Otsutsuki Toneri

With his worries laid bare, Shisui seemed to relax instead.

"...Yes, Senior. How are you able to remain so composed? It's my first time facing so many people from the village..."

He tried hard to recall the instructions of clan head Fugaku Uchiha. Those words had been logical and airtight, yet they could not offer him much reassurance.

He feared making even the slightest mistake before such a crowd. The consequences would not only concern his own dignity, but also the fragile bond of trust that had been so difficult to build.

"Nervous?" Minamoto Takuya curled his lips and let out a brief laugh. "That's completely normal. Whose first time wasn't like that?"

"Senior... were you nervous your first time too?" Shisui Uchiha could not help asking.

In his memory, even when the medical tents were piled with wounded soldiers and cries shook the air, Minamoto Takuya's hands manipulating his techniques had always been as steady as stone.

"The first time..." Minamoto Takuya looked as though he had fallen into thought.

In this life, nervousness had long become an unfamiliar emotion. As for that distant past, given his temperament, panic had seemingly never gained the upper hand either.

So he gave an honest answer. "No."

"Huh?!" Shisui Uchiha was momentarily stunned by that unexpected frankness.

He had expected the usual words of comfort, never imagining he would receive such an answer.

"That's the truth. There's no reason to lie to you. But..." Minamoto Takuya changed the subject, pure distaste appearing on his face. "Even if I'm not nervous, I really dislike speaking at events like this. It's tedious and boring, full of empty formalities. It's a complete waste of time. Wouldn't it be better to go home and take a nap?"

That undisguised complaint made Shisui Uchiha laugh aloud, and