Early morning.
Sleepy-eyed, Shion got out of bed.
She rubbed her eyes, looking somewhat drowsy.
"Shion... time to eat..."
There was a knock on the bedroom door, and her mother's silhouette appeared behind the paper screen.
Sunlight streamed in. Shion gazed at her mother's illusory shadow and hummed in acknowledgment.
Her mother left.
Shion did not get up immediately.
Instead, she slowly lifted the covers and glanced at the bed.
She froze for a moment.
Then,
she got up and quickly changed the bedsheets and pajamas.
"Phew..."
Watching the washing machine start turning, Shion breathed a sigh of relief.
"Thankfully..."
Thankfully, she had prepared in advance last night, wearing pajamas and laying down an extra sheet...
A moment later, Shion began washing up and getting dressed. Then she left the bedroom.
She arrived in the living room and sat on the tatami.
With a small low table between her and her mother, she ate breakfast.
Everything was no different from the past.
A peaceful... warm daily life.
But,
Shion knew.
Everything was different now, after all.
Holding her bowl and eating rice, she secretly glanced at her mother.
Her mother wore a dark-colored home yukata. Even without makeup, she exuded an astonishing sense of dignity and nobility.
Nobility...?
Shion could not help remembering last night, and even earlier... the sight of her mother in the grand hall where the Snake Demon had been sealed.
That relaxed scene, with her head lolling to one side and her eyes vacant...
Shion: "..."
"Shion...?"
The Miko glanced at her daughter and noticed that she was lost in thought.
"Mother."
Shion smiled, then continued shoveling rice into her mouth.
After breakfast,
Shion got up and helped clean up.
Then, she put on her miko robes and began another day's work.
During their Genin years,