It was the early hours of the following day, Tetsuya had gotten up to use the bathroom before he noticed that the dining room light was dimmed on. After using the bathroom, Tetsuya decided to walk into the dining room to see Yumi sitting there with an empty glass.
"Hmm...couldn't sleep, sweetie?" Tetsuya stated after taking the empty glass.
"No, Daddy. I had a bad dream and tried to go back to sleep but couldn't. So, I wounded up getting a glass of milk to see if that would help me go to sleep." Yumi replied with a calm look.
"If you want to go to sleep on the sofa, sweetie. I won't mind it at all just that once breakfast is ready I'll come and wake you, ok." Tetsuya said with a smile on his face.
"Thank you, Daddy." Yumi stated as she headed towards the living room sofa.
Then Tetsuya got up from the dining room and prepared himself a cup of coffee in the kitchen. While the coffeepot was brewing, that gave Tetsuya time to change out of his nightwear into regular clothes. Once he poured his cup of coffee, Tetsuya heard a noise coming from his bedroom realizing that Yuki was now getting up and around. However, Yuki had gone straight to the bathroom to take a shower before changing to regular clothes since she was still in her work clothes from the previous day.
By the time Yuki had gotten out of the shower and changed clothes, she went to the dining room to see Tetsuya sitting there with his cup of coffee in hand and noticed Yumi sleeping on the living room sofa.
"Good morning, Yuki, my dear. How did you sleep?" Tetsuya asked after taking a sip of his coffee.
"I slept like I haven't in a long time, my love. How come Yumi's on the sofa?" Yuki asked out of curiosity.
"Well she didn't sleep that good last night due to a bad dream plaguing her. So, she drank a glass of milk to help her sleep and I told her that it would be ok for to sleep on the sofa because I could tell how tired she was. I figured to give her some rest until breakfast got done." Tetsuya replied with honesty in his voice.
"Oh ok, Tetsuya. It makes sense now because I didn't know where you were when I first got up this morning." Yuki said with a smile on her face.
"Ok, Yuki. I'm glad that you understand everything. But let's talk about when we want to head out for the beach?" Tetsuya asked out of curiosity.
"Hmm...do you think three days will work and we can spend about a week there? I already saw that you got the supplies for it just that we might have to do clothes shopping for the occasion and pack." Yuki replied with a calm look on her face.
"I'm ok with that, Yuki. To be honest with you, I don't know if our swimwear that we brought to our honeymoon even still fits us anymore." Tetsuya said with a natural look on his face.
"I know, my love. That's why I brought up the clothes shopping in the first place and besides I'll have to find decent swimwear for Yumi anyways." Yuki said with a nervous tone.
"I understand, Yuki." Tetsuya said while holding Yuki's hands.
Then Yuki proceeded to get up from the dining room area and started to make breakfast. This prompted Tetsuya to wake up Yumi from the living room sofa by gently tapping on her shoulder. In that moment, Yumi proceeded to open her eyes and had moved over so her father could sit right next to her.
Before anyone could say anything, Tetsuya decided to fold up Yumi's blanket and placed it right in front of her feet.
"Did you feel better since you slept on the sofa, sweetie?" Tetsuya asked after he rubbed on Yumi's head.
"Yes, Daddy." Yumi replied with a smile.
"That's good to hear. You know me and your mom have something that we want to tell you." Tetsuya said with a smile on his face.
"What is it?" Yumi asked as her curiosity started to peak.
"Ok, sweetheart. Well me and your father have figured out when the family trip to the beach is and it's in three days, but we will be spending a week down there." Yuki stated as she was about to finish cooking up breakfast.
Yumi's face started to beam with joy as she found out the news. However, there was something that started to puzzle Yumi in which Tetsuya caught immediately while they were heading to the dining room table.
"What's the matter, sweetie?" Tetsuya stated as he and Yumi sat down to eat breakfast.
"I don't know what clothes are suitable to wear on the beach, Daddy." Yumi replied as she had a confused look on her face.
"Oh, that's ok. If you want to why not go with your mother clothes shopping today?" Tetsuya stated a suggestion with a smile on his face.
"I think that is a great idea, Daddy. What do you think, Mommy?" Yumi replied after taking a bite of her breakfast.
"Sure thing, sweetheart. I was mentioning to your father this morning that it was time for clothes shopping since the trip was coming up. I appreciate it." Yuki answered after she took a bite of her breakfast.
After everyone finished eating their breakfast, Yumi cleaned her dish and went into her bedroom to get ready for the day. Tetsuya got his and Yuki's plate to clean them off but not before getting the empty coffee cup from earlier. Once the dishes were cleaned, Tetsuya noticed that there was a strange look on Yuki's face and went back to the dining room where she was still sitting at.
"Yuki, my dear, what's wrong?" Tetsuya asked out of concern.
"This is going to be the first time I've had a mother-daughter outing and I just feel nervous that I might end up doing something wrong." Yuki replied with a frown look on her face.
"Yuki, I believe that you will have a good outing with Yumi today. I don't think there will be anything bad happening. Besides the reason I chose this is because I want our daughter to have the same special connection she has for me with you. I mean I do not want you to feel left out as her mother, ok. I can sense it, you know." Tetsuya stated as he was wiping off tears that were coming down on Yuki's face.
"Thank you, Tetsuya. I'm very glad that you are my husband and Yumi's father." Yuki stated as she hugged Tetsuya.
"I know, Yuki. I am grateful for that every single day. Go on you should get ready for the special bonding day with our daughter." Tetsuya said after kissing Yuki on the forehead.
Then Yuki headed towards the bedroom to get ready for the special outing with Yumi. Once Yuki got the things she needed out of the bedroom she went into the living room to wait for Yumi to finish getting ready. However, by the time Yuki had made it to the living room she notices that Yumi was already getting on her shoes by the doorway to the apartment.
Before they headed out of the apartment, Yuki and Yumi expressed their goodbyes to Tetsuya who in return wished them a great outing before giving them hugs and kisses. After the apartment door was shut is when Tetsuya decided to grab his journal from the bedroom and finish up writing his memoir. It was a short time after pulling out the journal when Tetsuya had a smile on his face before looking at his completed memoir. "Now there's only one thing left to do before I put this in Yumi's bedroom." Tetsuya thought to himself before he began writing a dedication page in the journal. Once the dedication page was written, Tetsuya put his finished memoir in Yumi's bedroom and gently shut the door with a smile on his face.
Meanwhile, Yuki and Yumi had made it to the shopping district right as Yumi's stomach started to growl. Yuki realizing what was going on suggested that she and Yumi should eat the burger place before heading into the clothes store which Yumi steadfastly agreed. Upon finding some seats and ordering their food, Yuki had a sigh of relief on her face in which caught Yumi's attention.
"Why the big sigh, Mommy?" Yumi asked out of curiosity.
"Oh, it's nothing just feeling happy that I get to spend some time with you today, sweetheart." Yuki replied with a natural look on her face.
"Ok, Mommy. Just wanted to make sure that you were feeling ok was all." Yumi said with a smile on her face.
"I know, Yumi. Oh, it looks like our food is coming." Yuki stated as she seen a waiter coming with her and Yumi's food.
"Hmm...the food tastes delicious. Wouldn't you think so, Mommy?" Yumi asked after taking a bite of her burger.
"It sure does, sweetheart. Can I ask you something?" Yuki asked out of curiosity after she took a bite of her meal.
Yumi nodded in approval to Yuki's question which immediately her own facial expression had turn to curiosity as well.
"Do you think this a great outing so far, sweetheart?" Yuki asked with honesty.
"Yes, Mommy. Why do you ask?" Yumi replied after she finished her meal.
"I don't know how to say this without hurting your feelings sweetheart. But this is my first big opportunity to bond with you as mother-daughter outside of the apartment, bakery, or other family functions. That is a whole new experience to me. I mean your father has taken you out several times and he understand you more than anyone I know." Yuki replied with a frown look on her face.
"Mommy, please don't feel left out of anything. I mean there might be things I can always ask you for you know woman stuff. Besides some people at school think I get my face and smile from you. I think Daddy was aware of this when he asked me to tag along with you today." Yumi stated with a smile on her face.
"Yumi, my sweetheart...thank you for cheering me up. I love you so much." Yuki stated as she hugged Yumi after tearing up outside of the burger place.
Yuki and Yumi headed to the clothes store to see that there was a sale going on just only for that day. This put a smile on Yuki's face but a wondrous look on Yumi's face.
"Mommy, what's a sale?" Yumi asked out of curiosity.
"Well sweetheart a sale is when a store has something that they sell but lower down the price to attract people like us to see whether or not if we want to buy it. You know like how Saki and Shiza do it sometimes back at the bakery for example." Yuki replied while she and Yumi were entering the clothes store.
"Oh ok, I get it now, Mommy." Yumi said with a smile on her face.
Upon glancing at the swimwear section, Yuki found a couple pairs of swimsuits for Yumi and she showed them to Yumi that is when they started to look around for a fitting room. It didn't take them long to find a fitting room and while Yumi was trying on one of the swimsuits Yuki was responding to a message on her phone from Tetsuya telling him that they wouldn't be back from the outing until later than planned. After noticing that the first swimsuit was a little bulgy on Yumi, Yuki had her try on the other swimsuit. While waiting for the second swimsuit reveal, Yuki had got a response back from Tetsuya noting that he understood and told her and Yumi to have fun on their bonding day.
Then Yumi came out with the second swimsuit that fitted her just right in which she and Yuki put in the shopping cart after Yumi dressed back to normal and out of the fitting room. Suddenly, Yumi started to feel happy that she found a swimsuit that fits her and looking back at where it was originally she discovered that it was on sale.
"Guess what, Mommy. That swimsuit was on sale." Yumi said with the smile on her face.
"Oh, that is amazing sweetheart. You are a quick learner, aren't you? Before we came in here you didn't know what a sale was and now you understand what it is. I'm very proud of you." Yuki stated with a smile on her face.
"Thank you, Mommy. Are you looking for swimwear too?" Yumi said with a calm look on her face.
"Yes, I am, Yumi. But it's hard to choose on which one of these swimsuits here would look appealing." Yuki asked while looking at the two-pieced swimsuits.
"Why is it hard to choose from all of these beautiful swimsuits, Mommy?" Yumi asked out of curiosity.
"Well...sweetheart it's that I haven't done any swimsuit shopping since right before me and your father had our honeymoon. So, I don't know out of all of these swimsuits has the latest trend and if it would impress your father." Yuki replied in a nervous tone.
"I have a suggestion. Why not try them all on and see which one suits you the best, Mommy?" Yumi said with a calm look.
"Ok...I'll do it." Yuki stated as she took each swimsuit with her into the fitting room.
Yumi sat on a nearby chair to wait while her mother was trying on each of the swimsuits. A few minutes had passed by before Yuki came out of the fitting room with two swimsuits which she thought would suit her best and put them in the cart. Realizing that her mother was now out of the fitting room and getting ready to step away from the swimwear portion of the clothes store, Yumi had to catch up to Yuki.
Then Yuki and Yumi went into the girls' section of the store to check out the clothes that were in their respective sizes. After getting each a few articles of clothing and placing it in the cart, Yumi had a curious look on her face towards Yuki.
"Mommy, do you think Daddy has enough clothes for the trip?" Yumi asked out of curiosity.
"Yes, sweetheart. I already got your father new swimwear while we were in here." Yuki replied as she and Yumi were about to reach the check-out line.
Once Yuki and Yumi left the clothes store with everything they got placed in bags, that was when they left the shopping district for the direction of the apartment. However, on the way back to the apartment Yuki notices a lemonade vendor and she gets her and Yumi a cup of lemonade as a special treat while still holding the bag of clothes.
Upon reaching the doorway to the apartment, Yuki had to knock on the door to get Tetsuya's attention since she and Yumi's hands were full to not open the door. It took a minute after hearing the door knock for Tetsuya to open the apartment door for Yuki and Yumi.
"Welcome home. So how did your guys bonding day go?" Tetsuya stated as he hugged and kissed his wife and daughter.
"It went good, my love. I'll be right be back just have to put these bags in the bedroom." Yuki replied before heading into the bedroom to drop off the bags that were in her hand.
"It was great, Daddy. I got to learn what a sale was, and I picked up some neat clothes at the clothes store." Yumi replied with a big smile on her face.
"Whoa...Whoa...where did this sale happen?" Tetsuya asked out of concern.
"At the clothes store, Daddy." Yumi responded quickly.
"Is something wrong, my love? I heard a commotion while I was putting stuff away." Yuki asked out of concern.
"I had asked Yumi a question about where a sale had happened since she learned the term today and she told me it was at the clothes store where you guys went to. I'm not mad or anything it's just I want to say this for Yumi just in case if she hears a sale is going on again. I wanted to her to know that a sale means not waste all of your money at once because there's some people in our extended family not naming names who have had a bad history of gambling away money." Tetsuya replied with a calm look on his face.
"Oh ok. That is wonderful advice, my love. If you need me, I'll be in the kitchen cooking dinner. Yumi, sweetheart, put everything you got from the clothes store away in bedroom." Yuki stated with a smile on her face.
Tetsuya headed to his bedroom to see a few clothes with tags on them placed beneath his side of the bed and with a smile on his face he realized that Yuki had gotten him clothes from the clothing store. Knowing what to do with new clothes, Tetsuya pulled out his duffle bag and started to pack them neatly inside before placing the bag right underneath the window sill. After putting the bag away, Tetsuya began to unwind on the bed until he saw Yumi standing there in the doorway with the memoir he finished earlier in the day in her hand.
"Did you finish the task like your mother told you to, sweetie?" Tetsuya asked while looking at Yumi.
"Yes, I did, Daddy." Yumi replied in a calm tone.
"Good job, Yumi." Tetsuya said in response.
"Thank you, Daddy. So, you finished writing up the story you wanted to in this journal?" Yumi said as she held out the memoir with both hands.
"Yes, I finished it not too long after you and your mom left this morning. You know, sweetie, even though it took me some time to find the right words to put in there since I knew that I would give it you right away. Try to take your time reading it is all I can say because this memoir will be something I believe you will strongly treasure forever." Tetsuya replied as he rubbed Yumi's head.
"Ok, Daddy. I will try to read it slowly word for word when I have the chance." Yumi said after she hugged Tetsuya and was about to put the memoir back in her bedroom.
"Tetsuya, Yumi. Dinner time." Yuki shouted all the way from the kitchen.
Once Tetsuya and Yumi made it to the dining room, they notice that Yuki was just placing the dinner plates onto the table. Then the family proceeded to eat dinner without saying much or barely any words to each other. By the time Yumi got done with her plate and cleaned it off, she went ahead to give both Tetsuya and Yuki goodnight kisses before heading to take her bath.
"Dinner was good, Yuki." Tetsuya stated after he cleaned up the rest of the dinner dishes.
"Thank you, my love. So, did you find the clothes I got you earlier?" Yuki asked with a curious look on her face.
"Yes, I found them, Yuki. I had packed some of them already for the beach trip. So, thank you for getting me those clothes and swim gear. I appreciated it." Tetsuya replied after he gave Yuki a forehead kiss.
"Oh, you're welcome, Tetsuya. Seems that you're in a happy mood." Yuki said with a smile on her face.
"I sure am, Yuki. It's because I got my memoir finished earlier today and gave it to Yumi, but I told her to take her time reading it. I figured that would be a very precious item she might cherish." Tetsuya said with the smile on his face.
"I'm very glad to hear that, my love. You know me and Yumi had a great outing today." Yuki stated after she and Tetsuya got settled in the bedroom.
"I was meaning to ask how your bonding time with Yumi turned out. Since you were feeling anxious about it before you guys left this morning." Tetsuya said with a concern look on his face.
"Well, I took Yumi to the burger joint that we used go to a lot. Then right as we were about to leave the restaurant I had suddenly felt anxious just like I was this morning. However, I realized why I had felt that way and it was that the outing had been my first big opportunity to spend time with Yumi." Yuki said with a sigh under her breath.
"Yuki, so how did Yumi react to all of this?" Tetsuya asked with a curious look on his face.
"She reassured me that I will never be left out and more importantly that she would come to me about advice on woman things. So, that made me feel really happy that I am doing a good job as her mother as to the point that she mentioned some people think she gets some facial features from me." Yuki replied while trying to hold back tears.
"You know what Yuki. I think we are raising our daughter the right way. I could tell you learned a whole lot about Yumi today. It has me wondering about something." Tetsuya said with a calm tone.
"What would that be, my love?" Yuki asked in response.
"It had me wondering how wonderful our beach trip will be." Tetsuya replied with a smile on his face.
Before Tetsuya or Yuki could say anything else, Tetsuya's cell phone goes off and he decides to take the call on the balcony on the backside of the apartment.
"Hello, Professor." Tetsuya stated once answered the phone call to notice that the Sarutobi residence was on his caller ID.
"Hello, Tetsuya. I heard from Minato that you are fully healed again." Hiruzen stated on his end of the phone conversation.
"There's another reason why you wanted to call me besides catching up, Professor. What is it?" Tetsuya stated in a curious tone.
"Alright, Tetsuya. There might be some good news about the whereabouts of your mother and father. I had visited with Lord First and Lady Mito earlier today to see how things were back in the Sacred Estate. Well they told me that not too long ago they along with Lord Second had scouted out a fellow clansman who stayed at the estate revealed to them that two people who matched the description of your long-lost parents were living at a small house on a beach not far from where you and Kushina live at now. I don't know if you will search for them while you're out on this beach trip with your wife and daughter because Minato had told me you were leaving for that as well. That is why I wanted to call you." Hiruzen stated on his end of the phone call.
"I'll think about it, Professor. Even though it's been around forty years since I last saw my parents, but this is the best lead of finding them ever since I came up here to the Pure Land. Anyways, I better let you go. Good night." Tetsuya stated even though his hands were shaking while still holding the cell phone.
"Good night, Tetsuya." Hiruzen stated before hanging up his phone.
Then Tetsuya shut the balcony door right behind him and walked back into the bedroom to see that Yuki was still awake waiting on him to come back. However, Tetsuya's facial expression turned into a smile with a few tears dripping down his face and Yuki started to get concerned about her husband.
"Tetsuya, my love. Why are you crying?" Yuki asked out of concern.
"You remember how I told you a long time ago that I tried to look for my parents, but no luck happened. Well it turned out that the phone call I got call from our family friends, the Sarutobis, they had a visit with the owners of the Sacred Estate today and through some information from a visitor that had recently stayed with them I guess my parents might be living around the same beach that our vacation spot is going to be at. Also, if I find my mom and dad I really don't know what to say them because I haven't seen them since I was four years old when my home village was destroyed." Tetsuya said with the tears starting to gradually fade away.
"Don't worry, Tetsuya. If you do find your mother and father just think all of the good things you've done like starting and raising this wonderful family you have right here." Yuki stated as she wiped Tetsuya's tears off his face.
"Thank you, Yuki. I don't know what I would do without you." Tetsuya said with a smile on his face.
Yuki smiled as she hugged Tetsuya before they began to fall asleep.