Chapter 34
In the original story, Shino's mother had never been mentioned. But seeing her now, dressed in the same mirrored sunglasses as the rest of the clan, it was clear she was a full-blooded member of the Aburame.
Makes sense, really. Whether they intermarried with outsiders or not, just the fact that the Aburame raised bugs was enough to scare off most women. If they didn't marry within the clan, who else could they marry?
Fortunately, despite their seemingly aloof appearance, Shino's parents were incredibly warm and welcoming. Especially since Natsuki and TenTen were Shino's friends—they were so enthusiastic, it was almost overwhelming.
What made it worse was that Shino's mother liked to tease them, calling them a good match and sighing about whether Shino would ever find someone. In the end, Shino was burning red, and Natsuki and TenTen were so embarrassed they nearly started digging into the floor with their toes.
Natsuki had no choice but to use his Topic Diversion no Jutsu and redirected the conversation to food.
"Wow! Oba-san, this dish is amazing—how did you make it?"
"Wow! This winter melon soup is so good—no wonder Shino likes winter melon so much. It's all thanks to your cooking!"
"Oba-san, I saw pumpkins growing in your garden. Did you know you can cook with pumpkin flowers and pumpkin vines too? If you peel the skin off the vines and stir-fry them with lean meat, it's delicious. And pumpkin flowers? Perfect for tempura..."
Before they knew it, Natsuki and Shino's mom were chatting away like old friends. As expected, two cooks always had something to talk about.
By the end of the meal, Shino and TenTen were exhausted—mentally and physically.
Meanwhile, Natsuki had learned quite a few new cooking tricks. And before they left, Shino's mom even stuffed him with two baskets of fresh vegetables. Her enthusiasm was unstoppable.
Natsuki carried the two heavy baskets as he walked home with TenTen.