"There is no Chakra fluctuation." Seven-Tails's answer was still crisp and clear.
"But there's a glowing flower on top!"
"I saw that too. But I couldn't detect any Ninjutsu or Natural Energy intervention."
"Then where did it come from?"
"I don't know."
There was also a hint of confusion in Chōmei's voice. This was not an act - just like Eight-Tails, Illusion Space's operating method was completely outside of Tailed Beast's cognitive system.
Fu huddled in the corner, hugging her knees, looking up at the light blue flower.
The flowers did not disappear.
It hangs quietly on the rock wall, flickering like a night light.
Can't say I'm scared.
But it's just... weird.
Fu stared at the flower for more than ten minutes.
Then she discovered something even stranger.
When she looked at the flower, she was actually not so scared.
Even a little... peace of mind?
"What the hell..." Fu muttered, burying her face in her knees.
The flower stayed bright until she fell asleep, and then slowly dissipated.
On the cliff.
Senju Chen took back Illusion Space and moved his neck.
"Yeah." He was very satisfied with his work.
Scaring people is not the purpose.
The purpose is to confuse her.
Adult men like Killer B need a shock - Four Divine Beasts shouting "The Chosen One" in unison, a level of shock to maximize their emotional value.
But Fu is different.
She has been treated as a weapon since she was a child, and the whole world is a threat to her. The sudden appearance of unknown things, even just a spinning stone, is enough to cause her emotions to fluctuate.
And that flower--Senju Chen added it intentionally.
Sheer fear would just make her run away.
But "fear mixed with a hint of warm confusion" - this complex emotion fluctuates even more.
Senju Chen finds that he is getting better and better at this kind of "emotional engineering".
"Am I a little perverted..." He touched his chin and thought seriously for two seconds.
Then he shook his head.
"No, I'm professional."
Day nine.
Senju Chen When delivering food, Fu took the initiative to walk to the entrance of the cave.
She no longer hides in the shadows.
"You..."
Senju Chen put the package on the ground. "What's wrong?"
Fu's mouth moved, but in the end she didn't say something like "there are glowing flowers in the mines" that sounded like crazy.
"It's okay."
Senju Chen nodded, turned around and prepared to leave.
"Wait a minute."
Senju Chen Look back.
Fu stood at the entrance of the cave, the light fell on her face, and her expression could be seen clearly.
The vigilance is still there, but there is something else.
"Are you coming again tomorrow?"
"Hmm."
"Then... can you bring some salt?"
Senju Chen was stunned for a moment, then smiled.
"Okay."
That night, Senju Chen decided to upgrade.
He sat on the cliff, his left eye Mangekyō rotated, and Illusion Space expanded at full power.
Fu is sitting in the mine, seasoning the dry food with the salt Senju Chen brought during the day.
Suddenly, something appeared in the air in front of her.
An origami bird.
White, palm-sized, suspended in mid-air, its wings are still beating one by one.
Fu's hand stopped. Salt grains fell from between her fingers.
The paper bird flew twice in front of her and then landed on her lap.
Fu froze, motionless.
The paper bird stood on her knees for three seconds and tilted its head - as if looking at her.
Then it flapped its wings, flew up from her knees, flew around the inside of the mine, and finally flew to the top of the cave.
Where the light blue flower appeared last night.
The paper bird hovered for a second.
Then they dispersed.
It turned into countless tiny white light spots, falling like snowflakes.
The light spots fell on Fu's hair, shoulders, and the back of her hands, and they felt warm to the touch.
Fu stared blankly at the spots of light all over her body.
Her hands are shaking.
Not afraid.
It's been a long time since I've experienced something like "beauty".
From the moment she escaped from Takigakure, her world was filled with only running, hiding, hunger, and fear.
When was the last time she saw something beautiful? She couldn't remember.
"Chōmei..."
"There is no Chakra fluctuation, not Genjutsu." Seven-Tails's voice also had a hint of helplessness, "Same as yesterday, I can't detect anything."
"Then what are these spots of light?"
"I don't know. But at least there is no malice. If there was hostility, he would have already launched an attack when he sprinkled something on you."
Fu looked down at the light spot on the back of her hand.
The light spots slowly dissipated, and the last one fell into her hand, warmed for a while, and then disappeared.
Fu clenched that hand.
"Is there something wrong with the mine? Or..." she whispered.
Chōmei did not answer.
It can't be said either.
Tailed Beast, a creature that has lived for hundreds or thousands of years, encountered an existence that it could not perceive or understand for the first time. This made it very uneasy.
But it doesn't seem like hostility.
When the paper bird landed on Fu's lap, Chōmei even vaguely felt that Fu's heart rate was dropping.
It is not fear that causes the heart rate to drop.
Be... relax.
This made it even more confusing.
On the cliff.
Senju Chen looked at the refreshed list on the panel and narrowed his eyes slightly.
[Ding! The target creature 'Fu' has been detected to have violent mood swings... The list of stealable abilities has been refreshed!]
[A: Substitution Technique(Intermediate)]
[B: Insect Sensing(Intermediate)]
[C: Scale Powder Defense(Elementary)]
Not shipped! As expected!
"No rush."
This is different from the time Killer B.
"Wait a little longer." Senju Chen said to himself, "Take your time."
He leaned against the rock wall and looked at the starry sky above his head.
He still has a lot of useless ideas.
For example - let the stone wall in the mine grow its own words and write "Go to bed early".
Or--while Fu is eating, let the rice balls line up to form a smiling face.
Or--when she sleeps, let a sky full of stars appear on the top of the mine.
Senju Chen The more I thought about it, the more excited I became, counting on my fingers.
"Also... you can also make the water in the creek jump up and turn into the shape of a dolphin... No, she may have never seen a dolphin. What about turning into a fish? No, that's too ordinary. Turning into her own face? That's too scary."
"How about turning into the face of the food delivery person? That's me. No, no, it's too narcissistic."
Senju Chen A man was talking to himself on the cliff for a long time, and the more he talked, the more outrageous he became.
"How about just lining up all the pebbles in a row - 'Did you laugh today?'"
He stopped and thought about it.
"You can try it, but it's too much like some weird chicken soup for the soul."
In the end, Senju Chen set a principle for himself: do it no more than two to three times a day, gradually increase the intensity, and unify the style into "weird but with a sense of warmth".
We must not create a scene like Four Divine Beasts.
This little girl's heart may not be able to bear it.
And - Senju Chen admits - he's a bit addicted now.
Watching an extremely vigilant person gradually open his mind to "supernatural events" that he carefully designed, the process itself is very fulfilling.
Although the source of this sense of accomplishment is indeed a bit abnormal when you think about it.
No. I should call this... psychological counseling.