Before the Sweets Shop Closed

The rain had stopped two days ago, but a trace of dampness still lingered in the air.

On the evening of the third day, Shuo hadn't planned to wander over to the Shopping District-the afternoon's brief Team Minato meeting had covered how next week's missions were fully booked and everyone should rest up beforehand.

Obito clamored about going for barbecue, Kakashi looked indifferent, and Rin said she needed to go home and bring in the laundry. Amid all the chatter, Shuo stayed out of it. Once the meeting ended, he walked off with his hands in his pockets, and his wandering eventually brought him to the sweets shop's street.

The shop was still open, warm yellow light spilling through its windows onto the pavement that had dried and dampened, then dampened and dried again.

A new item sat in the display window: chestnut cake, with a prominent label reading "Limited edition."

Shuo stood at the entrance as though his heels were stuck to the ground, pausing for five seconds.

"Welcome!"

The owner's lively voice drifted out from inside.

He pushed the door open, and the bell gave a jingle.

There weren't many customers. A couple huddled in a corner, talking quietly; a middle-aged man sat by the window holding a book; and a child leaned against the glass at the counter, picking out cookies.

Shuo went straight to the display and tipped his chin up. "That one."

"Coming right up. Will one slice be enough?"

"...Make it two." Shuo thought it over. That would save him another trip tomorrow-too much trouble. "To go."

The owner boxed them up with a smile and took his money. Shuo accepted the paper box and turned to leave.

Halfway through turning, he caught sight of the middle-aged man by the window out of the corner of his eye-the book was upside down, and the light reflected off its pages flickered. He wasn't reading at all; he looked more like he was watching something.

Shuo said nothing and pushed the door open, his steps as slow as ever, the cake box in his hand perfectly steady.

Behind him, the pages rustled-not from being turned, but from brushing the table as the man stood up. Even the surrounding patterns of light wavered, like a pebble dropping into water in Shuo's perception.

Shuo turned into the alley beside the shop. It wasn't long, and one end led onto another street.

A third of the way in, he stopped without turning around, his voice as languid and casual as if he were discussing the weather. "Did the sweets shop get a new edition of that book today? Fascinating even upside down?"

Three meters behind him, the footsteps stopped abruptly.

Sai stood at the alley entrance, the sunset stretching his shadow long. The wind stirred his silver-gray hair, and he said nothing, his expression cold.

"...You deliberately lured me here."

After a few seconds of silence, Sai spoke, his voice as flat and uninflected as ever.

"Yep."

Shuo admitted it openly, leaned against the wall, opened the cake box, and took out a slice, biting off a large mouthful. "Bought cake, had nowhere to eat it. Figured I'd find some company so I wouldn't get bored alone," he said indistinctly.

Sai still said nothing, simply standing at the alley entrance like a block of ice.

Shuo took another bite, chewed, and frowned. "Tch, a bit too sweet. Not as good as Anko's."

Sai finally spoke. "When I told you not to come last time, I wasn't just being polite."

"I know."

Shuo nodded and swallowed the cake in his mouth. "But it's limited edition. If I don't eat it now, it'll be gone. That's even more trouble."

Sai watched him, a hint of confusion hidden in his eyes, probably unable to understand why this person considered cake more important than trouble.

Shuo finished his first slice, licked the cream off his fingers, and held the box out to Sai. "One left. Want it? If not, I'll put it away for breakfast tomorrow."

Sai didn't take it. He stepped half a pace back, as though afraid of getting cake on himself.

"All right, suit yourself."

Shuo didn't insist. He closed the box and tucked it into his Ninja Tool Pouch, gathered a little golden light at his fingertips, and casually waved them. The points of light cast scattered shadows on the wall before quickly fading.

The alley fell quiet. In the distance, children laughed and played noisily, and crows returning to their nests flew overhead, their wings rustling.

"Lord Danzo has been looking into you lately."

Sai spoke suddenly, breaking the silence.

Shuo paused in the middle of putting the cake box away, then slowly continued, not taking it seriously. "Looking into what? Whether eating too much cake will make me fat?"

"The source of your abilities, your mission records, and your relationship with Team Minato."

Sai paused, his tone growing a little heavier. "And your kekkei genkai data registered with the Medical Team."

"Oh."

Shuo acknowledged it without much concern. "Let him look. It's not like I've been hiding anything."

"Someone in the archives leaked that data."

Only then did Shuo lift his eyes and give Sai a proper look. "Who leaked it?"

"I don't know."

Sai shook his head. "They moved fast. Once they finished looking, they destroyed every trace. Didn't leave so much as a hair behind."

"So you're here to warn me," Shuo scratched his head, looking thoroughly displeased, "that someone wants to steal my medical report?"

"Not steal it. They want to know whether your abilities can be replicated."

The light in the alley dimmed further. The sun sank completely, leaving only a little orange-red warmth along the horizon.

Leaning against the wall, Shuo watched the faint light at the alley entrance. His expression barely changed; he just found it annoying.

"Can they be replicated?" he asked casually.

"I don't know."

Sai said, "But as long as someone thinks they can, you'll have a lot of trouble ahead."

"How much trouble?"

Sai didn't answer. He simply fell silent.

His silence made it clearer than any words could-the kind of trouble that couldn't be shaken off or avoided, that took every bit of cunning to handle.

"Tch. What a pain."

Shuo muttered and scratched his messy hair. "If I'd known, I wouldn't have bought this cake. Got myself into a whole pile of crap."

He paused, then asked, "Does that old man Danzo know you're telling me this?"

Sai lowered his eyes to the tips of his shoes, his voice softening a little. "He doesn't."

The alley stayed silent for a long time, until the orange-red horizon turned dark blue and the first star lit up, its faint light falling over them.

"I had an older brother."

Sai spoke suddenly, his tone still flat, as though talking about someone else's family. "He used to be in Root too. Then he went on a mission and never came back."

Shuo didn't interrupt. He only fished a candy from his Ninja Tool Pouch-an orange-flavored one he'd bought at the convenience store last time-unwrapped it, and popped it into his mouth. Its sweetness suppressed the little bit of irritation inside him.

"He taught me that once you learn certain things, you have to tell the people who ought to know."

Sai raised his head and looked at Shuo, his left eye showing pale gray in the faint light. "You're someone who ought to know."

Shuo held his gaze for a few seconds, chewing the candy, then said indistinctly, "Your brother was a decent guy."

Sai said nothing in response. He turned and headed toward the other end of the alley, walking quickly without the slightest reluctance to leave.

After a few steps, he stopped again without looking back. "This sweets shop is closing tomorrow. The owner's son is in Sunagakure. He's taking her there to spend her retirement."

Shuo leaned against the wall, watching his back, a few candy crumbs clinging to the corner of his mouth. "Oh. Got it."

Sai kept walking. Just as he left the alley, the streetlights came on, their warm yellow glow briefly illuminating his figure-silver-gray hair and thin shoulders-before he quickly vanished around a street corner without a trace.

Shuo stood in the alley a little longer, then took the uneaten slice of chestnut cake out of his Ninja Tool Pouch and bit into it. Still too sweet. He chewed slowly, finished the cake, folded up the wrapper, and stuffed it into his pocket-no littering, lest someone give him grief. Too much trouble.

Leaving the alley, he glanced back toward the sweets shop. Its lights were still on, and the "Limited edition" sign remained in the window. In the night, that warm yellow light looked especially gentle.

He looked away and ambled toward the dormitory, both hands in his pockets, dragging his steps as though he hadn't fully woken up.

The system interface suddenly popped up:

[Key intelligence obtained: abilities have drawn attention; kekkei genkai data was previously leaked]

[Character contacted: Sai]

[Relationship change: stranger → Information Informant]

[Imitation points + 0.7%]

[Current imitation points: 46.5%]

[System note: knowing trouble is coming yet remaining unhurried-this is the highest state of laziness]

Shuo glanced at it and pursed his lips. "Tch. At least listening to all that troublesome talk wasn't for nothing. Got a little something useful out of it."

He gave it no further thought. Only one thing remained in his mind-the sweets shop was closing tomorrow, so he'd have to find somewhere new next time he wanted chestnut cake. What a pain.

At the foot of the dormitory building, he looked up at the sky. There were plenty of stars, bright ones. Tomorrow would probably be another sunny day.

He stood there for a few seconds, then pushed the door open and went inside. The corridor was silent, with only his slow, dragging footsteps echoing through its emptiness.

Reaching his door, he took out his key ring. A little charm hung from it-a freebie from buying cake last week, shaped like a miniature chestnut, with an orange base and a brown stem. Ugly, but not exactly unpleasant.

He looked at it for two seconds, tucked the key ring back into his pocket, inserted the key into the lock, turned it, pushed the door open, and closed it.

Outside the window, the moon had risen, round and bright, like a piece of cooled chestnut cake hanging quietly in the sky. No one touched it or thought about it. It simply hung there, languid and idle, just like Shuo.