"Achoo."
Hayashi rubbed his nose and couldn't help looking around.
"Seriously, who's talking about me?"
As he muttered, he continued using his vast sage energy to flush out the hidden injuries left inside his body from activating Sage Mode earlier.
The wounds were tiny, hidden in the pathways through which his chakra circulated. Without a close inspection, they were impossible to notice.
With every pass of sage energy, those tiny fissures were nourished and healed a little more.
"Lord Hayashi, are you all right?"
Tagorihime, who had stayed beside Hayashi ever since he began balancing his energy, abruptly stopped circulating her senjutsu and asked him:
"Are you feeling unwell somewhere, or does something feel off?"
"Nah, neither. It was just a little sneeze."
Hayashi stopped what he was doing, turned toward Tagorihime, and gave her a gentle smile.
"Honestly, Tagori, you don't need to worry so much about me."
Hearing his answer, Tagorihime said nothing. She simply sat down beside him and brought him some tea. Only after watching him drink it did she slowly speak.
"I'm not worried about you. I'm afraid my assistance might not be of any use to you."
"Honestly, you're brushing me off with that excuse again."
"You've been doing great all along."
Hayashi scratched his head sheepishly, then glanced curiously at the empty space beside them and asked:
"Huh, where did Tagitsuhime go? Why don't I see her?"
"The White Snake Sage confined her."
Tagorihime picked up a cup of tea herself and spoke with a hint of amusement.
"Huh? Why did she get confined?"
Hayashi was a little surprised. Hadn't the White Snake Sage just assigned Tagitsuhime to help him regulate his sage energy?
Disappearing in the blink of an eye was one thing, but how had she ended up locked away?
Looking