Ao: Sister Izumi, please let me go

However, after sensing the area with her powerful spiritual energy, she caught that familiar life fluctuation—her younger brother was in her room, his steady breathing like a murmuring stream, without the slightest disorder.

Yet, she dared not fully trust this perception, grabbing the black outer robe draped over the screen and hurrying toward the room with quick footsteps.

She pushed the door open gently, the wood emitting a faint creak, and Uchiha Izumi stepped inside silently, hunched over.

She paced to the bedside, leaned over to gaze at her brother, and examined him thoroughly from head to toe.

Confirming that her brother was indeed perfectly fine and, in fact, sleeping soundly in her bed, she felt relieved.

"As long as my brother is okay." Uchiha Izumi patted her chest and let out a long breath.

Having been easily defeated by Shisui's genjutsu before, she understood her own shortcomings.

Although her ninjutsu and taijutsu were both strong—even Shisui was no match for her in those areas—she lacked the Mangekyo Sharingan, leaving her with absolutely no defense against the genjutsu of Itachi and Shisui.

She would be finished in a single exchange.

Therefore, to stimulate the awakening of her own Mangekyo Sharingan, she had used her brother.

She utilized genjutsu to simulate the scene of her brother's death, but what she found hardest to bear was that she had to believe the illusion was reality; in other words, she had to convince herself that her brother had truly died right before her eyes.

To achieve this goal, she didn't know how many times she had cast genjutsu on herself.

She still remembered the scene from the first time she performed it: in the illusion, a kunai was buried in Ao's chest, and blood gushed out like a fountain, staining his face, which always wore a smile.

Of course, in the end, she still hadn't truly believed that her brother had died before her.

However, after the misunderstanding that had just occurred, she had touched the threshold of the Mangekyo.

Presumably, it would only be a matter of time before she truly awakened it.

Standing before her sleeping brother, Uchiha Izumi carefully reached out to embrace him.

However, what Uchiha Izumi did not know was that her brother had actually woken up the moment she released that ocular power; he had simply been feigning sleep upon sensing her arrival.

That ocular power just now...

Uchiha Ao had witnessed the power of Shisui's Mangekyo, and the burst Sister Izumi had just unleashed was already nearly on par with Shisui's.

Uchiha Ao trembled slightly on the bed, not out of fear, but from being shocked by that nearly materialized power.

Damn it, how am I, a cheater, falling behind Sister Izumi?

Uchiha Ao lay on the bed, feigning composure while frantically complaining in his heart.

Uchiha Izumi was unaware that her brother was mentally ranting about her.

After confirming that her brother was truly safe, Uchiha Izumi did not hesitate and climbed directly into bed.

Her bed was slightly smaller than the one in her brother's room, making the two of them look a bit cramped lying there.

However...

For her, this felt even more reassuring.

Uchiha Izumi curled up on her side, gently wrapping her arms around her brother, her nose filled with the refreshing scent belonging to the youth.

Though the bed was narrow, it pulled the two of them extremely close—close enough to hear their overlapping heartbeats.

However, upon smelling the sweat on Sister Izumi, Uchiha Ao silently nudged closer in her embrace.

Sister Izumi, go take a bath!

Uchiha Izumi, however, assumed her brother wanted to be even closer, so she tightened her arms and pulled the youth further into her embrace.

Fine, let Sister Izumi do whatever she wants.

Uchiha Ao wasn't particularly resistant to it.

The night passed without incident, and the next day arrived.

Morning light spilled into the room through the mottled window lattice, and Uchiha Izumi opened her eyes groggily, her gaze immediately falling upon her brother's sleeping face just inches away.

The youth's eyelids fluttered slightly, his breathing long and even, and a faint smile even lingered at the corners of his mouth.

Only then did she realize her arm had long since gone numb, yet she still stubbornly held onto Ao, like a mother beast guarding her cub.

Uchiha Izumi checked the time; worried about being seen by their mother, she intended to get up immediately, but then a thought struck her.

Wait, that's not right.

If I cast a genjutsu, wouldn't Mom just be completely out of it?

Uchiha Izumi felt annoyed that she hadn't thought of this sooner; otherwise, she could have been cuddling with her brother in bed right in front of their mother.

But it wasn't too late to think of it now.

Hehe.

A cunning, mischievous smile appeared on Uchiha Izumi's face as her fingertips unconsciously stroked the soft top of her brother's head.

The morning light gilded the youth's silhouette, and Ao's eyelashes trembled in his sleep, completely unaware of what kind of wicked scheme his sister was hatching.

"Izumi, it's time for breakfast!" their mother's voice suddenly came from outside the door, accompanied by a firm, rhythmic knocking.

Uchiha Izumi shuddered, her ocular power erupting in an instant.

The Mangekyo, not yet fully awakened, spun rapidly in her eyes, the tomoe twisting and deforming like flickering flames.

Uchiha Ao had been sleeping soundly, but he was jolted awake by this sudden surge of ocular power.

Damn it, can't a guy get some sleep in the morning?

However, upon sensing Sister Izumi beside him, Uchiha Ao immediately closed his eyes and drifted back to sleep.

Oh, it's just Sister Izumi. Never mind then.

The door was pushed open gently by Izumi's Mother, and a triumphant smirk tugged at the corners of Uchiha Izumi's mouth.

Her fingertips trembled slightly, and her still-unstable Mangekyo emitted a faint, eerie blue glow as an invisible genjutsu draped over her mother like a sheer veil.

Within the false scene woven by the illusion, the room appeared empty, the bedding neatly folded, and the morning light spilled gently across the vacant floor.

"Strange, where did they go?" Izumi's Mother scratched her head in confusion, her gaze sweeping over the bed without noticing a thing.

She muttered to herself and turned to leave, her footsteps gradually fading into the distance.

"Whew..." Uchiha Izumi let out a long sigh, her tense body relaxing as she buried her face back into her younger brother's neck. "That was almost a close call."

Her warm breath brushed against Ao's skin, carrying the lazy languor peculiar to the early morning.

The room fell back into silence, save for the faint, rhythmic sound of breathing.

By midday, Uchiha Ao truly couldn't fall back asleep.

"Sister Izumi, let go of me, I need to get up!"

"Just a little longer," Uchiha Izumi mumbled incoherently, her arms tightening like iron clamps as she rubbed her face against the crook of his neck.

Uchiha Ao felt a sense of helplessness.

Having a sister who was too clingy wasn't always a good thing.

Forget it, I'll just use a Shadow Clone today.

Realizing that Sister Izumi had no intention of letting him go, Uchiha Ao quietly gathered his chakra.

With a soft "poof," a Shadow Clone identical to him appeared by the bedside.

The Shadow Clone shared a consciousness with the original, so even without a direct command, it knew exactly what to do.

The Shadow Clone looked at the original body curled up in Sister Izumi's arms and gave him a wink.

The original body waved his hand helplessly at the clone, signaling for it to leave quickly.

The Shadow Clone understood, tiptoeing out of the room before performing the Body Flicker Technique, arriving at their usual spot in the blink of an eye.