2:48 AM – Secured Apartment, New York
Silence reigned.
Not the kind born of missions or hiding places. A deeper silence. One that settles when two souls sleep to the same rhythm.
The bed was vast, but their bodies occupied only a single space. Natasha slept curled against him, her warm breath slowly gliding across the hollow of his neck. Her arms wrapped around him like she had finally found a place in a world that had never offered her one.
Naruto, however, was not asleep.
He didn't move. He didn't even think.
He… listened.
Listened to this inhabited silence. This calm after the inner wars. This improbable peace he never thought possible in a world that wasn't his own.
And yet… something was calling to him. Softly. Like an old bell long forgotten in the fog.
In his mind, a familiar voice sighed.
"You planning to tell her one day… or would you rather she finds out when it's already too late?"
Kurama.
Naruto didn't move. But his mind reached toward the massive, yet gentle presence within him—sleeping like a red-furred beast in an ancient forest.
"She deserves to know," Kurama added. "She accepted you. Not just your smile. Not your strength. You. All of you."
Naruto looked down at Natasha.
Her eyelids were closed. But her face showed no tension. No fear. She slept as if she believed in him. Without hesitation. Without defense. As if she knew… he could carry everything.
And that was the problem.
He loved her too much to let her carry this burden with him.
"She'll feel what you feel," Kurama reminded him. "The bond you created doesn't lie."
A deep thump echoed in his chest.
No—the Seishin no Musubi never lied.
Their bond was no longer a simple connection. It pulsed in rhythm with their thoughts, their hidden pains, their memories. And if it remained silent… it was because, deep down, Natasha was waiting. She sensed he was holding something back. But she never forced it. She gave him time.
Naruto closed his eyes.
And this time, it wasn't pain that returned.
It was an image of a classroom, bathed in pale light. A hand gripping a forehead protector.
And a whisper. That of the system.
"Memories restored."
He opened his eyes again.
His hand slid softly to Natasha's hip, careful not to wake her. He wanted to anchor this moment. This calm. This shared breath.
But he knew the night wouldn't last.
He had to speak. He had to open the door he'd locked tight within his memory.
Kurama growled, amused:
"You know, I've never known you to be this quiet."
"I'm choosing my words."
"You won't need them. Speak to her with your heart."
"That's exactly… what I'm afraid to open."
Kurama didn't reply.
Not this time.
A silence of consent. A silence… of respect.
And within that peaceful void, Naruto understood. This wasn't a secret he was carrying.
It was a wound he had never dared to show.
He inhaled gently.
"Natasha…" he whispered.
She didn't move at first.
But after a few seconds, her eyelids fluttered.
And when she opened her eyes, there was no surprise in them.
Only one thing.
"You want to tell me, don't you?"
He nodded.
She didn't ask what.
She already knew. Because she could feel it. Like a quiet echo in the depths of her abdomen, where Naruto's chakra touched hers through their bond.
She rose slightly, never leaving the warmth of his body.
Then she whispered:
"Then tell me. I'm here."
And in that simple "I'm here," he finally found permission… to remember.