Yugao

Uzuki Yugao looked at Su Yu's profile.

When she first met Su Yu, she never imagined things would come to this.

After Su Yu killed Gato during the mission in the Land of Waves, she realized he was different from an ordinary Genin, which left her somewhat disappointed.

Deep down, she actually didn't want Su Yu to become a member of the Anbu.

But Su Yu's performance had been truly impressive. He was qualified to join the Anbu.

After Su Yu became an Anbu member, he got involved with the Hyuga Clan's young lady and might even become a member of the Hokage Direct Squad.

It was around then that something happened to Gekko Hayate. When Uzuki Yugao received the news, she locked herself in her room and drank to drown her sorrows.

At that time, the person she most hoped to see was Su Yu.

Unfortunately, Su Yu had been training.

Then the familiar knock sounded.

Uzuki Yugao opened the door for him.

It wasn't the door to her room, but the door in her heart.

Su Yu was willing to give up everything for her. It left her flustered, embarrassed, and happy all at once.

After Su Yu left Konoha, she felt a little empty inside.

When Tsunade sent her to Su Yu's side, she hadn't given it much thought. All she could think was that she wanted to reach him as quickly as possible.

Once she was by Su Yu's side, Uzuki Yugao didn't spend much time training. Most of the time, she helped Su Yu with various things. She was a little like his assistant, and a little like the lady of the house.

Karin Uzumaki and the nine trainee-level ninja all treated her with great respect. It was obvious they thought she was Su Yu's woman.

Perhaps that was why Uzuki Yugao personally prepared meals for Su Yu every day and ran errands for him whenever he asked.

"Yugao? Yugao?" Su Yu's voice rang out.

Uzuki Yugao came back to herself. Seeing Su Yu so close, she hurriedly turned her head away, her face growing even redder.

"D-do you need something?"

"That's my line. You've been staring at me. Is there something you want to say?" Su Yu looked at her.

"I... I was just..."

"Don't tell me you were just admiring the scenery," Su Yu teased.

Uzuki Yugao's face burned, and she couldn't find the words.

"Thank you for taking care of me all this time. With you by my side, I feel at ease," Su Yu said softly.

"N-no need to thank me." Uzuki Yugao lowered her head.

"By our agreement, after I avenge you, everything you have will belong to me. I've been training all this time to prepare for revenge. When I come back, you can move into my room. How does that sound?" Su Yu moved closer to Uzuki Yugao.

Uzuki Yugao's pretty face flushed at his words.

But when she thought of the Sunagakure jonin, she couldn't help feeling worried.

According to the intelligence they had received a few days ago, Konoha and Sunagakure had already made peace. Uzuki Yugao's enemy was a high-ranking member of Sunagakure.

If Su Yu helped her get revenge now, he could very well damage the relationship between Konoha and Sunagakure.

Thinking of this, Uzuki Yugao looked at Su Yu.

"Su Yu, Konoha and Sunagakure have already made peace. If you kill one of their jonin, it'll definitely cause new problems. So, about Hayate's death..."

"Are you saying we should just let it go?" Su Yu frowned.

"We have to think of the bigger picture. Hayate wouldn't want you to become a Konoha rogue ninja over something like this," Uzuki Yugao urged.

"But you..." Su Yu looked at Uzuki Yugao.

"I'm all right now. With you by my side, every day is a happy one." As she spoke, Uzuki Yugao gently embraced Su Yu.

She knew that with Su Yu's current strength, he could certainly kill his target. But she had to consider Konoha and Su Yu; she couldn't let him act impulsively.

Su Yu looked at Uzuki Yugao in his arms and slowly embraced her.

After a long while.

He lowered his head and looked at Uzuki Yugao.

"I'm sorry I can't avenge you, but I promise I'll make you happy and protect you."

"I believe you, Su Yu." Uzuki Yugao gazed at him tenderly.

Their eyes met, and Su Yu slowly leaned closer.

Uzuki Yugao closed her eyes, ready for what was coming.

Su Yu's kiss fell.

When morning came.

In Su Yu's room.

He looked at the sleeping Uzuki Yugao and gently kissed her forehead.

Last night, he had used the cold as an excuse.

Holding her in his arms, he'd slept soundly.

Right now, all he could think about was getting stronger, so he naturally couldn't bring himself to do anything to Uzuki Yugao. It had been the same last time; they weren't in that kind of relationship yet.

Su Yu sat up and left the room.

As soon as he was gone, Uzuki Yugao opened her eyes, a blush on her face.

Last night, she'd thought Su Yu was going to...

But in the end, he hadn't done anything. She felt a little disappointed, but also conflicted.

Gekko Hayate had been the same way. He'd never even dared to hold her hand and had always treated her like a perfect gentleman.

Su Yu, on the other hand, wasn't quite so gentlemanly.

But did he have some reservations?

Could it be because he isn't strong enough? Uzuki Yugao wondered.

Judging by how seriously Su Yu trained, he seemed like the kind of person who desperately wanted to become stronger.

People who worked that hard usually devoted themselves entirely to training, only thinking about other things when they had time to spare.

Su Yu left the Land of Waves and headed straight for a seaside town in the Land of Fire.

The night before, he'd told Uzuki Yugao that his training was preparation for revenge.

In truth, from the moment he persuaded Tsunade to return to the village, helping Uzuki Yugao get revenge had never been an option.

Konoha had received a great deal of compensation from Sunagakure. On top of that, the Third Hokage had just passed away. In these circumstances, the village's top priority was to stabilize its development, not start a war.

If they really fought, Konoha wouldn't gain anything.

Sunagakure's territory was useless to Konoha, whereas the compensation could help the village recover.

Then there was the alliance.

By winning Sunagakure over as an ally, Konoha would form an alliance between two great ninja villages, one that would make the other villages wary.

If the two villages went to war, the other ninja villages would never let such an opportunity pass. Konoha would inevitably face probes from them.

Tsunade understood this perfectly, so she forgave Sunagakure for what they had done.

As for Sunagakure, it hadn't gained anything from the Konoha Crush. It had lost quite a few ninja, especially its Kazekage.

In those circumstances, simply keeping the village safe was a stroke of luck.

Konoha was willing to form an alliance, so Sunagakure naturally wouldn't refuse.

Uzuki Yugao had put the bigger picture first and given up on revenge because of Su Yu. That was easy to understand.

Her feelings for Su Yu had already grown to the point of love. Naturally, she couldn't watch him go off and put himself in danger.

Besides, a long time had passed since Gekko Hayate's death, and Uzuki Yugao's hatred had already faded considerably.

Under the influence of both factors.

Su Yu could easily guess what Uzuki Yugao would say.