Hiro Akimichi stared wide eyed at his father, his blue eyes sparkling in childish awe, as he ate the large meal that had been set before him. Hiro's eyes trailed back to his small dinner.
"Mummy, can I have some more?"
Ino paused, her fork resting against her bottom lip. Chouji stopped eating to stare at him son.
"But you haven't eaten anything." he commented dumb-found.
"Why do you want more honey?" Ino asked softly, setting her fork down on her plate, "You barely eat what you're given anyway."
"I'll eat it all! I promise!" Hiro insisted stubbornly, swinging his legs, "Please! I wanna be like Daddy!"
Chouji recoiled under the glare his wife sent him.
"It's not my fault!" he objected, "All I did was eat!"
Ino glared at him once more, for good measure, before turning to her son with a soft gaze.
"Why don't you eat that first and I'll get you more when you're finished?" Ino offered. Hiro looked thoughtful for a moment, making his mother think he was going to accept the deal. But of course not! He was her son after all.
"Nope!" he chirped, "I want it now!"
"I'll get you for this Akimichi!" Ino growled in her husband's ear as she got up to tend to their stubborn son, causing Chouji to shudder in slight fear. He stared at his son, who just sat on his chair, smiling and giggling.
"You're trying to get me killed, aren't you?" Chouji asked in a false accusing way. Hiro, being a four year old and not really understanding what was going on, just giggled louder, his grin widening.
Ino set the plate, with food now double the size of his original meal, in front of her son, causing him to squeal happily.
"Thank you Mummy!" Hiro jumped up to kiss her cheek, "I'll eat it all! I promise!"
"Yeah, whatever." Ino smiled softly as she watched her son eat the mashed potatoes on his plate. There was too much on the fork and Hiro couldn't get his mouth around it, causing Ino to giggle.
"Try this." Chouji took his son's fork. Using his knife, he cut down the portion and fed his son. "See? You can eat it now."
Hiro nodded eagerly. "Yes Daddy." he spoke with his mouth full.
"Hiro! Don't talk with your mouth full!" Ino scolded gently.
Hiro blushed slightly and swallowed his food. "Sorry Mummy!"
"That's better." Ino smiled as she watched her son take another mouthful.
- - - - - - - -
Well, the younger Akimichi kept his word. He eat everything on his plate.
Hiro whimpered in pain, holding onto his stomach in a protective way, as he allowed himself to be carried upstairs to his room by his father. He could hear his mother ranting behind them about how it was Chouji's fault, whom ignored her.
Chouji laid Hiro in his bed gently, leaning him against the headboard. Hiro curled into a small ball, clutching his legs tightly, his eyes closed. Chouji rested a hand on the child's light brown hair.
"Ino?" he spoke.
She paused mid-sentence. "Yes?"
"Could you bring up some peppermint tea?" Chouji asked, "It'll help settle the pain."
Ino nodded. "Yeah, okay." She eyes her husband silently before going downstairs.
"This is a lesson for you, Hiro." Chouji told his son with a small smile, "You knew you couldn't eat that much without getting sick."
"But you can eat it and more." Hiro groaned, creaking an eye open.
"That's because I've had years to practise." Chouji explained, "You shouldn't do it all at once."
"I won't next time." Hiro assured his father, clutching his stomach tighter.
"Here's the tea." Ino spoke, holding her son's sippy cup in both hands, as she sat down on the other side of her son's bed. "Here – drink this."
With shaking hands, Hiro took the cup from his mother's hand and took a sip from it, watching his parents.
Ino smiled softly, and kissed her son's forehead gently. "Drink it all, okay baby? Then go to sleep – you'll feel better in the morning."
"Okay." Hiro nodded.
"Sleep tight kiddo." Chouji smiled, ruffling his son's brown hair. The two smiled at their son before they spun on their heels and left the room.
Chouji froze in fear at his wife's words. "You are so going on a diet."