"Konoha has lost plenty of shinobi to Root's dirty tricks," Evan said lazily. "Don't tell me you haven't heard of the things they do in the shadows?"
Uzuki Yugao frowned slightly.
Root acted without restraint.
Protected by Danzo, they did whatever they pleased—kidnapping, coercing, "recruiting."
She couldn't deny the possibility.
"So go to the Hokage and explain everything," she suggested.
Evan shook his head immediately.
"Nope."
Yugao blinked. "…Why?"
He sighed dramatically.
"Because it would damage my bright, wholesome, sunshine-boy reputation."
"…Huh?"
Yugao stared.
What kind of answer is that?
Evan tilted his head.
"Yugao, tell me—what will it take for you to keep this a secret for me?"
Her heart tightened.
He was serious.
"I… I didn't see anything," Yugao forced out, voice steady despite her fear. "I won't speak of this to anyone."
Just buy time, she told herself.
Stay alive long enough for Hayate to reach the Hokage.
"I believe you," Evan said with a soft smile.
She nearly collapsed from relief.
But then—
"I don't trust Hayate. Maybe I should go kill him."
The blood drained from Yugao's face.
He's a devil.
[Uzuki Yugao – Hatred Value +1000]
Evan actually turned as if to pursue him.
That was the final straw.
Yugao's blade flashed free of its sheath.
"Moonless Night—Konoha-ryū Sword Style!"
She poured all her strength—and all her fear—into that strike.
The air cracked.
A normal elite jōnin would've been cleaved in half.
Her blade connected cleanly.
Split through Evan's torso.
Except—
There was no resistance.
No blood.
No flesh.
Only air.
His form scattered like smoke.
"A… shadow remnant?" Yugao whispered.
"Yugao," a calm voice said behind her, "you're making things very difficult for me."
Her instincts screamed—she spun and attacked without thinking.
Clang!
Her sword didn't meet flesh.
It met…
A branch.
A single slender twig Evan held between two fingers.
Her strongest strike—stopped by wood.
Impossible.
But it happened.
"Trying to test swords with me?" Evan asked, amused. "You do remember what I'm famous for, right?"
Yugao felt her stomach drop.
Of course she knew.
The stories of the boy who carved through battlefields with nothing but sword skill.
The prodigy who cleaved through Mist forces like paper.
But she had no choice.
"Konoha-ryū… Three Days' Crescent!"
Two clones feinted in, flanking Evan from both sides, while Yugao lunged straight forward.
Three simultaneous angles.
Swift. Deadly.
Her precision was flawless.
Evan sighed.
"Why do you people always shout the technique name?"
He swung the twig casually.
Pa! Pa!
Her clones burst like soap bubbles.
Her sword flew from her hand.
A heartbeat later, the tip of that twig was touching her throat.
Yugao froze.
His control… was monstrous.
This wasn't a battle.
It was a demonstration.
She closed her eyes.
"…Do it."
Death didn't frighten ANBU.
She had always known her end could come quietly.
At least Hayate was still alive.
But the strike never came.
Evan let the branch fall.
"I never said I was going to kill you."
Yugao opened her eyes cautiously.
He smiled down at her—gentle, harmless, terribly dangerous.
"What do you want from me?" she whispered.
Evan's gaze changed.
A heat flickered beneath the surface—something sharp, hungry, unsettling.
He was suppressing something inside himself.
A killing aura, violent and corrosive.
He needed an outlet.
"Yugao," Evan asked quietly, "how far has your relationship with Hayate progressed?"
Yugao stiffened.
Of all the questions—
But thinking of Hayate…
That hopelessly introverted man who still hadn't confessed to her, despite years of knowing each other…
She bit her lip, cheeks warming.
"W-we're just… friends."
Evan's brows lifted.
"Tch. Hayate moves that slowly? He's practically giving opportunities away."
Her unease spiked.
That smile of his widened just a little too much.
"Yugao," he said softly, "come with me. I'll show you something."
Her instincts screamed danger.
She tried to move—
Zing—!
Several faint pulses of chakra lanced into her.
Her limbs weakened instantly as her chakra network locked tight.
He had sealed her acupoints with that terrifying invisible technique.
"W-what are you doing?" Yugao struggled, panic finally breaking through her training.
Evan leaned forward, his tone gentle—too gentle.
"Yugao… you don't want Hayate to die, right?"
Her heart stopped.
The implication hit like a kunai to the spine.
Evan smiled.
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