The two of them left the forest and headed along Konoha's streets toward the Uchiha Clan Compound.
As they walked, Uchiha Mina suddenly stumbled.
Fortunately, Uchiha Tunan reacted quickly and caught her in his arms, asking with concern,
"Mina, what's wrong?"
Uchiha Mina's face gradually turned pale. She shook her head and said weakly, "Tunan-kun, I feel a little dizzy."
With a worried expression, Uchiha Tunan placed the back of his hand against Uchiha Mina's forehead.
"Hmm, you're burning up. You must have caught a chill while bathing."
"No... no..." Uchiha Mina wanted to explain, but found that she could no longer speak.
Her mind was a mess, and she gradually could not remember what had just happened.
Just then, Uchiha Tunan pulled Uchiha Mina tightly into his arms and lowered his head.
The two kissed beneath the streetlamp.
In the distance, an Anbu leaped across the rooftops and glanced in their direction.
"Kids these days sure know how to have fun."
After muttering that, the Anbu had no desire to stand around watching them flaunt their affection and left at once.
Only after the Anbu departed did Uchiha Tunan release Uchiha Mina.
By then, Uchiha Mina was completely delirious.
There was still some distance to the Uchiha Clan Compound. Along the rest of the way, he had to watch out for the Anbu and avoid the compound's night patrols.
The difficulty... was not great.
Uchiha Tunan swept Uchiha Mina up in his arms, then closed and opened his eyes.
The white doves hidden throughout the area all lit up with scarlet Sharingan.
Combined with the Byakugan's perception, they kept every patrolman's movements along the road ahead fully within his sight.
"Whoosh~"
Uchiha Tunan became a black shadow and raced toward the Uchiha Clan Compound.
He constantly changed direction along the way, avoiding the patrols with perfect timing.
In the end, he arrived safely at Uchiha Mina's home.
Carrying Uchiha Mina into the small courtyard, Uchiha Tunan merely glanced at the cat's corpse in the yard before striding into the room.
He laid Uchiha Mina on the bed.
The next instant, using the Byakugan's perception, Uchiha Tunan examined the meridians and acupoints within Uchiha Mina's body.
Then he ruthlessly pressed a finger against her pain point.
Uchiha Mina abruptly opened her eyes through the haze.
The first thing she saw was Uchiha Tunan's rapidly spinning Three Tomoe.
Genjutsu, Hell Viewing Technique.
Late at night, dark clouds blanketed the sky, completely obscuring the moon.
Rumble~
A dull clap of thunder boomed, and bolts of lightning tore across the sky.
Uchiha Mina woke with a start at the sound of thunder and opened her eyes to look around.
This was...
When had I returned to my room?
Right, I remembered sparring with Tunan-kun just now, then coming home.
I saw... what did I see... Why couldn't I remember?
Uchiha Mina hammered her head with her fist.
Pitter-patter~
The continuous sound of rain came from outside.
For some reason, Uchiha Mina felt as though none of this was real.
Suddenly, Uchiha Mina's eyes widened.
Through the curtains, she could see blue flashes outside from time to time. A hazy humanoid shadow slowly passed by the window.
"Step, step..."
Uchiha Mina quickly got up, drew a kunai, and focused on guarding herself.
The footsteps continued all the way to the door, then suddenly stopped.
Rumble~
Thunder roared, and lightning illuminated the outside of the house as bright as day.
In the fleeting light, Uchiha Mina saw the figure outside draw a long blade.
Uchiha Mina slowly shifted her position, crouching beside the door as she waited.
Time passed little by little.
The person outside still did not move.
The rain was too loud. Even though Uchiha Mina held her breath and listened intently, she could not hear a thing.
Had he left?
Uchiha Mina quietly swallowed, slowly shifting herself slightly as she stared fixedly at the door.
Lightning flashed, and the shadow was gone from the door.
"Whew~"
Uchiha Mina let out a breath. Her entire body was already drenched in cold sweat.
"Are you looking for me?"
A cold voice suddenly sounded behind her.
Uchiha Mina whirled around. Her one-tomoe Sharingan activated instinctively, and her face filled with terror.
A figure stood there, holding a long blade in his right hand and some round object in his left.
Lightning flashed outside, and the sudden light finally allowed Uchiha Mina to see who stood before her.
Uchiha Tunan!
And what he held in his left hand was Hyuga Senrin's head.
Hyuga Senrin's face was still frozen in an expression of terror and despair.
Scarlet blood clung to the blade, dripping little by little from its tip to the floor.
"No... don't..."
Uchiha Mina wanted to run, but her body seemed completely beyond her control. She could only inch toward the corner.
Uchiha Tunan stepped toward Uchiha Mina one step at a time, slowly raising the long blade in his hand.
"Why... why..."
Uchiha Mina extended a trembling hand, trying to form hand seals, but she could not remember a single one.
"Feel the pain properly."
A cruel smile appeared on Uchiha Tunan's face as he violently drove the blade into Uchiha Mina's body.
Uchiha Mina felt a searing pain strike her, and her pupils contracted sharply.
"Pshk~"
"Pshk~"
Again and again, Uchiha Tunan stabbed the long blade into Uchiha Mina's body.
There even seemed to be a trace of enjoyment on his face.
As her blood drained away, Uchiha Mina felt as though her mind was about to collapse, while the strength in her body gradually vanished.
Gradually, the one tomoe in Uchiha Mina's eyes faded, and her eyelids slowly closed.
"Coo, coo~"
"Coo, coo~"
What was that sound? It was so noisy.
Why was something so wet?
Uchiha Mina slowly opened her eyes and woke up in bed.
Gentle sunlight shone through the window onto her body.
Beside her, the little cat was sticking out its tongue and licking her face again and again.
Uchiha Mina sat up, wiped the moisture from her face, then held the little cat in her arms and recalled carefully.
"I think I had a nightmare."
"Koyuki, are you hungry?"
"Meow~"
"Oh no, I'm late."
Uchiha Mina cried out and hurriedly climbed out from under the blankets.
Suddenly, Uchiha Mina caught sight of the calendar hanging by her bed.
October 6th.
"What am I doing? It's my day off."
Uchiha Mina breathed a sigh of relief, took out the cat food from the cupboard, and poured it into the cat's bowl.
Then she prepared breakfast and sat alone beneath the eaves, eating as she watched the several cherry trees in the courtyard.
For some reason, after taking a few bites, Uchiha Mina would zone out for quite a while, as if she had dementia.
Even Uchiha Mina herself had not noticed that the surroundings were deathly quiet, as though there was not a single person around.
Time flew by.
In the blink of an eye, evening arrived.
Uchiha Mina suddenly woke from her daze, looked up at the sky, then packed up her things and got up to head for the training ground.
Along the way, conversations between clan members drifted out from the courtyards lining both sides of the road.
Yet she could hear their voices without seeing anyone.
Uchiha Mina did not think much of it.
At this hour, everyone should have been at home eating dinner.
Before she knew it, Uchiha Mina arrived at the training ground.
Uchiha Tunan was sitting on the grass, smiling as he waved to her.
"Tunan-kun..." Uchiha Mina murmured. A happy smile spread across her face as she slowly walked over.
Before you continue