Only after leaving Kirigakure's territory completely did Nagato breathe a sigh of relief and relax.
He immediately tugged the tightly stretched stocking off his head.
"Whew, that feels good!" Nagato instantly felt as though his entire face had been liberated. He felt his face. Good, it hadn't been squashed out of shape.
Mei Terumi stood motionless beside Nagato, her hand still in his.
He's holding my hand... he's holding my hand... he's holding my hand... That thought kept repeating itself in Mei Terumi's mind.
Ahhhhh, Nagato is actually holding my hand!!
Noticing Mei Terumi's odd behavior, Nagato looked over at her. She stood there as stiff as a wooden dummy, her face growing redder and redder, the blush spreading all the way down to the base of her neck.
Nagato waved a hand in front of Mei Terumi's face, trying to get her attention.
Mei Terumi came back to her senses, but instead of looking at Nagato, she lowered her head and stared at his hand, which was still holding hers.
Puzzled, Nagato let go. He hadn't thought there was anything strange about it. It wasn't a big deal, was it? Besides, he hadn't had any dirty intentions. Little Mei Terumi was only eleven or twelve. What sort of inappropriate thoughts could he possibly have? He wasn't a certain Kagami.
A certain Kagami: ?
What is this little girl imagining? He reached out and knocked on Mei Terumi's head.
"Snap out of it. What are you thinking about?" Nagato asked in confusion, tapping her little head.
"Nothing. Are we going to Konoha now?" Snapped out of her daze by Nagato's tapping, Mei Terumi hurriedly asked.
"Yeah, let's get this over with. This trip to Kirigakure sure was unforgettable," Nagato said with a sigh, gazing into the distance.
He hadn't earned