Chapter 230: A Spiritual Bloodline Sickness, Makoto's Choice
Seeing this, Akiyama Makoto hesitated.
He had previously been certain that Uzuki Yūgao did not like him, not just based on his emotional judgment, but also because the system had not given him a notification.
In the corner of his eye, there was only this one line of text:
[Ding! Deeper contact with the ninja Uzuki Yūgao achieved. Simulation Attempts +3.]
If two people liked each other, a simple hug was enough to trigger this prompt. But now, she had forcibly kissed him, and the "+5 Simulation Attempts" for confirming a closer relationship had still not appeared.
This meant that they had not yet reached the level of confessing to each other.
Then could it be that he didn't like her?
He felt that was impossible.
First, he was a "universal lover." Although he didn't have that deep of an emotional foundation with her, her face was indeed exquisite. With that face alone, he would not refuse her confession. His "family" was also lacking a ninja who used a sword; she could fill this gap very well.
Second, the system's prompt had always been "Confirmed intimate relationship, +5 simulation attempts." It had never required him to be absolutely in love with the other person. Of course, in the simulation, if the "Level 3" affection was reached, it would show that the two liked each other. But this only further illustrated that "like" was the limit of Level 3. True "love" probably wouldn't be triggered until Level 5.
He had never been too demanding about this. As long as he reached Level 4 with someone, in his eyes, that was enough for them to become a member of his "big family."
With these reasons, he was able to judge that Yūgao had indeed not yet reached the point of liking him.
Previously, he had thought that she was probably doing this to save Gekkō Hayate, or that she had received a mission from the Third Hokage, or even that she wanted him to contribute to saving Konoha.
But now, since she was willing to accept Ino's examination, it meant she was incomparably confident in herself. So why was she doing this?
"In that case, I'll go get Ino."
"You must understand, if I find out you've deceived me, then it's very likely that, forget about being friends, we might have to fight to the death."
He looked at her coolly. She not only knew his secret, but had also broken into his life. This had already touched his bottom line.
However, to his surprise, she still nodded firmly, as if she was prepared for any verification.
Since that was the case, he didn't say anything more, but sent a shadow clone to get Ino.
Ino arrived with her arms crossed, looking even more displeased to see her. They had all been with him for so long, and none of them had even kissed him yet. Although they were well aware that it was because he cherished them and wanted them to "grow" more, on what basis could this woman just rush in and forcibly kiss him?
Even though she was very beautiful, they weren't familiar with her.
After he had left, Anko had explained that she was actually one of the first people to meet him, only a few days after Tenten. But this still made Ino very angry, and she was thinking about rejecting her from joining them.
Now, seeing her tearful appearance, Ino's anger flared up. "Since you dared to let me check your memories and thoughts, I won't hold back at all."
"You'd better pray you don't have any dark thoughts, or I'll tell him every single one."
Yūgao nodded and closed her eyes.
Her calm appearance made Ino even angrier. She used her Mind Reading Jutsu, and then, using her Mind Transfer Jutsu, she multitasked and allowed him to see into Yūgao's heart as well.
Then, the two of them saw every little detail of her life over the past few days.
From her initial observation, to slowly becoming fascinated, and finally, to her longing to be a part of it.
She was like a fan addicted to a drama, infatuated with the lively life in his home.
And on her side, she had to face: the corruption of the person she was loyal to, the misunderstanding of her companion, and the ugliness of a legendary hero. All of this made her even more fascinated with the life in his home. The "memory" floating in her mind made her feel that she should be a member of this atmosphere, that she should also experience this beautiful and happy life.
In the end, Ino arrived at the depths of her mind.
She saw her spiritual body, naked, curled up in a ball, hugging her knees. She was sitting alone, facing a wall, with two mirrors in front of her. One was playing what she was seeing in the present, and the other was playing what was in her memory. This all made her spirit dazed, half-crying, half-laughing.
"Mm..."
Seeing this, Ino slowly calmed her mind. She even felt a little sorry for her.
"What... is this symptom?" he asked. He had naturally followed her in and had seen Yūgao's current state.
Ino was startled and was about to ask, "How did you get in here too?" but then she realized he was already very familiar with her family's secret techniques and had even created a spiritual genjutsu like the Formless Wave. It wasn't strange for him to break in using her as a bridge.
She then shot him a glare and said sourly, "She's gone crazy thinking about you. You were right. She really can't tell the difference between illusion and reality."
"You can get power from the future. That's your talent. But when this talent is directly applied to others, it makes them 'sick,' and they develop symptoms similar to a spiritual bloodline sickness."
Hearing this, he understood in an instant.
No wonder the system had to use the "Dream Inheritance" effect to let the girls around him come into contact with the truth of the simulation, rather than just pulling them in directly. It turned out that this thing actually had a rather strong spiritual and physical impact.
He was protected by the system, so he naturally had no side effects. But the girls around him, or rather, ordinary people, could not withstand this spiritual shock.
The fact that Yūgao had been able to hold on until now was probably related to her own strong spiritual power. She was, after all, a kunoichi who was quite skilled in genjutsu. She could integrate it into her swordsmanship, which was in itself a unique tai-genjutsu. With this skill, she would have had no problem becoming a Jōnin in the future.
"Then... what should we do?" he asked.
His question was met with a serious answer from her. "That's for you and her to ask."
"If you both agree, I can seal this part of her memory, let her return to her original self, and live her normal life."
"Or... you accept her, and let her slowly merge the split illusion and reality in her mind. But in that case, she'll probably have to become a member of your family!"
She said the last half of her sentence through gritted teeth. Although she really didn't want to accept her, she also couldn't just watch her have a mental breakdown.
"Then... what if I make her spirit stronger? Can she come out of this situation?"
"Like us? Then of course there's no problem."
Her eyes lit up. "We can all use the Mind-Mirror Image. She's only like this because she can't withstand this state."
He nodded. Understanding the situation, he began to think about how to handle Yūgao.
Since this matter was related to him, he naturally couldn't just ignore it, especially since she had even said the name "Akiyama Gaku."
But once he took her in, it meant that he could no longer let her return to her original life path. When she returned to normal, would she regret today's decision?
Ino, who was now in tune with his mind, felt his thoughts and slowly began to smile. She had thought that he would be ecstatic to have such a beautiful woman as a bed partner. But the first thing he had considered was her future. This made her feel much more comfortable.
As expected. I wasn't wrong about him. He's not that crude of a person. He really does think about us. This is... so much better than all the things the Konoha higher-ups have done in her memory.
This thought even startled Ino herself. No wonder Dad always said not to read other people's minds lightly; you'll be influenced by their thoughts. Now it seems it's true.
With Yūgao's memories, she probably couldn't respect the Hokage, Danzō, or Jiraiya anymore.
But, at least this time, she felt that knowing this information wasn't a "pollution" of her memory. She even decided that when she got back, she would tell the other girls in his house what these scoundrels had done, so that everyone could be careful.
"I've decided."
He came to Yūgao's side, placed his fingers on her head, and activated the Formless Wave.
Under his spiritual power, her tense and uneasy spirit slowly calmed down, and then she fell into a deep sleep.
"Later, I will first strengthen her spirit, and then let her make a decision one more time. Before that, I will keep her at home. It just so happens that Karin also needs a companion."
"And before that, Ino, please seal that 'wrong' memory of her future."
Ino rubbed her fists together. "I can do that. But if I do, the things she did to you and her 'like' for you will become a rootless weed. Will you still be able to keep her in your house then?"
"Aren't you afraid that the first thing she'll do when she wakes up is run back to her childhood sweetheart?"
Seeing her playful smile, he suddenly pulled her by the hand, wrapped his arm around her waist, and leaned in to kiss her.
Ino shrieked and jumped back, her face flushing red. "Y-You're not allowed to bribe me like this! I won't fall for it!"
"You've misunderstood. I just wanted to tell you that the fact that she likes me will not change, and the fact that she is disappointed with Konoha will not change."
"As for whether she will really like me... that will depend on the fate between us. I'm not in a hurry."
Ino looked at his confident expression, really wanting to twist his face and tell him that he would definitely lose.
But in reality, as she looked at Yūgao's sleeping face, which now wore a smile, she felt that the moment this woman had stepped into his house, she had already been unable to leave it.
But... I heard from Anko that she was a member of the Hokage's Anbu and took orders directly from him. To have someone of that strength by his side... it's also a way to protect his safety.
At this, Ino barely managed to convince herself. She began to seal that "wrong" memory.
One of the two mirrors in front of her was sealed, leaving only her memories of this world.
But just as he had said, she still liked him. It was just that this feeling had become more impulsive. It would be up to him how to grasp it in the future.
After all this was done, Ino wiped the sweat from her forehead. "It's done, it's done. Send me back. I need to rest for a while."
"Also, I'll help you explain things first, but if everyone is still angry, I can't do anything about it!"
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