Torifu smiled. "You silly boy. I brought you all the way here. If it's not for you, then who is it for? Your son?"
"Go on and try it on in the changing room over there. If it fits, I'll have Madam Beni make you some more."
Minato happily hugged the clothes and skipped into the dressing room. Five or six minutes later, he pushed the door open and walked out. He took quick, small steps to stand in front of Torifu. He shyly scratched his head. "Nii-san, how do I look? Is it okay?"
Torifu first looked him up and down, then walked in a circle around Minato. He nodded and said, "Not bad, it looks great. Do you like it?"
"Of course, I do!"
Torifu patted Minato's head. "As long as you like it. I'll have a few more made for you in a couple of days."
"Thank you, Nii-san!"
Torifu smiled and shook his head, then led Minato away. Although Minato had a certain Fourth Hokage vibe wearing the new clothes, he was still a shy boy and didn't have the same presence. However, that could be cultivated slowly. For now, Minato was still very good; he was humble and polite. He was just a little too self-conscious. He did everything with great caution and lacked the innocence of a child.
However, self-consciousness was easy to fix. After living with Torifu for a while, he would definitely lose that feeling. Minato and Amado were two completely different personalities. When Amado first came to the house, he was nervous, but he was also very outgoing. He was able to talk freely with Torifu on the very first day. But that might have been because they were only three years apart in age, so the age difference didn't put too much pressure on him. Now, he was more than ten years older than Minato, so there was a big generational gap. It was only natural for Minato to feel nervous.
"Alright, Minato, let's go eat breakfast first. Then, I'll take you for a stroll outside the village."
Minato obediently nodded. "Okay, Nii-san. Where are we going to eat?"
Torifu thought about it. At this time, many street food stalls should have opened. Cooking at home would be a hassle, and since they ate so late yesterday, it would be a waste of time. So, they might as well eat from the street stalls, and he could also show Minato around the Hidden Leaf Village.
"We'll eat on the street. Just tell me what you want to eat. Our family is basically the richest in the Hidden Leaf Village, so we're not short on money."
"Hehe, okay, Nii-san. Let's go and explore."
Minato, wearing his new clothes, was clearly much more relaxed. If Torifu had known that his worn-out clothes were what was holding Minato back, he would have torn them to shreds the moment he first got him. But if he had done that, Minato would have probably thought Torifu was a pervert.
The master and disciple left the clan grounds and went to the streets. Sure enough, many people had set up their stalls. However, none of the vendors were yelling. Each stall had a sign so people could find what they wanted themselves. After all, the Hidden Leaf Village's city planning wasn't very well-developed yet. These vendors could only set up stalls along the street, and right behind them were residential houses. Yelling would disturb the villagers' rest. So, everyone was quite considerate. After all, they were all from the same village; they'd see each other again and again.
Torifu took Minato on a stroll down the street. Most of the stalls sold things like steamed buns, porridge, and dumplings. Minato had eaten them at home before. He had thought only small villages ate such things. He never expected that the Hidden Leaf Village, one of the five great ninja villages, would also eat these things. His sense of affection for the village grew. Previously, Minato had thought that people in the great ninja villages lived in luxury every day. It was only today that he realized how ridiculous his thoughts were.
After wandering around the morning market, the two of them had a plentiful harvest. They found a random table in the market and laid out all their breakfast. Torifu's meal was simple: porridge and steamed buns. Minato, on the other hand, bought a bowl of dumplings and two meat buns. It seemed the boy hadn't eaten enough the previous night but was too embarrassed to say anything and had just endured it. Torifu shook his head helplessly. It was a good thing he was a bit more open this morning; otherwise, he might have fainted from hunger one day.
"Minato, remember this: A ninja can't go hungry. Cultivating chakra requires a lot of physical strength and energy, so you have to eat your fill at every meal! Do you hear me?"
Minato nodded. "I hear you, Nii-san! Can I start eating now?"
Torifu smiled. "Eat up, eat up."
Minato was so happy he began to eat with big bites. Torifu wasn't particularly hungry, so he ate slowly, occasionally observing the people walking by. As luck would have it, he spotted a familiar face.
"Dan, over here."
Katō Dan, who was on the street, heard Torifu's voice and looked in his direction. "Isn't that Nii-san Torifu? Why are you eating at the morning market? And who is this child?"
Torifu waved his hand. "Sit down and eat with us. We can talk slowly."
Dan listened to Torifu and sat down across from him. He grabbed a steamed bun and began to eat.
"Let me introduce you. This is my new disciple, Namikaze Minato."
Dan smiled upon hearing this. "I didn't expect you to take on another disciple. I don't have anything on me right now, so I'll give you a gift next time."
Minato immediately waved his hands. "No need, no need."
Torifu also smiled, then said, "Minato, this is my brother. You can call him Dan Nii-san. He lives right next door."
"Hello, Dan Nii-san!"
Dan reached out and patted Minato's head. It was a little spiky. "You also have a senior brother who is on a mission outside the village and hasn't returned yet. You two have to get along well."
Minato obediently nodded. "Of course."
Torifu no longer bothered Minato and turned to Dan. "Do you know Tsunade?"
Dan nodded. "Of course. The First's granddaughter. Who doesn't know her? She's the princess of the Hidden Leaf." Then Dan added, "It's just that she doesn't know me."
Torifu could clearly see that after Dan said this, his ears and neck turned slightly red. He must have been shy.
"Do you want to meet her?"
Dan nodded. "I do..."
Torifu smiled faintly. That's a perfect match! Tsunade had asked him to introduce her to Dan, and Dan also wanted to meet Tsunade. This was a two-way street!
"Alright, then I, your brother, will take charge of this matter and get you two together!"
Dan was a little flustered by Torifu's straightforwardness. " Torifu Nii-san, don't get any crazy ideas. How could Princess Tsunade possibly want to meet me? I'll just be embarrassing myself."
Torifu looked at Dan with a blank expression. "Stop projecting your own loser mentality onto Tsunade. How do you know she doesn't want to meet you?"