Smelling a slight musty odor from the blanket, Naruto picked it up and headed to the balcony to start washing it.
The sunlight felt warm on his skin, and Naruto sighed comfortably with his eyes narrowed. As he watched the tiny specks of dust floating in the air, he sneezed. It was truly a beautiful day. Although the weight of the blanket made his arms ache.
Taking a deep breath, he stood on a stool to hang the washed blanket. Looking at the neatly folded blanket, Naruto smiled contentedly.
"Since we can't change things, we might as well adapt," he thought to himself.
Naruto looked up at the blue sky, suddenly feeling better. He envied the boundless sky and the carefree clouds.
Just as Naruto was enjoying the good weather, there was a small commotion on the street below. Naruto wasn't one to join in the crowd, but his curiosity made him glance down.
There was a teenager in his early teens, with slightly shoulder-length pure black hair that shimmered in the sunlight. The emblem of a small folding fan on the back of his ordinary ninja attire stood out conspicuously. His upright posture and firm strides made him stand out.
The murmurs from below gradually grew louder, and Naruto could hear the following comments:
"Ah, Uchiha Itachi, that genius!"
"Ah ah ah! It's Lord Itachi, so cool..."
"Lord Itachi is as cool as ever today."
"Itachi-sama..."
Itachi... hearing that name, Naruto paused for a moment. Wasn't he the child who was pushed to the pinnacle? Should he say, a completely different existence from himself? A mocking smile tugged at the corners of Naruto's lips. Just bearing the Uchiha surname, he must have endured a lot. He watched the teenager walk away with a sense of relief.
At least, he was still free. Although, under such surveillance.
The teenager walking under the sunlight seemed to notice something and unexpectedly turned back, his gaze directly meeting Naruto's. Naruto was slightly stunned. What keen intuition he had.
Those were eyes as black as ink, calm and indifferent, as if nothing and no one could stir any emotions in the teenager. Those eyes seemed to see into the depths of people's hearts.
The sunlight gently bathed his face, but couldn't warm his icy eyes. His gaze was so cool, as if it could cleanse one's body and soul... Naruto was slightly dazed, but then he curved his lips into a cool smile. Then he widened his smile, forming a brilliant arc.
For Itachi, he was just walking on the street as usual, and then, as usual, ignoring the awkward and inexplicable murmurs. In his view, the gap between him and his father was still too large. So, he had to work harder. However, today felt a bit strange. It seemed like there was a gaze from above, always sticking to him. Although he was already immune to enthusiastic gazes, this one felt too intense. He frowned slightly and looked back.
It was a blond-haired, blue-eyed boy. Wasn't he the Jinchuriki like Sasuke? About the same age as Sasuke, too. Thinking of Sasuke, a hint of tenderness crept into Itachi's heart. The blond boy's golden hair shimmered in the sunlight, making people want to touch it...
Feeling annoyed at his own lapse, but suddenly noticing the boy's focused gaze, Itachi, with his blue eyes even bluer than the sky, felt somewhat surprised. The boy, under the sunlight, had a light even brighter than the sun, as if he were naturally the center of attention. But it shouldn't be like this, that boy...
Just as he was thinking, he saw the boy's slight hesitation, but suddenly a faint smile appeared on his face. Then the curve of the smile slowly widened, and a brilliant smile bloomed in the bright afternoon, even brighter than the sunlight. That smile, the most beautiful and genuine smile he had ever seen since birth, seemed indistinct under the hazy sunlight. But the sunlight seemed to be concentrated on the boy's mouth, as if the whole world was radiating light.
Why could he still have such a brilliant and pure smile despite being ostracized and ignored? Why were his eyes so pure and clear despite the disgust and indifference he received? Why could his smile warm people's hearts even in such loneliness and solitude?
Itachi was puzzled, but also shocked.
Perhaps the boy was not as simple as he seemed on the surface. Itachi pursed his lips and thought, perhaps the boy gave him an unexpected enlightenment.
Even in the midst of suffering, one could still conceal it with a brilliant smile. Just like how he hid all his emotions and all his pain under a blank expression, not letting anyone notice. In a sense, they were somewhat similar.
While taking a shower, Itachi suddenly remembered those blue eyes, and then a thought popped into his mind: because his smile was genuine, it was beautiful. All beauty stems from truth. So, is it because his current world is too fake that he has lost the desire to smile? He lightly pressed his lips, suppressing his scattered thoughts. He closed his eyes, put on his bathrobe, and took out a scroll of ninjutsu to study carefully.
Meanwhile, watching the Uchiha young master walk away with a cold face—well, he always had a cold face, Naruto thought to himself, this kid could really play the role of the legendary Tengu. No, maybe he was the Tengu himself...
But what that guy named Itachi was thinking had nothing to do with Naruto. After tidying up, Naruto finally felt exhausted from cleaning all day, so he decided to go to bed early.
He covered himself with the blanket and relaxed his body, gradually drifting into a state of sleep.
"Ryuki..." "Lord Ryuki..." A faint voice rang out.
"Shi'er..." The familiar nickname and voice made Naruto murmur unconsciously. Then he saw silver-white halos appearing in the darkness, illuminating a familiar face. The person had light brown hair and a shy smile.
"Lord Ryuki, I..." His face flushed, "Can I like you?"
Memories flooded in like a tidal wave. She suddenly remembered her own self, clad in battle gear, full of spirit. Even though she acknowledged the fate of being a sacrifice, was fighting bloodily her instinct?
Perhaps the descendants of the Ryuuya family were always extraordinary. — Incredibly talented in battle, with excellent reflexes. And they were destined to be geniuses in battle for generations.
Even so, a sacrifice was still a sacrifice. Like something used up, drained dry.
But Naruto actually didn't care about such things. Why? Maybe because he knew from birth that crying and fussing wouldn't change anything, so it was better to solve the problem at its root. Or perhaps, inherently, he was indifferent to sacrifices and life, considering the sacrifices he was willing to make for the people and things he wanted to protect...
Just as she said, because there were things more important than life itself, she was willing to sacrifice anything for them... Naruto sighed with some regret.
She was really cruel... just casually using him like that... for the sake of her people and her brother who was willing to sacrifice even his life...
"Lord Ryuki, I know! I'm willing to die with Lord Ryuki. I don't want..." Although his hair was a nondescript shade of brown, his eyes shone with unparalleled brilliance — perhaps because of his current determination. "I don't want Lord Ryuki to be alone. Even though you've always been so powerful..." A pale smile crept up his lips, his eyes unwavering. Naruto was a bit stunned; he could feel that this boy... was speaking sincerely.
"This is all I can do for you. So, even if it's pretend... I'm willing." Naruto saw a hint of happiness in the boy's light brown eyes, and a faint sadness in the corners of his lips...
Naruto remained silent, not knowing what to say. Even though he could sense the boy's current sadness was genuine, he felt somewhat powerless and didn't know what he could say or do for this boy. He was truly at a loss.
"So, Lord Ryuki, please live happily... Please..." A crystal tear trickled down his cheek, and his pale cheeks began to flush. "I've never said so much to Lord Ryuki before, so even if it's a dream, I'm satisfied." At this point, a faint smile appeared in the boy's eyes. "I really hope this sentiment can reach Lord Ryuki's heart. As long as Lord Ryuki can always be well..."
"And you, are you okay?" Naruto finally spoke after a long silence.
"Lord Ryuki..." Hearing this, Shi'er looked incredulous. "Lord Ryuki... would you say such things to me? Although Lord Ryuki has always been gentle, Lord Ryuki's concern for me is not that much. Maybe because Lord Ryuki has given all of Lord Ryuki's gentle care to that person."
Naruto looked at Shi'er's bewildered expression and felt a pang in his heart. He was about to say something when Shi'er suddenly lowered his head. "After all, it was just a dream..."
Hearing the murmured words of the brown-haired teenager, Naruto was a bit puzzled. But Shi'er suddenly raised his head, his face suddenly brightening. "I'm fine, Lord Ryuki. I'm about to be reincarnated... The only thing I don't want to leave behind is Lord Ryuki..."
"I'm fine." Hearing the teenager speak with such a nostalgic expression, Naruto softened his expression and tone. The boy sincerely cared about him...
"And also," Naruto paused for a moment, then smiled faintly, "Take care of yourself."
Then he turned and walked away, his words fading into the darkness, "Lastly, I wish you happiness..."
"Lord Ryuki..." Shi'er looked at Naruto's retreating back in a daze, his voice low, "Why are you always so gentle... It's really hard not to be attached." With that, tears suddenly fell from the boy's eyes, disappearing silently into the darkness.
Naruto kept walking, unafraid of the darkness, straight ahead until he saw a familiar iron cage, then he stopped.
"Kyuubi, thank you." Naruto looked at the nine-tailed fox with a softened expression and reached out to stroke its fur through the iron bars.
"Hmph," Kyuubi snorted coldly, not looking at Naruto, and curled up its massive body. "Not bad for you."
"Kyuubi, you're the only one left who can connect the dreams of two people." Naruto smiled and nodded, gently patting Kyuubi's head.
Kyuubi turned its head away from Naruto, its expression complicated. "Get out. I'm going to sleep." Since they were now even, there was no need to be entangled any longer.
Naruto thought to himself that Kyuubi was simply unable to bear seeing him still clinging to the identity of "Ryuki," so it used this method to bid farewell to the past and start anew. Thinking this, Naruto smiled.
Slowly, the darkness faded away, and the iron cage gradually receded. In the haze of consciousness, Naruto once again felt the chill of the night. So he turned over satisfactorily, the smile on his lips growing even stronger.
Meanwhile, Kyuubi inside the cage glanced at the departing blond teenager with a complex expression, snorted disdainfully from its nostrils, and then lay down.
The brown-haired teenager enveloped in the halo of light wore a gentle smile on his face, and his figure began to slowly dissipate. His voice drifted out gently into the spreading darkness, "Even if it's a dream, I don't want to let you know, Lord Ryuki..." Shi'er's expression tinged with a hint of melancholy. But he still looked up at the lingering white light, smiling.
"Lord Ryuki... I never want to forget you. From the moment when everyone mocked and scorned me, you looked at me with warmth in your eyes, your hand was soft, pulling me up, and when facing the punches and kicks from everyone, you stood in front of me, repaying all the humiliation. I made up my mind at that moment. You were like that light... rescuing me from the darkness... so I'm willing to silently protect you like this. So I gave up the chance to be reincarnated, just to keep the memory of having you... becoming the hell lotus, waiting for a glance after five hundred years... even so, it's enough." Thinking this, the boy closed his eyes contentedly. Finally dissolving away...
Gradually, the boy's thoughts also came to an end like a small dot of light in the darkness.