Putting away the two Scroll of Seals that were enough to subvert Shinobi World, Senju Chen let out a long breath and rubbed his somewhat swollen temples.
After studying the mysteries of the soul for several consecutive days, even with his current mental strength, he felt a little tired.
He opened the door and happened to see Kushina Uzumaki sitting boredly on the porch, teasing the ants crawling in the courtyard with one finger, and mumbling to the ants.
This scene almost made Senju Chen laugh out loud.
"Sister Kushina, how about we go out for a walk?" Senju Chen's voice came suddenly from behind her.
"Ah?" Kushina turned around suddenly, and then after realizing what Senju Chen said, those beautiful purple eyes lit up instantly, as if they were ignited stars, "Shopping? Now?"
"Well, I've been back for so many days and I want to go out for a walk. I happen to be a little hungry." Senju Chen nodded with a smile.
"Yeah!"
Kushina was like a cheerful little rabbit, jumping three feet high. Before he finished speaking, he turned into a red whirlwind and rushed back to the room.
"Wait for me! I'll be there soon!"
Listening to the sound of rummaging through boxes and cabinets from inside the house, Senju Chen smiled helplessly. Combining work with rest is indeed a wise saying, especially when facing such boring and dangerous research on forbidden arts, proper relaxation is the best way to adjust.
After a while, Kushina, who had changed into neat casual clothes, happily took his arm and dragged him out of the mansion.
Walking on the streets of Konoha, there is still a vague sense of tension in the air. The ninjas coming and going are in a hurry, with a look of solemnity unique to the war period on their faces.
But compared to when Senju Chen first came back, the suffocating and depressing atmosphere that enveloped the entire village has indeed faded a lot.
Smiles began to appear on the faces of pedestrians on the street again. They gathered together in twos and threes and chatted in low voices.
"Have you heard? Kikyo Mountain's supply line over there was blocked by our people two days ago!"
"It's more than that! My second uncle's cousin is on the front line. He said that Sunagakure can't hold on anymore, and there are people deserting every day!"
"Lord Hokage is still the one planning the strategy. I heard that the plan to win over Kumogakure this time was decided by Lord Hokage himself!"
"Yes, yes, and that genius Sarutobi Clan, the battlefield command is really amazing..."
All kinds of "good news" spread among the crowd, and the focus of people's discussions, from the initial fanatical worship of a single hero, gradually spread to all aspects of the entire war.
From the strategist Third Hokage to the unknown Chunin who performed meritorious service on the front line, everyone who contributed to the victory became a hero in the eyes of the villagers.
As for Senju Chen, the name that once shocked the entire Shinobi World with "Three Advent of a World of Trees", the frequency of being mentioned is, as expected, slowly decreasing.
Senju Chen understands clearly.
This is the situation Konoha High Command is most happy to see, and it is also the method they will inevitably adopt.
In a huge war, the amount of information is explosive. When the balance of victory begins to tilt, countless good news will fly back from the front line every day. In this torrent of information, any single merit will be diluted.
His previous contribution is like a huge stone thrown into a lake. Although it stirred up huge waves, as time goes by, the ripples will eventually calm down, and the lake surface will be stirred up irregularly by the countless "stones" that subsequently fell.
Maybe it's not obvious now, but in a year and a half, when the war is completely over and people are celebrating victory, his name may just be the one higher on the list of many heroes.
Senju Chen Hearing all this, watching all this, but he didn't care at all in his heart.
Rather, it is just what he wants.
Being put on a pedestal too early will only make him the target of public criticism, and his every move will be watched by countless pairs of eyes. Now, this "cooling down" has given him what he needs most - space and time for free development.
"Little Chen, look at that!"
Kushina's crisp voice interrupted his thoughts. She pointed to a stall selling three-color meatballs on the roadside, her eyes sparkling.
"You must be hungry after walking for such a long time, right? I'll buy it for you!" She ran over without any explanation, and ran back a moment later holding two Kushimaru, handing one to Senju Chen, and couldn't wait to take a bite of the one in her hand, narrowing her eyes happily.
Senju Chen looked at her little thought and didn't criticize it. He just smiled and took the meatball and took a bite.
The sweet and glutinous taste melts on the tip of the tongue, with a familiar rice aroma.
Indeed, I miss it a bit.
The following time almost became Kushina's journey of food discovery.
"Little Chen, this Taiyaki restaurant is new. You must have never tried it before. I'll buy it for you to try!"
"Wow, it's apple candy! Your favorite when you were a kid, have one!"
"..."
She always uses the excuse of "buying it for Senju Chen" to satisfy her appetite openly, and Senju Chen is also happy to accompany her, eating with her from the streets to the end of the alley.
Those Konoha snacks that he had been away from for a long time seemed to have been put on a filter called "home" at this moment, allowing him to relax his nerves that had been tense for a long time like never before.
Finally, when both of them were half-full, Kushina pulled him and turned into an alley by a familiar route, and opened a half-old curtain.
"Welcome!"
Warm steam hit my face, accompanied by Uncle Teuchi's energetic greeting.
Ichiraku Ramen.
"Boss, two bowls of miso barbecued pork ramen, plus an extra fried egg!" Kushina placed the order skillfully.
The two sat side by side, watching Uncle Teuchi busy behind the stove, and listening to the sound of noodles colliding with boiling water, Senju Chen felt more and more peaceful.
This ordinary and warm smoke and smoke, and the war outside that swept the entire Shinobi World, seemed to be two completely different worlds.
After the two of them finished eating with satisfaction, they also ended their shopping trip.
On the way back, Kushina said to Senju Chen out of character.
"Little Chen, sister knows that you have grown up and become very powerful. Although you say it easily, I know that you must have suffered a lot outside in the past two years."
"Sister Tsunade asked me to take good care of you when he left, but it didn't take long for you to go to the battlefield. In fact, I really failed to fulfill my obligation to take care of you, and I am very ashamed of my request to Sister Tsunade."
"No, Sister Kushina, you did really well. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have known how I would have spent the time after my sister left." After hearing what Kushina said, Senju Chen quickly responded.
"Thank you, Little Chen, you know, I was happy the day I saw you come back, but after so many days you either trained alone or locked yourself in the house, I was really worried about you."
"But I feel more relieved if you can go shopping with me today." Kushina said and patted Senju Chen's shoulder carelessly.
"Listen to my sister, you are just a ten-year-old kid. Don't put so much pressure on yourself every day. It's such a big deal, let those old men like Konoha bother you."
After hearing what Kushina said, Senju Chen realized that his actions in the past few days had caused Kushina to misunderstand.
But this also reflects from the side that Kushina really cares about himself.
Then Senju Chen did not explain, but nodded in agreement.
"Okay, Sister Kushina, let's let those old men worry about this big deal."
After saying that, the two of them looked at each other and laughed together.
In such a relaxed atmosphere, the two returned to the Senju mansion side by side.