Mirai curiously looked at the two big men, two little ones, and four men behind Tanaka—two chubby ones and two pineapple-headed ones.
"Mirai, these two uncles are the friends I told you about. This is Nara Shikaku, and this is Akimichi Choza," Yamanaka Kai said cheerfully as he led them into the backyard one after another. It was obvious that he was delighted by these two friends' visit and knew why they had come.
"Hello, Uncle Shikaku! Hello, Uncle Choza!" Mirai immediately greeted them obediently.
The moment he saw them, Mirai had guessed their identities. They were probably Tanaka's teammates from the other Ino-Shika-Cho team—the fathers of Nara Shikamaru and Akimichi Choji, respectively.
"Hello, you must be Mirai. We hear Kai mention your name every day!" Nara Shikaku said with a smile. However, the two long scars on his face made him look somewhat fierce. He could probably scare children into tears.
"Really?" Mirai smiled. "I've heard Uncle Kai mention you several times. He told me about the times you fought together. You saved Uncle Kai several times, didn't you?"
"Hahaha, of course—but Kai saved me too. We're the strongest combination!" Nara Shikaku was delighted to find that Mirai did not care about the scars on his face. It would have been far too awkward if he tried to be friendly only to scare the other person into tears.
Mirai immediately replied, "I know, you're the Ino-Shika-Cho combination!"
"Mirai, practicing alone at home must be lonely. I found two little friends for you. These two younger brothers will practice with you later. What do you think?" Tanaka asked with a smile as he looked at the cheerful Mirai.
"Are they Uncle Shikaku's and Uncle Choza's children? They certainly look like it," Mirai said with a smile after Tanaka pointed out