Pure
Pure
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"Jun, Aito. Come in!"
With a smile that would capture anyone's heart, Akane ran up to the gate and slid it open, allowing the two boys to enter.
"Sorry for coming out of nowhere… But Aniki's injured once again."
Hearing this, Akane's expression became worried as she got closer to Jun, inspecting his entire body. Lifting his shirt, her face became pale.
"Heavens… Who did this to you!? Was it Ren? Despicable!"
Not waiting for a reply, she frowned and grabbed hold of his wrist, pulling him into the house along with Aito.
Once inside, they went directly to what seemed like the living room[1]. Akane ordered for both of them to sit on the tatami, leaving to get her equipment.
Looking around, Jun noticed subtle traits of Uchiha architecture, causing him to reminisce about his past. The room was partitioned in a way that made it quite large, suitable for a living area.
Caressing the tatami, he relished in the familiar texture and the hint of Igusa[2] in the air. Although everything looked different, it stayed true to the original blueprint... To him, it felt like he was back home.
Soon enough, Akane ran back and sat on her knees, next to Jun. With a serious expression, she helped remove his shirt and started applying ointment. Next to them, Aito watched with a smile.
"I'll go get water. Big sis, please take care of Aniki!"
Hearing Aito's words, Akane blushed slightly but continued her task. She watched as he left through the corner of her eye.
Jun remained calm, allowing Akane to do her job. He didn't miss the small change in her expression when Aito left, amusing him.
'Hashirama… The village we built ended up becoming way more than we could imagine. For kids their age to be able to fall in love, untainted by war… If we were both born in such times… Maybe everything would've turned out differently.'
As he immersed himself in his thoughts, Akane tied up the last bit of bandages. Snapping out of his trance, he looked down and realized his upper body was entirely covered up, hiding all bruises.
Rising to his feet, he moved around and stretched a little, noticing the pain had diminished greatly. Instead, he felt a cool sensation from the ointment.
"Nice… I feel much better now. Thank you."
"I'm sorry… Because of me, Ren keeps beating you up... What if by mistake... He ends up killing you? I don't know what I would do…"
After living for so long, Jun could easily discern a person's true intentions. Noticing her heartfelt worry and desire to help him, he smiled and patted Akane's head, causing her to blush uncontrollably. Being an adult at heart, he merely found this to be somewhat cute.
"Don't worry, I'll teach him a lesson soon."
Hearing his words, Akane was shocked. She had never seen Jun be this confident about something, greatly surprising her. Somehow, his words carried weight… As if what he said was the truth… It made her subconsciously believe him.
Suddenly, Aito walked back with a plate of rice-balls and some tea... Because of his small frame, he was struggling to carry it all and looked depressed.
"Hey! I brought back goodies! Oh, granny Mai said to come and help her with the laundry when you're done, Akane."
Finishing his sentence, Aito placed everything on the table and impatiently grabbed a rice-ball, biting into it with vigor and swallowing it. Suddenly, he started choking, and quickly reached out for a cup of tea, gulping it down.
Burning his tongue, Aito felt like crying as he waved his hands in an attempt to cool it down. Seeing this, Akane couldn't resist laughing a little. On the other hand, Jun smiled, enjoying the peace he hadn't tasted in a long time.
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[1] A traditional Japanese house does not have a designated use for each room aside from the entrance area (genkan), kitchen, bathroom, and toilet. Any room can be a living room, dining room, study, or bedroom. This is possible because all the necessary furniture is portable, being stored in oshiire, a small section of the house (large closets) used for storage.
It is important to note that in Japan, the living room is expressed as ima, living "space". This is because the size of a room can be changed by altering the partitioning. Large traditional houses often have only one ima (living room/space) under the roof, while the kitchen, bathroom, and toilet are attached on the side of the house as extensions.
[2] Juncaceae is a family of flowering plants, commonly known as the rush family. They may superficially resemble grasses and sedges, and often grow on infertile soils in a wide range of moisture conditions. The soft rush (Juncus effusus) is called 'Igusa' in Japanese and is used to weave the soft surface cover of tatami mats.