"Young miss, how much is my bill?" Hiruzen asked the woman—if he could call her that—and pushed the seat he had been sitting on for the past few hours with his lower body.
"I apologize, Sir. You should ask the chef himself about that." The woman lowered her head slightly before telling him so in her cheery voice.
"I see. No need to apologize." The man waved his hand in front of the woman before turning back and called for the young man with the same hair colour as one of Konoha's heroes, albeit much lighter. "Owner, how much do I owe you?"
The man moved, no not after he asked him the question but even before. He was already looking at him with his silver eyes the moment he turned his body. The only thing he did after he opened his mouth was walk towards him, a smile plastered on her face.
The young man waved his hand in the air, then his eyes moved. There's nothing in the air, yet, the man was using his finger as if he was pressing something there while his eyes were fixated on whatever it was.
"The total came out at 310 Ryo, Sir." The man said, his tone confident but professional.
Hiruzen's hand moved into the inside of his clothes after hearing the price. A serving of raw fish and 3 servings of sake cost him almost the same amount as 6 kunai, quite expensive. But he was willing to pay the price. The first reason was because the fish was good. No fish dishes in Konohagakure could compare to how deep and sweet it was.
But the second reason was more important. He had obtained the information he needed and more.
Hiruzen pulled 4 papers from his pocket before giving it to the owner.
"Thank you for your patronage, Sir." The man chimed as he took the money. "I'm already looking forward to your next visit."
"Hahaha." Hiruzen chuckled. "I'll visit again soon."
As he walked towards the door, the woman who had been standing there opened the door for him, repeating what her owner just said to him a moment before.
The heavy wooden door shut behind him with a final thunk. For a moment, the old man lingered, his hand fishing his pipe from inside his robes. The faint scent of food and warmth clinging to his robes filled the air as his robes fluttered.
Putting the pipe into his mouth and lighting up the other end, Hiruzen exhaled slowly. The smoke curled into the night air of tranquil Konoha, though his mind was far from calm.
That place, those people, that man.
Hiruzen adjusted his hat as he stepped into the street illuminated by the lamp above. Any villagers who saw him bowed their heads. In their eyes, they might have thought he was only on a leisure stroll before coming home, but inside, he was digesting. Not food, but the information he got.
A place that bends the law of our world. An owner who was a hero, strong enough to hunt monsters that seemed hard to kill. Leader of people that was a few times higher than Konoha' population. A miraculous medicine that can cure lost limbs and blindness. His jaw tightened. He prided himself to be quite strong. Some called him the God of Shinobi, some called him hero. But the scope of his exploits were around Konoha. No, everything he did was for Konoha.
Aside from people of his own village, no one would call him a hero. The only one who the whole shinobi world called a hero was that man—the man who made the entire world stop fighting each other: Hashirama Senju.
If the standard of the Shinobi World was to be applied to that owner, then, he was supposed to be as strong as the First Hokage, something unthinkable, blasphemous even. But, from how he acted around the restaurant, Hiruzen felt that maybe he was almost as strong as Hashirama-sensei.
Throughout his long career, Hiruzen had met countless shinobis, leaders, and monsters in human skin. But that man… He was something else. He knew that the man knew that he was observing him based on how he always acted even before something happened. Yet, he didn't mind. He had let him sit, eat, and drink in his place, as if to tell him everyone inside his restaurant was under his mercy.
Hiruzen knew that it was true. Danzo—his bestfriend—had come to him nights ago, bringing information and proofs for power never seen before. One operative of Root had become a child, young enough to enroll in the Ninja Academy again. At the same time, other operatives had become old, older than him and his friends.
He remembered what Danzo told him nights ago. "Such power cannot be ignored, Hiruzen. Either we control it or it will control us." Something that made him quicken his plan to observe the restaurant from close proximity.
But now, he could say it clearly. Controlling that place, or that man was out of the question. After all, to control that man, they had to subdue him first before making him submit to them—something he didn't think possible. Moreover, there's also other customers of the restaurant.
From how most of them reacted after nine tails' chakra slipped through Kushina's control, it was obvious to his eyes they were nothing to be looked down upon. At least Chunin-level, with most of them in the Jounin-level.
But the scariest one of the bunch was the four that didn't really react. The black haired woman who calmed Kushina down, a leader of a city full of mercenaries; An easy-going blue haired man, a leader of a city bigger both in size and population compared to Konoha; A man with skin as dark as the night and red eyes that had a big wolf as his companion; and lastly, the unassuming young men which had ball-like creature surrounding him.
The latter was the newest addition to the restaurant, someone who hadn't created a close tie with the others yet. From how the blue haired man says he's dangerous, he could be one card Konoha could use if they decided to attack. But the process to turn him into Konoha's card would be arduous, or even impossible.
Hiruzen shelved the thought away, his mind already thinking about one last piece of information that he got from the restaurant. A miraculous medicine that he dared to say was able to cure anything.
If they could get their hands on that medicine, Konoha's power would be restored quicker. After all, there's so many ninjas who could no longer take missions because they had lost some limbs. Even if it's not that medicine, the one that had an inferior effect would still be a boon. By supplying every ninja with it, winning the war that was currently brewing would also just be a matter of time.
The only problem was whether they would be willing to sell it to Konoha or not.
Even after he digested the information he got, Hiruzen still felt like a lump was weighing on his chest. Kushina. She was jinchūriki of the Nine Tails—one of Konoha's greatest assets, and one of its greatest liabilities. Yet inside that restaurant, she had laughed freely, her guard lowered in a way he had never seen within the village walls. It unsettled him.
What happens if she trusts him more than the village? What if Minato begins to do the same? Will the chain of loyalty snap?
The Third Hokage closed his eyes for a moment. The night air felt colder as he walked the final stretch toward his home. Kushina's laughter he had left behind in that restaurant still rang faintly in his ears, a warmth this village could not provide to her. And that frightened him more than any enemy ever had.
If the Will of Fire falters in their hearts… what place will Konoha hold in their lives?
Hiruzen's steps finally came to a halt. He stored his pipe back into his rope and opened a wooden door of his house. The moment he stepped inside, his wife came to the hall, smiling.
"Hiruzen, I smell food and sake in you. Have you had dinner yet?"
"I have." Hiruzen smiled, his concerns already forgotten. "But I still have room for your food."
* * *
"That old man!" Kushina exploded again as soon as the Hokage left the restaurant. "Did he make trouble here?"
After Claire brought him away from the old man, Kushina had calmed down. She even started to share banter and laughter with her usual friends, Akane and Jade included this time. Even Cless wasn't spared, Kushina hugged her like she was her kid, patting her and even ordering anything she wanted.
However, the moment the door of the restaurant closed and the Hokage's presence disappeared, Kushina once again channeled his anger to the air.
"No, he didn't cause any trouble." Claire chuckled as she patted Kushina's back. "On the contrary, he would have so many things to think about for the next few days."
The flame in Kushina's tone died again at that moment. "What do you mean?"
This time, it was Rimuru who chuckled. "It was like this…"
While Rimuru and Claire filled Kushina about what kind of pranks they pulled against the Hokage, Ludwig continued moving the pan in front of him. Even after the night deepened, late enough for some people to call it a day and leave the restaurant, more customers came from Rimuru's world.
All the cast that frequently appeared both in the manga and anime could now be seen in the restaurant. Judging from some of them who already left after paying for their food themselves, it seemed that the economy in Rimuru's city had stabilized quite a lot.
It was a good sign, more business for him from a city he knew he could trust. However, even after growing so much, the city still hadn't finished creating the sauces he knew they would make in the future. Even after all the soft nudge he gave them, the result was still so slow.
But as he thought about that, his body suddenly froze. His mind arrived on a possibility he hoped was not true. Could it be that the reason the food research in Tempest went slowly was because of this restaurant?
The more Ludwig thought about it, the more it made sense. If he was in Rimuru's shoes, he would also allocate more manpower to more critical ventures for the Tempest rather than the food. After all, his own craving for food from Earth was being taken care of by this restaurant.
Seems like I have to ask them about it next time. Ludwig made a mental note. At the same time he prayed. Even though most of his bad feelings were always spot on, he hoped this time around, the luck would favour him.
After he plated the food and gave it to Vilera to be relayed to the waiters, he stood still rather than returning to his seat. Only when Vilera returned to the kitchen to clean the utensils he used did he open his mouth.
"Vilera, tomorrow should be your first holiday. Any thoughts about who should be given their holiday first?"
Vilera looked at him mid-step. But not a second later, she answered. "I suggest giving Valerie, Finka, and Zhark first."
Ludwig mused as he heard her suggestion. To be honest, he also thought about giving those three a rest tomorrow. After all, Vilera and Bilo were already skillful enough to carry their own weight. Not that the other three were inferior. But to how Vilera solved the hall's problem and Bilo's quick movement in the kitchen, the three were quite lacking.
However, since Valerie and Vilera were twins, he thought they would want the same break day. But after hearing her words, Ludwig could just nod his head. As expected of her. With some more experience on her belt, he probably would be able to pull a plan he was thinking about for the afternoon business if he had something to do.