By the time Hiroshi got off work, a pile of things had accumulated on his desk.
He couldn't remember when these things had been placed there, but every colleague who came to give him something had said something similar.
"We happened to have extra."
"I brought it along while I was at it."
"It's not worth much."
When Hiroshi returned home, he was carrying a pile of things in his arms.
He hummed a tune completely out of key, walking with a spring in his step. Even the evening breeze blowing past him seemed sweet.
When he reached the door, he freed one hand and pushed it open. "I'm back."
"Why are you home so early today?" Misae poked her head out from the living room. "What did you bring back?"
"Nothing much." Hiroshi placed the items on the table one by one. "My colleagues gave them to me."
"Your colleagues gave them to you?" Misae picked up a wooden box and looked at it. "These things aren't cheap."
"You know me. I've always been popular." Hiroshi's face carried a hint of pride he couldn't hide. "Whenever my colleagues have good things, they always think of bringing me some."
Misae looked down at the pile of things.
Snacks, tea leaves, and even an unopened bottle of sake.
She didn't say anything and turned around to pour Hiroshi a cup of tea.
"Listen." Misae sat down across from him. "I have good news too."
"What good news?" Hiroshi blew on the steam rising from the teacup.
"Lord Hokage is going to take Shin-chan as his student."
Hiroshi's movement froze, the teacup suspended in midair. "What?"
"What's wrong?" Misae looked at his reaction, a little puzzled.
Hiroshi didn't answer. He looked at the pile of things on the table and suddenly sighed.
"No wonder."
"No wonder what?"
"No wonder so many colleagues gave me things today." Hiroshi's tone was hard to describe. "I thought my popularity had improved."
Misae looked at him, waiting for him to continue.
"When I went out this morning, one colleague stuffed a box of snacks into my hands and said they 'made too much.'" Hiroshi lowered his head and looked at his ninja tool pouch. "When I got to the office, someone else praised me for maintaining my ninja tools well."
Misae was silent for a while, then looked at the pile of things on the table. "What should we do with these?"
"Since I've already accepted them, returning them directly wouldn't be appropriate." Hiroshi leaned back in his chair and stared at the ceiling for a while. "Tomorrow, I'll buy things of equal value and return the favor to each family."
Misae silently calculated the cost in her heart.
Snacks, tea leaves, sake—none of them were cheap. If they prepared return gifts of equal value, this month's expenses would increase by quite a lot.
"It's just that..." Hiroshi scratched his head. "Living expenses might be a little tight afterward."
Misae looked at the side of his face, stood up, and poured him another cup of tea. "It's alright. I'll think of something for whatever isn't enough."
Hiroshi turned to look at her.
"You don't need to worry about things at home," Misae said calmly. "Return the favors that should be returned. Shin-chan's side is the important matter."
"Shin-chan." Hiroshi repeated his son's name, as if he were hearing those two words for the first time.
The student of Lord Hokage.
His son.
...
Shin-chan came home later than usual today.
"Why isn't he back yet?" Misae frowned. "Usually by this time, he'd already be hungry. Today..."
The door opened.
Shin-chan stood at the entrance, holding a paper bag in his arms, with a cloth bundle hanging from his shoulder. His whole body looked like it had been buried in snacks.
"You're back." He burped and staggered inside.
Misae froze for a moment, watching as her son placed the paper bag on the coffee table. Several boxes of chocolate sticks rolled out from the opening.
When Hiroshi saw the pile of things on the coffee table, he couldn't help asking, "Where did these come from?"
Shin-chan did not answer right away. He first picked up the cup on the coffee table and gulped down a few mouthfuls of water, then plopped down onto the tatami.
"A lot of people I didn't know gave me things." He began counting on his fingers. "There was one auntie, and two uncles wearing green vests, and also..."
"You accepted all of them?" Hiroshi put down the newspaper.
"No." Shin-chan shook his head. "Misae said you can't randomly accept things from people you don't know."
Hiroshi was just about to breathe a sigh of relief.
"But I do know chocolate sticks." Shin-chan pointed at the pile of things on the coffee table. "So I only accepted the chocolate sticks."
After saying that, he paused and added, "Then when the others saw that, they also stuffed chocolate sticks into my hands. I didn't expect everyone to like eating these."
Hiroshi looked at Shin-chan, hesitating over how to begin.
Shin-chan suddenly burped, then frowned, his expression becoming very strange.
"What's wrong?" Misae was about to put the chocolate sticks away, but when she saw his expression, her hand stopped.
Shin-chan held his stomach, his face serious. "I think I'm sick."
"Where do you feel uncomfortable? Does your stomach hurt?"
"It doesn't hurt." A look of self-doubt appeared on Shin-chan's face. "Just now, when I saw the chocolate sticks, I actually felt a little nauseous."
Misae froze in place.
Her son felt nauseous when he saw chocolate sticks?
"Am I broken?" Shin-chan lifted his head, worry in his eyes.
"How many chocolate sticks did you eat today?"
Shin-chan began counting on his fingers. "The first auntie gave me three boxes... the second uncle gave me two boxes... and then the people I met on the road..."
By the time he counted to the seventh box, Misae's expression had changed from concern to helplessness.
"You just ate too much," Hiroshi said, shaking his head. "When you see something you like, you want to eat all of it, and after you finish eating it, you never want to see it again for the rest of your life."
"So I'm not sick?" Shin-chan's eyes lit up.
"No."
"Then does that mean I won't like chocolate sticks anymore?"
"You'll be fine in a couple of days."
Shin-chan let out a long breath. "That scared me to death."
Hiroshi sat down on the sofa and patted the spot beside him, signaling for Shin-chan to come sit.
"Were you happy receiving so many gifts today?"
"Happy." Shin-chan climbed onto the sofa. "But I don't really understand why everyone gave me chocolate sticks."
"Because everyone knows that Lord Hokage is going to take you as his student."
"Grandpa Third?" Shin-chan's mouth fell open. "Take me as his student?"
"Yes."
"Then doesn't that mean I can't call him Grandpa Third anymore?"
All the words Hiroshi had prepared got stuck in his throat.
He had imagined that his son would ask many questions.
Why me? What will Lord Hokage teach me? Will I become stronger?
But he never expected that Shin-chan's first question would be, "Can I still call him Grandpa Third?"
"That isn't the main point, is it?"
"It's very important." Shin-chan crossed his legs. "If I call him teacher, then a lot of things will be different."
Afraid of being led off track, Hiroshi quickly said, "Becoming Lord Third's student is a great honor, but it also means heavier responsibility."
"Then can I still call him Grandpa Third?"
Hiroshi opened his mouth, then finally gave up.
He had originally wanted to tell his son that the people who gave him chocolate sticks today did so because his status had changed. In the future, he would meet even more people like that. He had to learn how to distinguish kindness from flattery, and how to refuse things he should not accept.
He had rehearsed those words in his mind for a long time.
But right now, Shin-chan was tangled up over how to address him.