In the dark, Xiao Guang lay curled up in the coffin, sinking into an emo spiral of thoughts. But just as her mind wandered further and further, she heard more noise from above. This ti, she was no fool — she stayed perfectly still and pricked up her ears, listening intently.
"…daikan dan dan… seal, piece of cake…"
The rough aning of the words made her heart jump. She could feel the stagnant flow of ti around her finally begin to move again. Her body and mind were slowly pulled back into the normal tiline. Freedom… she was about to be free!
In her elation, she almost pushed the heavy lid open. But then she froze.
Lowering her eyes to her charred and tattered self — slling her own singed hair — her fingers, which had been ready to push up the coffin lid, instead gripped it tight from the inside. No way was she letting anyone see her like this.
Outside, Gin tilted his head and glanced at Tajima.
"Uncle, I—"
"I understand," Tajima cut him off with a knowing, slightly awkward smile. "You two haven't seen each other in years. I won't get in the way."
With that, he spun on his heel and leapt out of the pit, giving the two "young ones" their privacy.
Man… I'm the best uncle in the whole shinobi world.
"Eh? No, I an… how co this thing won't open?"
Gin grumbled at his uncle's retreating back. But fine — now that Tajima was out of sight, he could use his mutated Byakugan properly and figure out what was going on.
Activating his eyes, he took one look at the coffin… and instantly looked away, muttering under his breath:
"…still the sa. I thought I turned the power down!"
Even though he'd deliberately reduced the Byakugan's penetration, he'd still gotten an… unfiltered view of the "ordinary" girl inside. Apparently, he needed to study these eyes of his a bit more.
Gin convinced himself it was all for the sake of rescuing her. He activated his Byakugan again, scanning only the structure of the coffin.
Inside, Xiao Guang shivered, feeling a strange sense of being watched. She instinctively wrapped her arms around herself protectively.
"…no chakra residue," Gin murmured after a mont, rubbing his eyes. No signs of any residual sealing technique.
He forcibly ignored the view inside, tightened his stance, and braced himself.
"Alright then… up you go!"
With a roar, he summoned his chakra and heaved. The lid that had been so heavy before suddenly felt light — too light — and he overshot, tumbling backward and landing flat on his back.
"My waist! My precious, brand-new, low-mileage, turbo-powered shinobi waist!"
Gin rolled around on the ground, clutching his lower back and wailing pitifully.
Inside the coffin, Xiao Guang poked her head out, drawn by the familiar voice. But what she saw… made her heart go cold.
That wasn't the boy from her mories.
That figure on the ground looked nothing like the sunny, gentle boy she'd clung to in her heart.
He's… different now.
When Gin's gaze t hers, she gasped, realizing she'd been seen, and imdiately ducked back inside. But her hair — fried from the earlier "therapy" — was now a spiky ss that didn't even fit in the coffin anymore.
"I already saw you," Gin called, dusting himself off and forcing what he thought was a warm smile. He wanted to give her a beautiful reunion.
"D-Don't co any closer!"
Her panicked voice rang out from the coffin.
"If you co near , I… I won't hold back!"
Gin chuckled. So shy. She must not have recognized yet. Heh… guess I'll just have to surprise her.
Stepping closer, he leaned into the coffin with a grin and whispered:
"Welco back, Xiao—huh? Huh?! WHO are you?!"
Instead of the demure, graceful girl from his mories… he was greeted by a pitch-black creature with a spiky head, crouched like so kind of beast.
"…Eh? Eh? EH?!"
Inside, Xiao Guang finally snapped, her eyes turning crimson, tomoe spinning.
"You die now!"
Before Gin could even react, crimson skeletal hands rose behind her, clamping down around him and hoisting him up.
"Kill him… and then A-Yin will never have to know what happened. Heh heh heh…"
The blackened creature's murderous chakra flared, and Gin froze.
"I'm innocent! Innocent, I tell you!"
Dangling in the skeletal grip, Gin looked at the red bones wrapping around him and panicked.
"…Wait… Xiao Guang?! Xiao Guang! It's ! It's A-Yin!"
He hadn't expected the seal to co with a free "alternate skin" — this was straight out of the Raikage collection.
"…A-Yin?"
Xiao Guang's Sharingan narrowed, her grip loosening slightly. The things this man said — only she and A-Yin should know them.
"…Where's my A-Yin? What did you do to him?!"
Her grip tightened again, and Gin's eyes bulged.
"I swear—! It's really !"
Feeling his lungs about to collapse, Gin started shouting every embarrassing mory he could think of:
"You peed your pants when you ca to my house at five! At six, you fell in the river and I pulled you out! At seven—!"
Xiao Guang froze mid-squeeze, a flicker of doubt and confusion crossing her crimson eyes.
…Only A-Yin could know all that…
"Speak! Where is my A-Yin?!"
Her skeletal grip tightened again, and Gin gasped, seeing stars.
"My whole life has been like walking on thin ice…" he groaned, barely clinging on.
(End of Chapter)
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