Dinner Time by the Campfire
During dinner, beside the campfire.
Minato, who had cooked several extra cups of rice, sat beside Shinji, holding a bowl of rice heaped high, wanting to speak but not knowing where to start.
There were so many questions on his mind. Not only about the events of today, where he seemingly died again, but also about Karin.
When teaching the three kids some basics in the afternoon, including chakra extraction, Minato had noticed it.
Undoubtedly, Karin was a survivor of the Uzumaki clan. He couldn't mistake that chakra.
As for the other two, they had learned chakra extraction almost instantly, and both Haku and Kimimaro had extremely rare kekkei genkai.
Ice Release, Shikotsumyaku, and the Land of Water.
Where should he start asking?
Minato was troubled, but then he remembered something Shinji had said today:
"If you're lucky enough to survive, I'll graciously grant you a small request."
With that thought, Minato looked down at his body. He had survived, right? If so, could he make a request?
Surely Shinji would keep his word, right? How should he phrase his request to maximize the benefits?
Seeing through Minato's thoughts, Shinji raised an eyebrow, his expression turning strange as he looked at Minato. "Hey, you don't really think you survived that guy, do you?"
"Huh? I didn't?"
Minato was taken aback. He couldn't quite remember what had happened; he seemed to have blacked out after being pierced and then regained consciousness just in time for class.
Crack!
Seeing Shinji summon a dirty white puppet from nowhere, Minato was puzzled. Then he heard Shinji continue.
"Look, this is the proof that you were killed."
Staring at the cracked white puppet's chest, Minato looked amazed and quickly set down his bowl to inspect it.
"This... this was my body? Using something like this to house a soul, impressive indeed..."
"So, how do you plan to compensate me for breaking one of my puppets?"
Hearing this, Minato stiffened and recalled something else Shinji had said today.
"That body is my property. If you break it, be prepared to compensate with your wife!"
"Mr. Anli..."
Seeing Minato's forced smile, Shinji decided not to dwell on it. He casually put the puppet away and said, "Well, forget it. For now, I'm not too interested in such matters. When I am, we'll talk."
Minato: ...
So, you're just putting it on hold?
And what do you mean you're not interested now? Does that mean you can do it anytime you want when you are interested? Seriously?
"And why didn't you check your body for any issues this time? I put a lot of effort into it!"
Seeing Shinji give him a thumbs up and wink, Minato felt a chill.
Oh no, I forgot about that!
A few minutes later...
After thoroughly checking his body in a small forest, Minato returned to Shinji and stood in silence.
After a few seconds, Minato looked up at Shinji with utmost seriousness.
"Mr. Anli... can you give me back those missing five inches?"
Shinji: ...
"Don't brag, or next time I'll really take away those five inches... no, you might end up owing me..."
"Cough, cough!"
Minato quickly coughed to interrupt Shinji, then scratched his head and laughed sheepishly. "Just kidding. Mr. Anli, you're always joking around, right? Everything's fine! Just like before!"
"No, that's not a good joke, Little Minato."
For some reason, Shinji suddenly looked very serious. He continued earnestly, "You should know, if I add those five inches back, you'd almost be half as big as me!"
Minato: ...
Weren't you the one who said no bragging?
Why are you bragging now?
After a long silence, Minato sat back down, picked up his bowl, and resumed eating slowly.
"Mr. Anli, why did it feel like I couldn't avoid that man's spear? And that hook-like weapon, it gave me a bad feeling. How could he predict all my Flying Thunder God landing points?"
Having finished dinner earlier, Shinji put down his utensils, elegantly wiped his mouth with a napkin, and casually answered, "You mean those two weapons? Yes, they're somewhat special. The spear is called Gáe Bolg, and it's destined to pierce the enemy's heart once thrown. You can't dodge it; you can only block it or escape into a different dimension.
As for the hook-shaped weapon, it's Harpe, which negates immortality. And as for predicting all your landing points, that's because he was serious. When he gets serious, not only can he see your landing points, he can see the future too."
Hearing this, Minato fell silent. After a while, he scratched his head and chuckled, "Why does it feel like after dying once, this ninja world isn't the one I knew? All these incomprehensibly powerful beings just popped up out of nowhere..."
Shinji shook his head. "No, it's not like that. Some things were just temporarily forgotten. Like certain objective facts, just because you didn't know about them doesn't mean they didn't exist."
From Shinji's words, Minato seemed to grasp something but didn't ask further. After all, he knew Shinji's temperament well.
If he pushed too much, Shinji would just brush him off.
"Seeing the future, huh? That's amazing."
Karin sighed sincerely. Whether it was childlike excitement or the glow of the campfire, her cheeks were flushed.
"Just like Gilgamesh in the book."
Haku added as he stoked the fire.
"Who knows." Shinji shrugged. "Anyway, next time you see him, try not to provoke him. Even I find him troublesome."
"Even Mr. Anli..."
Minato was surprised. Shinji always seemed invincible, capable of things Minato couldn't imagine.
Reviving him, casually playing with the Nine-Tails.
If even Shinji found him troublesome, how dangerous was that golden guy? Could he destroy the world?
"Yes, if he uses 'that', he could indeed destroy the world. In the concept of 'against the world', 'that' is the strongest. No one and no weapon can match it."
"Uh... Mr. Anli, you can read my mind? What is 'that'?"
"Want to see it? Maybe next time we meet him, you can ask."
"Actually... never mind."
Minato laughed nervously. Even though he didn't know what it was, if it was dangerous, he'd rather not see it.
What if it destroyed the world?
"In short, next time, just go along with his temperament. Otherwise... I won't help you if you get killed again."
"I understand."
Minato nodded, not too worried. He believed Shinji would still revive him.
Because Shinji needed him!
"I just find you useful. Don't misunderstand. You cook well, make a decent bodyguard, teach effectively, and most importantly, you have a decent-looking wife who also died young."
Minato: ...
Can you not say that?
And what do you mean by 'decent-looking wife'?
"Mr. Anli, please! Don't think about Kushina! I'll die for real!"
With that, Minato found a heavy sword placed in his hand. Staring at the sword, he fell silent again.
"Then go ahead. After you die, I'll summon your wife, erase her memory, and have her cook and clean for me. Don't worry, I'll treat her well!"
Minato's eye twitched, and he quickly returned the sword, laughing awkwardly. "Haha... let's not. Mr. Anli, Kushina's cooking is terrible! And she doesn't even know how to separate colors when washing clothes! She's useless at housework! You wouldn't be satisfied!"
Seeing Minato's forced smile, Shinji decided to stop teasing him.
"Just kidding. I'm not interested in her. I won't do anything to her."
Shinji shrugged. Just as Minato felt relieved, Shinji held up his phone, playing a video of Minato's earlier confession.
"I'll just show her this!"
Minato: ...