At the barbecue restaurant,
the charcoal in the grill glowed red-hot. As slices of meat hit the grate, they sizzled loudly, grease popping in every direction.
Shin-chan was sitting on Tsunade's right, staring fixedly at the meat. He'd been holding his chopsticks ready for ages. Rin sat across from him, with Shizune and Kurenai on either side of her. All of them were waiting for the meat to finish cooking.
Then the curtain at the entrance was pushed aside.
"Well, that smells amazing."
A carefree voice drifted in.
Shin-chan instinctively turned his head and saw a white-haired man walking in, with two red markings painted on his face. Behind him were a blond teenage boy and a red-haired girl.
Shin-chan tilted his head for two seconds, then called out, "Weird uncle!"
Jiraiya was still walking in when he heard that title, and his foot slipped.
"Why is it you again, brat?!" He stared at Shin-chan, then at Tsunade sitting beside him. "What are you all doing here?"
Tsunade picked up a piece of grilled meat and slowly placed it into her mouth.
"Jiraiya. Long time no see."
Jiraiya's gaze bounced back and forth between Tsunade and Shin-chan twice, then he suddenly grinned.
"So you got stuck with this brat too?"
Tsunade paused mid-bite and looked up.
"Too?"
Jiraiya pulled out a chair and sat down without any hesitation. Then he poured himself a cup of tea and drank a big gulp.
"This brat extorted a barbecue meal out of me last time."
Then he looked at Tsunade, smiling. "What? Did he extort one out of you too?"
The corner of Tsunade's mouth twitched.
She looked down at Shin-chan on her right, then at the barbecue that still hadn't been paid for.
"More or less."
"This kid's got guts." Jiraiya couldn't help laughing. "He even dares to extort you."
Shin-chan looked at Jiraiya. "Why are you here?"
"To eat, obviously. What else?" Jiraiya turned toward the entrance and called out, "Minato, Kushina, come sit down."
The blond boy and the red-haired girl walked in.
The boy looked about fifteen or sixteen, with blond hair, blue eyes, and a gentle smile.
The girl looked about the same age. Her long red hair was tied into a ponytail, and the moment she came in, she curiously started sizing Shin-chan up.
"Jiraiya-sensei, who's this?" Minato asked.
"A brat." Jiraiya waved dismissively.
Kushina leaned in and bent down to look at Shin-chan. "What a cute little kid."
Shin-chan glanced at her, said nothing, and immediately turned back to stare at the meat again.
Jiraiya slapped the table. "Alright, let's just make this a bigger table and eat together."
Before Tsunade could refuse, Jiraiya had already told Minato to move the chairs.
More plates of meat were added, and everyone shifted seats.
Tsunade ended up with Jiraiya on her left and Shin-chan on her right, the two of them stuck to her like guardian statues.
Jiraiya leaned closer toward Tsunade, nearly bumping her with his elbow.
"Tsunade, it's been a long time since we ate together. Remember the last time we—"
Thud.
A puff of smoke rose from the top of Jiraiya's head as he slammed flat onto the floor. His chair tipped over beside him, and a huge lump sprang up on the back of his head.
Tsunade withdrew her fist, expression calm.
"Sit across from me."
Jiraiya rubbed his head as he climbed back up. He opened his mouth as if to complain, but when he saw the look in Tsunade's eyes, he obediently went and sat across from her.
At the side, Shin-chan's eyes were sparkling.
"Big Sister Tsunade, you're amazing."
Tsunade ignored him and kept flipping the meat.
Jiraiya sat down across from them and looked around. Beside him, Minato and Kushina were sitting together, both behaving properly.
Then he glanced at Shin-chan, who was still glued to Tsunade's side, and suddenly reached out and grabbed him.
"You too. Over here."
Shin-chan's feet dangled in the air. "What are you doing? Put me down. Big Sister Tsunade—"
Jiraiya set him down beside himself and pressed him into the chair.
"You sit here."
Shin-chan's face crumpled. "Why?"
"There's no room over there."
"There obviously is."
He looked at the empty spot beside Tsunade, pouted, and said, "I don't want to sit next to you."
"Why not?"
"Because you're not good-looking."
Jiraiya's smile froze.
Tsunade let out a short laugh at the side.
Shin-chan was just about to scramble back over when Jiraiya held him in place by the shoulder and pointed at the red-haired girl.
"Look, that big sister is pretty too, right?"
Kushina had just been taking a sip of tea and nearly choked when he pointed at her.
Shin-chan followed his finger and looked for two seconds, then shook his head.
"I still like Big Sister Tsunade more."
Jiraiya froze. "Why?"
"She's too young." Shin-chan said it matter-of-factly. "I'm not interested in kids under eighteen."
The table fell silent for one second.
Kushina set down her teacup and looked at Shin-chan. "Who are you calling a kid?"
Shin-chan blinked. "You."
A cross-shaped vein popped on Kushina's forehead.
"How old are you?"
"Five."
"I'm ten years older than you."
"That still only makes you fifteen." Shin-chan shook his head. "Too young."
Kushina took a deep breath.
At her side, Minato hurriedly held her hand down and whispered, "Kushina, calm down, calm down. He's just a kid..."
"Does being a kid mean he gets to say whatever he wants?"
Jiraiya laughed. "Then what age do you like?"
"I'm not interested in anyone under eighteen." Shin-chan spread his hands. "So obviously I like big sisters over eighteen."
"Why eighteen?" Jiraiya asked, suddenly interested.
"Because big sisters who are eighteen and older are more mature." Shin-chan answered seriously. "And they've got better figures too."
Kushina got so mad her whole face turned red. "This brat is exactly like Jiraiya-sensei!"
Jiraiya's smile stiffened.
"How am I anything like him?"
"You're both equally annoying."
Jiraiya opened his mouth, but nothing came out.
From the side, Shin-chan raised a hand. "I'm way more handsome than weird uncle."
Jiraiya smacked him on the head. "Shut up."
Holding his head, Shin-chan looked at Tsunade with a wronged expression. "Big Sister Tsunade, he hit me."
Tsunade put another piece of meat into her mouth and didn't even look at them.
"You deserved it."
Shin-chan looked even more wronged.
Rin said quietly from the side, "Shin-chan, stop messing around..."
Shin-chan ignored her and tried to move back toward Tsunade again, but Jiraiya held him in place.
Tsunade set down her chopsticks and said, word by word, "You two."
Jiraiya and Shin-chan both froze.
"If you keep making noise, you're both out."
Both of them went completely quiet.
Watching all this, Kushina couldn't help laughing. She turned to Minato and whispered, "That little brat is kind of interesting."
Minato nodded.
Shin-chan sat on the chair swinging his legs, staring at the meat on the grill so hard he was practically drooling.
"Is the meat done yet?"
Tsunade flipped it over. "A little longer."
"How much longer?"
"Thirty seconds."
Shin-chan immediately started counting. "One, two, three..."
Tsunade picked up a piece of meat and stuffed it into his mouth.
Shin-chan's eyes lit up. "Mmm, so good."
He chewed twice, swallowed, and opened his mouth again.
"More."
Tsunade picked up another piece and stuffed that into his mouth too.