Soon enough, Kurenai Yuhi found herself unable to keep smiling. Her genjutsu had never lasted more than a few seconds to begin with, and this time it was almost instantly dispelled by Anya. In fact, Anya seemed almost displeased—it paled in comparison to the genjutsu space from yesterday.
A simple stimulation of chakra was enough to dissolve the illusion completely. It had no effect whatsoever.
Kurenai's face looked pitiful, her already reddened eyes appearing even more helpless and vulnerable.
Seeing this, naturally, Anya tried to comfort her. "How about this?" he said. "Let me try. I'll use a genjutsu, and you try to dispel it."
Kurenai looked slightly confused. "Have you already learned how to use Genjutsu?"
"I know a little," Anya replied uncertainly. After all, the Bringer-of-Darkness Technique—a type of genjutsu—was something he barely had to learn at all. It was so naturally suited to him that he had picked it up with ease. But ordinary genjutsu? He wasn't sure he could even use them.
Kurenai hesitated, then nodded uncertainly. "Okay."
Anya quickly formed hand seals with practiced speed and performed the technique. [Genjutsu: Jigoku Daisan no Jutsu (The Hell We Fear Most)].
This technique could conjure the one thing a person feared most or would rather forget. Instantly, Kurenai felt the surroundings vanish. She now stood in an infinite void, utterly alone in the surrounding emptiness.
The hand seals and counters she had memorized completely slipped her mind. Overcome with fear, her legs went weak, her whole body trembled, and her heart pounded violently, as though devils in the darkness were sneering at her from the shadows.
Unable to take it anymore, she screamed, "Anya! Let me out! I'm scared!"
Noticing the abnormality, Anya immediately released the genjutsu. When he saw tears streaming down Kurenai's face and her body shaking violently in fear, he quickly moved forward and held her tightly. "I'm so sorry. This is all my fault. I shouldn't have used that genjutsu."
Seeing that Kurenai had not yet recovered, Anya silently blamed himself. There were so many other genjutsu techniques described—why did he have to choose this one? Judging from her reaction, she must have relived her worst fear. A girl's mental resilience was clearly limited. What was he supposed to do now?
Wait—the Spirit Transformation Technique.
Anya suddenly had an idea. Secretly activating the technique, a wave of spiritual energy entered Kurenai's mind.
As soon as he entered, all he saw was darkness—just like what she'd seen. With a focused surge of chakra, he dispersed the surrounding shadows, transforming the space into a vision of the most beautiful scenery from his past life—mountains, rivers, seas, lakes, and all sorts of small creatures she had never seen before.
In this unfamiliar yet warm setting, Kurenai slowly began to calm down and opened her eyes to take in the sight before her.
Then, a comforting voice reached her ears. "Don't be afraid. I'm right here with you. I can take you anywhere you want to go. Wherever you wish."
Of course, Kurenai recognized the voice immediately—it was Anya, her so-called "student." Without thinking, she leaned into him, hugging him tightly while gazing at the beautiful world inside her mind, entranced beyond words.
When Kurenai finally emerged from the illusion in her mind, the room was already filled with the aroma of freshly prepared food.
Anya held a spoon in her hand and prepared several steaming dishes. She said, "You have too few ingredients at home. I could only make these dishes. If you don't like them, we can eat out."
Kurenai Yuhi said nothing, acting just like a dutiful young bride, scooping rice for Anya as well before happily starting to eat.
In the blink of an eye, a day passed quickly. As promised, Anya moved into Kurenai's house and studied genjutsu almost nonstop, growing more and more interested in it the deeper she delved.
She didn't even notice when another person entered the room.
Only when the visitor intentionally made some footsteps did Anya reflexively take a defensive stance, ready to draw her sword at any moment.
"Your vigilance is worse than I imagined," remarked the visitor, naturally being Red, Kurenai's father.
Anya relaxed slightly and replied, "I was studying too intently; my alertness indeed dropped quite a bit."
"Is Red asleep?"
Anya nodded, "She has been asleep for a while."
Red gazed affectionately at his sleeping daughter Kurenai and sincerely thanked her, "Thank you for staying here with her."
Anya teased, "It's only right, after all, she's now my little teacher."
Red smiled and sat cross-legged, looking at the books scattered around the room, he asked, "How's your study going?"
Anya nodded satisfactorily, "I've gained a general understanding of genjutsu. I can perform basic techniques, but I still don't understand dual-layered illusions."
Red expressed surprise, "Have you learned so fast? Have you ever practiced genjutsu before?"
"I had some exposure, but never systematically studied it. This is my first time."
Red couldn't help but feel that White Fang had found a great student. If he'd met Anya first, he would have certainly taken her under his wing no matter what.
Red looked at Anya fondly and said, "I happen to be free tonight. You can ask me anything you don't understand."
"Great." Not caring about appearing too eager, Anya proceeded to ask all her questions accumulated earlier. Red patiently answered each one without showing any impatience.
The sun rose high, night faded away, and Red, busy with state affairs, had already left. Kurenai slowly woke up from her deep sleep and the first thing she saw was Anya's smiling face, making her cheeks involuntarily flush red.
Anya squatted down, patted her back gently.
Understanding immediately, Kurenai climbed onto her back, feeling extremely warm all over.
Anya asked, "What do you want for breakfast today?"
"It doesn't matter, you choose."
"Okay."
Anya took Kurenai to a breakfast shop that Genzo had once recommended. She ordered the exact same meal as last time and waited there like a hunter under a tree—hoping the rabbit would come back on its own, sure that Genzo, with all his skill, would sense she was waiting for him.
It was nothing more than a peer's instinct—she knew she wouldn't be wrong.
Sure enough, soon enough, Genzo also appeared in this shop, ordering a bowl of breakfast exactly the same as Anya's. The two pretended not to know each other, quietly eating their meals.
After Kurenai finished eating, Anya said to her, "Yesterday was a rest day at the Ninja Academy, today it's time for classes again. Come on, I'll carry you there on my back."
Shyly, Kurenai replied, "I can walk by myself."
"What, be polite to students? That's something only teachers are allowed to do."
With that, Anya tossed Kurenai Yuhi onto her back and hopped toward the school like a giddy kid, making the girl on her back giggle repeatedly.
Genzo acted like he hadn't seen a thing. After finishing his meal, he finally let out a sigh, "I wonder which poor girl got stuck with this troublemaker. This is truly a wolf in sheep's clothing."
After saying this, Genzo followed behind. He knew it was time for their plan to begin. A long-forgotten thrill bubbled up inside him. Who cares anyway? It's not like they were stealing from their own country. They were robbing the enemy village! No need to feel guilty about it. Besides, I've already laid out my backup plans. If things go south, we're all going down together.
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~ Every 50 Powerstones = **4 Bonus Chapters** on the weekend!