Where Tetsu looked at Ajisai with a displeased expression, as if he were seeing something uncomfortable.
Aoki did not respond to Tetsu's complaint. Instead, Aoki simply stared at Ajisai, searching for a way into her tightly closed world. Their gazes met, and for a moment, Aoki felt as if he were staring into an endless void.
"Haah... Alright, how about this," Aoki finally said, his tone softer yet still firm. "I will give you some other food, but in return, you have to answer my questions. How does that sound?"
Ajisai remained silent for a moment. Her eyes moved, glancing at the now empty ramen cup, then back to Aoki.
"... Really?" Ajisai's voice finally came out. Flat. There was no emotion there, no enthusiasm like a little girl who would usually be happy when offered food.
"Yes," Aoki nodded, trying to suppress his smile from spreading too wide.
"Alright."
The answer came quickly. Too quickly. As if the girl had no doubts or considerations within her.
"Good," Aoki said, as he pulled something from his pocket. It wasn't a heavy meal, just a small piece of red candy.
Ajisai did not blink. Her hand moved quickly—too quickly—and in an instant, the candy was in her hand. Aoki barely had time to see Ajisai's movement. There was something strange about this girl.
"First, do you have parents?" Aoki asked, his voice sounding calmer than before.
"No."
The answer came out without hesitation. Ajisai unwrapped the candy with mechanical movements, putting it into her mouth expressionlessly, as if merely following a basic instinct.
Aoki observed every movement of Ajisai closely.
"Then, since when have you been in this place?"
Ajisai fell silent. Her forehead slightly furrowed, as if trying to remember something long buried in her mind.
"I... don't know."
There was a slight change in Ajisai's face. A small wrinkle on her forehead, her head slightly bowed. There was something in Ajisai's mind, something that even she might not understand.
"Boss, this girl has been in this terrible village before I arrived," Tetsu interjected. "I got to this forest three months ago, so she might have been here longer."
Aoki nodded slowly, processing the information.
"I see. You don't know how long you've been here... Is it because you don't count the days? Or... do you really not understand the concept of days, weeks, months, and years?"
"Ah? Boss, how could there be someone who doesn't understand such things—" Tetsu almost interrupted again, but before he could continue, Ajisai spoke first.
"I don't know..." Ajisai's voice was calm, too calm, making the air feel cold. "What is a week? What is a month? Is the month you mean the one in the sky? Then... what is a year?"
Tetsu froze. His eyes widened slightly, and for the first time, he looked truly uncomfortable.
Aoki felt something gripping his chest.
This girl... is not just lost in a physical sense. She is truly gone.
"Then... do you know your age?"
Ajisai looked at Aoki, her eyes still empty, vacant.
"Age...? What is that?"
Aoki couldn't contain his shock this time.
He already knew that war destroys everything—families, homes, hopes. But this was more than that. War had erased something fundamental from a child.
Ajisai didn't even know the concept of time.
How long has Ajisai lived in darkness like this? How long has she merely survived without realizing that the world moves forward?
Aoki clenched his fists on his knees. This... This is one of the reasons why Aoki hates war.
------------------------------
[Announcement: A New Novel Has Been Added!
The Puppet Maker in the World of Naruto
A man who is a scientist, researcher, and expert mechanic in robotics dies in a massive explosion that occurs in his laboratory while developing an advanced robot project. However, instead of experiencing death as he thought, the man awakens in another world—a strange place with vast stretches of desert.
There, the man is surrounded by people who can jump high, calling themselves ninjas. The confusion he initially felt grows as he realizes that this world is not unfamiliar to him. This is the world of Naruto! However, there is one thing that surprises him.
"Isn't this Sunagakure? Why am I not in Konoha? This poorest village... Oh my God, this is serious!"
Now, in the midst of a new life filled with danger and uncertainty, the scientist must find a way to survive in Sunagakure, a harsh place full of limitations. With his robotic knowledge, can the man change his fate in this ninja world, or will he fall along with the village?]
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