On the sixth day after Ryun's death, Asuka, while wiping his corpse, finally smelled a terrible odor.
It was this strongly pungent smell of corpse decay that allowed her to temporarily awaken from her state of despair and numbness.
At six in the morning, Kushina, who had been staying at Ryun's house guarding the corpse these past few days, was awakened by sounds coming from the kitchen.
Not long after, Asuka walked to the living room carrying several servings of breakfast.
Kushina, originally lying in the futon, did not want to get up, because reality was too cruel. In her dreams, she could get her wish, to see that lively, handsome big boy.
But shortly after she closed her eyes again, a familiar and very affectionate voice sounded in her ear.
"Nana, get up to eat breakfast..."
Asuka gently shook her body, quickly making Kushina open her eyes again.
Kushina looked at her with a dazed expression, a bit of clarity gradually appearing in her eyes. However, this clarity soon turned into a kind of indescribable complex emotion.
"Silly child, this is exactly the time when you are growing. Not eating breakfast is not okay. Get up quickly..."
Asuka smiled gently, then directly pulled Kushina up from the bed.
"Auntie, do you not hate me?"
Kushina, her hair disheveled, asked in a hoarse voice.
This was the first conversation between the two grieving people in these past few days.
Hearing this, Asuka could not help but frown. She then reached out, pushed aside the messy red hair in front of Kushina's face, and gently pinched her pale, thin cheek.
"Silly child, what nonsense are you saying so early in the morning? Auntie has never hated you. On the contrary, Auntie really likes Kushina..."
Asuka smiled and pressed her forehead against Kushina's.
"!!!"
Feeling this sincere and gentle affection, Kushina was stunned for a good while.
A moment later, with a whimper, Kushina pouted, tightly hugged the nearby Asuka, and cried out loud.
"Alright, alright, no more crying, no more crying. Your voice is already hoarse from crying. You must not cry until your eyes are damaged too. Otherwise, my son would be heartbroken..."
Asuka reached out and patted her back, comforting her with a smile.
Hearing these words, Kushina was stunned again. Then, as if she thought of something, she quickly stood up from the bed and looked toward the coffin nearby.
The expected resurrection did not happen... Kushina's emotions instantly fell back to the bottom.
Asuka was startled by this rapid, stress-induced reaction of getting up. Then, with a bitter smile, she reached out and held Kushina's hand.
"Let's eat..."
Kushina, like a puppet on a string, allowed Asuka to lead her. She was then pressed down in front of the low table that had several servings of breakfast on it.
Asuka pushed one serving of breakfast in front of her, then got up and walked to the door to call over the female Anbu operative who was stationed at her house.
"You have worked hard these past few days. Come sit down and eat something. I made you a breakfast too..."
Asuka first bowed to her in thanks, then pressed the female operative, who wanted to decline her kindness, down at the table.
"I am on a mission right now... This isn't really appropriate..." the female operative said somewhat awkwardly.
"There is nothing inappropriate. Because your mission is about to end. Your protection is no longer needed here. Consider this breakfast my personal thanks to you..." Asuka said with a gentle smile.
Hearing her words, the female Anbu operative clearly paused for a moment. Then she understood the meaning behind Asuka's words. It seemed this poor mother had finally recovered from the pain of losing her son!
"In that case, I will not stand on ceremony..."
The female Anbu operative took off her mask, revealing a delicate, pretty, smiling face.
Asuka gave her a kind smile, then began to eat her breakfast on her own.
'She can cook and eat by herself. It seems there really is no problem now...' The female Anbu operative thought to herself, secretly observing Asuka out of the corner of her eye.
"Kushina... Why aren't you eating? Do you think the breakfast Auntie made is bad?"
Asuka looked at the red-haired girl beside her.
Hearing this sentence, Kushina's low spirits fluctuated.
"If he saw you not eating or drinking, he would be very heartbroken. You don't want him to still be worried after death, do you? After all, you are his favorite girl..."
"So, for his sake, or for Auntie's sake, you must eat properly, and you must live well..." Asuka persuaded earnestly.
These words sounded somewhat off to the female Anbu operative, but upon closer thought, they didn't seem problematic...
"He is not dead. The Hokage said it might be a delay with the forbidden technique. He will eventually wake up!"
Kushina loudly refuted her words. Even now, she still refused to accept the fact of Ryun's death.
The Third Hokage said the reason Ryun had not woken up was either that he was willing to die, or that there was some problem with the forbidden technique, causing a delayed awakening or a failed awakening...
Although Kushina had spent less time with Ryun than Asuka had, she understood Ryun better than Asuka did.
In Kushina's heart, Ryun was a very strong boy. He absolutely would not seek death at such a critical moment. The idea that he lost the will to live was simply a ridiculous joke.
Moreover, Ryun still had his mother, and he had her, his girlfriend. From any perspective, it was impossible for him to actively give up his life. So, in her view, the Hokage's first reason was clearly wrong.
Eliminating the first possibility, the remaining option was that there was a problem with the forbidden technique, and Ryun's awakening was delayed!
(As for the possibility that the forbidden technique failed, Kushina deliberately ignored it...)
Ryun would wake up. Even if his body was starting to undergo terrible changes, Kushina still believed he would wake up again!
Although Kushina was young, she was stronger than Asuka. She had not yet given up hope!
"Silly child... How can you believe a liar's words..." Asuka gently shook her head.
Hearing Asuka call the Hokage a liar, the female Anbu operative clearly paused. She then wanted to open her mouth to refute, but the red-haired girl's voice sounded before hers.
"Of course I don't believe those liars, but I believe in Ryun!"
"He said that when we grew up, he would marry me and cook for me for the rest of my life. I believe him. He cannot possibly die before fulfilling the promise. Ryun has never let me down before!"
Kushina spoke with intense emotion, tears once again pouring from her eyes. The female Anbu operative who wanted to refute Asuka's statement fell silent upon hearing these words.
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