Although he remained quiet and reserved, the wariness and distance in his eyes had faded considerably. Occasionally, he even looked toward Uchiha Makoto on his own, as though hesitating over something.
Uchiha Makoto noticed and knew the time was nearly right.
That day, Yahiko and Konan went out to handle some organizational affairs, leaving only Nagato and a few members assigned to guard duty at the base.
Holding a cup of hot water, Uchiha Makoto casually sat down beside Nagato.
"Are your eyes still bothering you?"
He pointed to his own eyes, then looked at the faintly visible, ringed pupils half hidden beneath Nagato's bangs. His tone was as casual as if he were asking about the weather.
Nagato stiffened slightly and instinctively raised a hand to cover them, but lowered it halfway.
He fell silent for a few seconds before asking quietly, "Cheng, you know about my eyes?"
"Mm, a little." Cheng took a sip of water. "The Rinnegan, right? The legendary eyes of the Sage. Never expected to see them on you. Quite a rarity."
His tone was utterly ordinary, as though he were discussing some rare plant he had spotted by the roadside rather than the supreme ocular technique of the Shinobi World.
That very attitude eased some of Nagato's tension.
"Cheng, don't you think they're strange? Or frightening?" Nagato asked softly, his fingers unconsciously twisting the hem of his clothes.
"Strange? They are pretty strange." Cheng shrugged. "As for frightening... what's frightening about power itself? What's frightening is the person using it, or someone who can't control it."
He paused and looked at Nagato. "You lost control that time because you couldn't fully master this power yet, right? The sudden surge overwhelmed your mind, and your body couldn't keep up with your awareness."
Nagato abruptly raised