After a long time…
Temari's voice rang out again, carrying a trace of pain she couldn't quite hide.
"Today… too much happened."
Teizawa didn't open his eyes.
He just hummed in response.
"First the assembly, then the attack, then those rogue monks, then Sasori and Deidara…" Temari spoke softly, almost like she was talking to herself. "You've been holding everything up this whole time."
"No." Teizawa chuckled, his tone light. "It was all planned."
"And if it's planned, does that mean you don't get tired?" There was a hint of reproach in Temari's voice, but her fingers grew even gentler. "Plotting this, calculating that, thinking through the consequences of every step, preparing for every possibility ahead of time…"
She paused, her voice dropping.
"Just watching you makes me feel tired for you."
Teizawa fell silent.
After a long while, he opened his eyes.
He tilted his head slightly and looked back at her.
In the moonlight, Temari's cheeks were faintly flushed.
But her eyes were utterly serious.
She looked at him like that.
There was no worship in her gaze, no feverish admiration, only the simplest thing…
Concern.
Teizawa suddenly smiled.
That smile held none of his usual scheming, none of his habitual composure.
Only a rare, genuine warmth.
"Come here," he said.
Temari blinked, startled.
Before she could react, he gave her a light tug…
And she fell into his arms.
"Ah…" she let out a small cry, her face turning bright red at once.
Teizawa held her close, resting his chin against the top of her head.
He closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath.
Her hair carried a faint fragrance, mixed with the dry air unique to the Sand.
"Just stay like this for a while," he said, his voice unusually gentle.
Temari's body stiffened slightly, then slowly relaxed.
She leaned into his embrace, listening to the steady strength of his heartbeat, feeling the warmth of his chest.
At some point, her arms slipped around his waist.
"Teizawa," she whispered.
"Mm."
"From now on… don't push yourself so hard."
Teizawa was silent for a beat.
Then he answered.
"Okay," he said.
Moonlight poured in through the window, draping two figures leaning against each other.
In the distance, the night wind drifted by, bringing that dry, warm Sand Village air.
A man exhausted from an entire day finally, in this moment, let down all his guard.
And in his arms, the kunoichi who was usually so sharp and valiant sat quietly, like a bird folding its wings.
But the tender atmosphere lasted only a moment.
Soon.
Temari's voice burst out, mortified beyond belief.
"Don't… don't, not here. Let's go home, okay?!"
Then came Teizawa's delighted laugh.
"I'm doing it here. Be good and let go."
"Mmph!"
In a muffled groan, something was kissed down.
And then.
In a muffled groan, something was tugged down by hope.
And then.
Temari obediently lay sprawled over the desk…
Candlelight swayed.
The night was still long.
…
The next day, the sun was just as bright.
In Sand Village's streets and alleys, there were cheerful crowds everywhere.
News that the First Ninja Representatives Assembly had concluded perfectly had already spread through the entire village.
The proposals that had been adopted were being compiled into volumes, ready to be implemented one after another.
The seawater desalination project was about to begin.
The hazardous housing repair plan had already been formally approved.
Research funding for steel-reinforced puppets had been granted.
One piece of good news after another seemed to grow wings, flying into the ears of every Sand Village resident.
Smiles filled people's faces.
They talked about the village's future, about that young and capable Kazekage.
Thriving.
That single word fit Sand Village perfectly right now.
However…
In sharp contrast to that jubilant scene…
Was a quiet courtyard in the western part of the village.
The inn where Konoha's group was staying temporarily.
In the living room, the atmosphere was so oppressive it felt like it could drip water.
Shikamaru sat in the corner, head in his hands, saying nothing.
His mind was a mess.
Countless thoughts churned…
Asuma-sensei's last expression, the Kazekage's words.
And that dismembered madman…
Something was off.
But he couldn't sort it out.
Ino was curled up on the couch, her eyes swollen red like peaches.
She hadn't slept all night.
The moment she closed her eyes, she saw Asuma-sensei collapsed in a pool of blood, saw that madman's scythe and feral grin.
She saw that sudden back that had stepped in front of her…
Her feelings were too complicated for words.
Gratitude, grief, confusion.
And a thread of something she couldn't quite name…
She shook her head, afraid to think any further.
Choji sat on the other side, a bag of chips untouched in front of him.
The boy who could usually be cheered up by food alone just stared blankly out the window, eyes hollow.
Sakura stood by the window with her back to everyone.
Her shoulders trembled slightly.
She fought hard to keep herself from crying.
She remembered Asuma-sensei's simple "Go" when they parted yesterday.
She remembered his usual lazy look with a cigarette in his mouth, and the reliability he revealed only now and then…
She'd never see it again.
Kakashi sat in the main seat, his visible right eye half-lidded.
There wasn't much emotion on his face.
But anyone who knew him understood…
This was the expression he wore when he was forcing everything down.
Asuma…
Was dead.
Dead in Sand Village, dead by that madman's hand, dead in front of a man named Teizawa.
It had all happened too suddenly.
But now, looking back on it, something felt wrong.
"Kakashi-sensei…" Shikamaru's voice broke the silence, hoarse and low. "Now we… what should we do?"
He hesitated.
Those normally cool, rational eyes were full of confusion.
They needed to report to the Hokage.
They needed to bring Asuma-sensei's body back to Konoha.
They needed to find out what the hell was really going on.
But…
How were they supposed to report it?
How would the Hokage react?
What would happen to Konoha and Suna's relationship?
Those questions tangled into a knot in his chest.
He couldn't untie it, couldn't even say it clearly.
Kakashi was quiet for a few seconds, then spoke slowly.
"This has to reach the Hokage as soon as possible."
His voice was steady, but there was a fatigue he couldn't quite hide.
"Let her make the decision."
He turned to Might Guy, his gaze solemn.
"Guy, I'm counting on you."
Guy's thick brows snapped up. The face that was usually all smiles was, for once, grim.
"Leave it to me!"
He thumped his chest hard, voice booming.
"Youth is like this… it has laughter, and it has tears!"
"I'll get this intel to the Hokage as fast as I can!"
After speaking, he took one deep look at everyone present.
Then he turned and strode out.
That green back disappeared quickly beyond the door.
The living room sank back into silence.
Choji still stared out the window, unmoving.
Ino buried her head even lower.
Sakura's shoulders still shook faintly.
Shikamaru held his head, frozen.
Kakashi walked to the window and looked out at the bright sunlight, suddenly finding it painfully glaring.
Sand Village was celebrating.
Konoha was mourning.
This world had never been fair.
He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
Asuma's final words rose again in his mind.
His eyes, even in death, hadn't closed.
What were you looking at?
What were you trying to say?
No one could answer.
(End of Chapter)
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