The Girl Named Sakura / Sakura the Tracking Expert

"Ah, it's already this late. I guess we should go back." Adachi also looked outside; the moon was already rising in the sky.

"Really?" the chubby man stood up and asked.

"Really! It was a strange encounter, but I had a lot of fun." Adachi stood up and stretched.

"We can't stay here overnight, thank you for the hospitality!" Shimamura said, standing up as well.

"Senior, you should see them off, right?" Shirou nudged his senior, reminding him.

Regardless of the truth, the other person has a deep 'connection' with Iruma; at least in this world, he should be considered the person closest to them.

"Oh, really." The chubby uncle initially felt uncomfortable with the girls being together, but now that it was time to part ways, he felt very reluctant.

The two girls were already carrying chairs, and the chubby uncle went to help. Shirou went forward, but stayed inside to clean up the dishes, leaving the space Iruma Iruma-senpai.

With their help, three chairs were placed outside, two on the bottom and one in the middle, which provided enough height.

"Yes, I also saw things about Adachi that I didn't know about. Thank you, Uncle, thank you for writing our story." Shimamura said with a smile to the chubby uncle.

"Well, although I'm a little shy, it feels like a lot of people are cheering us on, and it warms my heart. I think you wrote well, Uncle," Adachi said, blushing slightly.

"Yes, this is mine, thank you." The chubby man lowered his head, his voice slightly choked.

At this moment, no one could see his expression because he was helping to hold the ladder, and the girls were wearing skirts, so they couldn't raise their heads.

"Goodbye then, uncle." The girls slipped through the gap one by one.

"Yes, goodbye."

The gap disappeared after the girls left, leaving the ceiling blank and nothing left.

"Goodbye... uh... waaaah..." The chubby man stared at the ceiling, and suddenly tears streamed down his face.

"Senior, why are you crying again?" Shirou finally came out from inside and looked at the fat uncle helplessly.

"Because... I actually met them! The girls from my own stories, and they didn't hate me. They even thanked me for writing the stories," the chubby uncle said, his eyes brimming with tears.

"Yes..." Shirou understood his senior's meaning, gazing at the ceiling and chuckling softly. "As an author, if I can receive such praise, then it's all worth it..."

The author is imaginative, incredibly narcissistic, and sometimes inexplicably falls into self-doubt, exhibiting highly unstable emotions.

Sometimes there's a strange kind of persistence; no matter what, there's no way to let go.

But sometimes, no matter what's written, it just feels like utter nonsense.

However, because they take things so seriously, they are also easily hurt. But if an author doesn't take their writing seriously, then they are truly doomed.

"Shirou-kun, as expected... I'm so glad I was able to see them." The fat man wiped away the tears from his eyes and said in a deep voice.

Iruma- senpai faced everything very honestly, without trying to appear profound or cool. Although he was quite disheveled, he still greeted and faced the two girls who were very important to him in the best way he could think of, which was remarkable.

In fact, Shirou was also encouraged by Iruma -senpai. Even though he was in such a sorry state, his sincere attitude was second to none. Shirou felt that it was time for him to face what was going on properly.

"Waaah, it would have been even better if I had acted more handsome and reliable before," the chubby uncle said regretfully.

"Yes... but it's alright, that's just how you are, senior. Those kids will definitely understand," Shirou said with a smile.

"Well, I hope so," the chubby uncle said with a laugh.

"Now that things have come to a satisfactory conclusion, I'll head back now," Shirou said.

"Well, thank you so much for today. Shirou-kun when you get home, you'll even meet the girl from your novel," the chubby uncle joked.

"Probably not..."

Shirou paused for a moment, then excitedly raised his voice and said...

Please don't make such scary jokes!

"Haha, Shirou, aren't all the girls in your novels kind and strong girls? They'll definitely be fine." The chubby uncle...

"That would be great." Shirou gave a wry smile. He was worried it wouldn't be just one person; he'd never written a yuri light novel before.

"Well then, goodbye. Although I know you have very important things to do, Shirou-kun, as you know, I really can't help you with anything other than your writing. I can only wish you all the best," the chubby uncle said with a sincere, simple smile.

"No, the guidance on writing methods is enough," Shirou replied with a smile.

"There were too many shocking events today, I'm really exhausted. I'm going to wash up and go to bed, goodbye." The chubby uncle waved goodbye to Shirou.

"Well then, goodbye. Please don't do anything rash or strange, senior," Shirou said, then turned and left.

"Haha, I would never do that," the chubby man said, closing the door behind him.

Shirou returned home, and as soon as he opened the door, a girl with long blue hair and a red ribbon tied on the left side greeted him with a smile.

"Welcome home, senior."

Chapter 1098 The Girl Named Sakura

"Sakura?" Shirou looked at the girl in surprise.

At this moment, she was dressed in ordinary home clothes, looking exactly like the figure I had seen in the Emiya Residence years ago. The girl who had cooked with me in the kitchen and come to the storeroom to wake me up.

However, Shirou noticed something amiss. The girl here was clearly more lively than he remembered, probably because their experiences were different, which made their spirits and demeanor different.

When Shirou was writing the light novel about Sakura, he couldn't bear to write about her painful past, so he made some revisions. In the novel, Sakura has a family that's at least not too bad, a mischievous older brother, but she is still a gentle, virtuous, strong, and slightly 'cunning' archery girl.

Although Shirou didn't say anything, the girl understood his thoughts with just a glance.

"You've been found out, huh? Hehe." Sakura playfully stuck out her tongue.

"So, which is more like the Sakura I knew in my past life, or the Sakura I created?" Shirou asked, not wanting to lie to the girl, so he answered directly.

"Half and half. The reason it happened was because you were creating a novel, but while you were conceiving it, your memories were also transmitted into my mind. So I have memories from both sides. I am Sakura from your memories, and I am also Sakura from your gentle story."

"It's a novel... So, it turns out that Sakura's presence here is indeed related to me after all?" Shirou sighed. In the end, he still managed to affect the girl's life.

"Let's keep it half and half."

Sakura smiled and agreed:

"If you ask me whether I live in an independent world, the answer is yes. If you ask me whether my life is limited by novels, the answer is also yes."

When my senior described my world, he was very gentle and meticulous, taking into account every person, every citizen, and even the flowers in the courtyard were all living vibrantly. The fish and vegetables sold on the commercial street were both fresh and of a wide variety.

However, the areas outside the places mentioned in the novel are a blank space. While the other people live their lives as if it were perfectly normal, Sakura knew from the beginning that she was actually living in a confined space. Sakura is a homebody; her living space is very small, so she lives happily without any problems at all."

"Is that so? It really is because of the power of the white god?"

Hearing the girl's words, Shirou felt even heavier in his heart.

Shirou hoped to hear a negative answer from the girl. Because the direction things were taking was really not optimistic, which was the last thing he wanted to see, especially with the girl in front of him.

At this moment, the blue-haired girl nodded and said with a smile:

"Yes, it's a very gentle white light. I'm sure it's from a very kind and gentle deity."

No... he was just a bastard who tried to make choices for people without their consent. He created so much happiness on his own, but unexpectedly, it also caused equal unhappiness.

Shirou finally understood what had happened; the world he lived in truly did not possess the power of the white god. That power resided only in the outer walls of this world.

In a world without supernatural powers, humans would normally be unable to access this power.

However, because people identify with the created 'works', it is elevated to a belief. When hundreds of thousands or millions of people believe in the same thing, it triggers the world's ability to achieve miracles.

Although humanity cannot transcend the boundaries of the world, its collective consciousness easily pierces through these barriers. Thus, the collective consciousness began to pray to the power left behind by the white deity, and new worlds were born one after another.

The existence of beings within the world of a work is most closely connected to the creator. Thus, with the creator as the coordinate, the gap space appears nearby. This is why Shirou, the creator, often sees a girl who seems familiar.

Shirou's doubts were finally resolved, and the issue of the light novel's intrusion into this world was also solved. Because that power was ownerless, it was ultimately only a very small part of the white god, and not enough to support so many small worlds.

When the energy is exhausted, the world of the light novel will naturally disappear, and those gaps will no longer appear.

But...

Shirou then looked at Sakura. If the girl before him possessed her own memories, then she must know all this, right? Even knowing all this, she still stood before him, displaying a beautiful smile.

Sakura looked at Shirou and said with a gentle smile:

"Senior, Emiya- senpai, I am very grateful to the White God. It was through his power that I was born. I just suddenly discovered a passage to this world, so I couldn't help but come here to see you, senpai."

Because you are so gentle and considerate of me. As you wrote, all your thoughts flowed into my heart. Senior~! Hehehe."

Sakura called out to Shirou again, and she seemed to like it, showing a sweet smile.

"But... Sakura! Are you really okay?" Shirou looked at the girl and asked with mixed feelings.

"What is it, senpai?" Sakura looked into Shirou's eyes and asked, puzzled.

"Of course it's about your life in that world, your family, and all that stuff," Shirou said loudly, somewhat out of control.

And... you'll be disappearing soon...

These were words that Shirou found difficult to say.

Shirou hated himself more than ever before, and he hated that white god.

"If I've caused you any trouble here, I'll head back now." The girl looked a little disappointed, but still smiled at Shirou.

As expected, the girl before him was Sakura. She was still the same, always thinking of him and never making any unreasonable demands. Even if she had to bear everything in secret, hiding all her pain and grievances.

"No! You can stay if you want! Sakura can stay as long as she wants." Shirou quickly changed his mind.

"Yes, thank you, senpai." Sakura smiled playfully, clasping her hands apologetically, "I'm sorry, senpai is so kind, so I couldn't help but act cute."

"I'm your senior, right? Feel free to be all cute and affectionate with me." Shirou chuckled and reached out to pat the girl's head.

"..." Sakura felt the warm touch on her head, and with a slightly dazed expression, she blushed and whispered, "Senpai, can you pat my head a little longer?"

"Yes, of course." Shirou's eyes welled up with tears, but he held back and laughed as heartily as possible as he could, agreeing with the girl.

Chapter 1099 Sakura, the Tracking Expert

One night passed.

In the morning, Shirou and Sakura were making breakfast together in the kitchen. Shirou was in charge of making soup and frying eggs, while Sakura was in charge of washing and chopping vegetables and making side dishes.

Shirou poured the miso into the pot, stirred it with a spoon, then ladled it into a small dish and fed it to the girl.

"Come on, Sakura, try the taste."

Sakura brushed her long hair aside, took a sip, and said with a delighted smile:

"The taste is just right, it's the taste of the predecessors I miss."

"Sakura's miso soup is the same as mine, isn't it?" Shirou said with a light laugh.

The girl possesses Sakura Matou's memories, and her Japanese cooking skills were taught by Shirou. In the world of the novel, thanks to these memories, her cooking in home economics class at school received unanimous praise from her teacher and classmates.

After working together for half an hour, a sumptuous breakfast was ready.

Radish and kelp miso soup, grilled fish, pickled cucumber as a side dish, and a medium-rare fried egg with the yolk just right—between solid and liquid—that has a soft, smooth texture and a powdery, bean cake-like aroma.

Sakura sucked on the sauce from the fried egg, a look of pure enjoyment on her face. Her cheeks were flushed from the steam, and her pink lips glistened with the egg sauce, like delicate flowers glistening with dewdrops.

"I'll share half of my egg with you, Sakura." Seeing the girl enjoying her food, Shirou placed his egg on her plate. He was truly happy to see that she had such a good appetite.

"Thank you, senpai." Sakura blushed as she felt Shirou's gaze and lowered her head to eat. Although she had memories of the past, this was all a completely new experience for her, causing her body temperature to rise uncontrollably.

"Mmm," Shirou replied softly, and lowered his head to eat his breakfast. It had been a long time since he had eaten breakfast with someone like this since he came to this world.

"Oh right, senior, would you like to meet the other children? You mean the other heroines from your novel?" Sakura suddenly asked.

"Huh?" Shirou put down his chopsticks, feeling a chill run down his spine for some reason.

"As expected... Senior must want to see them, right?" Sakura continued, smiling but revealing no one her true thoughts.

"Well, now that they've appeared in this world, I can't just leave them alone. Although it might just be my own wishful thinking, and they might not actually want to see me, I still hope I can help them, at least fulfill my responsibility."

Shirou knew he couldn't hide it from Sakura, and he didn't want to lie to her. Now that he had it all out in the open, he felt a little relieved.

"This kind of senior is a little cunning~!" Sakura looked at Shirou and pouted slightly.

"Hmm, she really is too cunning." Shirou looked at the girl apologetically and chuckled.

However, he will not apologize, because doing so would be an insult to the girl.

The girl possesses Sakura Matou's memories, but she is not the Sakura Matou she once was.

He is Shirou Emiya, but he is no longer the boy who once lived in the Emiya Residence.

If the other girls were like Sakura, then his encounters with the girls would be the most familiar first meetings in the world.

They are acquaintances and familiar with each other, but this is the first time they have spoken. They have each other in their hearts and share common memories. These are precious things that cannot be erased even after going through many worlds.

Shirou cannot deny these feelings; otherwise, it would be a betrayal of Sakura and the other girls.

"It's cunning, but it's alright, I'll lead the way," Sakura said.