Snowflakes danced through the air while the bitter northern wind howled.
Arriving at Aozora's doorstep, Itachi gently set Sasuke down and brushed the snow from his clothes. Taking his small hand in his, he stepped across the threshold.
Itachi looked through the front yard and saw Aozora setting up dishes in the living room.
"Itachi, you're here! Did the clan head come too?"
"No! Father said we should just have fun!"
With that, Itachi pulled Sasuke toward the living room.
Today, a large coffee table had been placed in the center of the room, already filled with fruits, snacks, and various drinks and wines.
Aozora glanced at Sasuke, who barely reached his knees, and said, "Sasuke came too, huh?"
So saying, he placed a tray of [Three Coloured Pills] (soft dumpling-like snacks) before the two boys.
"Have some snacks and drinks first, but no alcohol!"
"Hmm."
Itachi obediently nodded, then picked up a soft, chewy dumpling and handed it to Sasuke.
Soon after, the Gen'ya and Kagenbi brothers also entered the house.
"Commander!"
Even though their squad was long gone, they still deeply respected Aozora.
Aozora smiled and said, "I'm not your commander anymore. You should call me differently from now on!"
Gen'ya straightforwardly replied, "Is that so? Then I'll just call you Aozora from now on!"
"No," Aozora shook his head, "From now on, please call me Instructor Aozora!"
"Eh?" Gen'ya looked confused.
Kagenbi thought for a moment and asked, "Instructor of the Flying Tigers?"
Aozora nodded. "I'm responsible for teaching Ninja Tool Throwing."
Recalling Aozora's precise kunai throws, Gen'ya exclaimed excitedly, "Great! Ever since seeing your kunai throws, I've realized mine were always so feeble!"
Hearing how skilled Aozora was at Ninja Tool Throwing, Itachi spoke up beside them, "Master, I want to learn from you too!"
Sasuke wasn't willing to be left behind either, clapping his little hands enthusiastically, "Me too! Me too!"
Aozora chuckled and said, "Alright! I'll teach you all!"
"Thank you, Instructor!"
"Thanks, Instructor!"
"Many thanks, Master!"
"Thank you…"
Just then, Shuichi and Shin'ya also walked in.
Shuichi wasn't carrying his sword today, but he still kept that cold, distant air as he offered a polite greeting.
In contrast, his constant companion along the way, Shin'ya, exchanged greetings with everyone.
Before long, Aozora's dishes were all served, and Tetsuka, Inabi, and finally Kyudai also took their seats.
The table groaned under an amazing spread of land and sea delights.
Inhaling the enticing aroma of roasted meat, Tetsuka remarked jokingly, "No wonder you've declined my invitations so many times—it must be because you think our food tastes terrible!"
Aozora laughed and replied, "Not at all! I've just been busy!"
"Busy where?" Kyudai interjected. "You get six and a half days off every week!"
Inabi added, "I spend more time in the Chief's office than you do!"
Others quickly joined in with teasing banter.
Time passed, but Shisui failed to return home like usual.
Surveying the seated guests, Aozora decided not to wait any longer and raised his glass: "Thank you all for coming tonight. I don't mean anything special by this gathering—I mainly wanted to say—'You know what? My talent has no limits!' Forget ninjutsu; even when it comes to cooking, I'll wipe the floor with all of you!"
Tetsuka muttered, "Can a genius really do whatever he wants? Was I, Tetsuka, not even worth mentioning?"
Inabi snapped at his younger brother, "You just can't pull off being high-profile!"
Genya grumbled bitterly, "I really feel like punching Aozora right now!"
Kagenbi shot back at his brother, "Too bad you can't beat him!"
Shuichi nodded in agreement, "That's true!"
Shin'ya chimed in with his brother, "Yeah!"
Sasuke flailed his tiny hands around while Itachi went off to find some food for his little brother.
Kyudai glanced around and poured himself a drink.
Uchiha clan banquets were usually full of rules and etiquette, but everyone was young and most were ninja, so they didn't overly concern themselves with formalities.
Aozora's joking manner further helped everyone relax from their usual stiffness at the banquet, leading them to joke around with each other and enjoy the feast happily.
"Come and taste the delicious food made by our culinary genius, Aozora!"
"Hmph, don't let it look good but taste bad… Wow! Smells amazing!"
"Aozora, you should become a chef! I'd come by every day!"
"…"
After praising Aozora's cooking for a while, they soon ran out of things to say and naturally changed the subject.
Inabi savored some sashimi and began telling everyone an amusing story he'd encountered today.
"My subordinate was patrolling the Nanaha River today when suddenly thick fog appeared. He immediately led his team to investigate. As they drew near, they discovered that the fog had actually been caused by someone practicing [Fire Release]!"
"But that kid was too scared to approach and ask any questions—he only knew it was a young Uchiha."
Upon hearing this, Aozora picked up his orange juice and downed it in one gulp, looking very pleased.
Inabi sighed, "There have been so many geniuses in the Uchiha lately! First Shisui, then Aozora, and now another unknown genius..."
Tetsuka felt speechless—wasn't he, Tetsuka, worth mentioning at all?
Shuichi said, "Captain Inabi, no need to feel upset. There aren't that many geniuses. I bet the one practicing Fire Release was Aozora himself!"
"Huh?" Inabi looked at Aozora in surprise.
Aozora calmly nodded, "I did go to the Nanaha River today to practice a new ninjutsu."
Inabi paused after hearing this. Knowing about some of Aozora's past exploits, he originally believed that although Aozora was extremely talented, he should still fall slightly short of himself.
Remembering the strange fog and the burning orange flames that wouldn't die on the water's surface, he now felt unsure.
Tetsuka also felt shocked deep down—he had fought against Aozora before, and back then they were fairly evenly matched, maybe even giving him a slight advantage. Yet only a few months had passed, and now he had been left far behind. He started doubting whether he truly deserved the title of genius.
Seeing the mood cooling down a bit, Aozora quickly called for people to continue eating.
With food in his stomach, Tetsuka regained his fighting spirit and was determined to save face.
"Aozora, do you have a girlfriend yet?"
Aozora shook his head, "Nope!"
Tetsuka advised earnestly, "That won't do! If you don't find one now, what if you can't find anyone later? You should learn from me and strike while the iron's hot..."
Aozora looked surprised at Tetsuka, then pointed toward his own handsome face and asked, "Tetsuka, take a good look at my face! Do you really think I can't find a girlfriend?"
Tetsuka was momentarily speechless, then stubbornly argued, "Hmph! Maybe girls are afraid of being overshadowed whenever they're seen with you, so they don't want to date you!"
Aozora chuckled but didn't argue further, saying, "If you're going to worry about someone, you should be worrying about Kyudai!"
Kyudai, who was busy eating and drinking, looked up upon hearing his name. "What's up?" he asked.
Aozora said, "Kyudai, you're already sixteen—you absolutely must find a girlfriend now!"
Kyudai frowned, confused. "Why? Shouldn't a guy focus on his career first?"
Shaking his head, Aozora spoke earnestly, "Kyudai, your family's bloodline has survived through the generations—it's rare that it made it all the way to you! Now your top priority is to get married and have kids as soon as possible—to produce the Tenth Generation! Otherwise, if something ever happened to you, your family line would die out forever!"
Everyone else nodded in agreement.
Looking around at the brothers sitting on both sides of the table, Kyudai suddenly felt the weight of his responsibility.
The doors and windows of the living room were wide open, letting in cold winds—but also allowing light from the room to spill outside.
Gentle lamplight spilled onto the snow-covered paths in the courtyard, glimmering softly.
Everyone lounged comfortably in the living room, savoring good food and drinks, watching the snow fall while chatting and laughing—it was the perfect moment.
While Aozora threw a feast with his closest friends, Shisui entered the Hokage's office for the second time since joining the Shadow Guard Team.
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