Uchiha Takashi stood there watching the show with an air of detached amusement, while Fū Uchiha stood there bewildered.
As Tsukina Fujiwara's face drew ever closer, Fū Uchiha's face grew increasingly red.
"Chieftain, I truly don't know. I... I don't even know what 'like' means."
Uchiha Takashi said with a look of disdain, "You don't even know you like someone? You've lived for 18 years! Well, liking someone probably means you enjoy being with that person, and you feel happy when you're with them."
Then you start to want to stay with this person forever, to live your life together forever, that feeling, um, it's a really strange feeling, you know?
Uchiha Takashi spoke as if this were all based on experience, as if he knew a lot about relationships, but in reality, this guy was also a single dog.
Fū Uchiha clearly failed to notice that Uchiha Takashi was only ten years old, and didn't consider whether Uchiha Takashi had any understanding of emotions at all.
Listening to Uchiha Takashi's words, he began to think, "Do you like it? Being with her makes you happy, and you always want to be with her..."
Unconsciously, Fū Uchiha recalled his time with Tsukina Fujiwara over the past few days.
The development of their relationship needs to be traced back to the very beginning.
Because Etsuna Fujiwara was assigned to live here, while he was put here to manage the entire village, and his position within the Energy Institute was too special, the two of them spent a lot of time together.
Fū Uchiha wasn't usually around women, but due to his work, he had to interact with Tsukina Fujiwara, and the two gradually became acquainted.
Tsukina Fujiwara then overcame her initial awkwardness and became acquainted with Fū Uchiha.
Fū Uchiha often helps Tsukina Fujiwara solve problems, all sorts of issues, from major problems like living environment and furniture to minor ones like drinking water and daily necessities.
Fū Uchiha would always help Tsukina Fujiwara resolve her problems. In Fū Uchiha's view, it was all perfectly normal. As the manager of this village, and Tsukina Fujiwara being a VIP who had to be treated with respect, his actions were simply part of his normal job.
But Tsukina Fujiwara didn't see it that way. After all, she was a noblewoman from the Land of Fire. How many town administrators would do that?
Even distinguished guests, even truly noble people, cannot be expected to attend to every detail. Not to mention, many like her, living under someone else's roof, simply cannot have a good life.
Furthermore, after spending a considerable amount of time together, Tsukina Fujiwara and Fū Uchiha could be considered friends. Through their interactions, Tsukina Fujiwara naturally began to pay more attention to Fū Uchiha.
This is the Warring States period, where there's no real romance or love. Everyone's focused on survival, and marriage is mostly for the purpose of continuing the family line.
Therefore, during the Warring States period, there was no real concept of love, and Tsukina Fujiwara had very few encounters with the opposite sex.
Among these women, Fū Uchiha was not only incredibly strong, but also extremely considerate and sentimental. His character perfectly aligned with Tsukina Fujiwara's values.
And most importantly, it's important to know that when Tsukina Fujiwara was captured and taken to the bandit camp, it was Fū Uchiha who rushed in and rescued her.
Tsukina Fujiwara was also a Xiao Chunu; she was rescued, and after spending time together, combined with Tsukina Fujiwara's simple views on love, Tsukina Fujiwara naturally fell in love.
As he was replaying the events between the two in his mind, Fū Uchiha kept thinking, "Wasn't it just normal work-related contact?"
From what exactly did Tsukina Fujiwara begin to like him? Fū Uchiha couldn't figure it out.
However, if we're talking about liking someone, he wouldn't say he likes them; he just doesn't dislike them. Compared to that, he feels quite uncomfortable around other women.
He and Tsukina Fujiwara probably spent more time together, and they didn't feel awkward at all; on the contrary, they felt very comfortable with each other.
If this is what you call liking someone, then he truly does like them, but Fū Uchiha doesn't believe it's liking someone.
So he said, "I think I probably don't like her... My relationship with Miss Fujiwara is just that of friends; my feelings for her are probably just that I don't dislike her."
When Tsukina Fujiwara heard this, she felt like the sky was falling. Hearing that the person she liked didn't like her back naturally made her feel heartbroken.
However, upon hearing Fū Uchiha's words, Uchiha Takashi raised an eyebrow, then scoffed and said, "Don't dislike it? Doesn't that mean you like it?"
If I remember correctly, you seem to be averse to contact with other members of the opposite sex, right? So why is it that Miss Fujiwara can get so close to you without causing you any aversion?
Liking someone isn't just a simple, wonderful feeling; it encompasses many kinds, but in my opinion, there's a particularly special kind of liking.
Treating one person differently from others, as long as it's not negative, can itself be categorized as a form of liking.
Of course, bullying doesn't count. If you enjoy taking care of someone, and you dislike other members of the opposite sex, but you don't dislike any particular person, and your interactions with them are perfectly normal, then this can be considered a form of liking for you.
Uchiha Takashi, acting like a relationship guru, kept explaining, "Marriage is essentially about living together. Liking someone is a feeling, but marriage is about two people who like each other living together."
You feel repulsed by other members of the opposite sex, but you don't have those feelings for Miss Etsuna. On the contrary, you feel very comfortable and at ease with her, it's normal and uneventful. How can that not be considered liking her?
Hearing Tsukina Fujiwara Uchiha Takashi's words, Fujiwara Tsukina's eyes rekindled with hope. Could it be that there was still a chance?
Hearing these words, Fū Uchiha was quite shocked and said, "I didn't know there was such a saying? I didn't know that. I'm not interested in women."
Uchiha Takashi shrugged, "Of course there's no such thing. That's a limited perspective, and it certainly won't be like that in the future Konoha era."
However, during the Warring States period, this was already considered a rudimentary form of love. In that era, there was little talk of romantic love; simply being able to live together was enough.
Therefore, using the unique circumstances of the Warring States period to explain these points is not problematic for Fū Uchiha as an individual.
Uchiha Takashi continued, "I'm asking you now, do you have feelings for Miss Fujiwara that are different from those for other women?"
Fū Uchiha turned to look at Tsukina Fujiwara: "A different feeling? Hmm, it does seem a little bit. I feel uncomfortable and averse to contact with other women."
But Miss Fujiwara is different. When she gets close to me, I feel perfectly normal, like we're just friends.
Uchiha Takashi continued, "How did you feel when Miss Fujiwara confessed her feelings to you?"
Upon hearing this, Fū Uchiha began to recall, and then said, "I felt very surprised, at a loss... I didn't know how to answer, it was that kind of... indescribable feeling."
It's that kind of feeling—I don't want to face it, I'm afraid to answer it, basically I just don't know, and it's hard to answer.
Uchiha Takashi clapped his hands. "Hey, hey, that's it! Think about it carefully, if a woman you don't know said these things to you, what would you say?"
Fū Uchiha immediately imagined in his mind. "I would probably say sorry, I don't like you, you should find someone else."
Uchiha Takashi decided to add fuel to the fire, "If you really have no feelings for Miss Fujiwara, then go and say these words to Miss Fujiwara!"
Fū Uchiha took two steps back after hearing these words, then turned to look at Tsukina Fujiwara Tsukina Fujiwara. Looking at her hopeful eyes and pretty face, he opened his mouth, but couldn't utter a single word.
"I can't put it into words, I seem... I don't want to say these things, but I don't seem to want to refuse."
Uchiha Takashi then slowly stepped forward and patted Fū Uchiha on the shoulder. "So, this is what love is. Because you secretly love someone from the bottom of your heart, you won't reject Miss Fujiwara's confession like others do."
That's because you don't know what it means to like someone, nor how to respond, so you choose to run away. It's simply because you're not sensitive to feelings.
But you must like Miss Fujiwara deep down. If you really can't be sure, just imagine what Miss Fujiwara would be like with other people.
Fū Uchiha listened to these words, he looked up and pondered, imagining Tsukina Fujiwara and other clan members, such as Hen Uchiha, getting married in a grand hall, while he could only watch from below.
"No, absolutely not!" Fū Uchiha didn't know what came over him, but he immediately jumped in to refuse. "The two of you absolutely cannot be together!"
Uchiha Takashi shrugged. "See?"
Fū Uchiha bit his lower lip, turning to look at Tsukina Fujiwara with an apologetic expression Tsukina Fujiwara pouted, turned her head to the side, and whispered...
"I know all this, but you don't..."
"This Miss Etsuna Fujiwara... I... I..." Fū Uchiha stammered, "I think I should accept it."
Tsukina Fujiwara slowly turned her head back. "Hmph--You blockhead! Is that even your full name?"
Fū Uchiha: "Then... she'll be called Miss Tsukina." Seeing that Tsukina Fujiwara seemed unhappy, Fū Uchiha quickly corrected himself. "Pshaw, pshaw, pshaw, she'll be called Tsukina, is that alright?"
Tsukina Fujiwara then composed herself, took a deep breath, and stepped forward. "That's enough. For someone as dense as you, calling me by the last two characters of my name is already quite good, isn't it?"
Meanwhile Uchiha Takashi, watching the interaction between the two, couldn't help but smile like a doting aunt. "Oh, Fū Uchiha, that guy who's been single since birth, has finally found someone!"
(The previous chapters have been revised; some people have raised concerns about the bandits.)
After some consideration, the author realized that the population might have been relatively scarce during the Warring States period, and killing them all would not be the norm. Therefore, he changed the plan to capture them all, bring them back to the villages, and then throw them into the mines.
Secondly, Uchiha Takashi 'Uchiha Takashi scenes were removed. In other words, he wasn't involved in the scenes where he was suppressing and capturing bandits; he remained in the village throughout.
In this way, there's no need to painstakingly explain Tsukina Fujiwara's romantic storyline; we can simply assume that Fū Uchiha saved Tsukina Fujiwara, fell for her, and then their relationship developed normally.
That's exactly how it is, meow!