Izayoi's Birthday

"The people who occupied your village have already been killed by me. These minerals are all spoils of war. You have no objections, right?"

"No, none at all... Please help yourself, sir. Do you need our assistance?"

"No need. I'm in a hurry. Goodbye!"

After storing the Kurosuki Clan's corpses, along with some minerals needed for making puppets, into two large Storage Scrolls, Izayoi rose into the air. He alternated between flying and Body Flicker, leaving the Land of Rivers at top speed.

The next morning, Izayoi returned to the Land of Fire and rushed straight to the tailor shop. He created a Shadow Clone with an enormous amount of Chakra and handed it the scrolls containing the minerals and corpses.

Without resting for even a moment, the Main Body first went to a certain shop to buy something, then raced back to the Hidden Leaf Village at full speed with souvenirs for Hinata and Hanabi.

Izayoi finally returned to the Hidden Leaf Village before six in the evening.

Taking advantage of the shift change, Izayoi entered the Hidden Leaf Village from elsewhere, then returned to Central Street from the wilderness and arrived home before long.

"I'm back."

Having adapted to the local customs, Izayoi called out loudly as he changed his shoes at the entryway.

Then, carrying the gift boxes, he headed upstairs.

However, at some point, a fabric curtain had been installed at the stairway.

Izayoi pulled it aside and found a dim room with blackout curtains drawn tightly shut.

Only twelve candles burned on the living room table, beneath them sitting a five-tier cake.

The cake was exquisitely made. Each tier had three chibi snowmen on it—Izayoi and the Hyuga sisters.

"Nii-chan, happy birthday!"

"Izayoi-kun, happy birthday."

Hinata and Hanabi had been waiting for Izayoi in the living room. As for the Shadow Clone, the two girls had ruthlessly blown it up yesterday.

Seeing Izayoi return, Hinata and Hanabi both came over. As they wished him a happy birthday, they took him by the arms and led him to the cake.

That was right. Today was June 16th, Izayoi's birthday.

That was also why Izayoi had been in such a rush to return.

Ever since the two of them had become a group of three, Hinata and Hanabi celebrated Izayoi's birthday every year around this time.

Especially after receiving the Shadow Clone's memories of being blown up by the two girls, he knew that Hinata and Hanabi wanted to prepare a surprise for him.

Naturally, Izayoi did not want to disappoint them.

Pressing Izayoi down onto the sofa, Hanabi knelt beside the coffee table, propped her chin in both hands, and smiled. "Nii-chan, make a wish."

"Nii-chan's wish is simple. I hope Hanabi grows up quickly, that every day of her life is as colorful as a rainbow, as bright as the stars, and that she becomes as beautiful as her sister." Izayoi clasped his hands as if in prayer and closed his eyes, yet spoke his wish aloud.

But at the end, he added silently, I hope everything goes smoothly, and that all of us can break free from the limits of our lifespans.

After saying that, Izayoi blew out all the candles.

"Nii-chan, I love you to death! Muah!"

Hearing Izayoi's wish, Hanabi pounced on him and planted a hard kiss on his cheek.

Izayoi rubbed Hanabi's little cheeks with both hands and smiled. "The wish has been made. Where's Nii-chan's birthday present?"

"My sister and I prepared it for you a long time ago."

Hanabi jumped off the sofa and went into the room with Hinata. When they came back out, they were carrying three beautifully wrapped boxes.

"Nii-chan, open them and take a look."

After placing the gift boxes on the floor, Hanabi spoke to Izayoi.

Rather than opening the blackout curtains, Hinata switched on the living room lights.

There were three gift boxes, two large and one small.

Izayoi untied the bow, removed the wrapping paper, and opened the small box first.

Inside was a red scarf.

The moment Izayoi picked it up, he seemed to realize something. He could not help looking at the two girls. "Did you make this?"

"As expected of Nii-chan. You guessed it right away."

Hanabi grinned. "Then guess who made this scarf, Nii-chan?"

"You already gave it away yourself."

Izayoi flicked Hanabi on the forehead and smiled. "Your sister definitely helped. Since your sister didn't make it alone, then the two of you must have made it together."

"Mm..." Hanabi immediately puffed out her cheeks.

Hinata merely watched the scene with a gentle smile, unsurprised that Izayoi had figured it out.

"Autumn is almost here, and winter won't be far behind. I really like this scarf."

Izayoi tied the scarf around his neck, then continued opening the gifts.

This time, he opened both large boxes at once. Both contained clothes.

One was a thick Snowman Suit, while the other was a more expensive Flame-Patterned White Robe.

"Nii-chan, can you guess who gave you these two outfits?" Hanabi asked again.

"This one was from Hinata." Izayoi picked up the Snowman Suit and exchanged a smile with Hinata.

"What about this one?"

Hanabi picked up the white robe and asked.

"You gave it together." Izayoi flicked Hanabi's forehead again and laughed. "Did you forget the flame pattern on your kimono? That's your favorite symbol. And you gave yourself away—since the Snowman Suit was from Hinata, this one was either from you or from both of you together."

"No fun, Nii-chan. Can you read minds or something?" Hanabi immediately threw a tantrum, rolling around. "I was clearly planning to beat you just once this year."

"I told you, you can't fool Izayoi-kun," Hinata said with a smile.

"Alright, don't be mad."

Izayoi picked Hanabi up and set her aside, then took the gift boxes from the floor and smiled. "I brought souvenirs for you two as well."

"Oh, right. Where did you go these past few days, Nii-chan?" Successfully distracted, Hanabi asked curiously, "Your Shadow Clone said you went off to do something big. What was it?"

"You'll find out later. I can't tell you yet." Izayoi didn't want to taint his Little Sister-in-Law's innocent heart just yet.

"Nii-chan, you're so annoying."

Hanabi made a face, then opened the gift box Izayoi had stuffed into her arms. Imitating his analysis, she said, "A flat, rectangular gift box, and it's this big... could it be clothes?"

"You got it right. Hanabi, you're amazing."

Having won so thoroughly, Izayoi immediately gave Hanabi the emotional validation she needed.

"Hehe..." Hanabi immediately broke into a happy smile.

After placating his Little Sister-in-Law, Izayoi pulled Hinata down to sit on his other side, placed a gift box in her arms, and leaned close to her ear with a smile. "I really liked the gift. This winter, let's go relive our childhood again! This is your gift, so hurry up and open it."

"...Okay."

Hinata had originally wanted to wait until Hanabi finished looking at hers before opening her own, but seeing the anticipation on Izayoi's face, she began to look forward to his souvenir as well.

She quickly tore off the wrapping and opened the box.

Her beautiful eyes widened slightly.

"This is..."

The Hyuga sisters spoke at the same time, then both turned to Izayoi and asked, "Nii-chan/Izayoi-kun, what kind of clothes are these?"

"They're called... Sailor Suits."

Izayoi looked slightly excited. "I made them myself. Go try them on and see if they fit."

"Okay."

The Hyuga sisters had been full of confusion, but when they heard that Izayoi had made the clothes himself, their eyes immediately lit up. Then they rose and entered the room together.

Meanwhile, Izayoi activated his Tenseigan. Of course, not to peek, but to find Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Seeing that the man had already gotten off work and was having dinner with his grandson Konohamaru, rather than using Crystal Ball Telepathy to spy on people everywhere, Izayoi withdrew his gaze.

Before deactivating the Tenseigan, however, Izayoi glanced in a certain direction outside the house.

At the same time, Hanabi's surprised voice suddenly rang out from inside the room, making a thin sheen of cold sweat appear on Izayoi's forehead. "They fit perfectly! Sis, why does Nii-chan know your measurements?"