What are you talking about

Walking past a street vendor, she held a small pinwheel in her left hand, a cluster of colorful water balloons tied to her waist, cotton candy in her right hand, a bag of goldfish dangling from her slender wrist, and takoyaki in her mouth, all while staring longingly at the various masks on display.

Little Monster—she had discovered a little secret: as long as she stared with those wide, longing eyes, the chances were high that the Great Yokai would buy it for her.

Yura stepped forward, picking up a snake mask to examine it.

Unlike plastic, the mask was carved from wood, the craftsmanship quite solid.

When buying things, Yura's first priority was always quality, followed by whether the function was needed, and only lastly cost-effectiveness—though spending money to craft gear was a different matter entirely.

The masks on the stall were mostly Noh masks, modeled after ghosts and monsters from folklore. Much like the mask storage hall of the Uzumaki clan, that wall full of Shinigami masks, the true name for those was Hannya mask—a ghost transformed from a person, usually a woman, out of jealousy.

Those with horns and ears were called Hannya, while those with horns but no ears were called Snake, or True Snake.

It was the ultimate form of manifested resentment, a ghost even more terrifying than a Hannya; having no ears meant it could not hear anything at all.

The connection between Orochimaru and the Hannya was quite interesting.

As for the Zero-Tails, it was the form of a horned snake-like creature wearing a mask without ears. It looked a bit like a slippery loach, lacking the oppressive weight of deep-seated resentment, making it feel less like a ghost.

Yura's gaze swept over the Tengu mask on the stall; it was carved quite fiercely.

But when it came to a sense of terror and eeriness, nothing beat the Noh masks depicting ordinary women. Their uncanny, oppressive aura was far greater than that of straightforward monsters.

Ko-omote, Waka-onna, Fukai, Yase-onna, and Ro-jo—each represented a different age of woman, and each held its own unique, eerie terror.

"These masks are kind of cute..." Lucy stared longingly at the bizarre-looking monster masks.

Yura didn't waste words; she raised her hand and pressed the snake mask onto Lucy's face.

After a flurry of frantic movements to secure the mask, Lucy lifted it onto her head and said, "How did you know I liked this one?"

Your aesthetic is quite strange; the weirder the little thing is, the more you like it.

"Like?" Yura tilted her head to look at Lucy.

Lucy nodded as if it were only natural, but then she realized what she was doing, lowered her head, and said, "I hate it so much..."

Yura nodded in satisfaction and picked up another mask.

A red fox mask—it was quite peculiar.

"Customer, you have a great eye..." the vendor said mysteriously. "This is a cursed mask of calamity! It's said to have a mysterious connection to that legendary Nine-Tailed Fox..."

"Is that so?" Looking at the vendor who was putting on a show, Yura said, "You're quite bold, then. Has your family been ruined yet?"

The vendor's expression stiffened. Since he had made it himself, how could he not know whether it was cursed or not?

Negative emotion +1 +1 +1

"Customer, are you buying it?"

Yura smiled faintly, dropped the money, and placed the fox mask on her head.

Yura was not short on masks. After using the Earth Grudge Fear forbidden technique to seize a ninja's heart, she could transform it into a functional mask. The appearance depended on personal aesthetics; what it could be crafted into depended entirely on imagination and skill.

However, among fox masks, the White Fox and Black Fox were seen as auspicious beasts and messengers of the gods, while the Red Fox was seen as a harbinger of calamity.

White gave a sense of transparency, like an existence as invisible as a god, which was why the messenger of the gods was a White Fox.

Then what about red?

On the tiled roof outside the inn, crouching in the night, the White Fox mask stared fixedly through Byakugan at the young girl in the crowd wearing the striking red fox mask.

Before she knew it, the ninja was drenched in sweat.

Only when looking directly at her could one feel that terrifying, eerie madness.

Why!?

Everyone—so many people—were acting as if this person didn't exist!

Could they not see her?

What kind of thing is she!? Is she a god?

Under the gaze of the Byakugan, there were no signs of any jutsu being cast. That faint chakra was like stagnant water, calm and without a single ripple. This was absolutely impossible.

Having seen it with her own eyes, once the impossible was ruled out, no matter how inconceivable, what remained had to be the truth.

"Is it sorcery?"

She didn't know if sorcery existed in this world, but if it did, and even her Byakugan couldn't see through it, then that was clearly the situation at hand.

"White Fox, you don't look so good. What's wrong? Still haven't rested enough?" asked her companion, who was monitoring with her. Although she couldn't see White Fox's face, the sweat soaking through the tight-fitting Anbu combat suit outlined alluring, youthful curves.

"Monkey, do you think there are monsters in this world?" White Fox asked.

"Why wouldn't there be? Isn't that what everyone says? Byakugan monster..."

White Fox stared daggers at Monkey.

Scratching his head, Monkey gave an awkward, sheepish laugh and said, "It's pretty boring standing guard, and you looked tense, so I was just making a little joke."

Seeing the Byakugan monster staring fixedly at him.

"My deepest apologies!" He immediately slid to his knees, prostrating himself on the ground.

Facing such a seasoned veteran of the Warring States period, the young girl couldn't even muster any anger; she took a deep breath and shifted her gaze back to the target.

After that brief interruption, the wild thoughts cluttering her mind had mostly dissipated.

How could there possibly be gods or monsters in this world?

Could a talking summoning beast really be called a monster? It was just using ninjutsu, and as long as it was using ninjutsu, there was nothing to fear—the God of Shinobi didn't count, and neither did Uchiha Madara.

But...

As a member of the branch family, trained by the experience and instincts honed through the slaughter of the Warring States era to protect the main house, the sense of palpitations had not faded for a long time.

Just as Lord Tobirama had said, this was a rather dangerous individual.

It was only natural; she was likely no match for it, but she still had her companions and everyone in the village.

"How is it? Did the target notice anything?" Having been forgiven, Monkey climbed up and asked.

"No!" White Fox was sparing with her words, speaking coldly.

"Is that so?" Monkey said, "Still, the Byakugan is truly convenient." Without stopping his hands, he fished out a cigarette and lit it with satisfaction, saying, "The Byakugan of your Hyuga main house is even more impressive, right? I've heard that the higher the purity of the Byakugan, the further it can see once developed..."

"Senior!!!" With a chilling voice, White Fox said, overflowing with killing intent, "Please do not smoke beside me!"

"Eh..." Monkey's smoking motion paused, and he asked tentatively, "Should I move further away then?"

"Feel free, Senior. I can handle the surveillance here alone," White Fox said.

"I couldn't possibly impose." Although he said that, he vanished with a Body Flicker technique.

White Fox let out a soft breath; finally, it was quiet.

Crouched on the tiled roof, she remained as still as a stone statue, quietly watching the young girl strolling through the streets in the distance.

It was just a normal outing, but White Fox watched intently, reading the girl's lip movements.

"How does it feel, Little Monster? Is it fun? Smashing watermelons."

"Average..." Little Monster said regretfully, "I just feel like something is missing."

"Of course, the tactile sensation definitely isn't as stimulating as hitting a head, and there's no white stuff splashing out, so it feels quite a pity," Yura said with a faint smile.

Under her mask, the corners of White Fox's mouth twitched.

What are you talking about!

Negative emotion +1+1+1+1+1

"It's the beach! The beach! You big monster!"