Naruto: Snow Cold

I observed my mother as she removed the scales from some fish and gutted them. I rarely cooked with meat, so I felt a little repulsed by the sight.

Beside the cutting board, on the counter, was an assortment of neatly arranged ingredients: rice, tofu, carrots, sweet potatoes, green beans, onions, mushrooms, shrimp, and miso paste. A variety of bowls contained different spices, along with soy sauce, seaweed, and some other ingredients.

I stepped closer to her and asked, "Hey, Ma... Can I help you with anything?"

She shifted her focus to me and smiled. "Of course you can, sweetie. See the sweet potatoes and onions? Use the peeler to remove the skin. Do you think you can handle that?"

"Yup, easy!" I grabbed a small bowl and the peeler, then gathered the sweet potatoes and onions before heading to the kitchen sink. I turned on the faucet and quickly rinsed the veggies, careful not to waste water but thorough enough to ensure they were spotless.

With the peeler in my somewhat tiny hand, I got to work. Each nimble flick of my wrist sent the blade gliding over the surface of the potatoes, peeling the skin off in neat, continuous ribbons that curled gracefully into the bowl.

To be honest, I used to be pretty damn good with this tool. Did you know I could go through two whole kilos of potatoes in under 5 minutes? And now, I'm even faster, thanks to my physical prowess and chakra. Ain't that something?!

A single minute. That's what it took to peel what seemed to be half a kilo of sweet potatoes. I decided to move on to the onions. I searched for a bit, found a cutting board, and laid it on the counter before grabbing a knife.

Two medium onions. Should be quick enough... I sliced off the bottom of each one, then split them in half. I carefully peeled the skin off each half, making sure not to leave any bits behind. I took the bowl and tossed the skins into a trash bag specifically for organic waste.

"Done!" I called out cheerfully, placing the peeled sweet potatoes and onions neatly back on the counter.

Mom had stopped prepping the fish entirely. Her hands, still holding the knife, hung motionless at her sides as she stared at me. Her mouth opened slightly, but no words came out.

After a brief pause, she finally said, "You're really fast."

I shrugged, trying to act casual. "Guess I am."

Her usual smile returned. "Alright then, can you slice the potatoes into matchsticks? And for the onions, make vertical cuts." Without missing a beat, she turned back to the fish, calmly resuming the task of deboning it.

"Sure thing!" I chirped, eager to keep helping. It was exhilarating to finally cook after so long, even if it was indirect. I grabbed the sweet potatoes and placed them neatly on the cutting board. With the knife steady in my hand, I began slicing. The matchstick cuts were a bit uneven, but who cares? We're not a restaurant—at least not yet.

Next, I moved on to the onions. I laid them flat and sliced away. After a few minutes, I had finished everything.

"Finished!" I called out, stepping back from the counter.

Mom had already moved onto the last fish. Glancing at my work, she nodded in approval, "Good job, dear. You can go back if you want to, you've done enough."

"But I wanna keep helping. It's fun."

Her eyes softened, and she gave me a small, amused smile. "Is that so? Well, if you're enjoying this, then I won't stop you. How about prepping the mushrooms and the tofu? Dice the shrooms and cube the tofu. Can you do that for me, my sunshine?"

"Yeah, should be easy!" I reached for the mushrooms first, placing them on the cutting board. They were soft and delicate, so I made sure to use a gentle hand as I diced through each one, creating small, even cubes. The tofu came next. Its smooth, squishy texture was a little trickier to handle, but I carefully cut it into neat cubes.

She finished prepping every single fish, and moved to the sink to wash her hands, glancing at me, "Good job, Amai. You're great at this."

"Thanks, Ma," I said with a grin, wiping my hands on a kitchen towel. "What's next?"

Mom looked at the ingredients we had prepared so far. She hummed thoughtfully, her eyes scanning the counter. "How about we make some kakiage and miso soup? You've already done most of the prep work. I'll handle the frying, and you can take care of the soup. Deal?"

"Mm. I can do that."

Mom handed me a pot and started explaining, "Fill this with water, about halfway, and set it on the stove to boil. Then we'll add the miso paste, some of the tofu and mushrooms you cut earlier, and don't forget the seaweed!"

I nodded and grabbed the pot, setting it on the stove before filling it with water. As it started heating up, I focused on the ingredients laid out in front of me. I measured the right amount of miso paste, remembering not to add too much, and poured it into the pot, beginning to stir with my wooden spoon. Miso paste is some really salty stuff, I can tell you that.

Mom set up the frying station and got another bowl. She poured flour into the bowl, then added water until it became a thick but still liquid batter. After that, she tossed in several spices—salt, freshly ground pepper, paprika, and a few others I couldn't identify.

I was familiar with this. She's going to gather the julienned vegetables and toss them in the batter so she can fry them, right?

She did just that, tossing the mixture of vegetables into the oil with a ladle. The sizzling sound was incredibly satisfying, you can bet.

We heard the door open. "I'm baaack," said an exhausted man, somewhat bruised. Damn, they're really pushing Dad with those training missions, huh?

"Oh, that smells really good. What are you cooking, honey?" He sniffed the aroma in the air, then noticed me standing by the stove. His eyes softened. "Amai, you're helping out today?"

"Yeah, we're making, uh... grilled fish, miso soup, kakiage, and some rice."

"Sounds delicious."

Mom took each kakiage out of the oil and placed them on a paper towel to get rid of the excess grease, then said, "Jun, can you set up the table while we finish up here?"

"On it," Dad replied with a smile, walking toward the dining area. He grabbed the plates and bowls, setting them neatly on the table as he hummed to himself.

I stirred the miso soup again, the savory aroma filling the kitchen. I had added the tofu, mushrooms, and seaweed, and it was almost ready. A few more minutes for the flavors to meld, and it'd be perfect.

We chattered for a while, and when they asked me how I'm doing at the Academy, I simply smirked and did the hand seals for the clone jutsu, summoning an almost identical afterimage next to me.

As the clone appeared beside me, Dad froze, his eyes widening as he took in the familiar hand seals. "Wait... you can do that now?" His voice was a mix of awe and concern.

"Hell yeah!"

And you'd best believe that I'll be able to do way more than that!