Natsumi and Aya had already gotten up—showered, and sat in the living room enjoying a game of checkers. Both liked this board game—not requiring special intellect but helping pass time.
"Good morning—girls." Kenshin greeted and kissed both on their eagerly offered cheeks.
"Hope she'll limp for a few days now?" Natsumi said with a sly smile—glancing at Kasumi standing several meters away.
"Pfft—he'll limp more likely—not me!" Kasumi answered victoriously—lifting her chin.
Kenshin looked at her in surprise and couldn't restrain laughter. Aya and Natsumi laughed after.
"Good—go to the table, and I'll go feed the children." Kenshin said with a smile—feeling like a nursing mother. He was the only one who could use the system menu and set the table.
He went downstairs—set the table for his sons choosing a protein-rich dish—adding plates of cottage cheese and milk. Giving them several instructions—he returned upstairs and found three girls at the small table. They chatted cutely—and it seemed Kasumi had almost become one of them for Aya and Natsumi.
He sat at the table and thought for several seconds about what to feed his beautiful wives. Not thinking of anything better—he chose semolina porridge and sweet yogurt with strawberries. He decided the girls didn't need too many calories for breakfast—so limited to this.
"Wow! What is this? Thick milk?" Kasumi asked with interest—poking the semolina porridge with a spoon.
"Mmm—delicious!" Aya chirped and attacked the porridge with double force.
"This is tasty too… Sweet milk with strawberry flavor—how interesting…" Natsumi said—taking a sip of yogurt.
Kenshin couldn't restrain a smile at the sight of three pleased cats licking their plates. They liked it so much they asked for seconds—but Kenshin refused, giving them many fruits for dessert—from strawberries and peaches to cherries and watermelon pieces as dessert. This was more than enough to distract the three displeased beauties. Many fruits they saw for the first time—and some were so rare they came to Konoha as delicacies and were far from every Jonin's table.
After breakfast Kenshin decided to relax a bit before going to the gym. He invited all girls to the living room to show them another board game. Over time he planned to show them D&D universe board games—but for now decided to limit to quite simple dice-roll games.
"Hm—how unusual… So the number of circles on the die equals the number of spaces this little man can move? And each space additionally has its effects—from slowing to speeding up or even throwing the little man back or forward? Lord—this is genius! How did no one in our Nara Clan think to invent such a game…" Kasumi lamented—getting a monthly dose of pleasure from learning something new and interesting.
"Um—um—Kenshin… I don't quite understand why Natsumi's die showed one dot but her little man made six moves? I think she's cheating!" Aya declared—looking displeased at her friend.
Kenshin only smiled cheerfully and tenderly explained: "Look. Her character stood here—then the die showed one, and he took a step. But this space sends the little man five spaces forward. See its designation? Here it's written what this picture means." Kenshin said and stroked the girl's head.
"Ah! What a cunning game…" Aya muttered in surprise. For a village girl such games were something unthinkable—and it was hard for her to grasp on the fly. But Kenshin didn't pressure and was ready to explain every detail with special tenderness.
"Well—that's it! And accusing me of cheating… How could you think that of me—we're friends!" Natsumi said with pretended offense—puffing her cheeks.
"Oh—forgive me, Natsumi—I didn't mean to…" Aya chirped and hugged her best friend—eliciting a smile from her.
"Pfft—stop cooing and let's play!" Kasumi said—displeased with the delay in such an insanely interesting game.
For the next several minutes Aya hopelessly lagged—she was constantly unlucky, and die rolls gave only a few moves while Kasumi rapidly rushed to the finish—constantly getting many moves. But by the end of the game everything changed. Suddenly on a die roll Aya got six moves—and her character landed on a space giving another six moves.
Kasumi glanced displeased at Aya—envying that the hand of luck missed a little and hit the wrong girl. On the next roll Kasumi suddenly got only one move and—displeased—took a step forward but was thrown six back. Aya meanwhile got three steps forward and another five from a lucky space.
"Aaaa! Kenshin—something's wrong here! Your game broke!" Kasumi exclaimed—seeing Aya's character closer to the finish than hers.
"Ha-ha-ha—learn to accept defeat—mouse!" Natsumi said—rejoicing for her affectionate friend.
"What mouse to you?! I'm already a full-fledged cat! Kenshin—look—seems this game broke…" Kasumi whimpered again. She felt she would soon lose—and the thought of losing to someone who didn't even fully understand the rules was unbearable for her.
"Everything's fine—dear. This game is based not on skill but luck. So there's nothing strange if any of us wins or loses—and no need to accuse each other of cheating." Kenshin said and stroked both girls' heads.
"Good… Sorry, Aya…" Kasumi whispered ashamedly.
"It's okay." Aya smiled cutely—and everyone returned to the game.
Six moves remained to Aya's victory—and eight to Kasumi's. Rolling the die—Kasumi held her breath and—seeing the number five—cheered a little then looked at Aya who casually rolled the die and got six—instantly winning.
"Ah! God—who was the idiot who invented this stupid game?! Good that no such stupid people were born in our Nara Clan!" Kasumi snorted—very displeased with the defeat.