The afternoon sunlight at the Daimyo's residence filtered through the lattice of the paper doors.
Shin-chan lay sprawled on the wooden floor of the study, a map covered in arrows and circles spread out in front of him.
Chashu was curled up on his back in a perfect circle, purring evenly.
"Chashu, you're crushing me."
Chashu ignored him.
"As Deputy Minister of Security, sleeping during working hours violates the security regulations..."
Chashu's ears twitched, then it continued sleeping.
Shin-chan gave up trying to reason with a cat and lowered his head back toward the map.
At the border between the Land of Wind and the Land of Lightning, he had drawn a large X and written beside it:
Sunagakure vs. Kumogakure — currently fighting.
Soft footsteps came from outside the paper door, followed by a maid's voice.
"Your Highness."
"I'll carry it in myself."
Ai's voice came from the corridor.
The paper door slid open gently.
Ai entered carrying a tray of sweets.
"Young Master Shin-chan, you're lying on the floor again."
"The floor is cool."
Shin-chan moved instinctively.
Chashu gave an annoyed meow, jumped off his back, flicked its tail, and walked toward the windowsill.
Ai knelt at the low table and placed the tea tray down.
"You're looking at a map?"
"Mm." Shin-chan climbed up from the floor and sat cross-legged across from her.
Ai lowered her gaze to the crooked markings covering the map.
"Young Master Shin-chan, do you want to go back?"
"Go back?"
"To Konoha."
Ai had asked herself that question many times.
"I want to go back," Shin-chan said. "But I'm not leaving."
"Why?"
"Because I promised to protect you." Shin-chan raised one finger. "And Grandpa Third said that if I run back during the mission, my reward gets cut in half and my chocolate-stick supply gets suspended."
He paused.
"Suspending the chocolate sticks is way too harsh."
Seeing the expression on his face that clearly said he was completely serious, Ai couldn't help smiling.
"Young Master Shin-chan." Ai took something from her sleeve. "This is for you."
It was a protective charm.
The character Shin was embroidered on the front.
Shin-chan accepted it and ran his finger over the embroidered character.
"Didn't you say the last one was for Chashu?"
"That..." A faint pink colour spread across Ai's ears. "Chashu can't read, so there's no need to embroider words on its charm. This one is for you."
Shin-chan turned the charm over.
Two smaller characters were embroidered on the back:
Safe Return.
"It suits me."
Shin-chan tied the charm around his waist and patted it.
"Young Master Shin-chan."
"Mm?"
"You said your promises always count."
"Mm."
"Then when you said, 'I won't leave until the mission is over'... does that count too?"
Shin-chan placed his hand over the charm at his waist.
"Of course it does."
Ai looked at the charm hanging there. The embroidered character Shin stood out clearly beneath the afternoon light.
She wanted to tell him, Keep wearing it.
She wanted to tell him, Don't take it off even if you go to war.
There were so many things she wanted to say.
But in the end, all she said was, "The tea has gone cold. I'll make another pot."
"No need."
Shin-chan lifted the cup and drank the cold tea in one gulp.
"Cold tea with dango has its own special flavour. It's a new way of eating I invented called the 'Cold Tea Dango Set.'"
"Is it part of the same series as the 'Deluxe Matcha Dango Tonkotsu Ramen Set'?"
"Exactly. They both belong to the 'Nohara School of Great Culinary Discoveries' series."
Ai covered her mouth and laughed.
Outside the window, the sunlight began to slant.
The koi in the pond had stopped leaping from the water, and only a few leisurely swam between the aquatic plants.
Ai held her freshly poured tea, letting the steam warm her face.
"Young Master Shin-chan."
"Mm?"
"If one day..." Ai's voice was very soft. "If you become Hokage, will you still remember these days at the Daimyo's residence?"
Shin-chan put on a thoughtful expression.
"I'll remember that the kitchen's dango was delicious. I'll remember Chashu secretly watching the koi every day. And I'll remember that your eyebrows wrinkle when you write waka."
"My eyebrows wrinkle?"
"They do. Exactly like Chashu's when it wants to eat fish."
Ai instinctively reached up and touched her eyebrows.
Then she realised she had fallen for it.
She lowered her hand and looked at Shin-chan's smug expression after successfully teasing her. She wanted to look stern, but simply couldn't manage it.
"Young Master Shin-chan is always like this."
"Like what?"
"You always turn serious conversations into something unserious."
Shin-chan picked up a sweet and took a bite.
With his mouth full, he mumbled, "Grandpa Third once said that serious things are exactly what you should talk about lightly. Otherwise, they'll crush you."
Ai lowered her head, a faint smile appearing on her lips.
"Lord Third Hokage is very wise."
Outside, the clouds drifted away, allowing sunlight to pour back into the room.
Chashu jumped down from the windowsill, stretched, then strutted over to Shin-chan and rubbed its head against his knee.
"You want dried fish again?"
"Meow."
"You already had double portions today."
Chashu changed tactics and began pawing at Shin-chan's trouser leg.
"Fine, fine."
Shin-chan stood, bent down, and scooped the cat into his arms.
"I'll go get you some from the kitchen, but this is your last serving today."
Chashu wriggled restlessly in his arms, its tail brushing against his chin.
"Stop moving. If you keep doing that, I really will deduct your dried fish."
Chashu immediately became still.
Inside the kitchen, the cook was sprinkling powdered sugar over a batch of sweets.
When Shin-chan climbed in through the window, she merely glanced up. Her hands did not even pause.
"Lord Nohara, today's chestnut yokan hasn't cooled yet. If you eat it now, you'll burn your tongue."
Shin-chan placed Chashu on the floor. The cat immediately ran to its personal little bowl in the corner and sat beside it.
"I'm here to get dried fish for him."
He took a ceramic jar from the shelf and placed a dried fish into Chashu's bowl.
Chashu lowered its head and began eating, its tail sweeping back and forth across the floor.
"Lord Nohara," the cook said, turning around hesitantly. "The steward came to inspect the supplies this afternoon. He said another thirty percent of the sweets were missing."
"Chashu ate them."
The cook lowered her gaze toward the cat, which was completely focused on eating its fish.
Her expression clearly said, Do you really expect me to believe that?
"Fine. I ate them." Shin-chan raised both hands in surrender. "But I was carrying out official duties."
"What official duties?"
"The Security Personnel Stamina Maintenance Plan."
The cook sighed.
"That thirty percent doesn't count against you anyway. His Lordship already said you may take whatever sweets you want from the kitchen."
Shin-chan scratched his head, then climbed back out through the window.
The cook watched him disappear and shook her head.
Ever since this little lord arrived, the kitchen had certainly become much busier.
But it had also become much livelier.
The breeze through the Daimyo's residence carried the fragrance of flowers between the veranda pillars and across the surface of the pond.
In the distance, a thin trail of white smoke still rose from the kitchen chimney.
Everything was quiet.
Everything was peaceful.
~~~
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