With directions from the little girl and her friends, Jay and Ameno finally spotted a large, old-looking building.
The paint on the walls was starting to fade and wasn't as bright as before. On the other side, a rusty wire fence seemed to separate the yard.
In the area around the yard, several children much younger than Jeny and her friends were playing.
Two teenage girls, aged between 10 and 12, appeared to be looking after them.
There were no other buildings around the building, only bushes and a dry, gravel-strewn field that appeared abandoned.
However, a large, old date palm tree appeared to be in bloom, providing the shade under it.
The sound of a horse-drawn carriage drew the children's attention, and what they saw was a horse-drawn carriage arriving with Jeny and the others.
"Big brother...we're back!!" Jeny's cheerful voice, along with the calls of several other children riding in a horse-drawn carriage, could be heard as they entered the courtyard of the old building.
However, the girl called Jeny didn't feel relaxed after hearing her call; instead, she felt wary and worried.
Perhaps feeling unsafe, the girl whispered to a friend of the same age.
And soon the girl went inside the old building.
"Jeny, call the others and let them come closer. Ameno has lots of delicious food for them." Ameno, who had seen the children at the orphanage, was delighted and immediately said to Jeny, the 8-year-old girl who was the leader of the group riding with Jay and Ameno in the horse-drawn carriage.
"Okay, Ameno...wait a minute...let's call the others," Jeny replied, asking her friend, who was currently beside her, to get off and call the others.
"Yes...let's call the others..."
"Hey...wait for me..."
"Come on...hurry up..." Cheerful voices seemed to be heard from all of them which made Ameno and Jay seem happy to hear it.
(On their way to the orphanage, Jay and Ameno quickly learned about the general situation of the orphanage.
The orphanage Ameno and Jay were visiting was for civilians who had lost their families due to various events in the village.
There were around 40-50 children, ranging from teenagers to toddlers, being cared for by a female dean in her 50s and two women in their early 30s.)
Unfortunately, over the past few years, funding for the orphanage had drastically reduced, making life difficult for the 50 orphans.
To cover the shortfall, the dean and two other adult women found work to supplement the orphanage's income, leaving the minors and younger children to be cared for by those who had already entered their teens.
"Big brother... Haru... it's Big brother Ameno and Big brother Jay. They're here to sell us cheap sweet potatoes," Jeny's happy voice rang out as she pulled the teenage girl, who had initially seemed wary, along.
" "Umm... is what Jeny said true? You came here to sell us cheap sweet potatoes?" Haru asked Jay and Ameno hesitantly.
"No," Jay replied curtly.
"Ahh... why aren't you selling them, sis?" Jeny asked immediately after hearing Jay's no.
"Don't listen to your brother, Jay, he's just joking. You're not here to sell sweet potatoes, you're here to give them to us for free," Ameno replied again with a smile.
"Ahhh... you said free!!! Is that true!!!!" With a look of disbelief mixed with joy, Haru asked Jay and Ameno.
"Of course, and it's not just sweet potatoes, there's other things too," Ameno replied again.
Jay and Ameno had discussed on the street that they would help the orphanage as much as they could, and would decide how much to help after assessing the situation there.
Just as they were chatting, several figures emerged from inside the old building.
Led by a thin, middle-aged woman in her 50s, a young woman A friend of Haru's arrived with several other teenagers at the orphanage.
A small, cute figure followed behind them. Seeing this, Jay knew it was the dean of the orphanage, the one Jeni was referring to.
"Mother Corla!!!" the children greeted happily upon seeing the dean arrive.
"Hello, good afternoon. May I ask who you are? And what is your purpose for coming here?" asked.
A middle-aged woman called Mother Corla.
From her thin, gentle face, Jay and Ameno saw kindness and sincerity radiating from her.
"Hello, Mother Corla, let me introduce myself. I'm Ameno. I'm a former ninja from the village. This is my husband, Jay, who works as a traveling salesman," Ameno replied kindly, introducing herself and Jay.
"Hello, Mother Corla," Jay greeted her kindly.
#####
Long story short, Jay and Ameno were now eating lunch with all the children at the orphanage.
From what they could see, all the children were cute and sweet, but unfortunately, they looked a little malnourished.
However, their bright, lively eyes suggested that they weren't suffering from their ordeal.
Perhaps they were happy and treated with love and kindness by Corla and the other caregivers, thus maintaining their happiness despite their limitations.
Seeing this, Jay subconsciously missed his little sister, Nining, who, after a few months, had returned to normal, like a healthy little girl.
With her chubby cheeks and silky hair, this change was due to Jay's lifestyle improvements.
And seeing the results, Jay felt happy and content, but now, seeing the skinny and malnourished yet cheerful children at the orphanage, he felt the need to help them become plump and healthy again.
"As you can see, the conditions at this orphanage are very simple, so I'm sorry if it makes you uncomfortable," Corla apologized for their simple welcome.
And their lunch was indeed very simple.
They ate at a long, neatly arranged table, with a menu of whole wheat bread and a bowl of slightly watery vegetable soup.
Even so, none of the children seemed to complain; everyone ate heartily and gratefully.
"Dean Corla, we are very pleased with your lunch invitation, so please don't worry.
Now, after seeing the situation at the orphanage, the two of us have decided to donate some food to help the orphanage," Ameno said in a calm and determined tone.
It was as if she had made a firm decision that she would definitely help the orphanage as best she could.
"Thank you for your kindness. It will truly be a great help to us. On behalf of the orphanage, I express my gratitude." Corla thanked Ameno and Jay with a grateful expression.
Although she didn't yet know the extent of the assistance, Corla seemed very grateful.
Seeing this, Jay's heart sank, and a whisper of something bigger was brewing in his heart.
It seemed he would need to change some of his initial plans.