Love*Eyeball

Wakako took Lian's hand and sat down on a bench at the street corner.

Kasuga sunlight filtered through the branches overhead, casting dappled patterns of light on their laps.

She asked about her leg injury first. Lian said it was almost healed; her knee would still ache when she used crutches, but walking wasn't a problem.

Wakako asked her if she ate well, if rehearsals were tough, and if the people around her treated her well. Lian answered each question carefully, speaking each word earnestly.

Wakako observed.

She asked a question, and the girl answered, neither dodging nor avoiding the question, but she also didn't actively try to extend the conversation.

The child's obedience was masked by a thin layer of shell, as if he was used to not causing trouble for others and carefully maintaining a distance.

She looks exactly like Shinrei in the drama, who wears a red ribbon.

I heard that Konoha only rehearsed for a little over ten days from start to finish. She was previously marveling at how well they performed, truly befitting Ninjas, even something as heartfelt as acting.

It seems that when Izuna wrote the lines, he was aiming for their original personalities, right?

In other words--

She lowered her voice, her eyes sparkling, and asked the question she most wanted to ask, "You and Atsumori —you know, that guy? How are things going between you two?"

Lian immediately lowered her head, her sleeves wrinkled from being twisted, and her ears turned bright red. She remained silent for a moment before speaking, her voice much softer than before, "Um... actually..."

Wakako shows a gossipy look, oh~ looks like there's potential~

But after her initial shyness, Lian's expression gradually became somewhat gloomy, and she looked rather unhappy.

Wakako reached out and gently patted the back of her hand, puzzled. "What's wrong? You can tell me what's on your mind. Although I don't know much about Ninjas, I do understand relationships between men and women. Tell me, and I'll give you some advice."

Lian raised her head and looked at Wakako.

Wakako's eyes were light brown, and when illuminated by the light filtered through the tree shadows, they resembled two warm, lustrous pieces of amber.

Looking into those eyes, Lian couldn't help but speak.

"... Lady Wakako," Rei said, "Hinata and I are not allowed to be together."

"Why?"

"Because I'm from the Hyuga Clan, and Branch Family member at that, while he's from the Uchiha Clan. We're both families with Dōjutsu, so..."

"Wouldn't that be even better?" Wakako asked doubtfully. "If the two of you were together, wouldn't you have an even stronger child?"

Lian shook her head. "That's not how it is."

Wakako frowned slightly. "Do you also value bloodlines?"

"The family doesn't want to take the risk," Lian said in a low voice. "Besides, if we really get together, it will be difficult for both clans."

Wakako didn't understand the conflicts between the Shinobi Clans, but she knew one thing.

"But don't you two truly like each other?" Wakako bent down, looking down at Lian's downcast eyes. "I can tell he really likes you. All the things he gave you in the drama, I could tell they were beautiful, uniquely crafted items. If he didn't really like you, why would he buy them for you?"

Lian's fingers tightened around her sleeve. "But..."

Don't you like him?

The word "No" came out quickly, almost subconsciously.

Lian realized what she had said as soon as she finished, and a faint blush slowly crept onto her ears. "But..."

"He didn't say he wanted to be with you?"

"He said he would marry me no matter what." Lian's voice was soft, but her joy was palpable.

"Lian," Wakako placed her hand on Lian's hand, "You need to know, men are very stubborn. Since he's made up his mind to marry you, as a woman, there's only one thing you need to do: support him as much as possible, protect yourself, and wait for him to come and get you."

"But I belong to the Branch Family..." Lian's voice suddenly choked. She took a deep breath and forced out the rest of her words, "If I'm with him, I won't be able to resist when the family needs me."

Wakako's brows furrowed slowly. She had a gut feeling that something was wrong with those words. "What do you mean?"

Lian raised her hand and brushed away the stray hairs from her forehead.

A blue Cursed Seal emerged from beneath the roots of the hair, like a pattern branded onto the skin.

The patterns, shimmering with the unique glow of Chakra, seemed to reside on her smooth forehead like living things.

Wakako reached out, her fingertips stopping less than an inch from the Cursed Seal. She didn't understand Sealing Jutsu, but she instinctively disliked this blue, tattoo-like thing.

"The Hyuga Clan marks their Branch Family with this mark." Rei let her hair down. "This mark allows the Main Family to control the life and death of the Branch Family. If we disobey, they can activate the Caged Bird Seal to teach us a lesson, or simply execute us."

"They'll definitely use this to threaten me and get information about the Uchiha," Lian said worriedly. "I know that even though we've stopped fighting and made peace now, we don't really consider each other as our own people."

"Given the opportunity, they will do it. The Uchiha Clan will also consider this; they won't agree to me marrying into their family."

Wakako's brows furrowed deeper and deeper as he listened.

The rules of these Shinobi Clans are so intricate and complex that they are even more suffocating than the factional struggles within the Ōoku.

She had assumed that Uchiha Izuna, who could write such moving stories, must come from an enlightened and romantic family, but she never expected them to be so antiquated.

"I thought that Uchiha Izuna, who could write a script like this, wouldn't come from such an old-fashioned family." There was a hint of displeasure in her voice.

Rei gently shook her head, defending Izuna: "Actually, in every respect, Lord Izuna is quite unconventional within the clan. His attitude doesn't represent the entire Uchiha."

Upon Wakako immediately grasped the key point, leaned forward slightly, and asked with concern, "Then, does he approve of your relationship with Hinata?"

Two blushes rose to Lian's cheeks, her fingers unconsciously twisting her sleeve, her voice barely a whisper, "Hmm... he often teases us..."

"That's easy!" Wakako clapped her hands decisively, her previous worry vanishing completely.

She stood up, took Lian's hand, and said with an unwavering determination in her eyes, "Let's go find him now. Let's call Hinata and the others too, and go together to find him and think of a way."

"Huh?" Lian was stunned, completely unable to follow Wakako's train of thought.

Wakako slightly raised her chin, revealing a dignified and confident smile befitting a Principal Wife.

She tightened her grip on Lian's hand, her tone resolute. "With my status and the help of Uchiha Izuna's schemes, I refuse to believe I can't arrange your marriage!"

Lian's face instantly turned as red as a boiled shrimp. She waved her hands in a panic, stammering, "... Lady Wakako! I... I'm only ten years old! Marriage is too early!"

"Then let's get engaged." Wakako readily backed down, but still firmly held the initiative, smiling as she looked at the radiant young girl in front of her.

"You don't want to?"

"... I... I do!"

Meanwhile, in the public training area of Konoha.

Izuna was sitting on the wooden stake, sighing listlessly.

There weren't many little kids on the Training Ground. Those he knew well had long been taken away to work as child laborers, and those he didn't know... well, he really didn't know them.

It's not that he doesn't know any of them, but these children won't play with him.

Perhaps because he's a bit older, although I would watch him play with the other children, that was all I did.

No matter how many times he invited them, the children did not accept his kindness.

Some would bow to him and leave, others would scoff, and some children even tried to use weapons against him.

Just like Takuma back then.

Izuna caught the flying Kunai with his bare hands and looked up.

He is a child of the Senju Clan.

After throwing the Kunai, he glared at him fiercely, then tensed up, as if on guard.

As usual, Izuna sighed and then stuck the Kunai into a nearby wooden stake.

Nothing was done.

The child scoffed, but didn't leave; he continued his practice there.

Izuna looked at his control panel.

Senju Heitarō, an ordinary child in many ways, but his Ultimate Technique Illustration reads:

Damn Uchiha! I'll kill you with my own hands!

Such targeted remarks either stem from personal grudges or genuine animosity.

Sigh, he really doesn't know what to do with a child like this.

He lived in a peaceful era, and frankly, he didn't understand such intense hatred. Even if he had heard about or witnessed the tragedy, he would only feel sorry for the victims, find the situation horrible, and think that the people who caused the tragedy deserved to die.

But hatred?

That happened a long time ago, and it didn't directly affect my own interests or involve my relatives and friends. All I can do when I hear about the tragedy is to remember it and not repeat the same mistake.

But this child, and all these children, have personally experienced such a tragedy.

Izuna didn't think there was anything wrong with him disliking her, except...

It would be truly tragic if all a person could do in their entire life was this one thing.

But... they're actually quite interesting.

Izuna sat on a wooden stake, resting his chin on his hand as he watched the children training.

When one child passes by another, a spark can fly between them, and they both dislike each other.

If they don't like it, why stay here and train? Konoha is huge, and each clan should have its own Training Grounds. Why are they all crammed into this place?

Is it some kind of rivalry between sworn enemies? Or is it simply that no one wants to cede the throne? I just don't get it...

Ugh... So boring... I miss my little rascals so much...

But I've already assigned them all to be NPCs at the Amusement Park... The younger children will have to wait a while before they can escape the "clutches" of tribal education.

Those who are seventeen or eighteen years old have all gone off to take on missions...

These thirteen or fourteen-year-olds are practicing here, but they're ignoring me.

Izuna sighed again.

So boring~

Heitaro, who had just thrown Shuriken him, stiffened upon hearing his sigh and glanced in Izuna's direction.

The other children also slowed down their movements.

However, Izuna didn't realize that he was thinking about how to avoid being bored and not having to do any work.

Practicing the Biwa? Ugh... Home is too far from here... I really can't be bothered to go home...

How about we sing?

Hmm... let's find a quiet place to sing then.

But there's no point in singing if no one's listening... Songs are meant to be heard, singing alone is a bit too depressing, never mind.

How about playing Rhythm Game? Hey! That sounds good! I haven't played much lately, and I finally have some free time, so let's give it a try!

Izuna immediately got up, grabbed a tree branch from the side of the field, gestured with it a couple of times, and then began choosing a song.

Those children who appeared to be training on the sidelines but were actually secretly watching Izuna slowly stopped what they were doing when they saw Izuna standing there with a wooden stick in his hand.

Then they saw Izuna begin to dance.

The branch twirled in his hand before he gripped it firmly.

His toes lightly touched the ground, as if testing some unseen rhythm, and then his body moved.

A clean, decisive horizontal slash sent the tree branch whistling through the air.

The second move followed immediately: a backhand diagonal chop.

His steps naturally staggered with the slashes, his knees slightly bent, his center of gravity lowered, and his whole body was like a bow being drawn halfway.

As Heitaro watched this scene, he wondered, "Is he sparring with a non-existent opponent?"

After the diagonal slash, he immediately dodged to the side, twisting his waist and spine. The branch drew a narrow arc in front of him, deflecting the invisible blade. Then, using the momentum of the dodge, he leaped high into the air, gripped the branch with both hands, and delivered a slash from above his head.

Without pausing after landing, it ducked and thrust diagonally, the branch whipping out three sharp attacks in the air.

His movements flowed seamlessly, as if attacks were coming from all directions, or as if he had already anticipated the location of each attack.

The man twisted and turned his wrists and shoulders, the sound of his clothes fluttering in the wind mingling with the low rustling of tree branches cutting through the air—elegant, delicate, yet full of power.

The children were all stunned.

This was the first time Izuna had played Rhythm Game in front of other people.

Before this, when he came to this Training Ground, he would either practice with the children, sit in a corner with a Biwa and play it, or just sit there in a daze like he just did.

He had never trained here before; they were witnessing it firsthand today.

Only then did the children realize why this person never responded to their provocations.

It wasn't because he looked down on them, or because of any consideration for village unity; this guy probably genuinely meant well and didn't want to lay a hand on them.

Otherwise, they would have turned into a pile of mutton long ago.

At this moment, Izuna was completely absorbed in the rhythm of the music.

The branch spun more and more smoothly in my palm, my steps became increasingly fragmented, and even the hem of my clothes began to sway to the rhythm.

Just as he was about to enter the climax of the chorus, a powerful shout rang out from the entrance of the Training Ground.

"Lord Izuna-- "

Wakako rode on the back of the Summoning Beast, she resembled a cloud blown about by the wind, the sleeves of her yukata fluttering in the wind, and one hand was raised high above her head, waving at him.

The Ninja Cat carried her along the stone path at the edge of the Training Ground.

Behind her, a group of children ran wildly after her.

Hinata Rei ran in front, her face showing a desperate expression that said, "I tried to stop them, but I couldn't." Hinata, Takuma, Yūki, Takahiro, and a group of other children followed closely behind.

The Geta they wore during the performance made a series of crisp sounds as they tapped on the stone pavement; just listening to them made my feet hurt.

"Lady Wakako, please slow down!"

"Are all noble ladies this unrestrained now?!"

"Madam! Please slow down! You'll fall off!"

Cheshire Cat: "What are you saying, brat?!"

"I've ridden horses before! It's fine!" Wakako retorted defiantly.

Izuna gathered the branch and turned around.

He had barely steadied himself when the Cheshire Cat stopped abruptly in front of him, and the children following behind him didn't have time to stop, crashing headfirst into him.

Izuna was knocked backward and staggered a step, his upper body jerking abruptly.

Then, to everyone's surprise, his eye fell out of its socket.

A round eyeball rolled across his cheek, landed on his clothes, and bounced off. Izuna frantically reached out to catch it, but missed.

The eye finally fell into Hinata's hand behind Lian.

The entire hall fell silent.

Three seconds later, Hinata mechanically lowered his head and saw a dull eyeball with dilated pupils staring at his face.

It shimmered with an eerie light in the afternoon sun.

His face turned deathly pale.

Takuma, who witnessed the whole thing from behind, reacted and blurted out, "Holy shit—"