Naruto: Starting as the Third Hokage with Tears in His Eyes

Chapter 610 Dorayaki

Hiruzen Sarutobi clapped his hands. "While we're baking, I'll teach you how to make something else."

He rummaged through the depths of the cabinet and pulled out a packet of red beans and a small jar of honey.

"Dorayaki. The recipe is simple, the process is short, and it's suitable for mass production. If you want to promote dessert culture in Kirigakure, this is the most suitable place to start."

Hozuki Kaigetsu's eyes twitched.

The phrase "mass production" precisely captured his attention.

He walked up to the control panel; this was the first time he had approached it voluntarily that day.

"Mix flour, eggs, sugar, honey, and water to form a batter. Fry it into round pancakes and stuff them with red bean paste."

As Hiruzen Sarutobi spoke, he began to demonstrate. "The red beans need to be cooked until soft beforehand, then sugar is added and simmered into red bean paste. This step takes the most time."

"Can we use Water Release to speed things up?"

Hozuki Kaigetsu asked.

"Cooking beans under high pressure?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi thought for a moment, "Theoretically, it's feasible. You try it."

Hozuki Kaigetsu formed hand seals, and a water sphere completely enveloped the red beans in the pot, applying water pressure evenly from all directions. Under his chakra control, the water temperature steadily increased.

Five minutes later, the red beans were soft and mushy like a paste.

"It's done."

Hozuki Kaigetsu withdrew his water-style technique, his face expressionless, but his gaze on the pot of red beans became more focused.

Hiruzen Sarutobi made a mental note of this.

This kid has started actively thinking about "how to use ninjutsu to improve civilian technology." In a few months, he'll be the second Danzo—no, the second Sakumo.

Yes, the Land of Water version of Sakumo.

"I'll make the batter."

Hozuki Shio snatched the spatula. "I hope I don't mess this up. It's just making a pancake!"

She poured a spoonful of batter into the frying pan.

The heat was too high.

The edges of the batter hadn't solidified yet, but the middle was already burnt, emitting a plume of black smoke.

"Flip it over—"

She frantically scooped up the pancake and tried to flip it, but half of it stuck to the bottom of the pan, while the other half folded into some indescribable shape.

Uchiha Shisui coughed lightly.

Hozuki Kaigetsu walked over expressionlessly, took the spatula, scraped off the burnt cake and threw it away, then poured in the batter again.

His movements were calm and precise. He judged the heat by the rate at which the water evaporated from his hands, and the pancakes he fried were round, golden, and had neat edges.

"Brother, wait a minute."

Hozuki Shio reached out to snatch the spatula back.

"Don't touch it."

Hozuki Kaigetsu blocked her with his shoulder. "You go make the red bean paste. That doesn't require any skill."

"Why doesn't wrapping red bean paste require any skill!"

"Because all you have to do is put the red bean paste between two pancakes. If you can't even mess that up, I suggest you go back to ninja school and repeat the course."

「(╯▔ Pan▔)╯」

Hozuki Shio puffed up her cheeks in anger, but still obediently went to wrap it.

Hiruzen Sarutobi stood aside watching the interaction between the brother and sister, the smile on his lips completely hidden behind his apron.

The chakra oven emitted a soft crackling sound. The time was up.

He opened the oven door and took out the cake. It was golden and fluffy, with a slightly raised surface, and emitted a warm, milky aroma. He inverted the cake onto a rack to cool, and then took out a bowl of whipped cream from the freezer.

"The final step is frosting and decorating. This requires a steady hand and a good eye."

He handed the spatula to Shisui.

Zhishui took the spatula, his eyes focused intently. He spread the cream evenly on the cake surface, the path left by the blade as smooth as a mirror.

Hozuki Shio squatted to the side, resting her chin on her hand, watching intently.

"Mr. Shisui, are you sure you've never done this before?"

"Sure."

"Then why are you all able to do it so well...?"

Shisui paused, then thought seriously, "It's probably because... it feels similar to slicing open a throat with a short sword?"

There was a three-second silence in the kitchen.

"...Still water."

Hiruzen Sarutobi's voice came from behind, his tone flat, "In a teaching setting, be mindful of your wording."

"Yes. I misspoke."

Without batting an eye, he withdrew the spatula; the cake was now perfectly frosted.

Hozuki Shio shrank her neck.

She almost forgot that this man, who smiled like the boy next door, was one of the most frightening figures in the entire ninja world.

Cut the cake and plate the dorayaki.

The four people sat around a small table in the cabin.

Hozuki Shiori took her first bite of the dorayaki, and the red bean paste overflowed from the gaps in the pancake, sweet and soft. Her eyes narrowed into slits.

Hozuki Kaigetsu picked up a piece of cake and took a bite.

The soft cake crumbles between your teeth, and the cream melts on your tongue.

He remained silent for a long while.

"Lord Hokage."

"Hmm? The process of making dorayaki—"

He paused, "Including the selection criteria for red beans, the sugar ratio, and the optimal consistency of the batter... Can I write all of that down?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at him.

Something is changing in this kid's eyes.

It wasn't a craving for food, but a deeper kind of light that Hiruzen Sarutobi had seen in the eyes of Danzo and Sakumo—an obsession with doing one thing to the extreme.

"I'll teach you everything."

He said, "But there's a condition."

"What?"

"After returning to Kirigakure, the first dessert shop I opened was called Konoha-do."

Hozuki Kaigetsu's lips twitched.

"Okay...okay."

tide laughed so hard she slapped the table across from him, while Zhishui lowered his head to drink tea, his shoulders shaking.

The sea breeze outside squeezed in through the window cracks, carrying salty and damp air, which somewhat dissipated the sweet aroma of the dorayaki on the table.

Hiruzen Sarutobi leaned back in his chair, looking at the three faces in front of him, each with their own thoughts.

—A foodie, an infrastructure fanatic, and a cold-faced assassin.

They were seriously discussing the sugar content of red bean paste.

The world of ninjas can be absurdly endearing at times.