A warm current stirred in Wayne's heart. This grumpy cousin of his—annoying as she was—still turned out to be surprisingly righteous.
"I'm not going anywhere," he said.
Wayne pulled his hand back, defiant. "You can't hide forever. No one lives guarding against enemies every single day."
His eyes gleamed coldly. "Whoever provokes me... I'll cut them."
A flicker of steel glinted in Wayne's expression—calm but dangerous.
"You brat," Terumi Mei huffed, arms crossed, "I haven't seen you in months and your mouth's already turned feral."
She narrowed her eyes, watching as Wayne pulled out a cigarette.
"Seriously? You're still underage—don't smoke!"
She reached out to snatch it, but Wayne vanished in a blur.
He reappeared behind her.
"That's... the Body Flicker Technique?" she exclaimed, spinning around.
Her eyes widened in genuine surprise. "You're... actually getting good at it."
"I didn't waste these years just sitting around." Wayne's grin was shameless.
"Aiya, my silly little cousin is all grown up." Terumi Mei ruffled his hair fondly before pulling out a thick comic book from her bag. "But seriously, you should cut back on this stuff—it's not good for your brain."
On the cover, voluptuous kunoichi in scandalous outfits posed suggestively. Their makeup was heavy, their gazes electric.
Wayne froze. His face turned scarlet.
"You horse—!!!"
He let out a choked snarl, part pig squeal, part fury.
Of all things, she had to pull that out—his hidden stash of adult comics.
"You went through my room?!" His voice trembled with rage.
Terumi Mei looked unfazed. "Relax. It was just lying there, I was helping you organize your closet."
"Organize?!" Wayne glared at her like he could set her hair on fire. "You picked the lock on my cabinet! Accidentally, my ass!"
"Hmph. And I was just worried about your health. I'm being blamed for caring about your body—so ungrateful!" She covered her eyes, peeking through her fingers. "Waaah~ Wayne is bullying me!"
Wayne stared at her deadpan.
She cried even harder.
Swish!
Suddenly, the room's atmosphere shifted. Wind stirred sharply. Before she could react, Wayne had closed the distance between them.
He slammed both hands on the table beside her.
"You—be gentle! I'm delicate!" Terumi Mei said dramatically, blushing.
Wayne looked at her like she'd grown three heads.
"Get your mind out of the gutter, woman! What's wrong with you?!"
He grabbed the comic from her hands. He was tempted to scold her more, but—truthfully—she had been looking out for him in her own twisted way.
She'd drop by with food, help clean up the place… sure, she'd also do weird stuff—like sleeping in his bed when he wasn't around "to test the quilt warmth"…
Wayne sighed. "Whatever. Don't come snooping around anymore."
Terumi Mei puffed up proudly, like a white goose, strutting out the door. At the entrance, she glanced back, giggling.
"My little cousin's growing up fast. Teehee~"
Wayne shook his head as she disappeared into the misty streets of Kirigakure.
"Come on. I've lived two lives already—I'm practically forty in my head. Isn't reading this stuff normal? Should I be watching Teletubbies instead?"
He tucked the book away, muttering.
Alone now, Wayne lit another cigarette and exhaled a smoke ring lazily. His smile slowly faded.
"…Didn't expect Yagura's kid to die in the field too. Guess trouble really is coming."
He narrowed his eyes.
Even if he had nothing to do with the Uchiha clan anymore, their blood still ran in his veins. That alone might be enough to bring heat his way.
The night fell deeper.
In the thick fog of Kirigakure, silence reigned.
The lights in Wayne's home were still on. He lay in bed flipping through the very book that Terumi Mei had dug out, chuckling occasionally.
Swish.
Some time later, just as sleep threatened to claim him, the air split with a whispering wind.
His eyes shot open. A shadow moved in the mist beyond his window.
Creaaak.
Wayne rose calmly and opened the door.
"Wayne. Come with me," a figure in a black robe said coldly.
The voice was young—too young to match the menace in his tone.
Wayne stared, then smirked. "Zabuza… you think I wouldn't recognize you behind that mask?"
The figure froze.
Then, slowly, he pulled the mask off.
A cruel, youthful face emerged—half-bandaged, eyes glinting like a predator's.
Zabuza Momochi.
An old classmate. From their year, only two had survived.
Zabuza.
And Wayne.
Everyone else… was slaughtered.