"What are you doing?"
Pakura's face burned crimson as she let out a startled, coquettish cry, slapping Uchiha Gen's hand away.
"Ah…"
Gen didn't mind the rejection in the slightest. Instead, he smoothly scooped Pakura into his arms and set her on his lap. The sudden movement made her gasp again.
"Stop it... it's too fast." Pakura hurriedly pressed down on his wandering hands.
"Relax, I know my limits. I'm just… curious."
His expression was serious as he caught both her hands, playing with them idly.
"Curious? About what?"
"The size," Gen said with perfect gravity. "Do you have some kind of secret method?"
Pakura: "…"
"What secret method?" she muttered, exasperated. "It's just normal eating, training, and rest."
"Then it must be natural beauty," Gen replied with mock solemnity. "Surely plenty of kunoichi in Sunagakure are envious."
Her lips curved despite herself. "Sometimes it's inconvenient, though. It affects daily life, even training and combat."
"That doesn't make sense," Gen said, frowning theatrically.
"...Fine," she admitted, "many kunoichi envy me. And yes, some gossip behind my back."
"Exactly. Those who gossip are just envious, jealous, hateful. They resent not having what you do."
He grinned wickedly. "And besides, being blessed with a large size is good too...the child won't ever lack food. Our child will definitely be happy."
Pakura: "…"
Again with children? So soon?
"I don't know about the child," she muttered, flustered, "but why do I feel like you're happier than them?"
"Am I?" Gen blinked innocently. "Am I that obvious?"
"Hmph. Your eyeballs are practically falling right into…" She stopped herself, face blazing.
The word eyeballs sparked a thought in him. The Sharingan could record whatever it saw and store the memory inside genjutsu. Should he… record this?
No, better not. He couldn't exactly use something like this as a genjutsu later, could he?
And besides—he had a girlfriend now. Who needed to watch illusions when the real thing was right here?
"No choice," he said sheepishly, scratching his head like a boy caught misbehaving. "I haven't seen it, haven't felt it. I'm just too curious."
The image was jarring.
Konoha's Fear Shura, a terrifying young commander of the battlefield, looking and sounding like a bashful teenager.
But contrast had its charm. Men weren't the only ones who liked it—women did too.
"Are you really that curious?" Pakura asked before she realized the words had slipped out.
"Yes," Gen answered immediately, his dark pupils earnest, shining with anticipation.
Heh. Success. A clever hunter often looks like harmless prey. His performance had worked.
"If… if you promise to stop here, then I can satisfy your curiosity," she murmured, ears flushing red.
"Stop here, of course. There's plenty of time in the future, I'm not in a hurry," Gen agreed at once.
"Then close your eyes first."
"Oh… alright."
He obediently shut them. Through a tiny slit, though, he peeked and what he saw instantly engraved the meaning of 'surging waves' into his heart.
"It's ready… you can open your eyes now."
Pakura kept her head lowered, her voice trembling, softer than a mosquito's buzz. Her face was scarlet all the way to the ears.
Gen became the helmsman of a storm-tossed sea, steering eagerly through the surging tide.
"…After Sunagakure and Konoha reach an agreement, how will we deal with the Iwagakure–Kusagakure allied forces? Have you and Lord Orochimaru already decided?"
Her voice was low, trembling, as if forcing herself to think of anything else.
"We've planned for it," Gen said.
"How?"
"Their numbers are about the same as ours, their strength not too far off. But in both lower and top-tier combat power, we hold the advantage."
"So no tricks are necessary. We'll engage directly and break them."
"But… but won't that cause heavy casualties?"
"The longer the battle drags on, the more casualties there will be. Better to finish it quickly."
"That way you can return to reinforce Sunagakure sooner, too. In the end, the gains outweigh the losses."
"…That does make some sense."
"And the casualties won't be as bad as you think."
"How… how so?"
"During the last clash, both Orochimaru and I held back," Gen explained calmly. "Add you and your forces, and Iwagakure's upper ranks won't last long."
"But Iwa still has the Five-Tails' Jinchūriki…"
"So what? If we stage the battlefield in the middle of both armies, do you think the Five-Tails who hasn't lost his sanity will risk unleashing wide-scale destruction?"
"Even if he fully transforms, he won't dare use his greatest moves with allies everywhere. And while I might not be able to kill him outright, I can hold him off. Same with Lord Orochimaru."
If not for keeping my Mangekyō secret, Gen thought, Han as an imperfect Jinchūriki would have already fallen to my genjutsu.
"…Alright," Pakura finally said. "We'll fight like that."
"Mhm."
Her breath suddenly caught. "Ah—that's enough!"
She clenched her eyes shut, face fever-red, trembling.
"Alright," Gen murmured, stopping at once. He gently helped her back into her undergarments and outer robe, his movements surprisingly careful.
"You didn't even wipe it clean…" Pakura muttered, half-pouting, lightly swatting his chest.
"No need, it'll dry quickly. Just put them on and eat, we're already close to noon."
She rolled her eyes but obeyed, lips tugging into the faintest smile.
"When you get back, sew that opening shut," he added with a sly grin. "Don't let anyone else get a glimpse."
Her heart warmed at the possessive words, and though she only gave him an exasperated glance, she nodded. "I know."
"The food's gone cold."
"No problem, I'll heat it up with Fire Release."
He smirked. "Actually, I'll show you a new way to eat today, roasted steamed buns. You'll definitely like it."
"So confident?" she asked, half amused.
"Of course."
The air between them wasn't yet sweet with romance, but it was undeniably warm, their rhythm settling into something comfortable, natural.