Chapter 332: The Black and White Panda
In her dreams, the little tiger felt herself wrapped in soft, fluffy clouds. Floating around her were those unprecedentedly delicious fried meat patties she had just eaten. Being an agile creature, the little tiger leapt up with her mouth wide open, intent on biting into one. However, she found her body wouldn't obey; she tumbled directly onto the ground, her upper and lower teeth slamming together with a sharp clack.
The pain brought tears to her eyes and snapped her awake from her slumber. She opened her eyes wide in confusion, looking at her surroundings.
"Gaa...? Ga-ga!!" Upon waking, the little tiger realized she couldn't move and let out a panicked cry.
At some point, she had been bundled up in the soft, warm down blanket Shirou carried. She was wrapped tightly from the neck down, bound securely with vines from the outside. Her paws and legs were trapped inside the bedding, unable to swing, kick, or pull free.
Currently, the little tiger looked like a "futon monster" with only its head sticking out.
Because it suited her so perfectly, and since Shirou didn't know her true name, he took the liberty of naming her Fujimura Tiger. As for the fact that her movements were impossibly agile—more like a leopard than a tiger—he decided not to dwell on it.
In terms of kendo, Shirou had never once managed to beat his teacher, Fuji-nee. When he was young and first came to the Emiya household, he had been looked after by this older girl from next door. Though Fuji-nee didn't have many merits besides her kendo and her high spirits, her companionship had been a true lifesaver.
Taiga Fujimura—shortened to "Tiger"—held the highest kendo rank for her age group: Fujimura 5th Dan.
In Japan, kendo and kyudo are not merely competitive sports or graded like musical instruments. After obtaining the 1st Dan, one must practice and consolidate for a year before being eligible for the 2nd Dan. Then, another two years of consolidation are required for the 3rd Dan. Each rank increases the required waiting period by a year.
During her school years, Taiga's kendo was always at a national championship level. she earned her 1st Dan at fourteen, her 5th Dan at twenty-four, and was on track to reach the 8th Dan by age forty-two. The 9th and 10th Dans above that are only awarded to those who have made extraordinary contributions to the art.
Kendo has even more schools than kyudo, ranging from those emphasizing spiritual cultivation to those advocating for practical combat on the battlefield. Generally, a practitioner of any school holding a 6th Dan can apply for the instructor's exam to officially take disciples. By the 8th Dan, one is qualified to found their own style.
So even if Fuji-nee were fired as an English teacher, she would never have to worry about making a living; members of the Fujimura Group would join her dojo in a never-ending stream under the guise of training.
Even in high school, during games of hitting heads with paper fans or newspapers, it was the same. That woman possessed a powerful physique and mental strength purely through training. Even against a Heroic Spirit's curse, she could recover after a night's sleep, and her luck was beyond the ordinary.
During the Fifth Holy Grail War, any students who stayed with her—even if injured—recovered fully after treatment. She herself emerged almost unscathed, always managing to turn danger into safety.
In fact, when Shirou went to the London Clock Tower with Rin, he asked Fuji-nee to buy a retro game console. She wandered into a random second-hand shop and, for very little money, found a discontinued console highly sought after by collectors, earning high praise from Lord El-Melloi II himself.
Shirou often felt that there might be a special karmic connection between these two teachers from different countries and fields.
Returning to a child's body seemed to make Shirou sentimental. He frequently reminisced about his childhood, and seeing this little tiger so similar to Fuji-nee filled him with nostalgia. He wondered how Fuji-nee was faring back in Fuyuki after he had left Japan and passed away.
As Shirou was lost in memory, the little tiger noticed Lion Saber nearby, who had her eyes squinted in delight, a pink aura of happiness radiating behind her as she ate merrily. Seeing her eat with such gusto, the little tiger couldn't help but drool. Recalling that peerless flavor from earlier, she was willing to do anything if it meant eating something that good again.
Just then, a fried meat patty appeared before her eyes. Shirou looked at the little tiger and said, "I know you can understand me. I'll give you some of the patty, but in exchange, you have to be good. No more pouncing! Understood?"
"Ga-oh! Oh-oh-oh!" Little Fujimura Tiger nodded repeatedly. Regardless of the conditions, she just wanted to eat the delicious food first.
The little tiger squinted happily as she bit into the patty, but from the corner of her eye, she was actually sizing up the human child who gave her food and untied her. Beast-girls possessed incredible combat abilities while retaining their natural instincts; they were as sensitive as human infants and could sense whether a person was sincere or hypocritical.
Every word and action from the human child before her was profoundly sincere. There was an inexplicable sense of closeness, like facing one's own kin. The little tiger remembered feeling something similar only when she was a cub nursing in her mother's arms.
The more Fujimura Tiger looked at this child, the more he suited her fancy. Earlier, she had caught a wonderful scent and felt he would be delicious to eat, so she had pounced without a second thought. She hadn't even noticed that he already had a little lion beast-girl with him.
Falling into such a state was only due to a moment of carelessness. Otherwise, as the "Big Boss" of this area, even if there were things in the great forest she couldn't beat, there was nothing she couldn't escape from.
But now it seemed the human child was quite sensible and surprisingly good at taking care of beasts. It might not be a bad choice to take him in as a subordinate.
Since the fried patties were so good, she decided not to eat the human child for now. The little tiger—who had originally planned to burst out of the vines, kidnap the child while the lion wasn't looking, and vanish into the jungle—changed her mind.
'To show my friendship, I might even let him pet my beautiful fur...'
Shirou finally untied the vines, only to find the little tiger had retracted her claws. She lay on her side on the blanket and used her curled tail to pull at Shirou's hand, inviting him to sit.
Shirou looked at the flopped tiger in surprise and asked, "Eh? Was I tying you too tight? Did I hurt you? Are you feeling unwell?"
"Ga-oh..." Fujimura Tiger swayed her body, pulling Shirou with her tail and chirping urgently: I'm only letting you pet me for a little bit.
Seeing that she wasn't resistant, Shirou checked her body, gently massaging the spots that might have been bruised.
"Ga-oh... purrr." Laying on the down blanket, Fujimura Tiger had long since abandoned her dignity. Under Shirou's massage, her entire body went limp. She let out a contented, cat-like purr from her throat, her back legs twitching rhythmically in pleasure.
'What is this? What is up with this human child? This high-level petting technique, this fur-smoothing method... is he some master who has raised rare and exotic beasts?! Yes! Yes! This feeling! I can't leave you now!'
"Haha, is it that comfortable?" Shirou asked as his hands applied slight pressure to the massage.
'Purr... so good! Please massage me more! I've fallen in love with this feeling, purr!' Fujimura Tiger wore an ecstatic expression of enjoyment.
"Eh? What? It's that good? What a cute little thing," Shirou said with a smile. Because she reminded him of the long-lost Fuji-nee, he was exceptionally doting toward the little tiger.
Meanwhile, Lion Saber, having finished her patty, was stunned by the scene. It was like a bolt from the blue. Tears of anxiety welled in her eyes as she jumped onto Shirou's lap, rolling over to indicate that she also wanted belly rubs and grooming!
"Alright, alright, what's wrong? Why are you suddenly acting so spoiled?" Shirou smiled and agreed, attending to the little lion.
"Purr... paradise, paradise. I am satisfied." "Purr-purr... Shirou is mine!"
Receiving Shirou's massage service, the two beast-girls lay limp on the down blanket with blissful expressions. Shirou continued to stroke them until they were satisfied. It wasn't exactly a chore; the soft, silky fur and the feline paw pads of the two children were quite tempting to the touch.
"Now, let's get to know each other properly. I'm Shirou. If you're willing, stay with us for a while," the boy said, pulling another meat patty from his pack and offering it to the little tiger as an invitation.
Raising kids was all the same—if you can raise one, you can raise two or three. It was just another bowl of food; it wasn't a problem.
Fujimura Tiger understood his words and nodded repeatedly. She looked up with a sweet smile and managed to bark out: "Shi-rou!"
"Eh? You can speak?" Shirou asked in surprise.
However, the beast-girl was not the real Fuji-nee. Little Tiger's vocabulary of human speech was quite limited; for now, she could only repeat Shirou's name without saying anything else. It seemed there were differences even among beast-girls; while all were highly intelligent, their animal instincts and adaptability to humans varied.
"Shi-rou! Gaa!" Fujimura Tiger barked happily while hopping around.
"So you can only say that one phrase..." Shirou said, amused. It really did fit Fuji-nee's style.
"Awoo!" Lion Saber roared, unwilling to be outdone.
"Yes, yes, I won't forget you." Shirou took out two more leaf-wrapped patties and placed them before the little lion.
"Shi-rou! Gaa!" The finished Fujimura Tiger raised her small paws and shouted.
"Here, here." Shirou had no choice but to bring out more patties.
"Awoo! Awoo!" Lion Saber shouted again.
Soon, a large bag of fried meat patties was devoured by the two cute animals. Shirou thought helplessly, It looks like I'll have to hunt a large animal before nightfall, or dinner won't be guaranteed. In terms of appetite, they truly are apex predators.
"Alright, alright, let's keep heading inside. Surely something is waiting for me there," Shirou said, picking up his walking stick.
Lion Saber and Fujimura Tiger barked in agreement, raising their bone club and bamboo spear.
"Awoo! Awoo!" Along the way, the little lion waved her paws, seemingly lecturing the new feline companion, acting like a King disciplining a fresh recruit.
'Newbie, since Shirou agreed to let you join, I guess you can follow. But you must understand the order of arrival. The Lion King's will comes first! Shirou's hugs and lap belong to me! And at mealtime, you wait until I've eaten before you start...'
"Gaa..." But Fujimura Tiger was thinking about important things and wasn't listening.
'When is dinner? I want to eat more yummy things.'
Shirou gazed at the sky through the gaps in the giant trees. Judging by the growth direction of the leaves, the sun was starting its descent to the west.
"Alright, let's push forward for another hour, then find a place to camp and prepare to hunt for dinner," Shirou told his companions.
Time spent in the dark, dense forest felt both long and short. It was like walking in a tunnel where one could easily lose their sense of direction and time. Everything was perpetually dim, as if time stood still, but if one didn't snap out of it until the sky changed color, it would already be pitch black outside. However, for the creatures living here, it was merely normal life.
"I'm looking for a fruit tree that tastes salty... like the taste of sweat. Do you know of any plants like that nearby?" Shirou asked the little tiger.
"Gaa!" Fujimura Tiger thought for a moment and nodded immediately. She was the boss of this forest section and knew other areas well. Relying on her speed and luck, she spent her idle time wandering into the territories of other powerful beasts and getting chased out; such things were daily occurrences for her.
Little Shirou! Leave it to me! Fujimura Tiger patted her small chest, lifted her bamboo spear, and hopped ahead to lead the way.
Following the little tiger into the dense woods and pushing through thickets of weeds, Shirou eventually saw a fruit tree laden with tiny round berries. This was the Chinese Sumac (Rhus chinensis), whose fruit skins produce white salty crystals. It generally grows in warm or tropical regions, and in this diverse forest, it was indeed present.
These crystals aren't actually sodium chloride but organic acids with a salty taste. However, as a seasoning, they were perfect. Shirou gathered a bag of the fruit and crystals, enough to last for several weeks. In medicine, this plant is also known as Galla Chinensis, a common herbal medicine that is sour, salty, and cooling—used for clearing heat, detoxifying, stopping bleeding, and preventing diarrhea.
Looking around the humid ground, Shirou found other medicinal fruit trees and spice plants as well.
"This is a great spot. No beasts around, edible fruit, leaves that can be blanched or stir-fried, and roots that can be stewed with bones," Shirou said, considering setting up camp right here.
Just then, a loud buzzing sound came from above. It was too loud for an insect. Shirou looked up and saw a mosquito with a body the size of an adult man's palm. Its proboscis looked like a medical syringe. Given its capacity, it looked like it could drain more blood than a donation tube.
"On second thought, let's find a place without insects," Shirou said, wiping cold sweat. He felt that in his current small body, he might not even be enough to fill that mosquito up.
Lion Saber and the little tiger nodded in unison, in complete agreement.
Eventually, led by the little tiger, Shirou found a massive camphor tree. It was a rare sanctuary. Under the protection of the camphor tree, which has natural insect-repelling properties, they finally didn't have to worry about bites. Shirou set up camp there.
Along the way, the little lion seemed unhappy about the new member. However, when Fujimura Tiger wandered off and quickly brought back several wild rabbits that had seemingly "run into trees" and died, she wholeheartedly accepted the newcomer.
Shirou had to project his black-and-white Yin-Yang kitchen set to process the rabbits, which were the size of modern pigs and weighed at least two hundred pounds. For some reason, everything here was giant; even rabbits were this big. Humans were at the bottom of the food chain here. It took effort for the small Shirou to process these beasts, but he didn't doubt his cooking would be devoured instantly by the two little animals.
Then, the little lion returned, dragging a wild boar the size of an elephant with the help of the little tiger. By now, Shirou was somewhat used to it, concluding: In this world, physical size and combat power are two entirely different things.
Once everything was ready, the rabbit meat was stewed with gathered spices in several tall iron pots until it was melt-in-the-mouth tender. On the other side, the wild boar was skinned and carved into chops with magnificent knife skills, brushed with salty fruit jam for flavor, and grilled on a rack over the fire.
Shirou fished out the crunchy rabbit ears, seasoned them, and placed them on two plates before the children. Eating such large, fatty rabbit ears was quite satisfying. Shirou kept grilling and stewing, placing the cooked meat into the bowls of the lion and the tiger. They buried their heads in the food and didn't stop once they started.
Finally, Lion Saber and Fujimura Tiger ate until their bellies were distended like over-inflated balloons. Completely satisfied, they didn't want to move a muscle and fell asleep right on the blanket.
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The next morning, Shirou woke to find the two little animals cuddled together in a friendly embrace, sleeping soundly. They slept so sweetly that even Shirou making breakfast didn't wake them. So, Shirou prepared the gear himself.
He simply placed the well-fed, sleepy lion and tiger into his backpack and set off. The forest was larger than he imagined; even with Reinforcement magecraft aiding his pace, he needed to hurry.
Shirou passed through the jungle area controlled by the little tiger and headed deeper into the forest. Time passed quickly, and by the time the sun reached its zenith, the scenery suddenly changed. Most of this area consisted of straight, towering bamboo.
This sea of green was a rare and magnificent sight—not just in its staggering quantity, but in its variety. There was Makino bamboo for making swords, Moso bamboo for papermaking, arrow bamboo, tiger bamboo, light green bamboo, and dark black bamboo. There were a hundred varieties distinguishable at a glance; it was a bamboo museum.
The segments of the bamboo were like cylinders. The thickest stalk actually exceeded a hundred meters in diameter. Shirou walked around the base of this giant stalk and counted several hundred steps. Even more incredible, this pillar rose high into the sky, its middle section obscured by layers of white clouds. It hadn't been blown over; it was like a Tower of Babel built by nature.
The cone-shaped bamboo shoots newly emerging from the ground were tender and massive. Cutting just one would be enough to feed him for a day.
As Shirou prepared to go deeper, Lion Saber and Fujimura Tiger woke up and looked at the surroundings.
"Shi-rou! Shi-rou!" Suddenly, Fujimura Tiger's eyes widened. She wore a panicked expression, jumped down, and pulled at Shirou's trouser leg, gesturing wildly with her hands and legs to warn him.
"Eh? Is there some monster here that even you find troublesome?" Shirou asked in confusion.
The little tiger nodded vigorously, imitating the monster by opening her mouth wide and blowing air toward the sky.
"Black and white... bear! Fire-breathing, gaa! Super scary!"
"Ah, I see. A fire-breathing bear." Shirou nodded, understanding. Although these beast-girls seemed to possess power rivaling Heroic Spirits, they were still wild animals at heart and thus had an innate fear of fire. Even if the monster wasn't much stronger than them, the mere fact that it breathed fire was enough to make them wary.
Shirou thought for a moment and decided to be considerate. He smiled and said, "Alright, I understand. If you don't like it, we'll bypass this area."
"Gaa." The little tiger breathed a sigh of relief and nodded, as if to say, Shirou, I'm glad you understand me.
'Wait... did I miss something? Black and white bear?! That means...' Shirou's thoughts shifted. Could it be a Giant Panda? He had to go see it!
"Gaa!!!" the little tiger cried out, feeling betrayed.
"Don't give me that look like Fuji-nee seeing a child she raised turn bad. I just want a quick look from a distance," Shirou retorted, running quickly into the bamboo forest.
"Gaa..." Fujimura Tiger had no choice but to follow.
"I knew it! They're here—Pandas! This forest really is something. Beasts that only live in China are showing up here too. I'm glad I took this detour."
If Chinese people have an innate protective instinct and doting nature toward pandas, the Japanese are fanatical enthusiasts. Shirou was no exception. Influenced by his current youthful state, he regained a child-like wonder while watching the panda.
'Though this one is a bit small... are its parents nearby?'
"Shi-rou! Shi-rou!" The little tiger beside him nervously patted the boy's leg, hoping he would notice the danger soon.
'This is the monster I told you about!!!'
"Woo? Woo?" The black and white panda, clutching a stalk of bamboo, turned its head around adorably. Revealed was a familiar face—a little girl with silver-white hair.
When she saw Shirou standing behind her, the human boy and the panda beast-girl were both stunned.
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