Chapter 185: Last Gift (1)

A gentle breeze gently blowing the leaves of the cherry trees. Bright pink; trees decorating the streets of Japan with their beautiful colour.

Spring has finally arrived and, with this, almost a year has passed since Toru was summoned.

That boy, who at first had a dull look, now lay walking beside Aoi with a relaxed expression. His eyes showed the glow that was lost in the Throne of Heroes.

'Haa... everything has been so calm...'

Aoi thought. If Toru was her son, he would be a good big brother to Sakura and Rin. That's why she treated him as such. She saw the boy's attitude improve over time and she was proud of that.

'A boy full of wounds and scars...'

She was unaware of Toru's history, but she could see that he had not had a good time in life, even dying at a very young age.

"If you win the war, what wish would you make of the Holy Grail?"

Toru paused for a second at that sudden question. At once his eyes lost their sparkle and, in a monotone, emotionless voice, he replied:

"That's none of your business..."

Aoi stared at Toru. He answered her in such a cold and dismissive manner that for a moment she felt as if someone had struck her in the heart. He even stopped speaking to her with respect.

"I see... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you with my question."

Toru shook his head and moved forward.

"Forgive me. I shouldn't have spoken to you that way."

"No, Toru-chan. It's alright. Really. You don't have to apologise. It's just that I didn't think my question would make you so angry. It's a personal matter of yours that I shouldn't interfere in, I understand."

"Even so, excuse me."

Toru was more stubborn in this regard. He just walked the rest of the way along with Aoi in complete silence.

***

Here's a question: What is love? The answer is quite simple and complicated at the same time.

Love is a strange feeling that is born in the depths of the brain. Many understand love, but what about those who don't?

Love can be a warm and pleasant feeling like summer; it can also be cold and painful like winter.

Each person's mind is different, so the way they see love will be different too, but, I repeat, what about those who don't know love? Can someone not know what love is? Well, as strange as it may seem, there are people who don't know what love is. Toru is one of those people.

He does not understand love because he never really knew the feeling, for he only relies on the experiences of his first life and the experiences he had in his second life to give meaning to the new and strange feelings that arose in the depths of his heart.

For him that was love. It doesn't matter if he suffers, it doesn't matter if it breaks his heart, it doesn't matter how broken his mind is, it doesn't matter if the people around him can smile and be happy. That, for him, is love. A sick and sad love which, sadly, has become engraved deep in Toru's subconscious.

...

...

...

That's why, looking at the mansion that stood with large walls, he thought about the question Aoi asked him. One winner, one wish. What wish to ask for? To him, at the time of his summoning, that wish was crystal clear, but now... remembering the smiles of Aoi and her daughters....

'I was there...'

His gaze shadowed as his hair covered his eyes.

'They... were they happy?'

What is happiness?

Human beings relate happiness to a sense of pleasure. If Toru took that as a basis for describing the feeling, then he would realise that very few times in his life had he ever felt happy. However, on those few occasions, he had managed to make other people smile, he had managed to make other people happy and that was the enigmatic feeling that, like a glacier, boiled deep inside his heart. Even if inside he was completely broken; he could still feel happiness even if he didn't understand that feeling.

"What is happiness?"

This time he wondered aloud. Aoi had already entered the mansion, so only that boy was left staring at the entrance of the house.

This was a rather profound question that distorted Toru's way of thinking. He has always adapted to situations masterfully, adapting his mind and body in strange ways. He seemed to have adapted to this new life as a Servant rather quickly, causing a shift in his sense of purpose. Making others happy is what makes him happy, but life for him was over some time ago, so he could no longer exercise that sense of purpose in his day to day life.

"I... have caused unhappiness..."

He certainly did, but by the time he realised it, it was too late.

'I... don't deserve any more chances...'

Because if he gets another chance, he will only make the same mistake over and over again. So, that wish will remain present in his mind until it is fulfilled.

"Onii-san! You're here! Look what I did!"

That voice so familiar to him echoed near a window. Toru looked there erasing all the thoughts he had until a moment ago and sighed.

The owner of the voice was Sakura, who was looking at him through the window while waving at him.

In view of this, he entered the mansion and walked to meet Sakura, who had come down the stairs rather quickly, as she was already at the side of the door leading to the mansion's garden.

"You have to see this. I finally made it!"

Toru knew what Sakura was talking about, for in this past year he had become a friend and teacher to this girl.

The scene suddenly changes, showing the garden whose flowers show their splendid bloom. The wind blew gently, making Toru's scarf dance to the symphonic melody of spring. Sakura watched this, watched the expression on Toru's face. It was soothing for her to see, for he evoked that strange sense of calm in any lonely scene.

"Show me your progress."

He said. Sakura excitedly crouched down and looked closely at the dirt floor that stretched out like a bed for grass. She frowned and clasped her hands together. Though it was slow, she connected the seals on her hands and touched the ground timidly.

"Doton..."

A crunching sound was heard and the earth under Sakura's hand rose up like the sprout of a vegetable.

"Hm... it's not very good, but considering how long you've been training, it looks like you have talent."

"Are you serious, Onii-san, I can do things as impressive as you?"

Toru smiled slightly, remembering what his ninjutsu training was like for him. From the beginning he was never one to have the capabilities to even shape chakra, but he always thrived during his training. Over time, as his hands ceased to be the delicate hands of a child, his talent emerged like a bud, like the petals of cherry blossoms. It was difficult for him, for every time he used ninjutsu he tired very quickly. However...

"It will take time, but you can do it. Maybe not to the level I used to have when I was alive, but you can improve with effort."

"I see. Then I'll keep training!"

"Don't overexert yourself. Just as you train, you also need to rest. In the beginning I didn't know this and I got hurt many times for that very reason."

Removing the bandages from one of his arms, he showed her the scars he had.

"This is proof that overexertion is never a good thing. You're a girl, you don't want to have such ugly scars."

Sakura looked at Toru's scars and felt sorry. It certainly seemed like Toru was always pushing herself to the limit, that's why he was so strong. But how did Toru come to teach ninjutsu to this girl? This goes back a few weeks.

***

Kirei was still studying magic just like Rin along with her father. However, Sakura was the only one who spent her time in complete solitude with her mother, as it seemed Tokiomi only had eyes for his eldest daughter. This was evidently affecting Sakura, as she did not feel loved by her father. Eventually she began to have a sadder expression. She stopped talking to Toru as much as she used to and, secretly...

"Why doesn't it work? I saw it... I have to be just like Onee-san..."

With her hands on a glowing gemstone, Sakura tried to control the mana in it to give it a shape. It looked rather difficult, but still she was trying with everything she had.

A small bead of sweat fell down her forehead as she desperately tried to control the mana, but something bad was happening. The stone began to glow and flicker strangely.

"No... no... yes I can..."

Wrapping both hands around the stone, she tried to control her own mana, but it was impossible. The stone was warping, stretching out like sharp needles and then....

"Kya!"

She quickly pulled her hands away from the stone and realised that it had hurt her hands. There was blood running down her skin and tears streaming down her small face.

"I can't...Why can't I? I wanted too..."

She wanted her father to pay attention to her too, but she knew deep down, that would be impossible.

"Why...?"

She wondered, and someone answered her question with two soft knocks were heard at the window. Hands hurting and tears draining from her face, she looked at the source of that sound. There he was, literally glued to the wall, staring at her with that expressionless face.

"Onii-san..."

She immediately opened the window. At the same instant, Toru rushed in and with his hands in his pockets, he looked at the stone on the desk that glowed faintly with a blue light like the sky. The stone had small drops of fresh blood on it.

He understood the situation. In fact, because he was on the ceiling, near Sakura's room, he heard the scream and came instantly.

"You practice magic?"

"I just..."

She stopped when Toru put his hand on the stone.

"Shimikomaseru..."

The stone began to glow, twisting strangely and turning into a beautiful white flame. The flame seemed to follow Toru's will, for when he moved his hand, the flame followed.

Sakura's eyes lit up when she saw this.

Meanwhile, with the Shigan, Toru saw how his chakra had been completely replaced by the mana of this world. He still retained his chakra system, but now he also had the magical circuits of a Magus. The reaction of the stone was proof of that.

"Ninshū. That is what ninjutsu was called in those primordial times. Ninjutsu is the art of the ninja, the art of manipulating the body's energy. That is ninjutsu, something akin to magic."

Toru looked at the girl and narrowed his eyes.

"Now do you understand what magic is? The concept is simple, the practice is the problem."

She is someone with a hidden talent that was overshadowed by her reserved personality.

When he saw Sakura in that situation, he somehow saw himself reflected in her.

It was upsetting for him to remember that because he felt something horrible in the bottom of his heart. What is that feeling? He was already starting to get familiar with it.

Sakura didn't know how to answer. So Toru approached her and took her hands.

"If you can control ninjutsu, you can control magic."

Toru's hands glowed in a dull greenish light and Sakura's wounds slowly began to heal. She felt the pain fade and looked at Toru not knowing what to say.

He was just silent, applying that mysterious magic that healed the wounds.

"How do you feel now?"

"That... That was amazing. Onii-san is an amazing magician!"

Toru corrected.

"I'm not a mage. I'm a ninja."

A ninja who used strange magic.

Toru's magic was so impressive that it left her speechless. It was something perfect and beautiful. In fact, the flame is still burning in the stone on the desk.

He reached out his hand and the flame went out even though he was more than two meters away.

"I... will I ever be able to make magic as beautiful as yours?"

At the question, he looked her in the eye and said:

"My magic is designed to cause harm to people, it's not something that exists to look good."

But if Sakura wanted to learn, it was her decision and no one else's.

"But..."

Again he grabbed Sakura's hands and pulled them together, forming the ram seal.

"Hand seals exist to flow chakra/mana through the body. We mould that energy through the hand seals and a lot of practice. Trial and error; nothing will be perfect in the beginning. It will be like rolling a random dice. Over time, with training, you will be able to manipulate that randomness, turning it into whatever you imagine it to be".

The principle of ninjutsu, the principle of magic. Explaining it this way was the best option for Sakura to understand.

"Imagine..."

Letting go of the girl's hands, Toru walked over to the window.

"Don't ever do something that will hurt you again. If you want to learn magic, you must first be supervised by someone who knows about it. That way you'll avoid trouble. Goodbye."

As quickly as it came, fading into the darkness of the night with an icy breeze, it disappeared completely.

Sakura looked at the window silently and saw a black feather fall on the window frame. She picked up the feather and looked at it silently.

"Onii-san..."

-The next morning-

The sun was already up and Sakura got up quite early this time, as there was one thing that she couldn't get off her mind and that didn't let her sleep last night either.

Getting out of bed excitedly, still wearing her pajamas, she undressed as she walked to the wardrobe.

She opened the doors and picked out the clothes she would wear today. With determination in her eyes, she chose clothes that, even if they get dirty, will be easy to wash, as she already had something planned to do for the day.

She left the room with her hair done and with little boots and long socks in her hands. Dressed in a sky blue blouse and a long black knee-length skirt, she now had only one person on her mind. So she quickly pulled on the long stockings and boots and walked out into the garden of the mansion.

"Onii-san!"

She called out to him as soon as she stepped out of the mansion.

"What...?"

He said, appearing out of nowhere like a ghost.

Sakura was a bit startled by how fast Toru appeared, but the scare passed when she saw the boy's speed.

"How can you be so fast?"

That was the first thing this girl asked when she saw him. She had already asked that question a thousand times and Toru had already answered it a thousand times.

By this point, Sakura had forgotten what she came here to do. When she remembered that, the expression on her face changed to a more serious one and she looked Toru in the eyes.

"Onii-san..."

Though afterwards she felt embarrassed for asking something like that so suddenly. She thought it would be an annoyance to Toru so it made it difficult for her to express what she felt.

He noticed this, so he crouched down and looked at her waiting patiently.

"Can you... can you teach me magic?"

With that question, Toru pondered for a few seconds. In view of the fact that there's nothing interesting to do in this mansion and that Heaven's Feel is still a year away, he could see this as an opportunity to hang out without getting bored. Besides, he already mentioned the basics of ninjutsu to this girl, so it might be interesting to try.

"I could give it a try. It'll be a good experience."

"Really?!"

"Yeah..."

That was how it all started.

-In the present-

"Now with Fūton. Try using it."

"Yes, Onii-san."

Sakura clasped her hands together and as quickly as she could, connected the seals. She placed the hand with the ram seal at chin level and then....

"Fūton... Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu..."

She blew with all the power of her lungs.

Toru put his hand in front of the girl's face to check if she managed to mould the mana into wind, but he only felt this girl's breath touching his palm.

When she ran out of air, Sakura took a breath and looked at Toru.

"Did I make it?"

He shook his head.

"No. It was just you blowing the air out of your lungs."

"Ugh... it's so hard."

"It's normal for it to be difficult. Although, unlike you, it was a lot harder for me than you think. It only took you two weeks to control an element to some extent. Do you know how long it took me?"

"No..."

"Almost four years."

"..."

Sakura certainly has the talent to use ninjutsu and magic, unlike Toru, who was born without the talent and had to push himself to the limits of his own body to achieve it. With this, Sakura understood that, in the matter of talent, she surpasses Toru by far. This led her to become more serious. She didn't want to betray her mentor's expectations, as it seemed that Toru himself understood the potential of this girl, so she didn't want to waste this opportunity.

"Putting that aside. Let me show you again how to release the wind element."

He clasped his hands together and connected the seals so that Sakura can see and memorize them.

"Fūton [Wind Style]"

He inhaled a large amount of air and expelled it as a loud puff that pushed the leaves of the trees forcefully.

"Now it's your turn. Let's see if you can control more than one element besides earth."

"Yes..."

Sakura continued her arduous training.

-Later-

They both walked through the shopping area of Fuyuki.

Sakura ate an ice cream while Toru just walked silently beside this girl.

After the training, Sakura took a bath and felt like going for a walk for a while, leading the two to this situation.

Toru, a bit overwhelmed, looked at Sakura. What he saw in this girl didn't make sense.

'She's a bit scary..."

It took him years to learn how to use the elements fire and wind, to combine them and create the Shakuton. However, Sakura, in two weeks, managed to use three elements.

That wasn't normal at all, but considering that there were prodigies in the Shinobi World like the Senju or the Uchiha, it was no wonder that there were prodigies in this world as well.

'Fire, wind and earth... she can control those three elements and it is possible that she is also able to control the water element and lightning, but..."

Remembering Sakura blowing a small flame, sprouting a small lump of earth and blowing the leaves of a tree with finesse, she only lacked controlling the remaining two elements to be an elemental master.

'It's surprising. Mages are supposed to control only the element they were born with, unless they study for years, but it seems that the hand seals somehow affect the form of magic in this world. Perhaps mages could control all elements through ninjutsu. With this, how does my knowledge affect this world? I'm interested in experimenting a little'

And to test that theory, Sakura would be the perfect guinea pig.

"Onii-san..."

Toru had been overthinking things, as Sakura had already been waving her ice cream in front of the boy's face for a long while.

"What's wrong?"

"Don't you want ice cream?"

"Uh..."

Sweet stuff...

"No, thanks. That's fine."

"But it's good. Come on, try some. Just a little bit."

"..."

Seeing the innocent smile of this little girl, he somehow saw a part of himself reflected in her. This was the reason why he always accepted everything she said.

Like that child whose childhood was denied to him, maybe he just didn't want this girl to be the same.

'Haa... Would I ever have thought this in my life as a shinobi?'

He relaxed his shoulders and ducked his head a little. He licked the ice cream and quickly returned to his butler position.

At the sight of him, Sakura gave him another smile and continued eating with a slightly flushed face.

'An indirect kiss...'

She thought.

Toru could only pout at the taste of ice cream. Sweet things were definitely not something he liked.

"Where are we going now, Sakura."

"Hm... I have no idea. I always go to the park with Okaa-sama and Rin. I think we should visit other places, but I can't think of anything."

Seeing something specific, Toru shoved his hands in his pockets.

"I can suggest something, but I'm not sure if it will be to your liking."

"Uh? What is it? Tell me!"

"First finish your ice cream."

And as if it was an absolute command, not caring if her brain froze, Sakura swallowed the rest of the ice cream in one bite. Toru stopped dead in his tracks and bent down thinking Sakura would choke on the ice cream, but she only coughed while touching her head in pain.

To be continued...