Not long after, Uchiha Tonan returned to the Sarutobi household with a new bottle of soy sauce. Without wasting any time, he wore an apron and started cooking.
Ta, ta, ta... Clear, rhythmic chopping sounds filled up the kitchen. Heat the oil in the pan, fry the onion, ginger, and garlic, increase the heat, put the ingredients, and stir-fry — Tonan neatly executed one step after another like an expert.
After the trip to the Fire Capital, Tonan's cooking skills had risen considerably. With just this alone, if he opened a restaurant in Konoha, it was guaranteed to be popular.
In the drawing-room, Hiruzen's nose which was lost in his sadness moved slightly, and he muttered, "This aroma..."
He got up and walked to the kitchen to look inside. He saw that Tonan was very focused. He was using one hand to continuously stir the pan and the other to beat eggs in a bowl.
The fire was still burning below the pan. After half a minute, Tonan poured the beaten egg into the pan. The delectable fragrance of the egg mixture with hot pepper filled the entire room, making people immersed in anticipation.
Hiruzen was outstanding at ninjutsu, but when it came to cooking, it was hard to explain in a few words. When Asuma and Shinnosuke were still around, Sarutobi Biwako would often return to cook. As for now, Hiruzen would just make rice balls every day.
After a while, Tonan set the food on the table, and said to Hiruzen with an embarrassed look, "I only know a little bit of cooking. Hokage-sama, I hope you will like the meal."
Hiruzen had thought he had no appetite, but now, his mouth was watering, and his stomach felt hunger pangs. He picked up the chopsticks and tasted a mouthful. Then, his eyes widened. A rich taste exploded in his mouth, and it stimulated his tastebuds wave after wave.
This was too delicious! After seeing Hiruzen take a bite, Tonan sat down and inquired with a timid look, "Hokage-sama, does it taste bad?"
Hiruzen came back to his senses and moved his chopsticks again. He replied while gobbling down, "It tastes very good. I haven't had such a delicious meal in a long time. Tonan, quickly sit down and eat."
Tonan smiled brightly hearing this and took his place on the table, eating his food in small bites. Hiruzen glanced at the refined Tonan, thinking that he was not only a person on his side but also his son's partner. Although his son had died, Tonan was a person he had meticulously nurtured. He should still care about Tonan.
"Tonan, now that you are back, you should find something to do. Have you considered becoming a reserve member of Anbu? In Anbu, you can learn many things, and the pay is also not bad."
Tonan nodded calmly and asked, "Can I also learn a lot of ninjutsu there?"
Hiruzen raised his eyebrows and asked in confusion, "Why? Didn't the Uchiha clan teach you ninjutsu?"
Tonan shook his head and said, "They did but the clan just has fire and lightning type ninjutsu."
Hiruzen asked while chewing food, "Is that so? What is your chakra attribute? I can arrange a suitable captain for you."
Tonan picked a piece of meat and put it into Hiruzen's bowl. He then casually said as if it were commonplace, "I have all chakra attributes, Hokage-sama... Please try this dish as well."
Hiruzen was dumbfounded. He couldn't believe what he just heard. "What did you say your chakra attribute was?"
Seeing Hiruzen's reaction, Tonan's movement paused. He stared at him and replied word for word, "I have all chakra attributes."
"Follow me," Hiruzen left the food on the table and grabbed Tonan's hand, dragging him to a pond in the courtyard. It was said to be a pond, but in fact, it could be considered a small lake.
Hiruzen looked at Tonan with a solemn expression and said, "The three tomoe Sharingan has the ability to copy ninjutsu. Try and see whether you can copy my ninjutsu or not."
After speaking, he intentionally slowed down his hand movements and made hand signs methodically.
Meanwhile, Tonan activated the Sharingan, and his movement was almost in sync with HIruzen's action.
"Wind Style – Great Breakthrough."
"Wind Style – Great Breakthrough."
The trees beside the pond suddenly bent due to the wind pressure. This was because both of them had suppressed their powers. Hiruzen was becoming excited and continued to make a series of hand seals.
"Water Style – Water Dragon Bullet Technique."
"Water Style – Water Dragon Bullet Technique."
"Earth Style – Nine Rock Pillars Technique."
"Earth Style – Nine Rock Pillars Technique."
After releasing the ninjutsu of all five chakra attributes in succession, the gaze Hiruzen used to look at Tonan changed completely.
All chakra attributes along with the copy ability of the three tomoe Sharingan... this was simply born for ninjutsu. At this moment, Hiruzen no longer regarded Tonan as a tool but instead the thought to accept him as a student appeared in his heart.
His eyes shone. He placed his hands on Tonan's shoulders and asked with a stern look, "Tonan, what do you excel in?"
Tonan thought for a bit and answered seriously, "Sword techniques and genjutsu."
Hiruzen was dumbfounded. He didn't know what should he say. Yes, after awakening the Sharingan, one would become a genjutsu master. And it was known that Tonan had learned sword techniques from White Fang and also inherited Sanbo Motoyoshi's Sanbo-style sword technique.
'Since he is good at sword techniques, his taijutsu cannot be weak. But as it now seems, his ninjutsu is the best. As long as he's given enough time, he can learn many ninjutsu techniques in actual combat even if no one teaches him. By that time, he wouldn't have any shortcomings in ninjutsu, taijutsu, or genjutsu...'
When Hiruzen was lost in thought, Tonan couldn't help reminding, "Hokage-sama, the food is getting cold."
Hiruzen came back to his sense and nodded repeatedly, "Yes, let's eat first."
Returning to the room, Hiruzen ate the food one bite at a time, but he was still thinking about whether to accept Tonan as a student or not. After all, he was old and he had a lot of work to do. Even if he accepted Tonan as his student, he might not have much time to teach him. Wouldn't that just delay the growth of such a good seedling?
Moreover, the most important thing was that even though Tonan was on his side, he was still a member of the Uchiha clan. What if his clan love became the dominant force after he grew up? At that time, all his trust and efforts to nurture Tonan would be in vain. In addition, it might even cause him a lot of trouble.
Tonan noticed that Hiruzen was a little absent-minded while eating, so he asked softly, "Hokage-sama, is the food tasting bad because it's cold? Let me warm it up."
Tonan got up with the dishes but Hiruzen came back to his senses just in time and grabbed Tonan's hand, saying with a smile, "No, the temperature is just right, and it's very savory."
Hiruzen took a deep look at Tonan, thinking that he should observe the boy for a little longer before coming to a final decision.