The warmth of the restaurant felt softer now, the kind that came after the dinner rush. Or, in this restaurant in particular, the first part of the dinner rush. Laughter mellowed, mugs half-emptied, and the scent of seared butter hanging in the air like an afterimage of work well done.
Across the separator, Kushina had already devoured half her pasta. But her friend, she ate slower, letting the silence stretch between each bite. Ludwig noticed how she listened more than she spoke. Her eyes roamed across the hall, studying every race that shared the tables: dwarves trading jokes with beastmen, goblins sipping ale beside a hobgoblin, even some female orcs chatting with Valerie deep in the main dining area.
It wasn't judgment in her gaze, nor fear. Just quiet curiosity. Something a shinobi carried when walking unfamiliar ground, probably. Kushina never had that kind of gaze, except when it's new dish with noodles.
"This place is… different," she said finally, setting her chopsticks down. "People here don't stare at each other like they do back home."
Kushina laughed, wiping a smear of sauce from her lip. "That's because Lud keeps them all too busy eating! Nobody can argue with a full mouth and full stomach."
Listening to how Kushina's mood had recovered, Ludwig closed his book and rose to his height. "Our dear Kushina is correct. You've really grown."
"Hey! I'm not talking with you!" Kushina shot him a glare as she said so.
But before Ludwig could tease the Jinchuriki more, the girl sitting beside Kushina let her beautiful voice echoed through the restaurant. "Do you think that's what it takes to make people get along?"
The urge Ludwig felt to tease Kushina evaporated instantly. Her voice was soft, yet it carried weight. Not curiosity, but the kind of question that had lived in her for years before finding its way out.
He looked at Mikoto properly for the first time. She wasn't staring at anyone in particular; her eyes were on the table, on the small curl of steam rising from her bowl. But her words carried a gravity that silenced even Kushina's ready retort.
Ludwig didn't need to ask what she meant. He already knew. The tone alone told him everything. That quiet mix of sadness and restraint he'd heard too often in people who carried a burden.
The Uchihas.
Their tragedy wasn't carved in stone yet, but Ludwig knew it. The simmering resentment, the unspoken division, the pride that refused to yield even as the world turned colder around them.
He had read it all before. Both canon and all the what if's situations in fanfics. Not one was pretty. Not one ending in the village and the clan holding hands together and walking for a brighter future.
So Ludwig did what came naturally to him. He had steeled himself to change the trajectory of both Kushina and Minato's lives. So what about one more?
He reached for words the way a chef reached for ingredients. Measured, patient, mindful of balance.
"…Getting along," He began quietly, "isn't something you can force. You can't tell people to share a table if they've never learned what it means to eat together."
Mikoto's gaze rose, dark eyes glinting in the lamplight.
Looking straight to those eyes, he continued.
"When I cook, I don't think about who's sitting in front of me. Elf, demon, dwarf, human. It doesn't matter, never will. What matters is that, for a few moments, they eat the same thing. Taste the same warmth. For that short while, they're not enemies or strangers. They're just… people."
He paused to pour a little more tea into her cup. The faint aroma of the flower tea drifted between them, light and clean.
"You asked if kindness is enough," Ludwig said. "No. It isn't. Kindness alone can be misunderstood, stepped on, or forgotten. But hospitality…" He gestured toward the hall, toward the diners scattered across different tables. "Hospitality is kindness given shape. It's the effort to understand what another person needs before they even ask. It's what cooking really is."
Mikoto's fingers brushed the edge of her cup, thoughtful. "Understanding before they ask…"
"It's not easy," Ludwig admitted. "You can burn yourself in the process. Sometimes you'll make something bitter, and people will still blame you for it." He smiled faintly, without humor. "But you try again anyway. Because the next dish might bring someone together."
Mikoto studied him for a long moment. "You sound like you've seen this before."
Ludwig chuckled softly. "I've seen many kitchens — and many wars. They're not as different as people think. Both start with fire, and both can feed or destroy, depending on how you use it."
The faintest smile touched Mikoto's lips, a sad one. "And what if the fire's already burning too hot?"
"Then you learn to lower the flame." Ludwig folded his arms loosely, his gaze steady on hers. "You can't cook with pride alone, Mikoto. Nor anyone could survive on strength without warmth. Sometimes," he added gently, "you have to let the bitterness simmer before you can taste what's left."
For a while, no one spoke. Even Kushina, usually the heartbeat of any noise, stayed quiet. The restaurant seemed to breathe with them. Lanterns flickering, the air fragrant with herbs and tea.
Finally, Mikoto looked down again, whispering almost to herself. "…Understanding before they ask."
Ludwig smiled faintly, seeing the thought root itself in her. He knew that look. That quiet internal note that she'd carry home, turn over in her mind again and again. Perhaps, someday, it would matter. Perhaps, someday, it might change something.
Ludwig looked up, he saw Zhark was walking towards him. From his sense he knew what he needed, so he moved, one way to take his exit from the talk they just have.
Politics was something he despised. However, throughout his journey to slay the Demon King it had become something he was familiar with. And Uchiha matter was just that when you boiled it down.
Maybe in the future, he would be more forward about telling her. But for now, planting the seed was enough.
Ludwig snapped his fingers and three tankards appeared in front like his personal army. Clenching his hands around the handle of the three tankards, he brought it to the ale tap before pulling the lever down, putting more and more orangey liquid into it.
Once all the tankards were filled with a perfect blend of beer and foam, he put it on top of the separator, earning him a nod from Zhark.
Just as the bulky demon walked away from the bar, his head buzzed. Ludwig smirked, and then the bell on top of the door let out its usual cheery chime. From the opening door, a man standing as tall as his chest walked in, his blue hair bobbing around.
"Welcome to Checkpoint." The employees around the restaurant said one after another.
In the meantime, Ludwig just smirked. "Welcome back, Dear Customer."
Rimuru walked in with his usual springy steps. Hearing his words, he whipped his head towards him and waved his hands. "Yo!"
Then as soon as he spotted the red-haired, he moved his waving hands to her direction. "Hey, Kushina!"
Kushina's eyes lit up immediately. "Finally! Took you long enough!"
With a wide grin plastered on his face, RImuru walked towards Kushina before pulling the seat back and sat on it. "Some of us actually say work before dinner, you know."
"Work? You mean dumping papers on either poor Benimaru or Shuna again?"
"Delegation, Claire said it." Rimuru corrected, flashing a peace sign.
As if she knew her name was uttered, the bell chimed again. From the opened doors connected to the commercial district of Ravenhall, Claire walked in. She was serene as ever, her presence like a calm wind in the bustle.
With the repeat of the usual greetings, both from the employees and the patron, Claire finally found herself sitting beside Mikoto.
In the meantime, Mikoto watched the exchange quietly, her posture straight, hands folded over her lap. The arrival of the two hadn't startled her. Rather, she seemed to be cataloguing the ease between them, the casual familiarity that crossed worlds and species as naturally as breathing.
Probably sensing both Rimuru and Claire looking at her friend, Kushina balled one of her hands and hit it on her open palm. "Ah! Let me introduce her to you. She's my friend. Her name is Mikoto Uchiha."
A flash of recognition passed through Rimuru's face, his eyes hovering towards the newcomer from Konoha.
Didn't expect that, did you? Ludwig chuckled to no one but himself. He too hadn't expected that the first friend Kushina would take to this restaurant would be her.
Across the separator, Claire offered a polite nod. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Mikoto. My name is Claire Russel."
Mikoto inclined her head. "Likewise. Just like Kushina said, my name is Mikoto Uchiha. A ninja."
While the introduction between the two women finished, the only man in the seat was still silent. Or to be exact, gawking at the black-haired woman.
Seeing him looking so silly, Claire took upon herself to snap the slime back to his consciousness to Ludwig's glee. "Slime, you are a monster. Even in a million years, you wouldn't be able to be with her."
Rimuru's eyes moved from Mikoto towards Claire with a snap at that moment. A glint of anger flashed there. But from how his face turned redder and redder, it was obvious he was more embarrassed than angry.
"What are you talking about!" Rimuru spat. "I-I just never thought Kushina would have a friend!"
Kushina's neck snapped towards Rimuru, and with a fed up expression she too exploded. "What did you take me for! I have a friend! And more!"
Probably realizing he had misspoke, Rimuru tried to extinguish the raging flame. Unfortunately for him, his opponents were the perfect duo when it came to him, Claire and Kushina.
Ludwig was satisfied to be a bystander as the woman fought together, one pricking Rimuru while one kept picking up words he misspoken. But then, a sudden thought visited his mind. Back in his past life, there's a saying that when men and women bickered too much every day, they would end up falling in love with each other.
Ludwig's eyes drifted towards smirking Claire. Then, it moved again towards the flailing Rimuru.
What if they ended up with each other? Ludwig's brows creased as his thoughts took a wild turn.
Before that, could a slime breed the normal way? If he's not wrong, the only way they reproduce was splitting into two.
Ludwig sighed as his eyes swept through the restaurant. He's not here alright… What a waste.
If Ryouma was present, he would surely ask the question to stop his thoughts from questioning way too much. Well at the same time, he could have embarrassed Rimuru too.
It's hunting two birds with one stone.
Truly, what a waste.
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