Chapter 63: Good Brothers

On a Sunday evening, while preparing dinner, Mutsuki casually mentioned that he had successfully mastered the One Finger Seal technique.

"Have you really mastered it? Let me calculate, it's been exactly seven days," Kushina said, counting on her fingers and realizing that Mutsuki had indeed learned it in seven days.

"Learned it in just seven days? This indicates that Mutsuki, you have a remarkable talent for Sealing Jutsu," Kushina said with a smile, expressing her joy for Mutsuki.

With such talent in Sealing Jutsu, if he continues to study, achieving the rank of Special Jonin through Sealing Jutsu wouldn't be difficult.

"I think I was able to learn so quickly mainly because of the excellent teachings of Kushina-sensei and Minato-sensei," Mutsuki said with a smile as he brought the dishes to the table.

It seemed like a mutual exchange, as Minato and Kushina had previously jokingly referred to him as Yumi-sensei.

"Hehe, that's right. I personally taught Minato all his Sealing Jutsu," Kushina proudly declared.

After developing a good relationship with Minato, Kushina wanted him to become stronger, so she often dragged Minato along for Sealing Jutsu training.

Under her careful guidance, Minato had become a Sealing Jutsu expert, mastering many advanced techniques.

"Maybe I'm suited to be a teacher," Kushina thought, believing she might have a talent for teaching.

She had only taught Sealing Jutsu to Minato and Mutsuki. Minato had become skilled, and Mutsuki had learned the One Finger Seal in just a week.

"Kushina-sensei, enough talk. Let's eat," Minato teased as he helped Kushina serve the food.

"Student Minato, who gave you permission to speak to sensei like that? As a punishment, you have to feed sensei," Kushina mimicked the tone of their previous Academy sensei.

"Alright," Minato sighed with a helpless smile, playing along with Kushina's act as he fed her.

Mutsuki's mood was somewhat complicated, even though he was at his home, he had the strange urge to take his bowl and eat alone outside.

"If you keep this up, I might finish all the dishes," Mutsuki declared, entering full-speed devouring mode.

Swiftly grabbing food with his chopsticks and combining it with rice, he repeated this operation continuously.

"Hey!" Seeing the dishes gradually disappearing from the plate, Kushina and Minato abandoned their role-playing and joined in the immersive eating experience.

Soon, the three of them had completely cleared the table of dishes, and then Kushina and Minato went to wash the dishes.

Due to the frequent shared meals, they would usually help Mutsuki with other chores, like washing vegetables and dishes. When Mutsuki ate at their place, he would also lend a hand.

After washing the dishes, Kushina had Mutsuki review the One Finger Seal and the Sealing Jutsu knowledge on the scrolls. In a few days, she planned to teach Mutsuki the Three Fingers Seal.

"The Three Fingers Seal is an advanced version of the One Finger Seal. With your talent, you should be able to learn it in about a month," Kushina said.

"Are there also Four Finger Seal and Five Finger Seal?" Mutsuki felt that the names sounded a bit hastily chosen.

"No Four Finger Seal, only Five Finger Seal," Kushina replied.

Indeed.

"If you can master the Five Finger Seal, learning most Sealing Jutsu won't be difficult. Moreover, the Five Finger Seal itself is a part of some advanced Sealing Jutsu," explained Kushina.

With Kushina's explanation, Mutsuki understood the significance of Sealing Jutsu like the One Finger Seal and Three Fingers Seal.

"What do you want to eat tomorrow? I'll prepare the ingredients in advance," Mutsuki said.

Although they were already familiar with each other, Mutsuki felt the need to express his gratitude to Kushina and Minato for teaching him Sealing Jutsu.

"Pork belly," immediately replied Kushina.

"Sauteed mushrooms," Minato thought for a moment before answering.

"Consider it done!"

...

On Monday, Kotetsu arrived early at school. He skillfully placed his novel on the desk and began reading. This was the last week before the final exams starting next Monday. After three days of exams, they would go on break.

As the time for Izumo's arrival approached, Kotetsu closed his book and opened the novel.

"Kotetsu, good morning," greeted Izumo with a smile.

"Back to reading novels, huh?" Izumo glanced at the books placed in front of Kotetsu, relieved to see they were novels.

"Yeah, with only one week left until the exams, studying now seems pointless. It'll only make me anxious. I'd rather relax," replied Kotetsu with a smile.

"By the way, Izumo, I recently found a great game. Come take a look and see if you like it," said Kotetsu, pulling out a square metal box from his bag.

This was the highly popular game Shogi, which he had learned about through various sources. It was said to be very addictive, with players wanting to play one more round after trying it.

Izumo enjoyed playing games, and such an excellent game deserved a whole week of intense play.

"Shogi, huh? I played it once at a relative's house. It's so much fun. Kotetsu, you're really thoughtful," Izumo expressed his gratitude, feeling moved.

He hadn't expected Kotetsu to remember the lie he told to cover up his studies. This made Izumo feel a bit guilty.

With Kotetsu being so kind to him, how could he...

"I've recently bought many exciting ninja novels, way more than I can finish. I'll give you three, Kotetsu," Izumo smiled, handing the novels to Kotetsu.

While their brotherly bond was strong, Izumo was more interested in winning the heart of the girl next door.

Since Kotetsu liked reading novels, why not let him spend a week immersed in novels? After all, Kotetsu himself had mentioned relaxing for a week.

"These are all recent best-selling novels, Izumo, you..." Looking at the novels Izumo handed him with a smile, Kotetsu was deeply touched.

His usual disguise had unexpectedly fooled Izumo, who went so far as to give him a gift with such a clumsy excuse.

Who could ever have too many novels? The more captivating the novel, the more one feels the shortage.

"I've recently gathered various games. Take a look, Izumo," worried that a game of Shogi might not be enough, Kotetsu handed a paper to Izumo.

The paper listed over a dozen games, suitable for both indoor and outdoor settings, with one particular game being the highlight.

"For Mei's sake, I apologize, Izumo," Kotetsu apologized inwardly.

"Shisui, why don't you grab a novel to relax? I can see you're tired from studying every day, and besides, with so many books, I can't finish them all at once," Kotetsu asked Shisui, who was behind him.

"I can share my games too," Izumo added quickly.

However, to their disappointment, Shisui shook his head and politely declined.

"Are you two still good brothers? You ask Shisui and not me, huh?" Anko scolded the two with hands on her hips.

Kotetsu, Izumo: "..."

They were afraid that Anko's grades might not be as high as the last time if she continued like this truly believing them.

"Uh, Anko, maybe you should review a bit," Kotetsu couldn't help but say.

Anko posed no threat to him, but he was more concerned that Anko might perform poorly in the exams.

"Why review? Isn't it better not to review? Have you reviewed?" Anko asked in confusion.

Kotetsu naturally didn't dare to admit it and shook his head directly.

"Then, Izumo, have you reviewed?" Anko asked again.

"No," Izumo also shook his head.

"That settles it," Anko nodded in satisfaction.

Izumo and Kotetsu exchanged glances and, in the end, as Anko wished, shared their novels and games with her.

"That's how good brothers should be," Anko patted their shoulders, revealing a happy smile.

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