Sasuke sighed lightly.
He scanned the shelves, from top to bottom, but he couldn't figure out what his daughter would want. He could battle godly extra-terrestrial beings with ease, but when it came to something as simple as a birthday present for his daughter, he was out of luck.
"Sasuke," a woman called from across the store. He turned his attention to the woman with twin buns—Tenten—and frowned.
Tenten smiled. "You've been standing in the same spot for around, five, maybe ten minutes. What are you looking for?"
"A birthday present for my daughter," he replied, though, felt somewhat embarrassed about having to admit it.
Tenten perked up at this. She rushed over to him, catching him off guard—how she moved so quickly, he would never—and got inches away from his.
"You have no idea what she wants?" the tune of her voice heightened; she poked her finger into his chest and then grabbed the loose sleeve of his cloak.
"Wa-" he wanted to protest, but it went unrecognized as he was dragged to the front counter. She went behind the counter and the interrogation began.
"Did she drop any hints? Have you been paying attention to what she does? Have you —"
Tenten rattled off question, after question, after question. He wondered if he should activate his Sharingan in order to read her lips—it was impossible to keep up with her rapid-fire questions.
Tenten finished, finally—her arms were crossed, waiting for his response. Sasuke stood motionless, weighing his options. He could just Amenotejikara out, but Sakura would never let him live it down if she found out. And she would.
Sasuke, after a few tense seconds, spoke. "I know she's interested in literature," he said. He prayed it would get him out of his current situation. He couldn't afford for her snap.
Tenten leaned forward over the cash register. "Come with me," she signed. "I keep scrolls and books in the back."
Sasuke followed as she took the lead, guiding him to the very back of her store. He took notice of her merchandise as they passed through each aisle—it was all high-quality stuff. He could see why Sarada choice to shop here for equipment.
"Thank you," he said.
"Hmm, what was that? " Tenten asked.
"Thank you for supplying my daughter. I appreciate it," Sasuke said.
Tenten smiled. "No problem."
Tenten observed her collection of 'special weapons' behind a glass case, while Sasuke scanned the shelves for something appropriate for his daughter. He found a title that looked—well, interesting... The Warring States: A Senju Story - By Tobirama Senju. Sasuke rolled his mismatched eyes and returned the 'literature' to its original crevice.
Tenten strolled over, scroll in hand, and got Sasuke's attention by placing the revealed scroll in his field of vision - Lighting Release for the Intermediate, it's titled.
"If I remember currently, her affinity is Lighting Release?" Tenten said. "I'm sure she would love it!"
Sasuke took the scroll, delicately; unraveling it revealed techniques listed that would be suited for various styles of combat. His Rinnegan danced through the parchment with intrigue—no matter how much time has passed, he still enjoyed learning about techniques.
Sasuke nodded. "She could make use of this," he responded. "I've started to train her since returning."
"That's really sweet," Tenten gushed. "Lately, when she comes in, she talks about wanting to impress her Papa."
Sasuke admitted, he was feeling a little deja vu. Even in his absence, his daughter sought his approval. A smile threatened to escape. Before Tenten could notice, he turned to the exit of the room.
Once at the desk, Sasuke retrieved his wallet. "It's on the house," Tenten said with a smile. Before Sasuke could protest, Tenten continued. "I'm not taking no for an answer—just put your wallet away. Your money's no good here."
Sasuke chuckled lightly. "Thank you, Tenten."
"Alright," Sakura said, balancing a medium sized present in her hands. "Here you go," she added, placing it on the dining room table, smile and all.
Sasuke did the same, though he was more mysterious about it, opting to remove from the void that was his cloak. He placed it on the table with a smirk.
Sarada smiled. Her thirteenth birthday was the best one yet—because her father was there to celebrate it. A gift, a party—it didn't matter to her—as long as her mother and father were there, together, everything was perfect.
Sarada decided to open her mother's first. She neatly unwrapped the cherry blossom wrapping paper, until she came to a white box. She opened it, and there was another smaller one. Sakura suppressed a giggle. Sarada gave her mother a fake annoyed expression, before continuing.
When Sarada finally reached her gift, she smiled. "Your Aunt Karin and I collaborated on this one," Sakura began. "You've outgrown your original pair of g-glasses—" Sakura paused, choked up by the milestone. Sasuke positioned himself close to his wife, placing his lone hand on her shoulder, squeezing it lightly. She composed herself and continued. "—Our little girl is all grown up."
Sarada got up from her seat and hugged her mother. They stayed like that for a minute, before Sarada released her grip and returned to her seat. "Go on," Sakura managed. "Open your father's."
Sarada looked toward her father, who smiled lightly. Her father wrapped her gift in dark wrapping paper—she figured her father would go for more a customary route. Her mother was, of course, more of a jokester, pulling the smaller box in the larger box prank.
Sarada, like before, unwrapped the gift with delicacy, not wanting to tear the wrapping paper. When she was done, she smiled, escaping her seat to hug her father. "It's perfect," she mumbled. "Can we go to the training grounds? I want to learn one." Sasuke embraced her with what he could manage—only having one arm made it awkward. "Of course."
The beautiful sunset was in the distance. It was fairly breezy; warm for late March. Sasuke took his place directly behind Sarada, instructing her on the use of a technique. "The Lighting Release Wall technique is great for both offensive and defensive minded shinobi," he continued. "It requires a moderate amount of chakra, but constructing the actual wall requires that your chakra control be sufficient."
Sasuke then moved to her side. He flexed his finger and stomped the earth. Electricity rose from nowhere, striking wildly, though, there was a level of control when he utilized it. The range of the technique was controlled flawlessly; normally wild and untamed to those less experienced, but wielded by an expert, it was refined.
Sarada looked on with amazement, but soon enough, the wall of lighting tapered off. "You did it with a single hand sign," she gasped, continuing to stare at the blackened area where the technique originated from. Sasuke placed his lone hand on her shoulder. "With enough practice, you can do the same."
Boruto watched from a distance, but he was not alone. His father—finally, thankfully—was not plagued with Hokage duties. They decided to walk—talk about what was on their minds. The Leaf was too loud, so they chose the training grounds as an appropriate area.
Sarada appeared to fail in her first few attempts at whatever technique she was learning but continued on. That didn't come to much of a surprise to him. She was striving to be Hokage, so a small setback wasn't going to deter her. His father shift, slightly, then began to shake. He was chuckling?
"This takes me back," Naruto started. "I remember when Kakashi-sensei trained me. Even though it was grueling, I was so happy to be able to learn from him. He was actually the reason I found out my primary nature was Wind."
Boruto was quiet. He understood what his father saying. Training was one of many ways shinobi chose to understand each other. From what he remembered from the academy, ninshu was what it was called.
"Dad," Boruto started, staring in the distance, easing his posture. Naruto turned to him. He smiled at his son. Boruto did the same. "Want to join them?"
Fun fact: the Lightning Release Wall technique is originally from the Naruto Shippuden: Kizuna Drive game that released in the United States in early 2011.
