"Tap, tap."
An egg was cracked against the corner of the table, then broken into a bowl with one hand. A little sweet mirin was drizzled in for seasoning, and everything was stirred together. A dish of dipping sauce was ready.
The hot pot bubbled away, its rising steam mingling with the aroma of meat. Tender pink marbled beef rolled a few times in the milky broth before changing color.
A pair of chopsticks fished several pieces of beef out of the pot, dipped them in the beaten egg a few times, and delivered them into a mouth.
"Delicious!"
Sakaki Namiru narrowed her eyes, a smile of bliss peculiar to meat lovers spreading across her face.
"It might not be sukiyaki, but swishing beef around in the broth like this has a flavor all its own compared with stewing it."
She reached out with her chopsticks for the sliced raw beef again, only for Uchiha Naruto to knock them aside without ceremony.
"Keep your raw-food and cooked-food chopsticks separate, Aunt Namiru."
"Little Naruto, don't be so rigid like your dad. And you should call me Sis Namiru," Sakaki Namiru said, utterly unrepentant.
Uchiha Naruto gave Sakaki Namiru a disdainful look, then used the serving chopsticks to slide half a plate of beef into the pot.
"Wooow!"
Sakaki Namiru's eyes lit up at the sight. Clearly, she was awestruck by Uchiha Naruto's lavish generosity.
Beef was hardly cheap. Less well-off households like Chibi Maruko's even padded out their sukiyaki with pork.
Sakaki Namiru picked up another bowl, blew on it, took a sip, and savored it before saying,
"This broth is so savory, so rich! It packs even more punch than tonkotsu ramen broth."
Obviously!
Uchiha Naruto raised an eyebrow, a hint of satisfaction flashing through his eyes.
He had simmered