The sun began to set, and the afterglow of the evening sun cast its golden light over the village of Konoha.
"Renya-san, is my sweet and sour pork ready yet?"
Tsunade slid open the paper door to the kitchen, stood on her tiptoes, and clung to the doorframe. Her big eyes were filled with anticipation.
Her favorite dish was Renya's sweet and sour pork.
Maybe it was because all kids liked sweets, but Tsunade had absolutely no resistance to sugary food.
Ever since she had tasted it once, she couldn't stop thinking about it.
The tall figure of Hashirama loomed over Tsunade. Mimicking her, he stretched his neck to peek inside.
"Smells so good! Is it almost done?"
Uzumaki Mito saw the large and small figures crowding the doorway and couldn't help but show a teasing expression.
"It'll be ready soon."
"Mito-san, could you bring these out first?" Renya pointed to the dishes already prepared on the table.
"Sure." But before Mito could make a move, Hashirama cheerfully walked to the table.
"Mito, let me help you."
As he spoke, he picked up two dishes and carried them out of the kitchen.
"Hahaha, these are all my favorites. Renya, you really know me!"
Uzumaki Mito smiled gently and followed him out with more dishes.
Tsunade didn't leave. She walked over to Renya and tugged on the hem of his pants.
"Renya-san, where's my sweet and sour pork?"
Seeing Tsunade's pitiful little face, Renya felt his heart melt.
This girl was a little too cute!
"Don't worry, I'm making it for you right now." Renya plated the food from the pot and immediately began preparing the sweet and sour pork.
First, he sliced fresh pork loin into evenly thick strips and placed them in a bowl. Then he cracked in an egg and added salt, pepper, and cooking wine.
He gently mixed it all by hand, allowing the meat to soak in the seasoning.
Meanwhile, he poured oil into the pan.
Then he added a suitable amount of starch into the bowl of meat and kneaded it repeatedly until each strip of pork was coated in a thin layer of batter.
As white smoke began to rise from the hot oil, Renya carefully dropped in the pork strips one by one.
With a satisfying sizzle, the meat slowly turned crispy in the oil.
After the first fry, he took out the pork to drain the oil. Once the oil temperature rose again, he gave it a second fry.
This time, the pork's surface became even crispier and gave off a mouth-watering aroma.
Renya quickly mixed the sweet and sour sauce—the true key to making the dish delicious.
Into a bowl, he added vinegar, sugar, soy sauce, ketchup, and a bit of water. Using chopsticks, he stirred it all until well combined.
Then, he washed the pan, added minced garlic and ginger slices, and sautéed them until fragrant. Once the aroma filled the air, he poured in the prepared sauce.
The sauce in the pan began bubbling and turning a vibrant, glossy red.
He added a spoonful of starch water to thicken it. The sauce gradually became rich and velvety.
Finally, Renya poured in the golden fried pork and stir-fried it quickly.
The sweet and sour pork was ready.
"Renya-san, I want it! I want it!" Tsunade was practically drooling.
Seeing this, Renya sighed helplessly and picked up a piece with his chopsticks for her.
The greedy little girl didn't even wait for it to cool and started eating it with hot little breaths.
"It's time to eat." Renya picked up the dish and called for Tsunade to follow.
Seeing the food was ready, Tsunade quickly followed him.
Even though Renya-san's sweet and sour pork was delicious, the other dishes were just as good!
No way would she give up all the other food for just one dish, right?
(T/N: Such a detailed process, if anyone tries it, let me know if it's good)
...
"Has Tobirama not arrived yet?"
At the dining table, Uzumaki Mito asked.
"Looks like he won't make it," Renya replied. "I've already packed up his share. I'll bring it to him later."
"Hahaha, then Tobirama's missing out," Hashirama laughed as he picked up a piece of sweet and sour pork and popped it into his mouth, his eyes closing in delight.
"Grandpa, you stole my food again!" Tsunade puffed up her cheeks angrily.
That sweet and sour pork was something she had specifically asked Renya-san to make for her!
"Hahaha, don't be mad, Tsunade. Try this." Hashirama chuckled as he placed another dish into her bowl.
Tsunade finally relented.
"Thanks for all your hard work, Renya." Uzumaki Mito picked up a chicken leg and placed it in Renya's bowl.
"Mito-san, you're too kind," Renya replied.
The evening light filtered through the paper windows, casting a dappled glow over the four people and one cat.
Tsunade's cheeks were puffed as she ate, not allowing anyone to take what little sweet and sour pork was left from the table.
"Meow meow~" Tanihana rubbed against Tsunade's legs repeatedly.
Tsunade looked a bit reluctant but still fed a piece of pork to Tanihana.
As they ate, Hashirama started telling stories from his younger days.
Renya and Mito listened quietly, chiming in every now and then.
The family enjoyed the delicious food, filling the room with warmth and laughter.
...
Hokage's Office.
Senju Tobirama sat with a gloomy expression, staring at the mountain of paperwork on his desk.
He had just finished dealing with everything right before dinner and was about to head over to his brother's house.
But as soon as he stood up, his assistant walked in with another stack of documents.
The thought of his brother feasting at home while he was stuck here doing paperwork made his blood boil.
"This won't do. I need to eat!" Senju Tobirama muttered to himself.
After all, paperwork could be done anytime—but a gourmet meal wasn't something you got every day.
Though always responsible and dutiful, even Senju Tobirama couldn't help but consider skipping work to go eat.
"Forget it. I'll let my Shadow Clone handle it."
In truth, he preferred to do all the paperwork himself and disliked relying on Shadow Clones to slack off.
But today was an exception.
He formed the seals and summoned a Shadow Clone, then left the Hokage's Office.
Only the Shadow Clone remained, sitting at the desk and working through the files.
...
"Big Brother, I'm not too late, right?"
Senju Tobirama walked into the house and let out a sigh of relief when he saw that there was still plenty of food left on the table.
Thankfully, he had made it just in time. Any later and all that would be left were scraps.
"Tobirama, you're late," Hashirama said.
Tobirama pulled out a chair and sat down. A bowl and chopsticks were already set in front of him—it was clear someone had prepared it for him in advance.
"Big Brother, I couldn't help it. There was just too much to deal with."
He was looking forward to this dinner more than anyone. If it hadn't been for all the work, he would've arrived much earlier.
Senju Hashirama nodded and placed a chicken leg into Tobirama's bowl.
"Thanks for your hard work, Tobirama."
Tobirama nodded and didn't say much more. He simply started eating.
Renya noticed that most of the food was already gone and worried Tobirama wouldn't have enough.
So he brought out a food box from the kitchen and placed it in front of Tobirama.
"I thought you wouldn't be coming, so I packed this up for you ahead of time."
Tobirama instinctively opened the box. Seeing the variety of dishes inside, a trace of warmth flashed across his face.
This kid even thought to pack him food in advance...
Uzumaki Mito saw this and turned to Hashirama with a smile.
"Hashirama, Tobirama and Renya really do get along quite well, don't they?"
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