Cheng spoke without much inflection, yet his words made Nako stiffen.
"Since when did 'not fighting back' and 'just getting out of the way' become Uchiha virtues?"
Nako opened her mouth to say something, but Cheng gave her no chance.
"Wrong is wrong. Bullying is bullying."
His voice grew colder. "Today they threw stones at you, shoved you, and called you red-eyed. You think putting up with it will make everything fine?"
"Let me tell you, put up with it once, and they'll decide you're easy prey! Next time, they might use sharpened sticks. The time after that, they might even dare to use kunai!"
"When you're lying in a hospital bed-or worse-will wondering why you didn't fight back do you any good?"
He looked straight at Nako, his gaze piercing and impossible to evade:
"This isn't about the Uchiha Clan's reputation. It's about your own boundaries!"
"It's about whether you take responsibility for your own safety! If you can't even protect yourself, what good is talking about clan honor? That's all bullshit."
"And you're enabling these bullies. Do you think they'll thank you for letting them bully you?"
His barrage of words left Nako dazed. Her body trembled slightly, not from fear, but from the shock of having a shell of self-deception pierced.
She lowered her head and remained silent for several seconds. When she looked up again, some of the timid moisture in her eyes seemed to have receded, replaced by a barely perceptible resolve, though her gaze remained gentle underneath.
"...I, I understand," she said quietly but clearly. "Thank you for teaching me."
Uchiha Makoto neither affirmed nor denied it. He asked casually, "Didn't the adults at home teach you any of this? What about the clan's elders?"
Nako shook her head, her voice growing softer. "I'm