Three days later.
Early morning.
At the Ninja Academy gate.
Guy stood there with his schoolbag on his back.
He still wore the same green outfit, but something about him seemed different.
Not his appearance.
The way he carried himself.
Obito ran up from behind. When he saw Guy, he stopped short.
"Guy?"
Guy turned around.
"Yeah?"
Obito looked him up and down, then scratched his head.
"Where... where have you been these past three days? Mr. Umino said you took leave."
"Training."
"Training? Where?"
Guy thought for a moment.
"A valley."
Obito waited for him to go on.
Guy said nothing else.
After a long pause, Obito couldn't help asking, "And?"
"And what?"
"What did you train?"
Guy grinned and gave him a thumbs-up.
"Youth!"
Obito rolled his eyes.
"Right. That again."
The two of them walked into the school.
There were fewer people at the gate than usual.
Guy glanced around.
The children who usually crowded together were scattered thinly today.
Many familiar faces were missing.
"Where is everyone?" he asked.
Obito lowered his voice.
"You haven't heard? A lot of people haven't come in these past few days."
"Why?"
"Their families called them home."
Obito curled his lip.
"The war's coming sooner than expected, so those clans have moved up their secret techniques and special training. I—
"People in my clan said a lot of families have shut their kids inside to train. They won't let them out until they're done."
Guy nodded.
It was what he'd expected.
Cutting three years down to a year and a half had halved the time those families had, too.
What they'd planned to teach gradually now had to be crammed in all at once.
The two of them entered the classroom.
Sure enough.
Fewer than half the seats were filled in a classroom meant for more than twenty.
Kurenai was there. Her eyes brightened when Guy came in.
Rin was there too, waving at them.
Asuma was absent.
Gekko Hayate was absent.
Uzuki Yugao was absent.
Yamashiro Aoba was absent.
Several others whose names Guy couldn't remember were absent too.
Guy sat down in his usual seat.
Kurenai leaned over, looking worried. "Guy, where have you been these past three days?"
Guy looked at her.
There was concern in those big wine-red eyes.
"Training," he said.
"Training what?"
Guy thought for a moment.
"Taijutsu."
Kurenai blinked.
"Just Taijutsu?"
"Yeah."
Kurenai didn't ask anything else.
But there was something different in the way she looked at Guy.
He couldn't quite say what it was.
It was just that he seemed... brighter?
The bell rang.
Ikkaku Umino walked in.
He glanced at the empty seats, his expression unchanged.
"Today, we continue with class."
He wrote on the blackboard.
"If you're here, pay attention. If you're not, you can catch up on your own."
The lesson was unusually quiet.
None of the usual whispering went on today.
After class.
Guy stood and headed out.
Kurenai called after him.
"Guy, where are you going?"
"The Blacksmith Shop."
"You're going today too?"
"Yeah. I haven't been in three days. I need to apologize to Uncle Tao Ye."
Kurenai pressed her lips together, then said softly, "Could... could you not go today?"
"Hm? Why?" Guy found it strange.
Kurenai had never tried to talk him out of training before.
Panic flashed across Kurenai's face, and she hurriedly waved her hands.
"It's... it's nothing. Be careful on your way. I'm going home."
With that, she jogged away.
Guy watched her go, puzzled.
He spotted Obito leaving and went after him.
Obito gave him an odd look as he approached.
"What are you coming over here for?"
"To go to the Blacksmith Shop."
Guy said it as if the answer were obvious.
"Aren't you going to spend some time with Kurenai? She won't be here tomorrow," Obito said, tilting his head.
"Hm? She won't be here tomorrow?"
Guy froze. Suddenly, he understood why Kurenai had been acting so strangely.
Kurenai came from a clan skilled in genjutsu. Naturally, she had to begin intensive training now too.
"So that's why she was like that."
Kurenai had wanted Guy to spend time with her, but she hadn't wanted to interrupt his training. That was why she'd acted that way.
Guy smiled.
He tossed his bag to Obito.
"Drop my schoolbag off at Uncle Tao Ye's. I'll come by later."
Then he took off at a run.
Obito looked at the two bags in his hands, his mouth twitching.
"Some friend you are..."
By the time Guy caught up with Kurenai, the sun was nearly setting.
She wasn't walking quickly. Her head was lowered, and her black curls bobbed with each step.
"Kurenai!"
Guy called out and ran over.
Kurenai faltered. She didn't turn around, but she slowed down.
Guy caught up beside her and took a breath. "Why did you run off so fast?"
Kurenai said nothing.
Guy tilted his head to look at her.
The setting sun lit her face. Her big wine-red eyes were fixed on the ground, and her eyelashes trembled.
"Were you crying?" Guy asked.
Kurenai shook her head and turned away.
"No."
"Then look up and let me see."
Kurenai held out for a moment, but finally lifted her head.
She hadn't been crying, but her eyes were red.
Guy scratched his head.
He wanted to say something, but he opened his mouth and closed it again.
All his usual talk of "Youth" and "burning bright" felt wrong just then.
The two of them stood there.
The wind swept past, stirring a few fallen leaves.
In the end, Kurenai spoke first.
"Guy, go back to your training."
Her voice was very quiet.
"I'm fine."
Guy looked at her.
Then he suddenly reached out and took her wrist.
Kurenai froze and looked up.
"Come on," Guy said.
"Where?"
"Follow me."
Guy led her back the way he'd come.
Not toward the school, but toward the mountain behind it.
Kurenai stumbled a little as he pulled her along, but she didn't break free.
The setting sun stretched their shadows long across the ground, one behind the other, overlapping.
They passed through the woods.
They went around the waterfall.
They took a narrow path Kurenai had never walked before.
It twisted and turned.
At last, they stopped at the edge of a cliff.
Kurenai came to a halt, stunned.
A vast expanse of sky opened before her.
The sun was sinking below the horizon, staining the entire sky orange-red.
The clouds lay in layers, as if they had caught fire.
Below them lay Konoha.
The houses, streets, and Kage Rock had all shrunk to tiny silhouettes.
Kurenai opened her mouth.
"This..."
"I found this place." Guy let go of her wrist, walked to the edge of the cliff, and plopped down.
"When training wears me out, I sneak up here and stare into space."
He patted the ground beside him.
"Sit."
Kurenai walked over and sat beside him.
They sat shoulder to shoulder, watching the burning sky.
Neither said a word.
The wind blew in from the mountains, carrying the scent of grass and trees.
Kurenai gradually stopped holding herself so stiffly.
Her shoulders relaxed, and her breathing grew lighter.
She stole a glance at Guy.
He was staring at the sun, his eyes bright in its light.
In profile, he still had those bushy brows and that same goofy look.
But for some reason, looking at him made her feel safe.
"Guy," she said.
"Hmm?"
"Do you come here every day?"
Guy thought for a moment.
"Not every day. Only when I've trained too hard."
He paused.
"The last time was after I kicked that big bear."
Kurenai blinked.
"That was three months ago."
"Yeah."
"You haven't been tired once in three months?"
Guy turned to her with a grin.
"Of course I have. I just didn't have time to come."
"Why?"
Guy thought for a moment, then said earnestly, "Because there's too much to train. I don't have time to be tired."
Kurenai stared at him.
Then she couldn't help laughing.
"You're so strange."
Guy laughed too.
"Then I'm strange."
He turned back toward the sunset.
"Anyway, you're the first person I've told about this place."
Kurenai's heart gave a little jolt.
She lowered her head and stared at her fingers.
They twisted together in her lap.
"Guy."
"Hmm?"
"Tomorrow... I won't be able to come to school anymore."
Guy nodded.
"I know."
"My family's training will take a long time."
"Yeah."
"When it's done, I might graduate straightaway."
"Yeah."
Kurenai looked up at him, pouting.
"All you can say is 'yeah'?"
Guy turned to her.
His expression was the same as ever, but his eyes were serious.
"What else should I do? Cry for you?"
Kurenai had no answer to that.
Guy turned back to the sunset.
"You train your genjutsu. I'll train my taijutsu."
He paused.
"We'll both end up on the battlefield anyway."
Kurenai fell silent.
Of course she knew.
The war had already begun.
People died on the front lines every day.
Everyone in their class would be sent to the battlefield in a year.
And then...
Guy suddenly spoke.
"Hey."
"Hmm?"
"Let's make a promise."
Kurenai froze.
Guy turned to her.
The last light of sunset fell across his face, making his eyes shine.
"When you've mastered genjutsu, and I've grown stronger..."
He held out his hand.
"Let's team up for missions."
Kurenai stared at his hand.
It was rough and covered in calluses.
She thought of how that hand struck stone ten thousand times every day.
How it worked the forge until midnight.
How it had held hers as he led her along the little path just now.
"You'll support me with your genjutsu," Guy said.
"And I'll be your—"
He paused, then grinned.
"Strongest Shield."
Kurenai's eyes suddenly stung.
She lowered her head and blinked hard.
Then she slowly reached out.
Her little finger hooked around his.
"It's a promise," she whispered.
"Yeah."
Their fingers stayed linked as they watched the sun disappear behind the mountains.
One last streak of orange-red lingered at the edge of the sky.
Stars began to appear.
The wind blew past, a little chilly.
But Kurenai felt warm inside.
She stole a glance at Guy.
He was gazing at the sky, lost in thought.
She pressed her lips together and spoke softly.
"Guy."
"Hmm?"
"From now on... don't always carry everything by yourself."
Guy turned to her.
Kurenai didn't look at him. She kept her eyes on her fingers.
"When you're tired, come here and stare into space. I won't be at school anymore, and no one else knows about this place."
She paused.
"But remember... I'll be training too. I'll be getting stronger."
Guy looked at her.
The last trace of light touched her profile, and her eyelashes fluttered.
Then he smiled.
Not one of his booming, "Youth is burning!" laughs.
A different kind of smile.
Quiet.
Earnest.
"Okay," he said.
"I'll remember."
Kurenai said nothing.
But the corners of her mouth lifted.
Night fell completely.
The moon rose, shining over the cliff.
Two small figures still sat there.
Neither said it was time to leave.
In the distance, the lights of Konoha came on one by one.
Like stars on the ground.
[Bond triggered: Promise on the Cliff] [Reward: Monk Points +40]