Three days later, early in the morning, the entrance of the Ninja Academy was already bustling with students arriving for class. Might Guy stood quietly near the school gate with his backpack slung over one shoulder. He was still wearing the same green training suit as always, and his appearance had not changed much at first glance. However, anyone familiar with him could immediately sense that something about him was different now.
It was not his clothes.
Nor was it his expression.
It was his temperament.
After three continuous days of training with Might Duy in that secluded valley, after opening the first three gates of the Eight Gates technique, the aura around Guy had become sharper and steadier. Even while simply standing still, he unconsciously gave off the feeling of a tightly compressed spring.
Obito came jogging over from behind with his backpack bouncing against his shoulder. The moment he noticed Guy standing there, he visibly froze for a second before blinking several times in confusion.
"Guy?"
Guy turned his head casually.
"Hmm?"
Obito looked him up and down suspiciously before scratching his head awkwardly.
"You... where have you been these past three days? Teacher Umino said you took a leave of absence."
"Training."
"Training where?"
Guy thought for a moment before answering honestly.
"In a valley."
Obito waited expectantly for him to continue.
Guy said nothing else.
After standing there awkwardly for several seconds, Obito finally could not hold himself back anymore.
"And then?"
Guy blinked.
"And then what?"
"What did you train exactly?"
Guy immediately grinned brightly and raised a thumbs-up toward him.
"Youth!"
Obito's mouth twitched instantly.
"Fine. It's that answer again."
The two entered the school grounds side by side. However, after walking through the gates, Guy quickly noticed that something felt off. Compared to usual mornings, the academy grounds looked strangely empty. The groups of noisy children who normally crowded together while chatting before class had mostly disappeared.
Guy glanced around quietly.
Many familiar faces were missing.
"Where is everyone?" he asked.
Obito instinctively lowered his voice.
"You seriously don't know yet? A lot of people haven't shown up these past few days."
"Why?"
"They got called back by their families."
Obito curled his lips before continuing in a somewhat annoyed tone.
"The war schedule got pushed forward, so all the clan training and secret techniques that were supposed to be taught slowly over the next few years are being crammed in immediately."
He scratched the back of his head.
"People in my clan keep saying that a lot of families already locked their kids up for intensive training. Apparently nobody is allowed outside until they finish."
Guy nodded silently.
As expected.
Originally, the academy's three-year accelerated curriculum was already a wartime adjustment. Now that the graduation schedule had been shortened again, all the major clans had no choice but to panic.
Techniques that were supposed to be inherited slowly now had to be forced into the next generation as quickly as possible.
The two entered the classroom together.
Sure enough, the room looked far emptier than before.
Out of more than twenty students, less than half were currently seated.
Kurenai was already there, and the moment she saw Guy enter the classroom, her eyes visibly brightened.
Rin was also present and immediately waved toward them.
However, several familiar seats remained empty.
Asuma Sarutobi was absent.
Gekkō Hayate was absent.
Yūgao Uzuki was absent.
Aoba Yamashiro was absent.
There were also several others whose names Guy could no longer remember from the original story.
Guy quietly sat down in his seat.
Kurenai immediately leaned slightly toward him, worry visible in her wine-red eyes.
"Guy, where have you been these past three days?"
"Training."
"Training what exactly?"
Guy thought for a moment before answering seriously.
"Taijutsu."
Kurenai blinked.
"Only Taijutsu?"
"Yeah."
She did not ask further questions after that.
However, the way she looked at him became slightly different.
She could not explain exactly what felt different.
It was almost as if Guy himself had become brighter somehow.
The school bell soon rang loudly through the academy.
Umino Iruka walked into the classroom and calmly glanced over the numerous empty seats. His expression did not change at all, as though he had already grown accustomed to the situation over the past few days.
"Class will continue as normal today."
He picked up a piece of chalk and wrote several lines onto the blackboard.
"Those who are present should listen carefully. Those who are absent can make up the material themselves later."
The classroom remained extremely quiet.
Unlike before, there was not even a trace of whispering anymore.
Everyone understood what this silence represented.
After class ended, Guy immediately stood up and began walking toward the door.
Kurenai quickly called out to him from behind.
"Guy, where are you going?"
"To the blacksmith shop."
"You're still going there today?"
Guy nodded naturally.
"Yeah. I haven't gone for three days, so I should apologize to Uncle Taoye."
Kurenai pursed her lips slightly before speaking in a quieter voice.
"Can... can you not go today?"
Guy looked back at her with surprise.
"Hmm? Why?"
Before this, Kurenai had never once tried stopping him from training.
Panic briefly appeared across her face, and she hurriedly waved both hands.
"N-No, it's nothing. Then... just be careful on the way there. I'm heading home first."
After speaking, she immediately turned and jogged away before Guy could continue questioning her.
Guy watched her retreating figure with confusion.
At that moment, Obito happened to be leaving as well, so Guy instinctively followed after him.
Obito glanced sideways at him.
"Why are you following me?"
"Going to the blacksmith shop."
Guy answered as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.
Obito blinked.
"Aren't you going to accompany Kurenai? She won't even be coming to school tomorrow."
Guy froze slightly.
"Hmm? She won't?"
Only then did he finally understand why Kurenai had been acting so strangely all day.
As a member of a Genjutsu clan, she naturally needed to begin intensive family training now that the war had escalated.
"No wonder..."
Guy finally understood.
Kurenai clearly wanted him to accompany her earlier, but she also did not want to interfere with his own training, which was why she acted so awkwardly.
Guy suddenly smiled.
Without warning, he tossed his backpack directly toward Obito.
"Help me drop this off at Uncle Taoye's place. I'll head over later."
Before Obito could react, Guy had already dashed away at full speed.
Obito stared blankly at the two backpacks now hanging from his arms.
Then his mouth twitched violently.
"A guy who abandons his friends for a girl..."
By the time Guy finally caught up to Kurenai, the sun was already beginning to set.
Kurenai was walking slowly along the road with her head lowered, while her black curly hair swayed gently in the evening breeze.
"Kurenai!"
Guy shouted loudly while running toward her.
Kurenai's body paused slightly. Although she did not turn around immediately, her footsteps unconsciously slowed down.
Guy finally caught up beside her while catching his breath.
"Why are you walking so fast?"
Kurenai still did not respond.
Guy tilted his head slightly to look at her.
The orange glow of the sunset illuminated her face gently, while her wine-red eyes remained fixed toward the ground. Even her eyelashes trembled faintly.
"Were you crying?" Guy asked directly.
Kurenai immediately shook her head and turned away.
"No."
"Then look up so I can see."
Kurenai clearly could not win against him.
After several seconds, she reluctantly looked up.
She had indeed not cried.
However, her eyes were slightly red.
Guy scratched his head awkwardly.
He wanted to say something comforting, but strangely enough, his usual energetic speeches about youth and passion suddenly felt inappropriate here.
For several moments, neither of them spoke.
The wind gently blew across the road, carrying fallen leaves through the air.
Finally, Kurenai quietly spoke first.
"Guy... you should go back to your training."
Her voice sounded extremely soft.
"I'm fine."
Guy looked at her silently for a few seconds.
Then suddenly, he reached out and grabbed her wrist.
Kurenai immediately startled and raised her head.
"Let's go."
"W-Where?"
"Just follow me."
Without further explanation, Guy pulled her along as he ran.
They did not head toward the school.
Nor toward the village.
Instead, Guy led her directly toward the back mountain.
Kurenai stumbled slightly while being pulled along, yet she never once tried to pull her hand away.
The setting sun stretched their shadows across the ground behind them.
One figure in front.
One figure behind.
The two overlapping together beneath the crimson evening sky.
They passed through the forest.
They crossed near the waterfall.
Then Guy led her into a narrow hidden trail she had clearly never seen before.
After winding through the mountains for quite a while, they finally arrived at the edge of a cliff.
Kurenai stopped completely.
Then her eyes widened.
Before them stretched an enormous open sky dyed orange-red by the setting sun. Layers of burning clouds filled the horizon like waves of fire.
Far below them rested all of Konoha Village.
The houses.
The streets.
Even the Hokage Rock.
Everything looked tiny from this height.
Kurenai unconsciously opened her mouth slightly.
"This..."
"I found it myself."
Guy finally released her wrist before casually sitting down at the cliff's edge.
"When I get too exhausted from training, I secretly come here to relax for a while."
Then he patted the ground beside him.
"Sit."
Kurenai slowly walked over before sitting quietly beside him.
The two remained side by side while silently watching the burning sunset.
Neither spoke.
The mountain wind carried the faint scent of grass and trees through the air.
Gradually, Kurenai's tense shoulders relaxed.
Her breathing slowly steadied.
Then she secretly glanced sideways toward Guy.
Guy remained focused on the horizon, while the setting sunlight reflected brightly within his eyes.
Those same thick eyebrows.
That same silly-looking face.
Yet for some reason, simply sitting beside him felt reassuring.
"Guy."
"Hmm?"
"Do you come here often?"
Guy thought for a moment.
"Not really. Only when training becomes too exhausting."
He paused briefly.
"The last time I came here was after I kicked away that giant Ninja Bear."
Kurenai blinked.
"That was three months ago."
"Yeah."
She looked at him quietly.
"Haven't you been tired during these past three months?"
Guy turned toward her before grinning.
"Of course I'm tired."
Then his expression unexpectedly became serious.
"But I don't have time to stop."
"Why?"
Guy thought carefully before answering honestly.
"Because there are too many things I still need to train."
Kurenai froze briefly.
Then she suddenly laughed softly.
"You're really strange."
Guy laughed as well.
"So what if I am?"
He turned back toward the sunset again.
"Anyway, you're the first person I've ever brought here."
Kurenai's heartbeat skipped instantly.
She lowered her head and stared at her own fingers resting on her knees.
Those fingers slowly intertwined together nervously.
"Guy."
"Hmm?"
"Starting tomorrow... I won't be coming to school anymore."
Guy nodded calmly.
"I know."
"The clan training will probably last a long time."
"Yeah."
"I might even graduate directly after finishing it."
"Yeah."
Kurenai immediately puffed her cheeks slightly.
"Is 'Yeah' the only thing you know how to say?"
Guy turned toward her again.
His expression looked exactly the same as usual.
However, his eyes were unusually serious.
"What else should I say? Should I cry because of it?"
Kurenai immediately became speechless.
Guy turned back toward the horizon.
"You focus on mastering your Genjutsu."
Then he pointed toward himself.
"I'll focus on becoming stronger through Taijutsu."
He paused briefly.
"Anyway, all of us are heading toward the battlefield eventually."
Kurenai quietly lowered her gaze again.
Of course she understood that already.
The war had begun.
People were dying every day at the borders.
Sooner or later, their generation would step onto the battlefield as well.
Then suddenly, Guy spoke again.
"Hey."
"Hmm?"
"Let's make a promise."
Kurenai froze slightly.
Guy turned toward her.
The remaining afterglow of sunset illuminated his face brightly, while his eyes reflected the burning sky itself.
"When you've mastered your Genjutsu..."
"And when I've become even stronger..."
Guy slowly extended his hand outward toward her.
"Let's form a team together someday."
Kurenai stared blankly at his hand.
A rough hand covered in countless callouses.
She remembered this hand poking rocks beneath waterfalls ten thousand times every day.
She remembered this hand forging iron until midnight.
And she remembered this same hand pulling her here just now.
"You'll handle Genjutsu support."
Guy grinned brightly.
"And I'll become your strongest shield."
Kurenai suddenly felt warmth rising into her eyes again.
She lowered her head quickly before blinking several times.
Then slowly...
She reached out her own hand.
Her pinky finger gently hooked around his.
"It's a promise."
"Yeah."
The two hooked fingers together while quietly watching the final traces of sunset disappear beyond the horizon.
The last orange-red glow slowly faded.
Stars gradually began appearing overhead.
The mountain wind became colder.
Yet strangely enough, Kurenai felt warmer than before.
She secretly glanced sideways toward Guy again.
Guy was staring quietly toward the night sky, seemingly lost in thought.
Kurenai pursed her lips slightly before speaking softly.
"Guy."
"Hmm?"
"In the future... don't always try carrying everything by yourself."
Guy turned toward her.
However, Kurenai kept staring downward at her own fingers instead.
"When you're exhausted, come here again."
She paused softly.
"Even if I won't be at school anymore... I'll still keep training too."
"And I'll become stronger as well."
Guy quietly looked at her illuminated profile beneath the moonlight.
Her eyelashes trembled gently in the night breeze.
Suddenly, he laughed softly.
Not his usual loud youthful laugh.
This laugh sounded quieter.
Warmer.
More sincere.
"Alright."
"I'll remember."
Kurenai did not answer verbally.
However, the corners of her mouth slowly curled upward.
Night had completely fallen now.
The moonlight illuminated the cliff softly.
Two small figures still sat side by side there without moving.
Neither of them mentioned leaving.
Far below them, the lights throughout Konoha gradually lit up one after another.
Like countless stars scattered across the earth itself.
[Bond Triggered: Promise on the Cliff]
[Reward: Monk Value +40]