Shin-chan from the ground, and placed him at the kitchen entrance. Then he squatted down to clean up the shards.

"Go sit in the living room."

"But I want to help."

"If you help, will you just break a few more?"

Shin-chan obediently walked to the living room and sat on the tatami. Listening to the rustling sound of cleaning up shards from the kitchen, he suddenly felt a little guilty.

After a while, Kakashi came out after finishing, still holding the broom and dustpan. After dumping the shards into the trash can, he washed his hands.

Then he walked into an adjacent room and came out again, this time holding a wooden sword.

"Let's go."

Shin-chan blinked. "Go where?"

Kakashi glanced at him, as if looking at an idiot.

"Training."

Shin-chan's face immediately fell. "Ah? We still have to cultivate today?"

"Otherwise?"

"But..." Shin-chan pointed to the sky outside, "It's almost dark."

"So what?"

"And I fought so many matches today, I'm so tired."

Kakashi looked at him quietly.

Shin-chan felt a little guilty under his gaze, his voice getting smaller and smaller. "Okay, it's not that tiring."

"Blade Techniques value persistence." Kakashi was already walking towards the door.

Shin-chan blinked. The sentence sounded a bit familiar. He then picked up the wooden sword Kakashi had given him that afternoon and followed.

The two walked into the courtyard and stood facing each other.

The lamplight dyed the courtyard a warm orange, and the shadows of the bamboo stretched long on the ground.

Shin-chan gripped the wooden sword, looked up, and gazed at the person opposite him.

Kakashi had already assumed his stance.

"Begin."