After concluding the disciples' training on Sunday afternoon, Mutsuki went to the main city area, skipping a visit home and heading directly to Minato's house.
During dinner at Mutsuki's place last night, Kushina and Minato informed Mutsuki that they had almost completed their pork belly practice and were planning to officially start cooking it the next afternoon. Mutsuki was invited to drop by if available.
When Mutsuki arrived, the two had just finished boiling the pork belly and were preparing to color it with soy sauce.
As Mutsuki was about to offer help, Kushina stopped him.
"Mutsuki, you can just watch. If you notice any mistakes in the process, feel free to point them out, but there's no need to assist," Kushina said.
Having dinner at Mutsuki's house almost every night, Kushina didn't want to inconvenience Mutsuki by asking for help.
Minato handed Mutsuki a fruit plate and poured a glass of water, gently smiling.
"You don't need to help today, Mutsuki. Be our exam proctor for once," Minato said.
Minato and Kushina had the same idea, thinking that this time they should do it themselves.
"Well then, I guess I'll take it easy," Mutsuki said with a smile.
"You can use a chopstick to poke some small holes in the pork skin before pouring the soy sauce. This way, the pork will absorb more flavor, and when frying, it will turn out more fluffy," Mutsuki reminded.
Kushina and Minato only then realized they had forgotten about this small detail.
With Mutsuki's reminder, Kushina and Minato efficiently completed each step - frying, slicing, preparing the seasoning sauce, and steaming.
By the time the two finished their busy work, it was already dark outside.
"Although this pork belly is delicious, it's quite troublesome to make. Mutsuki, you must be hungry by now," Kushina asked.
Compared to the usual home-cooked dishes she prepared, making pork belly was much more complicated, involving boiling, frying, and steaming processes.
"I'm okay. After all, I just watched from the sidelines," Mutsuki replied.
While the two were talking, Minato brought over the completed pork belly.
"Next, let's have Yumi-sensei give us a score," Minato joked.
"After all the hard work, why don't you taste the fruits of your labor first?" Mutsuki didn't rush to taste the dish and instead chose to let Minato and Kushina eat first.
"Then let's eat together," a hungry Kushina decided not to make it overly formal.
The three quickly served their meals, and without any formalities, they declared, "Let's dig in!" and started eating.
"That's right, it has that perfect balance of richness without being too greasy!" Picking up a piece of meat and putting it in her mouth, then grabbing a mouthful of rice with chopsticks, Kushina's face lit up with excitement, feeling a sense of accomplishment.
She felt her time wasn't wasted; she had successfully learned to cook a delicious dish.
Although she still thought Mutsuki's cooking was tastier, Kushina believed that in this world, there was no one who could cook better than Mutsuki. Being just a bit short of being the best in the world seemed perfectly normal.
"When Jiraiya-sensei returns, I'll definitely make this for him to taste," Minato said while eating.
Minato was also very satisfied with this plate of pork belly and wanted to share it with Jiraiya.
"Well, it's well-executed with no major flaws," Mutsuki praised after tasting it.
Not entirely seeking to please, Mutsuki recognized that this dish was originally a simple home-cooked meal, and with his guidance, the final product naturally turned out well.
However, a slightly awkward situation soon unfolded: the pork belly was quickly devoured, leaving the three of them staring at empty plates.
"Sorry, forgot to make other dishes," Minato realized, looking at the now-empty plates.
"I got too focused and completely forgot," Kushina admitted with a sheepish smile.
"I'll stir-fry a couple of dishes," Mutsuki offered, getting up.
"That's not right. You're our guest; we can't have the guest doing the cooking," Kushina hesitated, feeling it was inappropriate.
"Then should I go home, cook, and bring them over?" Mutsuki asked with a smile.
"I'll wash the vegetables," Minato quietly stood up.
After considering the taste of Mutsuki's cooking, Kushina ultimately couldn't resist nodding in approval.
"Mutsuki, since you're interested in Sealing Jutsu, are you currently learning any Sealing Jutsu techniques? I can teach you some tricks in Sealing Jutsu," Kushina couldn't help but ask while sitting idly at the dining table.
Feeling a bit awkward about frequently having meals at Mutsuki's place, Kushina wanted to repay him somehow.
"I'm currently going through various theoretical books. Do you have any recommended Sealing Jutsu, preferably ones available in the library?" Mutsuki thought for a moment and asked.
"If you haven't started yet, how about I teach you an introductory Sealing Jutsu from our Uzumaki Clan? It can also test your Sealing Jutsu aptitude. If you manage to learn it within a day, you're a Sealing Jutsu genius. Within a week, you have the talent for Sealing Jutsu. If it takes more than a month, I wouldn't recommend wasting time on Sealing Jutsu," Kushina suggested.
"How long did it take you to learn it, Kushina?" Mutsuki asked as he heated oil in the pot.
"Just a day," Kushina proudly replied, waiting for Mutsuki to inquire.
"Then you're a Sealing Jutsu genius," Mutsuki praised.
"Average, just learned most of the Sealing Jutsu from our Uzumaki Clan," Kushina casually remarked, her smile uncontrollable.
After finishing the meal, Kushina handed Mutsuki a scroll and then went to wash the dishes, leaving Minato to explain it to Mutsuki.
Mutsuki listened very attentively, more serious than ever before.
"This Sealing Jutsu is called 'One Finger Quick Seal.' It rapidly creates a seal that blocks Chakra, but the binding strength is not strong. It's easy to break through and doesn't have much practical combat significance. It's generally only used for introductory training," Minato explained.
Whether it was due to Minato's high proficiency in Sealing Jutsu or Mutsuki's innate talent, he felt like this One Finger Quick Seal was quite straightforward.
Mutsuki didn't show much interest in that aspect, just occasionally asking questions.
...
On Monday, Kotetsu arrived early at the Academy. Seeing Izumo hadn't arrived yet, he nodded in satisfaction, placed a novel on the desk, and began reading.
When he felt Izumo was about to arrive, Kotetsu closed the textbook, leaving only the novel on the desk.
"You said you wouldn't review, Kotetsu. Why are you here so early reading a book?" Izumo, who had studied until 1 am the night before, asked in surprise.
Hagane Kotetsu raised the novel in his hand and replied, "Who said anything about reviewing? This is the latest Ninja novel that just came out. It's really good."
Izumo, looking at the cover and title, relaxed and said, "Reading a novel for relaxation is indeed a good choice."
"Seems like Kotetsu enjoys reading novels. I'll buy him a bestselling novel tomorrow and let him enjoy reading for two weeks," Izumo thought to himself.
He felt that his position was becoming more stable.
"Izumo, you look a bit tired. You didn't stay up late studying, did you? It's not good for your health and not conducive to exams," Kotetsu asked with a concerned expression.
"No, I was playing games with my cousin and others last night, lost track of time, and slept very late," Izumo casually replied.
"Playing games to relax, huh? That's not bad," Kotetsu smiled, feeling that his position was becoming more stable.
Great, he thought. Izumo likes playing games. He decided to gather information about various games after school, aiming to let Izumo enjoy playing different games every day for the next two weeks.
"What Novels? What games?" Anko, entering the classroom, showed interest.
---
Don't forget to check out my patreon where you can read up to 50 advanced chapters https://www.patreon.com/CrazyNinja