"Think you'll be fine?" Alex asked, looking at William.
"Yeah," he answered with a fist pump. "I'll make sure to protect them both!"
Currently, Naruto and Jiraiya weren't even in the Leaf Village. They had departed only a few days ago, of which Jada had to teleport to them to grab William for help.
When this eting concluded, she was more than ready to return him to Naruto's side.
Simultaneously during the ti-skip, the broader shinobi world was preparing for the second Chūnin Exams, which Tsunade organized in a bid to draw out the Akatsuki.
Collaborating with Gaara, who was now the Kazekage, Tsunade strategized to hold the exams partially in the Sand Village, a decision aid at attracting attention from various factions.
However, Tsunade's efforts to involve other villages t resistance, as several Kage declined to send their teams, indicating the conflicts that threatened the peace in the ninja world.
Despite these setbacks, the Leaf Village teams began preparing to participate.
This was likely still going to happen, only without certain characters, like Shikamaru, involved.
By the end of that period, characters like Naruto and Sasuke had evolved significantly. Each prepared for an inevitable encounter that would challenge their initial motivations and redefine their destinies within their world.
"So it's settled," Alex announced. "After Jada and Alice do so digging around about Kaito, John, and Hoshikaze, we can try to save Sasuke early."
They all agreed, and Jasper and Alex departed from the apartnt. It only took a second for Jada to teleport William back to Naruto—the latter feeling a tad disappointed.
Now Jada and Alice were alone.
"Alice," she said, "I wanna to make this investigation count, okay?"
"Okay...?"
"Seriously! There's sothing fishy about everything that's happened so far."
"I know," Alice affird. "We'll get to the bottom of this, and I promise to help however I can."
"Thanks. Just..."
"You don't have to say any more, Jada." Alice then placed a hand on her shoulder. "You're not alone in this."
The two exchanged smiles that solidified their familiarity with one another.
Sure, Alice was keeping secrets from a friend, but that was essentially her job. She knew deep down that revealing Arthur's identity would only cause unnecessary drama to unfold.
Afterwards, the other players, save Jasper, would oust her from the group—leaving her to fend for herself in this world.
Many of them had been losing sight of what's real and what's not, and she had to remind herself daily that she was still a governnt agent on a clandestine mission.
So long as she played her cards right, she could bring everyone out of this ss.
Her problem, however, was still Arthur, the subsequent anomaly that was vying to destroy this world rather than save it.
"Let's get so fresh air," she suggested.
"Okay!"
As they stepped into the night, the stars twinkled like lanterns. It was very easy for them to forget that they weren't on earth. Everything was just too real, as if they had passed away and reincarnated into soone else's made-up world.
And in this world fraught with danger, the answers they sought lingered just beyond reach.
As the night unfolded, Alice lay in bed. Yet sleep alluded her—sothing pricked at her senses.
In the stillness, she felt a familiar presence: Alex.
To her, Alex was a complex piece of the puzzle in this ga. His goals were just as mysterious as Arthur's, and that alone was enough for her to keep him firmly on her radar.
What Alex was up to, she had to find out.
As such, she slipped out of bed and darted from the apartnt's patio.
While her senses allowed her to detect virtually any presence within the entire village, the closer she was to her target, the easier it was to sense things.
The village gates was her destination. And before she arrived, she made sure to conceal her chakra well.
Huddled at the top of the gates was Margaret, sitting in a fetal position. She seed deep in thought.
Behind her stood Alex with a smirk. Alice most certainly knew he was up to no good.
"What do you want?" Margaret asked, breaking the silence without turning around.
"I just ca to check on you since you didn't co ho yet," he said in a gentle tone. "You okay?"
"No, just leave alone..."
"Not a chance," he playfully replied. "Not when you're not acting like yourself."
Margaret hesitated before sighing, "I'll tell you what my problem is if you promise to just leave alone, okay?" Alex didn't answer imdiately, causing her to finally look at him. "I really don't get you, you know that?"
"Not many do, Marge... But I get you quite a lot. You're not upset because you lost; you're upset because your opponent technically proved that you're not the strongest player, right?"
There was a brief silence, and then she finally admitted, "Yeah..."
The wind then brushed against their hairs. Alice fought back the desire to intervene as she listened.
"I still want to get stronger," Margaret confessed, "so I can at least be the strongest one day." Her voice sounded uncertain. "But after that L, I don't even wanna use my Sage Mode anymore."
Sage Mode was a powerful state for a select few that could achieve it. Not many could perfect that transformation. Otherwise, the whole ninja world would be roaming around with a unique Sage Mode of their own.
"Co to think of it," Alex questioned, "what's your Sage Mode even do again?"
"You an you don't know?!" Margaret replied with a surprised tone.
"I an, it's not like we talk like that," he shrugged.
The way he said that amused her, and for a mont, she nearly forgot her tension.
"Fine! I'll tell you." Then her tenacity seed to solidify. "In Sage Mode, I can use this sli that grants faster regeneration, the ability to shoot acid, and immunity to taijutsu, genjutsu, as well as most solid ninjutsu attacks. Oh! And I can create slug clones!"
"Jasper told once that you could fly."
"True!" she said animatedly. "I know this sounds gross, but my mucus can create a trail that helps glide over any surface, including air."
"Gee, Marge, how'd you lose with all that?"
She frowned before admitting, "I didn't use them all since I hadn't perfected them... Then there was another problem."
"You can only maintain that state for so long, right?"
"Yeah," she said, lowering her voice. Then sothing clicked in her head. "Wait! How did you know that?!"
"You just said that you had regeneration and were immune to virtually everything. Slugs are notorious for moving slowly, but you're notorious for being a hothead. Haha. Your opponent must have capitalized on that."
Margaret rolled her eyes, albeit with a smile. "Okay, fine! I get it. I'm not fit to use my Sage Mode..."
"But...?"
"But if I combine my wood style and slug abilities, I might have a better chance next ti."
"Just like a slug would say!"
He couldn't help but tease. This made Margaret huff before waving him off.
It's then that Alice had to ask herself, 'Is he trying to manipulate her?'
"Believe ," he gently interrupted. "You'll find your way to becoming the strongest. I an, we all have our struggles, but it's what we do with them that defines us."
"Alex..." she began in a whisper. Because of his encouragent, she felt the need to open up. "Promise you won't tell anyone what I'm about to tell you."
"Promise," he replied.
Taking a breath, she continued, "I'm secretly jealous of mom and Jasper."
Alice raised an eyebrow; she was genuinely perplexed that Margaret, of all people, would reveal sothing like that.
"Jasper, I understand," Alex intoned, "but why be jealous of Alice, too?"
"Well, during a training session her and I had a while back, she showed off her transformation."
"What transformation?"
"The one where she glows. Ya know, when her telepathic abilities shoot up and she levitates, like, everything around her."
"Oh yeah, I rember now."
"Right! I managed to defend against it, but I think her transformation is way cooler than mine."
While it was expected a girl her age would value appearance over effectiveness, Alex couldn't help but understand where she was coming from.
"Yeah, her transformation's pretty impressive. But jealousy? The famous Margaret Senju is actually getting jealous over that?"
She sighed and brushed a hand through her hair as she said, "Quit playing, Alex..."
"Haha. I couldn't help it."
"Well, I'm also kind of jealous of their relationship. They always seem so happy when they're together. I want that too."
"You an a friend?"
"No, you idiot. A... a boyfriend. Soone to share this experience with."
At those words, Alex nearly choked. "A boyfriend?! Seriously?!"
"Yes!" Margaret's cheeks flushed. "I an, not you, Alex. You're not my type."
He held his hands up in mock defense and said, "Don't kid yourself. You're pretty and all, but you're not my type either."
The two chuckled after lightening the mood.
"But I have to say," he continued, "you're not bad to look at. You could try dating soone from this world if you felt like it."
Margaret had almost forgotten that she could be intimate with anyone. While yes, they were in the virtual world, she recalled that Dr. Kapoor did say that all senses were felt, including sensual ones.
"I've never really thought about that," she admitted. "I an, I used to fantasize about Sasuke because he's Sasuke, but he's way too emo in person!" She then laughed slightly. "And then there's Kakashi... But then I thought, 'Wait, I'm in a thirteen-year-old's body! That's not happenin'."
"I think ya may need to change your appearance before you start dating anyone."
"What's wrong with the way I dress?" she asked, placing her fists at her side.
Alex chuckled and quickly replied, "I was kidding! Just trying to make you smile more."
She crossed her arms and pretended to glare at him. But she couldn't suppress a grin. "I will punch you, Alex."
He raised his hands again, feigning fear. "I'm sorry! It was just a joke, oh great Marge!"
Margaret let out a laugh. Whatever it was about Alex, he always seed to know the right words to say at the right ti.
After a mont of calm, Alex cleared his throat and announced, "Maybe this might pique your interest: there's so territory the clan and I discovered that could be great for training. If you help scout it, you might find sothing useful—like a new transformation."
"Wait, seriously?!" she asked eagerly. "When can we go?"
"Tomorrow morning," he replied, "early."
Her face brightened as she said, "That's enough ti for to get so new clothes!"
"Wait," he said, raising a hand. "I was just kidding about the new clothes thing. You don't really need—"
But she wasn't listening. She was already thinking of possibilities. "I know exactly where to shop, too!"
Alex chuckled at her enthusiasm. Here was the hothead being more interested in fashion than the actual mission.
"Alright," he conceded, "just don't get ahead of yourself. Jada told once that your electric bill doubled because you spend all night reading perverted magazines."
"What the he—"
"I'm kidding! Haha!"
What followed were small pumling noises.
Alice slipped from her spot and made her way back to the apartnt.
Whoever Alexander Costa truly was, she was by no ans on his side.
Reviews
All reviews (0)