Half a day later.
Night fell. A bright full moon hung in the sky like a silver platter, casting Guang's cool radiance over the land. The moonlight illuminated everything, lending the scene a quiet, mysterious air.
"Ninja World, I'm back~"
Qingwu slipped back into Konoha without a sound. His ghostlike figure drew no attention as he stood quietly on a rooftop, overlooking the village and streets below. A familiar feeling welled up inside him.
But perhaps he was imagining things.
He kept feeling as though someone was watching him. Following that sensation, he looked up, only to see the bright moon. Xiuyi?!
"Yo~ You're back, Original Body." The shadow clone looked at Qingwu teasingly. "With that sleazy grin on your face, I'm guessing you got your fill this time! Meanwhile, we've been slaving away at school every day~"
"Are you nuts? Could you not make it sound so disgusting? I swear every last one of you loves taking shots at me now..." Qingwu shook his head helplessly, speechless at his shadow clone's teasing. Now they all liked turning the tables on him, huh?
"Tsk, tsk, tsk~ You said it yourself~ Everyone's taking shots at you, so obviously you're the problem. Try looking at yourself, Original Body." The shadow clone smacked his lips, as though someone else had possessed him.
"Heh. I feel like you're gaslighting me, but I have no proof..." Qingwu said darkly. "Holy shit~ Have you bastards teamed up to brainwash me?"
"First you do this... then that..."
"To control my thoughts..."
"Original Body, cut it out. What do you call that again? A persecution complex?! Yeah, sure, I'm brainwashing myself." Even the shadow clone was speechless. The original had spent so long lying low that everything looked sinister to him.
"Original Body, I'm you! You suspect yourself?!