Seeing Kaito standing before her, Shirahoshi yelped and hid behind Megalo, peeking out nervously.
"Who are you?"
Kaito paused for a moment. He looked at her and said calmly,
"I'm the guest you just mentioned— the one King Neptune went to greet in person. My name is Uchiha Kaito."
"Eh!? I'm so sorry for being rude, Kaito-sama!"
Shirahoshi, with her pure heart, didn't doubt his words for a second. Once she heard that this was the person her father went out to welcome, she immediately began apologizing for her earlier behavior.
Kaito gave a helpless smile. Without another word, he activated his ROOM space. In a flash, he teleported right beside Shirahoshi.
Shirahoshi was instantly captivated by Kaito's sudden appearance.
"Kaito-sama, you're amazing!!"
Kaito didn't respond to the praise. He simply plopped himself down on Shirahoshi's enormous **, crossed his legs, and relaxed.
Shirahoshi looked at Kaito's legs curiously and suddenly asked,
...
...
"Kaito-sama, are you from the surface?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"Then… have you seen sunlight? Flowers? And lots and lots of interesting animals?"
"I have. All of those are very common on land."
"Really?! I'm so jealous… I wish I could see the surface for myself someday!"
She curled up her pink mermaid tail as she spoke. Oddly enough, she didn't seem bothered by Kaito sitting on her ** at all.
To her, almost no one besides her father and brothers ever came here. So now that she had a rare visitor, she wanted to cherish the opportunity to talk.
And since Kaito-sama was her father's guest, she absolutely couldn't be rude!
Kaito looked at the princess before him—her eyes brimming with longing—and sighed inwardly. Clearly, she had been kept in isolation for far too long. No wonder she was so curious and eager to interact with someone new, even a stranger like him.
With that in mind, he stretched out a hand toward her and said,
"Shirahoshi, want to come out and see the world with me?"
Shirahoshi's eyes welled with intense yearning as she looked at his outstretched hand. Of course she wanted to leave this Tower and see the world outside.
But reality was cruel.
The moment she stepped outside, waves of attacks would come for her. If she got hurt, that was one thing—but if Kaito-sama was harmed because of her, or if her father and brothers' efforts were all for nothing—she didn't want that.
So she shook her head, her voice low and full of gloom.
"Thank you for your kindness, Kaito-sama… but I can't go."
"Hmm? You're worried about Vander Decken, aren't you?"
"Yes… If I go out, you might get hurt too, Kaito-sama!"
"Hahaha!"
Seeing Shirahoshi curled up like a pitiful little thing, Kaito couldn't help but laugh.
Startled by the sound, Megalo dove under the bed, trembling in fear.
Shirahoshi, however, just blinked at him in confusion, unsure why he was laughing.
After a moment, Kaito calmed down. He got up from her ** and walked right up to her, then firmly took her hand in his.
Looking into her dazed eyes, he spoke confidently.
"As long as I'm here, no one can hurt you. Come with me."
Gazing into his deep, violet Rinnegan so close to her, Shirahoshi suddenly felt a strange and overwhelming sense of familiarity. It was as if countless voices were whispering in her ear:
"Trust him. Go with him!"
She thought she was hallucinating and quickly shook her head to clear it.
Kaito noticed and asked curiously,
"What's wrong?"
"Kaito-sama… I just heard some strange voices in my ear."
"Strange voices? What did they say exactly?"
"They told me to trust you… to go with you…"
"Oh?"
Kaito raised a brow. Even he wasn't sure what was going on. He scanned the area and confirmed that besides himself, Shirahoshi, and Neptune and Jinbei outside the door, there was no one else nearby.
After some thought, he chalked it up to Shirahoshi's identity—as Poseidon, one of the Ancient Weapons.
He didn't press the matter further and simply repeated,
"Shirahoshi, come with me."
This time, Shirahoshi didn't hesitate. Whether it was the voice's influence or the familiarity she felt from Kaito's Rinnegan, she chose to trust him.
She reached out and firmly gripped his hand.
Her hand was a bit larger than his, making the scene look slightly odd, but Kaito knew—she had made her decision.
He gave her a reassuring smile and, with a thought, both he and Shirahoshi vanished from the room.
Swish!
At the entrance of the Tower, Neptune and Jinbei were tense and on high alert, bracing for another strike from Vander Decken.
Suddenly, Kaito and Shirahoshi appeared before them.
Neptune's eyes widened in shock upon seeing his daughter outside the tower. He rushed to shield her and scolded her in panic,
"Shirahoshi! Why did you come out!? Don't you know how dangerous it is out here for you!?"
Tears welled up in Shirahoshi's eyes. She thought her father was angry with her—maybe even hated her now.
Kaito immediately spoke up,
"Relax. I was the one who brought Shirahoshi out."
"Oh—so it was by order. Thank you for taking the trouble. Shirahoshi, what are you waiting for? Thank Admiral Shikiryū!"
Shirahoshi looked blankly at her father, who had suddenly gone from furious to completely calm and respectful. Question marks practically popped over her head.
Neptune, seeing his daughter spacing out at a time like this, growled in frustration,
"Don't just stand there! Thank Admiral Shikiryū!"
"Admiral Shikiryū? But Father… I don't know who that is…"
"Nani!? Then who brought you out!?"
"Huh? Kaito-sama did!"
"..."
Neptune and Jinbei were both stunned when they heard that name.
Good grief—both of them, despite being elders, only dared to call him Admiral Shikiryū out of respect. And yet she called him Kaito-sama so casually?
Still, it showed just how kindly the admiral treated her—not the slightest hint of displeasure.
Of course, that was because Neptune and Jinbei were imagining Kaito to be scarier than he actually was. In truth, he didn't care about formalities at all.
As the group continued talking, a spinning projectile suddenly flew toward them—its target, Shirahoshi.
Terror flashed across her face, and she instinctively distanced herself from Kaito, afraid he'd get hurt because of her.
But Kaito instantly teleported in front of her. His violet eyes flared, and the spinning weapon shattered into nothing.
Shirahoshi stared, dazed, at the back of Kaito draped in his coat of justice. Though he was smaller than her—and even smaller than her father—that moment burned into her heart.
His presence radiated an unmatched sense of safety and strength.
Without turning, Kaito raised his hand toward the direction the weapon came from. His voice was low and calm.
"Universal Pull."
Buzz!
"Aaaaaah!"
A scream tore through the air, growing louder by the second. Moments later, Vander Decken was dragged forward by an irresistible force, his throat firmly in Kaito's grasp.
Having been yanked across the battlefield, Vander Decken looked utterly miserable—shards of stone and wood pierced his body, and blood flowed freely.
Eyes wide with terror, he tried to speak.
But Kaito beat him to it.
"Shirahoshi. Close your eyes."
"Eh? O-Okay, Kaito-sama!"
Shirahoshi didn't ask why. She just obediently shut her eyes. At this point, she trusted Kaito completely.
The moment her eyes closed, a piercing crackle of electricity filled the air—followed by a final, abrupt scream.
When she opened her eyes again, she saw Kaito standing there with a gentle smile...
And behind him, on the ground, was nothing but a small heap of black ash.
----------------
Pls Drop some Power Stones
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