3 Chapter 3: A Night to Remember
"Which do you think he will like?" She asked the little boy who had all but plastered his face against the glass case that housed some of the most delicious cakes in all of Konoha. She chuckled at his antics before repeating the question "Shin, stop drooling all over the glass and choose already". "Hey! I'm not drooling!" the child protested, "Fine fine, just choose one already" she smiled. "Fine…" He turned towards the cakes again before turning towards his mother again "Do we really have to get only one?". She looked down at her son's starry eyes and reluctantly agreed "Alright, we can get you a cupcake but nothing more!". "Yes! Love you mom!" After a quick hug and a purchase of Pineapple cake(Mr.Hirano's favorite) and a chocolate cupcake, the duo left the shop and walked on the bustling streets of Konoha.
As the two entered their house, they were met with a couple of elderly, "Grandma! Grandpa! You're here!" the boy cried as he lept into their warm embrace. "Oh my little Shin! Did you miss your grandma?" The elderly woman tightly hugged her grandson before peeling herself away to scan him from head to toe "Oh look at you! So thin! Haven't you been eating? Oh you poor thing, you look so weak!" she sent an accusing glance at Mrs. Hirano who curtly replied "He is getting plenty, mother" emphasizing the last word. Shin could have swore he saw some sparks.
"Oh you're back! Did you get the cake?" as if on cue, a wild Mr.Hirano appeared. "Yup! It's pineapple." Shin replied as he carried the cake to his father. "Oh perfect!" with a quick peck on Shin's cheek, he took the cake and went back into the kitchen. The rest of the group went went to sit in the living area and Grandma put on some soap opera on the TV while mumbling something along the lines of "women" and "kitchen", prompting Mrs. Hirano to walk into the kitchen after her husband as grandpa Hirano decided to chat with Shin.
Today was a happy occasion for the Hirano Family, Mr. Hirano had just completed a major deal and the whole family had gathered to celebrate. Grandma and Grandpa Hirano had come from the other side of the village to celebrate all the while bragging to their friends about how their son had the makings of a great merchant while their grandson was a genius, 'Like father like son' they kept on muttering the whole day. Much to the annoyance of the adults and elderly that had the misfortune to run into them today but the children that visited grandpa Hirano's small store all left with a big smile and a free candy.
"Need any help?" Mrs. Hirano asked her husband as he all but danced about in the kitchen while running 3 stoves and cutting vegetables and fruits. "It's fine~" he said, "why don't you just sit with the others and relax. This feast will be one to remember I tell you!" he requested. "And do what? Have a lovely chat with your mother about how women should be in the kitchen and how I am a failure as a mother because I don't know how to cook?" she complained. It was a matter of great annoyance for Mrs. Hirano that, even after being married for nearly 15 years, her greatest achievement as a cook was being able to boil rice. "She doesn't mean that, she's just… traditional you know." he tried to defuse the bomb tact-ly but it didn't escape his wife's scrutinizing gaze, nonetheless she decided to not continue after all it was a big night for her husband… she would just bring the matter up again tomorrow. "Why don't you help me with cutting up vegetables? You are handy with a knife afterall" he winked at her. "Hm that's true" she quickly and swiftly started to cut up the vegetables with great skill. She had always been rather skilled with weapons during her brief career as a ninja. Just like that the cooking continued while Mr. Hirano handled the pots and the pans and Mrs. Hirano tried her best to not imagine her mother-in-law as the vegetables that she was swiftly slicing up.
.........….
"So have you decided what you want for Christmas Shin? Grandpa inquired while sipping some lemon and honey tea. Nothing beats some nice hot tea after a hearty meal in his opinion. "Dad, Christmas is not for another month and a half and his birthday is just after it. You can just Give one present for both." his son commented, "Did I ask you?" Grandpa Hirano scolded. "Tell me little Shin, what do you want for Christmas? Should I get you one of those wooden ninja tools set you're always eyeing? Or maybe a puppy? I got an Inuzuka friend, who knows you might even get one of those ninja dogs! " he asked again. "No way I'm letting you get a flea bag for my grandson!" his wife immediately voiced her disapproval before turning to her grandson again with a smile "How about I get you a small kitten eh? You like cats more than those fleabags right little Shin?". "Oh! Oh! I know! I want a black cat with different colored eyes! They look so cool!" He looked like a rabbit, jumping up and down with excitement. "Oh different eyes? Like what?" he inquired the little rabbit. "You know, one is green or blue and the other is red or yellow. It's cool right!?" "ohh, very cool!" Grandpa Hirano agreed.
"No, you are too young, a pet is a big responsibility Shin. You have to take care of its every need. Maybe a few years later" interjected his daughter-in-law. "And what's wrong with that? My Shin is smart enough! If those Inuzukas can do it, so can he!" argued his wife, shutting down any more arguments from that side. Just like any sane mother-in-law, his wife also disliked their daughter-in-law. It was much more appearent before Shin was born, afterall what parent didn't want their child to enjoy the love of their own child, she blamed her for his son being childless. Grandpa Hirano liked to think that he was better in that regard and that he didn't blame her but he also knew that he was far too human. But if any dissatisfaction did exist then it disappeared the moment she gave birth to Shin. He was the miracle they had been so desperate for nearly 10 years for.
"You are going to spoil him" Commented his son, granting him a glare "Who are you to tell me how to raise a child! He's my grandson, I'll get him whatever I want!" and so ended any objections from the parents' side. "Thank you grandma! I love you and grandpa!" Shin hugged the duo as they warmly took him into their embrace. 'What are grandparents for if not to spoil their grandchildren' his wife often said to him and it was a notion he completely agreed with.
As the duo hugged their beloved grandson, Grandpa Hirano saw his daughter-in-law giving his son a side eye and gesturing towards the clock, 'hehe, they think we are too old to see. Guess it's getting late anyways.' He decided to help them out. Separating from the hug he kissed Shin on the forehead "Alright then Shin, you be good and listen to your mother now. We should get going now" he ushered the glaring grandma Hirano who clearly didn't want to leave, "Can I come too!". "You stay with mom Shin, I'll be back after getting them home alright" his son promised. "Please!" Shin argued using the undeniable argument of his cuteness Grandpa Hirano Could swear that he saw stars in the boy's eyes.
The child would have won but his daughter-in-law seemed unaffected and denied him saying it was too late and he needed his sleep. In the end the duo went away with their son in tow, his wife wasn't happy but he was satisfied. No matter what, his daughter-in-law had proven herself to him, first with her love for his son and then with her tenacity as a daughter-in-law of such a harsh woman and finally as a mother of a brilliant boy. Grandpa Hirano no longer had any regrets in life, he could die that very night and have no regrets.
The three walked through the streets of the peaceful village as shops started to close down and people went seeking warmth, whether at home or elsewhere. The journey was mostly silent for the two males who only occasionally responded in positive head nods towards Grandma Hirano as she gossiped about half of Konoha, which wife cheated on her husband, which husband cheated on his wife, who they cheated with, how some "boastful women" vainly hyped their grandchildren to be prodigies, a few names like Uchiha and Nara were occasionally thrown around as well.
"... and so what? Just you wait you damn Nara Nomi! My Shin is gonna beat your grandson to the ground once he enters the academy!" she declared, searching her son for approval only to turn and find him staring into a shop window with his mouth open. Curious, the duo went to check what their son was so intently looking at and when they did, "Well I'll be… guess Christmas is coming early this year afterall haha" he chuckled. In the window, nestled in many blankets and illuminated by a warm yellow light bulb, a small ball of fur looked at the myriad lights and hustling people with curiosity. Its right eye shone like brilliant sapphire and its left like a blazing ember. It looked at the trio, its gaze moving from one to the other, its eyes held their gaze for a moment each before finally resting upon the man that had been looking at it for a while now, curiously it tilted its small furry head.
...............
"You go back now, Ichiro. Give shin a kiss from me", "Alright mom, you two should visit more often. I know Shin misses you both very much" said her son. "Of Course he misses me, I'm his grandma! Not so sure about that wife of yours though." the elder woman mumbled at the last bit. "Oh come on mom, she loves you too! Just give her a chance" the son replied. "Yah yah, just go already!" she shooed him away as she moved to open the lock on the front gate. Sighing he just hugged his father and walked away "I'll drop by soon alrigh..."
*BOOOM!*
"What the.." The words left her head as she looked to the horizon, seeking the source of such a loud noise. The winds started to gush as she saw silhouettes made of shadows flying through the air. Shocked, the trio looked about as more and more people rushed to the streets to see what had caused the explosion.
*BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!*
As if lightning had fallen on their house, red lightning. Everyone bent down, clutching their ears as she fought through the pain as the shrapnel cut into her skin and looked ahead. And she saw it, it was not red lightning, it was not lightening at all… she saw a pillar of crimson fur as it ascended towards the sky, bending before reuniting with others like it. No, it was no pillar… she knew that. It was a tail. She stared as it slowly flew away from the ruin that she had known to be her home for the last 40 years and she saw it… all of it.
It was a beast, a demon, a monster… it was a fox, standing upon its four limbs as its tails fluttered in the air behind it.
One might have called it "majestic" if not for the fact that every time one of it's tails' fell to earth, it fell as the scythe of death. It Was an agent of Yenma, an omen of death and destruction. She felt her skin tense as the hair in her body stood up, something she had not felt in more than 30 years. Her eyes saw only red, taking in its every move and she felt fear, she felt hopeless and she felt the cold hands of death grasping at her "MOM!" She was jolted awake as she saw her son on the ground, holding her blooded husband in his arms.
She quickly moved to their side, old age had made her rusty but she let instincts take her over as her hands moved, slowly glowing green. "I'll take care of him, you go to Shin and Ryouka!" She urged him. "B-but…" he looked down and hesitated. "Ichiro! Go! Take care of them…" She saw many things in his eyes, shock, fear, guilt, grief… She understood, but now was not the time and he understood it all too well.
"I'll come back for you" he declared before running towards the path they had just taken. She smiled, she knew it would be the last time she would see her son, the last time she would scold her husband, the last time she would embrace her lovely grandson. Her only regret might be that her daughter-in-law might not like her very much even though she had come to love her, she had always failed to show it.
She ran out to chakra, she knew it was impossible anyways. So she just looked at her running son and prayed to the Kami. Then she saw red again, she saw it as it struck a house at the end of the street, she saw as the house broke and fell as if made of plastic… and she saw as the broken walls and stones launched a man through the air and across the house on the other side of the street. It was that last of what she saw that night, it was the last of what she ever saw.
