CHAPTER 357: YURA AND AN INTRUDER

"Coco!" Yura called, her voice dripping with delight.

The woman in question stopped in her tracks and turned her head to the one who called her, her eyebrows slowly rising to her hairline.

"Yura..?" Coco blinked, taking her a moment to remember the woman’s name.

She was the one who helped me after we used the teleportation thing, right? Coco thought to herself and took two steps back, turning her whole body to face the approaching woman.

"You were amazing!" Yura exclaimed, her hands shooting forward and hovering beside Coco’s arms, not even bothering on trying to touch her.

"I couldn’t tell you how amazing you were the other night because you didn’t come back to the evaluation area, but you were really amazing!" The woman said, her words accompanied with a squeal.

Coco slowly nodded her head, not sure what to say.

"Oh, and you look fine now!" The woman stopped her excited ramblings and flashed Coco a relieved smile. "You looked like you were going to destroy everything the other day."

"She was?" Lala perked up, leaning down to look closer at Yura’s face. "That must have been a sight, huh?"

Coco ignored Lala’s statement and laughed awkwardly, averting her gaze from Yura’s. "I see, I see.. I haven’t thanked you for helping me. Is a free breakfast and lunch fine with you?"

Yura’s face contorted into a puzzled one, her eyebrows creasing and her hands falling by her side.

"You don’t have to treat me to anything." The woman said, shifting on her spot before sighing weakly. "I helped you because I wanted to, Coco.. Not because I have ulterior motives."

"That’s not what I meant." Coco started and raised a hand, rubbing the back of her neck sheepishly, making Konoha let out an annoyed mewl because Coco disturbed her sleep. "I just wanted to express my gratitude."

"Well, I heard something about the third stage.. And it seems like there will be teams that need to be formed." Yura started and gave Coco a knowing look, accompanied with a smile. "How about we team up? If what I heard was right, that is."

"Team?" Lala echoed and shifted on her spot on top of Coco’s head. "Is she strong, Coco?"

I don’t know.. I was too caught up in myself to watch anyone fight. Coco thought, answering Lala’s question in her mind as she stared blankly at Yura, unblinking.

"I’ll see what I can do." Coco said, forcing a smile on her face as she let out a laugh, forced as well. "But if we’re allowed to choose our team ourselves, then I’ll make sure to look for you. If not, I will still try."

It doesn’t hurt to tell a small lie, right? Coco thought, stepping away from Yura.

"Anyway, I have to go for now." Coco said, her voice laced with a tone of finality as she turned away from the woman. "I still have to talk to someone."

"Oh.." Yura mumbled, but didn’t stop Coco. "Okay, I’ll see you later then?"

Coco didn’t say anything in return and just nodded her head, walking briskly out of the hall and turned to the left corner, her feet carrying her to the room where she was staying for the last few days with Sinclair.

She opened the door and rushed inside, slamming the door shut behind her and leaned her back against the wood.

"Holy fuck." Coco gasped out, strangely out of breath as she stared into nothing with wide eyes. "Why did that interaction felt so fucking awkward? I didn’t feel like this when she helped me the other day."

The garden fairy got off Coco’s head and flew in front of her face, blinking in confusion.

"Why did you lie and tell her that you’ll look for her?" Lala asked, tilting her head. "But it’s fine, I don’t trust her like the way I trust Jacques and her husband."

Coco was about to answer, but she froze when she caught a movement from the corner of her eyes.

Coco’s hand slipped inside the bag that was slung over her head, discreetly withdrawing the fork in her inventory and in a blink of an eye, leaped to the direction where she saw the movement came from.

Coco realized that she was lunging towards a man with blonde hair and golden eyes, causing her attack to freeze mid-air as she found herself face to face with the man, her intentions clear yet lacking any serious intention to harm.

"Woah, woah— relax!" The man exclaimed, squeaking the words out of fear. "I didn’t expect you to attack me!"

The blonde haired man’s eyes widened in both surprise and fear, his hands raised up in a gesture of surrender as he backed against the wall, putting some distance between him and Coco.

They both stood there, frozen in time, their gazes locked in a moment of understanding, the fork held awkwardly in her hand.

Coco merely eyed him, her eyebrows furrowing.

"With a fork, too." He said, his voice tinged with a mix of disbelief and fright, and slightly rising in volume which indicates that she indeed scared him.

His gaze flickered between Coco and the fork in her hand, a hint of confusion on his face.

The unexpectedness of the situation caused his composure to break momentarily, leaving him caught off-guard and slightly rattled.

Coco slowly lowered the fork in her hand, her frown still present as she studied the man in front of her.

"This room is off limits because it has been reserved by Mr. Astin." She explained, her tone firm and steady. "I didn’t expect anyone to be here."

Her eyes remained fixed on the man, her senses alert and sharp, still maintaining a stance that screamed caution.

"Right, right, right.." The man said, slowly trailing off as he kept his gaze on the fork Coco was gripping. "Can you please put the fork down? It scares me— just slightly."

"No." Coco’s frown deepened. "Tell me why you’re here, Lukas."