Night Talk

Night had fallen.

Moonlight poured down, illuminating the calm surface of the sea.

In the distance, the sky and the ocean merged into one within the night, making it impossible to tell where the heavens ended and the sea began.

A medium-sized ship was sailing across this tranquil expanse.

The lights from the hull cast a golden reflection upon the water, swaying gently with the rhythm of the waves.

The sails on the mast billowed slightly in the night breeze, emitting a dull sound—a dialogue between canvas and wind.

Inside the ship, in a spacious cabin.

The room was arranged quite neatly, with a table placed in the center holding a teapot and several cups.

A sofa rested against the wall, upholstered in dark velvet, and the bed in the corner was made with the blankets folded perfectly.

Everything was minimalist, yet every detail exuded the cold detachment of a "temporary stopover."

The sound of trickling water came from the bathroom, and steam seeped through the door gap, swirling into a hazy white mist under the lights.

The door was pushed open.

Kou stepped out of the bathroom, one hand using a towel to dry his long, jet-black hair.

He wore a loose white bathrobe, the collar wide open and the belt tied carelessly, failing to conceal his robust, muscular frame.

A long scar ran across his chest, stretching from his collarbone down to his ribs, and his arms were marked with small scars and burn traces, silently recounting the crises the man had endured in the past.

But at this moment, this formidable body had finally entered a state of relaxation.

His muscles were no longer tense, and his breathing had become steady.

"Hah... how comfortable."

Kou tossed the towel onto the back of a chair and picked up the hot water from the table, taking a deep gulp.

He set the cup down and sighed softly:

"After a long day of labor, I can finally get some proper rest."

His gaze fell upon the shimmering water outside the window, reflecting on everything that had happened throughout the day—

First, meeting up with Mei Terumi, then reuniting and clashing with Jiraiya, and finally having Pain use his animal summons to keep Jiraiya occupied...

"What an exhausting day..."

He sighed helplessly, then whispered to himself with a hint of relief:

"But fortunately, at least up until now, everything has gone quite smoothly... at least it remains within my control."

The Shadow Clone he had left at Mist Harbor had already been dispelled, sending its memories back to his main body.

As expected, the battle between Pain and Jiraiya had been nothing more than a brief skirmish.

Both of them, for various reasons, had refrained from using their full strength.

Although Jiraiya wanted to probe for information on Pain, Pain—knowing that Jiraiya could not possibly go all out here—had spent the entire time playing a game of cat-and-mouse, using only that single crab summon that lacked the Rinnegan to stall for time.

Once he confirmed that he was safely on the ship and that Jiraiya could never catch up, Pain had seized the opportunity to retreat.

"That guy Jiraiya should be on his way back to Konoha by now."

Kou frowned in thought, a complex emotion flickering in his dark eyes:

"I wonder how things are in Konoha right now..."

Kou didn't think this way out of any genuine concern for Konoha.

After all, he truly felt no sense of belonging to that place.

In the twenty-two years of Kou's life in this world, he had spent the first seventeen in Konoha.

But his truly peaceful days and his primary life had always been within the confines of the Uchiha compound.

He wasn't like Obito, that lovesick tomcat obsessed with a little girl, wandering outside the Uchiha district most of the time instead of going home to sleep.

Knowing his own talent was lacking, he had spent most of his time holed up in the compound, studying the knowledge of the Uchiha clan, training, and contemplating the path he should take.

If not for the fact that he had to enter the Ninja Academy later, he probably could have stayed a shut-in within the Uchiha compound for his entire life.

After stepping out of the compound and entering the academy, he had lived in constant fear of being targeted by Danzo, remaining cautious and careful everywhere, living an incredibly exhausting life.

Living without power, forced to wear a smiling mask every day while feeling anxious inside, was simply suffocating.

After the Third Ninja World War broke out, he had spent years on the battlefield as a human meat grinder.

It wasn't until the Third Ninja World War ended that he returned to Konoha to live a period of stable life...

Ah, and then came the Nine-Tails Incident.

Recalling the events of the past, Kou shook his head helplessly.

Experiences like these truly left him with no nostalgia for a place like Konoha.

He admitted that, within the context of the entire Ninja World, Konoha could truly be considered the cream of the crop.

But that was only because it was a case of picking the tallest among the short; it was merely the result of being set off by its peers, and it didn't actually mean Konoha possessed any real substance.

At the very least, Kou, who had lived a peaceful life in his previous existence, genuinely looked down on Konoha.

If there was anything in Konoha worth Kou's nostalgia, aside from Ichiraku Ramen and that old shop on the commercial street that sold dango, it would only be those "companions" from the past who had once treated him with genuine sincerity...

"Kakashi, Asuma, Guy, Kurenai, Anko... I wonder how those little brats are doing these days."

Although they were no longer on the same path, Kou couldn't help but sigh at the thought of his old acquaintances.

"Sigh, the days of yore, the days of yore..."

He shook his head with a touch of emotion, his tone carrying a hint of self-mockery:

"It must be that reunion with that old pervert Jiraiya today that got me all sentimental. Why did I suddenly start reminiscing? I'm not even that old yet..."

He stretched, his arms reaching over his head, his spine popping with a crisp sound. His tone was relaxed, carrying a casual "alright, enough of that" attitude:

"Let's get a good night's rest for once—fifty push-ups and then straight to bed."

"Knock, knock, knock."

Just as Kou was about to move, a series of knocks sounded at the door.

Kou's movements paused, a flicker of confusion crossing his black eyes:

"Is that Mei Terumi? What is she doing coming over in the middle of the night instead of sleeping?"

Kou muttered to himself in confusion, took a step forward, and opened the door.

It was indeed Mei Terumi.

She was currently wearing a loose purple robe, looking as if she had just bathed, yet she had wrapped herself up tightly.

Her long hair still held a hint of dampness, with a few stray strands clinging to her cheeks, glowing softly under the light.

She looked at Uchiha Kou's face as the door opened, and just as she was about to speak, her gaze subconsciously drifted down from his handsome features.

The open collar of his yukata, his sturdy chest...

Her cheeks turned "whoosh" red, the color spreading from her face to her earlobes, and from her earlobes to her neck; she looked like a boiled shrimp.

"Wuaah!!"

She exclaimed, stuttering with a flushed face:

"Y-you, your clothes... clothes!!"

"...If you're really that shy, don't open your eyes so wide, hey."

Kou looked at Mei Terumi, who had "covered" her eyes as he suggested but was still peeking at him through her fingers, with a look of annoyance.

"Self-deception."

He sighed in his heart, pulled his yukata shut to cover his chest, and asked with a huff:

"So, what are you doing coming to find me in the middle of the night? Are you scared of sleeping alone?"

He looked at the Mei Terumi before him, suddenly remembering something, and his face resumed that chuckling expression, his black eyes filled with teasing:

"How about it? Want to come in and play a round of intense and exciting Legends of the Three Kingdoms?"

"What is that? It sounds so shady..."

Mei Terumi retorted subconsciously, a flash of curiosity crossing her emerald eyes, though she quickly suppressed it.

She shook her head, the expression on her face shifting from shy to serious.

"I have important matters to discuss with you!"

Her voice rose a few notches, as if to emphasize her seriousness.

Seeing Mei Terumi's earnest look, Kou immediately understood something.

The frivolous posture on his face vanished instantly, replaced by the seriousness of a "professional."

"What... do you want to talk about?"

Mei Terumi took a deep breath, as if organizing her thoughts or suppressing the lingering tension in her heart.

She straightened her back, looked directly into Kou's eyes with her emerald gaze, and said seriously:

"At our current sailing speed, we should reach the Land of Whirlpools by tomorrow morning."

"I... want to give you a heads-up regarding the detailed information about the ruins of the Land of Whirlpools for this mission."