On the final day, something felt eerie from the moment dawn broke.
The moon had already filled the entire sky-not with the pitch-black obstruction of night, but in broad daylight. The sun was pressed behind it, showing only a golden rim that edged the enormous disc, a sight both eerie and oppressive.
All of Konoha lay dim, as though it were dusk, and even the wind carried a chill.
Shuo stood on the rubble, looking up until his neck ached.
The crack in the sky had grown frighteningly wide. Two pale hands gripped its edges, and half a shoulder had emerged, white as a corpse, without a trace of color.
That face was almost fully exposed. Its pale purple eyes stared straight down, landing precisely on him.
"Staring at me again," he muttered, his voice barely wavering.
Sai stood beside him, still clutching something in his hand, and said nothing.
"She's got her eye on you."
"Yeah. I'm used to it."
Shuo fished a candy from his pocket, unwrapped it, and tossed it into his mouth. Only when the sweetness spread did the gloom in his heart ease a little.
Chewing the candy, he looked down at his palm-the purple mark had crept a little farther up, almost reaching his elbow. Wherever the black lines spread, his skin felt slightly numb.
"How much longer?" Sai asked, his gaze falling on Shuo's arm.
Shuo glanced at the mark and shrugged. "Around this time tomorrow, it'll pretty much have reached my heart."
Sai said nothing, simply watching Shuo's profile.
The guy still looked as lazy as ever, with a few candy crumbs at the corner of his mouth, as though someone else were about to die, not him.
"Could you fucking act a little worried?" Sai finally burst out, his voice carrying