Notes:I know I repeat myself chapter after chapter but I'm truly grateful for every review. It's motivating and as long as I have the time do invest in this story, I wanna do it.

Have fun!

Chapter 7

The crew—Jackie, V, Naruto, and their newest potential recruit Sasuke—wove through the busy streets of Kabuki, heading north toward the location Regina had tagged for the Cyberpsycho sighting.

At the front of the group, the younger duo marched with stiff shoulders and burning glares. Naruto and Sasuke, head-to-head, locked in an unspoken challenge. Sparks practically flew between them with each step—neither willing to give the other even an inch. The competitive energy was thick enough to choke on.

Just a few paces behind, Jackie and V walked more relaxed, sharing a look that said kids, huh?

V stepped closer to Jackie, her voice low and skeptical. "So, Jack. Why the hell are we taking him on a Cyberpsycho hunt, of all things?"

Jackie scratched the back of his head with a sheepish grin. "Figured it'd be a good place to start. A kind of… test run, ya know?"

V raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. She didn't say anything else, but her silence said enough.

Up ahead, Naruto had clearly picked up on the conversation—or at least the vibe of it. And he ate it up.

A huge, shit-eating grin spread across his face as he turned to shoot a mocking look at Sasuke.
"Ha! Not even worth a real gig, are you? Who's the loser now, asshole?!"
He raised his fist in the air triumphantly like he'd already won.

Sasuke's eye twitched. He grimaced, arms crossing tightly over his chest as he yanked his gaze away. A scoff escaped him, low and venomous, like the very idea of Naruto getting one up on him physically hurt. „As if I'm only worth a test…" He thought to himself but bit his tongue. He stormed in front, his Katana dingling at his side.

Behind them, Jackie just chuckled to himself. V, on the other hand, wasn't quite as entertained.

Still, she let it go—for now. She trusted Jackie's judgment, he had brought them together, after all. Could've been way worse. One prick out of the millions roaming this city didn't mean much in the grand scheme.

„Who knows," she thought darkly. „Maybe he'll eat some stray lead. At least then it'll be a lot quieter."

She shrugged.

"Eh. As long as he's no imminent danger to Jackie or Naruto, I don't have to do anything," she finally muttered to herself under her breath.

The crew kept moving, Kabuki's lights and noise fading behind them as they entered the harsher shadows of Northside. Less crowded, less alive, and somehow even less inviting.

Then again…
Is there really a nice place anywhere in Night City?

Officer Morales leaned against the rust-bitten rail of the overpass, visor down, body cam muted.
He'd been clocking the cyberpsycho below for the last 10 minutes—just long enough to know the crew approaching him had nothing to do with the psycho.

Quite the opposite, actually.

The tall, wiry one was pacing like a coked-up mantis—arms flailing, voice too loud, laughing at jokes only he found funny. Morales didn't need audio to know what kind of fool he was dealing with. Body language said it all: showboater. Zero awareness. The type who'd get flatlined mid-sentence and never see it coming.

He squared straight up to the psycho—who, by the way, was mid-piss against an old container, chrome arms twitching with barely suppressed vigor.

"What an idiot," Morales muttered. No way he was stepping in—not with how kitted-out the psycho looked. If this crew wanted to play heroes or make a name, let 'em. Morales had no interest in becoming meat paste for a BD archive.

He tapped his badge.
Switched the body cam into manual.
Bad feeling. Real bad.
The overlay blinked: RECORDING.

"This feels like something for Jones," he said under his breath. The psycho draws his gun.

The search for the Cyberpsycho led the group of misfits into a dark, shabby alley, cluttered with rusted containers and the stench of damp metal. From a distance—not far, but far enough—Naruto and the rest of the crew spotted him.

The Cyberpsycho stood near one of the containers… pissing casually into the street.

But what really caught Naruto's attention wasn't him. It was the group of people surrounding the psycho.

"Didn't Regina say there wasn't supposed to be anyone here? Mierda!" Jackie cursed under his breath.

V locked eyes with Naruto, her expression instantly grim. Hard. Cold.

"Wait… Naruto, isn't this—"

Naruto just nodded, throat too dry to speak, heart hammering. He was already zeroing in, scanning the figures around the Cyberpsycho.

It was them.
Lucy's crew.
Maine. Rebecca. Dorio. Kiwi. David.
And Pilar. Too close. Way too close.

"What the hell is he doing?" Naruto thought, panic flaring in his chest as the Cyberpsycho finished pissing and—without warning—drew his weapon.

Everything inside Naruto screamed move.

He didn't think.
Didn't hesitate.
Didn't wait for orders barked by V or Jackie.

The second that cold chill crept down his spine, he was already in motion.

The image was burned into his mind before it fully registered—the barrel inches from Pilar's head, the wide, dopey grin frozen on his face, and the glint of madness in the chrome psycho's eyes.

Too slow, Naruto thought, pushing his legs harder.

And then—impact.

It felt like hitting a freight truck wrapped in chrome and pure hatred. Naruto slammed into the psycho, tackling him sideways. They smashed into the alley wall with a shriek of metal and a shower of sparks, trash scattering like shrapnel.

Suddenly, the Cyberpsycho's body burst into flames—just for a second—and staggered. Naruto risked a glance back. The glowing intensity in Lucy's eyes said it all.

She was already in the network. Already backing him up. Quickhacks deployed.

But the Cyberpsycho didn't stop. He roared, his metal arms unfolding into jagged claws, slicing the air with killing intent. Naruto ducked under the first swipe, twisted past the second, barely dodged the third. Then—an opening.

A powerful punch to the gut. Enough to make most people drop.

Most people.

This one just snarled, relentless. The claws came again, faster, wilder—but Naruto was already moving backward, baiting him, leading him.

Back toward his crew.

Another hit.

Then Jackie charged in with brute force, delivering a crushing blow to the same spot Naruto had weakened. The psycho's armor dented—actually dented—and he staggered.

V and Sasuke moved in from opposite sides, flanking him, blades and gunfire dancing in sync. The Cyberpsycho suddenly had no room to breathe.

Amid the chaos, Maine's crew finally had time to react. Guns up. Cover taken. Breathing heavy but ready.

Now the real fight could begin.

All hell breaks loose the moment Maine's crew finally snapped out of their stupor and charged in to help Naruto's team—and Lucy—with the Cyberpsycho. And it worked.

As Naruto had once told V: the two of them were way too overqualified for a typical Cyberpsycho gig. But now? It wasn't just them anymore.

It was their crew.
And Maine's crew.
Both in full force.

While David helped a still-shaking, pale-as-a-ghost Pilar back to his knees, his eyes quickly darted toward the fight.

What he saw didn't look like a standard takedown.

Naruto and his team had the Cyberpsycho surrounded, kicking and punching like they were playing a brutal game of meat-grinder soccer. The only reason the chrome freak was still standing? Pure, inhuman endurance.

David's gaze flicked to his own people.

Rebecca was already going ballistic, unloading rounds with reckless joy. It was a miracle none of her bullets hit their new "allies"—then again, with Rebecca, you never really knew.

What made David pause, though, was the way Naruto's crew fought. Not to kill.
They were aiming to detain.

Crazy, in David's eyes. And his crew clearly hadn't gotten the memo.

Lucy remained in cover behind one of the containers, her hands a blur as she supported from the shadows—quickhacks lighting up her neural feed.

David spotted an opening. His fingers twitched.
Sandevistan: engaged.

Time stretched like taffy. He repositioned, lining up a perfect shot, his mother's face flashing uninvited through his mind—her death, the chaos, the grief.
He pulled the trigger—

—and missed.

The Cyberpsycho's head snapped away at the last second. Sasuke's fault. His katana had struck again, and the movement shifted their target just enough to ruin David's aim.

David clicked his tongue, frustrated. But Sasuke… he noticed.

"He can toggle his Sandi on and off?" the ex-corpo thought, intrigued. His obsidian eyes watched David carefully—but the moment didn't last.

The Cyberpsycho roared, louder and more desperate. His movements became erratic.

Naruto and V both jumped back to gain space. Even Jackie backed off for a beat, trying to reassess.

Lucy was still running support. The rest of her crew hadn't found good angles to strike. And then the psycho lunged—

Straight at David.

Sasuke's eyes narrowed. No more hesitation.

He toggled his own Sandevistan, the world slowing to a crawl.
His katana slid free in a fluid motion.

And then—
slice.

Blood exploded like a geyser. The Cyberpsycho's head was severed, landing several feet away from his twitching body. The alley fell silent, save for the metallic ringing of Sasuke's blade.

Sasuke wiped his katana on one of the few clean patches of his shirt, calm and precise, then sheathed it without a word.

David stared, equal parts awe and unease flickering in his eyes.

Sasuke met his gaze. Eyes locked. And for a long second, neither of them moved.

Then, slowly, a smirk curled across Sasuke's blood-smeared face. Arrogant, sure—but also curious. Because even he couldn't ignore it:

Another high-level Sandevistan user.

And maybe—just maybe—someone worth paying attention to.

Jackie, V, and Naruto stood frozen—eyes wide, jaws slack—as they stared at the bloodied corpse of the Cyberpsycho.

The headless corpse.

Sasuke Uchiha, their supposed new recruit, stood at the center of it, calm and silent, his katana still faintly dripping. He puts it away but not without cleaning it first. The bastard had a Sandevistan. A damn good one. And he hadn't said a word.

But that wasn't even the biggest problem.

They were supposed to take the Cyberpsycho alive.

Jackie and V exchanged a glance, the tension between them thick, but neither said a word. Not yet.

Naruto, on the other hand, looked like he was about to explode.

He stormed toward Sasuke, fists clenched, fury barely contained. David, still processing what he'd just witnessed, instinctively stepped aside as Naruto got right in Sasuke's face, their foreheads practically touching.

"Stupid asshole," Naruto growled. "We were supposed to take him alive!"

There was more behind it—gratitude, relief that David wasn't dead—but Naruto wasn't ready to admit any of that. Not with him.

Sasuke's glare met Naruto's fire. The air between them seemed to hum, a hair's breadth from combusting.

And then—beep beep.

A holo buzzed to life. Naruto flinched, scowling as he accepted the call and turned away from Sasuke.

Regina Jones appeared, her tone already icy.

"Hello, Naruto. I thought I made myself very clear when I said I wanted the Cyberpsychos alive."

Naruto scratched the back of his head, trying to sound casual—apologetic, even.

"Yeah, uh… sorry. We brought in a new guy for this one and he… kinda blew it."

He shot a sideways glare at Sasuke, who didn't even pretend to care.

Regina raised an eyebrow on the other end. "I got a witness report. NCPD officer saw the whole thing. Gave me a pretty detailed description."

A pause. Then:

"Did you take Sasuke Uchiha on this gig?"

Naruto blinked. V raised her eyebrows. Even Jackie stopped chewing his toothpick he brought out while stressed. The rest of the crew had gathered silently, listening in.

Regina let out a long, annoyed sigh.

"You know, there's a reason I never call Sasuke for Cyberpsycho gigs. The man doesn't have a concept of restraint. Or mercy."

Another sigh.

"Look. I'll let this one slide because your team's got a solid track record. But don't take him on another one of these. I don't want to see his name on another Cyberpsycho job."

Her voice softened just enough to sound vaguely disappointed.

"Try to put more effort in next time. This can't happen again."

The call ended with a final beep.

Naruto stood there for a moment, slowly turning to glance at Sasuke, a smug little smirk creeping onto his face. "Told you," he muttered under his breath.

Sasuke said nothing. He didn't even blink.

And beside them, David still stood wordless, eyes fixed on the spot where the Cyberpsycho's body had fallen—his thoughts racing, processing everything he just saw.

Including him.

Another Sandevistan user!

The dust began to settle. Tension faded like smoke, replaced by ragged breaths, bruises, and the dull ache of adrenaline burning out.

Dorio and Maine moved quickly, checking up on their people. Half the job involved prying Rebecca off her brother. The tiny ball of rage was flailing wildly, shouting at Pilar at full volume.

"I'MMA KILL YOU, IDIOT!"

Her voice cracked with emotion, something between rage and relief. Pilar—shaken but upright—was laughing nervously, clearly still processing his near-death experience.

Kiwi stood back, scanning the perimeter, calm as ever. Always detached. Always ready.

The only two people not with the group were Lucy and David.

David lingered near the corpse of the Cyberpsycho, his gaze flickering between the body… and Sasuke. One high-level Sandevistan user staring down another. Something unspoken passed between them—curiosity, competitiveness, a touch of fear.

Lucy stood alone, somewhere between the two crews. Her eyes were locked on him.

The blond Netrunner. The one who'd just saved yet another member of her crew. First it was her. Then Pilar. Maybe even David, in a roundabout way.

She didn't know how to feel about that.

Until recently, she never let herself get close to anyone. She liked the crew—sure—but she never gave them everything. Night City taught her better. Keep people an arm's length away. Closer, and they start to matter. Closer, and they can break you.

But this guy… Naruto.

He didn't just tear into the battlefield with no hesitation—he pulled her out of her shell without even realizing it. He challenged her, encouraged her, saw her. And damn it all, he was good. Netrunning skills, combat instincts, raw stamina—and somehow still warm. Still good.

And okay… yeah, he was handsome. She flushed at the thought, annoyed with herself—but it faded fast when she saw him walking toward her.

That damn smile.

Naruto approached her, face warm, eyes bright with relief. For her. Them. Lucy's heart skipped a beat.

"You alright?" he asked, scratching his cheek in that awkwardly charming way of his.

Lucy gave a casual wave of her hand, a mix of dismissal and quiet gratitude. "I'm fine," she said coolly, though inside, she wasn't nearly as composed.

Naruto just smiled wider. Didn't press. Just… stood there, radiating calm.

Lucy looked away before she melted.

Behind them, Sasuke scowled and looked in another direction. David, still watching, frowned—though not for the same reason.

The moment broke when Pilar stumbled up, arms wide. "AHHH, thanks, Naruto! You're a real choom! I'd be toast without you!"

He practically tackled Naruto, mock-crying as he clung to him.

Rebecca was right behind him, socking Naruto's shoulder a bit too hard. "Tch. Don't let it go to your head, Blondie," she muttered, even as a rare smile tugged at her lips.

The two crews slowly began mingling. Laughter, handshakes, introductions. Surprisingly smooth for a bunch of high-strung edgerunners. The only ones still off to the side were Sasuke—cool and removed as ever—and Kiwi, keeping her distance as she scanned.

Eventually, Naruto noticed Maine staring at him from across the crowd. The older merc didn't blink, didn't flinch—just watched.

It started to get uncomfortable.

Then Maine finally spoke.

"This the second time you showed up for us, kid," he said, adjusting his shades. "Let me return the favor."

Naruto tilted his head.

"I'm taking you to the Afterlife," Maine continued. "You do one clean gig for a fixer there, you get your people in yourself. I won't bring the whole gang, but you? You've earned the step up."

Silence fell for a beat.

Jackie's jaw dropped. Naruto blinked, unsure he heard right. V's brow raised, still trying to gauge the full implications.

Sasuke looked bored. Or maybe he was listening more carefully than he let on. Maybe there was a reason to stick to them afterall.

"I… uh…" Naruto stammered, rubbing the back of his neck. "I'm flattered, Maine. Thanks."

Jackie slapped his shoulder with a grin. "¡Órale! You're our ticket to the major leagues, holmes!"

Maine just nodded and turned away, already lighting a fresh cigar.

Lucy watched it all, her eyes softening. She didn't smile, but inside… something warm bloomed. Pride, maybe. Or something deeper.

She didn't notice David, standing behind her, staring at her back.

That look. She doesn't look at me like that.

His jaw tightened. His hand clenched. But as his eyes drifted to the side, they caught another figure—Rebecca, already making her way toward him, curiosity in her eyes.

Maybe that was for the best.

Time passed. The high of battle faded, replaced by fatigue, by the weight of what had happened. Everyone felt it—heavy, silent, unspoken.

Kiwi was the first to go. Cold and composed as ever, she slipped into the night without a word.

Sasuke followed, just a nod and a sharp turn. No goodbyes. No lingering looks. No explanations. As expected.

Jackie's holo rang next. Misty. Judging by the way he swore under his breath, he'd forgotten something important. "¡Hijo de…! I promised her I'd be there an hour ago," he muttered before tossing Naruto and crew a half-salute and jogging off with a lopsided grin.

Dorio and Maine weren't far behind. Their eyes met—once, twice, again—and something unspoken passed between them. Whatever fire the adrenaline sparked, it was still burning. They disappeared together into the dark.

David lingered.

He didn't know where to go.

He usually would've followed Lucy. Said something—anything. But not tonight. Not after seeing that look in her eyes. That… softness she reserved for someone else now. Not him.

His gaze drifted to Naruto, who was currently enduring an overly affectionate goodbye from Pilar. The lanky man had wrapped his long arms around Naruto like a lifeline, mock-crying into his shoulder while Rebecca shook her head in second-hand embarrassment.

David looked again at Lucy. She hadn't stopped looking at Naruto since he walked toward her.

He sighed.

"Ya know," came a voice at his side. Sharp, blunt, caring in its own gruff way. Rebecca. "You could come with us. Chill. Watch some trash flicks. I'll even let you pick the first one."

David blinked. Looked at her. She wasn't teasing—not completely, anyway. Her offer was real. Warm. Safe.

He looked back at Lucy. Then Naruto.

"I'd like that," he said softly.

Rebecca gave a small smile—half mischief, half genuine happiness. David thought it was… kind of cute, actually.

He took one last look at the two, then turned to say goodbye. He left with the siblings, the air lighter around him now.

Only Naruto, Lucy, and V remained.

Naruto and V were just about to head off when a voice cut the silence.

"Wait!"

Naruto and V froze. Turned.

Lucy stood there, eyes locked onto Naruto's. Her voice was strong, but her expression was unsure.

"Can you come with me? I wanna show you something."

Naruto blinked. Surprised.

V grinned the moment she caught on, already halfway out the door emotionally. "I don't have a problem with that," she smirked, arms crossed like she was watching a juicy drama unfold.

Naruto flushed slightly, caught off guard. "Ehm… okay," he said, glancing at V.

"Please don't do anything stupid," he muttered at her like an older brother catching his sibling mid-prank.

V scoffed, folding her arms tighter. "You ask that like I'm you," she quipped. "Just remember, kids—use protection!" she added with a devilish grin before vanishing into the night with a dramatic wave.

Naruto sighed. "She's not gonna let that go, is she?"

Lucy chuckled under her breath, turning her face away so he wouldn't see the faint blush rising in her cheeks.

Naruto looked at her, curiosity in his eyes. "So… what do you wanna show me?"

Instead of answering, Lucy turned on her heel, the motion fluid, confident—like she was trying to hide just how nervous she really felt.

She waved her hand behind her back once, a quiet gesture for him to follow.

Naruto smiled and did just that, walking into the dark beside her, the city lights flickering behind them.

The edge of the world never looked so peaceful.

They sat at the top of Lucy's apartment building—high above the chaos of Night City. The rooftop was a forgotten piece of the past, all cracked concrete, faded caution tape, and rusted scaffolding. Once a launch platform for shuttles and cargo, now it was nothing more than a relic—still and silent.

The skyline stretched endlessly around them. A labyrinth of steel and neon that pulsed faintly in the distance, its hum barely reaching them this high up. Up here, the noise felt far away. Like the city belonged to someone else.

But the real view wasn't the city. It was the sky.

A soft blue glow shimmered above, with the moon bright and proud in a starless canvas. Lucy lay on her back, eyes locked on that silver light, like it might answer something she never said out loud. The silence wasn't awkward—it was peaceful. Healing. Just the low thrum of dormant machines and the synchronized rhythm of two people finally catching their breath.

Naruto sat beside her—quiet, unsure, but present. Lucy didn't speak at first. She didn't need to. The moment was already more open than most conversations. Her body language said enough.

And for her, this place… this wasn't just a rooftop. It was hope. A sliver of a dream beyond all the chrome, grit, and gravity of the city below.

Here, under the dying light, they weren't mercs. Not edge-runners.

Just two souls, staring at the stars, wondering what could be.

"So this is where you live, huh?" Naruto broke the silence at last, voice soft, like he didn't want to disturb the quiet too much. The drive here had been wordless. Just like now.

Lucy didn't look at him. Her eyes remained fixed on the moon.

"Why did you come to this city of all places?" she asked suddenly, her tone sharp—but not unkind. She wasn't looking for small talk. She wanted something real.

"You always mention you're not native to this place," she added, her voice quieter now, curious. "So why Night City?"

Naruto blinked. It was a loaded question. He scratched the side of his face, unsure how to answer.

"It's not like I came here for shits and giggles," he said with a casual shrug, masking something heavier beneath.

But Lucy picked up on it. Her eyes narrowed, zeroing in on him.

"That makes it worse, doesn't it?" she replied, voice firmer now. "You could be anywhere. Anywhere at all. And you chose here?"

She looked back up at the sky. The moon cast a cold glow over her features.

"This city... feels like a cage," she whispered.

Her gaze locked with his, intense and searching. And though she didn't know it, her words hit a little too close to home for him.

Naruto didn't answer. Not right away. The air between them grew still again. He could in fact not go anywhere, but she doesn't need to know this,

Lucy didn't wait. "Didn't you ever look at the sky—at the moon—and wish you could go there?" Her voice wavered slightly, full of something raw. "Just… leave all this behind?"

Naruto looked at her. Saw that hunger in her eyes—for something better, something bigger than the streets and chrome and blood. And in that moment, he realized how much she meant it.

Lucy was always beautiful. But in the city's twilight, illuminated by moonlight and conviction, she looked… stunning.

He forced himself to look away.

"I never went to the moon, obviously," he said quietly. "But... back where I'm from… I wasn't allowed to go out much."

He hesitated. His eyes lowered, memories pressing in.

"Every mission was an excuse to see the sky. Even if it was just for a second. The stars looked different depending on where we were… and the moon—"

His voice softened.

"The moon always looked like it ruled over all of them. Like a king. And when we were far from the cities, the sky felt alive."

Lucy's eyes widened slightly at the word mission. She didn't interrupt, but her gaze sharpened. Noted it. The rest hit home.

Naruto's voice faded to a near-whisper.

"I never thought about actually going there, though."

The silence that followed wasn't empty. It was full. Full of everything he didn't say, and everything Lucy understood anyway.

She turned, her own expression unreadable, and looked toward a launch facility in the distance—its long-dead rockets rusting in place, save for one preparing for a rare test.

Then she made a decision.

One she hadn't made lightly.

From a small pouch, she pulled out her most treasured item—a BD chip. Its casing was worn but well-kept. She held it toward Naruto with quiet purpose.

"I want to show you this," she said.

Naruto stared at it.

And for a moment… he felt déjà vu. Like he'd been here before. At a crossroads. About to step into someone else's soul. This time around, it was somebody else wanting to show him a BD, though.

He reached out.

BD Sequence start

The moment it starts, reality slips away—softly, like a sigh. The harsh lights of Night City, the weight of chrome and blood and noise... all of it dissolves into a tranquil silence.

Suddenly, Naruto is standing on the Moon. Astronaut helmet on his head

The sky above is black velvet, endless and speckled with stars so sharp they almost hum. Earth hangs in the distance, a swirling sphere of blue and white—alive, distant, and untouchable. Beneath his feet, the Moon's dust glows pale under the silver light, disturbed only by the faint imprint of footsteps.

The BD is quiet.. But hits the mark.

Lucy appears beside him, her silhouette sharp in the lunar light, helmet off, eyes exposed. She smiles—but it's slower, more real than before. Not the polished smile of a preloaded experience, but something human. Vulnerable. She doesn't walk ahead like she did before.

Instead, she reaches out, and takes his hand.

They walk—not float, not sprint—just walk, side by side across the lunar surface. The silence isn't lonely; it's comforting. The weightlessness isn't dizzying; it's freeing. The simulation has changed—no rush to chase stars, no leap into fantasy. Just presence. A shared breath between them.

After a while, they stop at a ridge. Earth looms above them, and Lucy sits down in the dust, pulling Naruto down beside her. There's no monologue about dreams, no voiceover, no rehearsed lines. Just her head on his shoulder. His hand in hers.

And maybe—just maybe—a quiet promise forming in the silence:
Not just to reach the Moon…
But to stay there. Together.

This BD isn't about escaping anymore.
It's about belonging.

BD sequence end

The BD fades out with a soft static hum, leaving behind only the rustle of wind and the slow, building sound of a rocket charging in the distance. Naruto pulls the headset off, blinking slowly, eyes wide—not from the tech, but from what he just felt.

He understands now.

He turns to Lucy.

She's not looking at him.

Not at first.

Her silhouette remains bathed in the pale wash of moonlight and neon, still facing the horizon. But her posture—normally so composed—tells another story now. Unsure. Vulnerable. Raw.

And Naruto… he doesn't know what to say. Not because he doesn't feel anything, but because he feels too much. That BD wasn't just a dream. It was her soul, recorded frame by frame. Her hope, her pain, her escape plan.

He's seen pain before. Loss. He's been there. But this? This was different.

Then she speaks—soft, barely above the hum of the city below.

"You know how it usually ends for edgerunners…" Lucy says, giving him a sideways glance. Her voice is tired. Honest. "We fly high… just to burn just as hot in the end."

Naruto's breath catches.

Lucy turns fully now, eyes glinting beneath her bangs, the moonlight catching on the edges of her hair.

"It's my dream to escape this hell," she admits. "To go to the moon. Just once. To feel free. Truly free."

She runs a hand through her streaked, multicolored hair—nervous. Unfiltered. Almost like she regrets saying it out loud.

But Naruto doesn't laugh.

He doesn't joke.

He looks at her—really looks. And his expression shifts. The weight of old failures, promises broken, lives he couldn't save—Songbird—they all rush back to him. That ache in his chest that never really left.

This time, he can do something.

"I'm gonna help you get to the moon," he says, voice low but burning with conviction. "Believe it."

Lucy's breath hitches. Her eyes search his for something—doubt, uncertainty, a catch.

There isn't one.

Then… without warning, she steps forward.

Spins.

And kisses him.

It's quick. Soft. Just a brush of lips—but it says everything.

Gratitude. Hope. Maybe even something more, something neither of them are ready to name just yet.

The rocket in the distance fires.

Flames bloom into the night sky.

And two souls—so different, yet so similar—stand in silence, watching it rise.

Maybe, just maybe…

They'll rise too.

Tucked beneath the marble sheen and mirrored walls of a NUSA intelligence fortress, Songbird's den pulses with silent tension.

On the surface, it's sterile—surgical white lights, high-polish surfaces, the precision of military engineering. But beneath that gloss lies something raw. Alive. Unstable.

The entrance is sealed behind biometric gates and wrapped in enough counter-intrusion tech to smother a black ICE swarm. Metal mesh coils through the walls like veins, layered behind baffled metal and encrypted alloys. When the door hisses open, the silence hits like a wall.

Inside: dim blue undertones, curved walls bending inward, the kind of architecture that subtly reminds you of captivity. Floating holo-projectors drift in idle spirals, projecting classified intel and deep-city threat scans. A thousand streams of data trickle across the glass floor—liquid light underfoot, glowing like oil in rain.

At the center sits Songbird's throne.

A NUSA prototype. It's less chair and more organism—wires like tendrils, surfaces that flex and breathe with her bio-signals. Its neural jacks connect directly to her spine, a symphony of synth-skin and quantum-threaded cabling blooming outward like arteries. This is where she lives now.

Not a hideout.

A war room.

No comfort. No clutter. No trace of who she was before.

And Songbird? She barely looks human anymore. Sitting still, jacked in deep, her body reads more like an extension of the interface. Gold-threaded neural lines shimmer faintly across her temple, faint as memory.

The system adapts to her—lights shift with her mood, heat modulates to her cognitive strain. It's like the room is trying to keep her alive.

Or keep her contained.

She doesn't care which anymore.

Since Naruto's disappearance, her workload has quadrupled. Myers' suspicion grows by the hour. Surveillance on her is constant now—biometric logs, pattern sweeps, mind-state diagnostics. She's got less freedom than a combat drone.

But that's fine. It's worth it.

She saved him. They only messed with his arm.

That thought brings her a rare flicker of warmth. The last ember of rebellion in a life now measured by code throughput and firewall breach rates.

Her memories slip more each day. Brooklyn. Her old street. The smell of rain and cracked pavement. She tries to hold onto them, but they blur—edges softening, colors fading. Cybernetics strip more than nerves and flesh. They take roots. They take context.

She's becoming what she always feared: a mind without a past.

And then—the air shifts.

Colder. Heavier.

Myers enters.

The President of the New United States doesn't walk—she arrives, like gravity. Sharp suit. Sharper eyes. She stares down Songbird like a hawk judging its favorite tool.

"Our search for Naruto… was unsuccessful," she says, voice clipped. "The probability that someone took him is now alarmingly high."

Songbird swallows the instinct to smile. She lets her expression shift just enough—professional grief, practiced concern.

He made it to Night City.

He's free.

But Myers isn't done. Her mind's already moving.

"This is troublesome," she mutters, half to herself. "He was key to the blackwall interface protocols. Our breakthroughs relied heavily on his biometrics."

Her voice tightens.

"Hansen's movements have increased. Militech chatter's louder than ever. We're tracking a mole—and something big on the horizon."

She gives Songbird a long, appraising look.

"You'll be briefed on your next assignments. Expect full immersion. Immediate."

Then she's gone—like a knife pulled from flesh.

The door hisses shut. Silence returns.

And Songbird, once alone again, allows her face to crack—a flash of exhaustion, pain, and bitterness too old for her years. Then it's gone. Expression reset. Calm restored.

She looks down at the web of cables surrounding her.

"I hope you're making memories, Naruto," she murmurs.

Her hands return to the controls.

And she begins to work.

Work that's slowly—efficiently—killing her.

President Myers' office doesn't just command respect—it demands it.

Perched atop the NUSA's most secure complex—an Arasaka-retrofitted black tower buried deep in the heart of Washington Free State—the room is less an office and more a throne room carved from war and will.

Floor-to-ceiling smartglass windows wrap around behind her desk, casting the space in a pale, sun-bleached glow. The city beyond is distant and veiled in smog, a faint echo of industry and control. Night City lies too far to see—but its presence lingers like a phantom itch. Always just out of sight. Never out of mind.

The room is silent. Not quiet—silent. Purposefully so.

Clean architectural lines. No clutter. No comfort. Walls of brushed steel and matte black composite, engineered to repel both bullets and secrets. Holographic seals of the New United States shimmer faintly behind her—flawless, flickering in and out with rhythmic pulses.

A single NUSA flag stands at her side, perfectly still in unseen climate control. It never moves. It never needs to.

Her desk is pure military precision—carbon fiber with embedded biometric locks and touch interfaces. No drawers. No pens. No paper. Nostalgia has no place here. Only authority. Only control. One command away from orbital strikes or global communications lockdowns.

And still, the most dangerous thing in the room is her.

President Rosalind Myers stands behind that desk now, synth-coffee in one hand, several high-priority files in the other. Her posture doesn't betray fatigue, but her eyes scan each page like they're battlefield maps—and they are.

She has just returned from speaking with Songbird. Still distrustful. Still uncertain. But more focused than ever.

There's something she didn't share with the netrunner.

The Blackwall AI. The one that vanished alongside Naruto.

A detail she's chosen to keep classified—even from someone like Songbird. Even from someone who was almost a friend. Because if there's one truth Myers lives by, it's this:

Keep your allies close. Your enemies closer. And no one too close to your real intentions.

She sips her coffee.

Naruto's disappearance gnaws at her—not because she believes he's dead, but because she doesn't. That brat's too stubborn. Too useful. And now he's loose in Night City—a volatile mix of corporate anarchy, fractured loyalties, and unpredictable tech.

A free state, yes. But one with roots too deep in Arasaka soil. And Arasaka getting their hands on him?

Unacceptable.

Naruto was never meant to carry so much weight. And yet… he did. Carried it better than Songbird, maybe. Carried it like it was second nature.

That's what made him dangerous.

And valuable.

She leans back slightly, data projections shifting across her desk as she considers next steps. Scenarios. Asset recovery. Denial operations. Diplomatic cover.

Maybe it's time to call in old favors. Not to bring him back—not yet—but to watch. To contain. To make sure that if the game changes again, she's already several moves ahead.

She takes another long sip. Bitter. Strong. Just the way she likes it.

The game's not over.

It's just beginning.

Chapter 7 end

Notes:I'm sorry for stealing Davids moments... kinda. I appreciate every comment so far. Now I have to actually rewatch Edgerunners again to refresh my memories. It's gonna break my heart (again) but it has to be done. Wish me luck!

Thanks for reading!