Several months have passed since Three-Tails went berserk that night.
In the guest room of Capital of Fire, "Food Is Heaven", Rin Nohara is sitting cross-legged on the tatami, with his hands flat in front of his knees and his eyes closed.
Her breathing was steady and long, as if she had blended into the silence around her.
For the past half month, she has been carrying out this "practice" unwaveringly every day.
Follow Senju Chen's suggestion, take the initiative to enter your own spiritual world and face the imprisoned "roommate".
At first, every entry was like an ordeal.
The dark and cold waters, the huge iron door that exuded an ominous aura, and the pair of red eyes full of hatred and violence behind the iron door all made her feel trembling from the bottom of her soul.
But she didn't back down.
The first time, she stood in front of the iron gate and said nothing. She just stood in fear for half an hour and then withdrew.
The second time, she plucked up the courage and said softly, "Hello."
What he got in return was a disdainful snort.
The third time, the fourth time...
She began to try to tell her story.
From the opening ceremony of the Ninja Academy, to the tension and excitement of performing the mission for the first time; from the teachings of Namikaze Minato-sensei, to every moment with Kakashi and Obito.
What she said was very trivial, ordinary and everyday things.
Three-Tails behind the iron door never responded, only the sound of his heavy breathing, like the eternal tide, echoed in this dead space.
But Lin could feel that the violence in those red eyes seemed to be fading away little by little, replaced by a kind of... examination and exploration.
Today, it's the same.
As her consciousness sank, Lin opened her eyes again and was already in the familiar waters.
She walked Earth Flow to the huge iron door, looked at the huge red eyes behind the door, and smiled slightly.
"Three-Tails, good afternoon. Tenten The weather is good today. I saw many children flying kites on the street."
She sat down by herself, soaked her legs in the cold water, and began to tell the interesting stories she saw on the street today.
"... The candy seller's uncle is really good at his craftsmanship. He made a little man with black hair and a samurai sword. It looks like it."
"There was also a little boy who was eating meatballs. He choked and his face turned red. I had to go over and pat him on the back to calm down..."
She talked nonchalantly, with a gentle smile on her lips, as if she was sharing her daily life with an old friend she hadn't seen for a long time.
Behind the iron gate, there was silence.
Just when Lin thought that today would end in such silence, a low, hoarse voice, as if it had not spoken for hundreds of years, suddenly sounded.
"You..."
Lin's voice stopped suddenly, and she was stunned, unable to believe her ears.
"... why don't you hate me?"
Three-Tails's voice was full of confusion, "I almost killed you, and even now I want to kill you. You should fear me, hate me, and try every means to seal me completely, or... kill me."
Lin stared blankly at those red eyes.
For the first time in those eyes, she saw emotions other than anger and hatred - it was bottomless loneliness and a trace of confusion that even she was not aware of.
She suddenly understood.
Three-Tails is not questioning her, but looking for an answer.
Lin took a deep breath and shook her head.
"Why should I hate you?" Her voice was very soft but extremely clear, "That night, I could feel your pain and anger. It must be hard for you to be sealed in my body, right?"
The sound of breathing behind the iron door stopped for a moment.
"You..."
"You were also forced, weren't you?" Lin's eyes were clear and sincere, "I was taken away from my home and sealed like a tool. If it were me, I would be angry and want to destroy everything."
"..."
The entire spiritual world fell into an unprecedented silence.
Isobu was silent.
Its huge red eyes stared intently at the tiny human girl in front of it.
It has seen too many humans.
Those who are greedy, those who are afraid, those who want to take advantage of it, those who want to enslave it... I have never seen anything like this.
Don't hate it, but... understand it?
How is this possible?
"You... are lying." Three-Tails's voice was a little dry, "Human beings are all cunning liars. You just want to use sweet words to paralyze me so that you can use my power more conveniently."
"I didn't." Lin shook her head, her tone still gentle but firm, "I never thought of using your power. Chen-kun said that you are not a tool, you are also a life. I just... hope to be friends with you."
"Friends?"
Three-Tails laughed lowly as if he had heard some big joke. The laughter was full of ridicule and sadness.
"Tailed Beast and Jinchūriki, becoming friends? In hundreds of years, I have never heard of such a ridiculous thing."
"Then let's start with us." Lin met its gaze without flinching.
Three-Tails's laughter gradually stopped.
It looked at Lin's eyes that contained no trace of impurity, and the barrier in its heart seemed to have been gently knocked open by something.
Underneath the magma of anger and hatred lies the loneliness that has been frozen for hundreds of years.
It's been... too long since I've talked to anyone like this.
After a while, a long sigh sounded in the spiritual world, and the sigh contained endless fatigue and vicissitudes of life.
"You human being... are really weird."
On the roof of the "Food Is Heaven" main store.
Senju Chen was lying on the tiles, holding a piece of dogtail grass in his mouth and a cup of freshly brewed tea in his hand, looking leisurely at the sunset on the horizon.
A faint trace of spiritual power always enveloped the room where Rin Nohara was located. This was another usage of Spirit Transformation Technique that he discovered.
When he sensed that Lin's mental fluctuations had stabilized and even brought a hint of joy, the corner of his mouth couldn't help but curl up with a smile of satisfaction.
"Tsk, it's done."
He took a sip of tea and couldn't help complaining in his heart.
"It is indeed the prototype of Talk no Jutsu. In the original book, the kid Naruto relied on this trick to fool many big bosses. Now it seems that Lin's 'Sincerity Escape' is not bad at all."
Focusing on the heart is paramount.
To deal with a "tsundere" like Three-Tails who is strong on the outside but weak on the inside and extremely lacking in love on the inside, blindly using force to suppress her will only make her more rebellious.
Only by using the purest goodwill Kazuma like Lin to melt the ice in its heart can we truly conquer it.
Of course, the premise is... you must have the strength to press it to the ground and rub it.
Without the absolute suppression that night, Three-Tails would not have even been given a chance to listen to Lin.
"Carrots and sticks, the ancient way of controlling subordinates, don't deceive me." Senju Chen stretched lazily.
The relationship between Lin and Three-Tails is on the right track, which for him means that a stable and potentially unlimited "Tailed Beast-level combat force" is about to take shape.
This chess piece will play a vital role in the future chess game.
"The next step is to go to the teacher's place to 'restock'."
Senju Chen sat up and drank all the tea in the cup, with a calculating light flashing in his eyes.
"Five-hearted Earth Grudge Fear Wood Release Clone, this 'souvenir gift', the teacher will probably like it very much, right? By the way, let the teacher and Amado see if there is any room for improvement."
He touched his chin, and the smile on his face turned a little... malicious.