Chapter 5: Happy Growth
Looking at the photo of himself with sharp eyebrows, bright eyes, and dressed in white, Akiyama Makoto tapped on it.
In the blink of an eye, his consciousness was pulled into the photograph.
He looked around his surroundings in amazement. It seemed he was now in Tenten's house. On the desk before him were a calligraphy brush and a partial draft of the very book he had been writing, The People of the Uchiha Clan.
As if he had discovered a priceless treasure, he began to flip through the pages, thrilled to find that this was no illusion but a real book. Every single word was clear and legible.
Just then, the sound of footsteps approached from outside the door.
Makoto quickly sat back down at the desk, feigning a thoughtful frown.
The door slid open and Tenten entered, dressed in a white training uniform, her feet bare. Steam was rising from the top of her head, a clear sign she had just finished exercising.
She carried a plate with three skewers of three-colored dango. She nonchalantly walked over to Makoto's side and sat down right next to him.
This zero-distance contact surprised Makoto for a moment, but Tenten seemed to have long grown accustomed to it.
She picked up two skewers of dango, stuffing one into her own mouth and holding the other up to Makoto's lips with a grin. "Come on, open wide! Ahhh!"
Makoto subconsciously opened his mouth, but Tenten snatched the dango back and popped it into her own mouth. She then mumbled indistinctly, "If you want some, go get it from the kitchen yourself."
A surge of "annoyance" immediately rose within Makoto. He lowered his head and lunged for the dango in Tenten's mouth.
Startled, Tenten kicked her feet against the tatami mat and scrambled backward until she hit a wall. Her face flushed red as she stammered, "W-What are you doing?!"
"Eating dango, of course."
Makoto picked up the last skewer from the plate, pretending nothing had happened. But the shock in his heart was even greater than Tenten's, because the photo he had just clicked on seemed to contain an entire world within it.
Afterward, Tenten came over and taught him a lesson—by ruffling his hair into a bird's nest.
Having vented her shyness, she patted Makoto's shoulder and said, "Keep it up, great author. I'm waiting for the finished product."
With that, she left the room, gently closing the door behind her.
Once Tenten's voice had completely faded, Makoto opened the door and tried to explore outside. To his disappointment, however, he found he could not leave through that door. To be precise, he couldn't leave the current room at all, not even to enter the bedroom or bathroom. It seemed that while the world inside the photo was real, it didn't possess infinite space and time. Otherwise, this storage function would be terrifyingly overpowered.
Even so, it was more than enough to make Makoto happy. It meant that all the experience and knowledge accumulated during the simulation could be taken and used by him. If he were to train during a future simulation, did that mean the training experience could also be inherited?
Makoto couldn't wait to start a new simulation and test it out.
But before that, he decided to first commit the first volume of The People of the Uchiha Clan, the "Biography of Uchiha Madara," to memory. It would be useful for establishing himself in Konoha later. Not only that, but he also memorized the ninja tool schematics he had designed for Tenten.
Compared to an entire book, memorizing design schematics was much simpler. Besides, Makoto didn't need to remember all the precise data. If he did, as an orphan, he would have no way to explain where he had learned such knowledge. He only needed to give the creative ideas to Tenten; that alone would be enough to earn her friendship.
After finishing all this, just as Makoto was about to leave and return to the real world, he suddenly realized something.
He swallowed hard, flipping through all the photos until he found the one from the night he and Tenten "grew up."
Hooo—
Makoto let out a long breath. Should he go in and take a look?
Theoretically, he knew he should distinguish between reality and the simulation. Otherwise, how could he face the real Tenten in the future?
Practically, however, Makoto wanted to "critically analyze" his own combat effectiveness in a state of having zero chakra. And so, he chose to open the photo.
The image of a drunken Tenten appeared before him.
Her eyes were hazy and her red lips were pursed, as if waiting to be kissed.
Makoto stared blankly at her, momentarily failing to react.
Suddenly, Tenten burst into tears. "I knew it, you don't like me! I'm not feminine enough, am I?"
"My body isn't good enough, I'm not pretty enough, and I love messing around with ninja tools! A high-and-mighty author like you must be in love with someone else, right?"
"Is it Ino? Or Hinata? Don't tell me it's Lady Tsunade or Kurenai-sensei!"
Tenten seemed genuinely hurt, sobbing so hard she could barely breathe, on the verge of rolling on the floor.
Makoto finally snapped out of it. He didn't stop her from crying; instead, he watched her with a faint smile. This only made Tenten cry louder, thinking he was mocking her. She looked down at the gorgeous kimono she was wearing, which even had special lingerie underneath. Right now, she just felt like a clown.
Just as Tenten turned to leave, Makoto spoke.
"Tenten, there's actually something I need your help with. And only you can help me."
Tenten's movement stopped abruptly. She slowly turned back, shuffling toward him one hesitant step at a time. She kept her head low and mumbled, "What is it?"
Seeing her pitiful state, Makoto was now completely certain that she was incredibly dense when it came to romance. So, he put aside his teasing and decided to follow the simulation's script and be direct.
"I want to create a perfect ninja tool with you. A ninja tool that belongs only to the two of us."
Tenten looked up and wiped away her tears. Though her heart was full of discontent, she still said, "Tell me the idea for this new tool. And why does it belong only to the two of us?"
Makoto launched a surprise attack, kissing her.
As Tenten stared at him, completely petrified, he said, "This new ninja tool... I plan to name her Akiyama Ayame. She will be my child, and yours. Are you willing to help me complete her?"
The petrified shell around Tenten shattered instantly, and her entire body turned as red as a cooked shrimp. Just as Makoto thought she would die of embarrassment, the alcohol kicked in. Tenten forcefully pushed him down, her eyes seemingly spinning in circles.
"Y-You said it! No take-backs!"
"No... It's too late for you to take it back anyway! In that case... please take care of me?"
Makoto gently untied the sash of Tenten's kimono, revealing the special lingerie to his eyes. A gentle smile touched his lips.
"For the rest of our lives, please take care of me, Tenten."
That night, Akiyama Makoto grew up.
Although the process was full of fumbling and awkwardness, and the two of them even got a few bruises, they finally achieved the great harmony of life.
What surprised Makoto even more was that this memory was incredibly rich, containing a dreamlike montage that spanned several months. It only ended when Tenten's pregnancy began to show, and her mother grabbed him by the ear for a thorough scolding.
By the time Makoto's consciousness returned to reality, a faint smile still lingered on his lips.