Editing Ghost Hunt:Volume 8 Chapter 8 (section)

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“After I send you back to your body, do it again by yourself.”

“...okay.”

“When you get back, become very tense and gather your body together.”

“Become tense?”

“Right. Focus on your whole body, and you should raise both hands. Cross your fingers in front of your chest.”

“Like this?”

When I tried it, he nodded.

“Yeah. Then, breathe slowly and count your breaths. One after the other, release the tension from your fingertips.”

“I don’t quite understand.”

“Focus on your whole body and breathe slowly. As you breathe, turn your consciousness to how you’re breathing. Inhale and exhale repeatedly three times, then, to start, release the tension from your fingers.”

“Three times, huh?”

“However many times you do it is fine. Every three times, gradually release the tension. After the fingers are the wrists, and after the wrists are the elbows. After you release the tension from your shoulders, release it from your legs this time. From the fingers is just like with the arms. Release it from each joint in turn. —Do you understand?”

“Yeah. I understand.”

“After the tension is released from your limbs, release it from your torso in order from your waist this time. Your posture will relax, but don’t worry. If you’re about to fall over, then you can fall over.”

“Okay.”

“Release the tension up to your neck and after it's released from your whole body, think about Kirishima. It only has to be a vague awareness. If you can’t focus on him well, then recall the will-o’-the-wisps in the waiting room. It’s also okay to recall the word ‘Kirishima.’”

“...got it.”

“When it’s time to wake up, remember your body. You have to do this in order to return safely.”

“Okay. I’ll try. —But, how do I persuade him?”

Naru smiled elegantly.

“Imbue him with light.”

“Light?”

“Yeah. —Even I don’t understand it well, but I feel that the idea that there’s a heaven and there’s a hell is correct in a sense. —A person is made up of ‘body’ and ‘spirit’.”

“Yeah.”

“I think the ‘spirit’ is made up of two more things. These are ‘soul’ and ‘ego’. There is the word ‘will’, but when you think about it, this is made up of ‘desire’ and ‘aspiration’.”

“Hmm...”

“This ‘ego’ envelops the ‘soul’. I think it’s easy to understand by thinking about the ‘ego’ as a membrane and the ‘soul’ as water. The ‘soul’ is a shapeless substance and the ‘ego’ works to regulate its form. Since the membrane known as the ‘ego’ is transparent, the color of the water known as the ‘soul’, which is inside, can be seen through it. I think that the shape and color produced by the ‘ego’ and the ‘soul’ is the ‘spirit’.”

“Really.”

“Furthermore, the ‘soul’ is made up of particles of ‘feeling’ just like water is made up of oxygen and hydrogen. There are positive and negative particles of ‘feeling’. The positive particles emit light, and the negative particles absorb light.”

“Does that mean the positive ‘feeling’ shines and the negative ‘feeling’ is dark?”

“Right. The positive ‘feeling’ is light and the negative ‘feeling’ is darkness. Through the actions of the ‘soul’, these two particles are constantly produced and emitted outside the membrane known as the ‘ego’. —Do you understand?”

“I feel like… I understand.”

“Since the positive particles are light, they steadily rise and since the negative particles are heavy, they sink. Then, the light and darkness gather together and produce large areas.”

“That’s heaven and hell, right?”

Naru nodded.

“When a person dies, he becomes only ‘spirit.’ At that time, if the ‘soul’ contains a lot of negative particles, the ‘spirit’ is heavy, so it will sink. Conversely, if it contains a lot of positive particles, it can ascend.”

“Both Kirishima-[[Ghost_Hunt:Volume8_Translator's_Notes#Sensei|sensei]] and the children sank down because they had too many negative ‘feelings’, right?”

“Exactly. As the ‘spirit’ steadily sinks, since the positive ‘feelings’ are light, the effort to rise increases and they’re expelled outside the ‘spirit’. As a result, since it will become even heavier and sink, it becomes easier for even more positive particles to be expelled. By doing so… it will eventually become only negative particles.”

“Is that what an evil spirit is?”

“—Yeah.”

Saying that, Naru cast his eyes downward.

“...All of them didn’t want to die. So they’re unable to accept the fact that they died. They were scared and sad. And now they’re lonely and bitter. Like that, even if they remain in this world, they’re unable to be content at all. This world is not theirs anymore. The joy that was in this world can never be obtained again.”

“...poor things...”

Naru made a slightly wistful smile.

“They’ve fully accumulated negative ‘feelings’ and are sinking to the dark bottom. Thus, the thing that’s necessary to save them is to imbue them with light. Imbue them with positive ‘feelings’. As a result, they’ll become lighter and be able to rise, and if they rise, it becomes easier to take in the positive ‘feelings’.”

“But...how?”

“First, you have to turn into light yourself, Mai.”

“Turn into light?”

“Right. The positive ‘feeling’ is a warm, gentle emotion. It can’t be pity. Even sympathy is bad. Feel genuinely gentle and then speak to them. Then the positive particles will be released along with your words.”

“It’s difficult, isn’t it?”

Naru smiled.

“It’s not difficult at all. You only have to remember a moment when you felt very genuinely gentle or a time when you had truly warm thoughts.”

...a warm, gentle memory…

“There are some people who don’t feel like that, but you’re different. —Right?”

“I wonder.”

“Some people sink to the negative area while alive. Actually, life and death aren’t related to the way the ‘spirit’ exists. However, the ‘ego’ of a living person is thick. Therefore, no matter how much they emit positive particles, it doesn’t quite reach the inside of another person. Because of this, it’s difficult for others to save living people.”

“...is the ‘ego’ of a deceased person thin?”

“Very thin. Believe in yourself. You’re absolutely capable.”

“...okay.”

Naru smiled and then gently pushed my shoulder. All of a sudden, Naru’s figure became distant. 

Suddenly, I felt the sensation of returning to myself.

My cramped palms twitched.

Darkness spread out before my eyes. Only the front window was faintly bright.

I lifted my body, which had been leaning on the door.

“Naru...”

I somehow understood. If I was able to emerge from my body like that, then it wouldn’t be necessary for Naru to do it. It seemed Naru must have put me in a trance state in order to give me suggestions. Since we’re separated and he’s unable to do it, then…

Surely that’s it.

I’m not dreaming about Naru. I’m really meeting him.

—Ah, I think so.

Masako said that once. It was during that time when she was caught by the spirit. Naru was with her. Surely, Naru went to encourage her.

“...incredible. It’s unimaginable.”

For him to do such a thing…

But, the Naru I meet when I’m away from my body is very gentle. If it’s the ‘spirit’ that leaves the body and the ‘ego’ becomes thinner without the body, then doesn’t that mean it’s easier to see the truth of another person whose ‘spirit’ is away from the body? If so, it may be that kind of thing. He’s probably gentle to that extent deep inside….

“I...like Naru...”