"...Eh?"
Issei let out a small, awkward laugh as his hand came up to scratch his cheek. His mind felt sluggish, as if someone had stuffed it with cotton.
"Uh… c-could you repeat that?" he asked, forcing a smile that didn't reach his eyes. "I don't think I heard you right."
Yuuma's smile didn't fade.
It shifted.
The warmth that had lived in her expression drained away as she slowly tilted her head downward. Shadows stretched unnaturally across her face, carving harsh angles where softness had been moments ago. Her violet eyes disappeared beneath a veil of darkness—until only a faint, predatory glow remained.
"Could you please die for me?"
The words were spoken gently.
Almost affectionately.
Issei's breath caught in his throat.
For a heartbeat, his mind rejected reality outright. This had to be a joke. A prank. Some weird, overly dramatic line she was saying to tease him.
She wouldn't say something like that.
Not Yuuma.
Not the girl who smiled at him while eating ice cream. Not the girl who laughed softly when he tripped over his words. Not the girl who held his hand like it actually meant something.
Then the sound came.
A violent rip tore through the evening air.
Issei's eyes widened as something burst from Yuuma's back, shredding the fabric of her dress and jacket as if they were made of paper. Black feathers scattered into the air, catching the fading sunlight.
Wings.
Huge, powerful wings unfurled behind her—each spanning nearly a meter in length. They were shaped like angel wings.
Except angels weren't supposed to look like this.
The feathers were pitch black.
With a single flap, Yuuma shot into the air, hovering effortlessly several feet above him. The sudden displacement of air knocked Issei backward, his legs giving out as he stumbled and fell onto the grass.
His heart slammed against his ribs.
This wasn't real.
This couldn't be real.
"I had a lot of fun with you these past few days," Yuuma said calmly, as if they were reminiscing about a pleasant vacation.
She extended her hand.
Light gathered there.
It started as a faint glow, then intensified—coiling, condensing, shaping itself into a long spear made entirely of radiant energy. The air around it hummed with power, the hairs on Issei's arms standing on end.
"Dating a child like you was a nice break," she continued, almost fondly. "And I'll always treasure this gift you gave me."
She held up the small scrunchy bracelet.
Issei's stomach dropped.
"That's why," she smiled sweetly, "I'm going to make this painless."
She threw the spear.
It didn't arc.
It shot forward like a bullet.
Time slowed.
Issei saw the light tear through the air toward him. He saw how easily it cut through the space between them. He understood, in some detached corner of his mind, that if it hit him—
He would die.
His legs refused to move.
His arms felt numb.
Maybe it was shock. Maybe it was terror so deep his body simply shut down. Or maybe his mind just couldn't reconcile the fact that the girl he was falling in love with was trying to kill him.
Then something slammed into his side.
Hard.
Issei cried out as he was shoved violently off his feet, his body hitting the ground with a painful thud. The spear of light missed him by inches and embedded itself into the pavement behind him, cracking the stone before flickering out of existence.
Issei gasped, lungs burning.
Yuuma's eyes widened.
"What—!?"
"Who the hell are you!?"
Issei blinked rapidly, heart pounding, and turned his head.
A boy stood between him and the winged girl.
Spiky blond hair. Bright blue eyes. Three strange whisker-like marks on each cheek.
Black pants. Dark orange shirt. Orange sneakers.
For some reason, Issei felt like he'd seen him before.
"My name's Uzumaki Naruto," the blond said with an easy grin, as if he hadn't just saved someone from being skewered by a glowing weapon. "And sorry to say this—but even if this guy's a complete pervert, I can't let you kill him."
Naruto rolled his shoulders slightly, eyes never leaving Yuuma.
Black wings, he noted.
Light spears.
Yep.
Definitely supernatural.
He wondered briefly if this was karma. Showing up at the exact moment some perverted kid was about to get murdered by what looked suspiciously like a fallen angel.
Hadn't he left this kind of insanity behind?
Apparently not.
Oh well.
Life had been getting boring anyway.
"You can't let me kill him?" Yuuma repeated, disbelief quickly giving way to anger. Her eyes narrowed. "You clearly don't understand what's happening here."
She gestured lazily with one hand.
"So I'll be generous. Walk away. Pretend you never saw any of this."
Naruto scratched the back of his neck, expression sheepish.
"Sorry," he said honestly. "I don't really know what's going on."
He shrugged.
"But I do know you were about to kill him."
Naruto took a step forward, planting his feet firmly.
"And I can't just stand there and watch that happen."
He glanced back at Issei briefly.
"So if you want the pervert, you'll have to go through me."
Even without chakra, Naruto was still Naruto.
He had never been the kind of person who could turn his back on someone in danger. Reckless, some would say.
He preferred right.
Yuuma laughed softly.
"So you want to be a hero?"
Another spear of light formed in her hand, brighter than the first.
"Fine. Let's see how heroes die."
She hurled it.
Naruto moved instantly.
He dropped into a forward roll as the spear slammed into the ground where he'd been standing, the impact sending a shockwave through the park. He came up in a crouch, his hand already reaching behind him.
His fingers closed around a familiar shape.
A kunai.
Old habits died hard.
Along with it, he pulled out a spool of ninja wire, quickly looping it through the ring at the hilt.
Without chakra, he couldn't afford mistakes. He couldn't afford to lose his only weapon.
He threw.
The kunai flew true—but not fast enough.
Yuuma twisted in the air, dodging it with insulting ease.
She laughed.
"Did you really think that would—"
Naruto yanked the wire.
"—work?"
The kunai snapped back mid-flight, its weight dragging the wire into a tight loop around Yuuma's leg.
Her eyes widened.
"What the—!?"
"Down you go!"
Naruto pulled with everything he had.
His muscles screamed in protest.
Without chakra, his strength was painfully limited. Chakra was the lifeblood of a shinobi. Without it, even someone like him was just human.
But he was still stronger than most.
Yuuma was yanked from the air, her body slamming into the pavement hard enough to crack stone.
She cried out, struggling to rise—
Just in time to see Naruto's fist connect with her face.
The impact echoed like thunder.
Yuuma flew backward, skidding across the ground as a dark bruise bloomed on her cheek.
Naruto staggered, chest heaving, every muscle burning.
Still got it, he thought grimly.
But deep down, he knew the truth.
This fight wasn't over.
And he was already paying the price.
::: A/N - I hope you enjoyed the fourth chapter! This is a new crossover project for me, and I'm working hard on the writing and editing. I would love to hear your thoughts—please leave a comment and let me know what you think so far! :::