Land of Demons Shrine.
The candlelight still flickers.
Shion collapsed on the ground, his face as pale as paper, and his forehead was covered with fine beads of sweat.
Her hands were still shaking slightly, Chakra was almost exhausted.
But she laughed.
"It's... it's successful..."
She raised her head and looked at the person in front of her.
I saw that the other person's face was also as pale as paper, and his facial features were twisted together, as if he had just experienced an extremely painful Ling Chi.
On his forehead, the green Caged Bird Seal still existed, but at this moment, it seemed to be wrapped by a transparent film.
It no longer flickers, no longer beats, and completely loses all contact with the outside world.
Shion gasped, his voice weak but full of pride.
"I... I... put a layer of shield around it... completely cutting off all perception... Now... even Hyuga Main House... can't sense you..."
She paused and grinned.
"And... even if they want to activate... they can't reach..."
Ning Xue gasped for air and sweated like rain.
Listening to Shion's conclusion, his expression gradually relaxed and his breathing calmed down.
He raised his hand and touched his forehead lightly with his fingertips.
There, the Cursed Seal that had bound him for fifteen years was now being sealed by a more powerful force.
He could feel it, but it couldn't control him anymore.
No more.
"Shion."
He spoke, his voice a little hoarse.
Shion raised his head and looked at him.
"What's wrong?"
Ning Xue was silent for a moment.
He didn't know what to say.
In the end, I searched for countless words in my mind, and finally turned into a heavy and grateful message again.
"Thank you..."
Shion was stunned for a moment.
Then, she laughed.
"You already said it." She said, with a hint of ridicule in her tone, "You said it a year ago when you left."
Ning Xue looked at her.
"Then say it again."
Shion blinked.
Suddenly I felt that the other person was a little funny and a little dull.
But she didn't laugh out loud, she just shook her head, forced herself to stand up, but stumbled.
Ning Xue stretched out his hand to support him.
And Shion also followed his strength and looked up at him, eyes flashing with unpredictable emotions.
"Next..." she stood firm, "What are you going to do?"
Ning Xue was silent for a moment, then lowered his head and looked directly at Shion.
The candlelight illuminated his face and made him dim and bright, but his words were extremely clear.
"Go and finish first..." He paused, "What I should do."
Shion looked at him and said nothing.
She understands.
She knew from the beginning that this person did not belong here.
He has his revenge, his path, and his destination.
All she could do was help him during his stay.
"Okay." She said softly, "Then... let's rest first. We'll talk about it tomorrow."
Ning Xue nodded.
The two of them walked out of the side hall one after the other.
Finally, Shion stood in the corridor, watching Ning Xue's back disappear into the moonlight, and breathed out gently.
It's been a year.
She helped him seal Cursed Seal.
But he has to leave too.
Early the next morning.
The sun shines in front of the yard.
A young guard hurried through the corridor, holding a stack of documents in his arms and preparing to send them to the main hall.
Around the corner, a figure suddenly appeared.
The guard was startled and almost bumped into him. When he saw the person clearly, he quickly stepped aside to give way and lowered his head respectfully.
"Fujiwara Master!"
Ning Xue nodded slightly and turned sideways to let him pass.
The guard walked away quickly, and couldn't help but look back until he turned another corner.
"Master Fujiwara seems to be in a good mood today?" he whispered.
The companion next to him glanced at him and sneered.
"How did you tell that he was in a good mood? His face has always been like that."
The guard scratched his head and chuckled, "Haha... well, it's just intuitive. A year ago, his face was like an ice cube, but now it feels..."
He paused and thought about the appropriate wording.
"It seems... not so scary?"
The companion nodded.
"Indeed. And haven't you noticed? Miko-sama has changed a lot this year."
"What changes?"
"I used to stay alone in the temple, and didn't like to talk or go out.
Now..."
His companion pursed his lips and motioned for him to look towards the courtyard not far away.
In the courtyard, Shion was standing under a cherry blossom tree, looking up at the flowers on the tree.
And Ning Xue also appeared there at some unknown time, holding a book in his hand, leaning against the pillar and flipping through the pages quietly.
The two of them didn't talk, but the atmosphere made people feel inexplicably... harmonious.
The guard looked at this scene and suddenly felt a little emotional.
"You said... Will Lord Fujiwara stay?"
The companion was silent for a moment and shook his head.
"I don't know. But whether he stays or not, he is Land of Demons's benefactor."
The guard nodded and said no more.
In the courtyard.
Shion turned around and looked at Ning Xue.
"What are you looking at?"
Ning Xue raised the book in her hand and shook the cover towards her.
<The Tale of the Utterly Gutsy Shinobi>.
Shion curled his lips.
"It's this kind of book again... you've been reading it for a year and you're still not tired of it?"
"No." Ning Xue turned a page.
"Although it is an old book.
But... it's interesting."
Shion walked to him and glanced at the densely packed text, feeling a headache.
"Forget it, you can see for yourself."
She waved her hands and looked at the cherry blossom trees.
"The flowers are blooming so beautifully this year," she said softly.
Ning Xue raised his eyes and took a look at those pink and white petals.
"Hmm."
Shion waited for a while and found that he only replied with "hmm", so she couldn't help but turn her head and glare at him.
"Can't you say a few more words?"
Ning Xue thought for a while.
"Very nice."
Shion."..."
She took a deep breath and suddenly smiled.
Forget it, get used to it.
Over the past year, she has long been accustomed to this conversation mode.
She talks a lot, but he replies little.
But she knew that he just said little, not that he didn't care.
For example, every time she studied Sealing Jutsu until late at night, he would always bring her a cup of hot tea silently.
For example...
Shion lowered his eyes, but raised the corners of his mouth slightly.
But, how long can such days last?
Spring will pass and the petals will fall.
He... too.
Inside the main hall.
Ashitaba stood behind Shion, watching his miko looking out the window in a trance, and sighed softly.
"Miko-sama."
Shion came back to his senses and looked at him.
"What's wrong?"
Ashitaba considered the wording and asked cautiously.
"Are you... thinking about Mr. Fujiwara?"
Shion was stunned for a moment, then turned away.
"... No."
Ashitaba didn't expose her.
Of course he knew what she was thinking.
In this year, he has watched the relationship between the miko-sama and Fujiwara.
From the unfamiliarity and politeness at the beginning, to the tacit understanding and naturalness later, and now.
He even felt that the miko looked like a real sixteen-year-old girl in front of Fujiwara.
He can complain, he can stare, he can't help but laugh.
Not the witch who always puts on airs and locks herself in the temple.
"Ashitaba." Shion suddenly spoke, his voice very soft.
"Here."
"You said... will he stay?"
Ashitaba was silent.
He looked at the side face of his miko, and there was anticipation for the answer in her eyes.
But the reality is cruel and intolerable.
He knew the answer, and so did she.
"Miko-sama..." He started, with a rare stutter in his words.
"This subordinate feels... I feel, uh, Mr. Fujiwara..."
"Forget it." Shion interrupted him, looking out the window again with a hint of loneliness in his tone.
"You don't need to say anything..."
"I always knew."
Her voice was as light as a gust of wind.
"He said it from the beginning, it was just a transaction..."
Ashitaba opened his mouth, but didn't know what to say.
After a long time, Shion spoke again.
"One year..." she murmured softly, "It's too short."
The day of farewell finally came.
In the early morning, the mist has not dispersed.
Ning Xue stood at the door of the shrine, wearing a black coat and carrying a simple small bag.
He did not wear a mask, revealing the face of a young man and his eyes covered by contact lenses.
Shion stood in front of him, followed by Ashitaba and several guards.
No one spoke.
For a moment, Shion looked at the young man standing in front of her and suddenly felt her nose was a little sore.
But she endured it.
She is a witch.
Can't cry.
"This." She stretched out her hand and handed over something.
Ning Xue looked down.
It was a gray pocket watch with a small cherry blossom engraved on the cover.
"Here you go."
Shion said, his voice trying to remain calm.
"This is made by Land of Demons's best craftsmen.
You can record the time, or you can... use it as a souvenir."
Ning Xue took the pocket watch and opened it gently.
On the dial, the hands are ticking Earth Flow.
He closed the watch cover and looked at Shion.
"And this."
Shion took out something again.
That's a mask.
The same mask as when we first met.
"The one you had before was broken." She continued slightly nervously.
"I asked Ashitaba to make a new one according to the original look, and this one is much stronger than your original one!"
Ning Xue took the mask and was silent for a moment.
Finally, hang it around your waist and wear it immediately.
He looked at Shion, her reddish purple eyes, and the calmness she maintained.
Then, he did something.
He raised his hand and gently landed on her head.
Shion was stunned.
She raised her head and looked at him.
That hand is very light and warm.
"Thank you." Ning Xue thanked him softly.
This time, it's not a transaction or a courtesy.
Just thank you.
Shion opened his mouth, but no sound came out.
She was afraid that tears would fall if she opened her mouth.
Ning Xue retracted his hand and put the mask on his waist on his face.
He turned around and walked towards the road outside the shrine.
The morning light shone on his back, casting a long shadow.
Shion stood there, watching the figure walking further and further away.
One step.
Two steps.
Three steps.
Finally, she couldn't help but speak.
"Will you come back?!"
The voice was a little trembling, a little eager, and filled with an expectation that she was not even aware of.
Ning Xue's footsteps stopped.
Shion held his breath and stared at his back.
After a while, Shion saw him turning his face sideways.
It was obviously covered by a mask, but she could clearly feel that he was smiling.
"The freed bird..."
His voice passed through the morning sun and reached her ears clearly.
"... I will eventually find a new destination."
He didn't say yes or no.
But she... laughed.