Silver Dragon Azure Tiger

Uchiha Zhuang returned to his room, drenched in sweat and secretly thankful to have escaped with his life. He had nearly lost himself in the other person's illusion. The world was vast, and there was always someone stronger! Good thing he had always kept a low profile while growing stronger. Otherwise, who knew how many experts he might have run into along the way, ready to teach him a lesson?

Persia was already lying in bed, resting. When she heard Uchiha Zhuang return, she merely opened her eyes to take a look, then went back to sleep. Uchiha Zhuang took another shower, dried off, and climbed into the warm bed. He instinctively wrapped his arms around Persia. She was fragrant and warm in his embrace, and he soon fell asleep. Persia shifted closer, nestled in his arms, and drifted off as well.

After a comfortable night's sleep, Uchiha Zhuang woke to find Persia sipping hot tea in small mouthfuls. Outside the window, a steady drizzle continued; there was no sun to wake him this time. He got out of bed and called for the inn staff to bring breakfast. Before long, a lavish spread arrived: rice balls with caviar and truffles, thick-cut tender beef, two servings of appetizing vegetable milk, a large platter of fresh seafood sashimi, two bowls of fragrant white rice porridge, an assortment of tempting side dishes, two soft-centered tamagoyaki, and two pan-fried Azure Sky Fish, a specialty of the Land of Rain. The elegant presentation and careful cooking showed the restaurant's respect for its ingredients. That went some way toward easing Uchiha Zhuang's resentment over what had happened the previous day. After breakfast was cleared away, a while later a boy delivered a message asking the two of them to go to Garden Terrace Park.

Having gathered their gear and supplies, the two put on their raincoats and followed the boy to Amegakure's famous attraction, Garden Terrace Park. Of course, ordinary citizens could hardly ever get into a place like this. In the Land of Rain, where it rained year-round, finding a clean, tidy, dry space was no easy task. So the upper ranks had built a five-thousand-square-meter park atop a high-rise in Takamagahara. (Rice vermicelli fans, no need to look it up online—it was about the size of a school sports field.) It was originally meant to be open to the public for free, but indoor drying and maintenance, rooftop repairs, planting and landscaping, labor costs, material costs, and the shortfall in the construction budget—all of which forced the investment to balloon to four or five times its original amount—were serious problems. With no one willing to foot the bill for the public, the upper ranks had no choice but to open their one remaining sanctuary to officials and nobles, powerful factions, black-market merchants, and other wealthy patrons. In return, they charged admission, viewing fees, and rental fees for business gatherings, leisure, and negotiations. The steep prices didn't deter the wealthy. Instead, the park became the perfect place to show off their wealth and influence. Lavish banquets, extravagant parties, important celebrations, private birthdays—these all filled this former sanctuary of hope with a different kind of "hope." The whole garden was a gathering place for society's elite, while ordinary people could only look on from afar.

As he listened to the boy's explanation and marveled at how nice it was to be rich, Uchiha Zhuang gradually approached a mountain with a high ridge. What an astonishing structure! A cluster of towering buildings stood on the slope, following the contours of the hillside, their magnificent Tibetan-style flat roofs rising above it. The grandeur of Prada's architecture came to mind. Giant mortise-and-tenon structures rested atop sturdy vermilion pillars, with carved brackets and eaves. The buildings themselves were richly ornamented in gold, with golden dragons spouting water and golden fish spitting pearls. At the four corners stood colossal divine beasts, part dragon and part serpent, some seated, some upright, facing the four directions with their jaws open to channel the rain. The main buildings stood along a north-south central axis, with orderly, symmetrical structures on either side. Their layered construction showcased their neatness, solemnity, and imposing scale. Most of the main structures were crowned with magnificent golden roofs, supported by vermilion wooden columns, with wooden doors and windows and broad, pristine platforms of precious white jade. Most of the auxiliary buildings also had grand roofs. These roofs were not only beautiful and imposing but also protected the buildings well. Their eaves and corners swept up in successive layers, forming graceful curves that carried rainwater farther away from the buildings and kept the wooden and stone palaces from getting soaked. The birds and beasts decorating the rooftops lent the solemn palaces an air of mystery, while also helping secure the structures and protecting them from erosion by rain. Atop the main building was an enormous glass curtain wall, reinforced with steel framing along the top and sides. The complex broke away from Amegakure's usual gray-and-blue metallic palette, boldly pairing red and white. The colors emphasized its grandeur and set off its singular air of nobility and compassion. After all, in this dark world, wasn't hope always the most precious thing?

As Uchiha Zhuang gaped in amazement at the magnificent complex, the boy saw the two of them staring open-mouthed and couldn't help feeling a little proud. But after his pride came the memory of his little brother burning with a high fever at home and his exhausted mother doing backbreaking laundry for meager wages. His mood darkened. Even so, he didn't hurry the two of them along. Instead, he went on telling them about the history of the buildings.

When the complex was built, the enormous investment had deepened the rift between the people and the upper ranks. The upper ranks had solemnly promised that everyone would have the right to enter and enjoy the building. They had poured vast sums from public funds into it, but in the end it had become a paradise for the wealthy and powerful. At first, the common people had been furious. But once everything settled into a routine and the upper ranks gathered there to eat, drink, and be merry, the place people in the Land of Rain called "Takamagahara" began to need masses of cheap, lowly people like us to serve the noble lords. All the anger gradually faded. The lords enjoyed the people's hard work, both physical and mental, while the people got bread and hope enough to survive. After all, as long as you're alive, there's hope, isn't there? At this, the boy grinned, showing his yellow teeth. Uchiha Zhuang remained noncommittal, while Persia looked completely bewildered.

"My sister died there." The boy pointed with a thin finger at some part of the towering complex. "But at least she spent a few comfortable, dry years without a care in the world, and she sent money home every month to help with expenses. She even wrote to tell Mom to send my little brother and me to school. But Mom had spent all her money on medicine and treatment for my brother, who was always sick. Where could she find the money for school?" The boy calmly recounted his story. "Later, my sister said she was good at her job and the customers liked her. So her 'madam' there promoted her and sent her to serve the noble lords. She said she'd soon save enough to move us to a house closer to Takamagahara, so she could leave and live with us. My brother and I were overjoyed when we read her letter. This is the most prosperous building in the Land of Rain, after all! So many foreigners come here just to see it! But Mom told us to hurry and grow up, so we wouldn't be a burden to my sister. I even saw her secretly crying under the oil lamp in the middle of the night. Maybe she was happy that my sister was going to bring us to live in Takamagahara!"

"Later, Big Brother Taiseki from next door, who'd once had a crush on my sister, came to our house with terrible news: she'd worked herself to death there! We ran to Takamagahara like mad, but when the gatekeeper samurai lord heard what had happened, he wouldn't let us in. He just told us to wait. We waited from morning until night. The rain went from a soft patter to a downpour, then back to a soft patter, just like Mom's tears. Near midnight, a skinny old man came carrying a bundle and handed it to us. When we opened it, we found my sister's things: money, a hairpin, clips, and the cloth doll I'd given her. The old man quietly said something to Mom. At first, she shook her head. Then he said something else, helplessly, and Mom hesitated for a long time before nodding. So we went home. The next day, someone came to our house carrying an urn. Mom told us it was my sister. I didn't believe her, but my little brother still talks to the urn every day, calling out to our sister."

"Mom said my sister traded her life to get me a respectable job." The boy grinned broadly again. "See, samurai lords? I work at Takamagahara now, showing tourists from foreign lands around beautiful Amegakure and our magnificent Takamagahara!" His confidence seemed genuine, Uchiha Zhuang thought with regret.