Happy birthday! 2

— Happy birthday! Riki, he said, handing her a package carefully tied with a golden cord. — It's a notebook... of battle notes, one of the ones my aunt used, I thought you could use it.

His voice was calm, almost melancholic. Jiro always spoke as if he were seeing a little beyond the present, as if each sentence hid a painful intuition.

Sayuri Uzumaki came next, like a ray of color and life. Wearing a dark red dress with hand-embroidered flowers, her hair tied in two side braids and vibrant amber eyes, she threw herself at Riki without ceremony, hugging him tightly.

— RIKI! I KNEW IT! I told you everyone was up to something! I saw my mother hiding dango!

— Sayuri... you almost knocked me over, Riki said, trying to laugh.

— It's your birthday! You have to fall over with happiness! She pointed to a small roll of parchment tied with a lilac ribbon.

— It's a seal I learned how to make, it explodes pink smoke, nothing deadly, but VERY dramatic. Ideal for entrances! — she blinked, excited.

Tetsu, son of one of the clan's most reserved advisors, was a little further away. He wore dark, simple clothes, always attentive to the details around him, he was a master of silence. When Riki saw him, Tetsu held up a small package.

— I stole this from my father's stock. He said seriously. — They're recovery portions, for when I fail a few more seals.

Riki laughed, accepting the gift.

— Thank you... for your kindness. He replied, knowing that it was Tetsu's way of saying "take care of yourself".

Mina, another Uzumaki heiress, approached last, almost shyly. She was smaller than the others, with light brown eyes, hair tied in a high bun, and carrying a small box with real flowers.

— I... made herbal tea, my grandfather taught me, it's good for sleeping, or for headaches, I thought... maybe it would help.

She offered the gift, lowering her eyes.

Riki took it carefully.

— It'll help a lot, Mina. Thank you! He smiled, making her blush slightly.

Soon, the group was gathered at one of the tables in the corner, laughing and talking loudly, like children should.

Sayuri was telling about an accident she caused with a seal she drew wrong and exploded paint all over the ceiling of the house.

Jiro listened, with that look of someone who catalogued everything, Mina smiled softly, covering her mouth, and Tetsu remained with his eyes attentive to the movement in the room, although clearly relaxed among his friends.

On the other side, Akemi patiently answered the questions of the younger girls.

— Is it true that you defeated a Mist chunin with a blood illusion?

— Not exactly like that... He replied, smiling. — I used the reflection of the blood on the floor to trap his mind, but it's a dangerous technique, it should only be used in self-defense.

The children listened with wide eyes, as if they were in front of a legendary heroine.

Tekka was surrounded by other little ones, trying to explain, with didacticism and humor, how the Sharingan saw the flow of chakra and reaction time.

— No, you can't see the future... He replied, laughing. — But it seems like when you read the movements and know the opponent's style, it's like anticipating the next step before he even thinks about doing it.

— How do you know if someone is going to kick or punch? A little boy asked.

— First, look at the shoulders; then the hips; the body speaks before the mind. Tekka replied, standing up and demonstrating with gestures. — And if you're quick, the Sharingan does the rest.

Riki watched everything, without saying anything for a long time.

He just absorbed the scene.

There were his friends, his family, his two clans, each with their talents, their flaws, their smiles and traumas. It wasn't a team of warriors yet, but it was something bigger than that.

And then, something changed inside him, an understanding. He wasn't alone in this world, he didn't need to carry everything on his shoulders, they were growing together.

In the background, one of the elders clapped his hands to get attention.

— Let's sing for young Riki, may this new spring strengthen and protect him.

The traditional music began, soft and full of reverence, accompanied by the delicate sound of a shamisen played by an old woman.

Riki closed his eyes.

And for a moment, he forgot the flaws in the seals, the hardship of the training, the burden of his reincarnated memories.

He was just a boy, and this was his home.

Just when Riki thought his friends were already filling his world, he heard a firm and cheerful voice at the door.

"I hope there's still food at the party... or I'll use Hien to steal some dango!" It was Akari, walking in with her feet almost dancing.

She wore the traditional training clothes of the Uzumaki clan, with wide sleeves and a tightly tied obi, but her loose hair revealed that she hadn't come straight from the dojo, her honey-colored eyes shone with enthusiasm, and her expansive manner stood out wherever she was.

"Riki!" She hugged him with a strength that reminded her of Sayuri's, but without the heels. "You're older. One year closer to baldness!"

"You two are going to crush me to death by the end of the party," Riki replied, with a sincere laugh.

Right behind her, Satoru walked in with the calm of someone who observes the world in silence before acting. The boy with reddish-brown hair, eyes closed as if he could see inside people, wore a light shirt and his fingers were still slightly stained with ink.

"I made this for you," he said, handing over a roll of paper.

Riki unrolled it carefully.

It was a beautiful portrait of all of them together: him, Sayuri, Tetsu, Mina, Jiro, Akari, Kaede. The setting was the top of the hill that surrounded the Valley, at dusk, with a line that was somewhere between realistic and dreamlike.

"You are already a jounin artist, Satoru," Riki said, touched.

"I don't know if art will protect me on the battlefield... but it helps me remember who I am," he answered simply.

And then, appearing like a delicate breeze among the guests, came Kaede. Her gray eyes were deep, attentive, and her presence was always gentle, but never weak. She wore a light kimono with subtle maple leaf patterns and a blue ribbon in her brown hair, which was tied in a side ponytail. Her voice was low but confident.

"I brought a rare book from our temple, it has ancient parables and stories about lost seals, I thought it would suit you, Riki."

"Thank you, Kaede. I'll take good care of it."

She simply nodded, her eyes fixed on Riki's for a moment longer than usual, as if she were saying something without needing words.

With everyone gathered, the corner of the table where the friends sat became a small world of its own, between bites of dango and sips of hot tea, the topics varied from jokes, debates about training, and even more profound reflections.

"If you had to choose a mission right now... what would it be?" Akari asked, leaning back on the mat with her hands behind her head.

"Any one far from bureaucracy and paperwork." Sayuri grumbled.

"I wanted to map the sealed borders north of the Valley..." Jiro commented, with a thoughtful expression.

Kaede only murmured: "I would choose to protect... this moment."

There was silence, Riki looked around, the table full, the yellow light of the lanterns flickering, his parents in the background smiling, Tekka being besieged by the curious questions of the children, Akemi surrounded like a natural leader.

This was more than a party.

It was a refuge, a piece of the world worth preserving.