As the two children grew older, their maturing bodies allowed them to handle their Sharingan more skillfully. Yao gradually began to focus purely on research, no longer engaging them in much unnecessary conversation.
"Eating candy again? Aren't you afraid of your teeth rotting out? I'm telling Grandpa Myo—"
The girl spotted the boy secretly unwrapping a candy and imdiately warned him.
"Mmm! Mmm!"
Before she could finish, Gin moved faster than the eye could see, stuffing another piece of candy into her mouth. Tasting the sweetness on her lips and feeling the warmth of his hand, her little face flushed pink like a ripe peach.
"We're family, okay? Don't you dare sell out."
Faced with her threat, Gin reluctantly sacrificed so of his stash to bribe her. This slightly younger girl was his childhood friend. As soone with no interest in "bronze," he always saw her as a little sister.
Gin was, and always would be, a staunch onee-san type!
No rentou! And absolutely no nantong!
"…Family?"
Those three words were the only thing she heard clearly. Her mind short-circuited, and she almost fainted from embarrassnt.
"Hey? Hey?! Why aren't you saying anything?"
When she didn't respond, Gin frowned at the blushing girl, worried he might have smothered her sohow. He quickly withdrew his hand.
"Ah! Why'd you faint again?!"
Recently, the girl had started acting strange — after just a few words with Gin, her face would burn and she'd collapse if he got close.
At first, it scared Gin witless. He even called for help several tis. But as it happened more and more, no one paid it any mind. The older ladies in the lab even started pointing and whispering knowingly, leaving Gin dumbfounded.
It was all a misunderstanding!
She's just my little sister!
At that mont, the infirmary door opened.
It was Yao, long unseen.
But this ti he wore no warmth on his face. He entered coldly, and when he saw the unconscious girl, he frowned and turned away, ordering his n to take her away.
Gin, sensing sothing was off, stepped forward.
"Hey! Hey! Where are you taking Hikari?"
Yao stiffly turned his head. His pitch-black eyes were lifeless as he stared at Gin for a long mont, as if trying to confirm sothing.
At length, he finally spoke.
"A new experint. You'll be called later."
His voice was utterly devoid of emotion, like a soulless machine.
"Old man?"
Yao's chilling gaze made Gin uneasy. It was as though he were inspecting a re tool — not his own grandson.
When Gin called him old man, a flicker of anger flashed in Yao's eyes, but was quickly swallowed by darkness.
Without another word, Yao turned and left with his n and the girl, leaving Gin alone, stunned.
But only for a mont.
Feeling sothing was wrong, Gin dashed out of the infirmary, ignoring the guards' protests, and ran straight to Myo's office.
"What? You're saying Grandpa Myo was sent out to search for clan records?"
Panting heavily, Gin stood in Myo's empty office and turned to the guard who'd blocked him.
"That's right. Elder Myo left yesterday. Said it'd take several days."
The guard spoke truthfully. After all, he didn't dare offend the clan leader's nephew.
"…Fine."
With no one else to turn to, Gin thought of another round, plump figure and ran to the security office.
But the n there told him:
"Elder En also left yesterday. Said he went to the dungeon to find experintal subjects. Won't be back today."
Both elders conveniently sent away? That couldn't be coincidence.
Gin's unease grew.
He decided to go find his uncle.
But as soon as he reached the research facility gates, soone stopped him.
"Sorry. From today onward, you're not allowed to leave until further notice."
The gate guards blocked his path with icy formality.
Gin noted that the guards were unfamiliar faces. His sense of danger deepened.
Both elders gone, new guards at the gate, and he wasn't allowed out…
Worried sick about Hikari's safety, Gin decided to ignore everything and confront Yao directly.
At that mont, inside the lab, the unconscious girl slowly ca to.
She found herself strapped to a table, surrounded by strangers.
Panicked, she struggled, but to no avail — her chakra felt sealed, her Sharingan useless, her wrists and ankles already bleeding from the straps.
"Who are you people?!"
Furious and frightened, she glared at them and demanded an answer.
"'Weapons' must accept their fate as weapons."
One of the n spoke coldly.
"What weapons? I have a na. My na is Uchiha Hikari!"
Her defiant reply was t with disdain.
"Stop wasting your strength. This was always your destiny."
One stepped closer and pressed a black palm to her forehead.
An instant later, her head split with agony as a flood of mories poured in — her parents' deaths, her awakening of the Mangekyō, her capture, her lonely days in the dungeon…
Her mind buckled under the weight of it all.
"Aaaaahhhhhh!!!"
Her scream pierced the room, but she blacked out before she could see the shadowy hands reaching for her.
"A weapon doesn't need a na! You will live as a naless weapon!"
Her na denied, darkness consud her.
As she passed out again, the n around her suddenly lted like ink, slithering into a single shadow that crept toward Yao's feet.
Watching from afar, Yao's face remained impassive. His eyes were empty, as if he'd seen nothing.
When the black shadow rged with his own, his eyes slowly regained a faint glimr.
BANG BANG BANG!!!
The laboratory door rattled under furious knocking.
Gin stood outside, his Sharingan spinning furiously, the tomoe on the verge of rging.
Finally, the door opened.
Yao stood there, cold and severe, eting the boy's blazing gaze.
"What's your rush? You're next."
(End of Chapter)
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