Crossover Anime: I'm at Shuchiin Academy, and my surname is Uchiha.

Chapter 166 A Bond That Cannot Be Formed Will Only Increase Loneliness

25 years ago, Hinatsuru Akina was 8 years old and a primary school student.

At that time, Hinatsuru Onsen Ryokan was just starting out. Because of its proximity to Shuchiin, the Hinatsuru family was considered one of the wealthier families in the area.

Because the Hina Crane Inn is located at the foot of the mountain, the young cranes often go up the mountain for walks and to gather wild vegetables, mushrooms, or wild fruits from the low trees.

But that night, the fledgling crane, who was very familiar with this mountain path, lost its way in the forest.

It was already late, and a light rain began to fall from the dim sky. The eight-year-old fledgling crane stumbled upon the shady spot by the pond, seeking shelter from the rain.

The baby crane was cold, but being so young, she didn't know how to start a fire, nor could she find her way back.

After all, the road between that pond and the inn had not yet been opened, and the fledgling crane dared not venture into the forest where it was difficult to discern directions in the rain.

Meanwhile, the firefly was hiding not far away, watching the little girl who was about to get wet in the drizzle. She didn't know whether she should go forward or not. Humans can't see their own spirits, and even if she went over... she would probably be ignored.

So she transformed into a firefly that could be seen by humans and flew to the little girl.

"They're fireflies..."

The fledgling crane slowly reached out its hand to let the firefly land in its palm, then used its other hand to shield it from the wind and rain.

"Little firefly, don't come out now that it's raining, you'll get wet."

The firefly in its form chuckled softly. This little human girl was almost soaked by the rain, yet she was still worried about the firefly in her hand.

And so, the firefly flew out of the baby crane's hand and transformed into a spirit. To its surprise, the baby crane also stared wide-eyed at the firefly's spirit form, completely bewildered.

"Can she see me?" Firefly didn't think much of it. Instead, she took out an extra golden yukata, draped it over the fledgling crane, and directed the fireflies to guide the fledgling crane on its way home.

Although she wore an extra yukata, the little crane still had a fever for three days after returning to the inn because she was still very thin.

According to Hinatsuru Akina's own account, during her fever, she dreamed of many fireflies and a blonde older sister who handed her a yukata.

After his condition improved, the little crane thought of the older sister who had saved him. This was definitely not a dream, because the golden yukata was right next to his bed.

The little crane, clutching the clothes, wanted to find the pond again and return the clothes to the older sister. Although it didn't know if the older sister was still there, the little crane still wanted to go there!

A few days later, the little crane finally found the pond, but still couldn't find its older sister.

Just as the little crane was about to take her yukata back, she tripped over a stone by the lake and accidentally threw the yukata out, where it landed on the lake.

The lake water looked quite deep. After the fledgling crane got up, it didn't worry about hurting itself from the fall. Instead, it looked helplessly at its yukata, which was about to be swallowed by the lake water.

Just then, the firefly, which had been watching the baby crane but had no intention of coming out, manifested its spirit form on the lake and retrieved the clothes.

"Ah! It's that blonde lady from that day!"

Hotaru, who was about to pack up her yukata and leave, paused for a moment, then looked at the little girl by the lake.

"Can you see me?"

"Why can't I see it? And the older sister is actually floating on the water, that's amazing!"

The firefly, who had never been in contact with humans before, came ashore and looked curiously at the little girl who could see it.

That day, Firefly and Little Crane talked about many things, but before leaving, Firefly refused Little Crane's "goodbye" and said that it should be "farewell forever".

One of them is a demon, and the other is a human. It is fate that they should not be together, otherwise they would only increase their loneliness.

Like humans and fireflies, humans can live for a hundred years, while adult fireflies only live for a few days. If a person becomes friends with a firefly, they can only silently watch the firefly's life fade away...

Firefly didn't want to, and dared not, stay with a human whose lifespan was no more than a hundred years. She was afraid of how lonely she would become after the baby crane died.

The little crane didn't understand any of this, because she already regarded this older sister as her benefactor and friend.

Picking up her wet yukata again, the little crane said she would wash herself clean and then come back.

The next day, no matter how much the fledgling crane called out, Firefly just watched silently from the shadows. She had no intention of having any deep interaction with humans; this little girl was just a passerby in her life.

The little crane sat by the lake, wondering why this gentle older sister, with whom she had chatted so well just yesterday, had left without even saying goodbye.

She waited for several hours, just when Firefly thought the human child would forget her and go home.

For some reason, the little crane suddenly stood up and angrily threw the bathrobe, which it had just washed clean, into the lake.

The fireflies reappeared—

"These are clothes I gave you, don't throw them into the water every time!"

"Ah! Big sister! Hehe, I knew big sister was still here. Could it be that throwing clothes into the water is how to summon big sister?!"

Firefly couldn't help but smile wryly, then went to the shore and sat down with the baby crane.

Never mind! Although a person's lifespan is only a hundred years, I will protect this child who can see me forever! After all, this is the first human friend she has ever had in her life!

On this day, they became each other's first human (yokai) friends.

I thought I could stay by her side and protect her, but a month after Little Crane went to elementary school, when she came back... her eyes suddenly lost their glow.

Even though the firefly was standing right in front of the little girl, even though she reached out to touch her, she didn't notice at all. Although the fledgling crane would come to the lake every day to call for the firefly to come back... she could never see the firefly standing right in front of her.

"Sister Ying! Sister Ying! Where are you? I can't see you, please come out!"

The little crane clutched its yukata and cried out, tears streaming down its face.

But the fledgling crane still couldn't see, so it stood in front of the firefly. With tears streaming down its face, the fledgling crane threw its yukata into the lake again.

This time, however, the method to summon fireflies failed, and the yukata sank to the bottom of the lake. In the end, the little crane had to ask an adult for help and it took a lot of effort to retrieve it.

"Sister Ying, I'm in junior high now... and I've made a lot of new friends, but why don't you want to come out and see me? I'll always be waiting for you!"

"Sister Ying, high school life is so tiring, but I will study hard. When I get into university, can you come back to see me?"

"Sister Ying... please come out. Do you hate Hina-Tsuru anymore?"

"Sister Ying, I'm getting married, and from now on I'll stay at Hinatsuru Inn. And... I'll come to see you every day."

For 25 years, Hinatsuru Akina has grown up and gotten married, but she still makes time to come to the lake every day, hoping that the person will reappear.

The story is over. From Hinatsuru Ashina's perspective, no one knows where Hotaru went.

Yukino's guess is that the Ying-jie (Sister Ying) was just traveling and passing through this place; her hometown is actually in a very far place where she would disappear.

After all, Yukinoshita doesn't believe that monsters exist. As do Fujiwara Chika and Chitanda, while comforting Hinatsuru Akina, they also believe they have solved the mystery of the Fuchi Pond.

The so-called "Abyss Pond" is simply where the owner of the young crane shop often goes to wash clothes and then hangs them out to dry. Everything else is just a rumor! After all, how could there possibly be monsters in this world, right?

Uchiha Ryo suddenly raised his head and turned his gaze to the window, looking at the blonde woman sitting by the window.

Just as he was about to say something, Yingguang pointed a finger and shushed him, indicating that he didn't need Uchiha Ling to relay anything.

As she said, a relationship that has no inherent meaning will only increase loneliness if you continue to connect with it.

The firefly flew behind the young crane, Ayane, and wrapped its arms around her neck, though she couldn't feel or hear it. But the firefly still wanted to speak...

Thank you for being my first human friend, but I truly don't want you to stay in this hotel forever. If possible, I'd like to accompany you to see the magnificent mountain scenery, to see the beautiful valleys, and to walk with you through this wonderful yet short life.

What do humans call this feeling?