"Papa... Mama... Sasuke-niichan... where are you..."
"I feel so tired..."
"Even Konoha has no room for me..."
Blood leaked continuously from the corners of Kanon's mouth. Her eyes reflected a profound, soul-deep exhaustion.
But in the next heartbeat, memories surged through her mind like a tidal wave—the horror of the massacre night, the image of her clinging to Mikoto. Her consciousness began to blur. From the gaping wound in her abdomen, fresh crimson blood welled up, soaking her blue coat.
She could feel her strength draining away. She looked up at the moon, bright and pristine in the night sky.
The world seemed to go quiet. Nearby, the two Anbu operatives were busy disposing of Amano's body. They were simply waiting for Kanon to draw her last breath before "processing" her as well.
Nii-chan... I think I'm going to die here today.
Kanon raised a hand, her fingers stained with her own blood, reaching out as if to grasp the white moon. In her mind's eye, the smiles of Sasuke, Naruto, Sakura, and Kakashi flickered by. Then, like a hallucination, Izumi Uchiha appeared before her.
"Kanon-chan, stand up!"
"Izumi-nee... my head is so foggy."
"Weren't you going to find that flower field in your heart?"
"Izumi-nee..."
"Kanon, you're eleven now. You aren't as powerless as you were at six. You have no reason to run away anymore!"
Hot tears finally spilled from the corners of Kanon's eyes, the searing pain in her gut gnawing at her remaining awareness.
"I..."
"How... how could I die in a place like this..."
Suddenly, a resolute light ignited in her eyes. Kanon grit her teeth as her chakra began to surge violently. Even Konin, deep within her subconscious, was stunned—this was the raw power of Yang Release.
The wound in Kanon's abdomen began to knit together. Her eyes shifted into a vivid, bloody crimson as three tomoe slowly began to spin.
"What's going on?" The two Anbu looked at her in shock.
Under the moonlight, Kanon's face was deathly pale. Her expression was unnervingly calm, a stillness that heralded a terrifying internal rage.
Kanon knew this might be the final flare of her life's candle, a desperate gamble for survival, but she would not back down again. This was her pride as an Uchiha; this was her conviction to fight.
"Just the final struggle of a dying bird," one Anbu scoffed. "Don't bother getting up if you just want more pain."
But Kanon's heart was like ice. In this helpless world, she had lived in solitude. If even Konoha could not offer her sanctuary, she didn't know who was left to trust. Rather than rely on others, she would rely on herself. A murderous intent radiated from her as the Three-Tomoe Sharingan spun frantically.
"Look out! Don't look into her eyes!" one of them barked.
His warning came too late. His partner was already caught in her visual prowess.
In his mind, he saw a flower field drenched in blood. He was bound to a crimson cross, and every falling petal was a razor blade, flaying him alive. Within the Genjutsu, his movements were sluggish, while the petals sliced through him with blinding speed and lethal precision.
In reality, the ninja caught by Kanon's Sharingan began to bleed from his eyes, nose, and mouth. He collapsed, his eyes vacant. Though he was still breathing, his life force was fading fast.
Kanon tilted her head, her expression becoming wild and predatory.
"Now... it's your turn."
"You... you monster!" The remaining assassin drew his blade and charged. "Die, you brat!"
In the next instant, the forest erupted with the sound of a thousand birds chirping in unison.
Clang! Snap!
The Anbu's sword was shattered instantly by the Chidori. With a cold, merciless smile, Kanon drove her hand through the man's chest, piercing his heart.
"How... is this... possible..."
He fell to his knees, collapsing at her feet.
Without a glance at the dead man, Kanon walked toward the ninja trapped in her Genjutsu. She drew a kunai and drove it viciously into his heart, ending him. Blood splattered across her cheek, but she didn't even wipe it away.
As she stood up, another figure emerged from the forest, coming from the direction Danzo had gone. Kanon stared at the white-haired man illuminated by the moon. She let out a sharp, jagged laugh.
"Hahaha! I don't expect anything from this rotten village anymore!"
"Are you here to kill me too?"
The white-haired man surveyed the carnage, his brow furrowing deeply.
"You're injured," Jiraiya said, his voice a warning.
Kanon didn't answer. She formed a one-handed seal, her Sharingan flashing.
"Are you... Kanon Uchiha?!"
The only response he received was a Chidori.
BOOM!
A flash of blue light erupted, sending both of them skidding back. Kanon was incredibly fast; Jiraiya had been forced to use a Rasengan just to parry the strike.
Kanon smashed into another tree but forced herself to stand, dragging her broken body upright.
"What happened to you?! Why did you kill those two shinobi?" Jiraiya was bewildered. He had hurried over at the sound of the Chidori only to find a blood-soaked, wounded Kanon standing over two dead Anbu.
He knew of Kanon Uchiha, at least, what the Third Hokage had told him. She was supposed to be a kind child. Why did she harbor such terrifying killing intent and eyes full of utter despair? There was only one explanation: she had experienced a heartbreak that defied description.
Looking at those three-tomoe eyes, even Jiraiya felt a pang in his chest. The child is only eleven... to have awakened the three-tomoe... just how much pain has she endured?
"Were you sent by him to kill me too?"
"Who sent someone to kill you?!" Jiraiya demanded.
"Quit acting!" Kanon wove a sign. "Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
A violent gale blasted toward Jiraiya. He used his Needle Jizo, lengthening his white hair to shield himself.
But the gale was a feint. Kanon leaped into the air, combining a Fire Release jutsu with shuriken.
"Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Claw Crimson!"
Jiraiya's eyes widened. He couldn't just tank this; she was fighting with the intent to kill. He desperately wanted to know what had turned the "kind girl" the Third described into this engine of despair.
Jiraiya dodged the flaming shuriken and retaliated with Wild Lion's Mane Jutsu, binding Kanon in his hair.
"You can't move now! Will you listen to me?!"
"I have nothing to say to you!" Kanon gave a violent tug. Blood sprayed as she actually tore a piece of flesh from her own arm just to free her hand for a split second.
"What?!" Jiraiya gasped. The girl's sheer willpower to endure such pain was staggering.
"Fire Release: Majestic Destroyer Flame!" A massive inferno erupted from Kanon's mouth, aimed directly at Jiraiya.
Jiraiya's expression turned grim. He instantly released his hair and pulled out a sealing scroll, absorbing the entirety of the Majestic Destroyer Flame into the parchment.
Exhausted, Kanon dropped to one knee, her Sharingan fading.
"Then... let's settle it with this." Kanon forced herself up, staring at the impassive Jiraiya.
Jiraiya remained silent, watching to see what she would do. He was stunned when a sphere of spinning blue chakra formed in her left hand.
As expected of an Uchiha prodigy... she learned it just by seeing it once?!
Jiraiya manifested a Rasengan in his own hand. "Come then! Let me see your conviction!" he shouted, offering her his respect as a warrior.
"Danzo's dog! I'll take you with me!" Kanon roared. She stepped off, and the ground beneath her shattered from the force of her launch. Even Jiraiya's eyes widened at her explosive power.
But it wasn't her speed that shocked him, it was her words. Danzo's dog? Was Danzo behind all of this?!
Kanon was upon him. Jiraiya had to defend. The collision of the two Rasengans triggered an explosion that sent a hurricane-force wind tearing through the forest.
Kanon's arms hung limp at her sides, but she remained standing, staring deathly at the skidding Jiraiya.
Jiraiya looked at his trembling hand and took a sharp breath. The strength this girl had displayed today was not that of a Genin, it far exceeded the level of an Anbu.
As Jiraiya was lost in thought, Kanon suddenly burst into a peal of loud laughter.
"Haha... Hahahaha!" It was wild and free, yet laced with a piercing sorrow.
"Papa... Mama... Izumi-nee... in the end, I couldn't change a thing..." Her voice was thick with helplessness and grief.
"Hahahaha!" As her laughter grew hoarse, trails of blood and tears intermingled on her face, creating a scene of tragic beauty.
She dragged her broken, exhausted frame toward Jiraiya. This time, Jiraiya didn't raise his guard. He knew intuitively that she wouldn't attack again.
"Is it so much to ask... just to live in peace...?" Her voice trembled as she stood before him, eyes shimmering with tears. "If this is the case... then I don't care about living in this ninja world."
She reached out and took Jiraiya's hand. Reaching into her leg pouch, she pulled out a kunai, placed it gently in his palm, and leaned her forehead against his chest.
"Just kill me..."
In her voice, there was only the peace of one who had finally given up.
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