At that moment, Kushina was waiting at home for Naruto and Menma to return. That morning, she had arranged with them to bring Kakashi over for a meal.
The house was filled with the aroma of food, and the dining table was laden with an enticing spread. Kushina sat at the table, glancing now and then from the dishes to the doorway. The sun was shining outside, its rays streaming through the window and scattering bright patches of light across the floor.
"What are Naruto and Menma up to? Why aren't they back yet? The food's going to get cold," Kushina grumbled.
"We're back!" Naruto called as the door opened. He took off his shoes in the entryway and walked inside.
Kushina's eyes lit up, and she hurried to the entryway.
"You're finally back. Come eat before the food gets cold." Kushina wore a loving, motherly smile, but suddenly her gaze fell on Menma, whom Kakashi was carrying on his back.
"What happened to Menma?" Kushina asked anxiously.
"He used up too much chakra training. He'll be fine after a little rest," Kakashi replied.
"Oh, that boy. Just put him on the sofa, then come eat." As she spoke, Kushina turned and headed for the dining table.
Naruto found it a little strange, but didn't think much of it. He sat down at the table. The food looked pretty good, but there was no telling how it tasted.
After laying Menma on the sofa, Kakashi came over to the table and pulled out a chair.
Kushina sat across from them. "Go ahead and eat. You must be hungry."
"Let's eat," they said together. Naruto looked over the dishes and reached for the fish, which seemed like a safe bet. But after struggling to pick up a piece, he still couldn't manage it. Kakashi saw and helped with his chopsticks. When the fish finally came apart, both of them froze.
"This fish doesn't seem cooked through..." Kakashi said tentatively.
"Huh? Really? Let me see." Kushina leaned closer and saw that the fish was cooked on the outside but raw within. Embarrassed, she carried it away to cook it some more.
The two exchanged a glance, then looked at the other dishes on the table. They suspected the rest probably wasn't much better.
Kakashi reached for a plate of greens and put some in his mouth. His expression immediately turned pained. The vegetables were far too salty and bitter, as if Kushina hadn't removed the tough outer leaves.
Naruto stood up, took the ladle, and poured a spoonful of soup into his bowl. He tried a sip, and his expression became quite something. The taste was bizarre, an intermingling of bitter, astringent, sour, and spicy. It was beyond merely bad—it was downright impossible to swallow.
Seeing Naruto's expression, Kakashi swallowed hard and tried a spoonful for himself. His face instantly fell. His whole body seemed to reject the soup, but he forced it down anyway. The moment he swallowed, his stomach started churning.
Eating felt like torture for the two of them. They exchanged strained smiles, and Kakashi finally understood why Naruto and Menma had complained about Kushina's cooking. The title "King of Dark Cuisine" was truly well earned.
Just then, Menma woke up on the sofa. He sat up, looking around in a daze. The room was completely quiet, save for the clock on the wall ticking away.
Hearing the movement, Kakashi and Naruto looked back. When they saw Menma was awake, they hurried over and led him to the table.
Naruto scooped up a spoonful of soup and offered it to Menma with a mischievous grin.
"Menma, hurry up and try Auntie Ku's cooking," Naruto said with a laugh.
Menma thought it was strange and hesitated over whether to drink it. Just then, Kushina came over carrying the fish.
"Menma, you're awake. Come eat something." She set the fish, now cooked through, on the table and sat down again.
Menma looked at the bowl of soup in front of him, then at Kushina, before turning to Naruto and Kakashi. He swallowed and thought, Might as well get it over with.
"Then... I... shall eat." Menma picked up the bowl and downed the soup in one go.
Naruto and Kakashi watched him, feeling as though he was undergoing a trial between life and death.
Menma thought it was better to suffer briefly than at length. He set down the bowl after finishing the soup, but before he could comment, the aftertaste hit him. He had never tasted anything like it. All he could say was that it was indescribably hard to swallow—and the aftertaste was overwhelming.
Menma quickly recovered, and the three of them wordlessly reached for the fish. This time, unlike before, it was definitely cooked through.
All three put a piece of fish in their mouths, and their faces twitched involuntarily. The fish was cooked, but it tasted strange—not quite good, not quite bad, and so flavorless they could barely taste the fish itself.
Kushina really was a "genius" when it came to cooking. It took some doing to turn fish into something completely without flavor.
Kushina looked at the three of them strangely. "What's wrong? Does it taste bad?"
They quickly shook their heads.
"Delicious! It's so good!" Naruto said hastily.
"Yeah, yeah! I've never had fish this delicious," Menma chimed in.
"Mmm, it really is delicious," Kakashi agreed.
But only they knew what they really thought.
The three of them had no idea which dish to try next. They suspected none of the others were any good either.
Menma quickly scanned the table and spotted a bowl of something unusual-looking. He took a bite, only to find it was a chicken leg. The sugar glaze on the outside had burned, leaving it blackened.
After biting into it, Menma realized it was chicken. He chewed carefully and found that, aside from the bitter, burnt sugar on the outside, it actually tasted pretty good.
Seeing that Menma didn't look too unhappy, Naruto and Kakashi each took a piece and tried it. After a bite, they also found that it tasted all right apart from the bitter outer layer.
Kushina had followed the recipe exactly for this dish. She had simply failed to get the heat and timing right, which had caused the sugar on the outside to burn.
Seeing their reaction, Kushina looked satisfied. She knew she couldn't make every dish delicious. As long as a few tasted decent, she'd be happy. That was all she expected of her cooking for now.
Menma's gaze fell on a plate of carrots. They were cut unevenly, some big and some small, some thin and some thick, and mixed with corn kernels and peas.
Menma scooped up a spoonful and ate it. The thicker pieces of carrot were still raw, but since carrots could be eaten uncooked, he didn't mind too much.
The three of them took quite a while to finish the meal. Afterward, they sat on the sofa with pained expressions while Kushina washed the dishes in the kitchen.
"So, Kakashi-sensei, the food wasn't bad, was it?" Menma teased, looking at Kakashi.
"Ah, yes. It's not every day you get to have a lunch like this," Kakashi replied. Anyone could hear what he really meant.
"If you liked it, come again next time," Menma said with a grin. It sounded like a sincere invitation, but there was more to it than that.
"I'd better not impose on you," Kakashi declined Menma's apparently "kind" invitation.
"Got anything planned for this afternoon?" Naruto asked, wanting to know what to do.
"I'm too tired to go out right now. I'm going to take a nap first," Menma said.
"Then I'll go hang out with Shikamaru and the others this afternoon." Naruto said, getting ready to leave.
"Go ahead. I'll come find you later." Menma then headed upstairs to sleep.
"Then I should get going too." Kakashi stood up, but Kushina stopped him.
"Kakashi, wait a moment. I need to talk to you."
At that, Kakashi drew back the foot he had just lifted and sat down again. "All right."
He sat and waited for Kushina to tell him what she wanted.
After Naruto left, he went to find Shikamaru and the others. Menma went upstairs to sleep, and once Kushina had finished washing the dishes, she came over and sat beside Kakashi.
"Kakashi, do you remember when we used to go on missions together? The Fourth was still with us then," Kushina said, reminiscing.
"Of course, ma'am. We were all so full of energy and determination back then. Looking back, those are precious memories," Kakashi replied earnestly.
"So, Kakashi, I hope you'll keep teaching Naruto and Menma. I can tell they really like being with you," Kushina said.
"Don't worry, ma'am. I'll do my best to teach them. Naruto and Menma have a lot of potential. If they keep at it, they'll definitely become remarkable shinobi!" Kakashi answered confidently.
"I can see how exceptional they are too, especially Menma. He seems so different from the other children, and I'm afraid he might feel lonely and put too much pressure on himself," Kushina continued, looking worried.
"Don't worry, ma'am. Menma really is different from the other children. He's more talented, works harder, and is more mature than they are. There aren't many children like him, but please rest assured: he's cheerful and has other friends too," Kakashi replied.
"Yes, he's such an exceptional child, even more so than his father was at that age. I wonder how far he'll go," Kushina said admiringly.
Before you continue