It took him less than an hour to return to base—flying at full speed made sure of that. He even made sure to keep his flame off, a habit he had grown quite fond of. He loved the pure speed form of the Lunarians and was currently in the process of slowly mastering it.
By toggling his flame off for just a fraction of a second to gain a burst of extreme speed, and then switching back into ultra-durable mode every so often, he ensured that even if he took a hit at maximum speed, it wouldn't hurt too much.
But that wasn't the pressing issue right now. He was carrying Shuri toward the Red Line.
The second he arrived, he bit his finger, drawing a line of fresh blood and smearing it across the surface of the Red Line to trigger the mechanism.
All the while, he kept a constant eye on Shuri to ensure she was okay; the girl seemed to be in severe pain. For a split second, Shuri's eyes glowed a faint, dangerous red.
Panic surged through Kairo—he had to rush. He needed to force the abyssal seal to close and get her to safety immediately. After opening the gateway, he breached the heavy gates and security systems, holding the injured girl securely in his arms.
He was certain their people could heal her. Besides, if they could extract information about Imu from her, it might prove useful. He forced himself to stay calm. His system hadn't sounded any alarms, and nothing was detected following them, which was a relief. It was always good to be clear.
More importantly, no abyssal energy could be felt, apart from the dark trace actively leaving her body.
The moment he was inside, he sprinted toward the nearest guards.
The two Lunarians on duty were standing guard when they sensed an approaching presence tainted with abyssal energy. Instantly, they prepared to fight it out. The first guard was already gathering Conqueror's Haki onto the tip of his trident, ready to skewer whatever was coming through.
Then, they noticed Kairo.
The prodigy of their clan.
And he was carrying a young girl.
"You two idiots, come help!" Kairo shouted. True to form, that was just how he addressed them.
The guards immediately rushed toward him.
"Who is she?" the first one asked urgently.
"Did you make sure you weren't followed?" the second asked, needing to confirm his safety first.
"I'm not a newbie," the boy retorted sharply.
Suddenly, the abyssal seal on Shuri's chest reacted again, pulsing with dark energy.
The guards' eyes widened in shock. That seal... They both recognized what it meant, and horror struck them. Why on earth was something like that here?
"Please, help her! Imu's control over her is weak right now," Kairo urged. "If we can break the seal, that's another horcrux of that thing gone!"
The guards caught on instantly. As they reached out toward her, Shuri shuddered, her eyes wide with fear.
Kairo turned to her, softening his tone and giving her a gentle smile. "...You're safe now."
She stirred weakly. "No..."
"It's okay." He adjusted her carefully in his arms. "No one's going to hurt you here."
Her ragged breathing slowly began to steady.
"You don't have to fight anymore," he whispered.
The physical tension in her body eased ever so slightly.
"We'll figure out what's happening to you. You'll see your family again someday." He smiled warmly. "I promise."
...Though whether he would keep that promise was a question left up to history.
The second guard nodded firmly. "I'll alert the medical division!"
A third guard, who had just arrived, immediately vanished using Body Flicker.
Kairo looked directly at the remaining sentries, his usual mischievous grin completely gone. "Please... save her."
The captain placed a hand over his chest. "You have our word."
Without another word, they vanished. Medical specialists, seal masters, barrier experts—everyone moved in unison as the entire village entered a state of emergency response.
...
Kairo barely managed three steps forward before a voice shattered the silence.
"KAIRO!"
His entire body froze solid. "...Ah."
He turned around with agonizing slowness. His mother stood there with his father at her side, both breathing heavily, looking utterly exhausted.
For one long, agonizing second, neither of them spoke.
Ayame walked straight up to him.
SMACK!
She smacked him across the back of the head—not hard enough to injure him, but more than enough to make her point.
"OW!"
"You idiot!" She immediately threw her arms around him, pulling him into a fierce, tight hug.
"So that's what this feels like..." Kairo muttered, feeling slightly squished against her.
"You disappeared!" she cried. "We searched everywhere! Do you have any idea how worried we were?!"
Kairo blinked, taken aback. "...Sorry."
She pulled away just enough to glare down at him. "You snuck outside."
"...Yeah."
"You lied."
"...Yeah."
"You ignored every single order we gave you."
"...Yeah."
Another smack.
"Ow!"
His father, Tobirama, let out a deep, heavy sigh. "...Are you hurt?"
Kairo shook his head. "No."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah."
"...Good." Tobirama crossed his arms, his expression stern. "Now. What exactly possessed you to sneak outside the Red Line?"
Kairo scratched his cheek awkwardly. "I... found someone."
"You what?"
"There was a girl. They were selling people... so I saved her."
Silence fell over them. His parents exchanged a long look before turning back to him.
"...You rescued a slave?"
Kairo nodded. "And she has some weird seal on her."
Again, heavy silence. Tobirama let out a slow, weary sigh. "...I'm proud of you."
Kairo began to smile.
Then came the hammer. "But you're still grounded."
The smile vanished instantly. "...What?"
"You disobeyed us."
"But—"
"You left without permission."
"I saved someone!"
"You still put yourself in extreme danger."
"I literally saved a life!"
"And you nearly gave your mother a heart attack."
"But—"
"No arguments," Ayame said, folding her arms firmly. "One month."
"WHAT?!"
"No missions."
"..."
"No training outside of supervised hours."
"..."
"No leaving the compound."
"..."
"And no archive access."
"..."
Kairo looked at them, utterly betrayed. "I saved someone..."
His mother offered a sad, gentle smile. "And we'd still rather have you alive."
His father nodded in agreement. "You did the right thing, son. But you did it the wrong way."
Kairo couldn't understand it. How? He had saved a life. Wasn't that enough?
...
Later that evening, his bedroom felt smaller and more suffocating than usual.
He lay face-first on his bed, fuming.
"...Stupid grounding," he muttered, slamming a punch into his pillow.
"I saved someone." Punch.
"I didn't do anything wrong." Punch.
"They're treating me like I'm five!" Punch.
"I'm twelve!" Punch.
"They never listen to me!" His dark wings puffed out in sheer frustration. "...I hate this."
Silence filled the room. The dark words slipped out of his mouth before he could even stop them.
"...I wish they'd all just die..."
His voice dropped to a quiet whisper. "...and leave me alone forever."
If only he knew that he would get his wish—much sooner than he could ever have expected.
A/N Chapter came much later since one was procastinating, and two was waiting for the manga chapter fully revealing Gunko past before i decided to go left with it.
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