Meanwhile, Ashina was just observing. After all, this wasn't his place to speak, and he couldn't chime in anyway, so he just enjoyed the show. The melon Mito bought this morning was quite sweet.
Just as the three men were deep in discussion, Mito emerged from the kitchen. Upon first seeing Teruya, she thought her eyes were playing tricks on her. After rubbing them, she realized it was true.
"Teruya? You came too! I thought you didn't like attending these kinds of dinners."
Uchiha Teruya immediately rose upon seeing Mito. "Mito-sama, it's been a long time. Your beauty remains unchanged."
Mito's face broke into a smile. "Haha, you are still so good with words. Let me be the first to congratulate you. Naori and Torifu are getting married soon."
Teruya's heart swelled with happiness. "Thank you, Mito-sama. My little daughter is finally getting married."
"That's not the right thing to say. What do you mean 'finally got married'? Naori is in the prime of her youth and beauty. What's so good about marrying too early?" She then waved her hand. "You all keep talking. I have two more dishes to fry. Tell the children to stop playing; dinner is about to be served."
Hashirama nodded. "Alright, you go ahead. I'll go call them in now."
Torifu and Naori were still sitting outside the house, with Tsunade sitting with them, apparently discussing something. Hearing Hashirama's shout from inside, Torifu rose and ushered Minato and the others, who were playing in the courtyard, into the house for dinner. Having played for so long, the children were a bit hungry and immediately ran over when they heard the announcement.
But hungry or not, rules were still rules. Once they reached the door, they all became well-behaved, took off their shoes and placed them neatly behind the door, and walked in one by one, sitting down on one side of the dining table. The four children sat down in perfect order.
When Torifu walked in and saw how well-behaved they were, he nodded approvingly. Mito's cooking speed was quite fast. The other dishes were already on the table, and the last two were served in less than ten minutes.
With so many people, Hashirama's dining table was full. There had been lively times before, but this was arguably the most bustling. Even the former Uchiha Clan Head was present, which was unprecedented.
Hashirama raised a cup of sake and offered a blessing to Torifu and Naori in his capacity as an elder. The two held hands and accepted the blessing. Throughout the process, Naori's face remained slightly red, seeming a little shy. Torifu was unbothered, openly accepting the elders' blessings. This was something he had built up after all these years as Hokage. He had to speak at all kinds of grand events. Now, receiving toasts from these elders was no big deal.
The elders' blessings concluded with Mito, the couple being bookended by her and Hashirama, showing the spirit of the hosts. "I watched you two little ones grow up. From children so small to now, about to get married, the journey hasn't been easy. I hope you will treasure each other even more in the future."
Then, Hashirama announced that they could start eating, and the children immediately dug in. Everything else at the dinner table had little to do with them. Toasts and blessings were not for ten-year-olds; their only job was to eat.
Out of the corner of his eye, Torifu saw that Yahiko's hand barely stopped moving. He continuously grabbed food and stuffed it into his mouth. His cheeks were bulging, and he mumbled about how delicious the food was.
Mito also saw the orange-haired boy and knew he was Torifu's new apprentice. Seeing him eat with such gusto cheered Mito up. She even took a large chicken leg with a clean bowl and handed it to Yahiko. "Little Yahiko, eat more. You need to grow strong to become a powerful Ninja."
Yahiko was naturally very happy, his smile practically overflowing. "Thank you, Grand-Sensei's Wife! I will!" He then eagerly took a big bite. Next, he grabbed some dishes that were out of reach and gave some to Konan, Minato, and Kushina, treating everyone equally without favoritism. This action impressed Torifu. He had to admit that the older generation had their ways.
This made all the children happy, though Mito was busy and hardly ate anything, constantly tending to everyone.
"Aunt, you should eat too. You've been working all morning and haven't had much."
Mito smiled. "Auntie always likes to taste the food while cooking to check the seasoning. Tasting so many dishes a few times each filled me up a bit. I really can't eat any more right now."
Oh, so that was the reason? Torifu wondered why Mito wasn't eating when there was so much food. Since that was the case, Torifu stopped worrying about it and focused on his own meal. From time to time, he would grab some out-of-reach dishes for Naori.
Just like that, the gathering concluded. Everyone had smiles on their faces, seeming very happy and satisfied. Naori's father, in particular, chatted nonstop with Hashirama at the table. The sake in his cup barely stayed put for a minute. By the end, both men were quite tipsy.
After clearing the table, Mito helped Hashirama back to the room to lie down. As for Teruya, Torifu used Cloud Release to transport him back. This was for stability and looked more dignified.
After Torifu delivered Naori and Teruya back to the Uchiha Clan Compound, he prepared to leave. Kagami came out when he heard the noise and, seeing his unconscious father, thought something had happened. It turned out he was just drunk. After chatting with him for a bit longer, Torifu returned to the Kumotsuru Clan Compound.
Minato had already gone ahead with Yahiko and Konan. He had also "kidnapped" Kushina—or rather, Kushina had come over to the Kumotsuru Clan Compound to play and would return later that evening.
When Torifu arrived home, he saw Minato and Kushina sitting together, playing on their phones. It seemed they were having a one-on-one match in Naruto. Kushina naturally knew how to play, and her skills seemed even better than Minato's. After all, she didn't have much to do and didn't train in Ninjutsu much, so she naturally used her spare time to play games. Over time, her skills surpassed Minato's.
"Hehe! I win again!" Kushina's face was full of the joy of victory.
Although Minato lost, he was quite happy. "One more round! I should be able to win this time!"
Kushina pouted. "Bring it on! I might not be as good as you at Ninjutsu, but I'm definitely better at gaming!"
Torifu didn't pay any more attention to who was winning or losing. Although the large dinner gathering was lively, too much liveliness could cause a headache. All he wanted now was to rest well and recharge his spirit. He still had to supervise Yahiko and Konan's training this afternoon. It would be embarrassing if he suddenly fell asleep halfway through.