Two minutes later.
"It's all my fault, little miss."
"My apologies..."
Killer B, forehead pressed to the ground in a deep bow, offered a sincere apology.
His body was covered in wounds, but by now, most of them had already healed.
Qingchuan sheathed her blade.
Standing still, she stared at B with a furrowed brow.
"So... you didn't attack me because I'm a Konoha shinobi."
"Then why?"
During the fight, she had used her Sharingan.
Though she had initially tried to hide her identity as a Konoha ninja, once the battle began, there was no point in holding back.
B had certainly given her some pressure...
But suddenly dropping to his knees? That was something she couldn't wrap her head around.
"If you dare say my name... B, you bastard, don't ever think about borrowing my power again!!"
In the mindscape, Gyuki was nearly hoarse from yelling.
After two solid minutes of berating...
Gyuki had given up on lecturing B, this Jinchūriki who seemed to have no concept of dignity.
It was one thing to act meek in front of his older brother in Kumogakure...
But now? The person standing before him was a little girl!
A girl who, under normal circumstances, would have to crane her neck just to look B in the eye!
A little girl!!!
In Gyuki's eyes...
B had utterly disgraced the title of the Eight-Tails' Jinchūriki—and Gyuki's own reputation.
"Well..." B, still bowing, hesitated.
"I... uh, my pet—er, my partner got scared... Yeah, that's pretty much it."
Got scared.
That excuse... was bizarrely plausible.
Qingchuan was speechless.
"Then... now that you know I'm from Konoha,"
"why did you stop fighting?"
As she spoke, she casually adjusted her forehead protector.
Still worn around her neck—old habits died hard, even if there was no need to hide it anymore.
"Uh..."
B faltered again.
What do I do?!
Even the way she scolded him carried the same oppressive aura as his brother!
This damn trip had been a disaster from the start!
B's heart was in turmoil.
"Forget it."
Qingchuan sighed.
A dark-skinned, rough-looking giant kneeling before her... it conjured up some unpleasant imagery.
Faced with this oddball, Qingchuan had run out of patience.
He wouldn't talk back, and hitting him probably wouldn't do much.
With a flick of her wrist, she cast a healing jutsu and decided to let this weirdo go.
Consider it charity.
And if she ever had to flee Konoha and couldn't join Akatsuki...
She could always crash in Kumogakure.
Maybe bulk up a little...
"Go. Let's pretend today never happened."
Qingchuan glanced toward Konoha and spoke softly.
"Again, my apologies... I was out of line."
B still hadn't lifted his head, his tone dripping with sincerity.
Qingchuan ignored him and started walking back to Konoha.
But...
Before she'd taken more than a few steps...
Her expression darkened.
For one simple reason.
Lurking about three or four trees behind her... was a suspiciously sneaky hulk of a man.
Qingchuan couldn't even muster the energy to complain.
She was starting to regret ever crossing paths with B.
This guy seemed completely clueless about his brother's plans.
Sure, he might hold some hostility toward Konoha, but...
What the hell is this stalking nonsense?!
They were already close to Konoha's territory.
At this rate... by the time she got back, she'd have an Eight-Tails Jinchūriki in tow—one who wouldn't even resist.
And then Kumogakure wouldn't even need an excuse to launch a full-scale attack on Konoha!
The Third Hokage wouldn't be able to protect her...
Hinata was fine.
She had an uncle who looked just like her father, willing to sacrifice himself for the clan.
But Qingchuan? She had nothing!
She'd be thrown under the bus in a heartbeat!
"Maybe he'll just follow for a bit and leave."
"Maybe he's just confirming my route back to Konoha before heading the opposite way to Kumogakure..."
Qingchuan tried to console herself.
"Trust his intelligence... yeah, he's not that dumb!"
"He'll leave on his own! Definitely!"
Forcing a smile, she lightened her steps...
Meanwhile, behind her...
Peeking from the branches of a tree, B stealthily raised his head.
"Yosh... The kind little miss hasn't noticed us."
"Gyuki! We're almost at Konoha—time to feast!"
"Yo!"
Balancing on the branch with just his toes, B celebrated quietly.
In the mindscape...
Gyuki, who had been keeping his eyes shut in frustration, sighed.
He wanted to warn the naive B.
Not everyone in Konoha would be as forgiving as this girl.
But honestly...
This girl with the Sharingan had surprised him too.
Her overwhelming presence in battle, her ability to withstand B's Lariat, and those strange techniques that could rival a Tailed Beast Cloak...
She was a mystery.
And even after seeing B's Tailed Beast Cloak, she hadn't taken advantage of his surrender—instead, she'd healed his wounds.
Her Medical Ninjutsu, on par with a Tailed Beast's regenerative abilities, had left Gyuki stunned.
Still...
Gyuki decided to give B one last warning.
"If you keep following her, your brother will probably lead a raid on Konoha."
"Do you really want this girl to get captured by Kumogakure because of you?"
Gyuki's voice was grave.
From his years of observing humans...
B's naive actions would bring nothing but trouble—for himself and this mysterious Uchiha girl.
But then again...
It was that very naivety that made Gyuki willing to talk to him in the first place.
Yet...
"Bring the kind little miss back to Kumogakure?"
B's eyes lit up.
"Then big bro will definitely praise Killer B, 'cause his little brother's got style!"
"Yeah..."
Gyuki silently closed his eyes.
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