During afternoon break, Obito suddenly stood up.
"Shin-chan, I challenge you!"
The classroom went silent for a second.
Shin-chan was slumped over his desk and didn't even lift his eyelids. "Why?"
"Because..." Obito stalled for a moment and glanced in Rin's direction. "Because I want to compete."
Shin-chan rolled over and buried his face in his arms. "What a pain."
"You scared?"
Shin-chan lifted his head, looked at him once, then flopped back down. "My body says it doesn't want to move."
A few people nearby snickered.
Obito's face turned even redder. He walked up to Shin-chan's desk and planted both hands on it. "Get up. Let's fight."
Shin-chan raised his head from his arms and offered a suggestion. "Then let Shiro fight for me."
Obito froze. "What?"
"Shiro, go."
Shiro looked at Obito, barked once, and wagged his tail.
The corner of Obito's mouth twitched. "You want me to fight a dog?"
"Shiro's really strong," Shin-chan said seriously. "He even has chakra now."
"He's only had chakra for a few days," Obito said. "There's no way he's a match for me."
Shiro barked again, as if arguing back.
Teacher Ibuki, standing at the front, finally spoke up. "Obito, go sit down."
"But, teacher..."
"No buts." Teacher Ibuki kept a stern face. "Stop fooling around."
Obito still wanted to argue, but Teacher Ibuki shot him a glare, so he had no choice but to trudge back to his seat.
...
After school, Shin-chan slowly packed up his things.
When he reached the school gate, he stopped.
Two people were standing there.
Hatake Sakumo was leaning against the wall, wearing a light-colored coat. He looked a little thinner than the last time Shin-chan had seen him.
Kakashi was standing beside him.
"Silver-Haired Mister, you're back!" Shin-chan's eyes lit up, and he ran over.
Sakumo looked down at him, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly. "Yeah, I just got back."
Shin-chan tilted his head and looked him over. "You look thinner."
Sakumo froze for a second.
"Your face got smaller." Shin-chan gestured with his hands.
Sakumo smiled faintly. "Did it?"
"It did." Shin-chan nodded seriously. "Every time my mom goes on a diet, her face gets skinnier too. But she quits after three days because she gets too hungry."
Sakumo touched his face and smiled a little. "Maybe so. I've just had a lot of missions lately."
Shin-chan didn't really know what "a lot of missions" meant. He only knew that Silver-Haired Mister had been gone for a long time, and Kakashi had been going home alone the whole time.
At the side, Kakashi turned his face away, lost in thought.
Sakumo patted Shin-chan on the head, then crouched down and pulled out two short swords from behind him.
Their scabbards were deep blue, wrapped with black cord.
He handed one to Shin-chan and the other to Kakashi.
"I brought these back from the Land of Iron," Sakumo said. "They're made from a special metal, so they conduct chakra very well."
Shin-chan took his, and it felt heavy in his hand—much heavier than the wooden sword he'd been using before.
"It's heavy."
"You'll get used to it."
Shin-chan pulled it out just a little. The blade gleamed so brightly he could see his own reflection in it, and he immediately shoved it back into the sheath.
Sakumo smiled when he saw that reaction. "Last time, you said your dad brings back gifts when he returns from missions."
Shin-chan looked up.
"I thought... I should bring something too." Sakumo's tone was calm, as if he were saying something very ordinary.
"Thank you, Mister!"
Then Sakumo pulled out another box from behind him and handed it to Shin-chan. "This too."
Shin-chan opened it, and his eyes instantly lit up.
It was packed full of chocolate sticks.
"Wow!" Shin-chan's voice jumped up. "So many chocolate sticks!"
Sakumo smiled and stood up, then glanced over at Kakashi.
Kakashi was looking down at the short sword in his hand, lost in thought.
Sakumo was silent for a second, then took out another box and handed it to Kakashi. "This one's yours."
Kakashi took it and opened it. It was exactly the same as Shin-chan's.
"I don't even like chocolate sticks."
Sakumo's expression stiffened for a moment, and he coughed awkwardly.
The moment Shin-chan heard that, his eyes lit up. "I like them. You can give them to me."
Before the sentence was even finished, Shin-chan's hand had already shot out.
But Kakashi was faster. He instantly pulled the box back and hugged it against his chest.
Shin-chan grabbed nothing but air, then stared at him in confusion. "Didn't you just say you don't like them?"
Kakashi shoved the box closer into his chest. "Even if I don't, I'm not giving them to you."
Shin-chan stared at him, utterly betrayed.
"Why? You're not going to eat them."
Kakashi ignored him, protecting the box like it was something precious.
Shin-chan's mouth drooped. He turned to Sakumo with the most pitiful look imaginable.
"There aren't any more. I only brought two boxes." Sakumo spread his hands, trying not to laugh.
Kakashi glanced at Shin-chan. "You already have one, don't you?"
"That's different." Shin-chan said, hugging his own box. "You can never have too many chocolate sticks."
Kakashi fell silent. He had no answer to that.
Still clutching his own box, Shin-chan clearly hadn't given up. "You really don't like them?"
"No."
"If you leave them there, they'll go bad."
"They won't."
"They'll get moldy."
"They won't."
"Bugs will crawl into them."
Kakashi took a deep breath. "They won't."
Shin-chan sighed and put on an expression that said I'm genuinely worried about you. "Fine then. Just give them to me before they get moldy."
At that point, Kakashi simply stopped responding.
Sakumo stood there watching the two kids and finally laughed out loud.
Kakashi looked up at him, and Sakumo immediately stopped laughing and pretended to admire the scenery.
By then Shin-chan had already opened his own box and started eating, mumbling through a mouthful of chocolate, "Mister, next time you come back, are you bringing gifts again?"
"What do you want next time?"
Shin-chan tilted his head and thought for two seconds. "Chocolate sticks."
"Alright." Sakumo agreed at once.
Kakashi quietly muttered something at the side. It was so soft that Sakumo didn't catch it, so he looked down at him. "What did you say?"
"Nothing." Kakashi turned his face away.
Sakumo watched his profile for a second, then suddenly reached out and ruffled his hair.
Kakashi didn't dodge. He let his father mess up his hair without resisting at all.
...
When Shin-chan got home, Hiroshi still wasn't back yet.
"Mom, Silver-Haired Mister came back today, and he brought me presents."
Misae's voice drifted out from the kitchen. "What kind of presents?"
"A short sword."
"What?" Misae came charging out of the kitchen, still holding a spatula. "A short sword?"
Shin-chan held it up for her to see.
Misae stared at the blade and took a deep breath. "Shin-chan, you're only five. You cannot play with knives!"
"It's not for playing. It's for training. Kakashi got one too."
Then Shin-chan ran into the living room, put the short sword on the table, and hugged the box of chocolate sticks to his chest.
Misae opened her mouth, but for a moment, she had no idea what to say.
~~~
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