Tanako stood quietly at her gate, watching the street where Arata's figure had long vanished.
The glow of the street lamps blurred in her eyes.
Senju Mei — her mother — noticed immediately.
Her smile carried a hint of amusement.
"It seems," she said gently, "that you feel a little differently about that teammate of yours. What kind of person is he?"
Tanako's face turned bright red in an instant.
"M-Mom, what are you saying? It's not like that!"
Mei chuckled softly. "Oh? Then why were your eyes following that boy the whole time? I've never seen you look at Itsuki that way."
Tanako turned toward the empty street again.
Her voice lowered to a whisper.
"I… don't really know him yet. We only just met today."
Mei frowned slightly. "Just met? I thought you'd been classmates for years?"
She assumed Arata must have been a transfer student. After all, smaller ninja academies under the Land of Fire's jurisdiction sometimes sent students to Konoha.
But Tanako shook her head.
"No, he's been in my class all six years. I just… never noticed him before. I didn't even know his name until yesterday."
"What?" Mei's eyes widened. "Six years in the same class, and you never spoke to each other once? That's… unbelievable."
"Is he antisocial or something?"
Her mother's tone carried genuine concern.
Tanako smiled faintly and shook her head.
"No, not at all. He's actually really easy to get along with. I don't know why, but before now, it was like… he didn't exist. His presence was even lower than mine."
Mei blinked in disbelief.
A child with no presence… lower than my daughter's? That's absurd.
The thought unsettled her.
"Are you sure he's not… difficult to deal with?" she asked carefully. "People who hide themselves that much usually have something to hide."
Tanako's smile softened.
"No, Mom. He's… kind. And calm. I don't know why he was invisible before, but he doesn't feel dangerous."
Mei watched her daughter's bright eyes and sighed inwardly.
She's glowing just talking about him.
Please don't tell me my daughter's falling for that boy already…
It wasn't uncommon — children in the shinobi world grew up fast, emotionally and mentally.
Still, Mei couldn't help but worry.
Her daughter wasn't just any child.
She was the daughter of one of Fire Country's wealthiest families — and the descendant of the Senju clan.
To people like them, every relationship came with consequences.
So she asked carefully, "And how do you feel about him, dear? The same as you do about Itsuki?"
Tanako bit her lip. She wasn't naive — she knew exactly what her mother meant.
After a moment's silence, she said softly,
"No. It's… different. I think of Itsuki as a friend. But with Arata… I don't really know. I just feel something different."
Her voice wavered. "I only met him today, so maybe it's not what I think. But still… it's not the same."
Mei sighed quietly, her brow creasing.
So it begins.
"Perhaps it's just curiosity," she suggested gently. "You didn't know him before, so maybe you're intrigued. That's all."
It wasn't that Mei disapproved of friendship — but love, in their world, was never simple.
"Tanako," she said softly, "you know our family isn't like the others. You're our only child. One day, you'll inherit the Motoya estate — and our Senju lineage. You can't afford to be careless about who you trust, or who you let close."
Tanako sighed and smiled mischievously.
"Then maybe you and Dad should just have another kid. I wouldn't mind a little brother to share the pressure."
"Y-You—!" Mei's cheeks turned pink. "That's not how this works, young lady!"
Tanako giggled, the tension easing for a moment.
Her parents' love had always been genuine — something rare among the powerful.
Then, her smile softened again.
"I don't know if I like Arata yet. But when I'm with him, I feel… safe. Even though he's quiet and mysterious, it's like nothing bad could happen when he's around."
Mei caught on the word.
"Mysterious? In what way?"
Tanako shook her head thoughtfully.
"It's not that he's cold. He just… doesn't fit. Like he doesn't really belong in our world, or he's hiding something big. I can't explain it, but I know he's not as simple as he looks."
Mei's frown deepened. That — that was what worried her.
"Do you think he's using you for something?"
Tanako blinked, then smiled, shaking her head.
"Mom, if that were true, do you think I'd be standing here defending him?"
She might have been young, but she wasn't naive.
If someone tried to get close because of her family name, she'd sense it immediately — and hate it.
Mei's expression softened. She knew her daughter well enough to trust that.
Still, her mind turned over the details.
"A boy who's been invisible for six years," she murmured, "and now suddenly draws your attention…"
Her gaze grew distant. "That's not ordinary."
Tanako hesitated, then said quietly,
"I think he's already stronger than me. Maybe even stronger than my classmates."
"Oh?" Mei's brow arched slightly. "But I haven't seen his name mentioned anywhere. The Hokage's reports always highlight the top students of each class — and there's no one called Arata among them."
Her tone turned thoughtful, analytical — the voice of a woman who'd lived long enough to see the patterns behind the politics.
"The talented children — the Uchiha boy, the Hyūga girl, even the Hokage's ward, Naruto — they're all known to the clans. But this one… this boy who no one's ever heard of?"
She leaned back slightly, her eyes narrowing.
"That makes him even more intriguing. And far more dangerous."