Location: Secured Apartment, New York — 3:47 AM
May 17 — a few hours after the failed mission
The streetlight outside filtered through the half-closed blinds, drawing pale lines across the silent walls.
Naruto stood, arms crossed, leaning against the window.
Natasha remained curled up on the couch, her eyes fixed on him.
Since they'd returned, they had only exchanged practical words.
No looks. No truths.
Until now.
"You knew they were waiting for us," she said at last, her voice calm but sharp.
"I had a suspicion. Not certainty."
"And you decided to keep it to yourself."
"…I wanted to avoid panic."
She stood slowly, circled the coffee table, and came to stand in front of him.
No anger in her movements. Just an old, tightly wound tension.
"You're not alone, Naruto. Maybe you were, most of your life. But not anymore. Stop thinking you have to carry it all."
He didn't answer. Not right away.
His gaze remained lost in the void.
"It's not distrust. It's not contempt. It's fear."
"Of what?" she murmured.
"Of getting attached."
He finally looked at her.
"And of losing you. Like the others."
The silence that followed wasn't heavy. It was raw. Vulnerable.
Natasha stepped forward and placed her hands on his chest, right over his heart.
"You saved me, Naruto. Not just physically. You saw me when I didn't want to be seen. And you never looked at me like a weapon."
He looked down.
"Because you're not one."
She shook her head slowly.
"And you're not a ghost. You're not just a survivor. You're a human being. One who deserves more than silence and walls."
Then, lower, almost a whisper:
"You can talk to me. Not like a mission. Not like a strategic variable. Just like… a person."
Naruto clenched his jaw.
Then slowly, he began to speak.
"There are things I can't explain. Not yet. Not because I don't want to — because words aren't enough."
He paused.
"What you need to know is that I've seen what it's like to lose everything you've built. Not because of a choice. Because of something beyond your control. And every day… every time I look at you, hear you breathe in your sleep… I wonder if I'm rebuilding it all. If I'm risking it again."
He locked eyes with her.
"You're the one person I can't afford to lose."
She didn't smile.
But her eyes shimmered — no tears, just that tightness behind the lids known only to those who've fought too long to stay alive.
"Then share it. The weight. The fear. I was made to survive too, Naruto. But I don't want to just survive anymore. I want to live. With you."
He nodded softly.
Then, more quietly:
"Then I need to make a call."
---
4:19 AM
Naruto activated the secure tablet he'd kept hidden for days.
A private channel, manually encoded.
Natasha didn't need to ask any questions.
"Coulson?"
"Yeah," Naruto breathed. "He's been watching me since the beginning. I think he let me move freely on purpose. He doesn't follow Hill blindly. He wants to understand. Not control."
"You think he could help neutralize her?"
"Or at least give us enough intel to go around her."
The encrypted line blinked. One tone, two… then three.
"Agent Coulson speaking. Confidential line. Caller identification?"
Naruto straightened, voice firm:
"Naruto Uzumaki. What I'm about to tell you isn't recorded anywhere. And if you're listening… you'll understand why Hill can never know."
A beat of silence.
Then Coulson replied:
"I'm listening."