After returning home, Uchiha Tonan began cooking passionately. In the past, he would make two or three dishes, but today, he was uncharacteristic. He prepared eight dishes in one go.
At the dinner table, Sanbo Motoyoshi’s heart became restless seeing this. “Why did you cook so much today? The two of us can’t finish it.”
Tonan explained while serving Motoyoshi a bowl of rice, “The doctor said that I should give you more food and replenish your nutrition. If you want to eat something specific, just tell me. I’ll make it for you tomorrow.”
Motoyoshi shook his head and said, “I’m not picky. Everything’s delicious.”
He picked up the rice bowl and began eating. For some reason though, Motoyoshi lost his appetite today. The dishes he relished in the past turned tasteless in his mouth. After the meal, Tonan didn’t go to Hatake Kakashi’s house for training either.
Instead, he chatted with Motoyoshi in the courtyard while watching flowers. In the past, Tonan used to listen to Motoyoshi talk about his glory days. Today, however, he was the one who kept chatting, as if he would never have the chance to say these words again.
Later at night, Tonan took the initiative to wash Motoyoshi’s feet and was at it for over two hours. Motoyoshi saw Tonan’s dull eyes, and his hands that kept washing his legs repeatedly. A trace of melancholy appeared on his face. Unable to finally endure, he sighed, “Stop washing, child. If you continue, the remaining skin will be gone.”
Tonan nodded quietly and took the water away before helping Motoyoshi to the bed.
Coo coo
Late at night, birds kept chirping outside the window. Motoyoshi tossed and turned on the bed. He couldn’t fall asleep. He kept thinking about what was wrong with his body that made Tonan behave so odd today.
“If there was a cure, that child would’ve definitely admitted me to the hospital for treatment. Since he didn’t, does that mean the issue with my body is incurable?”
“I’m just a crippled old man. The way I dealt with hunger in the past… it would be a wonder if my health was good. But what’s the problem?”
Motoyoshi kept fidgeting, thinking about several things. In the end, though, he tired out and gradually fell asleep. In the darkened room, snoring sounds began to resound.
Just when Motoyoshi was about to enter deep sleep, he was awakened by a light sob. Moreover, this sound was coming from right beside him.
Out of the instinctive reaction he developed since he was young, he immediately opened his eyes and turned to look over. He saw a dark figure sitting by his bedside. Motoyoshi recognized it was Tonan from the outline.
He asked in confusion, “Tonan, what’re you doing here? Why didn’t you go to sleep?”
“Nothing… I couldn’t sleep… I wanted to see you more.” Tonan replied in a low voice.
After a long time, Motoyoshi sighed and asked, “Tell me honestly, is something wrong with my body?”
Tonan shook his head vigorously and answered, “There truly isn’t. Don’t think too much and sleep. I’ll leave after watching you for a while.”
“Fine…”
In the dark, Tonan stared at Motoyoshi quietly. Motoyoshi, who was feeling sleepy earlier, was no longer in the mood. He looked back at Tonan with a warm gaze.
The next day, the sun had just risen. Motoyoshi sat in a wheelchair with dark circles under his eyes. He was being pushed around Konoha streets by Tonan as they strolled around.
“Grandpa, look, that used to be my school.”
“This school looks pretty good.”
“Grandpa, look over there… Hokage-sama works there.”
“Hokage Residence is being renovated again.”
“Grandpa, look, look…”
……
At noon, Tonan made another table full of dishes. Motoyoshi listlessly ate the food and asked in a tone full of vicissitude, “Tonan, are you going to train with Kakashi this afternoon?”
Tonan shook his head and replied, “I’m not going, I want to spend more time with you.”
Motoyoshi looked at Tonan with affection and said, “You don’t need to accompany me. Just go and train. I can hold on.”
Tonan hesitated for a while, then pursed his lips and agreed, “Alright.”
After the meal, he put a red envelope in Motoyoshi’s coat pocket and worriedly said, “Grandpa, if you’ve any problem, you must immediately call the neighbors. After calling them, hand over this envelope first. They’ll be more attentive then.”
Motoyoshi patted Tonan’s hand and nodded, “You’re just going for half a day. Don’t worry, I’ll be fine.”
Tonan nodded and reluctantly left. After about ten minutes had passed, Motoyoshi shook his head, trying to forcibly lighten his mood. With a sense of determination, he pushed his wheelchair out of home and headed towards Konoha Hospital alone.
After half an hour, Motoyoshi found the doctor’s office they met yesterday. “Doctor, I came for a health checkup yesterday.”
The doctor was surprised to see Motoyoshi alone. He looked around and discovered Tonan was not there. Therefore, he nodded and said, “I remember you, you are Sanbo Motoyoshi, right?”
Motoyoshi nodded and said, “Yes, I came today to ask about my health condition.”
The doctor smiled, “Your health is very good. There’s no illness. Rest assured.”
Motoyoshi did not believe this and asked again, “So, how long can I live?”
The question caught the doctor off guard for a moment. Recalling what Tonan had said yesterday, he coughed lightly and said, “According to my years of medical experience, you’ll live a hundred years without any problem.”
Motoyoshi, who was observing the doctor’s expression, noticed the change. “Really?”
“Of course… I’m a doctor, I’m responsible for what I say.”
“It’s not a white lie, right?”
The doctor’s smile stiffened and he weakly said, “How can that be…”
Looking at the doctor’s expression, the experienced Motoyoshi understood everything. He nodded and said, “Alright… that’s good… thank you, doctor.”
After speaking, he pushed the wheelchair outside of the office. Behind him, the doctor shouted, “Eat whatever you want, stay in a good mood, and get enough sleep.”
This sentence made Motoyoshi even surer he didn’t have long to live. After returning home, he took his chakra tanto hanging in the bedroom and gently stroked it.
“It seems I won’t live long. No wonder Tonan has been so strange. I wonder when I’ll die. Is it a year from now or two? Or is it in a few months? I never thought death was already this close to me. It seems it’s time to pass the Sanbo Style Blade Technique to Tonan. After that, I’ll have no regrets.”
