Chapter 5. Mommy and Daddy Issues
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The appearance of a new younger brother out of nowhere made a lot of changes in Kiyoshi's life, with the major one being...
"Why are you following me?"
He turned left, the kid turned left! He turned right, the kid turned right too! It seemed as if he had a little follower all the time!
To him, who preferred wandering and hunting... ahem, looking for his wives, a follower was too much of a problem.
And if he raised his voice a bit, wanting to question or inquire, that kid just shrank his face and made a pitiful expression, making Kiyoshi look bad.
"Damn! That woman gave me a problem she was unable to deal with!"
But still...
"I am the older brother."
...
Another morning. And this wasn't an exception.
Before the sun was up, the children, including the new addition Ren, Kiyoshi's younger brother— all of them were running, trying to complete the training.
Running up the mountains in the midst of the forest, dodging traps and whatnot, all of it made Kiyoshi mentally tired. His physicals were already adapted, making this nothing more than a breeze. The two, Tengen and the other one, were both ahead, doing well as always. If he tried, Kiyoshi could pass them but again, why try so hard?
The rest were still behind, even his younger brother Ren. Soon, he reached halfway, thought of something, and looked behind.
"Where is that kid?"
Unable to find him, he scaled down, letting the rest pass him, and at last—behind all the other brothers—he found Ren, trying as hard as possible just to complete the part.
"Trying so hard?"
It only took a single glance for him to tell that Ren wasn't ready to complete it. His legs wobbled and the sounds of heavy breathing reached Kiyoshi's ears. Yet, Ren persisted—who knows for what. Maybe for the same reason as everyone else in the group except Kiyoshi.
Feeling someone standing in front, waiting for him, Ren looked up, finding Kiyoshi looking back at him.
"Kiyoshi-nii-san?"
"That's right. It's me. You... don't try too hard. You won't be able to handle it."
Kiyoshi survived because of his adaptation and sheer will. He knew how lucky he was. But he didn't expect that from his younger brother—especially when he knew that only two people survived in the end.
Hearing his words, Ren wasn't sad or disappointed, but rather happy that his older brother, who rarely spoke to him, talked to him! And he could feel that he cared for him too!
This kid, who received mostly indifferent gazes and constant lectures from his mother to fulfill his duties and become an excellent ninja, felt something warm from his older brother's words.
If Kiyoshi could hear his inner feelings, he would definitely ask: "Are you sure your name is Ren and not Naruto?"
...
In this ninja village, the kids, specifically the male ones, are forced to mature early. When Kiyoshi often looked at his brothers, and now his own younger brother Ren, he couldn't help but compare them to his younger self from his previous life.
What was he doing at Ren's age? At five, Ren was here, training so hard he might die just to become a ninja. And him? He was lying on the ground, making a scene to force his mother to buy him the toy he wanted. In the end, she did buy it to make him shut up, only for him to cry again at home.
Thinking back on those memories, he was very grateful to have had a normal childhood. So he felt that, even if he couldn't change everything, he shouldn't be completely indifferent. At least not to the level of indifference these people had.
If he tried and others remained the same, then there was nothing more he could do. But... if they changed, then he needed to do something further.
Simply put, help if you can, don't help if you can't. And if your help results in a positive change, then that's good. And it makes him feel good too.
That's why he regularly went to meet Suma. Well, there were improper intentions, but still, he wanted to make the time they spent together into the best memory of her childhood.
The same was true for Ren. As much as Kiyoshi didn't like someone following him all the time, he felt that at the moment, at least, he could say a few words to his younger brother.
Unfortunately, those words—spoken with concern—had the opposite effect. Those caring words fueled the soul that hungered for affection and acceptance after years of indifferent stares and pressure, and Ren felt that he couldn't let his older brother, his mother, and his father down!
His older brother showed care—maybe his mother and father would too?
"I can do it, Kiyoshi-nii-sa—!"
Chop!
Before Ren could speak some shounen-style words, Kiyoshi just dropped a hand-chop on his neck and knocked him unconscious.
He can do it? He can do shit!
"Can't even walk and says he can do it? I'm saving your life, younger brother."
If they changed, then he needed to do something further. And Kiyoshi hand-chopped and "helped" his younger brother further, making sure he didn't die from overwork.
"Why do I feel my future will be a bit hectic because of this younger brother?"
Kiyoshi left Ren, letting the ninjas monitoring the training take him away, and he completed the rest of the track.
...
"K-Kiyoshi-nii-san?"
Kiyoshi looked at Ren who—after waking up—somehow found him. He was quite surprised, since this kid called out to him instead of shrinking and making a pitiful face like before.
But...
Kiyoshi didn't feel it was a bad thing.
"What is it?"
"I..."
"I?"
"I... I will work hard even more from now on! I won't disappoint you, Kiyoshi-nii-san!"
"Huh?"
And Ren ran away—who knows where—leaving the confused Kiyoshi behind. The words just reverberated in Kiyoshi's mind as he tried to understand what this kid meant.
Work hard even more?
"Don't tell me... this kid took my words as encouragement?"
Damn! No wonder he felt that his future was about to get hectic. This kid... he suffers from mommy and daddy issues!