The first thing I wanted to do after getting back was wash off all the dust and grime from the road and just collapse into bed. But as much as I wanted to freshen up, that could wait - what really mattered was getting Aika's injury checked out by someone who actually knew a thing or two about treating animals, just in case there were any complications.
Turns out, the hospital did have veterinarians, mostly from the Inuzuka clan. They handled everything from dogs to livestock - how they managed to examine hooved animals, I have no idea, and honestly, I didn't care. Luckily, they didn't turn me away when I brought Aika in. In fact, the vet seemed genuinely interested in her case.
They worked on her paw with a bit of medical chakra and wrapped it loosely with fresh bandages, saying it had been a dislocation that probably popped back into place on its own. The claw marks were just surface wounds - they sprayed them with some alcohol-based stuff and dabbed on a little anti-inflammatory ointment. The medic also suggested I buy some fur care products that would be good for Aika.
"Well, that's that. Now we can finally go home… Ugh, guess I'll have to buy a litter box and teach you how to use it."
"Tyavk?" Aika looked up at me, totally confused.
****
The next morning was all about giving Aika a bath. If she hadn't been so fussy - and if it weren't for the bandage - it would've taken maybe twenty minutes, tops. Instead, I spent a whole hour and ended up getting soaked myself. While she was busy having breakfast - diced beef, of course - I jumped in the shower, thinking about what I should do with my day.
I was still getting dressed when someone knocked at the front door.
Who could that be? I threw on a T-shirt and stepped out of the bedroom. Aika, who'd been lounging in the living room after her big breakfast, was now peeking out from behind the couch, ears perked toward the door.
"Oh, Naruko, hey! Long time no see."
"Good morning, Akira-san. How have you been?" she asked, flashing a big smile.
"Great, actually. I wanted to introduce you to Aika."
"Aika?" She looked at me, surprised.
"Yeah, I met her during my trip to Tanzaku, and now we live together… Oh, she's an absolute sweetheart. I'm sure you two will get along. I'll just go and—"
"Oh, no need, Akira-san, I'm actually running late for the academy. I just wanted to say hi on my way. Please give my regards to Aika-san!" She waved and hurried off.
"She's still as energetic as ever." Oh well, I'll drop by their place tonight and introduce her to Aika.
By lunchtime, when I headed out with Aika in my arms to grab some McDonald's, I realized I'd made a huge mistake. I'd gotten used to the attention my looks attracted - it wasn't that hard to keep a straight face and ignore the open-mouthed stares and gasps from women who happened to catch a glimpse of me. It was just as easy to ignore the annoyed looks from the guys, who'd go from glaring at me to glaring at the object of their affection.
And honestly, it was kind of nice being the center of attention, as long as it didn't cross the line. I'd even gotten discounts at market stalls if the seller happened to be a woman, no matter her age.
But today, I discovered one tiny problem. Me, all clean and tidy in a kimono - that was only half the trouble. Sure, people stared, but whatever, It wasn't a big deal. But the effect I had on people when I was carrying Aika… that was enough to make me shiver a little. Yeah… walking toward McDonald's, I was more nervous than when I'd been summoned by the Hokage, because at least then, I had some idea of what to expect.
"Umm, ooooh…" I heard another weird sound from a woman who'd just turned away from the counter and spotted me.
They're drooling! Literally! I felt like I was surrounded by zombies, ready to pounce if I so much as smiled. Okay, Akira, calm down. Just keep your face as cold as possible. Pretend no one else exists - it's just me and my path to the restaurant. Aika… remind me never to dress like this again when I'm out with you. Damn, even a few guys are giving me weird looks. This is seriously nerve-wracking…
****
"Ayumi-san, Ayuuuuumi-san." I waved my hand in front of her face a few times. Damn, even a kunoichi who's survived hundreds of missions was completely floored by my charm, especially with Aika in the mix.
This was getting out of hand - it felt more like some kind of mass genjutsu.
"Huh?" She blinked a couple of times and finally focused on me.
"Hold her for a bit, will you?" I handed her Aika, who yipped in protest.
"Oh, Akira-san, hello! You're back already? Nothing much has happened at the restaurant these past few days, just a couple of customers who got a little handsy, but I took care of them quickly." She started reporting, following me as I walked.
"You didn't break anything, did you?" I asked calmly, scanning the menu.
"No, it didn't come to that." She shook her head and started petting Aika, who was now sniffing curiously at the kitchen smells.
"Excellent, I'm happy with your work." So far, she hadn't let me down once and had adapted perfectly to her role as manager. I'd even tested her honesty a couple of times by deliberately making mistakes in the payroll and bonus reports, and she'd always caught them. I should probably tie her to the restaurant with a pay raise. The other girls were doing fine too, but I should think about hiring more staff so they don't get burned out working every day with only one day off… Yeah, I'll leave the task of finding new hires to Ayumi.
"Hey, get him out of here!" came a customer's voice.
Ayumi immediately turned and went to handle it, while I placed my order and turned around, curious to see what was going on.
The disgruntled customer was a middle-aged man sitting at the central table. Judging by his clothes, he was a merchant, and his annoyance seemed to be directed at an old man in shabby linen clothes, who was practically bowing to him.
"Please, Otomaki-san, help us make it to the next harvest and we'll pay you back, with interest," pleaded the old man, straw hat on his head. With a long beard and straighter back, he'd look like a Shaolin master. [ image ]

"No, I've already told you - find some other fool. You're already in debt. Now get out of here and let me eat in peace." It looked like Ayumi wouldn't even need to step in - the old man, head hanging, was already getting ready to leave.
"Poor old guy, I've seen him before. I heard he's from a little village nearby - their whole harvest failed," whispered a woman behind me in line.
Hmm, really? I should find out why. If it's some kind of disease, it could affect all the farms in the area.
"Ayumi-san." I called out loud enough for her to hear, and when she looked over, I signaled for her to bring the old man to me. She nodded and followed after him to stop him.
"Akira-san, your order." I was distracted for a second, grabbed my tray, and headed to a table by the window.
"Hello, you… wanted to speak with me?" The old man approached the table, uncertain.
"Yes, please, have a seat." I gestured to the seat across from me. "Ayumi, you're free to go. Could you keep an eye on Aika for me?" She smiled and left, holding my little fox.
"My name's Akira. How should I address you?" I asked, pushing my tray aside for now.
"Oh, you can just call me old man Haruto - that's what everyone in my village does."
"Haruto-san, I take it you're from a small village nearby. Would you mind telling me what happened?" The old man gave me a curious look, then started his story.
Turns out, there was no disease - it was just a bad year for the village of Oku. That happens every four years or so, and the local villages usually save up surplus grain in the storehouse for just such an occasion. But last year, someone set fire to the storehouse. They never found out who did it, and couldn't even save half the supplies. Now they were running dangerously low on food, and to make matters worse, the village was already in debt for new tools and livestock, which they were now having to slaughter early just to survive.
So old man Haruto, who turned out to be the village elder, had come to Konoha looking for help from the merchants who traded with their village. In three days, he'd only managed to find one - the very man he'd just been talking to. But that guy, knowing how desperate they were, refused to lend them anything, figuring they'd never pay him back. The other merchants wouldn't help strangers from some unknown village, and if they did, they'd demand sky-high interest.
And the Konoha bank wouldn't give them a second loan until the first was paid off, so the elder was at a loss for what to do.
"Hmm, don't the feudal lords help out in situations like this?" I asked. As far as I knew, the Chouken prefecture was run by a semyo - Rakisaku, the daimyo's second son - Torio, who was also Homuri's boss, headed Konoha's administration and had the authority of a Baishin. The yellow trim on his kimono proved it - only feudal lords could wear that color. In this case, it should've been semyo Rakisaku's job to help the village. Torio's authority only covered Konoha.
"No, I can't remember that ever happening." He gave me a strange look. Wow, so it's every man for himself? Fantastic. And what's the tax rate? Twenty percent of the harvest? That's steep. So, a village of 200 people, plus the remaining livestock… hmm, how much food does a person need to survive?
"On average, a family of four to six needs about 500 to 700 kilos of grain a year, not counting feed for the animals." I kept listening to his passionate explanation, and it turned out that after the tax inspection, they'd only have enough food to last until winter.
Basically, they were screwed. Of course, I didn't say that out loud, but the conclusion was obvious. Honestly, I could help them - I was sure three or four million ryo would be enough to get them through to the next harvest. But my name wasn't "Jesus" in my passport - not that I even had a passport, just a registration slip, but whatever. I started thinking about how to help them without spending my own money. If I were a real hustler, I'd be figuring out how to make a profit off this…
Actually, that's exactly how it works in my world - making money off the needy is called "charity." Of course, I wasn't about to profit off these poor folks - and how much could I even make? A million, maybe a bit more? But if word got out, it would ruin my reputation, especially with all the people in this village who specialize in digging up dirt. The higher-ups would definitely find out, and that would be bad for my image. So, should I help them or not? What if people misunderstood my intentions? Well, I think I've got an idea.
"Haruto-san, I think there's a way I can help you." The old man's eyes went wide with surprise, and he asked, voice trembling,
"Would you mind sharing what it is?" Judging by his shaking hands, he really was desperate.
"Yeah, I just thought of it. We'll ask the people of Konoha to donate a little money. If even one in three gives just a hundred ryo, that'll be more than enough for your village." My stomach growled, and I couldn't help but pop a few fries in my mouth. But since it's rude to eat alone at a table, I pushed the tray to the middle, hinting that the old man could help himself, but he ignored the food and pressed on:
"But… how will we ask people for money? Konoha's huge - just asking a few hundred people could take all day."
"Oh, we won't go looking for them ourselves. Here's what I'm thinking: we put a box here with a sign saying anyone who wants to can donate whatever they like to help your village."
"Hmm, will that really work?" The old man thought for a moment, then sighed. "Either way, we'll have to get the restaurant owner's permission first."
"Haha, that won't be a problem - I own the place. I've got a friend in Konoha's administration, and I'll ask him to help set up a donation box there too, and maybe even one at the hospital. I'm sure we'll have enough by winter. What do you think?"
"I… Akira-san. Please accept my deepest gratitude." Yeah, what I didn't expect was for him to drop into a full dogeza. Give a Japanese person any excuse to bow, and they'll do it - weird people, honestly.
"Please, don't embarrass me. I haven't even helped you yet," I said with a sigh, helping him back to his feet.
"Just the fact that you want to help means a lot to me," the old man said, getting up.
I poured him some tea, clarified a few details about the amount needed, and assured him my intentions were pure - I even said it would be good for my karma, and that everyone should help those in need. But just so I didn't come off as a total saint, I added that I hoped my restaurants could count on some product deliveries from their village in the future. Buying directly from them would be cheaper for me than going through merchants.
Half an hour later, the old man left McDonald's with a smile, saying he'd head back to his village tomorrow.
As if reading my mind, Ayumi came right over to my table.
"Let's go to my office," I said, getting up and holding out my arms for Aika to jump into. I couldn't help but smile at how eager she was to leap into them.
Hmm, should I set rules about bringing pets into my restaurant? Probably not necessary - I haven't seen anyone else in the village walking around with pets, except for the Inuzuka clan, but their dogs are smart enough not to bother other customers. I'll only worry about it if people start complaining.
Once we were in my office, I sat down in my chair and invited Ayumi to take the seat across from me.
Petting Aika, who was happily sprawled out in my lap with her eyes closed, I shared my thoughts with Ayumi about hiring more staff and giving her a raise. For some reason, Ayumi avoided looking at me and just nodded.
Then we talked about old man Haruto and my charity idea. All I needed from her was to get or make an opaque box where people could easily drop in money, and set it up near the register.
"Akira-san, you're a wonderful person," she said seriously, and for a second, I was actually caught off guard by the compliment.
"Ahem, don't overdo it. Like I said, this way we might be able to cut down on food costs a bit. So really, it's an investment in the future."
Ayumi just smiled, staring thoughtfully at the ceiling.
🔥~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~🔥
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