Just then, the sound of the front door opening echoed through the house.
"Shin-chan, is Himawari awake yet?"
The familiar voice of his sister-in-law, Nohara Misae, called out from the entryway.
Before Sato could even react, Shinnosuke dashed out and shouted, "She's been up for a while! I worked really hard keeping her entertained, you know!"
Sato: "???"
This little rascal… just straight-up lying? He had been the one playing with Himawari the whole time!
"Oh? That must've been tiring, here's your reward."
"Wow! Pudding! Long live Mom!"
"Wait, these shoes... is Sato here?"
"Yeah, that guy's been here for a while. He was the one playing with Himawari."
At that, there was a brief silence outside.
"You little brat! Didn't you just say you were the one playing with her?! And don't call him by name, he's your uncle! Uncle! Got it?!"
From the entryway came Misae's furious roar, followed by Shin-chan's dramatic wailing.
Sato calmly sipped tea at the low table, unbothered. He could picture exactly what was happening without opening his eyes.
Most likely, Misae had her hands full with one arm juggling grocery bags, the other pinching Shin-chan's cheeks.
Clomp clomp clomp!
The sound of heavy, determined footsteps echoed through the hallway, perfectly matching Misae's no-nonsense personality.
"Ah, Sato! You're already here!"
Soon enough, a familiar figure came into view.
Sato glanced up and couldn't help but smile.
Just as he imagined: Misae carried an armful of groceries, while using her free hand to mercilessly pinch the cheek of the potato-headed brat.
"Yep. Sorry to intrude, Sis."
Holding Himawari, Sato greeted her with a smile.
Misae laughed behind her hand. "We're family, no need to be so polite. If you ever need anything, just come over."
"Oh right, Hiroshi said you should stay the night. That okay?"
Sato nodded. "No problem. It's Sunday tomorrow."
"Great. I'll go make lunch, then."
With that, Misae hauled the groceries to the kitchen and finally let go of Shin-chan's face.
Thud!
The little potato dropped to the floor like a sack.
"Oww... Mom's so mean…" Shin-chan whined, rubbing his cheek as he shuffled over to the table. He began scarfing down tea and snacks, grumbling under his breath: "She really is the monster big-butt old hag…"
"Don't you ever learn?"
Sato couldn't help but comment as he looked at the eternally unrepentant Shin-chan.
Should I admire your resilience, or just call you fearless?
…
After lunch.
"Sato, I'm heading to the salon this afternoon. I'll leave Himawari with you, okay?"
"Got it, Sis. Don't worry."
"Oh, and keep an eye on Shin-chan too. Make sure he doesn't do anything embarrassing again."
"Huh? What'd he do this time?"
"When doesn't he do something embarrassing?"
"Good point…"
"I'll be back early tonight. I'll cook up something special for dinner."
"Thanks, Sis."
Once Misae left, the Nohara house was back to just him and the two kids. Kids usually got sleepy after lunch, and sure enough, Himawari soon nodded off.
After gently tucking her in, Sato turned to find Shin-chan sprawled lazily across the tatami mat. One hand propped up his head while the other tossed rice crackers into his mouth as he stared at the TV.
"Shin-chan, aren't you going out to play with your friends?"
"Don't feel like it today…"
Suddenly, he rolled over and looked at Sato, eyes gleaming.
"Sato... Is it true you're going to high school here now?"
"Call me Uncle!"
Sato tugged his chubby cheek with a smirk. Huh. Feels kinda nice.
"Yeah, I transferred here. Why do you ask?"
"Then… have you met any pretty big sisters?"
The little perv's eyes sparkled with pure hope, causing a storm of dark lines to appear on Sato's forehead.
This kid… he's totally been corrupted by the old man.
Looking at Shin-chan, Sato couldn't help seeing the silhouette of that incorrigible senior, Nohara Ginnosuke, the lewdest of grandpas!
"But I thought you didn't like kids?"
Sato gave him a dry look. This little perv had very specific preferences.
He only liked older girls. "Kids" to him included anyone under college age.
Tch. You're literally in kindergarten and you call others "kids"? Ridiculous.
"Huh? That's true…"
Shin-chan sighed with disappointment, then suddenly gave Sato a disapproving glare.
Ugh, useless Sato… can't even score one pretty big sister…
Sato almost felt like he heard that thought.
Stay calm, he told himself. Even if this little brat deserves a smack, he's still my nephew.
Ding dong! Ding dong!
As they sat watching some mindless children's show together, the doorbell rang. Accompanied by soft childish voices.
"Shin-chan! We came to play!"
Sato perked up and looked at the human starfish lying on the tatami.
"Shin-chan, your friends are here."
"Ugh… but I don't wanna move. Sato, you get the door for me."
Face down on the mat, Shin-chan groaned into the floor.
Sato: "…"
.....
At the entryway.
Click~
The door creaked open, revealing a small group of children about Shin-chan's age.
"Huh? A stranger…"
A kid with a rice ball-shaped head blinked at Sato, then nervously ducked behind a chubby, slow-looking boy.
The only girl among them blinked with sparkling eyes as she stared at Sato.
The last child, who looked the most well-mannered, also froze for a second, but then stepped forward politely.
"Hello. We're Shin-chan's friends. I'm Kazama, and these are Nene, Masao, and Bo-chan. Is Shin-chan home?"
Sato blinked at the little guy in surprise.
Same age, huh? Why is this kid so polite while my nephew's a tiny pervert?
"Nice to meet you. I'm Nohara Sato, Shin-chan's uncle."
"Come on in. He's inside."
"Excuse us!"
The kids bowed politely, then stepped in and removed their shoes like pros, clearly regulars.
When they reached the end of the hallway, Kazama looked inside the room and his mouth twitched.
Then he sighed and said with a hint of resignation:
"Shin-chan, what are you doing now?"
A muffled voice replied from inside.
"Corpse game."
Sato: "…"
Everyone else: "…"