"Hey, hey, hey! Saint Jaeger, what are you even talking about!?"
Uchiha Miyuki's voice shot through the air, overflowing with dissatisfaction. Her gaze bounced from Jaeger to Kasumigaoka Utaha, then right back to Jaeger again.
"You think you're the only one who can tempt Senpai? I can totally steal a battery car to raise her! I'll even teach her forbidden Uchiha techniques if she wants!"
To prove she wasn't bluffing, Miyuki dramatically pulled out a stack of sealing scrolls tucked into her waistband.
"This one's a secret Fire Release technique straight from the Uchiha clan."
"This one… this one was a reward for—uh—The Eight Inner Gates!"
"And these—these are Five Elements release techniques stolen from the Third Hokage's private stash!"
One by one, she placed the scrolls neatly in front of Utaha like a real estate agent showing off properties, her sincerity burning brighter than Amaterasu.
But even that wasn't enough for her.
With a trembling breath of resolve, Miyuki added:
"If you accept me, Senpai, I'll even find a way to get you a Sharingan and a Byakugan! I swear!"
Jaeger blinked, stunned.
She… she's actually pulling out real techniques. This lunatic is serious?!
Even Kushina, who had been enjoying the chaos like a spectator at a circus, fell silent. Her gaze slowly drifted to her girlfriend, her eyes widening as something horrifying began connecting in her mind.
Wait.
Did Miyuki… just confess?
To another girl?
Right in front of me?
Kushina's expression darkened ever so slightly.
Could it be…?
She recalled the way Miyuki always hovered near her. The way she clung a little too close. The way she acted special around her.
She wasn't stupid.
If Miyuki liked girls… then all that "best friend" intimacy wasn't just harmless affection.
And now, her girlfriend was confessing to another girl right in front of her face?
What. A. Mess.
She didn't speak.
But the contempt in her eyes could've melted steel.
Miyuki, blissfully unaware of the nuclear bomb she'd just stepped on, stared at Utaha with glittering hope.
Utaha, meanwhile, just stood there in shock, taking several seconds to catch up with the reality unfolding in front of her.
"…I'm sorry," she finally said, voice steady but gentle. "But I have to refuse."
No sarcasm.
No sharp tongue.
Just honesty.
"I'm very sure I like men."
"GAAAHHH—!!"
Miyuki collapsed to her knees, wailing dramatically.
"If you don't believe me, just look at Jaeger! He probably has more girls than my entire Uchiha clan combined!"
A chilly voice suddenly drifted from behind her:
"Even if that's true, you're just as bad. If not worse."
Miyuki froze in place.
"K-K-Kushina!?"
In a flash, the lust-induced haze in her brain evaporated, replaced instantly by pure, primal panic.
Right.
Kushina was RIGHT THERE.
And Miyuki had just publicly confessed.
To another girl.
With receipts.
She'd boarded multiple boats.
She'd been caught red-handed.
And the sea was now on fire.
"Kushina, wait—LET ME EXPLAIN!" she screamed, grabbing her furious girlfriend and pulling her away, desperately trying to salvage what remained of her relationship.
Left standing, Utaha turned to Jaeger with a raised brow and a knowing smirk.
"Looks like even scumbags get what's coming eventually, World Noble-kun."
Jaeger laughed softly.
"Well, unlike some people, I've never hidden my desires. That's why I have nothing to worry about."
"Oh, I don't doubt that," Utaha replied. "You're just a shameless scumbag."
He shrugged the insult away with the ease of a man spiritually immune to shame.
"So," he said calmly, "have you made up your mind yet?"
Utaha's eyes narrowed.
No immediate response—she was thinking.
Jaeger wasn't pushy.
He continued, tone patient.
"You might have talent as a ninja, but without a proper foundation, even the strongest technique won't be of any use. What you need right now is something simpler."
"It's physical strength!"
Luo Hao, who had been silent until now, suddenly proclaimed with absolute authority.
"The group announcement mentioned a power in the Pirate World called 'Devil Fruits.' Zoan-type fruits can greatly strengthen the body."
"Zoan-type…?"
Utaha's face twisted.
Visions of grotesque half-animal forms—like those monstrosities from Impel Down—flashed through her mind.
"…Can I… pass on that?"
She whispered it like someone begging the universe for mercy.
Power was one thing…
Turning into some hideous creature?
Absolutely not worth it.
(T/N: Who thinks it's worthwhile? I think it is)
Jaeger understood perfectly.
Power comes and goes.
But beauty?
Beauty is eternal.
Sure, some Devil Fruits were stylish and cool—Phoenix Fruit, Glint-Glint Fruit.
But most Zoans?
They looked like discount Halloween costumes.
He wouldn't let her worry.
"Relax," he said softly. "I won't give you a Devil Fruit that makes you ugly. I wouldn't allow it. If you turned into something hideous, I'd be the one suffering the loss."
"Pfft—what kind of confession is that?" Utaha burst out laughing, covering her mouth.
It was bold.
It was shameless.
It was brutally honest.
Somehow, it felt… nice.
Warmer than Miyuki's earlier declaration.
"I approve," Luo Hao declared, nodding with solemn elder-sister authority. "A true Demon King is frank, not deceitful. You are qualified."
And then—
Time froze.
In the silence between seconds, Kasumigaoka Utaha stepped toward Jaeger, her cheeks dusted a shy pink.
She leaned in—hesitantly but decisively—
and kissed his cheek.
A soft, gentle peck.
Time resumed.
No one else noticed.
But for her... that was her answer.
•••
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