Chapter 423: Pinokangni (102)

"You're also going there?"

"I'll eventually reach that place someday. But not now. There will come a day when rain falls from the sky again; I'll hear the Mother Goddess's call, know that the destined moment has arrived, and I should go reunite with my family."

"So before that moment arrives… I must make 【Preparation】."

"Prepare for what?"

"Prepare to face them, Kakawa Xia, and become their pride."

"Hmm. I think you'll manage it, go ahead." Kakawa Xia nodded at him.

"Of course. Because I am a child blessed by the Mother Goddess."

Kakawa Xia suddenly smiled shyly: "But you still look nervous…"

"I feel the same; perhaps only you can help me…," Shajin slowly approached him, looking at him solemnly, "…One last time, shall we do a 【Palm Clash】?"

Shajin gently removed the hat, placing it lightly aside. He knelt on one knee, squatting before the young Kakawa Xia, his gaze level with the reluctant child.

He extended his hand, palm facing him, the motion gentle. Kakawa Xia, reluctant, also stretched out a small hand, pressing tightly against Shajin's palm.

Shajin slowly closed his eyes: "May the Mother Goddess close your eyes three times…"

The boy's youthful voice overlapped with his; they were separated by long ages, yet overlapped briefly at this moment.

"May your bloodline pulse forever…"

"May your journey always be smooth…"

"…May schemes never be exposed."

Shajin waved and left, not looking back as he headed toward the distant Black Hole.

"We shall reunite under the aurora of 【Kakawa】."

Kakawa Xia clutched the still‑warm hat tightly, watching Shajin's departing silhouette; as the first breeze blew, his body grew translucent, turning into countless light particles that rose into the sky—

"Farewell, Kakawa Xia."

——

Miss Kaguya wants me to confess.

Kakawa Xia… vanished.

My Kakawa Xia, what a wonderful child…

Wuwuwu…

The student council room was silent, except for Secretary Fujiwara's sobbing.

Kaguya gently sighed: "Secretary Fujiwara, Kakawa Xia merely disappeared; he represents Shajin's past, also his knot. His disappearance is a good sign, showing Shajin has fully emerged from his past entanglements."

But the secretary couldn't help wiping a tear: "We all understand the way, the reasoning, of course! It's just heartbreaking! Such a good, pure child will never be seen again; it's a loss!"

"Secretary Fujiwara, you need to change your perspective." Ishigami took off the headphones from his ears, looking at the weak, pink‑haired girl slumped on the table, "Such a cute, pure child has grown into an adult like Shajin, right? In a sense, that's not a bad outcome."

"Indeed…" Secretary Fujiwara slowly rose from the table, watching Shajin's resolute stride toward the Black Hole, "But is he planning to go to the after‑life of the dream realm? Can his ten‑person stone‑hearted colleagues pull him out? I'm scared he won't return… That place won't be filled with memory‑realm memes, will it?"

Although she had never seen Pinokangni's "death" world, Fujiwara Chihua immediately linked the original dreamscape where Xing and Liuying had been; she knew how bizarre and eerie that place was.

Initially, Xing escaped only thanks to Black Swan's intervention, but with Shajin now, can he truly return from such a place unscathed?

——

"My heart holds hope for tomorrow, sinking into tonight's sleepland; until each tomorrow's end, I welcome a peaceful death."

"But this man is different; he lives in the present. Every sinking night, every all‑or‑nothing gamble, his dreams never show tomorrow's shape."

"His life has never been at peace, yet fate teaches him to win everything, wading through one storm after another until mud covers his nostrils."

"Now, in the bottomless dream, that falling die… finally hits the ground."

"Silently… calmly… it fell to the ground."

……

Topa's voice, tinged with a faint electric hum, rang out in the darkness.

"The Shajin Stone's radiance… vanished. This represents a certain outcome…"

Jade: "He fulfilled the promise… and repaid the wish."

Topa seemed a bit sad, sighing lightly: "According to the plan, your 【Foundation Stone】 has been successfully delivered into the family's domain. Then—"

"—— fulfill our duties, begin 【Harvest】."

……

Later, in the sleeper's cradle, deep within the beautiful dream of 【Star of the Grand Event】, another jade stone began to shine.

Jade laughed deeply.

"I come to behold, I come to add wine, I come to possess."

"I grant poison from sweet dew, sow in spring, reap in autumn, patiently awaiting withered fruit filling the branches."

"All offered to… the Amber King."

——

Naruto.

"That voice… isn't it the pink‑haired woman who originally led Shajin to the company?"

Komi Mei's heart suddenly thudded; this woman didn't look like a kind soul at all, and from what she's saying now, she seems a woman tougher than Shajin's methods.

For some reason, she involuntarily thought of Kafuka. Though the two have no relation, she felt there were certain commonalities between them.

…perhaps it's the danger?

As a Water Shadow, her intuition told her this was a woman more dangerous than Shajin.

"Her and Topa's Foundation Stone are both held by Xingqiri, and no matter how powerful this woman is, can she be stronger than Shajin in his transformed state?" Thunder Shadow crossed his arms, tone rather dismissive, "If not, she can't threaten the family either."

"That's not the case; her rank in the company exceeds Shajin's. At her level… force is usually a last resort; unless absolutely necessary, she won't act lightly." Ohno gently stroked his long beard, "Do you recall Topa's initial recapture of Belloberg? The company's methods have always been etiquette before arms; Jade's move probably only aimed to secure the best outcome."

"What virtue does the company claim? Everything for the Amber King? Hmph… sounds better than singing. If this deal falls through, hehe…" Ohno closed his eyes, gently shaking his head, "…the family will only have to await the cannons of ten thousand fleets."

——

At the same time, deep within the Memory Realm.

Xing tried to open their eyes, but all that could be seen was a pitch-black expanse.

She rubbed her head: 'Where is this?'

Memories gradually surfaced, time rewinding to a few minutes earlier: Shajin launched their final attack, a shower of glittering chips poured down, Yellow Spring swiftly drew their sword, then, 'Bang—'