Chapter 60 – The Hidden Spring
The air in Akira's dimension was fresh, carrying a faint sweetness that none of them had words for. After finishing dinner, Sakumo suggested a walk.
"You're just trying to walk off Akira's cooking," Kakashi muttered with a sly smirk.
"Hey!" Akira spun around, frowning dramatically. "You finished your plate before anyone else!"
"That was survival instinct," Kakashi replied, deadpan.
Sakumo chuckled warmly, folding his arms. "I'll admit, the rice was a little… crunchy."
"It was crispy rice," Akira argued, puffing his cheeks. "A new style."
Kakashi raised an eyebrow. "More like a new weapon. Next time we're attacked, just throw your rice balls at the enemy—they'll surrender immediately."
Sakumo tried to keep a straight face but failed, his laughter echoing through the dimension. "I can already picture it… Akira, the shinobi chef-warrior, defeating armies with rice bombs."
Akira groaned, covering his face. "You two are impossible."
Still smiling, Sakumo reached out and patted both their heads. "Don't worry, Akira. Cooking is like swordsmanship—burn enough times, and eventually, you'll get it right."
"Great, so you're saying I'll either poison us or stab us before I improve," Akira muttered.
"Exactly," Kakashi replied immediately, and they all broke into laughter again.
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They walked deeper into the untouched areas of the dimension, joking as they went. Kakashi picked up a crooked stick and twirled it clumsily.
"Look, I'm the White Fang!" he declared in an overly dramatic voice, swiping at the air.
Sakumo raised an eyebrow at his son's impersonation. "Is that supposed to be me? My sword style does not look like I'm swatting flies."
Akira burst out laughing. "No, he's got it right. More like a farmer chasing chickens!"
"Chickens?!" Sakumo feigned outrage, pretending to brandish an invisible blade. "I'll have you know, my style terrifies entire villages!"
"Yeah," Kakashi said with a smirk, "villages of chickens."
The three collapsed into laughter again, the kind that left their stomachs aching. For a moment, it felt like war, loss, and expectations were far away. Just father, son, and friend enjoying the peace of a world all their own.
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That was when Akira stopped, his expression changing. "…Do you feel that?"
The laughter faded into silence as the three of them focused. A strange hum pressed at their senses, steady and soothing—like the flow of chakra itself.
They followed the sensation until the forest opened into a grove. At its center lay a small, glowing spring, mist curling above it like smoke from a flame.
"…Well," Sakumo murmured, eyes narrowing, "that's new."
Kakashi crossed his arms. "Don't tell me the dimension is cooking something too."
Akira grinned faintly. "If it is, at least it smells better than my rice."
Even Sakumo cracked a smile at that as they stepped closer, the strange energy of the spring wrapping gently around them.
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