[Gintama] Immortal

The snow in the mountains melts late.

A snowmelt day is colder than a snowy day, and a chill accumulates in the damp air. The misty blue dawn is reflected on the window paper, like a thin layer of frost.

Draping the haori to his shoulders, Yae took out the fire pocket, lit the lamp, and the warm orange light outlined the ancient round windows and alcoves.

The Japanese room built by Sukiya has a history of 200 years. It is located in the southeast corner of the academy and is the product of the last expansion period of Tianshoin Naraku.

If there is no accident, she will live in this Japanese room for several years.Come here, naturally want to live comfortably.

She is already writing a proposal for adding furniture. Although it will definitely be ignored, she is also idle, and the worst thing is time.

The sky gradually brightened, and the white color was reflected on the panes.

Yae sat at the low table and spread out the eighth washi paper.She picked up the pen, and the tip of the pen dipped in ink landed on the paper, and just about to apply force, there was a "click", and the ink blots slanted far away.

Yae looked at the ink splashes on the paper, and then at his uncooperative right hand.

After a while, she wrinkled her nose, rolled up the piece of paper and threw it away. With a soft sound, the white piece of paper fell into the pile of papers of the same color.

— "There is nothing wrong with her right hand."

The pharmacist in Naraku, Amaterasu Institute, is an old man with a thin beard, a bald head and a stooped back, just like the crow tengu in the ghost story, who can clearly see the internal organs of a person by squinting his eyes.

"There is no trace of congestion, the tendons are unobstructed, and the muscles are not damaged."

Closing his eyes and lowering his hands, the old pharmacist lowered his head slightly towards Xu Xu.He has served Naraku at Amaterasu Institute for most of his life, and now that he is old, he can deal with death or void—in the eyes of others, the two may be the same—and he can deal with it calmly.

"The old man can't find out the cause of the disease, which disappoints the adults."

Yae waved her hand in front of the old man, wanting to emphasize that her real "patient" was here.

She waved her hand vigorously, but the other party turned a blind eye to her, his eyes went directly past her, his fingers like dead branches touched the floor, and he bent his rickety back towards the empty place.

"Please punish me, my lord."

"..."

Hey, it turned out to be a hidden shaking M.

Yae fell into deep thought.

"Go down."

The indifferent voice was indiscriminate, and before Xu raised his eyes, the old pharmacist quietly disappeared behind the door.

With a crackle, the candle flame flickered and cast a shadow on the partition.

"It seems that your blood is also limited." Yae gathered her five fingers and felt it.

It hurts when I hold my right hand hard.But there are no scars on the wrists of this body, and the nerves are not compressed, so the phenomenon of lack of strength is difficult to explain from a biological point of view.

"Blood with the power of dragon veins can miraculously repair the damage on the chest, but this miracle seems to have stopped here."

When she was in Xu's spiritual world, she cut a knife on her right hand. After returning to the real world, the injury has been healing slowly. She had watched the knife wound with deep bone visible for several days. She never thought it would happen again. affect her current body.

Mental damage will affect the body, but even if the physical wound heals, the mental wound won't disappear easily...?

Most of his expression was covered by the pitch-black mask, Xu slightly narrowed his red eyes: "You look disappointed that you can't use your right hand."

An organization of the nature of Amaterasu-in Naraku will be closely monitored no matter where it goes, with the exception of Xu's location.Candles were burning quietly in a dozen piles of rooms, and the night was dead, not because Naluo, who was on standby in the dark, held his breath, but because there was really no one.

"Why, do you think that if you can hold the knife, you can escape from here?" Xu leaned down, his voice was cold and soft, falling into his ears as if a chill was climbing up his spine.

"...No," Yae raised his head, "If I can't use my right hand, I won't be able to pinch rice balls properly. With the food level of Amaterasu-in Naraku, I think it's true that I might starve to death."

"...Then you can try it." Xu Xu withdrew his hand and stood up indifferently.

Yae: "No, don't go, just because of the peeing nature of your subordinates, if they don't get your clear instructions, they will definitely not let me go near the kitchen-wait, don't go, eh, don't go !"

——No matter how earnestly she called, Xu never looked back.

——This plastic-like 500 years.

The hoarse crowing of crows came from outside the window. After destroying sixteen sheets of paper in a row, Yae sighed and put down his pen resignedly.

Opening the door, the bald Naluo really stayed in the corridor, her eyes and body posture did not move, it was like a pine tree planted outside her room, the kind that did not move after a night of snowfall.

Yae: "The charcoal in the room is almost exhausted."

The cold air in the mountains hit, but there was no response, Yae wrapped the haori tightly, and continued:

"Can you fetch some charcoal for me?"

Since there are guards and surveillance, it is all free labor, so there is no use for nothing.

She put on her most sincere expression, and Naraku, who was guarding outside her house, remained motionless, like a Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha squatting by the side of the road.

"Hey, by the way, what's your name? Yuichi? Yuji? Masao? Mo Xiong? If you don't speak, I'll take your name as Bingding-kun."

no respond.

"Did you choose Bingding-kun's hairstyle yourself? Amaterasu Institute Naraku doesn't seem to force members of the organization to shave, right? Why did you choose to have a bald head? Is it because it's cool? Is it because it's handsome? Because everyone is basically bald?"

"..."

"Let me tell you, this is called peer pressure, and it comes from the outside world rather than the influence of the heart. Look at Naraku Sanha, none of them is bald. People, it is easy to succeed if you live out your own characteristics."

Tianzhaoyuan Naraku is indeed a professional assassination organization, and its members have extraordinary psychological qualities.Yae dared to assure her that even if she was naked and danced hotly in front of her, the other party's eyebrows would not fluctuate.

Look, quality.This is quality.

"Mr. Bingding, how old are you this year? Are you married? Has the family already started urging you? What type do you like? Pure, charming, lively, cute, virtuous and gentle? Or..."

There was a pause in the voice, and Yae bent his fingers, showing a puzzled smile: "This is you?"

"The distribution of charcoal is fixed." The indifferent voice sounded, and Bing Dingjun turned his head, his expressionless expression was like a carved mold.

"Let's go back to the first question sooner." Yae tapped his palm, and immediately jumped up with joy when he got a response from others, "Xu..."

Catching the eyes of the other party, Yae changed his words thoughtfully: "Your family leader gave an order not to let me die, right? If you get sick in the cold winter, the chance of death will be much higher. Are you sure you want to take this risk?"

Seeing that the other party seemed to be lost in thought with a blank face, Yae made persistent efforts:

"One is an insignificant rule, and the other is an order issued by the leader. It's clear which is more important, isn't it?"

Naraku, who was on shift, walked towards this side, and when he saw the visitor with the same indifferent expression, Yae raised his hand to say hello:

"Good morning, Mr. Jia and Yi."

I don't know if it was an illusion, but Bing Dingjun left his post very quickly.

Yae looked at Mr. Jia and Yi expectantly, but before he could speak, as Naraku, who had been with her the longest so far, the other party directly gave up the communication and turned around to get charcoal.

No one was watching over the surface, and Xu also didn't give an order to restrain her feet. Yae gathered Haori and followed out along the corridor.

There are few people in the cloud-shrouded mountains. Except for several expanded buildings, Tensho-in Naraku seems to have remained unchanged for 500 years. Only the huge and thick wooden beams seem to have been burned by the fire of the years and become ancient. And dark.

After leaving the academy is the Buddhist scriptures Pavilion, and opposite the Buddhist scriptures pavilion is the bell tower.The twisted dead branches were covered with snow, a crow perched on the branch, and Yae raised his head:

"Did you see where Oboro went?"

The crow tilted its head, spread its wings, and flew from the branch to the direction of the court.

The ground around the Dharma hall is paved with white sandstone, and it is connected to the corridors with the buildings on both sides.Yae took off his clogs and walked up the steps. Bronze hexagonal lamps hung under the eaves. Although it was daytime, the lobby made of thick wood was still lit with candlelight, as if he could hear the rumble of the hollow darkness.

Yae turned around, and Naraku, who was wearing a black monk's robe, looked at her expressionlessly.

"Do you know where Oboro went?"

"Please come back."

The man moved his lips and made a sound.

"What about hazy?"

The pitch-black crow flapped its wings and temporarily stopped on the bronze lamp.

There was a soft sound of the magic weapon in the hall, and it seemed that the Zen stick was touching the ground.

Everyone was silent, except for the hoarse voice of the elders reciting scriptures.

"Where did Haku go?"

"Please come back."

Ignoring the repeater in front of him, Yae turned to look at the crow.

Spreading its wings again, it left the bronze lamp and flew out along the corridor on the left.

Amaterasu-in Naraku is a very quiet organization.

Yae carried the hem of the kimono and ran on the corridor, across the front hall and into the interior, with a rustling sound, the snow on the pine branches in the courtyard fell.The sky was gray and the cold wind was still. Nai Luo, who was wearing a black monk's robe, stopped suddenly at the end of the long corridor of the watch hall and stopped moving forward.

The front is a restricted area for all Naraku, and no one is allowed to enter unless summoned by the leader.

Yae turned around the corridor and almost bumped into the person who came.

The other party was wearing a white robe and black gauntlets, and a pattern of eight-handed birds was painted on the same-color shoulder strap.

——The attire of Naraku Twelfth Generation of Amaterasu-in while he was in office.

"loose……"

The moment the voice came out, the man looked over.

Dark gray pupils.

Yae was stunned in place, and the hazy figure had gone away.

The courtyard is dry, and the shadow of a crow stands alone on a snow-covered branch, which is exactly the scene depicted in the painting in the alcove.

A man with light-colored long hair who didn't wear a crow mask was sitting by the window, wearing a black kimono and a feather of the same color.Putting the long knife on his knees, he carelessly pushed the knife out of its sheath, his fingertips slid down from the edge of the blade along the lines of the knife, his fingertips were cut open by the blade, and bright red blood oozed from the wound, before it fell, the cut was cut open The skin has healed as before.

The sharp blade reflected a cold light, and the cold sharp weapon lost the ability to kill people in his hand. He played with the knife in his hand in a vain manner. After waiting for a while, the paper door of the Japanese room was suddenly pulled open.

"When is the succession ceremony?"

Yae closed the door behind him.

"Let me think about it." With a light tap, Xu took the knife back into its sheath without haste, "The day after tomorrow?"

Yae: "...why?"

"The twelfth generation is gone, Tenshoin Naraku needs a new leader, and Oboro is the most suitable candidate." Xu said slowly: "Why, you don't seem to be satisfied."

"...you know that's not what I'm asking."

Yae walked directly in front of him, and there was only a desk between the two of them, which was full of experimental reports submitted by the Taoists according to the agreement: blood sample analysis, cell activity, cell proliferation experimental data, and many densely packed cold term.

She adjusted her breathing.

"That's Songyang... No, at least in the eyes of others, it's a relic of the twelfth generation."

Xu Hao looked at her leisurely: "So?"

"The succession ceremony of the leader of Amaterasu-in Naraku does not have the tradition of handing over the relics of the previous leader." Yae put his hand on the table in front of Xu, "others are fine, but Oboro..."

A temperatureless smile appeared on the corner of his lips, and he said in a cold voice:

"But Oboro can't do it? Because you feel distressed?"

"You seem to have forgotten," the scarlet pupils narrowed slightly, and said softly, "Who was the person who made Songyang arrested in the first place."

"It was Oboro who sent Shoyo to the guillotine, and I just returned the relics of the loser to the executioner. Pain? As long as it is given by Yoshida Shoyo, even if it hurts to the point that his veins are broken, that man is willing. Even the pain If they are all gone, that man will really not be able to live."

"How distorted and sad." Xu chuckled, "It's so sad that I'm even a little interested."

Yae straightened up.

"...What is this? Your little entertainment before the end comes?"

"It's not entertainment, I just give it." Xu said, "It's their own desires that destroy human beings, and I just give them what they want. The heavenly people want eternal life, so I give them eternal life. That man wants to relax. Everything about Yang, but now there is only pain left, so I will give him that pain, why not?"

Yae: "What about you, what do you want? The end of everything?"

Looking at her for a moment, the indifferent voice seemed to be wrapped in a cold mist, covering all emotional fluctuations: "Angry? That man is the source of destroying everything Yoshida Shoyang built, and you seem to have no resentment."

"...Then just treat it as my resentment." Yae said slightly, "Suppose I hate him, then what?"

……

"...I have imagined it many times." She lowered her eyes, "If I was there at that time, could I have prevented all this from happening?"

If Matsuyo escaped from Tenshoin Naraku with Oboro, if she had been there at the time, wouldn't things be the same now?

...this is a useless assumption.

She knows.

She has always known.

After a moment of silence, Yae said softly:

"I've already missed it once, this time, I don't want to waste any more time."

……

How should I introduce myself when meeting for the first time?

She had seen him many times, but he had never been aware of her existence.

How should such a one-sided initial introduction begin?

When the matter came to an end, Yae realized that she didn't have time to think about it so much.

Whatever you want to do, just go out and do it.

"Hello."

These were the first words she spoke.

The other party was dressed as if he was going out to perform a mission, with a bamboo hat in his hand, and an ordinary bag on his shoulder to conceal his identity.

Everyone saw her when Xu brought her back to Tianzhaoyuan Naraku. The gray-haired young man knew that she existed in the organization, and when she suddenly stopped in front of him, he nodded slightly as a signal, and walked away. She will move on.

Yae took a few steps back, and stopped in front of Oboro again.

"Hi, I'm Yae. May I call you Oboro?"

The gray-haired youth was pale and thin, with dark eyes that showed no emotion.

He said in a deep voice:

"You're in the way."

"Yes, I'm in the way."

Yae took out the greeting gift he had prepared and stuffed it into the young man's hand. "Take this, I'll get out of the way immediately."

He lowered his eyes.

Wrapped in bamboo leaves are loosely pinched salted rice balls.He didn't pick it up, and the rice ball fell to the ground, and it quickly became dirty.

He thought that the other party should give up now, but the man showed a smile of "I knew it would be like this", and took out another rice ball from nowhere.

"You picked it up this time. Here, take it, it's not poisonous."

... This woman cannot die.

This is the order that all Naraku received.

Hazy glanced at the left cuff, where the close-fitting knife was hidden, and then turned his gaze back calmly.

Yae pretended not to see anything, and happily said:

"Just hold it, go to a place where I can't see it, and throw it away."

The words made him look up.

The man was still smiling, his brows and eyes were curved, and his eyes were full of inexplicable softness.

"Just pretend, just pretend to accept it."

After a slight pause, she continued:

"If you don't leave, your mission will be delayed. Why bother? It's just a few rice balls, you can throw them away later."

After a long silence, Oboro took the rice ball from her, and when he turned around, Yae was still smiling.

Standing on the moss-covered stone steps, she watched the gray-haired young man gradually walk away, his figure gradually being swallowed up by the pale patina.

With her hands behind her back, she held her slightly trembling right wrist.

...to get better soon.

——Such an ugly rice ball, I won’t be able to give it away next time.