The Vanished Figure

Her voice was barely louder than a mosquito's buzz, and she quickly lowered her head after speaking.

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But in the next instant, Aoba suddenly stepped forward, stretched out her hand, and precisely gripped Mito's wrist, which was tightly clutching the corner of her clothes!

Mito shuddered as if struck by lightning, then looked up in shock and met those smiling eyes.

That hand had distinct knuckles and was smooth and cool, yet as steady as a rock.

She tried to pull away, but it would not budge.

"Mito, come with me." Aoba grabbed Mito's wrist and turned to leave.

She headed straight for the room prepared for her.

"Wait... Lady Aoba... I can..." Mito was stunned. She stumbled a step forward, her mind blank, then helplessly looked back at Mina.

Mina saw her mother's blatant behavior of "forgetting her daughter the moment she saw her daughter-in-law" perfectly clearly.

"Mom! Wait for me!"

With no other choice, she hurried after them herself.

The cold late-autumn wind swept past.

Withered yellow maple leaves swirled down onto the bluestone slabs in the courtyard.

Aoba's clone raised her hand, her fair fingers resting against the doorframe.

"Creak—"

A faint scraping sound rang out.

The clone, wearing a warm smile, slowly pushed the door inward.

The fresh scent of new wood mixed with a faint fragrance of incense rushed toward Mito, completely enveloping her.

"Don't be so reserved." Aoba's voice was gentle as she led Mito into the elegantly simple room. "This room was prepared for you. Take a look—does anything seem to be missing?"

Aoba turned her head to look at the uneasy Mito, her gentle gaze falling on Mito's face. "Mina sent news home about you bit by bit."

Her voice was as soft as down, every word clear. "From when you were 'captured' by Kosuke and Madara..." Her gaze swept over Mito's black hair. "To how you carefully 'looked after' Kosuke..."

Aoba's tone remained calm.

The words "captured" and "looked after" struck Mito's heart like tiny hammers.

Her cheeks immediately burned red, and her heartbeat went out of control.

Those calm words sank heavily into her heart like jade cast into a lake.

Mito's breath caught, countless thoughts racing through her mind.

"Wow~!!!" A short, shrill cry came from outside the room.

Mina rushed into the room, her eyes wide as saucers as they swept across it like searchlights. "Th-this... Mother!"

She turned back and screamed, her voice rising sharply in astonishment. "This... was really prepared for Mito?!"

Mina's relaxed demeanor vanished. Her mouth formed a round O as her shock was instantly swallowed by overwhelming, tsunami-like envy.

Mito's mind was completely seized by everything before her.

A meticulously decorated young woman's room.

The soft off-white walls were as serene as rice paper. By the window stood a broad wooden desk, polished smooth as a mirror, with several withered pale-purple balloon flowers inserted diagonally into a plain white porcelain vase.

A tall wardrobe of fresh wood stood against the wall. At the center, a wide bed rested beneath a carved wooden frame. Over the soft white mattress, pale cherry-colored gauze draped down like clouds and mist.

When the breeze passed through, the dreamlike gauze gathered around the room's full spring beauty, while tassels of the same color swayed at the four corners like fine snow.

Soft, clean, and warm—it was completely unlike the somber coldness of the Uchiha Clan grounds.

The desk, the arrangement of dried flowers, the curve of the hanging curtains, the scent of clean cotton in the sunlight... all silently spoke of the care and affection of the one who had arranged it.

Mito's gaze was drawn along, taking in every detail of the room one by one, as if she had fallen into a dream.

She slowly walked to the bedside, her fingertips trembling as they touched the mist-like gauze curtains.

The cool, silky sensation was real beneath her fingers.

This really was... prepared for her? The Vortex Princess? An Uchiha captive?

"Do you like it?" A gentle voice sounded behind her, carrying a trace of anticipation.

Mito suddenly turned around.

It was Aoba's clone, the one who had pushed open the door with a warm smile, her eyes filled with soft concern.

"I arranged it all myself~"

"I... I like it! Thank you... Lady Aoba... Auntie Aoba..."

Mito bowed deeply, her voice carrying a hint of excitement.

"I didn't know your measurements," Aoba said apologetically, her gaze sweeping over the folded clothes on the table. "So I estimated based on Mina's build and made four sets. If they don't fit, we can alter them."

Mina recalled how Mito had worn her clothes back at the camp. They had seemed to fit quite well, hadn't they?

"Mom, is there any for me?"

She looked up at her mother excitedly, dearly hoping that several sets of clothes would be laid out on the table in her own room too. Even just one would be enough.

Seeing how excited Mina was, Aoba did not hesitate. Smiling, she nodded. "Of course. You have four sets too."

"Yay!" She threw her arms up in exaggerated celebration, her voice rising with excitement. "Kosuke, look! I have new clothes too!"

The flush of embarrassment on Mito's face was swept away by Mina's excitement. She waved her hands awkwardly. "Sister Mina, I..."

"Kosuke! Say something?!"

Mina's crisp voice echoed through the cozy room.

Yet even after a long while, Kosuke's voice did not come.

Silence.

Dead silence.

Only the rustling of the plum tree outside as the evening breeze passed through it.

The excited expression on Mina's face gradually stiffened and froze.

The five of them were stunned by the strange silence. They all looked around, trying to spot Kosuke.

But the room was completely empty. Kosuke was nowhere to be seen.

The atmosphere in the room froze in an instant.

Mina's expression shifted from exhilaration to blankness.

Her mouth hung open, her eyes wide and round as her gaze moved twice between the empty room, her mothers—the original and her clones—and Mito.

An absurd thought, one terrifyingly close to the truth, struck their excited minds like cold lightning.

Her voice drifted uncertainly with suspicion, trembling in disbelief. "Kosuke... he... couldn't possibly... be lying alone... in his room... right?"

The final "right?" drifted softly into the air.

Everyone fell silent.

Aoba's original body's pupils suddenly contracted, the joy on her face visibly shattering for the first time.

A mixture of shock and the realization that things had gone terribly wrong slowly appeared on her face.

The five figures moved in unison, their necks stiff and sluggish.

Inch by inch, they slowly turned toward the room next door.

Silent and still.

Like a desolate place forgotten by the world.

Only the night breeze remained, blowing the withered leaves on the plum tree branches with a rustling sound, like faint sighs.

One month later.

Under the alternating care of Mito, Mina, and Aoba, Kosuke was finally able to get out of bed on his own and move around the courtyard.

During that time, while Kosuke was recuperating, the craftsman Uchiha Tree delivered a parchment scroll.

"...According to a purchasing agent from the Land of Fire's Daimyo's Mansion, the daimyo once said within his residence: 'Ninjas are nothing more than dogs we keep. A bunch of mere fighters dare claim they can rule the world?'"

After reading the scroll, Kosuke silently set it down. His fingertips lightly rubbed along its edge, and a gleam flashed in his eyes.

He suddenly recalled the various missions that existed in the Ninja World...

Meanwhile, Madara, who had also been bedridden from his injuries, had already gotten out of bed on his own a week earlier.

This made the bedridden Kosuke sigh inwardly. "The reincarnation of Indra, Son of the Six Paths Sage... really is different."

Sage... Natural Energy...