Shin returned to the orphanage in the evening, noticing that the entry and kitchen were unusually clean.

"Where is everybody?" he wondered aloud, entering the dining hall. To his shock, he found his balloons scattered all over.

'Are those my balloons? Hiro, you little fucker! You're in for the beating of a lifetime,' Shin declared angrily.

"HIRO! HIRO!" he shouted, but received no response. Frantically, he rushed to Hiro's room, forcing the door open, only to find it empty.

'Where is that fucker. I told him that I didn't want a balloon fight yet he used them anyway. All of my big air balloons, He used almost all of them', Shin grumbled, grinding his teeth, he fantasized about Hiro's inevitable demise at his hands.

"Ah! Forget it, I'll forgive him this one time", he sighed and headed back to his room. However, as he opened the door, he was greeted by a chorus of "SURPRISE!"

Shin was dumbfounded. Speechless, he stared at all the people gathered in his room and struggled to figure out what to do. The room had been magically transformed into a full-blown party zone. There was a cake on the table with the inscription:

Happy Birthday, Shin, Hiro, Akiko - 4, 5, 6

'Wow,' Shin managed to utter

Dai stepped forward and pulled Shin towards the table. "Hey kid, did you like the surprise? I thought since it was your first birthday here, we would surprise you like this," he explained warmly.

"Uh, thanks, I guess, Brother Dai," Shin mumbled, feeling a bit, overwhelmed by the excessive display of affection.

'Although I don't really celebrate birthdays, I suppose, I can accept it as just another party. After all, they did spend money on it,'

"Wait, Do Akiko and Hiro have the same birthdate as me? "Shin asked, a bit amazed at the coincidence.

"No, It's because we are too poor to celebrate everybody's birthday separately. My birthday is two months earlier than yours and Hiro`s is one month after you, So, Dai combined them", Akiko explained, shaking his head.

"You brat, be grateful you're even getting a birthday celebration, considering your little stunt last time," Dai chided with a smirk.

"But wait, wasn't that gift from you, Brother Dai?" Akiko innocently asked

Dai stumbled over his words, "W-well, I suppose... yeah, it was a gift. B-but you're not getting any more gifts, got it?"

"That's not fair, big brother... that was just a normal gift and doesn't count... but this is my birthday," Akiko protested, feigning tears.

This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

"Alright... Alright, I will give you a gift..." Dai was nervous and scrambled to shut up the kid. After a few moments, he realized something, 'Wait... hold on second... did I just agree to another gift?'

'Damn it, that brat... Kayumi is going to kill me'.

Shin watched the entire sequence with amusement. Later, they cut the cake while the chorus of "Happy Birthday" sounded in the background, he took a little bite and hurriedly excused himself when threatened to be stuffed with more cake inside his mouth.

Everybody seemed happy. 'Guess it doesn't take much to bring happiness to everyone,' Shin thought to himself.

He couldn't help but remember the scene from his last birthday when all of his family had gathered at their house. Cousins had come together, knowing that after this birthday, he would be away for an entire year for studies. They played games, creating precious memories that were meant to last him through the long separation. Yet, all of a sudden, he was in a different world.

As he recollected those cherished memories, Shin fell silent and lost the desire to engage with anyone around him.

After the party, everybody started to clean up his whole room. It turned out, that the balloons were extra, that Dai bought separately, however, Shin was in no mood to comment.

Once the clean-up was done, everyone dispersed and retreated to their respective rooms. Shin unwrapped his gift, which was wrapped in colorful paper. It was a stack of rubber balls - a request he had made alongside the balloons.

'I guess Dai remembered,' he thought, his heart breaking at the reminder of the memories that haunted him. Nevertheless, he managed a smile.

"This is my new reality... They are good people... but they can never replace my family," Shin whispered to himself, trying to escape from his thoughts.

He started a bit of light exercise in the room. After the exercise, He infused some chakra and focused it on his legs. After infusing the chakra, he moved towards the wall. He tried to step on the wall but got immediately repelled.

He tried a few more times, but his chakra was either too little or too much, resulting in repeated failures. Shaking his head, he attributed the failures to his troubled state of mind and ended the exercise in dejection. Lying down on his sheets, he drifted into his thoughts until he saw someone coming in, through his door... it was Akiko.

"Hello"

"Hey"

"So there is some leftover cake. Do you want to have some?"

"No... I don't like cake that much", Shin responded in a slow, heavy voice.

"Hey, is something bothering you? Did someone say or do something to hurt you? Tell me now,"

Shocked, Shin looked curiously at the boy barely older than him by two years physically. 'Am I that easy to read? That even a little boy can see through me'

"No... nothing`s wrong"

"Then, what is it? You didn't look happy, even at the party earlier. There must be something wrong" Akiko pushed further, "You know you can trust me, right? I am your big brother, believe it".

"Huh, we are related???" Shin was puzzled.

"Idiot, I`m bigger so of course, I am the big brother" Akiko slapped his head and retorted quickly.

Smiling at the kid's logic, Shin played along and reassured, "Okay, Big brother, I`m fine, there is nothing wrong."

"Don't worry, if anyone dares to hurt you or Hiro, just tell me, and I'll show them who's boss around here, just like we did with that fatty earlier," Akiko placed his hands on Shin's shoulders and reassured him.

"Thanks, Aki... B-big brother"

"Just call me Aki like before and I am repeating it again... Tell me if anyone bothers you".

As Akiko left the room, Shin felt a sense of peace wash over him. Lying on the floor, he curled up on his side. Unintentionally, a few tears escaped from his eyes as he softly cried out,

"Mom, Dad, everyone..."

"Goodbye..."

.

.

.

.

Author Note:

Join and support me on my Patreon pa treon.com/Admirers_Quill

(No space)

Thank you for your power stones.

If you like the story so far, please review, comment, and yes please send power stones. A good comment is always a great morale booster and motivator for writing new chapters.